THE TEACHINGS
OF THE PROPHET
The teachings of Prophet Muhammad bring God’s servants in contact with the Creator, make them understand how to establish a relationship with God and helps them understand the purpose of their life, so that they can achieve eternal salvation.
I would like to state here briefly the message which has been given to us by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him (PBUH)). This message can be placed under three headings:
- The right concept of God.
- The purpose behind man’s creation and his relation with the universe.
- What man should do to establish his relationship with God?
The first thing the Prophet has told us is that there is a God of this universe. He is the one and only God and has no partner in any capacity. He is Almighty and He is the controller of all the happenings in the Universe. Here I would like to quote a verse from the Quran which expresses fully and succinctly the Islamic concept of God:
God: there is no deity save Him, the Living, the Eternal One. Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him. To Him belongs whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is on the earth. Who can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows all that is before them and all that is behind them. They can grasp only that part of His knowledge which He wills. His throne extends over the heavens and the earth; and their upholding does not weary Him. He is the Sublime, the Almighty One! (2:255)
Other matters explained by God’s Prophet are the purpose of man’s creation and His relation with the universe. He made it clear that since man was born to be tested, he had been granted freedom of action and God had conveyed to him His Will. Now the Lord wants to see who obeys His will and who does not. The relation of man with the universe is also subservient to this purpose. This universe is not the monopoly or property of any person or nation. Neither is it a haphazard place. It is designed rather to help man in discharging the duties assigned to him by God. This world is, in fact, our field of action where we have been placed to take our test. This is the position of the world. A time has been fixed for this test. The time for an individual is the duration of his lifespan, and the time for entire humanity will extend till doomsday. After that the Lord of the universe will gather all men and women together and will reward or punish them in accordance with their deeds. And then those who pass this test will be rewarded with paradise and those who fail will be sent to Hell. This will take place in the life Hereafter. The present world is the beginning of our life and the Hereafter will be our final destination. In this way God has made us aware of our future. This future world has been kept hidden from our eyes, which was necessary if we are to be tested here. But when this testing period is over, this hidden world will appear before us with the same clarity as this present world is visible to us now We know only the world which is visible to us, yet the reality of a thing is not just what it appears to be. Sunlight appears to be of a bright yellow colour. But, in fact, it is a combination of seven bright colours. In exactly the same way, there is another life hidden in our present life. We will see this life only after death.
The life hereafter is not a purely metaphysical concept: it is profoundly related to our lives. History tells us that when man becomes free from the fear of God, there is nothing to check him from oppressing and exploiting others. Those who have tried reform by means of law and politics have only re-introduced exploitation in a new form. There has been no change in the real situation. Real reform is possible only when man has an inner urge to opt for the right path and shun the wrong one. The only thing that can produce this inner feeling is the fear that he is accountable to God in the next life. We are compelled to take the support of the Hereafter to make man just and honest. There is no other way to achieve this objective.
There are certain people who hold that the concept of the life hereafter is an imaginary one. And if the argument they use to prove their contention is taken to be valid, then the entire universe shall have to be taken as imaginary, including our own existence. But at this point I will not discuss this in detail. I can only say that if the Hereafter is imaginary, then why is it that without it we cannot build a social system in the real sense?
Remove this concept from human minds and our life becomes disorderly. Can anything which is so essential for life have no real existence? Is there any example to be found in this universe of something which allegedly has no existence in reality but is still so real, or of something which is considered so irrelevant to life but has so much relevance? The concept of the Hereafter is absolutely necessary for the right and just organization of life. This necessity itself shows that the Hereafter is the greatest reality of this universe. Although it remains invisible to the eye, it is the most certain and most real of all the things in this world. This is quite undeniable.
The third thing which we have been told by the Prophet of God (PBUH) provides an answer to what man should do to establish his relationship with God. This can be expressed under three separate headings: Zikr, Ibadat, Qurbani.
Zikr (remembrance) means to keep God in mind all the time. God should be remembered in all aspects in the way laid down by the Prophet.
Ibadat (worship) means those acts which have been set forth in the Shariah so that the spiritual aspect of man is made to prevail over his material aspect. For this, such ways of worship are prescribed as to bring man psychologically closer to God.
Qurbani (sacrifice) means sacrificing one’s feelings and emotions and wealth for the cause of God. When man sacrifices the things dear to him in the name of God, it is as if he makes his feelings subservient to God. In this way, this sacrifice brings him very close to his Lord. This remembrance of the Lord and worship and sacrifice are not separate from one another but are different manifestations of the same reality. They are an expression of the extreme attachment of man to his Lord. When man remembers his dearest God with all his heart and all his soul, it is called zikr. When overcome by his feelings, he surrenders himself wholly to God, it is worship. And when he gives away his possessions in the path of God, it is called sacrifice. The Prophet guides us on this path and brings God’s servants in contact with the Creator.
