Foreword
Life and the Universe pose certain questions to the thinking individual, and how he answers them depends largely on his pattern of thinking. What, in the first place, establishes this pattern? It is quite simply, the urge to worship. But to worship whom, or what?
A man either worships God, or some entity other than God. His whole way of thinking is then governed by his choice. All his trust and devotion are centred in that Being or thing: that is what becomes the most important force in his life, for his actions flow from his faith and his urge to worship. That, in effect, is what makes up his religion.
Islam, the preserved form of religion, teaches us that behind this world, the will of an all-powerful Creator and Master is at work. One day, everyone will be brought before Him to be judged, and on that fateful day, His will be the final word on human success or failure.
The discovery of this Reality is of much greater importance than the discovery of a mere mathematical formula. It is to recognise that one is nothing, has nothing, that God is everything, has everything in His power, is Lord of all creation. With this realization comes the desire to become a slave of the Almighty. One who makes this discovery becomes, quite naturally, a completely altered human being, for his life is then bathed in a divine light; his heart and mind are completely captivated. When he hears and sees, it is with the hearing and vision of his Maker. The darkness in which his ideas and thinking had formerly been plunged, is banished by the discovery of God; every fiber of his being is lit up by this discovery, just as if a new sun had climbed into the sky.
The discovery of God takes place in the human mind, but a man feels its effect throughout his entire being. He loses himself and finds God. With God living in his thoughts he belongs entirely to Him. His entire being is enslaved and prostrates itself before his Lord. One excellent consequence of this is his beginning to treat his fellow human beings as befits a devout servant of God. Where others act out of egoism, he proceeds with humility. Where others are vengeful in attitude, he is invariably forgiving. Where others are cruel and unjust, he is always kind and merciful. Where people, thinking only of themselves cut themselves off from others, he comes closer to people in order to keep up good social relations. Whereas others prefer to keep what they have in order to increase their own prosperity, he derives pleasure from giving to others. While people chase after the pleasures of this world, he remains absorbed in the hidden world of the Hereafter. Such is the life of truth, which has been shown in all its perfection through the teachings and examples of the Prophet.
To follow their example is to attach oneself to God. Those who do so also attach themselves, quite naturally, to their fellowmen, wishing as they do, to share with them the goodness they have found. Their outward conduct thus begins to reflect their inner state.
It is natural that, in this world, everyone should live for some thing. Some live for money, some for power, some for glory. There is no one who does not have some cherished desire, the attainment of which gives him a major satisfaction in life. The objects of human ambition are numberless and can arouse in the human breast all kinds of hopes, fears, longings and agonies. The fulfillment of these ambitions is obviously associated with happiness, and their non-fulfillment with grief.
Religion directs human beings just as certainly towards a goal, but it is along quite another path, because the goal, itself, is so different. The kind of life led by those directed in this way entirely depends upon the nature of the religion they have adopted. Their thinking, emotions, activities, commitments, transactions all revolve around whatever has been accepted by them as their religion. Their lives are ruled by it, so that just as they make all-out efforts in their everyday lives to attain material goals, so do they spare no effort to attain the non-material goals placed before them by religion. Even if they cannot draw near to these goals, they take care to do nothing, which would take them further away from them.
The non-material goal of religion demands the same will, effort, concentration and dedication as the material goal. But the quality of such application in the former case is superior, because it is illuminated by divine inspiration, whereas in the latter case it definitely is not. Waking or sleeping, the devotee clings to his religion throughout his entire life as the mainstay of his existence. There is no particle of his being which remains insensitive to the effects of religion.
Religion, as viewed by individuals of differing beliefs, may pertain to God, or may pertain to entities other than God. Everyone is free to adopt whichever religion he pleases. But free as he is, it is in his choice of religion that man is being put to the test in this world. His choice of a God-centred, or a godless religion will be what determines his fate in the life after death. Men are led astray by the fact that it is quite possible to choose a godless religion, and yet be materially successful in this world; one may ignore God, and yet have honour and glory in this life. What they do not see is that none of this means anything at all in the life after death. Worldly successes accompany one only as far as the grave. Beyond the grave, a man who has depended solely on material things to support him through life will find himself at that point totally bereft of any props on which he could conceivably lean. He will come face to face with the Almighty, in all His Power and Glory, and thanks to his godless religion, he will find himself utterly defenseless. The only man to have honour and success in the Hereafter will be one who has taken God’s religion to himself while still in the land of the living. Beyond the grave, it is too late; he who has adopted a godless religion will be faced with eternal doom in the after-life.
The religion of God is the true, natural religion to adopt. The truth of this suddenly becomes plain in moments of crisis. Whatever the religion a man adopts, when the whirlpool of events sends him spiraling downwards to his doom, he forgets all else and turns to God. It is experiences of this nature which prove that the only true religion is the religion of God, the one on which a man should base his entire life. If he adopts any other religion, a time will come, sooner or later when it will prove to be without substance. When disaster looms large, all its supports will be shown to be false.
Nature provides a pointer towards the future, everlasting world. One who listens to its appeal, and moulds his life accordingly, will be the truly successful individual in this life, and in the Hereafter.
