FOREWORD

God has created an incredibly vast universe. The vastness of the universe is proof of the infinite vastness of God. Man’s existence is proof of the existence of God. God has also given man the power and technology to behold the vastness of His creation. He wants man to be able to look at himself and the world around him and see a reflection of the face of his Lord. He wants man to find answers to questions relating to the creation and get to know his Creator.

If a man opens his mind to the signs of God around him, the universe will become a manifestation of God’s splendour. He will discover his Lord by observing them. While dwelling in an earthly abode, he would see and feel nothing but the Lord on high. He will acknowledge that everything is from God. Seeing that he has no power in this world, he will look to God for help and protection. The beauty of this world will remind him of God’s beauty; the greatness of natural phenomena impresses on him the greatness of the One who created them. So absorbed will he be in the glory of God that he will love nothing more than to spend his time singing the praises of the Lord.

To believe in God is to see the invisible force behind visible objects. It requires a unique vision, enabling individuals to penetrate superficial forms and perceive the ultimate reality. A person endowed with such vision sees God’s greatness everywhere; he looks only to God as great. He submits entirely to God and trusts in Him alone. So engrossed in God’s overpowering greatness does he become that all worldly creatures, including himself, fade into insignificance in his sight. The essence of religion is to believe in the meaningfulness of the universe, which is yet unseen, for, in this world, all higher realities lie hidden.

God has given every human being opportunities; some use them to earn the world, others to gain everlasting life. Seeing opportunities as God’s gifts and using them in the service of God will earn a man the everlasting gardens, Paradise in the Hereafter. Each step that man takes in this world leads him relentlessly toward one of the two extremes: Paradise or Hell. Everyone will want to be counted among God’s humble servants on the Last Day. This privilege will only be for those who, before the coming of that day, show themselves to be deserving of divine approval. It is those pure souls that will be found deserving of Paradise.

Paradise is for those sublime souls who live in the consciousness of God’s eternal greatness. Paradise is for those who have a living faith.  Living faith in God means seeing God as having limitless powers. One who finds such a God does not remain the same person as one before having that experience. When faith reaches its culmination, it is converted into dawah which means to give words to the wordless melody of the universe. Dawah means to act as a representative of God on God’s earth. A dayee or one who calls people to God is a person who converts God’s silent communication into an audible one. He hears the message from the Creator and delivers it to the people.

Wahiduddin Khan

January 2021
New Delhi, India