ON THE THRESHOLD OF PARADISE
The present world is now reaching its end. Now, the time has finally come for man to awaken, take lessons from the signs in nature and history, and plan his life according to God’s creation plan so that it will avail him in his post-death period. One who loses this opportunity must know that another such opportunity will not come again.
Man has been seeking a Paradise on Earth for thousands of years in response to his natural urges. With the coming of the Industrial Revolution and the age of consumerism, man actually thought that he could build a Paradise on Earth, that the industrial age would culminate into the perfect world—Paradise—that he longed for. The superficiality of the notion that man could make a Paradise on Earth was savagely dashed with the coming of pollution, acid rain and global warming. And finally, the Covid-19 pandemic made man realize to the last extent that he cannot build a Paradise on Earth.
The situation of the present world shows that not only is it impossible to build a paradise on Earth, but the present world has almost reached its end. Such signs, both in nature and in history, appear continually. It seems that the period destined by the Creator for the present world of testing man is now reaching its end, and the time has come for this temporary world to be terminated so that the eternal world of the hereafter may replace it. These words of the Quran are indicative of this reality.
“On that Day We shall roll up the heavens like a scroll of parchment. As We originated the first creation, so shall We repeat it. This is a promise binding on Us. Truly, We shall fulfil it.” (21:104)
Today, a man stands on the threshold of Paradise. Paradise is the final period of the journey of civilization. Paradise will only be found in a state of perfection in the world Hereafter. There, man will find a life of joy, peace and happiness forever. There will be no necessity for physical labour; pleasant intellectual activities will suffice to achieve all desired goals.
Therein, all types of limitations and disadvantages will be brought to an end: there will be no fear or grief, nor will there be any noise or pain. All those potentialities that have been apparent to man from the very first day will be fulfilled in the world of paradise. In Paradise, man will find an eternal life in which old age, accidents, disease and death are absent. This will be the ideal world where man will be able to utilize the full potential of his personality, thus experiencing complete fulfilment.
Human history has a beginning as well as an end. The end of human history will be followed by another world—a flawless one in the fullest sense. This world will be inhabited by the selected people from all over human history. In a similar vein, the Quran tells us that:
“My righteous servants shall inherit the earth.” (21:105)
Man must realize that he stands on the threshold of Paradise. The question is, how can man achieve the Paradise of his dreams? In the present world of trial, any man or woman, to be eligible for Paradise, needs to have two qualifications: one is to acknowledge the Truth of the one God, and the other is to lead a principled life. Those men and women who qualify in this test will be given a place in eternal Paradise—where all their desires will be fulfilled. For those who fail in this test, they shall spend their lives in a state of eternal deprivation.
In the present world, man finds himself totally free. However, this freedom does not belong to him as a matter of right; rather, it is a test paper. What man has to do is acknowledge the Truth of One God and surrender to him—not by compulsion but by his own choice. This surrendering before the Truth of One God is, without doubt, the greatest sacrifice that any man can make. Acknowledging the Truth of One God is like making oneself smaller, not only to God but to others as well. But this is the very virtue that will raise man to the highest position. It will take him to the very entrance of Paradise.
The second important thing in this set of requirements is to lead a principled life. Generally, what happens is that a man’s character is moulded by his emotions—anger, revenge, jealousy, hatred, rivalry, etc. These are the negative feelings that shape a man’s personality. But what man ought to do is to become disciplined in such matters. He should not build his character under the influence of external incentives, but by his own decisions, he should establish it on the basis of higher principles. This is what is called Divine Character. And only people with such a divine character will be selected by God to inhabit eternal Paradise.
