Prefer the Hereafter over
the Present World
In this world the real test of a person is that he should prefer the Hereafter to the present world, by controlling his desires and not behaving arrogantly.
Chapter 79 of the Quran states: “[O Men!] Are you more difficult to create than the heaven which He has built, by raising its vault high and fashioning it flawlessly, and making its night dark and bringing forth its morning light, and the earth which He spread out, after that bringing forth from it its water and its pasture land, and making the mountains firm: [all this] as a means of sustenance for you and your animals?
When the great overwhelming event arrives, on the Day that man remembers what he strove for and Hell is there for all to see, anyone who has acted arrogantly and prefers the life of this world, will find himself in Hell; but one who fears to stand before his Lord and restrained himself from base desires, shall dwell in Paradise. They will ask you [Prophet] about the Hour, saying, ‘When it will come to pass?’, what have you to do with the mentioning of it? Your Lord alone knows when it will come; you are but a warner for those who fear it. On the Day when they see it, they will feel as if they had tarried in this world for only one evening or one morning.” (79:27-46)
The magnificent phenomenon before us in the shape of the universe is so great that all other things are small in comparison to it. So, in the world when the occurrence of a big event is possible, why should the occurrence of a small event not be possible? There are already many factors in existence on a large scale which explain the Quran’s declaration that human beings shall one Day have to face resurrection.
Every person is between two domains. One is the present world, which is before him, and the other is the world of the Hereafter, which is hidden from view. The real test of a person is that he should prefer the Hereafter to the present world. But this can be done only by one who has the courage to exercise control over the base desires of the self and not behave arrogantly.
A human being has been placed in this present world in order that he may be tested. A test necessarily requires freedom. That is why nothing has been imposed on him as we see with the rest of the universe. He is free to follow the divine way or deviate from it. But this freedom applies only to actions and not to consequences. Every human being has to finally come to grips with the consequences, which will be in accordance with the eternal laws of God.
