Quranic spirituality is the spirituality of the positive kind. It means living in the world and trying to derive spiritual food from material things as an intellectual discipline. It means to control rather than kill one’s desires.
The Quran advocates the culture of spirituality. Quranic spirituality has nothing mysterious about it. It is a well-known discipline. It is only an alternative name for intellectual development. The formula for Quranic spirituality is expressed thus in a Quranic chapter: Become men of God. (3:79) Becoming a man of God means adopting a God-oriented life. The God-oriented way of life is a complete way of life. It calls for the use of all human faculties. It means God-oriented thinking, speech, behaviour, morality, etc.
The formula for Quran spirituality is simple—simple living and high thinking. Simple living prevents you from succumbing to distractions, thus allowing you to find more time to engage your mind in meaningful arenas. Moreover, simple living and high thinking are interdependent. Simple living gives you more time for high thinking, and high thinking makes you a man capable of simple living.
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One of the commandments of the Quran is given in chapter Al-Ahzab (The Confederates) in these words: “Believers, remember God with much remembrance. (33:41)
According to this Quranic verse believers must remember God very much, every day and every moment. This is the most important teaching of the Quran, and it is also the highest form of worship. One who does this will be blessed with the greatest reward by God Almighty of receiving divine inspiration from God-realization.
According to the Quran, believers are given a unique blessing, that is, they are able to add faith to their faith. (48:4) This is not a mysterious phenomenon; it is a direct result of the above kind of chain reaction. This chain reaction of zikr is very important for personality development. A believer increases his divine spirituality through this process.
Source: Quranic Wisdom
There is a verse in the Quran: “He has subjected whatever is in Heaven and on the earth to you; it is all from Him. In that are signs for those who ponder.” (45:13) From this verse of the Quran, we learn that the entire universe has been made for man.
Here the question arises as to what the purpose is of the whole universe being subjected to man. As we know, the vastness of the universe is limitless. Such a limitless universe cannot be man’s habitat. It is also impossible for man to draw spiritual provision from such a great universe. Then what does it mean, or what does it convey, when the Quran says that the entire universe is created for man?
From other verses of the Quran, for instance, the last verses of the third chapter, we learn that the universe was created so that man might reflect upon it. This reflection takes place by employing reason rather than by any physical exercise. From other verses of the Quran, we learn that God’s signs are so numerous that they cannot be counted. It is these innumerable universal signs upon which man may ponder and thus be able to worship his Lord at an elevated level.
It is man alone who has the capability to contemplate the signs scattered throughout the universe. This contemplation could be done earlier within a traditional framework. Now this process of contemplation has become possible within a scientific framework. In this way, man discovers the boundless greatness of God. He is able to establish a relationship of intense love for and intense fear of God. He is able to conceive of the eternal Paradise of the Hereafter. It is this contemplation that has been described as universal worship.
Source: Discovering the Quran
What is much remembrance of God? It is not in the sense of repetition of some word, but in the sense of thinking. Much remembrance, or zikr-e-kathir, is not a kind of lip service. It is rather a high kind of intellectual activity. Much remembrance is a sign of deep discovery of God.
Remembering God much is the result of a chain reaction in a person’s thinking process, that is, a series of thoughts in which each thought causes the next one. Zikr-e-kathir, or much remembrance, is a result of creative thinking. It is a product of a prepared mind. If you are a prepared mind, then your mind is bound to be triggered at every experience or observation. You will start discovering one item after another of God-realization. In this way a chain reaction will be initiated in your mind.
It is this intellectual activity that is called in the Quran zikr-e-kathir. For example, if it is raining, a believer will very soon present his shukr, that is, acknowledgment to God. Then he will start thinking further: what caused the downpour? He will discover the natural processes that resulted in rain. He will think that when the water was in the ocean, it was salty, but when it took the form of downpour, it turned into freshwater. So step by step he will discover how God created various process which finally provided him water to drink. This is an example of chain reaction in thinking, and through this chain reaction, you begin to discover items of realization of God. If you are a prepared mind, then this process will continue without limit.
This chain reaction of zikr will enhance your maarefat, that is, realization and discovery of God. It will enhance your relationship with God. It will increase your wisdom and power of analysis. This will enhance your capacity to sort things out, and so on.
Source: Quranic Wisdom
