Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Eternity of Man

Author: A Group of Researchers - Institute of Islamic Studies (London)

WWW.ALHASSANAIN.ORG/ENGLISH

Table of Contents

Foreward 3

Chapter 1: Different views regarding the meaning of Resurrection5

Chapter 2: Is Eternity of Man Possible?7

Chapter 3: Proofs for the Necessity of Eternity of Man12

Chapter 5: The Reality and the Philosophy of “Departing from the World”16

Chapter 6: Why Do We Fear Death?21

Chapter 7: The Multilateral influences of the belief in Resurrection24

Chapter 8: The Multilateral influences of the belief in Resurrection29

Chapter 9: Bibliography 38

Notes40

Foreward

The discussion regarding the resurrection of man after death is, in reality, an answer to a general and universal question. In addition, it is also the answer to an individual and social need, in the meaning that, with the proving and establishment of the life after death, one of the most important individual and social needs of man - and that is - the love for permanence (or love for eternity) shall be fulfilled. Most important of all, man, in the light of his belief in Resurrection and in an eternal life, becomes directed, motivated and purposeful in his worldly life and saves the priceless moments of his life from becoming aimless and without goal and direction. From another aspect, with the clarification and understanding of the issue of Resurrection, an important historical, philosophical, scientific and social issue, and the summary of a doctrinal and religious belief, shall find itself the object of discussion and deliberation. That faith and belief which has been the object of deep attention of all the Divine religions and amongst them - Islam, and towards which they have attached a great deal of importance. So much so that, the Holy Qur’àn has always mentioned the belief in Resurrection and life after death, after mentioning the belief in God. The importance which the Holy Qur’àn associates with this issue is such that some of the commentators of the Holy Qur’àn have said that a third of the Holy Qur’àn - directly or indirectly - deals with the issue of Resurrection.

However, it must be understood that the scope of the discussion of Resurrection is very vast and encompasses different and varied discussions within itself. However, considering the fact that this present work is only a brief discourse regarding Resurrection, it is only natural that many of the secondary aspects and some of the fundamental aspects which are related to the main discussion may not have been fully dealt with or if dealt with, may not be in an expanded and detailed manner as it ought to have been. In spite of this, particularities in the topics under discussion have been taken into consideration so as to render the reader independent of the need to refer to any other detailed work. Especially the young readers, who, by means of a short study, wish to obtain all that is necessary to know pertaining to Resurrection and gain the necessary knowledge and belief regarding it.

This book comprises of three parts, which are as follows:-

Part 1: Eternity of Man.

Part 2: Death or Another Birth.

Part 3: The Multilateral Influences of the belief in Resurrection.

In Part 1, the concept of Resurrection and the various theories and opinions regarding it have been mentioned and critically dealt with. After that, in a separate chapter, the possibility of Resurrection and the proofs for it, have been presented. Then, we have dwelt upon the need and the necessity of the Resurrection of man after death. Because of its importance, we have deliberated this part, especially the discussion of the Immateriality of the Soul, in a more detailed manner. In the last chapter, we have discussed the corporeal resurrection and have thus brought to conclusion Part 1 of the book.

In Part 2 also, the essence and the reality of death has been the focus of attention and discussion following which, the view of the Holy Qur’àn and the Islamic traditions regarding it has been the subject of debate and deliberation. In this chapter, the philosophy of death has also been focused upon. In the subsequent chapter of this Part, causes and factors of the fear of death have been propounded and deliberated. In the last chapter of this Part, we have dwelt upon the type of relation between this world and the Hereafter, and investigated it according to the Islamic and Qur’ànic outlook.

In Part 3, the concluding part of the book, a summary of some of the important effects of the belief in Resurrection has been propounded and has been the focus of investigation and deliberation.

The point to be mentioned is that the topics in this book have been discussed in a fluent and flowing manner and without any intricacies and unnecessary jargon and the deep and profound philosophical, scientific and Gnostic points have been included within other subject matters in a simple language. In other words, in spite of the fact that the entire discussion comprises of philosophical, scientific and Gnostic aspects and is useful for men of learning, at the same time, it is completely comprehensible for the adolescents and the youths also.

Chapter 1: Different views regarding the meaning of Resurrection

Before we proceed with the proofs of the possibility of the eternity of man, it is necessary that we clarify what is our view with respect to life after death and the eternity of man. Just as one's impression regarding a matter, differs from person to person, views and opinions about life after death also differ. Here, four views worthy of attention exist.

1. We find for ourselves, in the traces or the people that remain after our deaths, a living presence, and in this way attain eternity. We call this view, Eternity in Reminiscence. Industrialists, craftsmen, writers and artists leave behind traces and memories of themselves (such as their beliefs, hopes, tragedies and ideologies). They hope that whatever they have created, attain a stable value and position so that their names attain a life, which is much longer than their own. Others, due to the traces, which they leave on the pages of history, become eternal.

2. Man prolongs and continues his existence within his offspring and progeny and in this way becomes eternal. Man has got a yearning for eternity and non-acceptance of extinction, and the reproduction of offspring is a means of escape from the feeling of failure resulting from the realization of the inevitable extinction of man. We seek the extension of our lives in the lives of our children. Very many people yearn to have a male child so that their family names continue to remain. They name their children after themselves or their ancestors and pressurize their children to accept their beliefs, ideals, objectives, and to choose their profession.

3. After death, we experience union with the Ultimate Truth, which ultimately is Unity. That is, we in our worldly lives have forgotten our fundamental oneness and unity with The One Entity (God) and have erred in our thinking that we are distinct and separate to The One Entity. One day we shall realize that our separation from The One Entity was nothing but a misconception and with the freedom (from this misconception), we shall, once again, unite with Him.

4. It is possible to call the fourth view as “Individual life, after death”. According to this view, individuals after the physical death, either continues their own lives or after a period of time, start their own lives once again.

For each of these four views, especially the third and the fourth, it is possible to have different interpretations, such that, some of the interpretations can portray the Islamic concept of Resurrection to a certain extent.

However, it should be noted that the first and the second view shall not be the focus of attention, because, firstly: Our view and that of all the other Divine religions regarding Resurrection cannot be the first two views but a wider, subtler, more transcendental and more ethical than them. Secondly: With respect to the first two views, we do not have any conflict with the materialists and the deniers of resurrection, in the meaning that even they accept these two views. Thirdly: The first view does not include all the people, but is restricted to craftsmen, actors, writers and... Whereas the resurrection under consideration of Islam and the Divine religions includes all the people. On the other hand, the second view lacks the moral and spiritual aspects, which is anticipated as a result of the belief in Resurrection. In other words, belief in Resurrection is regarded to be the source of spirituality and virtues, whereas, according to the second view, this most fundamental result is conveniently forgotten.

The third view, in spite of the fact that it is, fundamentally, not incompatible with the beliefs of Islam and the Divine religions regarding resurrection, and can be accepted in general, but all the same it is not possible that the Islamic view on Resurrection be summarized as the third view, especially, considering the problems that this view is encountering. For example, according to this view, man, after death gets united with the One Entity and in that state, is unaware of his individuality or even his distinction, similar to a drop which unites with the ocean. In this assumption, the drop unites with the One Whole; however, its identity does not remain protected.

Therefore, it must be said that our discussion is restricted to the 4th view among the meanings of Resurrection - of course, by taking into consideration the explanations and particularities that shall be propounded in the course of the discussion.

Chapter 2: Is Eternity of Man Possible?

Those who do not support the theory of eternity of man and deny this reality - state that the occurrence of such an event is impossible. Of course, two explanations exist, for their claims of the impossibility of this reality,1) The basis of the first objection is doubt and uncertainty in the Power of Allàh. Such people state that Allàh does not have the Power to make man alive again after death, or to grant him a new life, once dead.

2) Bodies that have decayed and turned to earth are in such a state that they are not capable of being collected and as a result, it is not possible to bring them forth in the form of a man. The Islamic philosophers and other scholars, for the occurrence of each and everything, consider two points to be necessary:

1. Power and the will of the agent.

2. Receptivity of the recipient.

As a result, if on an occasion, the power or the will of the agent exists, but the recipient lacks the receptivity for a particular work, the work can be reckoned to be impossible.

Here too, some are of the belief that the Power of Allàh is infinite, however, collection of the decayed bodies is an act, which does not possess possibility.

The Holy Qur’àn, in response to the first objection proceeds to state and explain the Infinite Power of Allàh, and compares the re-creation of man after death to the great creation of the heavens and the earth and reminds that He who has created this entire universe also possesses the Power to give life to the dead.

أَوَلَيْسَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ بِقَادِرٍ عَلَى أَنْ يَخْلُقَ مِثْلَهُمْ بَلَى وَهُوَ الْخَلاَّقُ الْعَلِيمُ

“Is not He who created the heavens and the earth able to create (again) the like of them. Yea! and He is the Creator, the All-Knowing.”[1]

It is self-evident that the creation of the heavens and the earth is Greater than the creation of man. So when Allàh is Powerful to create the entire Existence, would he not be Powerful to create man, who is just a part of the entire Existence, once again?

The Holy Qur’àn in reply to the second objection also alludes to the first creation of man and says:

فَسَيَقُولُونَ مَنْ يُعِيدُنَا قُلْ الَّذِي فَطَرَكُمْ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ

“So they say Who will bring us to life? Say: He who created you the first time.”[2]

In another verse it states:

وَضَرَبَ لَنَا مَثَلًا وَنَسِيَ خَلْقَهُ قَالَ مَنْ يُحْيِ الْعِظَامَ وَهِيَ رَمِيمٌ قُلْ يُحْيِيهَا الَّذِي أَنشَأَهَا أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ وَهُوَ بِكُلِّ خَلْقٍ عَلِيمٌ

“And he strikes out a likeness for Us and forgets his own creation. Says he: Who will give life to the bones when they are rotten. Say: He will give life to them Who brought them into existence at first, and He is Cognizant of all creation.”[3]

The above verse alludes to a philosophical proof [4], which states that if two or more things are similar to each other, then with respect to being possible (in existence) and not being possible (in existence), they are equal. That is, if one is possible (to exist) the other will also be possible (to exist) and vice-versa, if one is impossible (to exist), the other shall also be impossible (to exist).

Thus Allàh, Who created man in the first instance would also be Powerful to create him once again, since the second creation is not only possible but, assuming that the words 'difficult' and 'simple' convey their meanings in the Holy Presence of Allàh also, the re-creation appears to be simpler. Since, in the first creation, neither was experience at work, nor did a model-plan exist, whereas in the re-creation, both experience and a model-plan exist[5] .

In any event, from the human point of view, the re-creation must be simpler than the creation of man at the first instance, although, with respect to Allàh, both are easy and similar.

The Holy Qur’àn, for the purpose of proving the Power of Allàh for bringing man to life after death, refers to the coming to life of the earth and the growth of plants, and considers the Resurrection of men similar to the coming to life of the earth which takes place every year in spring. How is it that every year man himself witnesses the leaves of trees falling off every autumn and then decay and turn to earth, but in the next spring, new leaves clothe the plants and the earth becomes fresh and green, and in spite of all this, when his coming to life after death is propounded, he considers it to be impossible and out of the ordinary and insists on denying it.

The Holy Qur’àn says :

وَاللَّهُ الَّذِي أَرْسَلَ الرِّيَاحَ فَتُثِيرُ سَحَابًا فَسُقْنَاهُ إِلَى بَلَدٍ مَيِّتٍ فَأَحْيَيْنَا بِهِ الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا كَذَلِكَ النُّشُورُ

“And Allàh is He Who sends the winds so they raise a cloud, then We drive it on to a dead country and therewith We give life to the earth after its death. Even so is the Resurrection.”[6]

Therefore the same Allàh, Who every year, brings to life and makes green the dead earth, would be Powerful to create man again, after death. Because, every year, Allàh, by the renewed growth of plants, in reality makes the dead earth a part of the bodies of plants and trees and converts it into living plant cells. In addition to this, if we focus our attention upon the start of the creation of life on the earth, we shall conclude that in the beginning, no living thing existed on the earth and after the start of life, these plants were the ones that appeared on the earth. In other words, for the first time, the plant life manifested itself on the earth. An appearance and manifestation, the wonderful and astonishing secrets of which remain a mystery to the scholars even today. However, this point is certain that, in any event, this plant life has appeared from this very dead earth.

Creation of the Embryo

Another example, which the Holy Qur’àn presents, for the purpose of proving and bringing into the focus of man, the boundless Divine Powers and uses it to prove the Power of Allàh in bringing man to life again after death, is the creation of the embryo. It states if you have doubt and uncertainty in the possibility of Resurrection - reflect upon how we created you from a sperm-drop. Then we brought out this sperm-drop as an 'alaqah' (blood clot). After that we made it grow in the womb and finally in the form of a complete human, we gave him birth by means of his mother.

أَلَمْ يَكُ نُطْفَةً مِنْ مَنِيٍّ يُمْنَىثُمَّ كَانَ عَلَقَةً فَخَلَقَ فَسَوَّىفَجَعَلَ مِنْهُ الزَّوْجَيْنِ الذَّكَرَ وَالْأُنثَى أَلَيْسَ ذَلِكَ بِقَادِرٍ عَلَى أَنْ يُحْيِيَ الْمَوْتَ

“Was he not a (mere) drop of sperm emitted? Then he was a clot of blood, then He Shaped (him) and fashioned (him). Then He made of him of two kinds, the male and female. Is not he able to bring the dead to life?” [7]

The above verse and so do the other verses which deal with resurrection, consider it to be a natural phenomenon and similar to the creation of sperm-drop and the birth of a child or giving of life to the plants and making them grow and as a result regards Resurrection to be like the other Divine Acts, whereas, the deniers of Resurrection view it as a strange, new and an impossible phenomenon, the pattern of which cannot be found in Nature. As a result, it is possible to state that fundamentally, it is necessary to balance our view on Resurrection and view it through the looking glass of the Qur’ànic verses. In such a case, not only shall we not consider Resurrection to be impossible, but on the other hand comprehend it to be necessary and compulsory, upon which we shall dwell in the chapters to follow.

Transformation of the Energies

We usually imagine that energies after use get exhausted and destroyed. For e.g., we imagine the solar energy after being radiated towards the earth and the other planets gets destroyed. Whereas today, science has proved that energy does not get destroyed but simply gets transformed into another form and manifests itself in a different form of energy. In other words, the energy continues to exist in new conditions and in a new environment.

The Holy Qur’àn, in proving the possibility of Resurrection makes use of this fact also and states:

وَضَرَبَ لَنَا مَثَلًا وَنَسِيَ خَلْقَهُ قَالَ مَنْ يُحْيِ الْعِظَامَ وَهِيَ رَمِيمٌ قُلْ يُحْيِيهَا الَّذِي أَنشَأَهَا أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ وَهُوَ بِكُلِّ خَلْقٍ عَلِيمٌ الَّذِي جَعَلَ لَكُمْ مِنْ الشَّجَرِ الْأَخْضَرِ نَارًا فَإِذَا أَنْتُمْ مِنْهُ تُوقِدُونَ

“And he strikes out a likeness of Us and forgets his own creation. Says he: Who will give life to the bones when they are rotten? Say: He will give life to them Who brought them into existence at first, and He is Cognizant of all creation. He Who has made for you the fire (to burn) from the green tree, so that with it you kindle (fire).”[8]

The interpretation, which according to some of the commentators, is appropriate for the above verses and which has been brought to light as a result of recent scientific advancements and discoveries, is that plants and trees, during the entire span of their lives, regularly absorb the light and heat from the sun and in addition also absorb water and necessary substances from the ground by means of their roots and by the combination of these, generate cellulose, which formats the mass of the trees and the wood of the trees is thus formed.

Thus, plants, for the purpose of absorption of vital substances from the ground, must utilize the heat and light of the sun as an active energy. It is due to the utilization of this light and heat that trees grow and develop and accumulate a great deal of energy of the sun within themselves and transform it into wood. Now, observe the burning of wood, as to how the transformed energy of the sun within it, after burning once again turns into heat and light. According to the verses of the Holy Qur’àn, Resurrection of man is just this. And so, in these verses, reference is made at the onset to the first creation of man and then the Resurrection and the re-creation of energies is pointed out.

Another interesting point that exists in the verse is that, usually we consider dried wood to be more capable and more suitable for burning, whereas in the verse, reference has been made to a green tree. Perhaps, the reason for it is that the greenness of the trees and their leaves is a pre-requisite for the taking in of the heat and light of the sun. In simpler words, a living tree is one, which can transform the energy from the sun into wood and store it within itself whereas a dried tree does not have such a capability. And because of this the verse says: “That Allàh who has made for you the fire (to burn) from the green tree, has the Power to create man once again after death.”[9]

In short, one of the things to which the Holy Qur’àn has made reference to, in order to establish the possibility and the necessity of Resurrection of men is the resurrection of energy or transformation of energy under different conditions.

Motives for Denying Resurrection

As we have observed, the polytheists and the deniers of Resurrection had no philosophical proofs, experimental witnesses or convincing evidences to support their claim. Their arguments always centered on, either, the coming to life of decayed and destroyed bones being strange and peculiar, or something to that effect. And because of this, the Holy Qur’àn does not enter into answering their scientific doubts and misgivings, because fundamentally, scientific doubts and misgivings do not exist. In fact, in Surah-e-Qiyamah after mentioning the talks of the deniers, it refers to their motives. Their motives for denying Resurrection were promiscuity, libertinism and in one sentence, escape from the burden of commitment and responsibility. Now, the acceptance of Resurrection obligates the acceptance of commitment and responsibility, which some people do not approve of and instead are of the belief that as much as possible, one should be engrossed in seeking success and pleasure. This is the thing, which in the first stage denies the belief in Allàh and the Resurrection.

Regarding this, the Holy Qur’àn says:

أَيَحْسَبُ الْإِنسَانُ أَلَّنْ نَجْمَعَ عِظَامَهُ بَلَى قَادِرِينَ عَلَى أَنْ نُسَوِّيَ بَنَانَهُ بَلْ يُرِيدُ الْإِنسَانُ لِيَفْجُرَ أَمَامَهُ

“Does man think that we shall not gather his bones? Yea! We are able to make complete his very fingertips. Nay, man desires to deny what is before him.” [10]

Of course, the idolaters and the deniers of Resurrection also had and have another argument, which is nothing except idle and nonsensical talk. That is, there does not exist any rational, philosophical, logical or scientific reasoning in their argument. They would say that belief in Resurrection is only a myth of the ancestors. Now since all the Divine religions persisted in the belief in God and Resurrection and since times immemorial, these two beliefs have been present among the religious people and were considered to be among the fundamentals of religion, the idolaters and the deniers, instead of presenting evidence to prove these beliefs as incorrect, they would just claim that these beliefs are nothing except historical legends and myths.

The Holy Qur’àn mentions their talks as follows:

وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا أَئِذَا كُنَّا تُرَابًا وَآبَاؤُنَا أَئِنَّا لَمُخْرَجُونَ لَقَدْ وُعِدْنَا هَذَا نَحْنُ وَآبَاؤُنَا مِنْ قَبْلُ إِنْ هَذَا إِلاَّ أَسَاطِيرُ الْأَوَّلِينَ

“And those who disbelieve say: When we have become dust like our fathers, shall we verily be brought forth (again). Indeed we had been promised this, we and our fathers before; these are naught but fables of the ancients.”[11]

Any sensible person shall see that, such idle talk does not merit any answer or response, because the historical background of a theory does not signify its baselessness, and a realist and a just person should accept or reject a matter on the basis of proof and evidence and not on the basis of the matter being antiquated or new. And so, the Holy Qur’àn does not get itself involved in answering these arguments, but on the other hand, reasons out and presents evidence to prove Resurrection as not only possible, but also necessary and these reasoning are so strong and clarifying that should any person reflect appropriately upon them, not only would he notice that the occurrence of Resurrection is very ably proved but all the other doubts and misgivings would also appear to have been cleared.

Chapter 3: Proofs for the Necessity of Eternity of Man

In the previous chapter, the arguments of the deniers of Resurrection were, to a certain extent, propounded. After that, the verses that pointed out to the Power of Allàh in creating man and the universe and as a result, proving the Power of Allàh for granting life once again to man, were briefly studied. In short, the reasoning of the previous chapter revolved around the possibility of Resurrection. However the proofs for the need and necessity of Resurrection were not mentioned. Because of this, we shall place this matter under discussion in the third chapter. Here it is necessary we mention that the Holy Qur’àn has never based any of its religious beliefs on forced devotion or statements without proofs and evidences, but instead, the subject matter and their interpretation are always based on sound and rational reasoning. The proofs and the reasoning, which appear in the Holy Qur’àn for proving the certainty of the occurrence of Resurrection, shall be mentioned here.

1. The Ultimate aim of Motion of Objects

Each and every object in this universe, from the minute atoms to the gigantic galaxies, are perpetually in a state of motion. Generally, this motion must be for an aim or objective, because, motion without an aim does not exist. In other words, the underlying reason for every motion is to reach perfection and step from potentiality into actuality, and objects, till such a time that they do not attain their aim and objective, cannot attain tranquility. According to this, if an appointed aim itself possesses another aim and objective, it can be understood that, it was not propounded as an ultimate aim from the very onset but was just a route and a course, which we had assumed to be the aim and objective. Because, the inevitable fall-out of a real and an ultimate aim is that the mover, upon reaching the ultimate aim attains tranquility and becomes stationary. As a result, if we assume infinite aims for the motion of objects, it is equivalent to considering them aimless and without any objective, since in any event, it is necessary that the chain of aims and objectives reach a terminus, just as it is absolutely necessary that the chain of 'efficient causes' reach a cause who is the First Agent and the Inherent Origin of the entire existence, otherwise it would be as if the universe is without an Origin and an Agent.[12]

The Holy Qur’àn considers Resurrection to be the terminus of the motion of objects and believes that reaching Allàh is their ultimate aim and states:

وَأَنَّ إِلَى رَبِّكَ الْمُنْتَهَى

“And that to your Lord is the goal.”[13]

An interesting point here is that one of the attributes and names of Resurrection and the Hereafter is (دَارُ الْقَرَارِ) Dar-ul-Qarar meaning the 'final halting-place', 'place of rest', 'house of peace and tranquility'.

The Holy Qur’àn states:

يَاقَوْمِ إِنَّمَا هَذِهِ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا مَتَاعٌ وَإِنَّ الْآخِرَةَ هِيَ دَارُ الْقَرَارِ

“ And verily, the hereafter is the abode to settle.”[14]

So, just as the origin of creation and the start of the motion of objects is from Allàh, the termination of the motion of objects is also the return towards Allàh.[15]

2. Divine Wisdom

In order to prove, the Resurrection of man being necessary by means of the 'Wisdom Proof' certain presumptions are required, which have to be previously established by other proofs and evidences. Some of these presumptions are as follows: -

1) Allàh, the Wise Creator, has created the Entire Existence.

2) This Creator, according to the exigency of being Wise, does not indulge in vain and purposeless activities.

In addition to the above mentioned two points, which should be previously proved and established in their appropriate places, another matter must also be placed under discussion here, in the form of a premise. That matter is that there is a marked difference between the 'Aim of the Agent' and the 'Aim of the Act' and that the two are not the same. According to this, Allàh in accordance with the necessity of His Inherent Needlessness, is not in need of a thing such that by performing an action He can obtain that thing, however, at the same time, the Acts of Allàh also cannot be without aim and purpose or in other words vain and purposeless.

So Allàh does not have the 'Aim of the Agent'. That is, by creating His creations, He does not wish to attain a Perfection, which He did not previously possess. But at the same time He does have the 'Aim of the Act', in the meaning that creating the creations so that the creations themselves reach perfection, is the aim and purpose which Allàh has ascertained for them. And because of this, the Holy Qur’àn regarding the 'Aim of the Act' of Allàh in creating His creations states:

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَ إِلاَّ لِيَعْبُدُونِي

“And I have not created the jinn and men, but that they worship me.”[16] This verse, in reality, presents the 'Aim of the Act’ of Allàh, in the meaning that if the creations of Allàh did not recognize and worship Allàh, they themselves have suffered losses and have not attained their Spiritual Perfection - which has been the aim and purpose of their creation. Not in the meaning that Allàh had an aim and has not achieved it, because this meaning is incompatible with the Inherent Needlessness of Allàh. In addition to this, the Holy Qur’àn itself pronounces Allàh as not being in need of worship and says:

وَمَنْ كَفَرَ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَنِيٌّ عَنْ الْعَالَمِينَ

“And whoever disbelieves, then Surely Allàh is Self-Sufficiently independent of the worlds.”[17]

So, if the recognition and the worship is not achieved, the creations have not reached their aim and purpose, that the Creator is deprived of his aim and purpose. This is because the Inherent Needlessness and the Inherent Essentiality will not have an aim and purpose different from the Infinite Essence and also will not have the ability to accept any violation, because it itself is the actual aim and purpose.

After this premise and the clarification of the distinction between the 'Aim of the Agent' and the 'Aim of the Act', we shall state that the creation of the universe is not without aim and purpose because our assumption was that the Creator of the universe is Wise and does not indulge in vain acts.

The next point is that, the short life of this world cannot be the aim and purpose of this creation, because, in the worldly life, there always exist a chain of troublesome and worrying events like shortages, deprivations, destruction and inconveniences. In other words, this present worldly life is intermingled with troubles and disturbances and as a result cannot be considered to be the aim of creation, because aim and purpose should be such that, as a result of it, the act of creation becomes perfect and the benefits of it return back to the creatures and servants. Hence, with no other option, there must exist another world which would be the aim and purpose of man's journey towards attainment of perfection, such that man, upon reaching it, should consider the aim and wisdom of the act of creation, to be practical and completed.

For providing more explanation, it is possible to say that the present world and all that in which we are leading our lives is very large and wondrous and the Power which causes the growth of a plant and provides it the strength to slit open the surface of the earth or at times split open hard rock or even the asphalt of the roads and emerge out, and also the Power, which has brought forth the gigantic galaxies into motion with an absolutely accurate calculation, the same Power is the Boundless Intelligence, who has created man as His most superior creation.

Accordingly, if it is deemed that this most superior creation, is for a certain period a weak child and then for a certain period a worn out and tired individual, who, for most of the time, is entangled in procuring the necessities of his life - which can be summarized into eating and sleeping, and then after death, is annihilated and ceases to exist, how tyrannical and far from wisdom it would be, whereas, we, at the very onset, had considered Allàh to be Wise.

In short, if we assume, that the aim of Allàh in creating man was that the results and benefits of it would reach Him, this would not be correct because He is the Absolute Needless and possesses Inherent Needlessness. Hence, there must exist an aim whereby its benefits reach man. Under this assumption we see that the limited and material life of this world lacks the ability to be proclaimed as the aim and purpose for the creation of man and it is necessary that another world exist so that Man can achieve the aim for which he was created.[18]

The Holy Qur’àn, in mentioning this proof, quotes the words of wise and intelligent people (after reflection upon the creation of the heavens and the earth) and states:

رَبَّنَا مَا خَلَقْتَ هَذَا بَاطِلًا سُبْحَانَكَ فَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ

“O' our Lord! Thou hast not created (all) this in vain! Glory be to Thee! Save us then from the torments of the (Hell) fire.”[19]

Thomas Aquinas explains this very proof saying: “We have been created for attaining the Ultimate end (i.e. Happiness). However this Happiness cannot be achieved in the life of this world, because the individual wealth is not lasting, body and will, weak, and our knowledge, incomplete. However, God has not created us in vain, and so we must be able to reach the end and the aim for which we have been created, and this necessitates that our lives have a continuity even after death.”

But why should anyone think that we are not able to be prosperous in the life of this world? According to Aristotle, Happiness is not the transient sensation of pleasure, but Happiness is that a person, in the span of his entire life, can convert his abilities into actualities: If we keep ourselves occupied with the activities of the intellect (thinking), we shall attain Happiness, and the transient troubles shall not cause us to lose our Happiness.

However, Thomas sees Happiness in a different light. According to him, the human Happiness is related to the aim and the purpose (that is Union with God) for which we have been created. The cognition of God, which we obtain by means of belief and faith, is an Act of the Will and not of Intellect and hence, it is possible that, the present cognition of God, which is obtained by means of natural intellect, may be faulty or may not be an intuitive faith. Hence, the cognition about God, (in which is secured our Ultimate Happiness) is not attainable in this Worldly life (except in a fleeting and transient manner). So in order that we completely experience such a Happiness-creating insight, it is necessary that we continue our lives even after death.[20]