Chapter 8: Ethical Teachings of the Qur’an
Ethical Teachings of the Qur’an by B.A Dar, M.A, Fellow Institute of Islamic Culture, Lahore (Pakistan)
Values
As it has been explained in the preceding chapter, the real goal of man, according to the Qur'an, is the assimilation of divine attributes. These attributes, as also shown in the same chapter, can be summarized as life, eternity, unity, power, truth, beauty, justice, love, and goodness.
Life
God is the living one Himself
and gives life to others.
The moral laws enunciated in the Qur'an are life‑giving and life‑enriching
and, therefore, by living in this world in accordance with these laws man is able to realize one of God's attributes. If anyone saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people.
On the social plane, the importance of life on this earth is duly emphasized.
The ideal of the Qur'an is to develop a healthy social organization which traverses the middle path of rectitude avoiding all forms of extreme.
People are to partake of the good things of the world
and wear beautiful apparel, to eat and drink without going to excess,
and for this reason monasticism which implies denial of life on this earth is condemned as being incompatible with human nature.
Man is advised not to forget his portion in the life of this world.
Wealth and property are good things to be enjoyed and appreciated and are blessings of God
which make life smooth and comfortable.
The life of the present world is no doubt significant and purposive,
but it’s purposes are directed towards the good of future life, for the real abode of life is in the hereafter.
God created life and death to test which of the people are best in point of deed.
The present world is a place of sojourn and a place of departure;
its enjoyments are short
and comforts are few,
while as compared with these the life in the hereafter is better and more enduring.
It is best for the righteous
and will last forever.
The present life and the future life, however, are to be viewed as a unity, for man's creation here and his resurrection later on are events related to an individual soul.
In fact, life on this earth is a preparation for the life hereafter.
The good works that we do here in this life will run before us to illumine our path in the hereafter
where we shall have full opportunity to develop our spiritual light to ever greater perfection.
Eternity
This attribute in its fullness is exclusively God's and man is created within time for a stated term;
yet he has within himself a deep craving for eternity and for a kingdom that never fails or ends.
Though finite and temporal, man does not and cannot rest content with that. The way is open for the finite and temporal man to attain life everlasting.
Unity
The greatest emphasis in the Qur'an is on the unity of God which implies belief in the divine causality and the presence of moral order in the universe where people are judged according to the merit of their deeds
and not arbitrarily.
This moral order works without any favour not only in the case of individuals but also in the case of societies and peoples.
God has entered into covenant with men within the limits of this moral order with men as such and not with particular nations or races.
Unity, as one of the ideals of man, implies unity in the internal life of man, a co‑ordination of reason, will, and action. It requires complete control of one's passions and lust. It also stands for the unity of profession and practice. Faith in God is the necessary prerequisite of moral life, but it should not be mere verbal acceptance;
it must be accompanied by good deeds,
implying an attitude of mind which is motivated by a complete submission to God's will.
Poets generally say what they do not practise,
and hypocrites say with their tongues what is not in their hearts,
but all believing men and women are truthful in their words and deeds.
Externally, the ideal of unity demands that men should develop a healthy social organization which traverses the middle path of rectitude avoiding all forms of extreme.
The righteous are advised to get together and strive, so that tumult, oppression, and mischief are removed from the face of the earth.
This ideal of unity also implies peace and harmony among members of a family. A woman is a mate for man so that both may dwell in tranquillity with an attitude of mutual love and kindness;
each is like a garment for the other
for mutual support, mutual comfort, and mutual protection. It is the duty of man to live with woman on a footing of kindness and equity.
Unity also implies that members of a national or ideological group should develop ties of intimate relationship among themselves so that the ideal of an organic whole may be realized in a broader context.
The Qur'an says that all Muslims are brothers
and have great love and affection among themselves.
No excuse should be allowed to stand in the way of doing good or making peace between different persons.
Every effort should be made to bring about conciliation between men,
yet we should co‑operate in righteousness and piety, not in sin and rancour.
We should be kind to those in need, to neighbours, and to the wayfarers.
This attitude, of kindness and fairness is to be maintained and upheld even in the case of enemies and opponents.
We should try to forgive those who plot against us and overlook their deeds,
cover evil with pardon,
and turn off evil with good.
This attitude of toleration is to be cultivated in our relation to people of other faiths. The Qur'an aims at establishing a peaceful social atmosphere where people belonging to other faiths can enjoy freedom of conscience and worship
for which purpose the believers are urged to rise and fight against the oppressors so that monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques in which the name of God is commemorated in abundant measure may not be pulled down.
It unreservedly praises some of the people of the Book for their faith.
It is as a consequence of this attitude of tolerance that according to the Qur'an all those who believe in God and the Last Day and practice righteousness, whether they are Muslims, Jews, Christians, or Sabaeans, shall get their reward from their Lord.
The Qur'an gives an open invitation to the people of the Book to come together and work conjointly for the establishment of peace and social harmony based on the idea of the unity of God.
Above all, this ideal of unity leads to the conception of unity of the whole of humanity. Mankind was created from a single pair of a male and a female
and from a single breath of life.
All people are equal members of the human community;
the only distinction recognized by the Qur'an is based on the degree of righteousness possessed by people.
Power
Power as a human ideal implies that man has the potentiality of assuming responsibility undertaken by him of his own accord.
God breathed His Spirit into him
and, therefore, made him His vicegerent on the earth.
Everything in the universe was created subservient to him
‑ even the angels were ordered to bow down to him.
He was given a position of great honour in the universe and was elevated far above most of God's creations.
He has all the faculties that are necessary for his physical and spiritual development and can pass beyond the limits of the heavens and the earth with the power given to him by God.
He is given the power to distinguish between good and evil
and, therefore, he alone is responsible for what he does.
He is endowed with freedom of action, but his freedom is limited by the free causality of God.
His responsibility is proportionate to his powers;
he has been shown the path of righteousness and it is up to him to accept its lead or reject it.
Being created after the pattern of God's nature
man is capable of developing from one stage to the next higher stage.
But this development involves struggle against the immoral forces of the external world which he is able to meet successfully with the co‑operation and help of God.
This effort of man is, however, viewed not in any exclusive spirit of otherworldliness.
It is the primary duty of the believers to participate actively in the struggle for the establishment of asocial order based on peace, harmony, and justice
in which everybody is equal beforre the law, and people in authority work out their policies after ascertaining the views of the people.
In this endeavour to realize the moral law in his individual and social life, man has often to contend against evil forces represented in the person of Satan.
But it is within his power to resist and overcome them.
Though man is always prone to weakness and susceptible to seduction by the forces of evil, yet his weakness is rectifiable under the guidance of revelation,
and such men as follow the law of righteousness shall be immune from these lapses.
They shall never be afraid of anything
or be cowardly in their behaviour.
The ideal of power demands that in order to establish a State on the basis of peace, freedom of thought, worship, belief, and expression, the morally orientated individuals will have to strive hard. Jihad or utmost striving
with might and main
with wealth and their person,
as they ought to strive,
becomes their foremost duty so that tumult, oppression, and mischief should be totally eliminated from the world
and there should be left no possibility for the aggressors to kindle the fire of war,
to hinder men from the path of God,
and to oppress people for professing a faith different from their own.
This struggle against the forces of evil and oppression demands that its participants must be characterized by perseverance, courage, fearlessness, and trust in God‑the moral qualities which are described by the Qur'an as characteristic of the righteous in the social context.
Those who patiently persevere in the path of righteousness will be in possession of a determining factor in all the affairs of this life
and will be above trivial weaknesses.
Those who are firm and steadfast will never lose heart, nor weaken in will, nor give in before the enemy.
A small band of steadfastly persevering people often vanquish a big force.
Similarly, trust in God is the moral quality of all believers.
This quality does not involve any negation of planning in advance as is evident from the attitude of Jacob while advising his sons who were going to Egypt.
After you have taken all possibilities into consideration and taken a decision, put your trust in God.
Truth or Wisdom
Wisdom as a human ideal stands for man's search for knowledge or truth. It is something which is distinguished from conjecture or imperfect knowledge
and mere fancy.
Different stories are related in the Qur'an,
several similitudes
and signs pointing to reality are detailed
and explained,
so that people may reflect and ponder over things.
It is the characteristic of the righteous that they not only celebrate the praises of God, standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, but also contemplate and ponder over the different phenomena of nature.
The people are, therefore, advised repeatedly to look at and observe the phenomena of nature, pondering over everything in creation to arrive at the truth.
None can grasp the message of revelation except men of understanding and those firmly grounded in knowledge.
Lack of true knowledge leads people to revile the true God,
invent lies against Him, and worship other gods besides Him.
The only safety lies in following the revelation which is replete with the knowledge of God.
Whosoever has been given knowledge has indeed been given abundant good.
Those who dispute wrongly about God are the ones who are without knowledge, without guidance, and without a book of enlightenment.
Only those people will be promoted to suitable ranks and degrees who have faith and are possessed of knowledge,
and only those who have knowledge really fear God and tread the path of righteousness.
When Solomon asked the people of his Court who would be able to bring the throne of the Queen of Sheba, it was only the one possessed of knowledge who offered himself to bring it and later actually did baring it.
The Qur'an advises the Holy Prophet to pray for advance in knowledge.
The mysterious teacher of Moses who tried to help him have a glimpse of the working of the unseen had knowledge proceeding from God, i.e., `ilm al ladunni.
Saul (Jalut) was appointed king of the Israelities because he was gifted by God abundantly with knowledge and bodily prowess.
Noah, David, and Solomon possessed knowledge
and judgment.
Jacob had a lot of knowledge and experience;
Joseph possessed abundant power and knowledge,
and so also was Moses given wisdom and knowledge.
It was through knowledge and reflection on the phenomena of nature, the heaven and the earth, that Abraham was able to arrive at the ultimate truth.
It was through his personal experience and knowledge that Joseph refused to follow the path of the unbelievers and adopted the path of Abraham.
Justice
Justice is a divine attribute and the Qur'an emphasizes that we should adopt it as a moral ideal. God commands people to be just towards one another
and, in judging between man and man, to judge justly,
for He loves those who judge equitably.
All believers stand firmly for justice even if it goes against themselves, their parents, their kith and kin, without any distinction of rich and poor.
God's Revelation itself is an embodiment of truth and justice;
it is revealed with the Balance (of right and wrong) so that people may stand forth for justice.
The value of justice is absolute and morally binding and the believers are, therefore, warned that they should not let the hatred of some people lead them to transgress the limits of justice
or make them depart from the ideal of justice, for justice is very near to piety and righteousness.
Justice demands that people should be true in word and deed,
faithfully observe the contracts which they have made
and fulfil all obligations.
When Muslims enter into treaties with people of other faiths, they must fulfil their engagements to the end and be true to them, for that is the demand of righteousness.
They are also advised to establish the system of weights with justice and not to skimp in the balance
and cause thereby a loss to others by fraud, and unjustly withhold from others what is due to them,
for that would lead to the spread of evil and mischief on the earth.
Love
Love as a human ideal demands that man should love God as the complete embodiment of all moral values above everything else.
It demands that man should be kind and loving to parents,
especially to the mother who bore him in pain and gave birth to him in travail.
This obligation of loving kindness is further broadened to include kindred, orphans, those in need, neighbours who are near and neighbours who are strangers, and the wayfarers.
Righteousness is to spend a part of our substance out of love for God, for kin, for orphans, for the needy, for the wayfarer,
and for the indigent.
The Holy Prophet who is a mercy to believers
and mercy to all creatures
always dealt gently with people.
Moses was advised by God to speak to Pharaoh mildly and gently.
It is one of the characteristics of the believers that they are compassionate and loving to one another;
they walk on the earth in humility, and hold to forgiveness;
they are friendly to others,
and forgive and overlook their faults,
even though they are in anger.
Goodness
Goodness is an attribute of God
and, therefore, it becomes the duty of every person to obey his own impulse to good.
He should do good as God has been good to all
and love those who do good.
Believers hasten in every good work.
As all prophets were quick in emulating good works,
so all people are advised to strive together (as in a race) towards all that is good
and virtuous.
Truly did Solomon love the love of good with a view to glorifying the Lord.
All good things are for the believers;
goodly reward in the hereafter
and highest grace of God awaits those who are foremost in good deeds.
Believers are advised to repel evil with what is better, for thereby enmity will change into warm friendship.
Beauty
God possesses most beautiful names
and highest excellence,
and creates everything of great beauty.
Man is created in the best of moulds
and is given a most beautiful shape.
God has revealed the most beautiful message in the form of a book
and given the best of explanations in the revealed books.
We are, therefore, advised to follow the best of revelations from God.
The Qur'an relates most beautiful stories.
The association of believers, prophets, sincere lovers of truth, witnesses (to the truths of religion in word and deed), and the righteous is a beautiful fellowship.
Who is better in speech than those who invite people to the ways of the good with wisdom and beautiful preaching and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious
and say only those things that are of supreme excellence ?
The Qur'an exhorts people to adopt ways of the highest value, for God loves those who perform deeds of excellence,
good‑will, and conciliation.
It advises people to return greetings with greetings of greater excellence
and repel evil with that which is best,
for thereby they will be adding to the beauty of their own souls.
Patience is graceful
and so are forgiveness and overlooking others faults.
Those who perform beautiful deeds shall have the highest rewards in this world
and their reward in the hereafter shall be still better
when they shall enjoy the fairest of places for repose
and be provided with excellent provisions.
Disvalues
Corresponding to these values there are some disvalues which are symbolized in the Qur'an as Satan or Iblis. He is described as a persistent rebe
who is constantly engaged in deceiving
people and misleading them from the path of righteousness.
He sows the seeds of enmity and hatred,
creates false desires,
commands what is shameful and wrong,
and defaces the fair nature created by God.
He is in short an enemy of mankind;
and believers are, therefore, advised that they should beware of his machinations.
Destruction of Life
Opposed to the value of life is weakness of man to make mischief in the earth and shed blood
‑ symbolized by the first unlawful and unjustified murder in the history of mankind by the first issue of Adam.
All life being sacred,
it is forbidden to commit suicide or to kill anybody without a just cause.
It is equally sinful to murder one's children for fear of want or poverty.
Killing a person without reason, in the view of the Qur'an, is tantamount to slaying the human race.
Fight for the cause of righteousness is permitted only because tumult and oppression, which necessitate resort to armed resistance, are worse than killing.
All those tendencies which weaken a man's hold on life are condemned in the Qur'an. People are warned of falling into fear, grief, and despair
or of being unmindful of the ultimate mercy of God.
But any unjust clinging to life which involves sacrifice of other values is to be avoided at all cost. It does not become a man to be cowardly in the face of difficulties
or to turn back and run away for life from the battle‑field.
Similarly, covetousness,
niggardiiness,
and the hoarding of wealth
are condemned, for they betray man's unjustified clinging to values as means, as if they were ends in themselves.
There are certain disvalues which imply disrespect of life in oneself as well as in others. Begging importunately from all and sundry, which leads to killing one's self‑respect, is
looked upon by the Qur'an as unbecoming a true believer.
It forbids slandering, throwing fault or sin on somebody who is innocent of it,
and swelling one's cheek out of pride at men.
Scandal‑mongering and backbiting
Scandal‑mongering and backbiting are hateful deeds.
The Qur'an advises men and women not to laugh at, defame, be sarcastic to one another or call one another by offensive nicknames, and not to be suspicious, not to spy on others or speak ill of them behind their backs.
It deprecates the man who is ready with oaths, is a slanderer going about with calumnies, is a transgressor beyond bounds, or is deep in sin, violence, and cruelty.
Things Momentary
Opposed to his natural urge for eternity, man sometimes through ignorance seems to be enamoured of the life of the moment,
which tends to vanish
and is mere play and amusement.
It is no good to be pleased and remain satisfied
with the transitory things of this world
and the fleeting and temporal life
that has a span of but an hour of a day.
The true goal of man is eternity which is the home of peace,
satisfaction,
security,
and supreme achievement
for which man must, according to his nature,
ever toil and struggle.
Lack of Unity
Against the value of unity there is the disvalue of the denial of the unity of the Ultimate Reality (kufr) and the association of partners with God (shirk) and likewise the disvalues of disunity, discord, and disharmony in the life of the individual and society.
Those who turn back and disobey God and His Apostle
deny God's creative power, His purpose, and design,
follow a part of the revealed book and disregard the rest,
accept some prophets and deny others,
are all deniers of the true unity of God. Hair‑splitting in religious matters,
failure to judge by the light of divine revelation,
indulgence in magic in order to sow seeds of disunity among people,
are all acts which tantamount to disbelief in God.
God's unity implies that He alone deserves worship,
a worship which demands exclusive submission to His will,
tinged and informed with the highest emotional attachment.
Association of partners with God does not mean that, people deny God's power of creation and control of world's affairs;
where they err is the belief that these partners may bring them nearer to God,
wrongly and foolishly ascribe to them a share in bestowing gifts, as for example, the gifts of a goodly child,
thus leading to lack of consistency in their moral conduct and lack of exclusive loyalty towards the highest ideal, which indeed is a form of most heinous sin
and the highest wrong‑doing
A form of associating partners with God is ancestor‑worship. If people are invited to the path of righteousness, they refuse by saying: “Nay! we shall follow the way of our fathers,” even if their fathers were devoid of knowledge and guidance.
Sometimes people succumb to their personal ambitions and self‑importance which signifies their lack of faith in the ultimate causality of God; implied in the belief in the unity of God.
When some trouble or affliction comes to man he turns to God, but when it is removed he forgets that he ever turned to him,
and ascribes its removal to others besides, sets up rivals unto Him a great blasphemy
,
and sometimes thinks that it was his own skill and knowledge which helped him in removing his difficulties.
The disvalues of discord and disunity are the result of the denial of the unity of God.
The unbelievers and those who associate partners with God are always subject to fear and lack a sense of unity and harmony.
It is the devil that incites people to discord
and, therefore, the Qur'an very forcefully forbids people to be divided among themselves,
and looks upon disunity as the result of lack of wisdom.
It denounces divisions and splits in religion
and disagreements among different sects and schisms through insolent envy.
Similarly, all those acts which tend to spread mischief and tumult after there have been peace and order are condemned because they tend to create disorder, disunity, and disharmony in life.
Inertia
Opposed to power, weakness is a disvalue. It is wrong to show weakness in face of difficulties, to lose heart,
to be weak in will,
to be weary and faint‑hearted,
to despair or boast,
to be impatient and fretfu1.
It is forbidden to be afraid of men
or of Satan and his votaries.
There are certain disvalues which arise out of misuse of power. Warning is given to those people who oppress men with wrong‑doing and insolently transgress beyond bounds through the land, defying right and justice.
It is forbidden to indulge in vain talk,
to exhibit fierceness,
to be arrogant against God,
for arrogance blinds people to the truth,
to swell one's cheek with pride, or walk in insolence through the earth,
for one cannot rend the earth asunder or reach the mountains in height.
Arrogant and obstinate transgressors,
vainglorious people,
those fond of self‑glory,
people rebellious and wicked,
and vying with one another in pomp and gross rivalry,
are held out as examples of those who misuse their power.
Satan is condemned to everlasting punishment for abusing power and becoming haughty.
Moses was sent to Pharaoh because the latter had become proud and arrogant.
The people of 'Ad were punished because they behaved arrogantly and thought themselves very powerful.
The Israelites slew their apostles because of pride.
The hypocrites turn away from truth out of arroganee.
The Christians are described as nearest in love to the Muslims because they are not arrogant.
Some people try to cover their misuse of power under the cloak of determinism,
but the Qur'an repudiates this stand as totally unrealistic.
Man has the power to shape his destiny in the light of the truth of revelation.
Error
Opposed to truth or wisdom, error, conjecture, and fancy are all disvalueas which the Qur'an at several places denounces as equivalent to untruth or lies
and which do not lend support to an individual in his moral life.
Fancy and conjecture can avail nobody against truth.
It is forbidden to accept a report without ascertaining its truth,
to utter slander, intentionally forging falsehood
and to throw fault or sin on somebody who is innocent of it;
for these are all against the value of truth.
Indulgence in disputation,
vain discourses;
and susceptibility to superstitions
are disvalues opposed to wisdom. Those who do not try to save themselves from these are liable to be always afraid of others,
to be unable to distinguish truth from falsehood, and right from wrong;
their hearts always turn away from the light of truth and wisdom
towards depths of darkness.
Such are the people who have hearts wherewith they understand not, eyes wherewith they see not, and ears wherewith they hear not; in short, like cattle they lack truth and wisdom.
Hypocrisy
Hypocrisy is another disvalue. A hypocrite is one who says with his tongue what is not in his heart,
who is distracted in mind, being sincerely neither for one group nor for another.
Hypocrites are liars.
They expect people to praise them for what they never do,
compete with one another in sin and rancour,
and hold secret counsels among themselves for iniquity, hostility, and disobedience.
Hypocrites‑men and women‑enjoin evil and forbid what is just,
and if by chance they come into possession of a position of authority, they make mischief in the land, break ties of kinship,
and yet claim to be peace‑makers.
Showing off (riya') is also a disvalue. God does not love those who give away even money in order to be seen doing so by others, for such men have no faith in God and the Last Day.
Such showing off cancels the spirit of their charity.
It is like sowing seeds on a hard, barren rock on which there is little soil, and where heavy rain has left nothing but a bare stone.
Injustice
Opposed to the value of justice is the disvalue of injustice and violation of the principle of the mean. It is forbidden by the Qur'an to be influenced by people's vain desires and to deviate from the truth while judging between them.
It is also forbidden to distort justice or decline to do justice
or to withhold justice from people merely because they are your enemies.
It would be perfectly unjust to oneself and to others to pile up wealth,
to bury gold and silver, and not to spend them in the cause of God and righteousness.
The Qur'an equally forbids as violation of the principle of justice the squandering of wealth like a spendthrift
and recommends the middle way of prudence which is neither extravagance nor niggardhness.
It advises one neither to make one's hand tied to one's neck nor stretch it forth to its utmost reach so that one becomes blameworthy and destitute.
One should eat and drink but not waste by exeess
for that would be violating the principle of justice. Excess in any form is forbidden whether in food
or in religion.
Usury is forbidden, for it means devouring other people's substance wrongfully
and involves injustice on both sides.
Hatred and Unkindness
Against the value of love is the disvalue of hatred, harshness, or unkindness to others. People are advised not to speak any word of contempt to their parents,
to orphans,
and to beggars.
Believers are not to revile even those whore the unbelievers call upon besides God.
The Holy Prophet is described as safe from severity and hard‑heartedness towards others.
Vice ‑ Against goodness the Qur'an denounces the disvalue of vice, i. e., doing wrong and shameful deeds.
It is Satan who commands people to do what is evil and shameful.
People are forbidden to come near adultery, for it is a shameful deed and an evil, opening the road to other evils.
Similarly, wine and gambling involve great sin,
for they are the work of Satan.
The Qur’an forbids ‑ all shameful and evil deeds and uses a very comprehensive term zulm to cover them all.
Hypocrites and unbelievers enjoin
and plot evil
and hold secret counsels for iniquity, evil, and rebellion
and wrongfully eat up other people's property.
The believers are advised, therefore, not to help one another in sin and rancour.
The Qur'an refers to several Satanic tendencies in man,
such as ungratefulness,
hastiness,
impatience,
despair, and unbelief in times of adversity, and pride and conceit in times of prosperity;
quarrelsomeness,
arrogance,
greed of ever more and yet more,
niggardliness,
transgression of the bounds of propriety,
and false sense of self‑sufficiency.
These tendencies often lead to different forms of wrong‑doing and, therefore, must be counteracted by all right‑thinking people.
Moral Discipline
To produce the attitude of moral righteousness (taqwa), the discipline of prayer, fasting, zakat,
and pilgrimage is enforced. People are commanded to guard strictly their habit of prayers and stand before God in a devout frame of mind,
pay the zakat,
spend in charity secretly and openly
‑ a beautiful loan to God
‑ a bargain that will never fail,
involving a glad tidings for the believers
and a cause of prosperity
and spiritual joy.
Those people who follow these principles are on the right path under the true guidance of the Lord.
They remove the stain of evil from the people
and help them refrain from shameful and unjust deeds.
It is the duty of all Muslims, as witnesses for mankind in general, to hold fast to God.
It is the practice of all believing people that when God grants them power in the land; they enjoin the right and forbid the wrong.
All Muslims ought to follow these disciplinary principles.
Those who neglect them are bound to fall into the snares of their passions.
Similarly, fasting is recommended as a discipline during the month of Ramadan in which the Qur'an was revealed as a guide to mankind and as an embodiment of guidance and judgment between right and wrong.
It involves observance of certain limits and rules by all those who may wish to become righteous (acquire taqwa).
Performance of hajj is symptomatic of a righteous life in which there should be no obscenity, nor wickedness, nor wrangling, and the best provision for which is right conduct, i. e., taqwa.
Repentance
Though man is by nature after the pattern of God's nature
and, therefore, capable of approximating to the ideal embodied in the most beautiful names,
yet being prone to different weaknesses
he is often led to wrong his soul in spite of his best efforts to follow moral discipline.
Adam disobeyed God and thus was about to run into harm and aggression,
but as soon as he realized his mistake, he repented and God accepted his repentance
and promised that whoever follows His guidance shall be free from grief and sorrow.
The Lord accepts repentance from His servants and forgives the sins
of those who do evil in ignorance but repent soon afterwards
and are never obstinate in persisting in the wrong intentionally.
Even the thieves
and those who had waged wars against God
are covered by the universal mercy and loving kindness of God
provided they repent and amend their conduct,
earnestly bring God to mind,
hold fast to God, purify their religion solely for God,
and openly declare the Truth.
There is no scope, for pessimism and despair arising from the natural weaknesses of men in doing wrong to their sou1s,
for God turns to them that they might repent.
Turning to God in repentance and seeking of forgiveness from Him lead to the grant by God to man of good and true enjoyment and abounding grace in this life.
He will rain bounties from the sky and add to people's strength.
To turn continually to God in repentance is the sign of the true believer;
and this attitude of mind is strengthened by remembrance of God (dhikr), for it enables a man in most difficult and odd situations to keep firm and steadfast
and find in it a source of deep satisfaction and mental equipoise.
Taqwa
it is the whole pursuit of value and avoidance of disvalue in general that is designated by the Qur'an as righteousness (taqwa). It is dependent on and is the result of faith in God and adoration of Him.
The Qur'an is revealed solely to produce this attitude of taqwa among people.
It is the presence of this moral attitude which saves people from destruction
and it is this which helps them maintain God's commands in their conjugal life,
in sacrifice,
in different aspects of social life,
and in fulfilling faithfully their social obligations.
The motive which prompts people to adopt this moral attitude of taqwa is the desire to win the pleasure of God,
to gain nearness to Him,
and to seek His face
or countenance
implying that their motive is not self interest but the seeking of good for the sake of good,
which benefits their own souls
and which they seek even at the sacrifice of life.
The aim of such people is mainly a desire for increase in self‑purification without any idea of winning favour from anyone or expecting any reward whatsoever.
They will get a reward of the highest value
and attain complete satisfaction
and prosperity
‑ the final attainment of the Eternal Home,
well‑pleasing unto God.
These people resemble a garden high and fertile, heavy rain falls on it and makes it yield a double increase of harvest, and if it receives not heavy rain, light moisture suffices it.
For such people are the gardens in nearness to their Lord, a result of the pleasure of God.
To be righteous (muttaqi) is to believe in God, and the Last Day, and the angels, and the Books, and the messengers; to spend out of one's substance, out of love for God, for kin, for orphans, for the needy, for the wayfarer, for those who ask, for the ransom of slaves; to be steadfast in prayers, and to pay the zakat; to fulfil the contracts which have been made; and to be firm and patient in pain (or suffering), adversity, and periods of danger. Such people as follow these are possessed of true taqwa, i.e., righteousness.
And of the servants of God the most gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and when the ignorant address them, they say, “Peace”; those who spend the night in adoration of their Lord prostrating and standing; those who, when they spend, are not extravagant nor niggardly, but hold a just balance between these two extremes; those who invoke not, with God, any other god, nor slay such life as God has made sacred, except for just cause, nor commit fornication; those who witness no falsehood, and, if they pass by futility, they pass by it with honorable avoidance; those who, when they are admonished with the signs of their Lord, do not show indifference to them like the deaf or the blind; and those who pray, “Our Lord! give us the grace to lead the righteous.”
The better and more lasting reward of the Lord is for those who believe and put their trust in Him; those who avoid the greater crimes and shameful deeds, and, even when they are angry, they forgive; those who hearken to their Lord, and establish regular prayer; who conduct their affairs by mutual consultation; who spend out of what God bestows on them for sustenance; who, when an oppressive wrong is inflicted on them, (are not cowed but) help and defend themselves; and those who recompense injury with injury in degree equal thereto and, better still, forgive and make reconciliation.
But indeed if any do help and defend themselves after a wrong is done to them, against such there is no cause of blame. The blame is only against those who oppress men with wrong‑doing and insolently transgress beyond bounds through the land, defying right and justice; for such there will be a grievous penalty. But indeed showing patience and forgiveness is an exercise of courageous will and resolution in the conduct of affairs.
There is yet a higher stage of moral achievement described as ihsan which signifies performance of moral action in conformity with the moral ideal with the added sense of deep loyalty to the cause of God, done in the most graceful way that is motivated by a unique love for God.
Performance of righteous actions accompanied by a true faith is only a stage in the moral life of man which, after several stages, gradually matures into ihsan.
God is with those who perform good deeds and perform them with added grace and beauty.
Those who sacrifice animals with a spirit of dedication have piety (taqwa) no doubt, but those who thereby glorify God for His guidance, acknowledging fully the extent of His bounties provided in abundance, are the people who are characterized by ihsan.
In the life hereafter the morally upright will be in the midst of gardens and springs
wherein they will take spiritual enjoyment in the things which their Lord gives as a reward for leading a life of graceful righteousness.
The sincerely devoted people (muhsinin) are those who willingly suffer thirst, fatigue, or hunger in the cause of God,
or tread paths which may raise the ire of the unbelievers, or receive injury from an enemy;
who despite all that do not conduct themselves in life as to cause mischief on the earth but call on Him with fear and longing;
who spend of their substance in the cause of God, refrain from evil, and are engaged in doing truly good deeds;
who spend freely whether in prosperity or in adversity; who restrain anger and pardon all men;
who are steadfast in patience
and exercise restraint;
who establish regular prayer and pay the zakat and have in their hearts the assurance of the hereafter;
and who are always ready to forgive people and overlook their misdeeds.
Almost all the prophets are included in this category
which signifies that the muhsinin are those who are not only on the right path themselves,
but in addition by their good example and magnetic personality lead others to the way of righteousness and help in establishing a social order based on peace, harmony, and security.
Complete power,
wisdom and knowledge,
true guidance from the Lord, prosperity,
rise in worldly position,
power, and knowledge
are the by‑products of their life of graceful righteousness (ihsan).
Their reward shall never be lost,
for God is always with them
and loves them
and will bestow on them the rank of friendship as He did on Abraham.
He who submits his whole self to the will of God and moreover does it gracefully and with a spirit of dedication (muhsin) has grasped indeed the most trustworthy handhold,
and enjoys the most beautiful position in religion for he is following Abraham who was true in faith.
He will get his reward from his Lord and shall experience neither fear nor grief.
God is well pleased with those who followed in the footsteps of the vanguard of Islam‑the first of those who forsook their houses and of those who gave them aid‑in a spirit of devotion and graceful loyalty as well as those who followed them, as they are all with Him. For them God has prepared the garden of paradise, as their eternal home of supreme felicity.
Notes
0%
Author: M.M. Sharif
