Malfuzat – Volume II — Page 69
69 if God had provided the means but no capacities to man, even this would have been a failing. But no, this is not the case. Allah the Exalted has granted abilities to man, as well as the means. Similarly, on the one hand, God Almighty pro- vides man with bread, and on the other hand, He has given man eyes, a tongue and teeth, and He has put a man’s stomach, liver and intestines to work, and the proper functioning of all these things depends on food. If man consumed noth- ing, how would the heart be fuelled with blood and how would the body produce chyle? In the same manner, first and foremost, God Almighty has showered His grace upon us and sent the Holy Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, with a complete religion like Islam, and made him the Seal of the Prophets, and bestowed upon us a perfect book like the Holy Quran, which is the Seal of the Books. Now, until the Resurrection, neither shall any other book be sent, nor shall any other Prophet bring a new law. Then, if we do not employ our faculties of reflection and contemplation, and if we do not advance towards God Almighty, how indolent, slothful and ungrateful would we be? The Purpose of Human Life Reflect on the elaborate manner in which Allah the Exalted has outlined the path of God’s bounty in the very first chapter of the Holy Quran. In this first chapter, which is also known as the Seal of the Book and the Mother of the Book, we have been told clearly of the purpose of man’s life and the path by which it can be attained. The words ُ اِيَّاكَ نَعْبُد (Thee alone do we worship) express the fundamental demand and desire of man’s inherent nature, and this cannot be fulfilled without ُ اِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِيْن (Thee alone do we implore for help). However, by giving precedence to ُ اِيَّاكَ نَعْبُد (Thee alone do we worship) over ُ اِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِيْن (Thee alone do we implore for help), man has been taught that first, it is necessary for him to strive and toil to tread the paths of divine pleasure by means of his own strength, resolve and understanding, and by making full use of the faculties given to him by God Al- mighty; and after all this, then to pray to God Almighty so that He may complete these efforts and cause them to bear fruits. The purpose and objective of man’s life is to tread upon and seek the ‘straight path,’ which has been mentioned in this chapter as follows: