THE ISLAMIC WAY OF LIFE

Worshipping God and Doing Good to Man

THE Islamic way of life is, to put it briefly, a God-oriented life. The greatest concern of a Muslim is God Almighty. The focus of his whole life is the Hereafter, which is the ideal world of God. He obeys divine injunctions in every aspect of his life. His life is a practical expression of this Quranic verse:

 We take on God’s own dye. Who has a better dye than God’s? We worship Him alone. (THE QURAN 2: 138)

 Taking on ‘God’s dye’ means being of ‘godly character’ in all aspects of one’s life, personal as well as social, exemplified in one’s thoughts, words and deeds. This ‘godly’ character is personified in a Muslim individual whose words and deeds in family matters, dealings with other members of society, and earning a livelihood, are always distinguishably ‘dyed’ in the divine hue.

FAITH

By accepting Iman (Faith), one enters the fold of Islam. But Faith is not simply the verbal recitation of the Kalima, the creed of Islam. According to the Quran, it is realisation (5: 83). Realisation of truth is the door to Islam. When one discovers that Islam is truly God’s religion and is the same truth that one has sought all along, one undergoes a unique experience of realisation which in Islamic terminology is Ma'rifat. Making any discovery revolutionises a person’s life. But this discovery leads to an intellectual transformation, a new life. Such an intellectual revolution is no simple event. It turns man into superman, giving him the greatest mission of his life. It regulates his life in all aspects. He begins to see entire humanity as his family and the universe as his abode. He becomes a maker of history, rather than a product of it. This is the stuff of Iman. And it was this Iman which enabled the Prophet and his Companions to bring about the expansion of Islam. As one historian remarked, it was “the most miraculous of all miracles”.

 


Islamic morality is based on the formula of unilateral and unconditional positive conduct: 'Do good to others, even if they do not.’


WORSHIP

Observing a set of rituals is not Ibadah, or worship. It is a profound religious experience. It is the physical and spiritual expression of the human personality at a higher plane of consciousness. Addressing man, the Quran says, “Prostrate yourself in adoration and bring yourself closer (to God)” (THE QURAN 96: 19). The Prophet Muhammad was once asked ‘What is the essence of Ibadah?’ He replied: ‘The worship of God as though you are seeing Him. Or if you are not seeing Him, He is seeing you.’ There are two kinds of worship in Islam. The first is prescribed at specified times—these include the five daily prayers, fasting during Ramazan and pilgrimage or Hajj. These forms of devotion are among what are called the ‘pillars of Islam’. Other forms of worship are dhikr and fikr (THE QURAN 3: 191), which is to remember God with feelings of fear and love. This is to activate the human soul and see God’s signs in everything in one’s daily life. This is obligatory for every Muslim at all times.

MORALITY

What is morality? It is to lead life according to the teachings of Islam. The essence of Islamic morality is stated in a Hadith: “Behave with others as you would like them to behave towards you” (Al-Bukhari). By nature, everyone is aware of the sort of conduct one approves and disapproves. Following this generally accepted moral criterion in relation to others is essentially Islamic morality. Islam differentiates between social manners and social character. Social manners are based on the principle ‘Do as they do’. But Islamic morality is based on the formula of unilateral and unconditional positive conduct: ‘Do good to others, even if they do not.’ Being good to others is evidence that one is also good in relation to God. The Quran portrays Muslims as individuals who ‘repel evil with good’ (28: 54). Similarly, the Prophet Muhammad advised a Muslim to ‘do good to those who harm him’ (at-Tirmidhi). The Prophet Muhammad was the embodiment of the finest moral character. Addressing the Prophet, the Quran declares: ‘Surely you have a sublime character’. (68: 4)

The great importance given to moral character serves as a criterion by which to judge all other Islamic virtues. If one is good to others, it is evidence that one is also good in relation to God. The Prophet Muhammad puts it thus: One who is not grateful to man cannot be grateful to God either. (Al-Bayhaqi)


The task of enjoining good and forbidding evil has to be performed with utmost gentleness and well-wishing, not with harshness and violence.


SOCIAL RELATIONS

Individual Responsibility To preserve society from instability and keep it in a perpetually reformed state, Islam has a basic commandment mentioned at many places in the Quran. One such Quranic verse reads: “(Believers are those)... who enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil” (9: 112). The point has been repeated in a number of traditions of the Prophet, such as the following: “A believer ought to open the gate of good and close the door of evil” (Musnad Ahmad). This commandment has been misrepresented by certain self-styled advocates of Islamic revolution as being political in nature. It is entirely non-political. It indicates that every member of society ought to have a strong sense of responsibility towards society. None should remain indifferent on seeing the perpetration of evil or injustice. One should feel the pain of others in one's own heart. When one sees someone engaged in calumny and slander of others, one should attempt to stop it. Every member of society should consider the upholding of virtue to be an essential duty. The greatest concern of every individual should be to follow what is good and to see that goodness flourishes in society and evil is uprooted. This needs to be done with gentleness and well-wishing, not harshness and violence. This explains why social responsibility is linked with acts of worship in islam.


A believer sees all of humanity as his family and the entire universe as his abode.


Family Life

 

A sane society is an extension of a sane family. Human society at large is a single family gradually extended throughout history. Islam emphasises the significance of a disciplined and well-organised family life because it supports and maintains social stability. A family begins when a male and a female decide as members of society to live together under one roof. However, Islam does not allow such a relationship between a man and a woman, unless it is based on a legitimate marital contract, meant to guarantee lifelong partnership of rights and duties, 24 Spirit of Islam Issue 37 January 2016 and not mere temporary entertainment. Hence, there is no room in Islam for what is known as pre-marital or extra-marital affairs between the two sexes. Through the institution of marriage Islam aims at building a society free from anarchy, instability, indecency, violence and crime. Marriage, when conducted and maintained on the lines laid down in the Quran and the Sunnah, (practice and teachings of the Prophet) provides an organised unit in the form of a home. Successive generations are brought up on this foundation, nurtured physically, morally and emotionally in a healthy atmosphere under the supervision of loving and caring parents. This training at home helps children enter society, equipped with an entrenched sense of responsibility, respect for human values and positive qualities such as sincerity, that are essential for the better construction and development of a social system. A society composed of homes or training units embodying such values will never suffer from the chaos and destructive instabilities that societies experience today. 


To attain inner peace and real happiness, one has to remain content with what one earns independently and lawfully


Guidelines for a healthy, happy and meaningful marital life, along with the rights and duties of parents and other members of the family, occupy considerable place in both the Quran and Hadith. A few references are given below:

1. And your Lord has commanded that you should worship none but Him, and show goodness to your parents. If either or both of them attain old age, show no sign of impatience and do not rebuke them, but always speak gently to them and treat them with humility and tenderness and say: ‘O my Lord! Have mercy on them as they raised me up when I was little’.(THE QURAN 17: 23-24)

2. No parents have ever given to their children any gift better than a good moral education. (Al-Adab al-Mufrad)

3. Live with them (spouses) in accordance with what is fair and kind; if you dislike them, it may be that you dislike something which God might make a source of abundant good for you. (THE QURAN 4: 19)

Legitimate Livelihood

Many social evils can be directly attributed to some members of society having insufficient means of livelihood or others having excess wealth. Islam urges one to earn one’s livelihood by all possible but lawful means, so that one’s essential needs are met and one stays independent. According to the Quran and Hadith, traits like greed and the desire for more, niggardliness, holding money back to centralise it in one or a few hands, are the main roots of criminal and destructive tendencies in society. That is why virtues such as contentment, moderation, simplicity, altruism, charity and sharing one’s happiness with others are highly recommended in Islam. Conversely, vices like extravagance, selfishness, monopolistic practices, exploitation, usury and other unfair means of money-making are strongly condemned and prohibited. The following are additional points with regard to one's legitimate earnings.


Every member of society should consider the upholding of virtue to be an essential duty


Avoidance of transgression:God Almighty has declared in the Quran: Eat of the good things we have given for your sustenance,and do not transgress with respect to them.(20: 81)

Self-reliance: One should try one’s utmost to earn one’s daily bread by one’s own efforts, without being dependent on anybody else. The Prophet Muhammad is reported to have said repeatedly: “The best food one has ever had is that which one has earned with one’s own hands”. (Abu Dawud)

Charity:When one is fortunate enough to earn more than meeting one’s own needs, instead of being parsimonious one should extend a supporting hand to the less fortunate and the destitute. Otherwise, one’s wealth will become a curse rather than a blessing.

Contentment: To attain inner peace and real happiness, one has to remain content with what one earns independently and lawfully. Inner peace and real happiness are got by being content with one’s individual and lawful earnings. The Prophet says in this respect: “Indeed he has attained eternal success and prosperity who accepted Islam, and God has filled his heart with contentment towards whatever he was given”. He also said: “A little that suffices is much better than a surfeit thatcauses disturbance”. (Al-Bayhaqi)

Simplicity:Last, but not least, is the Islamic principle of simplicity. The Prophet’s own life style was a unique example of simplicity. In one of his sayings he has even considered it one of the signs of true faith(Ibn Majah). In another Hadith, he warns his Companions: “Stay away from the luxurious life. For the servants of God do not indulge in luxury”.(Musnad Ahmad)

 


Through the institution of marriage Islam aims at building a society free from anarchy, instability, indecency, violence and crime


 

 

The Spiritual versus the Material

Being spiritual is to adapt one's relationship

to other human beings and it

is far from meaning the renunciation of all

 contacts with the material world.