THE WORD OF GOD
From The Scriptures
The Quran is the book of God. It has been preserved in its entirety since its revelation to the Prophet of Islam between CE 610 and 632. It is a book that brings glad tidings to humankind, along with divine admonition, and stresses the importance of man’s discovery of the Truth on a spiritual and intellectual level.
Translated from Arabic and commentary by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful All that is in the heavens and on the earth extols the glory of God. To Him belongs the Kingdom and to Him all praise is due. He has power over all things. It was He who created you; and some of you are those who deny this truth, and some who believe [in it]. God sees everything you do. He created the heavens and the earth for a purpose. He formed you and gave you the best of forms. To Him you shall all return. He knows whatever is in the heavens and the earth. He knows all that you conceal and all that you reveal. God is aware of what is in your hearts. (64: 1-4)
This means the universe is singing the praises of God; that the reality which is revealed in the Quran, is testified to by the entire universe. In its silent language, it confirms this to the extent of singing praises. Notwithstanding this two-fold declaration those who do not become believers, shall have to wait for the third announcement, when people will be gathered before God, so that they may hear the decision about themselves directly from the Lord of universe.
Have you not heard about those who denied the truth before you and tasted the evil consequences of their conduct? They will have a painful punishment. That was because their messengers came to them with clear signs, but they replied, ‘Shall mortals be our guides?’ And so they rejected the truth and turned away. God has no need of such people; God is self-sufficient and worthy of all praise. Those who deny the truth claim that they will never be raised up again. Say, ‘By my Lord, most surely you will be raised up again and then you will be told of all that you have done; and that is easy enough for God.’ Believe then in God and His Messenger, and in the light which We have sent down. God is fully aware of all that you do. (64: 5-8)
The history made by the prophets in ancient times is an eternal source of admonition. For example, prophets appeared among the ‘Ad, the Thamud, the people of Madyan, and the community of Lot. These prophets did not possess any supernatural powers to prove their veracity. They had only reasoning in their favour. Rejection of the Truth in spite of its being backed by reasoning made the doubters liable for punishment. This shows that in this world a man is tested by his ability to recognize the Truth on the basis of reasoning. One who fails to do so will always remain deprived of the Truth.
When He shall gather you all for the Day of Gathering, that will be the Day of loss and gain; and whoever believes in God and does good deeds shall be forgiven their sins and admitted to Gardens through which rivers flow, where they shall dwell forever. That is the supreme triumph. But those who denied the truth and rejected Our signs shall be the inmates of the Fire, there to remain—what an evil destination!
No affliction can befall man but by God’s permission—He guides the hearts of those who believe in Him: God has knowledge of all things— Obey God and obey the Messenger; but if you turn away, remember that Our Messenger is only responsible for clearly conveying the message.
God! There is no god but He, so let the faithful put their trust in Him. (64: 9-13)
People take the world to be a place of winning or losing (taghabun). One who is successful here becomes very happy, but one who meets with failure is looked upon with contempt. In this world, however, success is as valueless as failure is.
The place of true success or failure is the Hereafter. One is a failure if he fails in the Hereafter and successful if he is successful in the Hereafter, and the criterion of success or failure there is entirely different from that of this world, where it is based on outward materialism: success or failure in the Hereafter will be on the basis of divine moral values. At that time, people will be surprised to see that the whole complexion of things has completely changed. Gaining, which was considered as such will actually turn out to be losing, while what was considered as losing will turn out to be gaining in the real sense. Failure on that Day is real failure and success on that Day will be real success.
No trouble arrives of its own accord. Every tribulation comes from God, and it afflicts man so that, through it, he should receive guidance. Trouble softens a man’s heart and jolts him out of his moral slumber.
Trouble prods and sharpens a man’s mind. If he refrains from negative reaction, then trouble will become the best divine instruction for him.