Presents The Fundamental Teachings Of Islam In A Simple .
CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACKIn this series, Maulana Wahiduddin Khanpresents the fundamental teachings ofIslam in a simple way. The series providesthe general reader with an accurate andcomprehensive picture of Islam—the truereligion of submission to s.cominfo@cpsglobal.orgwww.cpsglobal.orgCYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK
OIn the name of AllahThe Merciful, the Compassionate
First Published 2001Reprinted 2013This book does not carry a copyright.The text in this book is gleaned fromIslam Rediscovered by Maulana Wahiduddin KhanFor more information, please write to:Goodword Books1, Nizamuddin West MarketNew Delhi-110013email: info@goodwordbooks.comwww.goodwordbooks.comPrinted in India
IntroductionGod has created an ideal world called paradise. Itis a world of everlasting joy and bliss. No turmoilor pain mars its delight. One is never beset thereby anguish or calamity. It is a trouble-free world ofinfinite blessings, where one will experience neitherdeath, boredom nor grief.The search for such an ideal world is an instinctiveurge in man. Everybody is searching for an invisibleparadise; but none is able to find a paradise of suchinfinite blessings in the present finite world. God hasreserved it for the next world.None can earn paradise automatically; only thosewho perform heavenly actions on earth will bedeserving of it. God has divided our lives into twoparts: a short period on earth, and the rest in thehereafter. This world is for action. The next world isfor reaping the rewards of our actions.Man is free to do as he wishes on earth, but his freewill is no more than a test. He should treat it as such.3
He should not revel in his power. Those who are notdeluded by their temporary power, and never losesight of their true position, will be accommodatedin paradise. Those who rebel on the basis of theirworldly power will abide in hell.All real power in this world belongs to God alone.He is the Lord of all things. No one can escape fromHis control for an instant. Those who recognize thisfact will submit to God of their own accord. Theyare the ones who are worthy of paradise. Those whodeny this fact and proceed in whatever directiontheir impulse takes them, are offenders in God’ssight. They will have no share in the blessings of thelife-hereafter.Wahiduddin KhanOctober, 1980The Islamic Centre,New Delhi4
Belief in GodGod is the source of all goodness. He can be seeneverywhere in the universe. His power is evidentin the form of light and heat. He converts matterinto greenery and flowing water. His glory is mademanifest in colour, taste and fragrance. Motion andmagnetism are evidence of His strength.Belief in a God of such supreme perfection is morethan just a dogma. It illuminates man’s soul andenraptures his heart. If one relishes a delicious fruit,and goes into ecstasy on hearing a tuneful melody,how then can one fail to be moved by the discoveryof God, who is the fountainhead of all goodness.When one truly discovers God, He becomes like afragrance which one savours, a delicious taste whichone relishes, a spectacle, which captivates one’svision, a melody that never ceases to thrill. God hascreated all these exquisite delights: His Being is theirtreasure house. Drawing close to God is like enteringparadise. It is like dwelling in a garden of exquisitebeauty and fragrance, or being close to the source ofall light.5
Discovery of GodGod’s true servant is one who is thrown into suchspiritual excitement by the discovery of God thathe always has God in his thoughts. The beholdingof God in all His majesty inspires such awe and fearin him that the hair of his body stands on end. Onewho finds God fears and loves Him above all else.His entire attention is focused on God alone.When he reads the Qur’an, he is overwhelmedwith gratitude to God for having guided him, thussaving him from the darkness of ignorance. Whenhe considers the life-pattern of the holy Prophet, hiswhole being is thankful to God for having providedman with such an impeccable example of how lifeshould be lived, and having then preserved thatmodel for all time. When he prostrates himself inworship, he feels as if God has embraced him in Hismercy. When he eats, every fibre of his being thanksGod for the nourishment and sustenance with whichHe has provided man. When he drinks water, tearsof thanks flow from his eyes, for if God had notprovided water, how would he be able to quench histhirst?6
God’s NeighbourOne who has discovered God becomes close toGod even in this world. His spirit is bathed inthe light of God. If even the sight of flowers arousesfiner feelings in a person, how can one discover Godand not be moved to a state of sublime ecstasy?Many people claim to be close to God, but are stillin fact a long way from Him. They speak of God, buttheir actions show that they have not even recognizedtheir Lord.They take God’s name, but have not tasted thesweetness of the name that they utter. They claimto have found God, but have not experienced thefragrance of His garden. They display religious fervourin public, but there are no signs of their souls beingilluminated with the light of God. They consider thatGod’s paradise is reserved exclusively for them, buttheir lives are not touched by a heavenly breeze.A strange God it must be who does not cause anyvibration in one’s thoughts. A strange heaven itmust be to which people who show no reflectionof the heavenly in their words and deeds will be7
automatically admitted. A strange hereafter it mustbe which will be inherited for all eternity by peoplewho did not seek life-everlasting and were interestedonly in ephemeral pleasures.It is regrettable that there are people who claim tohave found God while in truth they have not foundHim at all.Spiritual NourishmentAbeliever derives spiritual nourishment fromthe whole universe; he will partake of the samenourishment in material form in paradise. Whenzephyrs caress his body in this world, he feels as ifa divine hand is stroking him. He beholds God’sunfathomable mercy in the flowing motion of rivers.The chirping of birds inspires him to sing songs ofdivine praise. Whoever is granted such vision ascomes with true belief sees evidence of God’s gloryin all things.A tree is just a simple wooden structure, butwhat beautiful flowers blossom on it. Dry wood,growing on dry land, suddenly undergoes a silenttransformation. Its branches burgeon with luxuriantblooms.8
This happens so that, just by gazing at such a spectacle,one may feel inspired to cry out to God: “Lord, Itoo am like a piece of wood; only You can make meflower. I am like a barren stalk; only You can makeme blossom and thrive. I am just an insignificantbeing; only You can put meaning into my life. I amstanding on the verge of Hell; only You can enableme to enter paradise. I am far from You; only Youcan reach out and take me under Your protection.”Closeness to GodOnly those who have recognized God in thisworld will be admitted to God’s paradise in thenext. The discoverer of God is one who sees Godwith conviction, despite the fact that in this worldGod is invisible; who hears God speaking to himwith each throb of his heart; who reads the Book ofGod with a feeling that the pages of his own natureare being unfolded.The discoverer of God is one whose moribund spirithas been quickened by faith; whose heart has beenpurified by remembrance of God; who proceeds bythe light of God; whose heart trembles at the verymention of God’s name; who receives God with tearsand whose whole being surrenders to Him.9
Whoever is close to God is close to heaven. Closenessto God begins in this world and culminates in thenext. A person who experiences closeness to Godfeels that he is seeing an unseen reality. He feelsvery close to the most distant of Beings. He engagesin conversation with One who does not seem tobe present. He showers his affection on the mostawesome of Beings. He establishes direct contactwith the One who cannot be approached throughany intermediary.Paradise—The Greatest of GiftsEverything in heaven and on earth bows to God,but no natural act of prostration can compareto man’s obeisance. Other creatures submit to Godinvoluntarily. Man does so expressly, of his own freewill.Man submits to God consciously and independently.No action in the world can compare with man’ssubmission. Herein lies the real value of man. Manis the only creature who is fully aware of his totalhelplessness in the face of God’s omnipotence. Hecounts himself as nothing and God as everything.He renounces his own ego in the face of divinity. Heforsakes all power and surrenders totally to God. He10
controls his speech for God’s sake, as if he had notongue of his own.Becoming a true believer is the greatest thing thatcan happen in the world. The reward for such beliefmust be similarly great. Heaven is the name of thatreward. Paradise is not the price of one’s actions: it isthe gift of God. It is granted to those who offer Godsomething, which nothing else in the universe hasoffered. Accordingly, it is a gift that He has grantedto no other creature.Heavenly VisionAll of God’s creation is so astounding that, wereman to behold it, he would be lost in admirationof its absolute perfection. The face of the Creatoris reflected in the wonders of His creation. But wehave seen so much of the world that our senses havebeen dulled. We have become so familiar with theworld around us that we fail to marvel at it as weshould. Water, birds and trees—indeed everythingin nature—is too wonderful for words. Everythingis a reflection of the Creator. But we cannot see howamazing it all is. We are too familiar with it all.In this man is being tested. It is for him to perceive11
extraordinary qualities in ordinary things. If onegazes at the world in awe, one will feel God’s presenceeverywhere. One will live on earth as if one was faceto face with God.To behold God and to feel His immanence is thegreatest discovery man can make in this world. If oneis blessed with heavenly vision, one will perceive thelight of God in rays of sunlight. The spectacle of treeswill portray to one the countenance of God. One willfeel God’s touch in every gentle breeze. When onelays one’s forehead on the ground in prostration onewill feel as if one has cast oneself at God’s feet. God iseverywhere, but only those fortunate ones who havebeen blessed with heavenly vision can behold him.God’s WorshippersOnly one who has really been in love with someonecan be moved to tears by the memory of hisbeloved. If one feels no attachment for someone, onecannot, simply because some occasion calls for it,force oneself to cry for that person.Some adopt an attitude of humility towards theirfellow men, while others remain arrogant. Someare fair and just, others oppress and persecute their12
fellows. Some are humble, others are proud. Somesubmit to the truth, others do not. People of suchopposing attitudes cannot both worship God in asimilar fashion. Only the first category of peoplewill be genuinely humble in their worship. Thesecond category may adopt the humble postures ofworship—as the occasion demands—but they cannotthereby become God’s humble servants. Humility inone’s worship stems from a life of humility. One whois not humble in the totality of his existence cannotthen be truly humble in his worship.Those who truly worship God will enter paradise.They are the ones who serve God at all times, not justat specified times of worship. Paradise is an abode oftruth. It has been prepared specially for those whoare true in their worship. Those who are insincerewill never be admitted to such an abode.A Complete WorldThe pleasures of this world are short-lived. Itsbeauty soon fades from our vision. How muchman longs for worldly honour and happiness, butbefore he has even begun to savour them, theybegin to dwindle away to nothing. The world haseverything that man wants, but it is not possible for13
anyone—even those who seem to have everythingin life—to achieve all that they desire. Happiness isnot necessarily the lot of the successful.Man, as a being, is perfect, but his world is tragicallyimperfect. His life is meaningless until he inherits aworld free of all limitations and disadvantages.As a compensation for the incompleteness of thisworld, God has given us paradise. But gaining entryto it will be no easy matter. The price that has to bepaid for an after-life of perfection is living throughthe present world of imperfection and being able tosacrifice this world for the next. This is the only wayto enter paradise. Those who are not able to makethis sacrifice will also enter an eternal world afterdeath, but it will be a world of anguish and despairas opposed to one of joy and bliss.Light After DarknessMorning follows night. That which was concealedin darkness is revealed in the light of day. This isa sign of what is to come.The light of eternity will tear the veils, which haveconcealed the realities of human existence in the14
world. Everyone will appear in his true light. It willbecome clear who among us was masquerading asan ideal human being, while acting solely on baseranimal instincts. It will become clear who was onlypaying lip service to righteousness. It will becomeclear who was falsely claiming to be a servant ofGod.The truth about many others will also be revealedon that day. People will realize the true importanceof those whom they used to rate poorly. Those whowere never honoured in world gatherings willfind honour among the angels. Those who wererejected by men will be accepted by God. Thosewho were wrongly accused of impiety in the worldwill be hailed for their piety in the presence of theAlmighty.When all ThingsCome to LightThe cosmos is full of meaning. It accepts nothing,which is contrary to its nature and is not in accordwith its design. Yet man wreaks evil and indulges incorruption on this our earth, the most fertile andexquisite portion of the universe. Truth is trampled15
upon in the name of progress and the cosmos, despiteits meaningfulness, stands by in silence. It does notcondemn the evil, which is openly committed onearth. It does not proclaim truth and falsehood forwhat they are.Does the cosmos contradict itself? Is it incapableof expressing itself? There are birds that singmelodiously, but is there no cosmic voice to proclaimthe truth? There is, certainly, but God has silencedthe voice of truth until the resurrection of man.When man rises from the dead, all things will testifyto the truth. The whole universe will bear witness tothe truth, and will give evidence before God. Justicewill prevail. People will then realize that just as thecosmos possessed a sun to convert night into day,it also possessed a means of bringing to light suchdeeds as had remained concealed in obscurity.Those who had rebelled on earth will pay in full fortheir rebellion; they will be cast into the fire of Hell.Those who had served God will be rewarded for theirrighteousness; God will be merciful to them. Theywill be admitted to heaven, where they will enjoy aneverlasting life of honour and content.16
A Dream WorldGod has created man with innumerable desiresand longings. The means exist in this world forthe fulfillment of his desires, but even so, man isunable to fulfill them. Sometimes old age intervenesand sometimes man’s inherent limitations preventhim from achieving what he wishes; sometimes he ishindered by some weakness and sometimes he is notfavoured by fortune.Is man fated to come into the world with all sortsof desires and then leave the world, disappointed athaving achieved none of them? This is not the case:God has prepared a paradise for man where he willbe granted all that he desires. After death man entersinto a complete world, a world free of all defects. Hewill find there everything that he had longed for onearth but had been unable to obtain.Heaven after death is for those fortunate ones wholive righteous lives on earth; who prove by their nobleactions that they deserve an equally noble reward.Man will find in the next life the dream world thateludes him on earth. Only those who have paid theprice in this life will deserve heaven in the next.17
Loss Turned to GainMan longs more than anything for a world fullof happiness. This longing is inborn in everyhuman being, but everyone leaves the world withonly a partial sense of fulfillment. Man wants to seeall his desires satisfied in this world, but the worldcannot provide what he wants; so he is left in a stateof disillusionment.We may build for ourselves the kind of home wehave always dreamed of having but, in it, we are stillbeset by the rivalry, jealousy, enmity and vengeanceof others. We make huge advances in the field oftechnology, only to see them rendered meaninglessby new problems. Then, while we are still on the roadto success, death puts an end to everything.Man is quite right to long for an ideal world, but hecan never find it on earth. He will have to wait untilthe next life for the realization of such a world. Faithin eternity invests our life on earth with meaning.Our life on earth is one of struggle, but in eternity,we will be rewarded for our efforts on earth. If oneconsiders this world the ultimate destination, one isbound to be disappointed; but if one looks ahead to18
the Hereafter, then a world of eternal contentmentopens out before one.In a world where we seem bound to lose, only a faith,which tells us the secret of turning our losses intogains, can be the true one.Avoiding DisasterMan works hard to build a solid financial base forhis life. When he builds a fine house for himself,he feels that his efforts have been rewarded. He buildssuccess for himself in the world. Then suddenly deathovertakes him. He leaves his home for the grave.His fine body is devoured by earth and worms. Hisworldly gain comes to nothing, as if there had beenno connection between him and his achievements.He dreamt of mansions in the world; now he has toenter the grave. Finally he is raised from the dead andbrought before the Lord to be judged. There he will beabsolutely destitute. He will not even have clothes tocover his body. Everything he had earned will amountto nothing. His friends will desert him. He will be leftpowerless. He will be deprived of all the supports,which made him so sure of himself on earth.19
It is an ill-fated journey on which one meets disasteras one nears one’s destination. It is a strange travelerwho thinks that he is heading towards his goal, andonly realizes that he has been on the wrong track allalong as he nears his destination.The Universal WayThe whole universe has submitted to God.Everything proceeds on the path that God haslaid down for it. Trees stand high, but they cast theirshadows on the ground in humility. Winds blow, butthey do not clash with anybody. The sun radiates lighton all alike; it does not discriminate between the weakand the mighty. Rain falls from the sky, benefiting allwhom it reaches; it is not prejudiced against anyone.Birds and ants are busy in their search for their food,but they do not steal one another’s share.This is the path ordained by God for the universe,and this is the way that man should live also. God’sbeloved servants are humble like the shadow of atree. They pass one another by like gentle puffs ofwind. They are kind and well-meaning to one and allalike in the manner of the rain. They nourish otherslike river-water. They shed light on all like the sun.They are always careful not to trouble anyone.20
Such pure souls will dwell in heaven. The people ofheaven will live with one another like flowers in agarden. They will exude fragrance and will conversewith one another in gentle tones. They will meet withone another like gentle breezes. How extraordinarywill heaven and its surroundings be.The Islamic LifeAn Islamic life comes into being like a tree. Averdant tree can only grow when it has
vibration in one’s thoughts. A strange heaven it . A tree is just a simple wooden structure, but what beautiful flowers blossom on it. Dry wood, growing on dry land, suddenly undergoes a silent . feels that he is seeing an unseen reality. He feels very close to the most distant of Beings. He engages
May 02, 2018 · D. Program Evaluation ͟The organization has provided a description of the framework for how each program will be evaluated. The framework should include all the elements below: ͟The evaluation methods are cost-effective for the organization ͟Quantitative and qualitative data is being collected (at Basics tier, data collection must have begun)
Silat is a combative art of self-defense and survival rooted from Matay archipelago. It was traced at thé early of Langkasuka Kingdom (2nd century CE) till thé reign of Melaka (Malaysia) Sultanate era (13th century). Silat has now evolved to become part of social culture and tradition with thé appearance of a fine physical and spiritual .
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Chính Văn.- Còn đức Thế tôn thì tuệ giác cực kỳ trong sạch 8: hiện hành bất nhị 9, đạt đến vô tướng 10, đứng vào chỗ đứng của các đức Thế tôn 11, thể hiện tính bình đẳng của các Ngài, đến chỗ không còn chướng ngại 12, giáo pháp không thể khuynh đảo, tâm thức không bị cản trở, cái được
Le genou de Lucy. Odile Jacob. 1999. Coppens Y. Pré-textes. L’homme préhistorique en morceaux. Eds Odile Jacob. 2011. Costentin J., Delaveau P. Café, thé, chocolat, les bons effets sur le cerveau et pour le corps. Editions Odile Jacob. 2010. Crawford M., Marsh D. The driving force : food in human evolution and the future.
Le genou de Lucy. Odile Jacob. 1999. Coppens Y. Pré-textes. L’homme préhistorique en morceaux. Eds Odile Jacob. 2011. Costentin J., Delaveau P. Café, thé, chocolat, les bons effets sur le cerveau et pour le corps. Editions Odile Jacob. 2010. 3 Crawford M., Marsh D. The driving force : food in human evolution and the future.
