‘And We have sent down from the rainy clouds abundant water. ‘
Surah An Naba (78:14)
Qur’an
Dear Reader…
Dear Reader,
You are reading this today, for a reason.
I want you to give me your answer to the question:
What is the purpose in life?
Write it down. Make a list if you want. Now scroll down to see what you may have come up with…
- to be happy
- to have fun
- earn money
- look good
- get married
- to be loved
- to have a family
- have kids
- get famous
- get educated
- travel the world
- to eat/drink/sleep
- whatever else you added
These things are accepted by many as common pursuits of life. But are they really the purpose of our existence? Does failure to attain these imply that it’s not worth living anymore? Are people who cannot attain these worthless?
Let’s get real. Sure everyone wants to be happy, but sometimes we become sad. Does that mean we shouldn’t bother living anymore? No! Of course not!
The same can be said about having fun, life’s not always fun, is it? I’m just being honest.
Money…so what happens when you go broke? What about those in poverty or unable to earn?
And about looking good… well, define good-looking for a start… and then decide, is beauty and youth everlasting, or ephemeral? (Botox does not count, those who’ve been there and done that can tell you all about it!)
The same about everything else on that list. You may have it, you may lose it, you may never attain it, and if you do, it will not last forever. Ultimately, we do have an end. Agreed? That’s a nod.
So then, all these things are ephemeral pursuits in life. What’s more, they may not be attainable to everyone. But that doesn’t mean it’s not worth living. Because life has meaning. It’s got to be far deeper than merely getting by before you die.
What is the purpose of life?!
Quite simply, this is the very question which many have failed to answer adequately.
But when the answer comes from the Supreme Creator of all existence, things become a whole lot clearer.
As Muslims, we believe in One Supreme Creator of the universe and all existence. You may say God, we prefer to use Allah- you can’t add gender or plurals to the latter.
Allah is The Supreme Creator of all. Everything has a beginning and an end. But Allah is The Ever-Living, The Self-Existing, The Originator. Allah created you and me, and everything. Allah owns everything, including you and me. We belong to Allah. And we will return to Allah soon…
Allah informs us that we were created for a purpose, and that purpose is to worship none but Allah alone, without partners or associates.
“and I (Allah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship me (alone). [Qur’an, chapter 51: verse 56 (English interpretation of Arabic)]
I haven’t finished this letter yet. Thanks for your time though, I’m going to have to continue it soon, if Allah wills…
It’s time for Du’aa!
Asalamu alaykum all.
With about a week to go till the Month of mercy, Mufti Menk has some awesome advice for us here (see the video!) .
Ready for Ramadan?
Let’s get in the habit of making Dua/supplications!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55eQjyZR_2Q
Islam explained (post 1)
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, The Most Merciful
Welcome dear curious reader. We’ll be giving you a brief introduction to Islam.
Whether you’re a Muslim or not, it is anticipated that you will learn much from this endeavour.
Sadly, Islam is still largely misunderstood by much of the population.
Thus, we took the initiative to tell you the TRUTH about Islam.
Let’s begin!
1. Allah-The Supreme Creator and Lord of all creation. The One True God worthy of worship. Allah is the Eternal, uncreated Creator. He is One, Self-sufficient, independent from and separate from His creation. Allah does not have any partners or children. There is nothing like Allah. Allah is the All-Knowing, All-Seeing, All-Hearing, Provider, Cherisher, Sustainer and Originator of the universe. It is essential to affirm the Oneness of Allah in His Lordship, His names and attributes and His exclusive right to be worshipped without partners or associates.
You can find a superb description of Allah in chapter 112 of the Qur’an:
2. Islam– Means submission to the will of the One Supreme Creator of the universe known as ‘Allah’ or The One True God.
3. Muslim- One who submits his/her will to the Will of Allah. The purpose in life is to worship Allah, not because He needs us (remember He is Self-Sufficient, Self-Subsisting) but because we need Him. It is in everyone’s natural disposition to recognise Allah’s Lordship and His right to be worshipped exclusively.
4.Messengers and prophets– Allah did not leave creation without guidance. He sent prophets and messengers, who were human beings, to warn their nations and remind them to worship Allah alone. We believe in Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus among others, peace be upon them all. Incidentally, we believe Jesus was born from the virgin Mary, miraculously without a father. Jesus is not the son of God, because God (Allah) is One, without partners, associates or children. Humans and created beings have children, and God is unlike His creation! Therefore, we respect and believe in Jesus peace be upon him as a messenger of God who never claimed divinity, but rather, he called to the worship of The One True God (Allah) alone without partners.
5. Scriptures and revealed books– Allah sent the messengers with scriptures to guide the people to come back to the worship of One True God alone. We believe in the original scriptures, such as the Torah, Psalms and Gospel (the current day versions have been altered by man over time and are thus no longer in the original form). All the messengers and prophets (peace be upon them all) professed Islamic Monotheism. The previous messengers were sent with revelations for their people at their times. Thereafter, Allah sent a final messenger to guide,remind and warn us.
6. The Final prophet and messenger and final book of revelation– Allah sent the final prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as the last messenger after whom no new messenger will be sent to mankind. Allah revealed the final book of revelation,The Qur’an, to the prophet Muhammad, who conveyed this to his people. The Qur’an is the verbatim words of Allah.
The miracle is that the Qur’an has been preserved from change since its revelation over 1400 years ago, as Allah guaranteed to guard it from corruption.
Verily, We, it is We Who have sent down the Dhikr (i.e. the Qur’an) and surely, We will guard it (from corruption) .
[Qur’an, 15:9- English interpretation]
The message Muhammad was sent with and the final revealed book (The Qur’an) abrogates all other books and laws before it. Muhammad peace be upon him also called to the Oneness of God and called people to worship Allah alone without partners (Islamic Monotheism), the same message of the previous prophets. The prophet Muhammad came with Islam, and the Qur’an, and this is the message all nations after him are to follow, as commanded by Allah. Indeed, it is through obeying God (Allah) that we hope to attain eternal bliss in the afterlife.
To be continued…
Thurrock Muslim Community 