The Most Important Issue in Life

How important is the important issue?

Like a piece of melting ice, our expected days of life are shrinking each day. But surprisingly, many people live and end this life without knowing its ultimate purpose! They even don’t know the most important issue of life! They exactly resemble a man who drives his car days and nights without knowing the real goal and the road-map. Whatever efforts he puts only help expedite his journey towards a wrong destination. Are we among them? A good job, a nice house, good food and professional skills are mere means of our survival. But it is most important to live this life to meet its assigned purpose. Even in ancient ages, people showed wonderful skills. They built pyramids, raised huge walls on mountains and preserved the decaying dead for millenniums. But awfully, their problems started when they lived a life with deception and missed its real purpose. The same problem is eating into our own life even today. We still risk being wholly lost and consumed for mere survival, and failing to meet the real objective of our creation. This is why our amazing scientific achievements could not bring sanity to our wisdom! So, we the humans could kill more than 75 million people in the last two World Wars, and still keeping our killing machine constantly active in many lands.

Such moral failures owe to our failure in understanding some basic questions that directly relate to our life. Where did we come from? Why to sustain our worldly life and how to lead it? Where do we go from here in this world? Who is our Creator? Will we face punishment for our failures and wrongdoings? How to judge our wrongs and good deeds? How to define our ultimate failure and the success? What is the most original truth that survives through the whole length of the history? These questions raise the most basic and decisive issue in life. The human values, culture, behaviour, actions and attitude are all indeed dependent on the understanding of such issues. It is here that the holy Qur’an plays the most pivotal role. It provides the understanding that brings the paradigm shift in human life; and shows path and light towards the ultimate success.

The most original Truth

The long history of mankind reveals some unique truth. Although the tools, the people, the lands and languages differ in different ages, the truth that was professed by the prophets like Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus and others (peace be upon all of them) was exactly the same. While the scientists living in the same campus can’t conform to the same opinion on so many issues, it is astonishing that these disconnected prophets living in different ages and lands could possess exactly the same opinion on so many issues like the Creator, the hereafter, creation of man, the day of judgement, the accountability, the hell, the heaven and so many other issues. Indeed, this is the most amazing feature and the most valuable legacy of the human history. The uniqueness of this truth owes to its unique source, the Almighty Allah Sub’hana wa Ta’la. We are not the accidental outcome of a cosmic event, rather highly planned and perfect creation of the All-powerful and All-knowing Creator. It is indeed the common truth that was expressed in the Divine chain of the prophethood.

The Divine road-map

Allah – the Creator knows the inadequacies of humans. Man can think, imagine and innovate, but cannot invent a road-map for attaining the ultimate success and the right destiny in the paradise. Here, the knowledge of the unseen and the unpredictable is indispensable. So, this is an exclusive domain of Allah – the All-knower. So Allah reveals, “Guiding (man) is my responsibility” (The Qur’an, chapter 92, verse 12). This is why, with the creation of man, the Almighty Lord sent down His prophets and the Divine guidance. So, the first man on earth himself was also the first prophet. Noah, Abraham (Ibrahim), Jacob (Yaqoob), Isaac (Ishmail), Moses (Musa), Jesus (Issa) (peace be upon all these prophets) were indeed the mentioned few in a chain of more than a hundred thousand. And they preached the same Divine truth. Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him) was the last prophet in that Divine chain. And the holy Qur’an is the final book of guidance for those who believe (Chapter 2, verse 2). Indeed, the holy Qur’an is the perfect navigation tool to show the right path called Siratul Mustaqeem towards paradise. Those who follow it, can’t miss the destination. Without this true guidance, one can only reach the hellfire. Hence, nothing can be more crucial and valuable than the gift of the holy Qur’an from Allah Subhana wa Ta’la. 

Islam is not the religion of Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him) alone. Rather, it is the religion of all the prophets through all ages. He is the last prophet; and the Holy Qur’an is the last commandment. “There is none worthy of worshiping except Allah and Mohammad (peace be upon him) is the last messenger” is its core concept. With the revelation of the Holy Qur’an, not only chain of prophethood came to an end, but also the Divine guidance reached it perfection and completion. So the Holy Qur’an says, “This day, I have perfected your religion for you (the mankind), and completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion”. (Chapter 5, verse 3). With seal of the prophethood, the Holy Qur’an also warns, “In the court of Allah, Islam is the only acceptable religion” (Chapter 3, verse 19).

The plain and consistent Truth

Is it rationale to believe that someone’s sins will be pardoned by other’s suffering? Neither it is sensible, nor justifiable. Every man and woman is accountable for his or her own deed, and would be rewarded or punished accordingly. Simplicity, consistency and sensibility are the core essence of the Divine Truth. Allah has no partner, nor any son, daughter or minister. The concept of trinity, the Holy Ghost and the son of the Almighty are totally incompatible with the Divine Truth. Islam prohibits adultery, drinking alcohol, gambling and other sins – as were practised by Abraham, Moses and Jesus (peace be upon all of them). Islam thus upholds the Devine revelation free from corruption. Idolatry represents the ancient ignorance and falsehood; how it can be a choice for the wise and enlightened man? Faiths like Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Sikhism, Taoism and others also fail to show any reliable Divine connection.

The most rational

Doesn’t it beggar belief that this vast universe and its men and women, plants and animals, planets and galaxies were created mere accidentally? Can an accident or millions of accidents in the universe or natural evolution create such a beautiful world with its billions of most delicate and complex livings and non-livings? Could science ever prove such accurate creativity of an accident? Doesn’t it beggar belief that this vast universe and its men and women, plants and animals, planets and galaxies were created mere accidentally? Could science ever prove such accurate creativity of an accident? Can the extremely complex make-up of the human brain, the functioning of heart, lung and other body-organs, the creation and maintenance of body’s millions of cells and the cellular ingredients, the delicate construction of beautiful flowers and millions of other creations be the outcomes of accidents? Can a rational man believe that accidents could generate an evolutionary process to develop the mankind, the universe and the millions of other wonderful creations in their present forms? 

The only road for the ultimate success

Men and women are created with a definite purpose. The holy Qur’an tells about the purpose and thus reveals, “He is Allah, Who has created death and life to test who among you is good in deeds”–(Chapter 62, verse 2). Therefore, this world is virtually an examination hall; here all men and women are indeed assigned with specific tasks. Like any exam, here it counts every minute. So, a wise man cannot disengage from such prescribed tasks, nor can engage in tasks that would not please Allah Sub’hana wa Ta’la, rather would bring His punishing wrath. He is required to put his every effort and potential to accomplish the job in the best possible way. For that, the holy Qur’an is the Divine guide. It is the Book of sure success; and has been described as the best Divine blessing for the mankind. It helps not only to know the nature of the Divine assignment for every man and woman, but also shows ways to do things with highest perfection. Since, it is impossible to pass the test without following this Divine guidance, it is the Divine obligation to understand it. The early Muslim fulfilled the obligation; as a result, they could achieve the most spectacular success within a short period of time. Their success still stays unparalleled in the whole human history.

The question arises, what is our own response vis-à-vis this highest blessing of our Almighty Creator? For passing even a school or college exam, a student needs to master in the prescribed text books. The holy Qur’an is the prescribed text Book to help humans pass the exams in the worldly life. The question arises, do we wish to pass the exams without adherence to the text Book? Is not a sheer arrogance against Allah Sub’hana wa Ta’la and His blessings? It is indeed a wake-up call to come to the true sense. We must realise the importance of the success in this Divine test and the indispensability of Divine guidance. If we fail, that will cause catastrophic failures both here and in the hereafter. As a result, hellfire will be the ultimate abode. Other books and road maps have already shown their utter worthlessness; these could only breed more deception, failures and tragedies on the earth. And also possess more awful to offer in the hereafter. So, isn’t it the best option to follow this Divine roadmap?

The holy Qur’an is the book of Guidance for the whole mankind. Its ownership belongs only to Allah. All the humans on earth can be its rightful beneficiaries. Our success indeed lies on our own success to know and follow this Divine roadmap. In fact, knowing and following the Divine guidance is the most important singular task in humans’ life. Allah Sub’hana wa Ta’ala sent prophets no to teach any science, technology or skills but to emphasise on this most important issue. If we fail in the assigned task, the life will meet the ultimate failure in the hereafter. No other success in other areas can help rescue from the failure. Therefore, shouldn’t we invest our own time, energy and intellectual abilities to know and follow this prescribed guidance of the Almighty Creator?