The Message of the Quran

The Message of the Quran

1987 7 July 10-12 The Message of the Quran (1196) “Each one has a goal towards which he turns. So wherever you be, emulate one another in good works. God will bring you all before Him. He has power over all things. From wheresoever you depart, face towards the Sacred Mosque. This is surely the truth from your Lord. God is never heedless of what you do; whichever way you depart, face toward the Holy Mosque and wherever you are, face towards it, so that men will have no plea against you, except the evil-doers among them. Have no fear of them; fear Me, so that I may complete My favour to you and that you may be rightly guided. Indeed We have sent forth to you an apostle of your own people who will recite to you Our revelations and purify you of sin, who will instruct you in the Book and in wisdom and teach you that of which you had no knowledge. Remember Me, then, and I will remember you. Give thanks to Me and never deny Me” (2:148-152).

When the House of God in Mecca was appointed as the qiblah, the People of the Book started discussing whether the east was God’s direction or the west. They saw the matter as one of direction alone, but there was more to it than that. The selection of the House of God as the qiblah was not merely the specification of a certain direction for prayer; it was a sign that the time had come for God to reveal His greatest favour to man. It had been decided a long time before, that, in answer to the prayer of Abraham and Ishmael (see 2:129), God would send a final Prophet to the world. The path to life everlasting was now being thrown open to all: God was consummating His favour to mankind. The bringing of religion to its final stage of perfection in Islam does not mean that previous religions were incomplete. They too were complete in themselves, but none of them was preserved in its original and authentic form. God had revealed true religion time and time again, but every time mankind rebelled against it and either distorted it or allowed it to fall into oblivion. Now it was revealed in its ultimate and indelible form. Divine religion had been allowed to deteriorate into a set of mythological tales; now it was incorporated into history in the form of solid facts. Up till then, no pattern of true religion had been preserved for posterity; now, in a permanent, dynamic and practicable form, it was placed before mankind. The change to Mecca was more than a change from one direction of worship to another; it was a clear indication that God’s design for the guidance of mankind had been perfected.

It was at the time of the construction of the House of God that Abraham and Ishmael prayed for a prophet to come among the people of Mecca. The prayer was answered, and the coming of the final prophet, whose focus would be Mecca, was decreed. God’s messengers who came to the world used to prophesy his coming.

Now that he had come the House of God in Mecca was made the qiblail for all nations. This was God’s sign, indicating that the prophet whose coming had been anticipated had finally arrived. As for the sincere – they needed no further proof, but even the conclusiveness of this sign was not enough to silence those who gave no thought to God. It is those who fear God who are guided on the path to Him. God remembers those who remember Him. Only those who are full of fear of Him are free of fear of all else besides Him.

“Believers, seek help in patience and prayer. God is with the patient. Do not say that those who are slain in the cause of God are dead; they are alive, although you are not aware of them. We shall test you with some fear and hunger, with loss of life and property and crops. Give good news to the patient, who in adversity say: ‘We belong to God, and to Him we shall return.’ God’s blessing and mercy will be upon them; they are rightly guided” (2:153-157).

One who has adopted religion in the real sense of the word has truly discovered God. He lives in a permanent state of thanksgiving and remembrance of his Lord. Happiness and bliss come with such a life, though they are only to materialize in full and real form in the next eternal world. This world has not been created for reward: it has been created for the trial of man. Here obstacles have been placed in the path of those who seek to serve their Lord, so that the earnest can be distinguished from those who are lacking in zeal. These obstacles present themselves in the normal situations of life – human impulses, family requirements, worldly interests, temptation, social pressure – these are the things that provide the real test of life. First one has to realize in what manner one is being tested; then one has to avoid the pitfalls by remembering God and thanking Him for the blessings of life.

There is only one way to succeed in the trials of life, and that is through patience and prayer. This entails attaching oneself to God and conscientiously adhering to the path of truth, enduring all setbacks that afflict one on the way. Those who do not waver from the path because of the difficulties that lie on it – who stay with God despite the fact that no worldly benefit seems to accrue from their stance – these are the ones who will finally emerge successful from the trials of life. God has reserved the eternal blessings of the next life for those who show themselves willing to sacrifice this life for the next.

A major cause of suffering and affliction in this world is a believer’s attempt to preach the word of God. This is a task that involves criticism and admonition, and people have always loathed being criticised and admonished. The most sensitive in this regard are those who have used the name of religion to provide themselves with a worldly income. The preacher of God’s word, along with the message that the teaches, present a direct threat to the status of such people. Now everybody has to be weighed up against his teachings. Becoming a preacher of God’s word, then, is tantamount to putting one’s hand into a fire. One who takes this task upon himself is exposing himself to prejudice, economic ruin and even expulsion from his own land. He is placing both his life and property in the utmost peril. It is inevitable that one who follows God’s path will be persecuted in this world. But it is those who lose all for God’s sake who are the true finders; it is those who give their lives for Him who inherit life everlasting. For those who do not seek to make their paradise in this ephemeral world, God has prepared an eternal paradise in the next.