A Share of this World for the Next

A Share of this World for the Next

1988 11 November 8-9 A Share of this World for the Next (509) The story of Qarun (Korah) as told in the Quran (28:77) lays stress on his having accumulated so much wealth that the keys of his treasures “would have weighed down a band of sturdy men”. Seeing that his wealth had made Qaran arrogant and conceited, some of his kinsfolk advised him not to revel in it, but to “seek with that which God has bestowed on you, to attain the Paradise to come. Do not forget your share in this world.”

According to commentators of the Quran, this last statement means that a believer should use the blessings of this world as a means of obtaining the rewards of the next world. Comments Imam Nasfi: “Such is a believer’s share in this world.” According to Mujahid and Ibn Zayd, one should not forget to extract from this world that which will increase one’s share in the next world, for a believer’s real share in this world is his investments in work for the next world, our present existence being but a planting-ground for the Hereafter. Imam Sady defines a “share in this world” as charity, and the consolidation of the ties of kinship. The Prophet’s cousin, Ali, for his part, says that one should use one’s health, strength, youth and wealth in order to seek the reward of the Hereafter. There is also a much-quoted saying of the Prophet himself that there are five things which one should make the most of – life, health, leisure, youth, and wealth – before they are nullified by death, ill-health, overwork, old age and impoverishment. Hasan Basri takes this verse to mean that one should keep whatever wealth one needs for one’s worldly requirements, while anything in excess of this should be used to enhance one’s prospects in the next world.

These assertions show that man has been put in this world in order to strive towards the next. Whoever conducts himself in this world in such a way as to profit in the Hereafter makes use of blessings which are purely ephemeral in nature in order to gain a portion of a life which will be truly everlasting. Those who act solely with worldly interests in mind, will, on the contrary, earn no such share in the life-everlasting, for they will have frittered away all their ‘capital in this life. When they reach the world of the Hereafter, they will have nothing whatsoever to fall back on.

This does not apply only to the very ordinary people of this world, it applies to people in all walks of life, and should be particularly noted by those who seem to be engaged in pious works, but who are actually motivated by a lust for worldly things. If, in engaging in religious work, one is, in reality, in hot pursuit of wealth, fame, power, prestige or status, one cannot extract a share of life-everlasting from this world of ephemeral. Such hypocrites will find themselves just as destitute in the Hereafter as the least pretentious of human beings, indeed, their destitution will be even greater.