The Wages of Man
Al-Risala (English), March-April 1992, p. 18
By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan is named as the default author of the periodical; a piece that carries another writer’s byline is credited to that writer.
The Wages of Man
1992 3-4 March-April 18 The Wages of Man (331) “And on that day when the unbelievers are brought before the fire of Hell (We shall say to them): ‘Ye squandered your good things in the life of the world and sought comfort therein. Now this day ye are rewarded with the doom of ignominy because ye were disdainful in the land without a right and because ye used to transgress.’” (Qur’an 46:20)
Whatever the resources given to man in this world, such as physical strength, intelligence, wealth, position, material benefits and opportunities they are all bestowed by the Creator so that man may derive further benefit from them.
‘Benefit’ here means psychological gain. But this can fall into two different categories. One (as in the verse above) is marked by fisq (pride) and fijr (disobedience). The other is marked by humility and gratitude. If a man becomes arrogant on receiving these blessings, if he exploits these valuable resources purely to achieve personal fame and prestige, it is as bad as simply squandering the opportunity. Where he should have sought spiritual uplift from them, he has misused them to bring him material dividends in the present world. Nothing but doom and destruction awaits such a man in the life to come.
The better kind of man is one who, on receiving these resources, thanks his Creator for all His blessings and conducts himself with humility. He acknowledges that all these benefits have been given to him by God. He uses these resources for God’s purposes and not for his own selfish ends. He is one who has made the best provision, through these blessings, for the life hereafter. He has utilized his blessings in such a way as to be deserving of paradise. Such a person will find the choicest of treasures awaiting him in the hereafter, and his striving after righteousness will be returned to him in the form of perennial gardens.
In the present life everyone is granted equal opportunities. Some earn the world, while others earn the Hereafter.
