THE SPIRIT OF ISLAM

This verse of the Quran tells us that in Islam there is no need for any intermediary to establish contact between God and man. At any time and place man can contact God directly. The only condition is that man should turn to God with sincere devotion. Meditation in Islam aims at bringing man closer to God. When man worships God, when he remembers Him, when his heart is turned towards Him in full concentration, when he makes a request or a plea, then he establishes a rapport with his Maker. In the words of the Hadith, at that particular moment he comes to whisper with his Lord. He has the tangible feeling that he is pouring his heart out to God and that God in turn is answering his call. When this communion is established between God and man, man can feel himself becoming imbued with a special kind of peace. His eyes are moist with tears. He starts receiving inspiration from God. It is in moments such as these that man can rest assured of his prayers being granted by God. According to a Hadith, the Prophet Muhammad said the highest form of worship is to pray as if you were seeing God. We learn from this Hadith the true sign of a superior form of worship. For man, the true sign is to sense the presence of God during worship, and feel that he has come close to God. That is when he can experience the refreshing, invigorating effect of God’s love and blessings for man. It is this feeling of closeness to God which is the highest form of spiritual experience. o