ISLAMIC SPIRITUALITY

plane. For him, even seeing things in another’s possession, occasions an outpouring of his gratefulness to God from the innermost recesses of his heart. A materially-minded person sees only the creation, while a spiritually inclined person sees the splendour of the Creator through creation. The greatest source of pleasure is in the remembrance of God. It is this reality which finds expression in the following verse of the Quran: It is only in the remembrance of God that hearts are comforted. THE QURAN, 13: 28 Comfort means not just the temporary solace to be found in everyday convenience, but the real comfort with its implications of peace of mind that can stem only from God Almighty. Man by nature is an idealistic creature. Anything short of ideal can attract only fitful attention from him, whereas true and lasting comfort can be achieved only through the Perfect Being. If materialism is to live a life of limitations, spirituality is to live in limitlessness. The pleasure derived from material things is limited in nature and very short-lived; whereas spiritual pleasure may be eternally savoured. The universe has been fashioned by God in a way that it may become a source of spiritual inspiration for man. According to the Quran, it is the quality of ‘tawassum’ that enables one to find inspiration in the universe. Tawassum is the ability to understand the signs of nature. That is, to observe the phenomena of the universe in order to draw lessons from them and receive spiritual nourishment from physical events. God is so generous that He has created the whole universe to be at our service, day and night. A verse of the Quran: And He gave you all that you asked for. THE QURAN, 14: 34 This means that whatever is needed for Man to live a good life on this Earth has been prepared in advance by God, directly and indirectly. The only price to be made for these endless blessings is thankfulness; which is man’s recognition from the depths of his heart, that God is the Giver and Man is the receiver. All these blessings of the Almighty are silently conveying the following message: “O man! Are you seeking something