THE GOAL OF MAN — Defining Human Life

the perfect, ideal things needed for building a happy life do not exist here, for everything here is in an incomplete and limited form. Seeking happiness here is like a student wanting to build his desired life inside the examination hall! He will ultimately be overwhelmed with a sense of frustration. This same state of frustration is faced by all those who want to build the world of their dreams in this world of trial. So, what must men and women do in this pre-death world in order to find the world of their hopes in the post-death world? The answer is that they must exercise their freedom in accordance with the will of their Creator. For the life after death, God has made a perfect world which is called Paradise. This Paradise is an ideal and perfect world in every respect. God wants such men and women for this world as are worthy of inhabiting it. From this present world, only those who qualify according to the divine standard will be lodged in this ideal world of Paradise. Who, then, are these men and women who measure up to the divine standard? They are the ones who, by using their intellectual capabilities, attain the realization of God. They are those who will discover the truth by tearing asunder the veil of mental confusion; who abandon all other forms of worship in favour of the worship of God; who are willing to surrender themselves to divine discipline, in spite of having been granted full freedom to flout it if they wish; who develop a positive outlook even in a negative situation; who treat others as they themselves would like to be treated. These are the criteria by which to earn Paradise according to the Divine creation plan. Such men and women who come up to this standard will be ushered into the eternal Paradise after death, while those who fail to do so will be cast into eternal hellfire, where they will have nothing in store for them but eternal deprivation and frustration. The people who will fill Paradise will be those who availed of the opportunities of this present world to do good, while the people who will fill hell will be those who failed to avail of such opportunities. Theirs will be a case of missed opportunities. As the saying goes: ‘Opportunity only knocks once.’ This saying is wholly true in the matter of eternal success. For, the chance to succeed is not going to be given to anyone twice. The situation of those who will be adjudged to have properly availed of opportunities here on earth will endure to their benefit for all eternity, just as the situation of those who will be adjudged to have missed their opportunities will be one of unending perdition. o