THE ESSENCE OF RELIGION—PART I

not just one of supposition (e.g. if we repeat certain words and actions, God in heaven will be pleased with us). Far and beyond this there is a direct link between God and man. This attitude of adoring servitude, in its external form, is obedience to God’s commandments, but its inner reality means carrying man to the point where he can ‘meet’ God, where he may whisper to his Lord, where he may cry and break down in His presence, where he may feel that he is prostrate at the feet of his Creator. To find God thus in this life is the highest and most sublime reality of religion. The aim of all rites and commandments of religion is to raise man to this level. One who finds God thus in this world, will surely find Him in the next world; one who has failed to find Him on earth should not expect to find Him in the world hereafter. What are the signs of having found this spiritual wealth? One of the signs is that man begins to receive divine provision (THE QURAN 20: 131). In complying with God’s commandments, whatever one does is apparently a matter of one's own choice: one may or may not carry them out. But during the performance of these acts, or rites of worship, one experiences particular inner feelings which are not a matter of one’s own choice, that is, one cannot produce them on one’s own. Then where do these inner feelings come from? These actually come from God. This is ‘food’ for the believer without which his spiritual personality cannot not be developed. It is like the divine provision which Mary received directly from God when living in the care of the Prophet Zakariya (THE QURAN 3: 37). When one observes a religious practice, one becomes aware of a special kind of feeling. This feeling is a reward from God for good deeds. The believer receives it the very moment he makes himself deserving of it. When our Lord accepts any of our deeds, we surprisingly experience spiritual feelings within ourselves. This is the introduction to Paradise that God has promised to righteous believers. It is the fragrance of the Garden of Paradise which believers find in this world. Although these inner feelings take the form of a spiritual anguish, they are more piquant by far than anything in this world. They cannot be compared with worldly delights. Intuition tells us that these inner feelings are reflections of that superior, divine reward which is called Heaven. It is said, therefore, in the Quran that the Heaven into which the believers will enter in the Hereafter will be a “known provision” Although worship is a psychological reality, it cannot be conceived of without external God ordained religious rites.