WATER AS SPIRITUAL NOURISHMENT

you are on the banks of a flowing river.” There are many verses in the Quran that make such references to water. When studied in the light of modern scientific data, one will realize that the oceans on Earth are not only reservoirs of water, but also oceans of spirituality. Water is made by the coming together of two gases: hydrogen and oxygen. Two elements which are individually gaseous in nature, combine to produce liquid water. Nature has gathered this water in the seas and the oceans. At least 3.5 per cent of this seawater consists of salt, which acts as a preservative. Because of its salty taste, we cannot drink it or otherwise make use of it. But by the workings of the laws of nature, the water in the oceans and seas rises up into the atmosphere as water vapour, being separated in this way from the salt content. This water vapour then collects together to form clouds, which bring rain. Rainwater is fresh water that we can put to use for our various daily needs. This entire process, known as the hydrological cycle, takes place on a global scale. If one were to ponder over this phenomenon, one would become extremely thankful to God. Spirituality is only another name for this thankfulness. This spirit becomes a disincentive to squandering the crucial blessing of water. A person who is truly grateful to God for the blessing of water will ask himself: ‘If I cannot create water, how can I waste it?’ o