YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED

YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED The remedy for ignorance is asking questions. (Prophet Muhammad) The spirit of enquiry is the hallmark of an open society and the above saying of the Prophet aptly illustrates this principle. A culture of curiosity and open-mindedness will foster development in any society by motivating its members to learn enthusiastically and enrich their knowledge. This is because awareness of one’s ignorance is half of knowledge, as it becomes a stepping-stone to seeking and finding answers. A questioning mind is like a flowing river that is replenished with fresh thoughts and ideas and continues on its journey. Every chapter in the Quran except one begins with the words: BismillāhirRahmānir-Rahīm. What is the significance of these words? Bismillāhir-Rahmānir-Rahīm is the first verse of the Quran. It is repeated no less than 114 times. This repetition shows that, according to the Quran, this verse has great importance in the scheme of things given in the Quran. The translation of this verse is: ‘In the name of God, the most Gracious, the most Merciful.’ The Prophet of Islam has said that at the beginning of everything, you should say this verse. Beginning in this way is very important. It gives you great hope. After reciting this, you can believe that you are starting your work in a world that is controlled by God Almighty and that, if you follow the right path, you will have divine help bestowed upon you. Recitation of this verse not only gives you courage, but it also helps you to build a positive mode in your personality. When one says, ‘I begin in the name of the Almighty’, they establish a relationship with the greatest power of the universe. They feel that they are not alone in this world, they have God by their side. When one says Bismillah, one invokes God to provide His help. It ensures the success of any task in this world. What does the Quran tell us about the challenges of life? God says in the Quran: ‘So surely, with every hardship there is ease; surely with every hardship there is ease.’ (94: 5-6) In this Quranic verse, the same phrase is repeated twice. From this repetition, the Prophet Muhammed drew a very meaningful inference. That is, according to the law of nature, the situation of ease is double that of the situation of difficulty. So, he formulated this principle: “Two situations of ease will surely prevail over one of difficulty.” The fact is that in every situation, there are problems, but at the same time, there are opportunities. Complaint about or protest against problems is of no use. Problems are not created by some person: they are a part of the creation plan of God. No one has the power to alter the course of nature. We have no option but to accept this natural course. This being so, the best course is to ‘starve the problems and feed the opportunities.’