The True Purpose of Life

CONTENTS
Dedication Acknowledgments Foreword Caution Introduction The Existence of a Creator The Essence of Religion What is Life? Life as a Purposeful Creation Concept Of the After Life Concept of Life in Various Religions Life in Islam - The Only Choice Islam - The Universal Religion Benefits and Unique Features of Islam Return to Your Lord, The Most Loving How does one Become a Muslim? Living Islam Conclusion Afterword For Further Reading Bibliography Softwares 5 6 7 9 10 14 24 29 34 44 54 65 78 85 94 99 100 108 111 113 114 116
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to all those people who sincerely want to know about the 'True Purpose of Life' and the Right Path leading towards the achievement of this sublime goal.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My acknowledgments are due to my beloved teacher, instructor and guide Shaykh Zahoor Ahmad Shah Al Madni who not only gave a direction to my knowledge but also by his character, left an everlasting impression on my heart. My acknowledgments are also due to my family especially my mother Masarat Shah, my father Farooq Ahmad Sikander and my brothers Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander & Raies Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander who have always encouraged me to carry on such tasks. I am also very much thankful to Iesha Javed who not only emended this book but also assisted me to accomplish this task with her utmost support and encouragement.And above all, I am really grateful to GodAlmighty without whose help, this work would have never been achieved. If there is anything good in this book, it is from God. All mistakes are mine.
FOREWORD
In The Name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
The sole aim of writing this book is to acquaint the reader with a very fundamental topic; The Purpose of Life. This topic is indeed of a very significant nature for, the various issues that exert a great influence upon life on this planet are actually founded on the fundamental question of the purpose of our lives. This book is meant for every sound-minded and logical human being irrespective of religion or ideology, provided that one reads this book with an open heart and mind, without any bias or prejudice. Fresh air can come in only when the windows are let open. If the windows are kept closed, one is deprived of the much needed fresh air and is forced to breathe foul air leading to suffocation. The same holds true for knowledge and guidance. Only an open mind can grasp the truth. The one who has already made his mind rigid and stagnant and is not ready to accept the truth will be always divested from guidance. I have dealt with the subject matter of this book in a simple and lucid style, using simple English so as to make this work accessible for an average reader, keeping under consideration its size. I have discussed each topic briefly and precisely and have avoided going into arguments as my aim of writing this book is to make the reader think about this subject and not to indulge in any futile arguments which would have rendered this book inappropriate for a common man. From a quite long time I was getting some continuous requests to deal with this subject both in speech and in the form of a book. So I started writing this book to explain the real purpose of life
The True Purpose of Life
that I have personally grasped after years of research and interaction with people from different countries and ideologies. I hope that this book will prove as a means of Hidayah (guidance) for the reader. It is intended that this book will provide its reader with an insight about this subject after which he can himself reflect upon the Truth and then find the path to God. It is also intended that this book arouses your interest in this very topic and then make you think for a while that "Where I am and Where I am heading towards?" and if you are treading a wrong road then this book will definitely help you rediscover the true path of life. No matter even till now if you haven't realized the true purpose of life, don't be disheartened because "It is never too late to mend." God will accept you whenever you turn to him at any moment of your life. It's my humble prayer to God that may the readers of this book find the true purpose of their lives before the end of this brief life. REMEMBER that unlike any ordinary book, this book addresses the most fundamental question of your life. This book is therefore not to be pushed into the corner of a book shelf but rather should serve as a source of inspiration for you. Oh God! Accept this work from me and bring True Peace in the lives of all humans.
CAUTION
In the following pages, you are now going to read about the real purpose of your life which is the most fundamental topic pertaining to life on Earth. Read through the pages carefully and attentively with a relaxed and free mind so that what you read may change your outlook towards life. When you finish, go through the contents and ponder upon all what you read in this book and thereby reflect.
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INTRODUCTION
A single glimpse at things around us will very soon make us realize how complex in nature this world is, much more than whats apparent and same is true of human life. People today have become too busy in their personal jobs to take time out to reflect. Each day so many people are born and so many die but globally no one is bothered. There are people all around us but it seems that they are engrossed in the world to such an extent that they barely think of anything beyond this material world.Almost everybody around us is concerned with the present world only and are directing their best efforts towards achieving and amassing as much as possible during the short course of their lives. Most of the humans become happy on getting food, clothes and other stuff. But its same like animals that go happy on finding a prey. When we exercise this materialistic type of behaviour in our lives, it often makes us heedless about the true purpose of life, which is otherwise most fundamental. If only for a few moments, we were to free our souls from our selfish motives and vested interests, and just ask our inner selves, Whats the purpose of my life? then we will truly come to some conclusion provided our thinking is rightly guided by authentic information on the subject. What is life? Where have we come from? Where will we go after death? These are some critical questions that have, since the very ancient times, fascinated the philosophers along with the rest of the humankind. And these profound questions about the purpose of life generally strike the minds of everyone somewhere in life. We are so ignorant about the purpose of our lives. Lets think
that have we come into this world just for getting wealth, luxury and sex? Or is there anything beyond about which we often forget to ponder and consequently it makes our statements contradictory about the purpose of life. First and foremost, he (man) needs to know his own nature and the nature of the world he lives in, how he came into this world and what will happen to him after death. More than anything else, it is mans nature to seek answers to these questions. The world in which he lives in lacking in nothing; it lacks only the answers he seeks. The sun provides him with heat and light, but he does not know the suns true nature, or why it has been put to service. The wind is a source of life for man, but he is not able to stop the wind in its course and ask it what it is, and why it acts as it does. Mans own being stares him in the face, but he remains in the dark as to what he is, and what he has come into this world for. It is beyond the human mind to work out answers to these questions. Yet answers he must have. Not everyone puts these questions in words, but still they linger in the human soul, causing untold anguish and sometimes welling up with such force that they lead to insanity1. So the only and the best way left is to turn towards GOD and see what he has mentioned about this matter. If we say that God is the creator then he must definitely has laid some rules and guidance for his creation just like we see an operating manual with every gadget2. What would you think of a person who tried to use a straw hat as a cooking pot or a glass bottle as a hammer? What would you think of a person who used up all his life before finding out its purpose? Until we put our lives to the use they were made for, we are like that hat on the fire, or the bottle used as a hammer. We destroy ourselves without finding the satisfaction of fulfillment. God has a purpose and plan for your life. He has a work for you to do
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on earth and has prepared a wonderful home for you in heaven. You were born to fit into Gods plan...If you dont have fellowship with God, you have missed the main purpose of life3. The fact worth mentioning is that human beings are imitative by nature. We possess a natural tendency to blend into our surroundings. We are always ready to follow what others are doing, not realizing where it will lead us. Humans exhibit this imitative nature because its very easy to do so. Following the crowd is very easy as it will surely lead us to somewhere... even if it be an evil destination. Our illustration is that We are all walking and if somebody asks, Why are we walking? we will reply because all are walking. But to follow the truth and finding out the truth about life requires a deep thinking and study which majority of people are not ready to accept. But were you to follow the common run of those on earth, they will lead you away from the Way of God. They follow nothing but conjecture; they do nothing but lie4. In Reality, we need just a brief moment of time to understand the purpose of our life. It will not take long. We just have to prepare our self to find it and then face the facts about the truth of life. We all desperately need a Divine code that will guide us and show us the true purpose of life. When we will finally get it, only then our minds will be stabilized and our heart will find rest and tranquility, which is indeed a great joy for us all. Only after getting satisfied with life, can we devote our minds to other fields and get excellent results. If our life is well and peaceful, only then will our activities bear fruit. Just as every cause has an effect, Life is a cause and if this cause is good, so will be its effect. Thus the dire need of today is to address this topic in context of the present world scenario and modern society in order to give a right direction to our lives and so as to make this world a better place to live in.
Footnotes
[1] [2] [3] [4] God Arises, Maulana Wahiduddin Khan, p. 243-244. For more information about the existence of the creator (God), see the next chapter. The Great Questions of Life, International Correspondence Institute, p. 25-26. Holy Quran Chapter 6, verse 116.
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THE EXISTENCE OF A CREATOR

I came not knowing from where, but I came. And I saw a pathway in front of me, so I walked. And I will remain walking, whether I want this or not. How did I come? How did I see my pathway? I do not know! Am I new or am I old in this existence? Am I free and unrestrained, or do I walk in chains? Do I lead myself in my life, or am I being led? I wish I know, but I do not know! And my path, oh what is my path? Is it long or is it short? Am I ascending in it, or am I going down and sinking? Am I the one who is walking on the road, or is it the road that is moving? Or are we both standing, but it is the time that is running? I do not know! Before I became a full human, do you see if I were nothing, impossible? Or do you see that I was something? Is there an answer to this puzzle, or will it remain eternal? I do not know ... and why do I not know?? I do not know! 1 To know about the true purpose of life, it is indeed very significant to know the creator who has bestowed us with the precious asset called life. There indeed exists a supreme and an ultimate creator who has created the entire universe and whatever
is in it and we call that Creator as GOD. "The question of God's existence has preoccupied the great minds for many centuries. Those who believe in God seem to agree that the limited finite human intelligence cannot prove the existence of the Infinite Boundless God Who is. It can only illustrate or demonstrate His existence to the satisfaction of the curious human mind. Those who deny claim to rely on science, philosophy, or special theories of knowledge. Their arguments are sometimes inapplicable, sometimes irrelevant, always complex, and often incomprehensible. However, the developed free mind will find its way to God. Failure to find the way does not mean that there is no way. Denial of reality does not make it unreal2. There are many people who question that, "Who created God?" but it is a very illogical question as it contradicts the very definition of God i.e. He is 'uncreated' and not made. He was there always and will remain till eternity. He is infinite while as the creation is finite. The God makes His presence felt to His creation by the means of His signs. God says: "Soon will We show them Our Signs in the (furthest) regions (of the earth), and in their own souls, until it becomes manifest to them that this is the Truth. Is it not enough that your Lord witnesses all things?"3 If we just begin to observe this massive universe, we will surely find the signs of God in it. There are billions of galaxies in the universe and each galaxy consists of billions of stars. Our earth is one of the smallest stars of the universe. The marvellous wonders of universe, the major astral bodies of the solar system, the sun, the moon and the stars, all work in a perfect unison without a slight deviation. There is a perfect order in whole of the universe. Each of the celestial bodies are swimming perfectly in their respective orbits without any collision. How could all this just
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happen by an accident or by a chance? Just see the human body and its complexes. See the marvels of DNA and RNA. We can see the miracles of God everywhere in this universe. If you have a reasoning mind at all, all you have to do is just to observe the creation of God to realize that somebody has put it there together, designed it, and then make it work like it does. As Dr. Robert A. Millikan (1868-1953), the great nuclear physicist and pioneer of cosmic ray research, said, "If you would say that this watch just put itself together, invented itself, you would be crazy! And just as there had to be a watchmaker behind the synchronized perfection and order of every watch, so there had to be a Divine Designer and Creator behind the intricate precision of the Universe." And similarly if we see a beautiful painting, the concept of its creator automatically hits our mind that there must be some artist who has designed it, then the concept of the formation of so much complex universe with its perfect order coming into existence just by a chance sounds illogical. The famous physicist Sir Fred Hoyle makes a very striking observation about the origin of life. In his book The Intelligent Universe he writes: The chance that higher life forms might have emerged in this way (by coincidence) is comparable with the chance that a tornado sweeping through a junk-yard might assemble a Boeing 747 from the materials therein.4 The Bible says: "For the invisible things of Him (God) from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power; so that they are without excuse." 5 Further the Qur'an says: "And to Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and Allah is over all things competent. Indeed, in the creation of the
heavens and the earth and the alternation of the night and the day are Signs for those of understanding-Who remember Allah while standing or sitting or lying on their sides and give thought to the creation of the heavens and the earth, [saying], "Our Lord, You did not create this aimlessly; exalted are You [above such a thing]; then protect us from the punishment of the Fire."6 The vast majority of human beings have always believed in God. From the most ancient civilizations to the most primitive of modern societies, religions with God at their center have formed the foundation of human culture. In fact, the denial of God's existence (atheism) throughout history was limited to a few individuals until the rise of communism in the 20th century. Even today, in the secular societies of the West, where modern social scientists armed with Darwinian theories have argued that God is merely a figment of the human collective imagination, the overwhelming majority of citizens, laymen and even scientists, hold steadfast to their belief in God.7 Even the anthropologists and historians have found that the people of ancient civilizations have always believed in God as they have found various statues and other data that confirms their staunch belief in God. However they just differed in the concept of God. As above mentioned that only a minority of people have denied the existence of God through the ages. The atheists believe that this universe came into existence just by a mere chance but we have already refuted this claim. They also believe that matter and time have always been there and the universe will keep on going till eternity but today science has proved that both matter and time had a beginning and will come to an end8. Even the atheists believe that life came into existence by a mere chance but till now science
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has failed to prove this claim9. "If man were to come into being by accident or by sheer chance, his entire life would be based on chance, and his whole existence would be meaningless. But no sensible man can conceive of his life as meaningless, and no rational being would leave his existence at the mercy of fluctuating chance. Every reasonable human being tries to make his life as meaningful as possible and set for himself a model of conduct according to some design. Individuals, groups and nations do plan their course of action, and every careful plan produces some desired effects. The fact of the matter is that man does engage in planning of one sort or another, and can appreciate the merits of good planning."10 It must be noted that human beings have a natural inclination towards God and there exists a spiritual vacuum in human beings that can only be filled by believing in One Supreme God. It's interesting to see that the people who don't believe in God like atheists and materialists do show respect to their ideals like Karl Marx, Fredrick Engels and Lenin in order to fill their spiritual vacuum. If one doesn't believe in God then the life becomes purposeless. Consequently, the overwhelming body of archeological data in support of God's existence has led some anthropologists to conclude that belief in God (deism) must be inborn and not learnt. Although the vast majority of social scientists proposed otherwise, recent scientific discoveries appear to support the minority view that deism is innate. In an article entitled "God Spot is found in the Brain," Dr. Vilayanur Ramachandran of the University of California at San Diego said that the phenomenon of religious belief in God is hard-wired into the brain.11 This feeling of doubt and confusion about the presence of a Creator and whether He sent messengers and Prophets to guide mankind must be quite painful because it deprives the Atheist and the Agnostic of tranquility, security and peace of mind. The
unbelievers do not have credible answers to the purpose of one's existence. And thus they say that man lives for himself and for the pleasures of this life. So what happens when life turns sour? What happens when one goes through hardships? It is no coincidence then that the largest number of suicides takes place amongst
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Atheists, Agnostics and people who do not know their purpose in life. Do you know which country has the largest number of suicides? It's Japan. In the year ending March 2000, there were 33,000 suicides in Japan. That is 91 suicides per day or 1 suicide every 15 minutes! This despite Japan being the second largest economy in the world wherein people do not have to worry about providing a roof over their heads or about food or medical care.12 There are hundreds of scientists that had a complete faith in God because there comes a stage in science when a person is left with no other alternative except to believe in a Divine Creator i.e. The God. Johannes Kepler, Samuel Morse, Isaac Newton, Michael Faraday, James Prescott Joule, Louis Pasteur, J J Thomson, Maxwell, Max Planck, John Dalton are some of the many examples of great scientists who had a staunch belief in God. Albert Einstein, who is one of the most important scientists of the last century, was also known for his faith in God. He did not hesitate to defend that science could not exist without religion. As he put it: "I cannot conceive of a genuine scientist without that profound faith. The situation may be expressed by an image: science without religion is lame."13 Some other scientists who admit that the universe is created by a Creator and who are known by their cited attributes are: Robert Boyle (the father of modern chemistry). Iona William Petty (known for his studies on statistics and modern economy). Michael Faraday (one of the greatest physicists of all times). Gregory Mendel (the father of genetics; he invalidated Darwinism with his discoveries in the science of genetics). Louis Pasteur (the greatest name in bacteriology; he declared war on Darwinism). John Dalton (the father of atomic theory). Blaise Pascal (one of the most important mathematicians).
John Ray (the most important name in British natural history). Nicolaus Steno (a famous stratiographer who investigated earth layers). Carolus Linnaeus (the father of biological classification). Georges Cuvier (the founder of comparative anatomy). Matthew Maury (the founder of oceanography). Thomas Anderson (one of the pioneers in the field of organic chemistry)..14 "The root cause of the majority of the ills of modern life lies in personal philosophies and social aims being so often diametrically opposed to each other. What we call crime, corruption and all the other attendant evils are nothing other than the results of any given society's members setting their sights on material happiness. Whether individuals, groups or nations are concerned, the moment the goal in life becomes individual prosperity, the seeds of destruction are sown for the rest of the humanity. The insatiable lust for self-fulfillment leads to innumerable social evils: fornication, robbery, looting, fraudulence, kidnapping, treachery, terrorism, murder and, ultimately war. All these are the result of people pursuing their own happiness, come what may and, inevitably, it is society that pays the price. The only solution to this problem is for humanity to turn to its true purpose in life. The fact that materialism has given rise to such conflict between individual aims and social purpose clearly indicates that man's true goal in life is quite other. Rather than aim at worldly satisfactions, he should set himself to earning the approbation of his Creator in the life after death, for this is what man's purpose in life truly is. If he were to adopt this course, the individual and society would be able to progress in harmony with one another, for there would then be no confrontation between the two; the individuals who constitute the society would then be working towards ends which did not clash with those of society as a whole,
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23 [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] Did God become man, Dr. Bilal Philips, p.5. For more information please refer to the book "Timelessness and the Reality of Fate" By Harun Yahya. For more information please refer to the book "Tell Me About Creation" By Harun Yahya. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 19. Did God become man, Dr. Bilal Philips, p.5. The Purpose of Life By Mostafa Malaekah. Source: www.islamguide.com Science, Philosophy and Religion, New York 1941. The existence of God, Harun Yahya p.56. God Arises, Maulana Wahiduddin Khan p.254-255. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 26.
but which contributed positively to the general good. Making eternity one's goal results in harmony. The pursuit of false objectives can bring nothing but discord."15 There are various ways to know God, and there are many things to tell about Him. The great wonders and the impressive marvels of the world are like open books in which we can read about God. Besides, God Himself comes to our aid through the many messengers and revelations He has sent down to man. These messengers and revelations tell us everything we need to know about God. So by reflecting on nature, by hearing the words of the messengers, and by reading the divine revelations we can gain most convincing knowledge about God and find the Straight Path to Him.16 Be assured that GOD exists and He is close to you. He sees and knows everything that we do and he will one day definitely call us for account.
Footnotes
[1] This poem has been written by an Arab poet Elya Abu Madhi (A born Christian) to express his uncertainity about the purpose of life in his Arabic poem Al-Talasim meaning "puzzles" and has been translated to English by Mostafa Malaekah. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati, p.18. For an interesting comparative view see, for example, Jacques Maritain, Approaches to God. (New York:The Macmillan Company, 1954); Muhammad Zafrulla Khan, Islam: Its Meaning For Modern Man. (New York: Harper & Row, 1962); John Hick, ed., The Existence of God. (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1964). Also refer to "The Way to Find God" by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan. Holy Qur'an Chapter 41 verse 53. Nature, 12 November, 1981.Quoted By Harun Yahya in "The Existence Of God" & also quoted by William Bonner in the book, "What went wrong in 20th century". Bible, Romans 1:20. Holy Qur'an Chapter 3 verse 189-191.
[2]
[3] [4]
[5] [6]
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THE ESSENCE OF RELIGION

"Throughout history religion has been abused and misunderstood. Some people use it as a means of exploitation and suppression, as a pretext for prejudice and persecution. Some other people use it as a source of power and domination over the elite and the masses alike. In the name of religion unjustifiable wars have been launched, freedom of thought and conscience has been oppressed, science has been persecuted, the right of the individual to maturity has been denied, and man's dignity and honor have been flagrantly debased. And in the name of religion an injustice has been inflicted upon humanity with the result that religion itself has suffered many losses. These are historical facts which no one can deny. But is this the proper function of religion or the right approach to religion? Could this be the purpose of religion? The indisputable answer is an emphatic no. There are many religions in the world, and each one claims to be the one and only true religion. Each religion is supposed to have come from God for the right guidance of man. But these claims contradict each other and have caused dissentions among people and vehement reactions to religion - instead of welding mankind into one universal brotherhood under the One Universal Benevolent God. This situation makes any neutral observer confused and perhaps averse to all kinds of religion."1 "Religion is not only a spiritual and intellectual necessity but also a social and universal need. It is not to bewilder man but to guide him. It is not to debase him but to elevate his moral nature.
It is not to deprive him of anything useful, or to burden him, or to oppress his qualities but to open for him inexhaustible treasures of sound thinking and right action. It is not to confine him to narrow limits but to launch him into wide horizons of truth and goodness. In short, true religion is to acquaint man with God as well as with himself and the rest of the universe. This is by no means an oversimplification of the function of religion. Here is what it means. "When the purpose of true religion is carefully examined, it will be found that religion satisfies the spiritual and moderate material needs of man. It unties his psychological knots and complexes, sublimates his instincts and aspirations, and disciplines his desires and the whole course of life. It improves his knowledge of God the Highest Truth in the universe and of his own self. It teaches him about the secrets of life and the nature of man and how to treat them, about good and evil, about right and wrong. It purifies the soul from evil, clears the mind from doubts, strengthens the character and corrects the thinking and convictions of man. All this can be achieved only when man faithfully observes the spiritual duties and physical regulations introduced by religion. On the other hand, true religion educates man and trains him in hope and patience, in truthfulness and honesty, in love for the right and good, in courage and endurance, all of which are required for the mastery of the great art of living. Moreover, true religion insures man with peace and security and makes his life meaningful."2 "Despite growing evidence that man is hard-wired with a "physical facility for belief," the fact that the concept of God has varied greatly among human societies still leads some thinkers, even those who believe in God, to conclude that religions must be man-made. However, thorough research reveals a common theological thread linking the various religions. That link is the belief in a Supreme Being among the various gods, a monotheistic foundation that can be found in even the most externally pantheistic
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of religious systems. For example, the concept of God in Hinduism exists as a single example among many religions, which supports the view that human beings were originally monotheistic and through various degenerative processes became polytheistic. In spite of its many gods and idols, Hinduism has a single Supreme God above all, Brahma. Traditionally, most anthropologists have concluded that religion devolved from various stages of polytheism to monotheism, beginning with early man's deification of the forces of nature, then, eventually, devolving into ditheism to consolidate all of the supernatural powers into two main gods (a god of good and a god of evil), and, finally, simplifying into a belief in one god, monotheism. Thus, religion, according to anthropologists and social scientists, has no divine origin; it is merely a by-product of the evolution of early man's superstitions, based on his lack of scientific knowledge. Hence, these same theoreticians believe that science will eventually unlock all of the secrets of nature, resulting in the disuse of religion to explain natural phenomena, and, the consequential extinction of religion altogether. Man's innate belief in a Supreme Being, however, seems to support the opposite view, proposing instead that man began as a monotheist, but in time, strayed into various forms of polytheism. This view is further supported by fact that all of the so-called primitive tribes, which have been "discovered," have been found to hold a belief in a Supreme Being. No matter what their evolutionary stage of religious development is found to have been at the time of "discovery," most were found to believe in a Supreme God over all other gods and spirits. As such, the concept of a single Supreme Being remains in most of the religion's as evidence that the masses strayed away from monotheism by giving some of God's attributes to other aspects of creation, which eventually
came to be regarded as lesser gods in some cases and as intercessors in others. Nevertheless, a Supreme God, in whatever form He takes, is at the core of most religions."3 Arnold Toynbee studied the history of the man through the ages and put his findings in a monumental work consisting of ten volumes. He summarized that in the History of the man, religion stood at the centre. In an article in The Observer on October 24 1954, he wrote: "I have come back at the belief that the religion holds the key to the mystery of existence;"4 "But the Trust in the God has been misunderstood; it is often taken to mean helpless fatalism and or categorical denial of human free will and self-realization. An over emphasis on spirituality and resignation is bound to give rise to a counter emphasis on materialism, rationalism, "free will", and so on. Stressed beyond certain limits, spirituality may become superstition, and confusion. Likewise, a counter stress may turn materialism into laxity, free will into libertinism, and rationalism into sheer vanity. The intellectual history of the last few centuries demonstrates these tendencies only too well." 5 It must be noted that only the society based upon religious principles can prosper and excel in every field. When a society is made according to the Divine will of God then there will be harmony and a peaceful coexistence among its components and members. But the society based upon the principles of man can't survive for long. For Example, after the Russian Revolution of 1917, the socialists transformed the society according to their own rules and motives and this was a reason for their failure6. Human beings are fallible but God is not. He has created us and only He knows which is the path for us. A society based upon human principles often leads to laxity and moral degradation along with many other social ills. We can see various placards on roads which are to be
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followed like Do not spit around, Stay away from illegal sex, Pay Taxes, etc. but still the people do opposite as there is no strong power to enforce them. But when a society is based upon Religion, and its individuals frame their lives according to it, then these goals can be achieved without even advertising them because the religion develops the concept of accountability and an individual will automatically mould his life according to it.
WHAT IS LIFE?
"The meaning of life constitutes a philosophical question concerning the purpose and significance of human existence. The concept can be expressed through a variety of related questions, such as Why are we here? What's life all about? And What is the meaning of it all? It has been the subject of much philosophical, scientific, and theological speculation throughout history and there have been a large number of answers from many different cultural and ideological backgrounds. The meaning of life is deeply mixed with the philosophical and religious conceptions of existence, consciousness, and happiness, and touches on many other issues, such as symbolic meaning, ontology, value, purpose, ethics, good and evil, free will, conceptions of God, the existence of God, the soul and the afterlife. Scientific contributions are more indirect; by describing the empirical facts about the universe, science provides some context and sets parameters for conversations on related topics."1
Footnotes
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 57. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 58-59. Did God become man, Dr. Bilal Philips, p.7-8. Concept of God in Major Religions, Dr. Zakir Naik p. 2. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 86. For details read, "What went wrong in 20th Century" by William Bonner.
Popular Views2
"What is the meaning of life?" is a question many people ask themselves at some point during their lives, most in the context "What is the purpose of life?" Here are some of the life goals people choose, and some of their beliefs on what the purpose of life is: ...to realize one's potential and ideals ...to live life to the fullest. ...to lead a full and productive life. ...to chase dreams.
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...to live one's dreams. ...to spend it for something that will outlast it. ...to matter: to count, to stand for something, to have made some difference that you lived at all. ...to expand one's potential in life. ...to become the person you've always wanted to be. ...to become the best version of yourself. ...to seek happiness and flourish. ...to be able to put the whole of oneself into one's feelings, one's work, one's beliefs. ...to follow our destiny. ...to submit to our destiny. ...to shape your own destiny. ...to fight life's game(s) and win, or draw, or, at the very least, lose with dignity. ...to create your own reality. ...to achieve biological perfection ...to survive, that is, to live as long as possible, including pursuit of immortality (through scientific means). ...to live forever or die trying. ...to evolve into something more. ...to evolve into the most harmonious state. ...to replicate, to reproduce. "The 'dream' of every cell is to become two cells." ...to be fruitful and multiply. (Genesis 1:28) ...to seek wisdom and knowledge ...to expand one's perception of the world. ...to follow the clues and walk out the exit. ...to learn as many things as possible in life. ...to know as much as possible about as many things as possible. ...to seek wisdom and knowledge and to tame the mind, as
to avoid suffering caused by ignorance and find happiness. ...to face our fears and accept the lessons life offers us. ...to find the meaning of life. ...to find the purpose of life. ...to find a reason to live. ...to resolve the imbalance of the mind by understanding the nature of reality. ...to do good, to do the right thing ...to leave the world a better place than you found it. ...to do your best to leave every situation better than you found it. ...to benefit others. ...to give more than you take. ...to end suffering. ...to create equality. ...to challenge oppression. ...to distribute wealth. ...to be generous. ...to contribute to the well-being and spirit of others. ...to help others, to help one another. ...to take every chance to help another while on your journey here. ...to be creative and innovative. ...to forgive. ...to accept and forgive human flaws. ...to be emotionally sincere. ...to be responsible. ...to be honorable. ...to seek peace. ...to be a true authentic human being. ...to love, to feel, to enjoy the act of living ...to love more.
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...to love those who mean the most. Every life you touch will touch you back. ...to be glad of life. ...to treasure every enjoyable sensation one has. ...to seek beauty in all its forms. ...to have fun. ...to enjoy life. ...to seek pleasure and avoid pain. ...to be compassionate. ...to be moved by the pain and sorrow of others, and try to help them out of love and compassion. ...to love others as best we possibly can. ...to love something bigger, greater, and beyond ourselves, something we did not create or have the power to create, something intangible and made holy by our very belief in it. ...to love God and all of his creations. ...to glorify God by enjoying him forever. ...to attain spiritual enlightenment Dante and Beatrice see God as a point of light surrounded by angels; from Gustave Dor's illustrations for the Divine Comedy: ...to reach the highest heaven and be at the heart of the Divine. ...to have a pure soul and experience God. ...to understand the mystery of God. ...to know God. ...to know oneself, know others, and know theWill of heaven. ...to attain union with God. ...to have power, to be better ...to strive for power and superiority. ...to rule the world. ...to know and master the world. ...to know and master nature. ...to fill the Earth and subdue it. (Genesis 1:28)
One should not seek to know the meaning of life The answer to the meaning of life is too profound to be known and understood. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life. To live a meaningful life, one must forget about the search for the meaning of life. It's best to just get on with life and stop worrying about what it means. Life has no meaning Life or human existence has no real meaning or purpose because human existence occurred out of a random chance in nature, and anything that exists by chance has no intended purpose. Life has no meaning, but as humans we try to associate a meaning or purpose so we can justify our existence. There is no point in life, and that is exactly what makes it so special. Or its minimal counterpart: Life has meaning ...uncertain, but there must be something It's very difficult to give a universally acceptable definition of life as various religions, philosophers and thinkers have interpreted life from various views and angles.So there are so many views about life which even contradict each other. So in order to get the right meaning of life, we must adhere to the right religion and then mould the purpose of our life according to it.
Footnotes
[1] [2] Source: Wikipaedia. Ibid.
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LIFE AS A PURPOSEFUL CREATION

If we just analyze once our immediate surroundings, we will soon realize that everything around us and every object in the universe has got some definite purpose. The plants provide us food and oxygen and maintain the environmental balance, the sun gives us heat and light, the animals perform various fruitful activities and so on. So everything in the universe has got its respective job to do and this principle holds true for every object whether minute like bacteria or enormous like the planets and stars. Everything in the universe is carrying on its purpose and is not futile in anyway, then how can the complex creation of man with his complex faculties of reason, sight, hearing, etc. be useless? It's illogical to say so. God's creation is not in vain. God has created us for a real serious purpose that needs our high attention. "Life is real, life is earnest,And the grave is not its goal", as famous poet Longfellow truly says.1 "Did ye then think that We had created you in jest and that ye would not be brought back to Us (for account)? 2 "Life is a brilliant demonstration of God's wisdom and knowledge, a vivid reflection of His art and power. He is the Giver and Creator of life. Nothing comes into existence by chance, and nobody creates himself or anybody else. Life is a dear and a cherishable asset, and no sensible or normal person would like to lose it by choice. Even those who feel so desperate and take their lives by committing low suicide, try in the last minute to regain their existence and wish to capture a breath to live. Life is given to
man by God, and He is the only Rightful One to take it back; No one else has the right to destroy a life. When God gives life to man, it is not in vain that He endows him with unique qualities and great abilities, nor is it in vain that He charges him with certain obligations. God means to help man to fulfil the purpose of life and realize the goal of existence. He means to help him to learn the creative art of living and enjoy the good taste of life according to the divine guidance. Life is a trust from God, and man is a trustee who should handle His trust with honesty and skill, with mindfulness of God and with consciousness of responsibility to Him. Life maybe likened to a journey starting from a certain point and ending at a certain destination. It is a transitory stage, an introduction to the Eternal Life in the Hereafter. In this journey man is a traveler and should be concerned with only what is of use to him in the Future Life. In other words, he should do all the good he can and make himself fully prepared to move any minute to Eternity. He should consider his life on this earth as a chance provided for him to make the best of it while he can, because when his time to leave comes he can never delay it for one second. If his term expires, it will be too late to do anything about it or to extend it. The best use of life, therefore, is to live it according to the teachings of God and to make it a safe passage to the Future Life of Eternity." 3, 4 "Man attains a highest distinction only when he leads a purposeful life. Such a life characterizes the most advanced stage of human development. And this does not mean that by taking up just any task which is apparently significant man's life becomes truly purposeful. A really purposeful life is one in which man discovers his supreme status; a life in which his personality makes manifest its unique distinctive quality. An animal strives to obtain food; a bird flies in the search of a better country when the season
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changes; a wasp busies itself building up its own home from tiny particles of earth; a herd of deer takes measures to protect itself from the wild beasts of prey. All of these appear to be purposeful actions. But when the phrase 'a purposeful life' is applied to man, then it does not refer to efforts of this nature. Without doubt arranging for one's food, clothes and habitation are sure of the tasks that man has to perform in this world; but this is a level of purposefulness in which men and animals, being concerned only with bare survival, are equal. Its true application in relation to man can only be one, in which he appears in all his dignity. Man's life becomes purposeful only when it goes beyond common animalism and takes the form of superior humanism. God's creation in this world fall into two categories: animate and inanimate. Obviously, animate objects enjoy a certain superiority over inanimate objects. The former can be divided into three classes: the vegetable, the animal and the human. Modern scientific research has shown that plants also possess life, in that they nourish themselves, they grow and they have feelings. But animals and men surely represent a higher form of life. In what way does man excel animals? Many theories have been advanced in answer to this question over the ages, and great minds are still, studying it. But modern biologists have come to the conclusion that it is man's capacity for conceptual thought, which distinguished him from other life forms. Animals lack this quality, whereas man is conscious of the fact that he is thinking. He consciously forms all plans of action in his mind; in his everyday life his actions are determined by him. Whereas this is not the case with animals. Though many of their actions appear to be those like of men, these actions are not the result of thought. They all stem from pure instinct.Animals are simply led intuitively by their desires and their needs in certain direction. Their actions are governed by environmental stresses without any physical pressures
from within. It is in this unique conceptual quality of man that we can conceive of what his higher purpose in life should be. The latter can only be one which does not result from the pressures of desire or of immediate exigencies. It must emanate from his own urge to worship God. Man's true purpose in life can only be one which reflects the higher side of his personality; one which displays him as the superior being he is.. Only when a person goes beyond his self and his environment can he understand that there is a higher purpose, on which he should focus his life. The motive force towards the fulfillment of this purpose is not the urge to satisfy one's needs or those of othersIt is purpose, which sets before man a goal far above all these things - a goal which does not follow internal needs or external pressures, but results purely from conceptual thought. When a person works, makes money, builds a house, makes an effort to improve his standard of living, he appears to be engaged in efforts towards some worthy end. But a life of this nature cannot be called a purposeful life, for these activities do not demonstrate man's unique status. It might seem as if they are the result of a deliberation, but if one looks at the matter in depth, one will see that in actual fact the motive force behind these actions is the same urge that motivates an animal in various ways, its concern for its own survival. It is the driving force of one's desires; the pressure of one's needs, and the wish to fulfill the demands of one's self that underlie such a life. These are the considerations which, in fact, guide a person in his search for his livelihood. When man grows up, he realizes that there are certain material necessities without which he cannot live. He requires food, clothes, a place to live; he requires a reliable source of income to sustain
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him throughout his life. He is forced by these considerations to obtain these things. Then he sees that those who have an abundance of these material things enjoy respect and apparently possess every form of happiness and luxury in this world. Thus he is driven on to do more than just seek a livelihood; he desires to earn a degree greatly in excess of his actual requirements. In bustling markets, grandiose offices and opulent buildings, he is not really guided by deliberate thought. Rather, he is being guided by inflated ideas of his own needs, desires, longings and ambitions to achieve fame and high status in this world. For this reason these activities cannot be considered as being directed towards the purpose, which sets man apart from the animal and lends him a higher distinction. Man's greater dignity can be based only on a purpose, which emanates from inner desires and pressures of environment. Man's true purpose in life can only be to seek the pleasure of God. When man seeks the pleasure of his Lord, his human qualities find full manifestation. This is a purpose loftier than the one towards which an animal directs its energies. It distinguishes man from animals. It is the ultimate station of human dignity. To determine the purpose of life, in short, the effort to make life meaningful. It must surely, therefore, be one which is in accordance with man's unique status; it must be one which leads man on the path to success and progress in terms of his true nature."5 "The purpose and wisdom, which manifest themselves in the wider universe under the direct control of God have to be adopted by man of his own accord in his personal life. What God has established on a physical plane, man has to establish on a moral plane. With the same strength as is possessed by the iron which is found everywhere in the cosmos, man must have real staunchness of character. But kindheartedness must spring from him too, in the way that springs gush forth form the rocks. Just as fragrance and
colour are to be found in abundance in the cosmos, so should man's life be enhanced by the fairness and honesty of his dealings. He should be like the tree which breathes out oxygen in return for the carbon dioxide which it breathes in: that is, he should return good for evil; he should be kind to those who wrong him. He should learn too, from the fact that nothing in the cosmos ever encroaches upon anything else. Each physical entity concentrates solely upon playing its own part in the order of the universe. Man must also engage in the same positive action avoiding all negative activities. Innumerable activities are going on throughout the cosmos on the grandest of scales, but without any recompense. In like manner, man should keep on discharging his responsibilities without any hope of reward. He should reflect upon how the lofty mountains and the trees cast their shadows upon the earth, with no thought for what anyone can do for them in return, and should emulate this act in all humility The activities going on in the world at every moment proclaim who are the worthy and who are the unworthy. Those who are motivated solely by the superficial interests of money, honour or fame are little better than miserable misfits in this selfless world of God. They are not true to the standards set in this universe, which is a living manifestation of divine ethics. Only those who can be motivated by the truth, pure and simple, who can rise above personal interests, freeing themselves from complexes and obsessions, shall be deserving of honour and glory from God. In the heavenly world to come, all those who have been activated solely by their immediate worldly interests, will be marked down as unworthy, and cast out from it. This beautiful and blissful world will be inherited only by those who, motivated by unworldly interests, lifted their eyes from the immediate, material things in order to be able to see things distant and 'unseen' Those who refuse to learn their lesson and persist in following
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the path of selfish passion are wrongdoers of the worst kind. Those who refuse to see God's signs, although they have eyes, and refuse to hear God's voice, although they have ears, are, in the eyes of God, 'the worst animals' .6, 7 Allah has provided to man faculties of hearing and sight along with the power of decision making and complex thinking. But still in spite of all these blessings still when a man turns away from the real purpose of life, he becomes like a boat without oars and his life loses the right direction. That's why God says: "They have hearts wherewith they understand not, eyes wherewith they see not and ears wherewith they hear not. They are like cattle nay more misguided: for they are heedless (of warning)." 8 Further the Bible says: "Seeing they do not perceive, and hearing they do not listen, nor do they understand". 9 And then Allah affirms that good and bad can never be equal and so a purposeful and a purposeless life too can never be equal. God presents a contrast before us: "The blind and the seeing are not alike; Nor are the depths of Darkness and the Light; Nor are the (chilly) shade and the (genial) heat of the sun; Nor are alike those that are living and those that are dead. Allah can make any that He wills to hear; but thou canst not make those to hear who are (buried) in graves."10
my soul, and my soul lives from You. Saint Augustine, 354-430, theologian and philosopher, Confessions . No man is good without God: is anyone capable of rising above chance unless with God's help? It's Him that prompts us to noble and exalted endeavors. In each and every good man, as Virgil says, a god (what god we are uncertain) dwells. Seneca , Roman philosopher and politician, Letters to Lucilius You are the Truth, oh my God, my light, health of my face.All people want this path, the only happy path, the joy that lives in truth. Saint Augustine, 354-430, theologian and philosopher, Confessions. Listen to the words of Pascal, in the seventeenth century: "When I consider the short duration of my life, swallowed up in the eternity that lies before and after it, when I consider the little space I fill and I see, engulfed in the infinite immensity of spaces of which I am ignorant, and which know me not, I rest frightened, and astonished, for there is no reason why I should be here rather than there. Why now rather than then? Who has put me here? By whose order and direction have this place and time have been ascribed to me?" Pensees (Penguin Classics).
God as a Source of a Meaningful Life11

When I seek you, my God, I am seeking happiness. I will seek you in order for my soul to live, because my body lives from
Some Quotes Describing Life as a Purposeful Creation12

Man can will nothing unless he has first understood that he must count just with himself; that he is alone, abandoned on earth,
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in the midst of his infinite responsibilities, without help, with no other aims than those he sets himself, with no other destiny than the one he forges for himself on this earth. Jean Paul Sartre, 1905-1980, French writer and philosopher, Being and Nothingness. Life is nothing until it is lived, but it is yours to make sense of; the value of life is nothing other than the sense you choose. Jean Paul Sartre, 1905-1980, French writer and philosopher, Existentialism is a Humanism . Man is the artificer of his own happiness. Henry Thoreau, 1817-1862, American essayist, Journal. Life has the meaning we give it. It has our richness, our enthusiasm, our pride. Or our cowardice. Miguel Torga, 1907-1995, Portuguese writer, Dirio. These then are my last words to you: Be not afraid of life. Believe that life is worth living, and your belief will help create the fact. William James, 1842-1910, American philosopher, The Will to Believe. Man is the only animal for whom his own existence is a problem which he has to solve and from which he cannot escape. Erich Fromm, 1900-1980, American philosopher and psychologist, Man for Himself. Ignorant men do not know the excellence of what's in their hands, until they've flung it away. Sophocles, 496-406 BC, Greek Poet, Ajax.
Footnotes:
[1] Quoted by Abdullah Yusuf Ali in his commentary to the Holy Qur'an, footnote No. 2950. [2] Holy Qur'an Chapter 23 verse 115. [3] Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 55-56. [4] Please refer to the chapter, The Concept of After Life. [5] Islamic Studies Text Book for Class XI by Dr. Farida Khanam p. 3638 [6] Holy Qur'an Chapter 8 verse 22. [7] Islamic Studies Text Book for Class XI by Dr. Farida Khanam p. 3435. [8] Holy Qur'an Chapter 7 verse 179. [9] Bible, Matthew 13:13. [10] Holy Qur'an Chapter 35 verse 19-22. [11] Source: www.meaningsoflife.com [12] Ibid.
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THE CONCEPT OF AFTER LIFE

As mentioned earlier too that life is not an end in itself. Life is very short and in this brief time, man must realize his true purpose of life and prepare himself for the life to come. The life is a test and the one who lives it according to the divine will of God will only be successful in the life to come as He is the One who gave us this life and it should obviously be lived only according to His will. Some people claim that there is no after life and this life is an end in itself. But this statement is really illogical. Say for example a child enters a school and then leaves it at a particular stage and same holds true for an employee who retires from his office after his tenure is over. So similarly after we die there must be a life to come. If there is no hereafter life and if the world is an end in itself then one may really say that God has created us for a stupid purpose. If there is no hereafter then every person will try to acquire as much material wealth as possible without caring for others because it is actually the concept of hereafter that guides this present life and the sense of accountability before God that guides the actions of the humans in this world. When hereafter is our context then our life will become hereafter-oriented and this will make us to act according to the will of God and we will do every deed to please Him only and to get His good pleasure and this in turn will make our life fruitful. The commandments of God will act like a tether that will restrict our actions and stop us from doing injustice and ungodly acts. When our life is hereafter-oriented then we will do every deed just to please our Lord and not to seek reward from people for our deeds. This will inculcate in us the feelings of
compassion and selflessness and these are the qualities that are required most for a healthy society to flourish. It must be noted that many researchers and scientists after doing research concluded that there definitely exists an After Life. For instance there is Dr. Raymond A. Moodi ofAmerica who is a doctorate in philosophy but he has done extensive research on NDE (Near Death Experiences) in which the doctors mention a patient that he is "Clinically Dead" but after some time the patient comes back to life again like normal. Dr. Raymond A. Moodi made research and did surveys on many such persons and all of them narrated that they had seen some unusual things during the time those persons were supposed to be dead. Like they saw souls moving here and they even saw glimpses of the Paradise and Hell and then a voice appeared and said to them that, "What do you have to show me that you have done with your life". And all the patients had seen these similar things but they just used different words to express it. Then Dr. RaymondA. Moodi penned down his research in the form of three books namely: Life After Life, The Light Beyond, & Reflections on Life after Life. Dr. Moodi's book (Life after Life) was first published in 1975 after he made a research of 8 years and interviewed around 150 people and then this interesting topic made many other doctors to research further on this topic.After this a pediatrician by the name of Dr. Melvin Morse wrote another book namely 'Closer to the Light' in which he has mentioned that children have also undergone through this experience and he himself interviewed such children and then put his research in his 236 page book. Then another man namely Pollster George Gallup did a survey of people inAmerica and to his astonishment he found that around 5% of the US people got NDE and then Dr. Raymond A. Moodi continued his research
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further and again interviewed a 1000 people and wrote another book 'The Light Beyond'. So all these facts give us a glimpse of the After Life and make us conclude that there really is another Life to come and the human reason confirms it too.1 "There are people who commit sins, neglect God and indulge in immoral activities, yet they seem to be "superficially" successful in business and prosperous in life. And there are virtuous and God-minded people, yet they seem to be getting less rewards for their sincere efforts and more suffering in the present world. This is puzzling and incompatible with the Justice of God. If the guilty people can escape the mundane law unharmed and, in addition, be more prosperous, what is, then, left for the virtuous people. What will promote the cause of morality and goodness? There must be some way to reward goodness and arrest evil. If this is not done here on this earth - and we know that it is not done regularly or immediately - it has to be done someday, and that is the Day of Judgement. This is not to condone injustice or tolerate mischief in this world. It is not to sedate the deprived or comfort their exploiters. Rather, it is to warn the deviants from the Right Path and remind them that the Justice of God shall run its full course sooner or later."2 Dr. Zakir Naik has very logically proved the concept of life hereafter in his book 'Answers to non-Muslims' common questions about Islam'3 and I would like to reproduce that here in order to satisfy the reader. Though Dr. Zakir Naik has proved it according to the Muslim perspective but still the arguments provided are logical and universal to people belonging to all religions. Question: How can you prove the existence of hereafter, i.e. life after death? Answer: 1. Belief in the hereafter is not based on blind faith.
Many people wonder as to how a person with a scientific and logical temperament, can lend any credence to the belief of life after death. People assume that anyone believing in the hereafter is doing so on the basis of blind belief. My belief in the hereafter is based on a logical argument. 2. Hereafter a logical belief There are more than a thousand verses in the Glorious Qur'an, containing scientific facts (refer my book "Qur'an and Modern Science-Compatible or Incompatible?"). Many facts mentioned in the Qur'an have been discovered in the last few centuries. But science has not advanced to a level where it can confirm every statement of the Qur'an. Suppose 80% of all that is mentioned in the Qur'an has been proved 100% correct.About the remaining 20%, science makes no categorical statement, since it has not advanced to a level, where it can either prove or disprove these statements. With the limited knowledge that we have, we cannot say for sure whether even a single percentage or a single verse of the Qur'an from this 20% portion is wrong. Thus when 80% of the Qur'an is 100% correct and the remaining 20% is not disproved, logic says that even the 20% portion is correct. The existence of the hereafter, which is mentioned in the Qur'an, falls in the 20% ambiguous portion which my logic says is correct. 3. Concept of peace and human values is useless without the concept of hereafter Is robbing a good or an evil act? A normal balanced person would say it is evil. How would a person who does not believe in the hereafter convince a powerful and influential criminal that robbing is evil? Suppose I am the most powerful and influential criminal in the world. At the same time I am an intelligent and a logical person. I say that robbing is good because it helps me lead a luxurious life. Thus robbing is good for me. If anybody can put forward a single
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logical argument as to why it is evil for me, I will stop immediately. People usually put forward the following arguments: a. The person who is robbed will face difficulties Some may say that the person who is robbed will face difficulties. I certainly agree that it is bad for the person who is robbed. But it is good for me. If I rob a thousand dollars, I can enjoy a good meal at a 5 star restaurant. b. Some one may rob you Some people argue that someday I may be robbed. No one can rob me because I am a very powerful criminal and I have hundreds of bodyguards. I can rob anybody but nobody can rob me. Robbing may be a risky profession for a common man but not for an influential person like me. c. The police may arrest you Some may say, if you rob, you can be arrested by the police. The police cannot arrest me because I have the police on my payroll. I have the ministers on my payroll. I agree that if a common man robs, he will be arrested and it will be bad for him, but I am an extraordinarily influential and powerful criminal. Give me one logical reason why it is bad for me and I will stop robbing. d. Its easy money Some may say its easy money and not hard-earned money. I agree completely that it is easy money, and that is one of the main reasons why I rob. If a person has the option of earning money the easy as well as the hard way, any logical person would choose the easy way. e. It is against humanity Some may say it is against humanity and that a person should care for other human beings. I counter argue by asking as to who wrote this law called 'humanity' and why should I follow it? This law may be good for the emotional and sentimental people but I
am a logical person and I see no benefit in caring for other human beings. f. It is a selfish act Some may say that robbing is being selfish. It is true that robbing is a selfish act; but then why should I not be selfish? It helps me enjoy life. 1. No logical reason for robbing being an evil act Hence all arguments that attempt to prove that robbing is an evil act are futile. These arguments may satisfy a common man but not a powerful and influential criminal like me. None of the arguments can be defended on the strength of reason and logic. It is no surprise that there are so many criminals in this world. Similarly raping, cheating etc. can be justified as good for a person like me and there is no logical argument that can convince me that these things are bad. 2. A Muslim can convince a powerful and influential criminal Now let us switch sides. Suppose you are the most powerful and influential criminal in the world, who has the police and the ministers on his payroll. You have army of thugs to protect you. I am a Muslim who will convince you that robbing, raping, cheating, etc. are evil acts. Even if I put forth the same arguments to prove that robbing is evil the criminal will respond the same way as he did earlier. I agree that the criminal is being logical and all his arguments are true only when he is the most powerful and influential criminal. 3. Every human being wants justice Each and every human being desires justice. Even if he does not want justice for others he wants justice for himself. Some people are intoxicated by power and influence and inflict pain and suffering on others. The same people, however, would surely
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object if some injustice was done to them. The reason such people become insensitive to the suffering of others is that they worship power and influence. Power and influence, they feel, not only allows them to inflict injustice on others but also prevents others from doing likewise to them. 4. God is Most Powerful and Just As a Muslim I would convince the criminal about the existence of Almighty God (refer to answer proving the existence of God). This God is more powerful than you and at the same time is also just. The Glorious Qur'an says: "Allah is never unjust in the least degree"
[Al-Qur'an 4:40]
try which of you is best in deed; and He is the Exalted in Might, Oft-Forgiving."
[Al-Qur'an 67:2]
8. Final justice on day of judgement The Glorious Qur'an says: "Every soul shall have a taste of death: and only on the Day of Judgement shall you be paid your full recompense. Only he who is saved far from the Fire and admitted to the Garden will have attained the object (of life): for the life of this world is but goods and chattels of deception."
[Al-Qur'an 3:185]
5. Why does God not punish me? The criminal, being a logical and scientific person, agrees that God exists, after being presented with scientific facts from the Qur'an. He may argue as to why God, if He is Powerful and Just, does not punish him. 6. The people who do injustice should be punished Every person who has suffered injustice, irrespective of financial or social status, almost certainly wants the perpetrator of injustice to be punished. Every normal person would like the robber or the rapist to be taught a lesson. Though a large number of criminals are punished, many even go scot-free. They lead a pleasant, luxurious life, and even enjoy a peaceful existence. If injustice is done to a powerful and influential person, by someone more powerful and more influential than he, even such a person would want that person perpetrators of injustice to be punished. 7. This life is a test for the hereafter This life is a test for the hereafter. The Glorious Qur'an says: "He who created death and life, that He may
Final justice will be meted out on the Day of Judgement. After a person dies, he will be resurrected on the Day of Judgement along with the rest of mankind. It is possible that a person receives part of his punishment in this world. The final reward and punishment will only be in the hereafter. God Almighty may not punish a robber or a rapist in this world but he will surely be held accountable on the Day of Judgement and will be punished in the hereafter i.e. life after death. 9. What punishment can the human law give Hitler? Hitler incinerated six million Jews during his reign of terror. Even if the police had arrested him, what punishment can the human law give Hitler for justice to prevail? The most they can do is to send Hitler to the gas chamber. But that will only be punishment for the killing of one Jew. What about the remaining five million, nine hundred and ninety nine thousand, nine hundred and ninetynine Jews? 10. Allah can burn Hitler more than six million times in hellfire Allah say in the Glorious Qur'an:
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"Those who reject Our signs, We shall soon cast into the Fire; as often as their skins are roasted through, We shall change them for fresh skins, that they may taste the penalty: for Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise." [Al-Qur'an 4:56] If Allah wishes he can incinerate Hitler six million times in the hereafter in the hellfire. 11. No concept of human values are good and bad without the concept of hereafter It is clear that without convincing a person about the hereafter, i.e. life after death, the concept of human values and the good or evil nature of acts is impossible to prove to any person who is doing injustice especially when he is influential and powerful. "It is Allah that takes the souls (of men) at death; and those that die not (He takes) during their sleep: those on whom He has passed the decree of death, He keeps back (from returning to life), but the rest He sends (to their bodies) for a term appointed. Verily in this are Signs for those who reflect."4 "And they say: "What is there but our life in this world? We shall die and we live, and nothing but Time can destroy us." But of that they have no knowledge: they merely conjecture: And when Our Clear Signs are rehearsed to them, their argument is nothing but this: they say, "Bring (back) our forefathers, if what you say is true!" Say: "It is Allah Who gives you life, then gives you death; and He will gather you together for the Day of Judgment about which there is no doubt": But most men do not understand." 5, 6
Footnotes:
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] For further details, refer to the book, "Dunya ke us Paar" (Urdu) By Maulana Taqi Usmani. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 36. Answers to non-Muslims' common questions about Islam, Dr. Zakir Naik, p.37. Holy Qur'an Chapter 39 verse 42. Holy Qur'an Chapter 45 verse 24-26. For further details on this subject, refer to the book, "Life, Death and the After Life" by Dr. Ahmad Sakr and also refer to the chapter, Arguments for the Life Hereafter from God Arises by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan.
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CONCEPT OF LIFE IN VARIOUS RELIGIONS1

Prior to the expansion of the major universal religions - from the first or second centuries BC to the sixth century CE, depending on the faith - the meaning of life was investigated in terms of human potential and the relationship of individuals to the natural world. Devotion to god or gods was an important aspect of some traditions, but was generally viewed in terms of personal development (as in the Hindu relationship between Atma and Brahma, or as a social relationship, as in the Jewish covenant). Other traditions relied heavily on reason, discipline, or the development of other human faculties, either as meaningful in their own right, or as tools to reach other decisions.
of birth and rebirth, and liberation). Existence is conceived as the progression of the Atma (similar to the western concept of a soul) across numerous lifetimes, and its ultimate progression towards liberation from karma. Particular goals for life are generally subsumed under broader yogas (practices) or dharma (correct living) which are intended to create more favorable reincarnations, though they are generally positive acts in this life as well.Traditional schools of Hinduism often worship Devas which are manifestations of Ishvara (a personal or chosen God); these Devas are taken as ideal forms to be identified with, as a form of spiritual improvement.
Judaism
Judaism's most important feature is belief in a single, omniscient, omnipotent, omnibenevolent, transcendent God, who created the universe and governs it. Per traditional Judaism, God established a covenant with the Jewish people, at Mount Sinai, revealing His Laws and Commandments in the Torah. In Rabbinic Judaism, the Torah comprises the written Pentateuch (Torah) and the oral law tradition (later transcribed as sacred writing). In the Judaic world view, the purpose of life is to serve God and to prepare for the world to come. The "Olam Haba" thought is about elevating oneself spiritually, connecting to God in preparing for "Olam Haba"; Jewish thought is to use "Olam Hazeh" (this world) to elevate oneself.
Hinduism
Hinduism is a diverse religion: there are some tenets accepted by most Hindus, but no doctrines that are universally accepted by all. Most believe that the Atma (spirit, soul) - the person's true self - is eternal. In part, this stems from Hindu beliefs that spiritual development occurs across many lifetimes, and goals should match the state of development of the individual. There are four possible aims to human life, known as the purusharthas (ordered from least to greatest): Kama (love and sensual pleasure), Artha (wealth), Dharma (righteousness, morality), and Moksha (liberation from the reincarnation cycle). In all schools of Hinduism, the meaning of life is tied up in the concepts of karma, samsara and moksha (causal action, the cycle
Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism is the religion and philosophy based on the teachings ascribed to the Prophet Zoroaster, after whom the religion is named. Zoroastrians believe in a universe created by a transcendental God, Ahura Mazda, to whom all worship is ultimately directed.Azhura Mazda's creation is asha, truth and
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order, and it is in conflict with its antithesis, druj, falsehood and disorder. Malevolent force is represented by Angra Mainyu, the "Destructive Principle", while the benevolent is represented through Ahura Mazda's Spenta Mainyu, the instrument or "Bounteous Principle" of the act of creation. Since humanity possesses free will, people must be responsible for their moral choices. By using free will, people must take active role to play in the universal conflict, where good thoughts, good words and good deeds to ensure happiness and to keep chaos at bay. Ahura Mazda will ultimately prevail, at which point the universe will undergo a cosmic renovation and time will end (cf: Zoroastrian eschatology). In the final renovation, all of creation - even the souls of the dead that were initially banished to "darkness" - will be reunited in Ahura Mazda. At the end of time a savior-figure [a Saoshyant] will bring about a final renovation of the world, and in which the dead will be revived.
liberated and attaining Moksha. The Jain view of karma is that every action, every word, every thought produces, besides its visible, an invisible, transcendental effect on the soul. Jainism includes strict adherence to ahimsa (or ahinsa), a form of nonviolence that goes far beyond vegetarianism. Jains refuse food obtained with unnecessary cruelty. Many practice a lifestyle similar to Veganism due to the violence of modern dairy farms, and others exclude root vegetables from their diets in order to preserve the lives of the plants from which they eat.
Early Buddhism
Buddhism is a non-dual religious view, in which subject, object, and action are all seen as illusory. Buddhists believe that life is suffering. The suffering is caused by attachment to objects material or non-material. The meaning of life is to end suffering through detaching oneself from cravings and conceptual attachments. Suffering can be overcome through human activity, simply by removing the cause of suffering.Attaining and perfecting dispassion is a process of many levels that ultimately results in the state of Nirvana. Nirvana means freedom from all worries, troubles, complexes, fabrications, and ideas. Theravada Buddhism is generally considered to be close to the early Buddhist practice. It promotes the concept of Vibhajjavada (Pali), literally "Teaching of Analysis", which says that insight must come from the aspirant's experience, critical investigation, and reasoning instead of by blind faith. However, the Theravadin tradition also emphasizes heeding the advice of the wise, considering such advice and evaluation of one's own experiences to be the two tests by which practices should be judged. The Theravadin goal is liberation (or freedom) from suffering, according to the Four Noble Truths. This is attained in the achievement of Nibbana, or Unbinding which also ends the
Jainism
Jainism is a religion originating in ancient India, its ethical system promotes self-discipline above all else. Through following the ascetic teachings of Jina, a human achieves enlightenment (perfect knowledge). Jainism divides the universe into living and non-living beings. Only when the non-living become attached to the living does suffering result. Therefore, happiness is the result of selfconquest and freedom from external objects. The meaning of life may then be said to be to use the physical body to achieve self-realization and bliss. Jains believe that every human is responsible for his or her actions and all living beings have an eternal soul, Jiva. Jains believe all souls are equal because they all possess the potential of being
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repeated cycle of birth, old age, sickness and death.
Taoism
The Taoists' cosmogony emphasizes the need for all sentient beings and all man to return to the primordial or to rejoin with the Oneness of the Universe by way of self-correction and self realization. It is the objective for all adherents to understand and be in tune with the ultimate truth. Within the theology of Taoism, all men were originally a being called yuanling from Taiji and Tao, the meaning in life for the adherents is to realise the temporal nature of the existence, and all adherents are expected to practise, hone and conduct their mortal lives by way of Xiuzhen and Xiushen, as a preparation for the spiritual transcendence thereafter. "Only introspection can then help us to find our innermost reasons for living...the simple answer is here within ourselves."
Confucianism
Confucianism recognizes human nature in accordance with the need for discipline and education. Because mankind is driven by both positive and negative influences, Confucianists see a goal in achieving the good nature through strong relationships and reasoning as well as minimizing the negative energy. This emphasis on normal living is seen in the Confucianist scholar Tu Wei-Ming's quote, "we can realize the ultimate meaning of life in ordinary human existence."
Christianity
Though Christianity has its roots in Judaism, and shares much of the latter faith's ontology, its central beliefs derive from the teachings of Jesus Christ, as presented in the New Testament.
Life's purpose in Christianity is to seek divine salvation through the grace of God and intercession of Christ. The New Testament speaks of God wanting to have a relationship with humans both in this life and the life to come, which can happen only if one's sins are forgiven (John 3:16-21, 2 Peter 3:9). In the Christian view humankind is inherently and innately sinful, but Christ's death and resurrection provide the means for transcending that impure state (Romans 6:23). The means for doing so varies between different sects, but all rely on one form or another of subjugation to God's will. Under the Christian view, the main purpose in life is to live like Christ did, to give glory to God in all that we do, and to serve and love Him. Catholics believe that penance is required in earning forgiveness of sin, especially mortal sin. Orthodox Protestants and evangelicals do not believe that one's actions, in themselves, have an impact upon one's personal salvation and entry to Heaven; instead, one's acceptance of Christ as saviour and repentance of sin determine existential fate. In the Westminster Shorter Catechism, the first question is: What is the chief end of Man?, that is, What is Man's main purpose?. The answer is: Man's chief end is to glorify God, and enjoy Him forever. God requires one to obey the revealed moral law saying: love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind; and our neighbour as ourselves.[43] The Baltimore Catechism answers the question "Why did God make you?" by saying "God made me to know Him, to love Him, and to serve Him in this world, and to be happy with Him forever in heaven."
Mahayana Buddhism
Mahayana Buddhist schools de-emphasize the traditional view
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(still practiced in Theravada) of the release from individual Suffering (Dukkha) and attainment ofAwakening (Nirvana). In Mahayana, the Buddha is seen as an eternal, immutable, inconceivable, omnipresent being. The fundamental principles of Mahayana doctrine are based around the possibility of universal liberation from suffering for all beings, and the existence of the transcendent Buddha-nature, which is the eternal Buddha essence present, but hidden and unrecognised, in all living beings. Philosophical schools of Mahayana Buddhism, such as Chan/ Zen and the Vajrayana Tibetan and Shingon schools, explicitly teach that Boddhisattvas should refrain from full liberation, allowing themselves to be reincarnated into the world until all beings achieve enlightenment. Devotional schools such as Pure Land Buddhism seek the aid of celestial Buddhas - individuals who have spent lifetimes accumulating positive karma, and use that accumulation to aid all.
the characteristics and qualities inherent in being a living entity. The notion of lila (play) denotes the universe as cosmic game, wherein meaning is a "play of significance". Lila is manifest in the inexhaustible richness of being and event that are the keys to the meaning of life. Dvaita Vedanta and other bhakti schools have a dualist interpretation. Brahma is seen as a supreme being with a personality and manifest qualities. The tma depends upon Brahma for its existence; the meaning of life is achieving Moksha through love of God and upon His grace.
Sikhism
The monastic Sikh religion was founded by Guru Nanak Dev, the term "sikh" means student, which denotes that followers will lead their lives forever learning. This system of religious philosophy and expression has been traditionally known as the Gurmat (literally the counsel of the gurus) or the Sikh Dharma. The followers of Sikhism are ordained to follow the teachings of the ten Sikh gurus, or enlightened leaders, as well as the Holy Scripture entitled the Gur Granth Shib, which includes selected works of many philosophers from diverse socio-economic and religious backgrounds. The Sikh Gurus tell us that salvation can be obtained by following various spiritual paths. Therefore, Sikhs do not have a monopoly on salvation: "The Lord dwells in every heart, and every heart has its own way to reach Him." Sikhs do not consider they have an "exclusive" right to salvation. Sikhs believe that all people are equally important before God. Sikhs balance their moral and spiritual values with the quest for knowledge, and they aim to promote a life of peace and equality but also of positive action. A key distinctive feature of Sikhism is a non-anthropomorphic
Advaita and Dvaita Hinduism

Hinduism made a resurgence in India in the 7th century CE, after several centuries of Buddhist predominance. While retaining earlier Hindu theosophy, new schools reinterpreted the Vedas to focus on Brahma, "The One Without a Second", as a central God-like figure. The two main schools of the time are the monist Advaita and the dualist Dvaita. The main distinction between the schools is their understanding of the nature of Atma. In Advaita, atma is ultimately indistinguishable from Brahma, and the goal of life is to know or realize that one's atma (soul) is identical to Brahma. To the Upanishads, whoever becomes fully aware of the atma, as one's core of self, realises identity with Brahma, and, thereby, achieves Moksha (liberation, freedom). Brahma is conceived as a divinity without characteristics or qualities, and moksha is pursued by separating oneself from
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concept of God, to the extent that one can interpret God as the Universe itself (pantheism). Sikhism thus sees life as an opportunity to understand this God as well as to discover the divinity which lies in each individual. While a full understanding of God is beyond human beings, Nanak described God as not wholly unknowable. God is omnipresent (sarav vipak) in all creation and visible everywhere to the spiritually awakened. Nanak stressed that God must be seen from "the inward eye", or the "heart", of a human being: devotees must meditate to progress towards enlightenment. Nanak emphasized the revelation through meditation, as its rigorous application permits the existence of communication between God and human beings. According to Sikhism, every creature has a soul. In death, the soul passes from one body to another until final liberation. The journey of the soul is governed by the karma of the deeds and actions we perform during our lives, and depending on the goodness or wrongdoings committed by a person in their life they will either be rewarded or punished in their next life. As the spirit of God is found in all life and matter, a soul can be passed onto other life forms, such as plants and insects - not just human bodies. A person who has evolved to achieve spiritual perfection in his lifetimes attains salvation - union with God and liberation from rebirth in the material world.
Shinto
Shinto is the native religion of Japan. Shinto means "the path of the kami", but more specifically, it can be taken to mean "the divine crossroad where the kami chooses his way". The 'divine' crossroad signifies that all the universe is divine spirit. This foundation of free will, choosing one's way, means that life is a creative process. Shinto wants life to live, not to die. Shinto sees death as pollution and regards life as the realm where the divine spirit seeks to purify
itself by rightful self-development. Shinto wants individual human life to be prolonged forever on earth as a victory of the divine spirit in preserving its objective personality in its highest forms. The presence of evil in the world, as conceived by Shinto, does not stultify the divine nature by imposing on divinity responsibility for being able to relieve human suffering while refusing to do so. The sufferings of life are the sufferings of the divine spirit in search of progress in the objective world. So that's the concept of life and its purpose in various religions as mentioned above. But if we analyze carefully the purposes of life in that various religions offer, we will conclude that they are either defected or incomplete. The concept of rebirth in Hinduism to get salvation till one is incarnated as Brahma and then the soul gets united with the Paramatma seems so impractical. This concept leads to the division of the society into various classes and then lower class is looked down upon because they had done sins in previous life. The concept of this 'inherited' sin makes the life ultimately purposeless. And according to this philosophy humans even get incarnated as animals and low life and Hinduism believes that there can exists innumerable ways to God but 'All ways do not lead to Rome' and there is only one straight way to God and saying that there exists so many ways to God deviates us as to which path is right. Then if we turn to Judeo-Christian traditions, the OldTestament is a mixture of History, Poetry, etc. and it has details of Historical events and the rise and fall of kingdoms. But it is almost silent on the purpose of life. The purpose of creation is mainly defined in the Book of Genesis or 'creation' that when Adam and Eve were created and then their fall, it says that after making universe God 'rested' which is absurd. It also says that God regretted after creating man. Then there is New Testament and most of it has been written by St. Paul. His books throughout contradict the gospels and
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theory of original sin which states that sin is inherited which is really an injustice and it contradicts the Old Testament while concept of Trinity further perplexes the mind. Therefore, in Bible you will never get a satisfactory answer for the purpose of life. Then there is Zoroastrianism which was founded by Zarathustra. They believe in a supreme power called Ahura Mazda and an evil force called Ahriman. According to Zoroastrianism, there is a continuous struggle going on between the two and in the end former will prevail. But the most teachings of Zoroastrianism are based upon paganism and have no relevance with the current world. Then Jainism & Buddhism lay so much stress on the renouncement of this world and believe in forsaking the worldly pleasure to get salvation that these religions offer nothing practical. There are just rituals and no practical code. A religion can never be true unless it fulfils the spiritual and worldly demands of people of all times and gives a code of life which is universal and ever applicable. Religion and life of man are not any separate entities. Islam has only maintained this golden mean and moderation and Islamic concept of life is straight forward. Islam tells us to do good deeds and teaches high moral values like other religions do, but in Islam all fundamentals are completely stated in full sense and moreover Islam, unlike other religions, tells us the solutions too of various problems challenging the mankind. In next coming chapter the concept of life in Islam has been discussed.
LIFE IN ISLAM-THE ONLY CHOICE

In the preceding chapter you studied about the concept and purpose of life according to various world religions. But as stated earlier too that concepts about life in other religions (except Islam) are not perfect in the real sense. Those are just a set of rituals or lay an overwhelming stress upon renouncing the pleasure of the world. Many of those concepts are impractical and not well defined and they make us conclude that religion and daily life of a man are separate entities and consequently those concepts render the life as purposeless. But only ISLAM is the complete code of life and it guides us minutely in every aspect of our daily lives. Islam follows the principle of moderation or the 'golden mean'. It doesn't believe in renouncing the world to attain salvation nor does it believe that life is an end in itself. The concept of life in Islam has been very clearly defined and Islamic view of life make it highly purposeful and Islam provides guidance to man in every aspect of his life so as to be successful in the world to come. Allah1 created man according to his own divine plan. After creating man, Allah sent him to earth not because of fall of Adam but according to His own Will in order to test man on earth.Allah has honoured man by giving him a very high status of His viceroy to manifest His attributes and qualities and to represent Him on the earth. Man has been put temporarily on earth and then he will be brought back to Allah. Allah has granted man free will in this world in order to test him. Those who lead their lives according to Will of Allah pass the test while the rest fail. "Man maybe a masterpiece of divine creation, but he must
Footnotes:
[1] Adapted from Wikipaedia.
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nevertheless remain subservient to plan of God. Making a full acknowledgement of these two aspects of the mankind is the key to human progress. Man succeeded in building a modern industrial civilization by discovering and exploiting the laws of nature. Similarly in the next world man will achieve lasting success on a much vaster scale, but only after striving earnestly to comprehend the God's creation plan for humanity and then adhering unflinchingly to its edicts."2 Allah has created man from moulded clay and then he blew his spirit into it and He bestowed man with various sublime qualities. The Qur'an mentions: "From the (earth) did We create you and into it shall We return you and from it shall We bring you out once again."3 "We created man from sounding clay from mud molded into shape."4 "Behold! thy Lord said to the angels: "I am about to create man from sounding clay from mud molded into shape; "When I have fashioned him (in due proportion) and breathed into him of My spirit fall ye down in obeisance unto him." 5 "Man is a dignified honourable being. His dignity derives from the fact that he is infused with the spirit of the Creator. What is more important is that such dignity is not confined to any special race, colour, or class of people. It is the natural right of man, every man, the most honourable being on earth." 6 Adam was the first man to be created by Allah and the description of the creation of man and his unique status is very well defined in the Qur'an:
Behold thy Lord said to the angels: "I will create a vicegerent on earth." They said: "Wilt thou place therein one who will make mischief therein and shed blood? Whilst we do celebrate Thy praises and glorify Thy holy (name)?" He said: "I know what ye know not." And He taught Adam the nature of all things; then He placed them before the angels and said: "Tell Me the nature of these if ye are right." They said: "Glory to Thee of knowledge we have none save that Thou hast taught us: in Truth it is Thou Who art perfect in knowledge and wisdom."He said: "O Adam! tell them their natures." When he had told them Allah said: "Did I not tell you that I know the secrets of Heaven and Earth and I know what ye reveal and what ye conceal?"And behold We said to the angels: "Bow down to Adam"; and they bowed down. Not so Iblis: he refused and was haughty, he was of those who reject Faith. We said: "O Adam! dwell thou and thy wife in the Garden and eat of the bountiful things therein as (where and when) ye will but approach not this tree or ye run into harm and transgression." Then did Satan make them slip from the (garden) and get them out of the state (of felicity) in which they had been. We said: "Get ye down all (ye people) with enmity between yourselves. On earth will be your dwelling- place and your means of livelihood for a time." Then learnt Adam from his Lord words (of repentance) and his Lord turned toward him; for He is OftReturning, Most Merciful.7
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So man has been created as a vicegerent (Khalifa) on earth. In other words man is a viceroy of Allah on earth. Allah has indeed given a very high rank to man and honoured him by making him His own representative on earth and created man to manifest His attributes and qualities. "Man enjoys an especially high-ranking status in the hierarchy of all known creatures. He occupies this distinguished position because he alone is gifted with rational faculties and spiritual aspirations as well as powers of action. But the more his rank excels, the more his responsibility grows. He occupies the position of God's viceroy on earth. The person who is appointed by God to be His active agent, must necessarily have some power and authority, and be, atleast potentially, endowed with honour and integrity. And this is the status of man in Islam; not a condemned race from birth to death, but a dignified being potentially capable of good and noble achievements. The fact that God chose His messengers from the human race shows that man is trustworthy and capable, and that he can acquire immense treasures of goodness." 8 "Man also is created by God and is commissioned to be God's viceroy on earth. He is so chosen to cultivate the land and enrich life with knowledge, virtue, purpose and meaning. And to achieve this goal, everything in the earth and the heavens is created for him and is made subservient to him. Life on this planet is not a prison for man; his coming into the world was not an arbitrary punishment for previously committed sins. Nor was he expelled from another world and cast out into this one. His existence was no mere chance or undersigned occurrence. Knowledge is the unique faculty of man and is an integral part of his personality and his being. It is knowledge that qualifies man to be the viceroy of his Creator and entitles him to command the respect and allegiance even of the angels of God."9 As Allah has created man as a ruler on earth and endowed him
with various qualities just in order to test him that how he will use the authority and power bestowed by Allah upon him. As mentioned in the earlier verses that Allah ordered all the jinns and the angels to prostrate before Adam. All did it except the Iblis (Satan) and afterwards he was expelled from the kingdom ofAllah. So after thatAllah placedAdam and the Eve in the paradise and told them to enjoy all its pleasures but He just forbade them from approaching to a tree.Allah told them that they will perish if they tasted its fruit. But Satan by his deceit persuaded both of them to taste that fruit and they did so and it consequently brought about their fall: "But Satan whispered evil to him: he said "O Adam! shall I lead thee to Tree of Eternity and to a kingdom that never decays?" In the result they both ate of the tree and so their nakedness appeared to them: they began to sew together, for their covering, leaves from the Garden: thus did Adam disobey his Lord and allow himself to be seduced. But his Lord chose him (for His Grace): He turned to him and gave him guidance. He said: "Get ye down, both of you, all together, from the Garden with enmity one to another; but if, as is sure, there comes to you Guidance from Me, whosoever follows My Guidance, will not lose his way, nor fall into misery." 10 "So by deceit he brought about their fall: when they tasted of the tree, their shame became manifest to them and they began to sew together the leaves of the garden over their bodies. And their Lord called unto them: "Did I not forbid you that tree and tell you that Satan was an
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avowed enemy unto you?" 11 But then both of them realized their mistake and repented before Allah and He accepted their repentance: They said: "Our Lord! we have wronged our own souls: if Thou forgive us not and bestow not upon us Thy mercy, we shall certainly be lost." (Allah) said: "Get ye down with enmity between yourselves. On earth will be your dwelling-place and your means of livelihood for a time."He said: "Therein shall ye live and therein shall ye die; but from it shall ye be taken out (at last)." 12 After that Allah sent Adam and Eve to earth but it was not as punishment as their repentance was already accepted by Allah. It was rather according to divine plan ofAllah to send man on earth. Otherwise after accepting their repentance,Allah could have again admitted them into paradise. But it must be noted that if Allah would have retainedAdam and Eve in paradise then there would have been no test of life and no distinction between the worthy and unworthy people. And then again if Allah would have sent us to earth as a punishment then our life would have been futile and purposeless having a blot of sin upon it that would never let us lead a purposeful life. So both the cases render the life as purposeless. That's why Allah sent man to earth as an honoured being and not as sinful. "The first phase of life on earth began not in sin or rebellion against the Creator. The "Fall" from the garden of Eden and what followed thereafter - the remorse of Adam and Eve, their repentance, God's forgiveness of and compassion for them, the enmity between man and Satan - all this was no surprise to the Creator. Nor was it an accident in the course of events. It was too meaningful to be accidental. Rather, it seems to have been designed
to discipline the first man, to give him actual experience of fall and rise, moral defeat and triumph, straying from and reconciliation with the Creator. In this way, man would become better prepared for life and more enlightened to face its uncertainties and trying moments." 13 It must be mentioned here that after creating Adam, Allah extracted all his descendants to be born until the last day, from him and took covenant from them all and made them bear witness that He was their Lord. The Qur'an mentions: "When thy Lord drew forth from the Children of Adam-from their loins-their descendants and made them testify concerning themselves, (saying): "Am I not your Lord (who cherishes and sustains you)?" They said: "Yea! We do testify!" (This), lest ye should say on the Day of Judgment: "Of this we were never mindful." Or lest ye should say: "Our fathers before us may have taken false gods but we are (their) descendants after them: wilt Thou then destroy us because of the deeds of men who were futile?"14 "The Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) explained that when Allah created Adam, He took from him a covenant at a place called Na'maan on the 9th day of the 12th month. He then extracted from Adam all of his descendants who would be born until the end of the world, generation after generation, and spread them out before Him to take a covenant from them also. He spoke to them, face to face, making them bear witness that He was their Lord. Consequently, every human being is responsible for belief in God, which is imprinted on each and every soul."15 According to Islam, man has been created to worshipAllah as He is the Only Creator and Sustainer. And creation of Allah is not
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futile. It has been definitely created for some serious purpose. The Qur'an mentions: "I have only created jinns and men, that they may worship Me."16 Now let's first understand the meaning of the word worship. The Arabic word for 'worship' is 'Ibadah' and it comes from the root word 'Abd' meaning 'slave'. It means that in every case and in every aspect of our lives, we must surrender to the Will ofAllah as in the same way a slave obeys his master. As Islam is the complete code of life, so whenever you do any act according to the commandment of Allah, you are worshipping Him. So this unique worship is beyond ritualism. "God's creation is meaningful and that life has a sublime purpose beyond the physical needs and material activities of man. The purpose of life is to worship God. This does not simply mean that we have to spend our entire lives in constant seclusion and absolute meditation. To worship God is to know Him; to love Him; to obey His commandments; to enforce His law in every aspect of life; to serve His cause by doing the right and shunning the evil; and to be just to Him, to ourselves, and to our fellow human beings. To worship God is to "live" life not to run away from it. In brief, to worship God is to imbue ourselves with His Supreme Attributes. This is by no means a simple statement, nor is it an oversimplification of the matter. It is most comprehensive and conclusive. So if life has a purpose and man is created to serve that purpose, then he cannot escape the responsibility. He cannot deny his existence or ignore the vital role he has to play. When God charges him with any responsibility, He provides him with the required assistance. He endows him with intelligence and power to choose his course of conduct. Man, thus, is strongly commended by God to exert his utmost to fully serve the purpose of his existence. Should he fail to do that, or misuse his life or neglect his
duties, he shall be responsible to God for his wrong deeds."17 Even the message of all the Prophets to people was to worship One Supreme God. Obedience to Allah in all matters of life is worship in Islam.Allah is our sole Creator and Cherisher and only He deserves our worship. As He is the Supreme Power, so our life can get a direction and become purposeful only when we surrender according to His Will. According to Islam life is a test for man and man has been sent to earth for test byAllah. The Qur'an mentions: "He Who created Death and Life, that He may try which of you is best in deed: and He is the Exalted in Might Oft-Forgiving."18 "That which is on earth We have made but as a glittering show for the earth in order that We may test themas to which of them are best in conduct."19 On this earth,Allah has given authority and free will to man. NowAllah wants to test humans that how they will use the authority bestowed to them. This world is a trial for the man. If we use our authority according to the divine Will of Allah then only will we succeed in the life after to come, otherwise, we will perish. This world is a step for the next to come. Here the man will be tested, then he will be rewarded according to his deeds done in the world. This world maybe likened to a field where we have to sow and in the hereafter we will reap as per our deeds. So the more hard we work in the field, the better our life hereafter will be. And the virtuous will succeed while the evil doers will be doomed to hell forever. "Truly he succeeds that purifies it, And he fails that corrupts it! "20 "But those will prosper who purify
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themselves."21 When Allah sends man to earth, it is indeed according to a plan and not futile. Allah with His infinite knowledge knows our needs in this life and consequentlyAllah has provided us with all those qualities required by humans to inherit this earth. Allah the good and lawful things have been created by Allah for the service and benefit of mankind. The Qur'an mentions: "Allah is the one Who created the heavens and the earth and sends down rain from the sky and with it brings out fruits for your provision. He has put ships in your service, sailing through the sea by His Command; and likewise He has put the rivers in your service. He has also put the sun and moon in their orbits to be of service to you; and He made the night and day in your service."22 "[It is He] who causes the daybreak, makes the night for rest, and the sun and moon for calculating [time]. That is the determination of the All-Mighty, the All-Knowing. It is He who has made the stars for your guidance in the darkness on land and at sea. We have explained in detail these Signs for people who know."23 Allah has put various facilities for the service and ease of mankind. Islam encourages scientific enquiry and science and technology. Allah asks man at many places in the Qur'an to ponder and observe the signs in the universe. Islam also encourages man to excel on every front be it religion, science, social work, justice, equality, fraternity, universalism, economy, etc. Islam has provided basic guidelines and injunctions to us in every sphere of life.24 (Read Living Islam). So life in Islam is not purposeless but rather Islam makes the life highly meaningful and creative by giving man
a dignified status. But man on the other hand, must always bear in mind that he is temporarily in this world and one day he has to be accountable for his deeds. So the man always prepare himself for the life to come and take every step according to divine Will of Allah and surrender to Him always and mould his life according to the commandments ofAllah. Allah, the Most High, says in the Qur'an: "We have indeed created man in the best of moulds."25 It means that Allah has created man in the best stature, form and nature and it is an obligation upon man to preserve the fitrah (nature) on which Allah created him. It is this nature that exalts the humans even higher than the angels. The next verses continues and says: "Then do We abase him (to be) the lowest of the low."26 This verse implies that when man doesn't recognize his status and position and lives his life blindly, then he goes even lower than the animals. Allah has sent humans to earth as His viceroys in order to manifest His qualities and Attributes. The Qualities and Attributes thatAllah exhibits on divine plane, man has to establish the same on physical plane.Allah is Compassionate and Forgiving, so man has to be same to his fellow beings. God is Loving and Peace, so a similar attitude has to be adopted by man in his life and he has to represent the various qualities ofAllah. But often we do opposite to this by spreading hatred and mischief on the earth which in turn makes us the representatives of the Satan. But we must realize that being Allah's representative on earth is a very high honour and we have to protect and maintain this honour and dignity. And when we do soAllah makes us the Best of all Creation: "Surely, those who believe and do righteous
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The True Purpose of Life [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29]
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deeds, are the best of creation." 27 "It is He who hath made you (His) agents, inheritors of the earth: He hath raised you in ranks, some above others: that He may try you in the gifts He hath given you: for thy Lord is quick in punishment: yet He is indeed OftForgiving Most Merciful." 28 "Allah has promised to those among you who believe and work righteous deeds that He will, of a surety, grant them in the land, inheritance (of power), as He granted it to those before them."29
Holy Qur'an Chapter 14 verse 32-33. Holy Qur'an Chapter 6 verse 96-97. For details please read the Chapter "Living Islam" from the Book. Holy Qur'an Chapter 95 verse 4. Holy Qur'an Chapter 95 verse 5. Holy Qur'an Chapter 98 verse 7. Holy Qur'an Chapter 6 verse 165. Holy Qur'an Chapter 24 verse 55.
Footnotes:
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] Allah is the Proper term for God in Islam. Islamic Studies Text Book for Class XI by Dr. Farida Khanam p. 36. Holy Qur'an Chapter 20 verse 55. Holy Qur'an Chapter 15 verse 26. Holy Qur'an Chapter 15 verse 28-29. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 91. Holy Qur'an Chapter 2 verse 30-37. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 39. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 88-89. Holy Qur'an Chapter 20 verse 120-123. Holy Qur'an Chapter 7 verse 22. Holy Qur'an Chapter 7 verse 23-25. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 89. Holy Qur'an Chapter 7 verse 172-173. Dr. Bilal Philips. Source: www.purposeofcreation.com Holy Qur'an Chapter 51 verse 56. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 38. Holy Qur'an Chapter 67 verse 2. Holy Qur'an Chapter 18 verse 7. Holy Qur'an Chapter 91 verse 9-10. Holy Qur'an Chapter 87 verse 14.
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ISLAM THE UNIVERSAL RELIGION

Islam is derived from the two fold word, 'salaam' and 'silm' meaning 'Peace' and 'Submission' respectively. It also means purity. So Islam means peaceful submission to God. It means that one submits to Him peacefully without resisting or denying His divine Will and commands. And it's only by submitting to God that we can achieve real happiness and experience the peace and purity in our lives. Islam unlike other religions is not named after any religious personality or leader like Christianity has been named after the Jesus Christ, Buddhism after Buddha, Zoroastrianism after the Zoroaster and Confucianism after Confucius, etc. But the 'Islam' has been chosen by God Himself in His Holy Book to make it a Universal religion: "This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion."1 "The Islamic concept of religion is unique in the broadest sense of the word. It is true that genuine religion must come from God for the right guidance of man. And it is equally true that human nature and major needs are basically same at all times. This conception leads to one conclusion, and that is: There is only one true religion coming from the One and Same God, to deal with the outstanding human problems of all times. This religion is ISLAM. But it should be borne in mind that Islam was not taught by Prophet Muhammad alone. On the contrary, Islam had been taught by all the Prophets before Muhammad, and the true followers of Abraham and Moses as well as those of Jesus and the rest were
all called MUSLIMS. So Islam has been, and will continue to be, the true universal religion of God, because God is One and Changeless, and because human nature and major human needs are fundamentally the same, irrespective of time and place, of race and age.And of any other considerations."2 Most of the people have the misconception that Islam is a 'new' religion and it was founded by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in Arabia almost 1400 years ago. That's why many people in the western countries call Islam as Mohammedanism and Muslims as Mohammedans. But these are big misnomers. Islam was founded by God Himself to guide the humanity according to His Will and it came into existence when Adam put his foot on the earth. After that he was followed by a series of Prophets who came to their respective nations and all of them were Muslims and they submitted to One Supreme God. And whenever the humans strayed from the path of God, Allah sent down Messengers to guide them and show them the right path. God says: "Abraham was not a Jew nor yet a Christian; but he was true in Faith, and bowed his will to Allah's (which is Islam), and he did not join gods with Allah."3 "To every people (was sent) a Messenger: when their Messenger comes (before them), the matter will be judged between them with justice, and they will not be wronged".4 "Verily We have sent you in Truth, as a bearer of Glad Tidings, and as a warner: and there never was be people, without a warner lived among them (in the past)."5 "The same Religion He has established for you as that which He enjoined on Noah - the which
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We have sent by inspiration to you - and that which We enjoined on Abraham, Moses and Jesus: namely, that you should remain steadfast in Religion, and make no divisions therein: to those who worship other things than Allah, hard is the (way) to which you call them. Allah chooses to Himself those whom He pleases, and guides to Himself those who turn (to Him)."6 So all the earlier Prophets like Moses, Noah, Abraham, etc. were all Muslims. "Muslims do not believe that Islam was founded by Muhammad, although it was restored by him in the last stage of religious evolution."7 Muslims make no discrimination between various Prophets. The Qur'an mentions: "We believe in Allah, and the revelation given to us, and to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to (all) Prophets from their Lord: We make no difference between one and another of them: And we bow to Allah (in Islam)." 8 Islam is the religion of whole mankind and not just of Arabs or any particular tribe or nation. The teachings of Islam are universal in nature. The earlier Prophets came for their respective nations and spread the teachings to only those places to which they were sent. But this was not the case with Muhammad (pbuh). He was a universal Messenger sent to the whole humanity without any discrimination and he was the last Prophet of God. The Qur'an mentions: "Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Messenger of Allah, and the Seal of the Prophets: and Allah has full knowledge of all things."9 A document is sealed when it is complete and similarly Prophet
Muhammad (pbuh) completed the chain of Prophets and the House of Islam got completed and now anyone can enter it without any discrimination. He was not only the Prophet of the Muslims but the Prophet for all humankind. The Prophet (pbuh) said, "My similitude in comparison with the other Prophets is that of a man who has built a house completely and excellently except for a place of one brick. When the people enter the house, they admire its beauty and say: 'But for the place of this brick (how splendid the house will be)!' "10 Further Muhammad (pbuh) said, "My similitude in comparison with the other Prophets before me, is that of a man who has built a house nicely and beautifully, except for a place of one brick in a corner. The people go about it and wonder at its beauty, but say: 'Would that this brick be put in its place!' So I am that brick, and I am the last of the Prophets."11 The Qur'an mentions: "We sent you not, but as a Mercy for all creatures."12 "We have not sent you but as a (Messenger) to all mankind, giving them Glad Tidings, and warning them (against sin), but most men do not understand ."13 But most of the people including Muslims are unaware of this fact unfortunately. And it is really sad to know that Muslims think that Qur'an is only their book i.e. It is a book for Muslims only but it is totally wrong. Nowhere the Qur'an mentions that it is meant for Muslims only but its Message is universal and is directed
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towards all people and times. It is mentioned in Qur'an no less than seven times that its Message is universal and for all humankind. "This is no less than a Message to (all) the Worlds." 14 "But it is nothing less than a Message to all the worlds."15 "Verily this is no less than a Message to (all) the Worlds."16 "A Book which We have revealed to you, in order that you may lead mankind out of the depths of darkness into light - by the leave of your Lord - to the Way of (Him) the Exalted in Power, worthy of all praise."17 "Here is a Message for mankind: Let them take warning therefrom, and let them know that He is (no other than) One God (Allah): let men of understanding take heed."18 Ramadhan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur'an, as a guide to mankind, also clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (between right and wrong).19 Verily We have revealed the Book to you in Truth, for (instructing) mankind 20 "We do not invite people to a 'new' religion; we invite them to the oldest religion, indeed to their 'own' religion, the religion of living in total surrender to their Creator, in accordance with the guidance brought by all His Messengers. Indeed, if I am not misunderstood, we may be bold enough to say that we do not invite anyone to change his 'religion', to transfer his allegiance to a rival religion. For, by our own admission, Islam is not a new or rival religion among the many competing for human allegiance; it
is the natural and primordial religion.All nature lives in submission to its Creator; all Messengers Adam to Muhammad brought the same religion. This does not mean any change in the basic position of Islam. It does not mean that all religions, as they are, are equally true. One will still be invited to follow the Prophet Muhammad, blessings and peace be on him, because he is the last Messenger, and to accept the Qur'an as the last revelation from God."21 So the truth about Islam's Universality must be hopefully clear to you now. And always refer to authentic scriptures to know the truth about Islam. Don't look at the actions of Muslims. The teaching is pure. The people may not be pure. Islam is your own and natural religion. The Prophet Muhammad reported that Allah said, "I created my servants in the right religion, but devils made them go astray." The Prophet also said, "Each child is born in a state of Fitrah. Then his parents make him a Jew, Christian or a Zoroastrian."22 That's why you don't have to 'convert' but to 'revert' to Islam as Islam is your own religion. You just have to come back to the right path of God that will lead you to salvation. So it's an open invitation to you to ponder upon the truth and then revert to your own path i.e. ISLAM. It's never too late to mend. Come back and return to your Lord and he is always there to accept you.23 But there is a great danger awaiting if we still after coming of the truth don't accept it. The Qur'an says: "If anyone desires a religion other than Islam (submission to God), never will it be accepted of him."24 Furthermore Muhammad (pbuh) said: "Whoever among the Christians and Jews hears of me but does not affirm his belief in what I
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brought and dies in this state will be among the inhabitants of hell."25
Footnotes:
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] Holy Qur'an Chapter 5 verse 3. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 57-58. Holy Qur'an Chapter 3 verse 67. Holy Qur'an Chapter 10 verse 47. Holy Qur'an Chapter 35 verse 24. Holy Qur'an Chapter 42 verse 13. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 27. Holy Qur'an Chapter 2 verse 136. Holy Qur'an Chapter 33 verse 40. Sahih Bukhari, Vol 4 Hadith 734. Sahih Bukhari, Vol 4 Hadith 735. Holy Qur'an Chapter 21 verse 107. Holy Qur'an Chapter 34 verse 28. Holy Qur'an Chapter 38 verse 87. Holy Qur'an Chapter 68 verse 52. Holy Qur'an Chapter 81 verse 27. Holy Qur'an Chapter 14 verse 1. Holy Qur'an Chapter 14 verse 52. Holy Qur'an Chapter 2 verse 185. Holy Qur'an Chapter 39 verse 41. Dawah among Non- Muslims in the West, Khurram Murad. Source: Online Library, www.youngmuslims.ca. Bukhari and Muslim. Refer to the chapter, "Return to your Lord". Holy Qur'an Chapter 3 verse 85. Sahih Muslim [English Translation], Vol.1 P.91 No. 284
BENEFITS AND UNIQUE FEATURES OF ISLAM

I have always held the religion of Muhammad in high estimation because of its wonderful vitality. It is the only religion, which appears to me to possess that assimilating capacity to the changing phases of existence, which can make itself appeal to every age. I have studied him - the wonderful man - and in my opinion far from being an Antichrist, he must be called the Savior of Humanity. I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it much needed peace and happiness. I have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable to the Europe of tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to the Europe of today lauds Geroge Bernard Shaw.1
BENEFITS OF ISLAM
Islam is the complete code of life. It guides us in all the spheres of life. Islam has its own social, political, economic, moral and judicial system and thus Islam fills all the necessities of the societies and the world as a whole. Islam follows the principle of moderation and there is a perfect balance mentioned in different matters and this golden mean is one of the basic characteristics of Islam. Practicability is another characteristic of Islam. Like other religions, Islam is not a set of rituals but it is a complete code of life.All the teachings of Islam are well preserved till now and are applicable to all times as Islam is a Universal Religion. Islam encourages research and Science & Technology and tells us to use our intellect
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to discover the mysteries of nature. Whatever is good for mankind is considered good in Islam too. Below mentioned are in detail some of the Benefits and Unique features of Islam.
said: Didn't you know that converting to Islam erases all previous sins?6 After converting to Islam, the person will be rewarded for his or her good and bad deeds according to the following saying of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh): Your Lord, Who is Blessed and Exalted, is Most Merciful. If someone intends to do a good deed but does not do it, a good deed will be recorded for him. And if he does do it, (a reward of) ten to seven hundred or many more times (the reward of the good deed), will be recorded for him. And if someone intends to do a bad deed but does not do it, a good deed will be recorded for him. And if he does do it, a bad deed will be recorded against him or God will wipe it out.7 Below mentioned are the unique features of Islam and these can be also termed as the Benefits of Islam apart from being its unique features. The concept of accountability is a basic and very important concept in Islam. It rules man's life on earth and determines his fate in the Hereafter. That is because according to Islamic viewpoint man is not born in this world only to make money and die after spending here a hundred years or so. The real truth is that human life is an eternal life and we live in this world for a small fraction of our real lives only. The actual and eternal life is to be lived in the next world. The present mundane world is made merely for human trial. The consequences of our good or bad deeds will be reaped in the life, in the next, eternal world. It is to gather this harvest that we strive. This way of understanding life makes life an extremely serious business. It produces a strong incentive in a man to take even the smallest matters of life very seriously. A person therefore should be alert at every moment.
Real Happiness and Inner Peace2

Real happiness and peace can be found in submitting to the commands of the Creator and the Sustainer of this world. God has said in the Qur'an: Truly, in remembering God do hearts find rest.3 On the other hand, the one who turns away from Qur'an will have a life of hardship in this world. God has said: But whoever turns away from Qur'an, he will have a hard life, and We will raise him up blind on the Day of Judgment.4 This may explain why some people commit suicide while they enjoy the material comfort money can buy. For example, look at Cat Stevens (now Yusuf Islam), formerly a famous pop singer who used to earn sometimes more than $150,000 a night. After he converted to Islam, he found true happiness and peace, which he had not found in material success.
Forgiveness for All Previous Sins5

When someone converts to Islam, God forgives all of his previous sins and evil deeds. A man called Amr came to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and said: "Give me your right hand so that I may give you my pledge of loyalty." The Prophet (pbuh) stretched out his right hand. Amr withdrew his hand. The Prophet (pbuh) said: What has happened to you, O Amr? He replied: "I intend to lay down a condition." The Prophet (pbuh) asked: What condition do you intend to put forward? Amr said: "That God forgive my sins." The Prophet (pbuh)
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UNIQUE FEATURES OF ISLAM8 Uniqueness of the Name

The name for the religion of Islam is much more than just a name because it expresses a deep spiritual meaning as well as an overall outlook on life and concept of worship. The word "Islam" is an Arabic word which means "complete submission to the Will of Almighty God". Other religions are named after their founders, such as Christianity and Buddhism; after a tribe or ethnic group, such as Judaism; or after a specific geographical region, such as Hinduism.
Islam is completely based upon Divine Revelation. Not only is the concept of God in Islam characterized by purity and clarity, but it is also not marred by myths, superstitions or man-made philosophical ideas. Islam's concept of God can be called pure and straightforward because there is a clear distinction made between the Creator and the created.As such, there is no ambiguity in divinity it is made clear that there is nothing divine or worthy of being worshipped except for Almighty God. In Islam, calling someone other than Almighty God "Lord" or "Savior" is completely prohibited because such terms compromise God's uniqueness and because all of our trust should be put inAlmighty God.
Universality & Continuity of the Message

The command to worship none other thanAlmighty God and to submit to His will has been revealed by God to all of His Prophets throughout mankind's long history. The pure essence of the beliefs and teachings that were revealed by God to the Prophet Muhammad are the same as God taught to Abraham, who was one of the earliest and greatest Prophets. So actually, Muhammad is the final Prophet of Islam -- not the first. From the very beginning of the mission of Prophet Muhammad, his followers came from a wide spectrum of individuals -- there was Bilal, theAfrican slave; Suhaib, the Byzantine Roman; Ibn Salam, the Jewish Rabbi; and Salman, the Persian. Since religious truth is eternal and unchanging, and mankind is one universal brotherhood, God's revelations to man have always been consistent and universal. Submission to the Will of God, and worshipping Him alone without intermediaries, has always been the only religion acceptable to Almighty God.
Direct Relationship with God

In other religions, even the ones which claim belief in "One God", people often approach God through an intermediary, such as a saint, an angel, the Virgin Mary or Jesus. However, it is only in Islam that a person is required only to pray to God.Additionally, in Islam there are no priests or clergy -- each worshipper, man or woman, has a direct relationship with their Merciful Creator -Almighty God. Since God is the Owner and Sustainer of everything, as well as the only one who can provide true and complete forgiveness, it is completely futile to try to approach Him through anyone else.
Unique Concept of Worship

According to the teachings of Islam, everything that a human being does with the pure intention of pleasing God is an act of worship. Due to this, Islam has an all encompassing concept of worship unlike any other religion. Like other religions, Islam has required acts of worship, however worship in Islam is not limited to rituals. Since Islam is an all-encompassing religion with guidance for all aspects of life, almost every action in a Muslim's life becomes
A Straightforward Concept of God

Unique among the religions of the world, the concept of God in
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an act of worship if it is done to build a better relationship with God.
without guidance in their daily lives -- thus His guidance is all encompassing.
Based on Authentic Sources

The preservation of the scripture of Islam -- the Holy Qur'an - is unique among world religions. No other religion has a scripture which is both as old and as well-preserved as the one possessed by Muslims today. Even scholars who are hostile to Islam admit that the Qur'an that exists today is exactly the same as the one that existed in the time of the Prophet Muhammad.
Moderation
The teachings of Islam, since they are divinely revealed, are balanced in all of their aspects. Even though Islam is an allencompassing way of life, it preaches moderation and rejects extremism. On the one hand, Islam does not preach complete rejection of all worldly pleasures in view of the life hereafter; and on the other hand it does not teach that earthly life is just for pleasure and enjoyment. In Islam, wealth and worldly pleasures can be partaken of in this life as long as they are enjoyed in a way that is in obedience to God.
An Eternal Message
Islam has just as much meaning and is just as applicable to people living in today's "modern world" as it did for people living 1400 years ago. Since the message of Islam is eternally true it is also very robust, and as such still has a strong spiritual impact on millions of people living in the world today. The Pure Monotheism of Islam, as well as its universal brotherhood, strong morals and positive outlook on life, is still very relevant and meaningful to modern man.
A Positive Outlook
Most people will agree that having a strong self-esteem and a positive outlook on life is conducive to achieving happiness and success. Unique among the religions of the world, Islam's view of both the nature of the human being and the purpose of life are extremely positive. Islam's view of the nature of the human being is balanced. On the one hand they are not viewed as being inherently evil, but on the other they are not considered to be perfect - nor are they expected to be so.According to the teachings of Islam, every human being, man or woman, is born with a clean slate and is equally capable of both good and evil. Since God has bestowed limited free-will on human beings, they will ultimately be held responsible for their actions. Believing that "salvation" is based on "faith alone" reduces human life to a near meaningless and fatalistic existence. The teachings of Islam make it clear that human beings, since their nature is basically good, are capable of positive action in this life, and that the best way to achieve a balanced, happy and fulfilled life is complete submission toAlmighty God. Certainly, no person can completely submit to God by simply
A Complete Way of Life

Islam not just a "religion" in the traditional sense, because it is not just confined to acts of worship, morality and other aspects of personal piety. The Prophet Muhammad's mission encompassed not only spiritual and religious teachings, but also included guidance for such things as social reform, economics, politics, warfare and family life. Thus due to the diversity and success of Muhammad's mission, Muslims have clear guidance from God and His Final Prophet on all aspects of life. This goes hand-in-hand with the Islamic belief that Almighty God does not leave human beings
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wanting to do so, but by first realizing that none has a right to be worshipped and obeyed except forAlmighty God, and then making a reasonable effort to follow God's commands, all human beings can fulfill their reason for existence - which is to worship God alone. The Holy Qur'an tells us that "man was created weak" and thus falls into sin often. On the other hand, man is not to think of himself as so evil and corrupt as to despair of God's mercy. As a recourse to this, and since Islam condemns self-righteousness, a pious life can only be lived by trusting in God -- since there is no power or strength except through God. As such, spiritual felicity is achieved by a combination of both faith and action.As such, the most righteous person is not one who thinks that repentance is unnecessary, but the one who admits and realizes his mistakes and then repents. According to the word of Almighty God as revealed in the Holy Qur'an, mankind is God's trustee on earth; and as such the life of this world is a test, not a punishment. Even before God created the first man, He knew that he would sin, however God created man in spite of this.According to the Qur'an, God has bestowed on human beings a great trust and given them dignity. It is only by worshippingAlmighty God, directly and without intermediaries, that a human being can fulfil their true innate nature and purpose of existence. In short, Islam is realistic. It portrays human beings just as they are and the life of the world just as it is. Since the outlook of Islam is divinely revealed, is not based on wishful or negative thinking, but simply on reality. Islam also has a positive view of mankind in general, since it teaches that the best person in the sight of God is the one who is most God-conscious. In this way the truth of Islam and the universality of God's message transcends all of the barriers of race, nationality, ethnic group and economic status.
Simplicity, Rationality and Practicality9

Islam is a religion without any mythology. Its teachings are simple and intelligible. It is free from superstitions and irrational beliefs. The oneness of God, the Prophethood of Muhammad, and the concept of life after death are the basic articles of its faith. They are based on reason and sound logic. All of the teachings of Islam flow from those basic beliefs and are simple and straightforward. There is no hierarchy of priests, no farfetched abstractions, no complicated rites or rituals. Everybody may approach the Qur'an directly and translate its dictates into practice. Islam awakens in man the faculty of reason and exhorts him to use his intellect. It enjoins him to see things in the light of reality. The Qur'an advises him to seek knowledge and invoke Allah to expand his awareness.
Footnotes:
[1] George Bernard Shaw, The Genuine Islam, Singapore, Vol. 1, No. 8, 1936. Quoted by Khurshid Ahmad in "Islam: Basic Principles & Characteristics". A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam, I.A. Ibrahim p. 43. Holy Qur'an Chapter 13 verse 28. Holy Qur'an Chapter 20 verse 124. A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam, I.A. Ibrahim p. 44. Narrated in Saheeh Muslim, #121, and Mosnad Ahmad, #17357. Narrated in Mosnad Ahmad, #2515, and Saheeh Muslim, #131. Unique Features of Islam, Article (Abridged) by Daniel Masters, Isma'il Kaka and Abdur Rahman R. Squires Islam: Basic Principles & Characteristics, Khurshid Ahmad, p.12.
[2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
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RETURN TO YOUR LORD, THE MOST LOVING

As stated earlier also, that Islam is a universal religion belonging to all humanity. Islam doesn't believe in the concept of Original Sin that the sin is inherited or the human nature is wicked. According to Islam man is born sinless and every child is innocent. It frees a man's soul from the blot of sin. And Islamic concept tells us that there is much good in man than evil. Islam is the religion of Mercy. Allah is always Most Loving & Most Merciful. Allah's love for His creation is beyond limits. Muslims greet each other by saying Assalaamu Alikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuhu meaning "MayAllah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon you". Each chapter of the Qur'an begins with the words Bismillahir Rahmaanir Raheem meaning In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. There are so many verses of The Qur'an which sayAllah is Oft-Loving, Most Merciful. One of the Allah's attribute is Rahman meaning 'Compassionate'. Allah is not only something to be afraid of but Allah is very loving and He is the One to be Loved more than anything. Muhammad (pbuh) said that when Allah started to initiate the creation, he inscribed these words on his throne (Arsh): "Verily My Mercy shall prevail over my wrath" 1 Allah says: "Your Lord is Most Forgiving, full of Mercy"2 "My Mercy extends to all things"3 Some war prisoners, children and woman were brought before the Prophet and a woman amongst them was milking
her breasts to feed and whenever she found a child amongst the captives, she took it over her chest and nursed it (she had lost her child but later she found him). The Prophet said to us, "Do you think that this lady can throw her son in the fire?" We replied, "No, if she has the power not to throw it (in the fire)." The Prophet then said, "Allah is more merciful to His slaves than this lady to her son."4 "I heard Allah's Apostle saying, Allah divided Mercy into one-hundred parts and He kept its ninety-nine parts with Him and sent down its one part on the earth, and because of that, its one single part, His creations are Merciful to each other, so that even the mare lifts up its hoofs away from its baby animal, lest it should trample on it."5 We can never pay back Allah for his favours that He has bestowed upon us: "And He gives you all of that you ask for. But if you count the favours of Allah, never will you be able to count them."6 Allah knows that it's natural for man to commit sins because to err is human. ButAllah loves those who after committing sins turn back to Him in repentance because it's onlyAllah who can forgive our sins and we must always turn only to Him to get our sins washed off. The final Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) informed his followers of this reality, saying, "If you did not commit sins and turn to Allah, seeking His forgiveness, He would have replaced you with another people who would sin, ask Allah's forgiveness and He would forgive them."7 The Qur'an mentions: "For Allah loves those who turn to Him constantly and He loves those who keep
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themselves pure and clean."8 Say: "O My servants who have transgressed against their souls! Do not despair of the Mercy of Allah: For Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. You turn to your Lord (in repentance) and bow to His (Will), before the penalty comes on you: after that you shall not be helped. 9 "And O you Believers! You turn all together toward Allah, that you may attain Bliss."10 "Tell My servants that I am indeed the OftForgiving, Most Merciful."11 "When My servants ask you concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them): I listen to the prayer of every supplicant when he calls on Me: let them also, with a will, listen to My call, and believe in Me: that they may walk in the right way."12 Further Muhammad (pbuh) said: "If a person embraces Islam sincerely, then Allah shall forgive all his past sins, and after that starts the settlement of accounts, the reward of his good deeds will be ten times to seven hundred times for each good deed and an evil deed will be recorded as it is unless Allah forgives it" 13 It's true that man is weak and has a natural tendency towards sins but man must repent to Allah for his sins andAllah strengthens the man by His scriptures and He sent many Prophets to guide mankind. We may forget or ignore Allah but He never leaves us and He always responds to our pleas. We must always be hopeful of Allah's Mercy and never loose hope in Allah. He says:
"And never give up hope of Allah's soothing Mercy: truly no one despairs of Allah's soothing Mercy, except those who have no Faith."14 And we must always put our trust in Allah only. "And if anyone puts his trust in Allah, sufficient is (Allah) for him."15 "The decision rests only with Allah. I put my trust in Him alone, and all who trust should trust only in Him."16 So if you have now realized the true purpose of your life, then please don't wait more or else it will be too late. Just turn to Allah and enjoy His ever lasting Mercy and good pleasure. Come back to Islam - Path of peace.17 In the next chapter you will learn how to become a Muslim and return back to your native Islam. "Our Lord! In You do we trust, and to You do we turn in repentance: to You is (our) final destination."18
Footnotes:
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] Narrated by Bukhari & Muslim. Holy Qur'an Chapter 18 verse 58. Holy Qur'an Chapter 7 verse 156. Sahih Bukhari Vol 8 Hadith 28. Sahih Bukhari Vol 8 Hadith 29. Holy Qur'an Chapter 14 verse 34. Quoted by Dr. Bilal Philips in his "Purpose of Creation". Source: www.purposeofcreation.com Holy Qur'an Chapter 2 verse 222. Holy Qur'an Chapter 39 verse 53-54. Holy Qur'an Chapter 24 verse 31. Holy Qur'an Chapter 15 verse 49. Holy Qur'an Chapter 2 verse 186. Sahih Bukhari vol. 1 Book 2 Hadith 40. Holy Qur'an Chapter 12 verse 87.
98 [15] [16] [17] [18] Holy Qur'an Chapter 65 verse 3. Holy Qur'an Chapter 12 verse 67. Holy Qur'an Chapter 5 verse 16. Holy Qur'an Chapter 60 verse 4.
HOW DOES ONE BECOME A MUSLIM?

A Muslim is a person who submits his will to God by accepting Islam as the complete way of life. Becoming a Muslim is very easy. One just has to pronounce with conviction the words, "La ilaha illallah, Muhammadur rasoolullah," meaning, "There is no true god but God (Allah), and Muhammad is the Messenger (Prophet) of God", one reverts to Islam and becomes a Muslim and comes back to his own religion ISLAM. Then he enjoys all the rights bestowed by God upon him. "The first part, "There is no true god but God," means that none has the right to be worshipped but God alone, and that God has neither partner nor son. To be a Muslim, one should also: Believe that the Holy Qur'an is the literal word of God, revealed by Him. Believe that the Day of Judgment (the Day of Resurrection) is true and will come, as God promised in the Qur'an. Accept Islam as his or her religion. Not worship anything nor anyone except God."1
Footnotes:
[1] A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam, I.A. Ibrahim p. 52-53.
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LIVING ISLAM
It's a truth that facts about Islam in the current age are being distorted by the media and other agencies before the common masses in order to defame the Muslims globally and that naturally adds to the growth of misconceptions about a peaceful religion of Islam. But thanks to Allah that with His grace there are still so many people that are spreading the peaceful message of Islam in its purest form to the world to remove the hate and to promote a true understanding of Islam. But it is my request to the readers that don't believe and draw conclusions based on heresy but study Islam yourself from the authentic sources (Qur'an and Hadith) and then only truth will be clear to you. Don't askAngelina Jolie or the western media that What Islam is? Don't ask the western women what Hijab is but rather ask it to that Muslim girl who observes it. Ask the concerned people and the practicing Muslims that what Islam gave them. There are so many examples of people who reverted to Islam in the west. One such example is Yusuf Islam (formerly pop singer Cat Stevens) who accepted Islam and became a peace activist. "He used to earn sometimes more than $150,000 a night. After he converted to Islam, he found true happiness and peace, which he had not found in material success."1 We definitely have to change our context regarding Islam. Our context regarding Islam comes from the biased western media and those people who have never experienced Islam and this in turn leads us to draw wrong conclusions about Islam. I would like to quote an example here. Suppose a man is sitting alone in a train compartment in a calm and peaceful manner. Suddenly then another man comes along with his little children in the same compartment.
This man takes out a newspaper and starts to read it. By this time his children start playing making lots of noise in the compartment. The first man gets angry but he sees that the father of these children is not bothered and is still reading the newspaper. Then he goes angrier and finally he tells the man to make his children silent. The man puts the newspaper down and replies that I am just returning from the hospital and the mother of these children has just died. Then suddenly the expressions of the first man change and he begins to feel pity and starts loving those children with whom he was much angry before.2 And this happened only when he came across the truth and accordingly changed his context of mind. Just switch the context and bring it from authentic Islamic scriptures and surely all your hate for Islam will vanish and your perceptions and approaches to Islam will change. You will feel that Islam is totally different from the one portrayed in the media. Our context for Islam must first come from Qur'an then other sources. Coming to Islam is actually not a mere conversion but a 'Complete Intellectual Transformation'.3 It makes a man responsible to God and his own fellows. Islamic view of life is really worth living. It gives an inner joy and peace that is too difficult to express in words. And it must be noted that Islam is the most practiced religion of the world. It is the religion of peace and mercy. "In short when a person adopts Islam first of all it is his thinking, which comes under Islam, then his desires, his feelings, his interests, his relations, his loves and his hatred. All are coloured by his obedience to God. When man comes under God's command in his daily life, his behaviour with people, his dealings, all are moulded by the demands of Islam. Faith prepares him to lead a worthy life among the people adopting an attitude of modesty, sympathy and goodwill in all his dealings. In short, faith perfects man's relation with God as well as with other human beings."4
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After faith in God, when you offer Salah (Muslim prayer which is obligatory five times a day), you are directly communicating to your Lord. In Islam there exists a direct relationship between man and God without any priesthood or any intermediates. The Salah is a programming towards righteousness5. "When we analyze the Islamic prayer and study its unique nature, it will reveal to us that it is not merely a physical motion or a void recital of the Holy Book. It is a matchless and unprecedented formula of intellectual mediation and spiritual devotion, of moral elevation and physical exercise, all combined. It is an exclusively Islamic experience where every muscle of the body joins the soul and the mind in the worship and glory of God."6. When you will enter the Masjid (Mosque) for prayer you will see that the people will greet you with Assalaamu Alikum (May Allah's peace be upon you) and you will feel so much love and brotherhood for others. Every person in Salah stands shoulder by shoulder irrespective or any creed, status or colour which will inculcate in you qualities of equality and brotherhood along with humility. When you will be called for Salah by Adhaan (Muslim Call to Prayer), you will feel so splendid and there are many people who accepted Islam after hearing Adhaan and you will get acquainted with the Islamic culture of architechture and minarets of Masjids and Salah will also make you punctual and disciplined. Then Sawm (Fasting) is another pillar of Islam. It teaches you self-control and it makes you feel pity for the poor sections of the society and it develops in you the qualities of patience, discipline and selflessness and fasting is considered to be a great worship in Islam and usually during Ramadhan (The Islamic month of fasting) you will see a different Islamic environment in Masjids and home and you will be more devoted towards Ibadah (Worship). "The purpose of fasting in other religions and philosophies is invariably partial. It is either for spiritual aims, or for physical needs, or for
intellectual cultivations; never for all combined. But in Islam it is for all these gains and many other purposes, social and economic, moral and humanitarian, private and public, personal and common, inner and outer, local and national-all combined together7. "Through the experience of fasting in Islam, you will be able to have selfcontrol, self-restraint, self-discipline, self-education, self-evaluation, and self-obedience to Allah the Creator. You undoubtedly will be able to improve health, personality, character, and behaviour."8 After fasting there is one more pillar of Islam namely Zakaat or charity that is paid annually to the poor and needy. Zakaat means purity. It will not only purify your money but also your heart from greed, selfishness & miserliness. If everyone among us will give Zakaat then no one on the face of earth will die of starvation. Zakaat stablizes the various sections of the society and when you will spend for others you will feel so much joy in your heart and you will exalted before your Lord. Then the last pillar of Islam is Haj or the pilgrimage to Makkah that is done annually and it's obligatory on every Muslim who can afford so to do Haj atleast once in a lifetime. It's the largest gathering of the people in the whole world and a great sign of Islam's universality. Everyone is clad in the same white clothes and everyone stands shoulder to shoulder and you will come across people from all parts of the world. You will feel love, peace and brotherhood and you will get acquainted to the environment in which Muhammad (pbuh) lived and you will get committed to Islam and your faith will subsequently increase. "By performing pilgrimage to Makkah, you will transcend yourself from being nationalistic, sectarian, or denominational into being universal.You will be part and an essential constituent of the rainbow of Islam. You will be also part of the brotherhood of Islam with those who already submitted themselves to the Creator. At the same time, you will get rid of any inferiority or superiority complexes. You
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will also find yourself in synchrony and harmony with all the Prophets and messengers ofAllah since the creation of Adam and Eve until the last final messenger to mankind, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). While in Makkah, you will be able to visit the places of revelation of the Quran as well as the places visited by Prophet Abraham and members of his family such as Hagar and Ishmael. You will visit the place where the first astronauts,Adam and Eve landed on earth."9 Then Islam encourages you to excel in this world and it encourages you to acquire knowledge and seeking knowledge is obligatory for every man and women according to Islam. Muhammad (pbuh) said: Acquire knowledge, it enables its possessor to distinguish right from wrong; it lights our way to heaven. It is our friend in the desert, our company in the solitude and companion when friendless, it guides us to happiness, it sustains us in misery, it is an ornament among friends and armour against enemies. (Hadith)10 Apart from it, Islam teaches you very high moral values like truthfulness, humility, dealing justly, treating women kindly, honesty, etc.11 and also provides you the solutions of the problems like AIDS, pre-marital and extra-marital relations, moral degradation etc. that are today confronting the humanity12. In Islam whenever you do a good deed its reward gets multiplied ten times or even much more than that depending upon the devotion and intention it's done. The Qur'an says: "Whoever brings a good deed, will have [the value of] ten like it, and whoever brings an evil deed will only be punished with one like it, and they will not be wronged." 13 And Muhammad (pbuh) said:
"Your Lord, Who is blessed and exalted, is most merciful. If someone intends to do a good deed but does not do it, a good deed will be recorded for him. And if he does do it, (a reward of) ten to seven hundred or many more times (the reward of the good deed), will be recorded for him. And if someone intends to do a bad deed but does not do it, a good deed will be recorded for him. And if he does do it, a bad deed will be recorded against him or God will wipe it out."14 So Islam encourages you to do good deeds and encourages positive attitude and optimism and it discourages pessimism. "A man asked Muhammad (pbuh) about evils. He replied: don't ask me regarding evils but ask me regarding good (he repeated it thrice)." 15 The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said, "Leave aside whatever causes you doubts or misgivings in favour of what does not cause you doubts and misgivings. For truth is peace of mind while falsehood is mental disquiet." 16 To conclude, Allah says in the Qur'an: "It is not righteousness that you turn your faces toward East or West; but it is righteousness - to believe in Allah and the Last day, and the Angels, and the Book, and the Messengers, to spend of your substance, out of love for Him, for your kin, for orphans, for the needy, for the wayfarer, for those who ask, and for the ransom of slaves; to be steadfast in prayer, and practice regular charity; to fulfil the contracts which you have made; and to be firm and patient, in pain
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107 [15] Mishkat Ul Masabih 5:90, Quoted by Kaleem Ullah Khan in his book, "Islam: The Source of Universal Peace" p. 73 [16] Ibid. [17] Holy Qur'an Chapter 2 verse 177.
(or suffering) and adversity and throughout all periods of panic. Such are the people of Truth, those who fear Allah." 17 So Islam is not a mere lip service but every aspect of Islam is practical and applicable. Faith without action is futile and useless and vice versa. So come to Islam and see the REAL life and TRUTH yourself. Stop surviving and start LIVING ISLAM. Come and a new world is awaiting for you.And remember isolation and confrontation is not any solution but communication is!
Footnotes:
[1] A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam, I. A. Ibrahim p. 43. The present mailing address of Cat Stevens (Yusuf Islam), in case you would like to ask him about his feelings after he converted to Islam, is: 2 Digswell Street, London N7 8JX, United Kingdom. This example was quoted by A.W. Sadatullah Khan in his 3 day workshop, "Discover Yourself" and that really inspired me to write a chapter by name of "Living Islam" in my book. For further details, please refer to the book, "Conversion: An Intellectual Transformation" by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan. Islamic Studies Text Book for Class XI by Dr. Farida Khanam p. 80 For further information, please watch the video tape of Dr. Zakir Naik by name, "Salah: A Programming towards Righteousness". Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 96. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 143. Benefits of becoming Muslim, Article by Dr. Ahmad Sakr. Ibid. Quoted by Kaleem Ullah Khan in his book, "Islam: The Source of Universal Peace" p. 90. For further details, please refer to the book, "The Moral values of The Qur'an" by Harun Yahya. For further details, please refer to the book, "Solution the values of The Qur'an" by Harun Yahya. Holy Qur'an Chapter 6 verse 160. Narrated in Mosnad Ahmad, #2515, and Saheeh Muslim, #131.
[2]
[3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
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CONCLUSION
Life is really a precious asset and a trust from God. Life is really worth living only we realize its real purpose and our own self in this universe. Without knowing the purpose of life, life becomes aimless without any final goal. "The contemporary world is clearly baffled by numerous problems. But it is equally baffled by the conflicting diagnoses and prescriptions to cope with these problems. Some people sing along with the popular lyric, "What the world needs today is loveetc." Some call for a human rebirth. Others turn to Marxism, Humanism, Satanism, or Scientism as the ultimate solution. Still more are awaiting the arrival of some future Savior. Yet this long list does not even include the indifferent, the hopeless, and the apathetic who may in fact outnumber the optimist clubs combined. But it seems that the greatest need today is the pressing need for "understanding". What man needs most of all is to understand himself and his nature, his potentials and limitations, his place in the universe and relationships with its elements.1 And if man will realize his potentials and recognize himself, then he can surely bring about a revolution in his life and in the world too. Then only he can draw out best from his life and become successful in the after life. There are so many existing definitions and philosophies of life as already mentioned and each way tries to justify its features and claims to be true and genuine. It can often create confusion in the mind of a common man as to what way and philosophy of life he should follow. But there is a simple answer to this question. Muhammad (pbuh) the Messenger of God said:
Abdullah ibn Masoud relates that Allah's Messenger (pbuh) drew a line for them one day and then said "This isAllah's path", then he drew several lines (branching off) to the right and to the left and said, "These are the paths (of Misguidance) on each of which is a devil inviting people to follow it" and then he recited (the verse) "Verily this is My Path, leading straight, so follow it. And do not follow the (other) paths for they will scatter you about from (Allah's) path. This is His Command to you in order that you may be conscious of Allah.2, 3 So there is only one path and only one way that will lead us to success both in this world and the hereafter and will lead us to eternal success. And that's the path of ISLAM. Rest are deviations as already mentioned. Life is a highly purposeful creation and we are in this world for some significant purpose and life becomes purposeful only when it is lead according to the Divine Will of God. It's only after that we can taste the sublime flavour of life. And we must realize this before it is too late. Except Islam, in all other religions and philosophies, the purpose of life is incomplete, or defected, or impractical or not moderate.You must have realized that only Islam has a very practical and straightforward purpose of life. Only Islam provides the complete code of life and only Islam is the universal religion belonging to all humanity. The question now is how can Islam help man to understand himself, unclog his mind, and clear his blurred vision? To try an answer to this question, it will be necessary to keep in mind the basic concepts of Islam which have been discussed and to elaborate further some elements of its value system. This analysis will hopefully show how they may relate to modern man in his contemporary predicament, and how they may help him to find his way through. The principle of "moderation" is most characteristic of Islam. It is probably best expressed in the way Islam views human nature,
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the meaning of life, and the idea of God. Islam does not subscribe to the one-sided "humanistic" philosophy, which almost defies man and recognizes nothing beyond. Neither does Islam endorse the equally one-sided verdict that human nature is inherently vicious, wicked, or sinful, Islam rejects the idea that life is nasty, brutal, short and miserable. But it equally rejects the idea that life is an end in itself, pleasurable, and carefree. Islam does give life a positive meaning, a purpose. It would devalue life on earth only relative to the Hereafter. It is not concerned exclusively with the here and now, the instant hedonism, and the immediate pleasures. Nor does it completely bypass the here and now in pursuit of a future paradise in the hereafter. It addresses itself to both the human condition here on earth and the human destiny in the Hereafter. Such concern is, of course, proportionate; it values each phase of existence according to its relative effect on the general well-being of man."4 And we just realize our purpose in life, our status gets exalted till Allah mentions us as the best evolved people: "You are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah."5
AFTERWORD
After reading the whole book, the true purpose of life would be hopefully clear to you now and you must certainly have drawn some conclusion in your mind about your true purpose of life. And when you discover it, it will drastically change your outlook and views about yourself and the external world and will stabilize your mind and make you more creative. It should be noted that the barbaric Arabs who used to bury their daughters alive and did so much evils, after accepting Islam became the leaders of the world. Europe got developed just after renaissance. But the Arabs were far superior to them in science and technology while Europe was still in dark ages. Europeans had believed in many false concepts but the Arabs didn't. It was only because when they accepted Islam and started to live their lives according to it, it stabilized their minds and brought brotherhood and many other features along with giving a direction to their life and Islam made their lives purposeful and then only they employed themselves to other field after getting a definite aim in life. The history repeats itself. The world is in distress and the current order has no ultimate solution to offer. Science has failed to yield. Only Islam is the solution to all problems confronting the humanity. The west has begun to realize this fact. That's why Islam is the fastest growing religion there as it provides them with solutions to their problems. Many big personalities of the west likeYusuf Islam, Micheal Jackson, Dawud Wharnsby Ali, Sheik Yusuf Estes, etc. have accepted Islam after knowing the truth about it. Only if everyone among us will realize the real purpose of life, then this
Footnotes
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 87. Holy Qur'an Chapter 6 verse 153. Authenticated by Ahmad Shaakir in al-Musnad vol.6 #4142. Islam in Focus, Hammudah Abdalati p. 87-88. Holy Qur'an Chapter 3 verse 110.
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world will truly become a better place to live in. But to achieve this we have to take the initiative and transform ourselves and arm ourselves with the true purpose of life. And unless we change ourselves nothing is going to change. The Qur'an mentions: "Verily never will Allah change the condition of a people until they change it themselves."1 And Benjamin Disraeli has rightly said: "Men are not a creation of circumstances but circumstances are a creation of men. Islam provides you answers to all your perplexing questions about life and the universe. So what are you waiting for? Don't WAIT, just ACT! "I only desire reform to the best of my power; and my success (in the task) can only come from God. In Him I trust, and unto Him I look."2 And lastly, I hope that the book must have served you the purpose for which it has been written.
FOR FURTHER READING:

God Arises by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan The Existence of God by Harun Yahya The True Religion of God by Dr. Bilal Philips Islam in Focus by Hammudah Abdalati A brief illustrated guide to understand Islam by I.A. Ibrahim The Purpose of Creation by Dr. Bilal Philips Life, Death and the After Life by Dr. Ahmad Sakr Towards Understanding Islam by Maulana Maududi Did God become Man by Dr. Bilal Philips Islam: Basic Principles and Characteristics by Khurshid Ahmed Websites: www.turntoislam.com www.islam-guide.com www.purposeofcreation.com www.shareislam.com www.thetruecall.com
Footnotes:
[1] [2] Holy Qur'an Chapter 13 verse 11. Holy Qur'an Chapter 11 verse 88.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Khan, Kaleem - Ullah, Islam: The Source of Universal Peace, Goodword Books, (New Delhi - 2004). Ahmad, Khurshid, Islam: Basic Principles and Characteristics, Crescent Publishing Company, (New Delhi 1996). Philips, Dr. A.B., Did God Become Man, Darul Islam, (2004). Khan, Wahiduddin, God Arises, The Islamic Centre, (New Delhi - 1991). Yusuf Ali, Abdullah, The Holy Quran, Goodword Books, (New Delhi - 2005). Ibrahim, I.A., A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam, Darrusalam, (Houston). Abdalati, Hammudah, Islam in Focus, Adam Publishers & Distributors, (New Delhi - 2006). Khanam, Dr. Farida, Islamic Studies Class XI (textbook), Devra Books, (New Delhi - 2007). The Holy Bible, The New Revised Standard Version, Theological Publications in India. The Holy Quran - English Translation of the meanings and commentary, The Custodian of the two Holy Mosques King Fahd Complex. Murad, Khurram, Dawah among Non-Muslims in West, Online Library, www.youngmuslims.ca Muhsin Khan, Dr. M., Summarized Sahih Al Bukhari, Darrusalam, (Riyadh - 1994). Muhsin Khan, Dr. M., The Noble Quran, Darrusalam, (Riyadh - 1996).
Yahya, Harun, The Existence of God, www.harunyahya.com. Naik, Dr. Zakir, The Concept of God in Major Religions, Islamic Research Foundation, www.irf.net. Naik, Dr. Zakir, Answers to Non-Muslims' Common Questions About Islam, Islamic Research Foundation, www.irf.net. The Great Questions of Life, International Correspondence Institute, (New Delhi).
SOFTWARES:
Alim for Windows, Version 4.5, ISL Software Corporation, 1996. The Hadith Software, Version 1.0, Islamasoft Solutions.
Websites: www.purposeofcreation.com www.islam-guide.com www.irf.net www.harunyahya.com www.jannah.org www.meaningsoflife.com www.wikipedia.org

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