In the Shade of the Qur'an by Sayyid Qutb

This new wave or round takes us back to the confrontation with the unbelievers who deny the truth of the Qur’ān and refuse to believe in resurrection and life after death. This time, however, it does not describe their stubborn rejection; nor does it remind them of the destruction of earlier generations who took the same attitude before them. Instead, it holds before their eyes their destiny on the Day of Resurrection which they deny, and the recompense they will be made to suffer in their next life which they refuse to accept, both described in the most vivid of scenes.

It confronts them with all this when they are gathered together, putting to them questions full of reproach, and loaded with amazement at their attitude: “Where, now, are those partners which you have been claiming?” (Verse 22) They are overwhelmed by fear, realising their weakness, helpless and bewildered. They swear by God, acknowledging that He is the only Lord: “By God, our Lord, we have never associated partners with Him.” (Verse 23)

Once again they are confronted with their past attitude as they stand before the fire. Worried, afraid, repentant and full of sorrow, they say: “Would that we could return! Then we would not deny our Lord’s revelations, but would be among the believers.” (Verse 27) The same confrontation is repeated again as they stand before their Lord, overwhelmed by shame, sorrow and fear. He, in His majesty, will ask them: “Is this not the truth?” (Verse 30) They will humbly answer: “Yes, indeed, by our Lord!” (Verse 30) But this admission will have come too late to be of any benefit to them, for God will say to them: “Taste, then, the suffering in consequence of your having refused to believe.” (Verse 30)

The same confrontation is made time and again, until eventually they realise that they have lost everything. They carry their burdens on their backs, crying in grief for having refused to believe in the hereafter and for having squandered their chances.

Scene after scene the terrible outcome is shown in a way that shakes hearts. It opens both eyes and minds to the truth presented to them by God’s Messenger in the Book which they deny. However, those who have received revelations in the past recognise its truth, just like they know their own children.

“Those to whom We had given revelations know this as they know their own sons. But those who have squandered their own souls will never have faith.” (Verse 20) The Qur’ān mentions on several occasions that the people who received earlier revelations, i.e.

the Jews and the Christians, recognize the Qur’ān and the truthfulness of the Prophet Muĥammad’s message as well as the fact that the Qur’ān was revealed to him by God. At times, the people of these earlier revelations are confronted by this fact because of their hostile attitude towards the Prophet and Islam. At other times, the Arab idolaters are told this so that they realize that the people of earlier revelations, are fully aware of the nature of revelation, recognize the Qur’ān and that the Prophet Muĥammad (peace be upon him) tells only the truth when he states that God revealed it to him in the same way as He bestowed messages from on high to earlier prophets.

Since this verse was most probably revealed in Makkah, its reference to the people of earlier revelations suggests that it was addressed to the idolaters, emphasizing that the people of earlier revelations recognize the Qur’ān as they recognize their own sons. It is true that the majority of them do not believe in it but this is only because they have squandered their own souls. In this, they are the same as the pagan Arabs who rejected this faith and, thereby, also squandered their souls. Both the preceding and following verses also speak of the idolaters, a fact which lends weight to the view that it is a Makkan revelation.

Commentators on the Qur’ān generally suggest that this verse means that the people of earlier revelations know that the Qur’ān is truly revealed by God, and that the Prophet was truly a messenger of God to whom the Qur’ān was bestowed from on high. This is undoubtedly part of the meaning of this verse. However, a glance at the history and attitude of the people of earlier revelations towards the Islamic faith indicates another aspect to the meaning of this verse which God wants the Muslim community to fully understand.

Since the people of earlier revelations recognize the validity of the Qur’ān as a message revealed by God, they are fully aware of its powerful effect, undoubted authority, the goodness it produces, the impetus it gives to its followers, and the moral values and the system it establishes. They take all this into account and realise that they cannot co-exist with the advocates of this faith. They know the truth of this message and their own falsehood. It is clear to them that the jāhiliyyah into which they have sunk and their deviant morals and systems cannot be tolerated by Islam.

Hence, the battle between their jāhiliyyah and Islam is inevitable and it will continue to rage until God’s authority prevails on earth and all people spened was another miracle. God promised to support him with nine miraculous signs of the type of which he had just seen two. At this point Moses is also told of his assignment, for which he has been given such preparation. “[This is one of] the nine signs for Pharaoh and his people. They are wicked people.” (Verse 12)

Here, the





















































































































































































ng full knowledge of it. This religion of Islam moves to destroy falsehood and jāhiliyyah and repel those who usurp God’s authority. Its aim is to make mankind submit to God alone. They, however, try to reduce it to a mere academic exercise, lifeless research and futile discourse in divinity and theology. They try to find ways and means to mould Islamic concepts in forms and colours that are alien to the nature of Islam, raising in front of its people the delusion that their faith is respected. They also work tirelessly to fill the vacuum that remains when faith is drastically weakened with other concepts and concerns. All this, so as to remove the sentimental traces of faith from the hearts of Muslims.

The people of earlier revelations study this religion of Islam in depth, but they do not undertake such a study in search of the truth, or to be fair to its followers, as some naive Muslims think when they come across a good word about Islam by an Orientalist. They are out to discover a vulnerable point in this religion through which they hope to put an end to it. They want to block its ability to enter into people’s hearts and minds. They want to know how best to resist it and how to utilize its methods in order to substitute for it some hollow concepts. It is to achieve these goals that they study it in full, to the extent that they recognize it as they do their own children. It is our duty to know this and to realise that we should be the ones who know our own faith as we know our own children.

The history of fourteen centuries of Islam gives credence to the fact stated in this verse of the Qur’ān: “Those to whom We had given revelations know this as they know their own sons.” (Verse 20) This fact, however, appears most true in this period of history, when we see that an average of one book a week is written about Islam in a foreign language. All this research testifies to the thorough knowledge of the people of earlier revelations of our religion, its nature, history, strengths and the methods to resist and distort it. Needless to say, most of these authors do not state their intentions openly because they realise that an open attack on Islam has always provoked resistance. They are aware that the movements that rose up to repel armed aggression against Islam, represented in imperialism, had a religious basis. Even an intellectual attack on Islam is bound to make people rally to its defence. Hence, most of them resort to more wicked methods, praising this religion in order to win the confidence of their readers before presenting their poisonous ideas. This religion, they tell us, is great; but it has to develop its concepts and systems in order to match those of modern civilization. It must not object to recent developments in social practices, methods of government and moral standards. It should demonstrate itself in the form of personal faith leaving the theories, practices and experiences of modern civilization to regulate our practical lives. In this way, it would give its blessings to whatever false lords decree. As such, it would remain great.

Such authors try further to give an impression of fairness and objectivity by extolling the strengths of Islam. They, however, are simply drawing the attention of their own people to Islam’s strengths so that they know where to direct their attacks in future and how to suppress Islam altogether.

The secrets of the Qur’ān will continue to reveal themselves to its followers, as long as they try to understand it and contemplate its leanings. They, however, should go into the battle of faith armed with the lessons of history, aware of the full significance of the present and equipped with the light God has provided in order to show us the truth and enlighten our way.

Who is more wicked than one who invents a falsehood about God or denies His revelations? The wrongdoers shall never achieve success. One day We shall gather them all together, then We shall say to those who associate partners with God:

“Where, now, are those partners which you have been claiming?” They will have no contention then other than to say, `By God, our Lord, we have never associated partners with Him. “Behold how they have lied to themselves and how they have been forsaken by whatever they have fabricated. (Verses 21-4)

These verses place in front of the idolaters’ eyes the truth of their attitudes and practices, as they are viewed by God Almighty. It begins with a rhetorical question to establish the fact of their wrongdoing as they fabricate lies against God. They profess to follow His faith, as preached by the Prophet Abraham. They further allege that what they make lawful or forbidden of meat, food and worship rituals, which will be detailed in Verses 136-40, have been ordered by God, when they have not. Similarly, some of those who describe themselves as Muslims today falsely claim to follow the Divine faith preached by the Prophet Muĥammad (peace be upon him). The fact is that they enact rules and laws, bring about situations and establish values by which they claim for themselves God’s authority. They allege that all these inventions are nothing other than the divine faith. Some people who have bartered away their faith for a dwelling in hell also endorse their false claims. They also reject the divine revelations which the Prophet brought them, deny their truth, claiming that they have not been bestowed from on high. Conversely, they claim that their own practices, immersed in jāhiliyyah, have been sanctioned by God. All this still happens today in many societies.

God denounces all this and describes it as the worst injustice: “Who is more wicked than one who invents a falsehood about God or denies His revelations? The wrongdoers shall never achieve success.” (Verse 21) Reference is made here to idolatry as injustice in order to enhance its most horrible image. Indeed, it is the most frequent description of idolatry in the Qur’ān. Moreover, it is accurate since idolatry is an act of injustice perpetrated against the truth, against oneself and against mankind in general. It is an offence against God’s own right to be worshipped alone, without partners, and against oneself as it leads the perpetrator to ruin. It is also an offence against mankind who are thus led away from the path of submission to God alone in order to establish regimes and conditions that ruin human life altogether. As such, idolatry is a great injustice, as it is described by the Lord of all the worlds. Neither idolatry nor the idolaters will, however, achieve any success: “The wrongdoers shall never achieve success.” (Verse 21) Here God states the full facts and the end result of idolatry and the idolaters, or injustice and the wrongdoers. What short-sighted people may see of the affluence that some enjoy in the short run cannot be described as success or prosperity because it is no more than a short-lived situation which leads to eventual ruin. Who can be more truthful than God?

As an example of their loss, their situation on the Day of Resurrection is described very vividly: “One day We shall gather them all together, then We shall say to those who associate partners with God: ‘Where, now, are those partners which you have been claiming.?

They will have no contention then other than to say, ‘By God, our Lord, we have never associated partners with Him.’ Behold how they have lied to themselves and how they have been forsaken by whatever they have fabricated.” (Verses 22-4)

There are numerous forms and types of idolatry and idolaters and the partners they associate with God. A naïve image of people worshipping statues, stones, trees, etc. is by no means the only form j of idolatry. In essence, associating partners with God is to acknowledge any one of the qualities attributable to God alone as belonging to others as well, whether such quality relates to His conduct or control of events, destinies, or to the offering of worship rituals, or to the enactment and implementation of man-made laws. All these are forms of idolatry practised by different groups of unbelievers who associate different forms of partners with God.

The Qur’ān describes all these forms as polytheism or idolatry. It portrays scenes from the Day of Judgement which depict many of these and show that the destiny and punishment of different types of idolatry are the same in this life and in the life to come.

The pagan Arabs used to practise all types of idolatry. They believed that some types of God’s creation have a say in the conduct of events and the determination of destinies, through intercession which is binding on God. These were the angels.

Others, like the jinn, they claimed, had the ability to harm them, whether they acted on their own initiative or were manipulated by sorcerers and fortune-tellers. They also assigned abilities to the spirits of their forefathers. Idols were symbols of all these creatures. They attributed to fortune-tellers the ability to talk to these idols which would then issue their decrees of prohibition or permissibility. The truth, then, was that the fortune-tellers themselves were the partners they associated with God.

Idolatry was practised in the form of addressing worshipful rituals to those idols and presenting offerings to them, which actually went to the monks and fortune- tellers themselves. Some borrowed from the Persians the belief that planets have a say in the running of events and, therefore, they addressed their rituals to them. They also practised a third type of idolatry by enacting for themselves, through their monks and notables, laws of which God does not approve. They used to claim that these represented God’s law in the same way as some people do today.

In this scene of gathering and confrontation, all types of idolaters are questioned about the partners they associate with God. These other deities are nowhere to be seen, nor can they avail their worshippers of anything: “One day We shall gather them all together, then We shall say to those who associate partners with God: ‘Where, now, are those partners which you have been claiming.’“ (Verse 22) We almost behold the scene with our own eyes: the gathering of all creatures and the question to which no answer is given.

The awesome scene has its effect: human nature is rid of all that has blinded it and it realises that no partners with God have ever existed. They have to face up to their test and to make the truth appear before all. In that awesome situation, they will have no contention other than to say: “By God, our Lord, we have never associated partners with Him.” (Verse 23) As they realise the truth, they abandon their past in total and acknowledge the Lordship of God alone. They disown their idolatry when it is too late. Their acknowledgement of the truth cannot save them because it is time for reward or punishment, not for action. They cannot go back to life, rather they are faced with what they used to do during their life on earth. The Prophet is invited to wonder at their situation as God states that they have lied to themselves when they associated partners with God, for He has no partners. On the Day of Judgement, their falsehood fails them and they have no option but to acknowledge the truth: “Behold how they have lied to themselves and how they have been forsaken by whatever they have fabricated.” (Verse 24)

This is the interpretation I find most logical concerning their oaths on the Day of Judgement, made in the presence of God, that they did not associate partners with Him. On that Day they dare not utter any falsehood against God and cannot make a false oath deliberately. On that Day, they hide nothing from God. It is simply that their nature sees the truth for what it is and falsehood leaves no trace whatsoever in their senses. Hence, the invitation by God to wonder at their lies to themselves which, on the Day of Judgement, leave no mark on their minds or senses. God knows best the meaning of His words. Here, we only present a possible interpretation.

The sūrah goes on to describe how some of the unbelievers stubbornly block their minds as they listen to the Qur’ān. Having resolved to reject it altogether, they argue with the Prophet alleging that the Qur’ān is nothing but fables told by the ancients.

They turn away from it and they forbid others to listen to it. Having depicted the attitude they adopt in this life, the Qur’ān describes their miserable state as they are made to stand before the fire of hell, facing the horror of their destiny, powerless, and without support. The only thing they can do is wish to go back to life in order to change those views and practices which led them to this horrible end. Their wishes, however, are rejected as petty and childish.

“Some of them listen to you. But over their hearts We have laid veils which prevent them from understanding what you say, and into their ears, deafness. Were they to see every sign, they would still not believe in it. When they come to you to contend with you, the unbelievers say: “This is nothing but fables of the ancients.” They forbid [others] to listen to it and go far away from it. They ruin none but themselves, though they do not perceive it. If you could but see them when they will be made to stand before the Fire! They will say: “Would that we could return! Then we would not deny our Lord’s revelations, but would be among the believers”. Indeed, that which in the past they used to conceal will manifest itself to them; and if they were to return to life they would go back to that which they have been forbidden. They are indeed liars.

(Verses 25-8)

Here, we have two contrasting scenes: the one in this life is characterized by stubborn rejection, while the other, in the hereafter, is a situation of profound regret.

They are portrayed in such a way so as to help awaken human nature that has been left to rust for a long time. If only human nature would open up to the Qur’ān and reflect on its message, it would gain the chance to be spared a fearful destiny.

“Some of them listen to you. But over their hearts We have laid veils which prevent them from understanding what you say, and into their ears, deafness. Were they to see every sign, they would still not believe in it.” (Verse 25) This is a description of a particular type of people who listen but do not understand as if they do not have minds to help them comprehend, or ears to help them hear. This type of person may exist any time, anywhere. Their listening to what is being said has no effect whatsoever. Their ears do not function and their comprehension is sealed, so that the meaning of what they hear does not register with them.

“Were they to see every sign, they would still not believe in it. When they come to you to contend with you, the unbelievers say: This is nothing but fables of the ancients.” (Verse 25)

Their eyes are open, but they do not seem to see, or what they see delivers no message to their minds.

What has happened to them, then? What prevents them from responding when they have ears, eyes, and minds? God tells us: “Over their hearts We have laid veils which prevent them from understanding what you say, and into their ears, deafness. Were they to see every sign, they would still not believe in it.” (Verse 25) It is God who has willed that their faculty of comprehension remains unable to grasp the truth and that their hearing does not function. We should try, then, to understand the wisdom behind God’s will.

God, limitless is He in His glory, says: “Those who strive hard for Our cause, We shall most certainly guide onto paths that lead to Us.” (29: 69) He also says: “By the Soul and its moulding, and inspiration with wickedness and piety. Successful is the one who keeps it pure and ruined is the one who corrupts it.” (91: 7-10) It is God’s will that He guides those who strive to follow His guidance, and that anyone who purges his soul from corruption will be successful. Those people have neither sought guidance nor tried to make use of their natural responses. These are the two things people need to do to ensure that God will guide them and help them give the proper responses. They started by knocking their nature out of action and, in consequence, God has placed a veil between them and His guidance. It is God’s will, then, that people should bear the consequences of their initial attitude and action. Everything occurs according to God’s will. It is His will to guide those who seek guidance and to grant success to those who work to purify themselves. It is also His will to place veils over the hearts and minds of those who turn away from His message and to make them deaf and unresponsive to the signs they see. Those who try to put the blame for their sins and their disbelief on God’s will surely make a fraudulent claim. God confronts them with the truth as He reports and derides their claims: “Those who associate partners with God say, ‘Had God so wished, neither we nor our forefathers would have worshipped any other than Him, nor would we have declared anything forbidden without a commandment from Him.’ Those before them said the same. Do the Messengers have to do anything other than to clearly deliver the Message? Indeed, We have raised a Messenger in every community, [who said to them]: ‘Worship God and shun the Evil One.’ Among them were some whom God graced with His guidance, while others were inevitably doomed by their error. Go, then, about the earth and observe what was the end of those who gave the lie to the truth.” (16: 35-6) It is clear from these verses that God rejects their claims: it was inevitable that they should fall prey to grievous error after they had been given sufficient warnings to mend their ways.

People have often raised questions about predestination, compulsion and free choice, man’s will, etc. They have made of these topics an academic debate which they tackle on the basis of their own assumptions. Their approach is contrary to the simple and straightforward Qur’ānic exposition of these questions. The Qur’ān states that everything takes place by God’s will, and that man chooses the line he follows and that his choice is part of his nature, endowed to him by God. The direction he chooses to follow will entail certain consequences in this life and in the life to come.

These consequences are part of God’s will. Hence, the ultimate power behind everything is God’s will which dictates the consequences of the freedom of choice God has given to man. Anything that goes beyond this simple statement is false.

All indicators to the truth and pointers to the right way and to faith were displayed in front of the idolaters. The Qur’ān repeatedly drew their attention to countless signs and indications which they recognise within themselves and in the world around them. Had they only thought objectively about these, they would have awakened to the truth and responded to it. But they have made no effort to receive guidance. On the contrary, they suppressed their own nature, and in consequence, God placed a veil between them and proper guidance. They did not go to the Prophet with open hearts, ears and eyes in order to listen, see and reflect. They went to argue and dispute: “When they come to you to contend with you, the unbelievers say:

‘This is nothing but fables of the ancients.’“ (Verse 25)

They were well aware that the Qur’ān bears no resemblance to such fables or legends which speak of supernatural events that happen to heroes and deities and which constitute a part of the beliefs of idolatrous communities. In their attempts to justify their rejection of the message of Prophet Muĥammad (peace be upon him), they give all types of false arguments. Since the Qur’ān recited to them by the Prophet contains stories about former prophets and their nations, as well as the fate of those who, in the past, denied God’s messages, the unbelievers claimed that the Qur’ān was no more than the fables of the ancients. What a futile claim based on the least convincing of arguments.

In order to give more credence to their false description of the Qur’ān and to turn people away from it, a man like Mālik ibn al-Nađr, who had learnt some Persian epics about Rustom and other Persian legendary heroes, used to sit at a short distance from the Prophet when he recited the Qur’ān. After the Prophet Muĥammad (peace be upon him) had finished, Mālik ibn al-Nađr used to say to his audience: “If Muĥammad could tell you some fables of the ancients, I can tell you better ones.” He would then relate to them some of the epics and histories he had learnt, hoping that in this way, he could prevent them from listening to the Qur’ān.

Indeed, the chiefs of Makkah who commanded a position of authority and respect used to forbid others to listen to the Qur’ān, and they tried to stay away from its reading so that they did not submit to its powerful logic and irrefutable argument. In other words, they feared to be influenced by it: “They forbid [others] to listen to it and go far away from it. They ruin none but themselves, though they do not perceive it.” (Verse 26)

In this battle between the powerful authority of truth and the feeble structure of falsehood, it was not enough that a man like Mālik ibn al-Nađr sat down to relate the epics and histories of the ancients. Instead, the Quraysh chiefs forbade their followers from listening to the Qur’ān and they also distracted themselves lest they too be unable to resist its influence. A story mentioned in the history of the Prophet about al-Akhnas ibn Sharīq, Abū Sufyān ibn Ĥarb and `Amr ibn Hishām, and their secret listening to the Qur’ān is well known. 4

All this effort which they exerted to refrain and prevent others from listening to the Qur’ān and allowing themselves to be influenced by it or respond to it was a recipe for disaster: “They ruin none but themselves, though they do not perceive it.” (Verse 26) Whom would a person ruin if all his efforts were geared towards preventing himself and others from listening to proper guidance and following the right way that ensures salvation?

Poor and wretched indeed are those who take such a goal for themselves, even though they may appear to other people as very powerful and having much influence. Wretched indeed they are because their efforts ensure their own ruin both in this life and in the life to come. At times, it may appear to them and to others that they are on a winning course, but this is all delusion.

If we want to know the ultimate end of their efforts, we need only look at the result: “If you could but see them when they will be made to stand before the Fire! They will say: ‘Would that we could return! Then we would not deny our Lord’s revelations, but would be among the believers.’“ (Verse 27)

This is the scene which contrasts with their situation in this life. Now they are in a state of regret, humility and total loss. This is compared with their attitude when they turned away from guidance, using their power to force others to also turn away, and boasting about their own strength and influence.

“If you could but see them when they will be made to stand before the Fire!” (Verse 27)

Now they cannot turn away, use their argumentation, or repeat their falsehoods. If we were to see them ourselves in such a position, we would be sure to see something fearful. Their dearest wish would be: “Would that we could return! Then we would not deny our Lord’s revelations, but would be among the believers.” (Verse 27) They know that the Qur’ān is God’s revelation, and their desire to return to earth is such that they may have a second chance when they no longer deny these revelations. They claim that they would make sure that they would be among the believers.

All these are wishes that have no way of coming true. They do not know their own nature, which will always reject the faith. When they say that if they could return they would be believers is nothing but a lie, because it does not match with what they would do if their wishes were answered. They only make these assertions because they have come to realize how wicked and evil they are. What they used to conceal from their followers in order to portray an image of themselves as successful and prosperous is now laid bare: “Indeed, that which in the past they used to conceal will manifest itself to them; and if they were to return to life they would go back to that which they have been forbidden. They are indeed liars.” (Verse 28)

God knows their nature very well and He is fully aware that they will stubbornly continue in their falsehood. He is also fully aware that it is only the fearsome situation in which they find themselves as they stand by the fire that causes them to utter such wishes and to make these promises. But the real situation is this: “If they were to return to life, they would go back to that which they have been forbidden. They are indeed liars.” (Verse 28) They are, thus, left to their miserable destiny. This answer confronts them with the truth as they endure their humiliation.

The sūrah now opens two new pages to draw two contrasting scenes. The first looks at this present life where the unbelievers make their assertions that there will be no resurrection, accountability or reward. The other is in the hereafter when they are stood before their Lord, and He asks them about the positions they adopted in their first life: “Is this not the truth?” (Verse 30) The very question jolts them violently.

They answer in complete humility: “Yes, indeed, by our Lord!” (Verse 30) They are then put face to face with what awaits them of painful suffering. The sūrah goes on to portray how overwhelmed they are in the Last Hour, caught unawares, after they disbelieved in the meeting with their Lord. They are full of sorrow, carrying their burdens on their backs. This is concluded with a statement showing the real value of this life as opposed to the life to come, according to God’s true measure.

They say: “There is nothing beyond our life in this world, and we shall never be raised to life again.” If you could but see them when they are made to stand before their Lord! He will say: “Is this not the truth?” They will say: “Yes, indeed, by our Lord!” He will then say, “Taste, then, the suffering in consequence of your having refused to believe.” Lost indeed are they who deny that they will have to meet God. When the Last Hour comes suddenly upon them, they cry, Alas for us! We have neglected much in our lifetime!” And they will be carrying their burdens on their backs. Evil indeed is that with which they are burdened. The life of this world is nothing but a sport and a passing delight. Surely the life in the hereafter is by far the better for those who are God-fearing. Will you not, then, use your reason?” (Verses 29-32)

The concept of resurrection, reward and retribution in the life to come is central to the Islamic faith. Indeed, it ranks second only to the concept of Godhead as the foundation upon which the structure of Islam as a faith, law, system and code of conduct is built. God tells the believers in the Qur’ān that He has perfected their religion for them and completed with it the grace He has bestowed on them and has chosen it for them as a faith. It is then, a complete and coherent way of life in which the ideological concept is in perfect harmony with the moral values it upholds, as well as the laws and regulations it proclaims. All these are based on the same basic foundation: the Islamic concept of Godhead and the life hereafter.

According to Islam, life is not the short period of time which an individual lives, nor is it the limited period which represents the lifespan of a nation. Indeed, it is not even the longer period of time which represents the duration of human existence in this world. Life, in the Islamic view, has a much longer time span, much wider horizons and a much deeper and varied context than the period of time which is assigned to it by those who overlook the next world and do not believe in it.

According to Islam, life stretches out to include this present life of ours and the life to come, which is of a duration unknown to anyone but God. Compared to it, human life on earth is no longer than an hour in a day’s work. It also stretches out in space to include this earth on which we live and added to it a paradise which is as vast as the heavens and the earth, as well as a hell which can accommodate the majority of people across all the generations that have existed and will exist on earth.

It stretches out further to add to this world’s existence which we know another about which we know nothing except what God has told us. Its true nature is only known to God. This latter existence starts from the moment of our birth and reaches its fullness in the abode of the hereafter. When we speak of death and the hereafter, we are actually speaking of things the nature of which God has kept to Himself.

Human existence continues in these worlds in forms and patterns known only to God alone.

Life has a further extension in its essence: it includes the type familiar to us in our world and other types which will be experienced in the next world, in heaven and hell. These types will have tastes and sensations that are different from what we know now. Compared to it, this present life is less than even the span of a mosquito’s wings.

In the Islamic concept, humanity extends into these dimensions of time and place and into these deeper levels of worlds and existences. It is in proportion to its understanding of this fact that its appreciation of all existence, life, bonds, values and concerns becomes more profound. By contrast, the people who do not believe in the hereafter continue to have a very narrow and limited concept of the universe and human existence. They continue to confine their concepts, values and struggle to their very narrow corner in this world.

This difference in outlook leads to the adoption of different values and systems. It tells us clearly that this religion of Islam is a complete and coherent way of life. We can appreciate the importance of belief in a second life to its conceptual, ideological, moral, behavioural and legal structure. A man who lives in such a vast expanse of time, place, world and feelings is totally different from one who lives in a narrow corner and has to fight others for it, awaiting no compensation for that from which he is deprived and no reward for what he does in this present world, apart from his life on earth and what he receives during it from his fellow human beings.

A profound and varied concept will, by nature, elevate human concerns and refine human aspirations. This will, by itself, lead to the adoption of moral values and behaviour different from those which are characteristic of people living in their own narrow corners. When we adopt this profound concept, based on absolute justice in the life to come, and when we realize that a much larger compensation awaits us than what is here missed out on, then those who adopt this concept work hard to establish the truth and ensure that goodness prevails. They know that this is what God wants them to do and that reward and compensation are based on the fulfilment of God’s bidding. When any human being believes in the hereafter as Islam views it, his manners and behaviour are set on the right footing. Similarly, all systems and laws acquire the right orientation; and what is more is that people will not allow them to be abused or corrupted. This is because people realise that if they keep quiet when they see corruption around them, they not only miss out on the benefits and goodness of this life, but they are deprived of reward in the hereafter. Thus, they lose in both worlds.

Some people are quick to speak against belief in the hereafter, claiming that it causes people to adopt a negative attitude towards this life, exerting no effort to improve it. They abandon it to dictators and their corrupt regimes, because they prefer to aspire to the blessings of the hereafter. This is an unfair criticism, one which combines injustice with ignorance. They group belief in the hereafter as advocated in Church concepts that have deviated from Christianity under the same classification as its Islamic concept. In the Islamic view, this life is where you place your investment in order to reap the benefits in the hereafter. To strive to put this life on the right course, to purge it from evil and corruption, to repel all assaults on God’s authority, to smash tyrants and ensure justice and goodness to all people are the keys to the hereafter. It opens, for those who so strive, the gates to heaven and compensates them for everything they sacrifice during their struggle against evil and for the harm they may suffer.

How is it possible that the followers of such a faith could abandon this life and allow it to stagnate, deviate or become corrupt? How could they allow injustice and tyranny to establish their roots and spread? How could they allow it to remain backward, undeveloped when they aspire to receive reward from God in the hereafter? That reward is not given for a negative attitude.

There were periods of time when people adopted a negative attitude allowing corruption, evil, injustice, tyranny, ignorance and backwardness to prevail in their life while claiming at the same time that they were Muslims. They did this only because their understanding of Islam was faulty and their belief in the hereafter was shaken and weakened. Their negative attitude could not be the result of a true understanding of this faith or the belief that they have to face God on the Day of Judgement. No one who believes in this inevitable meeting with God and understands the nature of this religion can adopt a negative attitude towards life or allow himself to remain backward or to accept evil, corruption and tyranny.

While going through life, a true Muslim feels that he is bigger and more sublime than life itself. He may enjoy its comforts or ignore them, knowing that they are lawful and permissible to him in this life, placed at his disposal on the Day of Judgement when no one else can claim them. He strives to promote and improve this life and to use its potentials and abilities, happy in the knowledge that this is the duty assigned to him by God when He placed him in charge of the earth. He fights evil, corruption and injustice willingly, bearing any hardship and making every sacrifice, including his own life, knowing that he is simply adding to his credit in the hereafter. Understanding his religion well, he knows that this life is the one in which the seeds are planted, for the fruits to be reaped in the hereafter. There is simply no way to success in the life to come which does not go through this world of ours.

True, this life is very small and cheap, but it is part of God’s grace which makes it a stage towards the greatest blessings and grace He bestows on man.

Every detail in the Islamic system takes due account of the life to come, and the broadness, beauty and elevation it imparts to people’s visions and concepts. It also adds to the refinement, purity and forbearance which are inherent in the Islamic moral code. It enhances its followers’ determination to establish what is right and to prevent evil and avoid disobedience to God. It helps set human activities on the right course. For all that, Islamic life is not properly achieved without a firm belief in the hereafter. Hence, the great emphasis placed in the Qur’ān on the fact that we will be raised up for our next life.

In their ignorance, as much as because of it, the pagan Arabs could not conceive of a second life or believe in it. They could not simply imagine another world, different from this present one of ours. They could not conceive how a human being could aspire to horizons beyond the physical world. Their concepts and feelings were not much different from those of animals. It is the same situation we witness today in the modern type of jāhiliyyah, whose exponents describe as ‘scientific’.

“They say: ‘There is nothing beyond our life in this world, and we shall never be raised to life again’.” (Verse 29) God knows very well that beliefs of this type do not allow the emergence of a noble type of human life. The limited scope of beliefs makes man strongly attached to the earth and to that which is physical and tangible in it, just like animals. Our limited time span and area tend to loosen a forceful desire to seek a self-aggrandisement which enslaves man to worldly pleasures. His physical desires are set loose without restraint. He feels that unless he satisfies his profane desires, which can hardly be elevated above those of animals, he misses out on his pleasure without hope of compensation. Systems and regimes are established on earth based on a very selfish and narrow view of time and space. This leads to a life devoid of justice and compassion. War becomes the order of the day with individuals, classes and races fighting one another. It is a jungle type of life, not that much different from the world of wild animals and brutal beasts. All this is there for us to see in the world of modern `civilization’! It is evident everywhere.

God has been aware all along of these facts. Hence why He wanted to assign to a certain community the role of leading mankind to the summit where human dignity can be seen in full play in real life. God knows that this community cannot fulfil its task unless it brings its concepts and values out of its hole in that narrow corner, the earth, and places them over a vast horizon. That community must move out of the narrowness of this world to the expanse which combines this life with the life to come. Hence, the emphasis is placed by Islam on the future life; firstly because it is real — for God always tells the truth; and secondly because believing in it is essential for the completeness of man’s existence, in ideology, morality, behaviour, systems and legal code.

This accounts for the strong and deep rhythm which we notice in this part of the sūrah which runs like a very fast river. God knows well that it is within human nature to respond to such a strong and deep rhythm. It opens up its receptive elements, awaiting instructions, in order to respond to them. We must not forget, however, that everything that is mentioned about the hereafter is simply the truth.

If you could but see them when they are made to stand before their Lord! He will say:

“Is this not the truth?” They will say: “Yes, indeed, by our Lord!” He will then say, “Taste, then, the suffering in consequence of your having refused to believe.” (Verse 30)

This is the eventual destiny of those who claimed that there was nothing beyond our present life and that they would never be raised up again. It is a miserable, shameful, humiliating destiny as they are brought before their Lord, having persistently denied that they would face Him. They cannot stir. They are depicted as if they were led by the neck until they are stood in that awesome surrounding, facing the questioning: “Is this not the truth?” (Verse 30) What a humiliating question! There is only one possible reply: “Yes indeed, by our Lord!” (Verse 30) Now they are face to face with their Lord, on the occasion that they most stubbornly refused to believe in.

In a summary way, which most befits the awesome scene, the divine order is given, sealing their fate: “He will then say: Taste, then, the suffering in consequence of your having refused to believe.’“ (Verse 30) This is the most suitable destiny for those who denied themselves the comfort of a wider human concept, following instead an exceedingly narrow material concept. They have refused to raise themselves to the level that fits a noble humanity. They conducted their lives on the basis of their profane, hollow concept. By so doing, they actually earned their own punishment and this fits with the nature of those who deny the hereafter.

The scene portraying the final outcome decreed by God is now complemented with a statement of the truth of its causes: “Lost indeed are they who deny that they will have to meet God. When the Last Hour comes suddenly upon them, they cry, Alas for us! We have neglected much in our lifetime!’ And they will be carrying their burdens on their backs.

Evil indeed is that with which they are burdened.” (Verse 31)

It is indeed an utter loss because it includes the loss of this world, since they have spent their lifetime caring only for what is petty, low and profane, and the loss of the hereafter as we have already seen. Those deluded, ignorant people have not taken any precautions against what comes to them as a sudden shock: “When the Last Hour comes suddenly upon them, they cry, Alas for us! We have neglected much in our lifetime!’“ (Verse 31) They are then portrayed as overladen donkeys: “And they will be carrying their burdens on their backs.” (Verse 31) Indeed, animals are in a better situation because they carry ordinary loads, while these have loads of sin. Animals are unloaded and set free to relax, while these march with their loads to hell, followed by the rebuke: “Evil indeed is that with which they are burdened.” (Verse 31)

The passage then portrays a terrible scene which strikes fear in the listener’s heart, followed by one of complete and utter loss. These two scenes are then followed by a statement of the real weight and value of this life and the life hereafter according to God’s measure: “The life of this world is nothing but a sport and a passing delight. Surely the life in the hereafter is by far the better for those who are God-fearing. Will you not, then, use your reason?” (Verse 32) This is the final value of each of the two lives. It could not be otherwise, when we compare an hour in a day’s work on this small planet with eternity in God’s vast dominion. What value other than a pastime could be attached to an hour’s work in this life when it is compared to the seriousness of the great world beyond.

This evaluation is absolute in nature, but it does not create any tendency to neglect this life or approach it in an isolationist or negative way. There has certainly been some of this among some Sufi or mystic movements, but this tendency has no roots in the proper Islamic vision.

It is simply borrowed from some Christian clerical concepts, Persian and Greek ideologies as they found their way into Islamic society. The great practical examples history gives us of how the Islamic concept of life works in practice have never been negative or isolationist in attitude. You have only to look at the generation of the Prophet’s Companions who were able to subdue the evil tendency within themselves and overcome the prevailing systems of jāhiliyyah, represented by powerful empires.

That generation, which understood the true value of this life as it is in God’s measure, was the same generation which set out to work for the hereafter and accomplished in the process feats that left great positive effects on human life. That generation lived a life of immense activity, great power and unstoppable momentum.

The proper evaluation of the two lives according to God’s measure gave them the benefit of not being enslaved by the pleasures of this life. They mastered this life and made use of it for God’s cause, to ensure that His authority remains supreme. They gave worldly pleasures no chance to enslave them. Thus, they were able to fulfil their task of building a proper and sound structure for human life. At no time did they aim to enjoy more of the pleasures of this world but instead aimed to win in the hereafter. With this driving aim, they were able to excel over the rest of mankind in this life and to ensure that they will excel them in the hereafter.

The nature of the hereafter is something which has not been explained to us in detail. Therefore, believing in it gives us a broader vision and nobler thinking. To work for it ensures better results for the God- fearing which can easily be recognized by those who use their reason: “Surely the life in the hereafter is by far the better for those who are God- fearing. Will you not, then, use your reason?” (Verse 32)

Those who deny the hereafter, simply because it is imperceptible, are only ignorant people who claim to have sound knowledge. Human knowledge today has no longer any certainty other than the certainty of what lies beyond our world and what is imperceptible.