Human
servitude to the Lord Almighty
Islam teaches us that Allah (swt), the Creator and Sustainer of all the worlds, raised humans with a certain purpose of life, and through Revelations sent via prophets and messengers, He granted clear guidance on how best to spend our days in this world. The Creator, in His infinite kindness, imprinted all human souls with a deep yearning in quest of Him, and the human heart and mind are designed to be truly inclined to recognize the Lord; an intuitive capacity is ingrained in all persons to observe and reflect and recognize and understand the beauty and wisdom of His revelations sent through the prophets and the sages; to find peace and tranquillity by being mindful of His commandments. The Qur’an says: ‘And when your Lord took from the children of Adam, from their loins, their progeny and made them bear witness concerning themselves, “Am I not your Lord Who sustains you?” They said, “Yea, surely, we bear witness (to it and acknowledge it).” (7:173)
Humanity’s covenant with God, or the terms of
relations between the Divine and the human, is based on clear principles that
recognize our absolute servitude (Ubudiyat)
to His sublime Lordship (Rububiyat). Prophets
and sages brought Divine teachings for the benefit of humanity; guiding us on
Divine expectations and on right conduct in the Way of God. Allah (swt)
honoured all humans with the faculty of true discernment: we should gratefully acknowledge
our human condition and sincerely recognize His incomparable benevolence and All-encompassing
Majesty and we should never glorify, nor elevate any other false gods as His partner
and family. Indeed, Allah (swt) expects us to ceaselessly strive to become
truly human and be in the orbit of His devoted servants. By serving all
creations as His trustees in this world, we should devoutly worship Him as our true
Master. The Qur’an testifies: ‘I have created the jinn and the people only that they may worship Me.’ (51:57)
‘So pay your whole-hearted attention to (the cause of) faith as one devoted [to pure faith], turning away from all that is false. (And follow) the Faith of Allah– to suit the requirements of which He has made the nature of humankind. There is no alteration in God’s creation; that is the right and most perfect Faith – yet most people do not know (it).’ (30:31)
“And remember God’s blessing upon you, and
His covenant by which He bound you, when you said, ‘We hear and we obey.’ And
reverence God. Truly God knows what lies within breasts” (5:8).
“Fulfill My covenant, and I shall fulfill
your covenant, and be in awe of Me.” (2:41)
Prophets
and the Covenant
It is to revitalize and re-energise humanity’s primordial covenant with God that prophets and sages appear amongst peoples. That is how an elect of God becomes a ‘reminder’; a reviver of religions, or a renewer of the Faith. These servants of God committed their disciples and followers to the true path of piety and instructed them to always remain within the bounds of the covenant with God: to establish Tawheed; to guard against evil; to promote good deeds, and to aid and assist Divine reformers in the cause of God whenever they appear among the people. The Qur’an states: ‘And [remember] when We made a covenant with the prophets and We made it with you.’ (33:8)
‘And [remember] when God made the covenant
of the prophets, “By that which I have given you of a Book and Wisdom, should a
messenger then come to you confirming that which is with you, you shall believe
in him and you shall help him.” He said, “Do you agree and take on My burden on
these conditions?” They said, “We agree.” He said, “Bear witness, for I am with
you among those who bear witness.”
(3:82)
‘And if there comes to you guidance from
Me, then whoso shall follow My guidance, on them shall come no
fear, nor shall they grieve.’ (2:39)
‘O children of Adam! if Messengers come
to you from among yourselves, rehearsing My Signs unto you, then whoso shall
fear God and do good deeds, on them shall come no fear nor
shall they grieve.’ (7:36)
Covenant
of God and the People of the Book
Communities in the past were honoured with the mantle
of the special relationship with God, and yet, rather than honouring those sacred
commitments, many among them became law-breakers. “And for those who break God’s pact after accepting His
covenant, and sever what God has commanded be joined, and work corruption upon
the earth, theirs shall be the curse, and theirs shall be the evil abode.” (13: 26)
The fates of previous communities are a searing
reminder for all those who are alive today. Qur’an tells us about the mixed record
of the children of Israel:
‘God had made a covenant with the Children of Israel, and We raised among them twelve chieftains. And God said, “I am with you! Surely, if you perform the prayer, and give alms and believe in My messengers and support them, and lend unto God a goodly loan, I shall surely absolve you of your evil deeds, and shall cause you to enter Gardens with rivers running below. But whosoever among you disbelieves thereafter, surely he has strayed from the right way.'
Then for their breaking of their covenant, We cursed them and hardened their hearts. They distort the meaning of the word, and have forgotten a part of that whereof they were reminded. Thou wilt not cease to discover their treachery, from all save a few of them. So pardon them, and forbear. Truly God loves the virtuous.
And with those who say, “We are Christians,” We made a covenant. Then they forgot a part of that whereof they had been reminded. So We stirred up enmity and hatred among them, till the Day of Resurrection. God will inform them of that which they used to do.’ (5:13–15)
Muslims and the Divine Covenant
‘Hold fast to God’s rope all together; do not split into factions. Remember God’s favour to you: you were enemies and then He brought your hearts together and you became brothers by His grace; you were about to fall into a pit of Fire and He saved you from it– in this way God makes His revelations clear to you so that you may be rightly guided. Be a community that calls for what is good, urges what is right, and forbids what is wrong: those who do this are the successful ones. Do not be like those who, after they have been given clear revelation, split into factions and fall into disputes: a terrible punishment awaits such people.’ (3:104-106)
By explaining the stories of ancient prophets and
other elects of God and the contrasting fortunes of those who believed and
those who rejected them, the Qur’an blazes a trail of pure guidance for all
humanity in our times. Under the Qur’anic perspective, there is absolutely no
change in Divine practice or Sunnat Allah:
people remain bound to respect and implement our obligations to the Lord
Almighty. Removing all cobwebs of
conjectures, mythical stories and misperceptions that have corrupted all true
religions of the past, Islam insists on uncompromising monotheism as the
religion of God.
According to the Qur’an, Allah (swt) raises His elects
as bearers of glad tidings for those who believe, but also as warners against
wrongdoing. The purpose of raising a messenger is also to prevent communities
from giving false excuses for not following Divine guidance in future. As the
Qur’an notes, ‘messengers
[who are sent] as bearers of glad tidings and as warners, that people might
have no plea against God after the messengers.’ (4:166). Moreover, those who reject a messenger
becomes liable for Divine rejection and condemnation: ‘And never do We punish till We have sent
a messenger.’(17:16)
There is little doubt that the Muslim Ummah as a whole is bound by the covenant with God renewed by the Holy Prophet of Islam (sa) on our behalf. The Holy Prophet (sa) has specifically committed the community to a just and fair way of life under Shari’ah- urging them/us to embrace the Divine reformers who shall come to renew the spirit of Islam in every era. On the Day of Judgement, like everyone else, the Ummah will be brought to account about how we fared in our responsibility: may Allah (swt) protect us from being among the law-breakers in the eyes of God; may Allah (swt) have mercy on us, and enlist our names among those who accepted and assisted the Divine Elect of our times- Hazrat Imam Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius, Insha Allah, Aameen, Ya Rabb’il Aalameen.