Source/Credit: Fiji Times
By Tahir Hussain Munshi | October 03, 2010
Being sure about it
My article in the last Sunday Times dealt with the development of man from the physical stage through to moral stage and for those fortunate enough to the spiritual stage. This appraisal deals with the degree of "certainty about the existence of God".
The article is not based on any extensive research on the proportion of the populace who believe in the existence of God the Creator of this universe. It may sound theoretical but be assured it is based on experience.
The Holy Quran illustrates three broad ways in which we acquire knowledge, thus attaining degree of certainty. It speaks of:
(i) illmul yaqeen or knowledge derived or deduced from some previous information;
(ii) aiynul yaqeen or knowledge gained through seeing with our own eyes; and
(iii) haqqul yaqeen or knowledge gained from actual experience.
Let me now put the three concepts in a more illustrative way.
Illmul yaqeen can be compared to, say if we see smoke at some distance then our inherent knowledge would tell us that there may be fire which gives off the smoke we see. At the next level of aiynul yaqeen, when we continue walking towards the smoke comes and actually see the fire with our own eyes, we develop a much stronger degree of certainty that; yes, it is the fire that is giving off the smoke. That is aiynul yaqeen. However, can we or should we always believe what we see? Don't our eyes deceive us sometimes?
Finally, if we continue walking to the scene of the fire and experience the heat waves given off from the fire, we experience haqqul yaqeen that is, absolute certainty that it is fire and not just "may be" it is fire.
In the same way, the experience of "God the Creator" is understood by different people in different ways; leading to differing levels of "Certainty of Belief in the Existence of God". At the very basic level of illmul yaqeen when man looks at the heavenly bodies in the sky, their perfect order of movement and the creation of both the living and the non-living things, he deduces that there has to be a creator, a power beyond man's powers who designs and fashions the universe and everything in it. That is the "may be" stage.
However, via the vehicle of religion, man is led to the belief that that God exists. Although man has not seen God through his physical eyes, he sees God through his religious eye. This is the aiynul yaqeen stage. He believes in the prophets and the rishee-munee who have given him that particular religion! Man is told, taught and trained to be "good" through religion. He listens to the 'learned', reads his scripture and abides by the dictates of the religion he believes in and practices them. It is in the aiynul yaqeen stage that man leans on prayers to his Creator for support and guidance to refrain from sin and his evil desires. He prays but is unsure of the acceptance of his prayers. He has not yet reached the stage of absolute certainty.
At the haqqul yaqeen stage, man begins to experience the presence of God in his life. His life gets coloured by the fragrance of the omnipotence. His prayers get heard and he finds himself in the company of people inclined towards God. His hands do things that are lawful, his feet take him to the right places, when he opens his mouth to speak, it were as if God was putting words in his mouth, his eyes see things that God wants him to see, his ears listen only to good things and his heart yearns to pleasing God. People in the haqqul yaqeen stage experience the presence of God in this very life ù as if they were living in heaven on earth. They are no longer perturbed by what others think of them so long as their motives and actions are designed to please their Creator.
Now let us evaluate our own standing in respect of our trust in God. Are our earnest cries for help heard and are responded to by our Creator? If so, do give a pat on your own shoulder. If not, then throw the searchlight on yourself, whether or not you are doing the right thing in the right way. Like a thriving farmer who prepares his land thoroughly before planting; selects quality seeds for planting; gives the tender care at the nurturing stage of the crops; applies the correct pesticide to eradicate pests and diseases; and gives the duty of care to his plantation, we have to struggle to reach that stage that our prayers get heard ù of course not my will but Thy will. In the end, all praise belongs to God, Most Gracious and Ever Merciful!
- The author is the national vice president of Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at Fiji but the views expressed are his own and not that of the organisation or this newspaper.
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