Man has always wanted to live a boundless life and is on the lookout of opportunities when he can do whatever he feels like doing - unobserved and unhindered. But if he is allowed to do so, there will be utter chaos and it will be difficuilt to harness the outburst of innate himan desire to be free. And whenever controlls are applied, a "sense" of discipline seems to set in. Let us quote here two examples:
- The speed cameras on highways if placed without any notification, drivers tend to overspeed. But whenever a cautionary board is placced or drivers know of presence of a speed camera, suddenly brakes are applied tolower the speed within given speed limit. It is the fear of being watched and caught that induce displine in people.
- Let us g o a step further. Let two young boy and girl be left in a room alone with a caustion htat a camera is placed to monitor their every movement and conversation, which could be used for public viewing. Rest assured even after 24 hours of "solitary confinement" none of the two would try crossing any limits of decency, both physical or verbal. Suppose there was no camera installed or they were not notified of presence of camera, one can very conveniently conclude what would transpire between the two. This means the fear of being watched makes us cautious of our acts and forbids us fro crossing prescribed limits.
With this premise in view, let us turn to our day to day life where many of us hoodwink others, tell lies, make ingresses of decency and rob others of what is rightfully due to them.
Take a turn from here to a spiritual explanation of self discpline. Allah, our Creator, has created this universe to thrive under set rules of discipline. And has made everything to obey His orders and directives. While the celestial movements are centrally controlled and all living beings other than humans are prgrammed to work under a Divine network, man has been given a leverage to do what he wants: Good or bad but with a caution of being divinely watched.
Since the Divine camera is invisible, many a man elect to break the barriers and cross limits. Although, man has been cautioned through all Divinne Sccriptures that every movement and act of theirs is being watcched and recored, many do not seem to pay a heed to such cautions for immediate hauling up in Divine Justice is deliberately being pended, yet recordded to be presented in adossier to be handed over to everyone on the Day of Judgement.
As already mentioned, the Divine recording is invisible, man doesnt pay any heed to being caught one day right here in this world or in the life of the hereafter. Atheists since do not beleive in Divine presence, for them being watched or otherwise does not matter for them the concept of right or wrong doesnt matter for they fear not any camera recording their acts. Even many many others, Divine watching does not scare. And it is for this reason we find people robbing rights of others, hurting and robbine to have an upper edge over whosoever they can instill their fear and subdue.
Many a Muslim too fall in this category, unfortunately. Many of us usurp others rights, tell lies even when under oath taken on the Qur'an, hurt and kill fellow Muslim brthern, backbite and create uhurdles lest others progress ahead of them. This is happening despite clear instructions in the Qur'an which tell us that Allah is All Seeing and Hearing - Al-`Alim (العليم) - The All-Knowing and Ash-Shahid (الشهيد) - The Witness to every deed of ours. He has also assigned two angels over every man (and woman) who are constantly recording all our activities round the clock. This is the same recording like a speed camera or a spy camera placed around us - though with a difference. While the spy and speed cameras could malfunction or stop working, the Divine Eye has never blinked even for a fraction of second since the creation of the universe and even beyond the time when this universe will be no more. For Allah has been there since time immemorial to the limitless time in futre.
So my brothers and sisters, beware of the Divine Eye for its recording will decide our ultimate future in the life of the hereafter: Whether we will be provided an abode in the Heavens or thrown into the fathomless bit of molten fire and boiling water. Time is running fast - so let us trun to Qur'ana dn Sunnah to mend our ways now, lest it is too late to make amends. Remember, Allah is oft forgiving (Al-Ghafur (الغفور) - The Forgiving, The Pardoner) and extremely merciful (Ar Rahim (الرحيم) - The Most Merciful ) to those who repent their sins, seek Divine forgiveness and live a life on a path shown to us by many messengers and prophets sent by Allah.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.
For more Selected Subjects, please refer to our reference page: Important DOs and DON'Ts from Qur'an (Understanding Qur'an) fro more Divine cautions.
You may also refer to our Reference Pages and Understanding Al Qur'an for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.
An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs and selected verses of the Qur'ān from authentic sources. In addition, references of other sources which have been explored have also been given above. Those desirous of detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to these sites. For expansion of meaning and themes / contextual background help from ChatGPT is also taken.
Disclaimer: The material for this post has been collected from the references given above. If anyone differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors. If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.
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