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In search of human potential
According to the Qur’an, the revelation communicated through the prophet Muhammad, peace be with him, God created the heavens (multiple universes) and the earth with a purpose and allocated the earth as the place for human habitation. Humanity was not the first creation of intelligent life; angels, created from pure light, and jinn, spirits created from the element of fire, preceded man. In fact, the Creator announces his plan to them prior to creating the prototype of man, Adam:
“When
your Lord said to the angels, ‘I am going to place a
representative on earth’, they said, ‘Are you going to place
someone there who will do mischief and spill blood, whilst we
(already) sing your praise and glorify you?’ He said, ‘I know
what you don’t know.’ And He taught Adam all the names and
then presented (things) to the angels and said: ‘tell me the
names of these if you are right.’ They said: ‘Glory be to you,
we have no knowledge except what You have taught us. You are
the Knowledgeable and Wise.’ He said: ‘Oh Adam, tell them
their names.’ And when he told them their names, He said: ‘Did
I not tell you that I know the secrets of the heavens and the
earth and that I know what you let on and what you hide?’
(Qur’an,
Surah 2 – Al-Baqarah – ayah 30-33).
The key
difference between the knowledge given to the angels and that
given to man is that the angels only know what they have been
taught, whereas Adam was taught all the names, in other words,
he was given the power of creative thought and speech, being
able to conquer unknown environments in his mind and give a
name to things he never encountered before.
The news
of this in many ways superior creation did not go down too
well with the angels, for man’s abilities can also be used to
do great harm to his fellow creatures and the world in which
he lives. Nonetheless, the angels, readily submitted and bowed
down to Adam, but Iblis (the devil), a jinn put in charge of
the angels, refused. His objection, however, was not one of
principle, but governed by pride, scoffing at the humble
origins of man who was created from base material, the soil of
the earth, when he, Iblis was of a purer, better substance,
fire. This original racism, judging others by their make-up
and origins rather than their potential, is the prime cause of
strife and competition between people today. The devil was
reprimanded for his attitude and stripped of his position of
honour. He bargained for time to prove that man, on whose
account he became rejected, was not worthy of the privilege.
He was given until the Day of Judgment to try and seduce
people from the path designed for them by God, and those whom
he would manage to lead astray would go down with him. Thus,
the devil becomes the enemy of man, rather than the rival of
God as in other religious traditions.
Adam was
given paradise to live in, a place free of want, and for
companionship was given a partner from his own make-up, Eve.
The complete bliss of paradise was tainted by only one small
prohibition: a tree, the fruit of which Adam and Eve must not
eat. Given the abundance of fruit available, this minor
restriction should not have mattered much, but the devil
succeeded in arousing the couple’s ambition, telling them that
God only forbade them from eating this fruit to prevent them
from becoming angel-like and eternal. The fruit had the
opposite effect, however, and made them aware of their
nakedness and vulnerability, and as punishment they are sent
as mere mortals to live on earth, toiling in hardship to
survive. It is said that above God’s throne it is written that
His mercy overcomes His anger, and in true keeping with that
Adam and Eve were forgiven and provided with guidance which,
if followed, should help them find their way back into
paradise. Life on earth then becomes the temporary examination
room where the intentions of each and every human being are
being tested, whether they follow the guidance which helps
them fulfil their true potential of living up to the spirit of
God in them as His representatives on earth, or whether they
follow the devil into obeying their base desires which betray
their humble material make-up. Through religious observance
and prayer man can thus rise from an animal-like existence to
a level of worthiness above that of the angels. Rather than
having evolved from an animal, the animal existence is the
fallen state of man when he gives up on searching for and
fulfilling his potential as a spiritual being.
.
[Next: Knowledge of God – the key to success
]
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