Life. We are living it right now, aren’t we?
This is the general belief about the time we have on earth; it is our one life that we must live to the fullest. And once we pass away, our life is over.
However the Qur’an completely redefines this idea.
وَمَا هَـٰذِهِ ٱلْحَيَوٰةُ ٱلدُّنْيَآ إِلَّا لَهْوٌ وَلَعِبٌ ۚ وَإِنَّ ٱلدَّارَ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةَ لَهِىَ ٱلْحَيَوَانُ ۚ لَوْ كَانُوا۟ يَعْلَمُونَThis worldly life is no more than play and amusement. But the Hereafter is indeed the real life, if only they knew.Surah al-Ankabut:64
Every time Allah (swt) refers to this life in the Qur’an, He calls it the ‘worldly life’ (الحياة الدنيا), rather than just ‘life’. The material life we are living now is limited, finite and temporary. So much so that it is almost an illusion.
In this ayah in Surah al-Ankabut, Allah (swt) describes this reality. The worldly life is full of distractions that we use to fill up our voids, whereas in reality they just distract us from the everlasting life. Allah (swt) says that the real life is the afterlife. This is because there is no void in the next life, and it is a life in which there is no death. Therefore, we have to plan and prepare for the next life, as that is when we will truly be living.
However, many are ignorant of this reality and treat the worldly life as the real life, and do not work for the next. Our relationship with Allah (swt) is what links between this worldly life and the next, and we can enjoy the next life only if we work for His pleasure now.
Islam does not disregard the worldly life, but teaches us that what gives this life value is what we put forward for our next life so that we can deserve eternal paradise.
Jumm’ah Mubarakah
