'Where are we going?' A moot question, that. But
before we take up this, there are two others that
need to be addressed. Two very elementary
posers: 'Who are we? And where do we come
from?' Of course, these have been raised over
and over again from time immemorable; and
indeed, routinely answered by most. But never
with the depth and serious deliberation these
questions deserve. Man seems to be too busy to
be bothered by such existential issues.
Man gets born; and he dies. Between these two
events, he lives. He has to live for the only
reason that he has been born. And because we
have to be living we have to work and earn. But
is this all?
While we thus come and go, this world sports
billions of stars that go on burning and shining.
They keep moving on cosmic orbits. There are in
fact innumerable galaxies, each containing
billions of stars. Indeed, in our own Milky way
(the galaxy we belong to) there are presumably
a hundred billion (10,000crores) stars. If this
sheer number is mindboggling, look at some
more data: This 100 billion-strong galaxy has a
diameter of 1,00,000 light years. That is to say,
light (moving at the rate of nearly 300,000
kilometres per second) will take 100,000 years to
reach from one end of this galaxy to the
opposite end. And there are millions of such
galaxies in the known universe. They keep
moving, rotating and revolving, swimming through
space, without colliding with one another.
As you know, the sun (our star) is 109 times as
big as the earth. But the sun itself is one of the
tiny stars of the Milkyway. It has a temperature
of 15 million degrees celsius. Out of this, the
earth gets a mere 50 C. Besides,there are
occasional solar flares that boost up its
temperature many times over. Each solar flare is
said to be as powerful as one billion (100 crores)
hydrogen bombs. But compared to most other
stars of the Milkyway, even this gigantic sun is a
pygmy. Indeed, there are giant stars that have
the size of a hundred suns each.
From such unimaginably enormous sizes to the
unimaginably minute world of the microcosm -
the atoms, sub-atoms and what not - are facts
that are stranger than the strangest fantasy. All
governed by incredibly accurate systems, so
systematic are they that they cannot but have
behind them a conscious creator and sustainer:
God. He created them and ordered them with
physical laws that are unchangeable. The earth
we live on, is a planet that circles the sun. It
rotates on its own (imaginary) axis and revolves
round the sun at a speed that is 1200 times that
of the fastest train. God made it that way.
Around us on the earth we see numberless
varieties of plants, trees, creatures, fishes and
birds - All God's creations. Man also was created
by God, and woman too. He provided for all
creatures, including human beings, air, water,
food and all other necessities in nature. No one
except God had any role in creation. No person
can say that he was created by himself or by his
parents or by others. Nor that the air, water or
food for him was provided by anyone other than
God. No one can ever hope to say so in future
either. We did not come upon this earth
according to our plan or strategy. God, on his
volition, decided so - without our knowledge or
consent.
It is, again, God who decides when we should
die. Till then we are bound to live. We cannot
put an end to our life before the duration is over.
Nor can we put off our death beyond its span. In
deciding all these, God never consulted us. He
never asked us when, or where, we should be
born, how long we should live, nor what should
our colour or gender, be. Neither did he seek our
parents' opinion on these, nor that of others. And
having caused us to be born, He never informs
us how long we would live, or when and where
we would die. Further, he has accepted it as His
policy not to consult any of us. He brings us to
this world entirely at his own will, No one else -
not even ourselves - have any say in the matter
of our birth, life or death. We are so totally
helpless.
Now, consider this brief interval between birth
and death. Our lifetime on earth, our many
acquaintances of various ages, quite a number of
them have already passed away including
persons younger to us. How could we ourselves
live so long? How come we were not among
those friends, relatives or neighbours who are
already dead? Could we really claim that our
survival so far is the result of any deleberate
plan carriedout by any others? Could we have
planned the survival of those who are already
dead? Why is it that we are not dead yet like our
friends who succumbed to heart - attacks or road
accidents or calamities or diseases? Can we
really say that we have developed protection
against heart - failure, accidents or deseases?
Can we Sincerely claim to know just how or why
we kept living so far? Or whether we would live
out this day? Or when exactly we will die? Are
we in the least secured against death that might
happen any moment?
We came to the earth out of our mother's womb
in a totally ignorant state. It took us years to
develop our understanding. During these years of
helplessness, our only support had been our
parent's loving care. This love and affection are
something that God programmed inside the
parent's minds.
Our birth, our death, our life - these are not in
the least within our control. They are totally
subject to God's will. God alone has authority
over us, and He alone has absolute control over
our affairs. We are completely dependent on
Him. He is the absolute sovereign and master
with no partner or equal. We are His subjects
and servants.
If God is our Creator, Sustainer, Protector,
controller and the absolute Sovereign, then surely
it is His absolute privilege to tell us how we
ought to lead our lives. He has indeed given us
such a guidance; and we are morally obliged to
live in accordance with that guidance. To make
rules as we please, and to live as we like will be
sheer injustice, arrogance and ingratitude.
God chooses men of upright character and noble
nature to convey His guidance to humanity.
These are the 'prophets' or messengers. God has
appointed various prophets in various ages, and
given them the guidance through angels. Over
the ages, he has been conveying such laws as
are relevant to a particular period and
community. God commands that human beings
should adhere to a new ethical code as and
when it is introduced through a new prophet.
Prophets of various times include Nuh (Noah),
Lut (Lot), Ishaq (Isaac), Ya'qub (Jacob), Musa
(Moses), Davud (David), Isa (Jesus) and
Muhammed (Upon all them be peace). The
Scriptures revealed through some of these
prophets are Zabur (Psalm), Tourat (The Torah),
Injil (Gospel) and the Qur-an. The last Scripture,
the Quran, is the consummation of all earlier
revelations. It is the revealed Guidance for all
peoples and for all times. God has commanded
that all mankind should live in conformity with
the Quran and the traditions of Prophet
Muhammed. We are all bound to obey this
command. This final Guidance comprises all the
spheres of human activity - both individual and
collective - it has in it a moral system, so too -
an economic system, and political and
administrative systems. In fact this is a test on
the basics of which man will be rewarded or
punished after this life.
What is this reward and what is this punishment?
We of the humankind is on a journey. A journey
that started tens of thousands of years ago. In
the course of the journey, many join it and many
leave. Everyone born on earth must necessarily
be a participant, and every participant must
necessarily leave it at one stage.
Now, those that do inevitably leave, where do
they go? They go to the hereafter. That is our
final destination. Death is the door through
which we reach there. In the hereafter, we shall
be produced for trial in the supreme presence of
God, the All-powerful and Just, Every human
being will testify whether or not he lived in
accordance with God's guidance and God's
commands. And His judgment will be most fair
and just. If we did live according to His guidance
we will be rewaded with blissful Heaven - a place
of ultimate happiness and peace, where we shall
get gardens beneath which streams flow,
spouses to our liking, edibles and high positions
indeed, anything that we desire. A place of no
grief, no illness, no unease; a place of happiness
and pleasure, ever lasting bliss. On the other
hand, those who lived here in defiance of God's
guidance will get their due punishment in Hell, a
scorching fire. Such men will have to stay on
there forever, suffering all the agonies and
torments.
May God guide us to the path of final success
