Chapter 2: Surat Al-Baqarah (The Cow), verse 177
Translation:
Righteousness does not consist in whether you face towards the East or the West. The righteous man is he who believes in God and the Last Day, in the angels and the Book and the prophets; who, though he loves it dearly, gives away his wealth to kinsfolk, to orphans, to the destitute, to the traveler in need and to beggars, and for the redemption of captives; who attends to his prayers and renders the alms levy; who is true to his promises and steadfast in trial and adversity and in times of war. Such are the true believers; such are the God-fearing. (177)
Commentary:
West was the
direction of prayer of the Jews and east was the direction of prayer for
Christians. Both regarded their directions as sacred. Both were convinced that
since they held the sacred direction of God to be their qibla, their
position was secure in the eyes of their Lord. However, God-worship does not
mean that man should take shelter behind some “sacred pillar.” God-worship
means man taking shelter in God’s favour.
There is no doubt
that there are certain accepted forms of religious conduct but in essence a
religious act is aimed at discovering God as the light of the earth and the
heavens, One who is closer to man than his jugular vein. What brings man closer
to God is not the mere adherence to outward religious forms but such actions as
he performs, in total sincerity, for the sake of God alone. Man must discover
God in a way that He becomes a part and parcel of his being. All his actions
must aim at earning God’s pleasure. His attachment to God should be so great
that, even in the most trying circumstances, he must not waver from the straight
path. In short, the Almighty’s pleasure can be earned only by displaying true
faithfulness and not just by turning our faces in one or the other direction.
Believing in God
is to trust in God in the full sense of the word. Believing in the Hereafter
means giving the utmost importance to the life of the Hereafter instead of to
the life of this world. Believing in the angels means believing in God’s
emissaries who are running this world at the divine command. Believing in the
Book means believing that God has sent His guidance for man, which man must
follow. Believing in the prophets is to accept these mortals as God’s chosen
messengers.
The faith in all
these matters must so deeply pervade the believers’ psyche that he helps the
needy and others in distress by spending his wealth, says his prayers by
surrendering himself totally to God, and pays the poor due—his only motivation
being to earn God’s pleasure. One of the characteristics of a true believer is
that when he enters into a contract he fulfills it, thinking that he has entered
into a covenant with God. His trust in God is so great, even in the most dire of
circumstances, that he always adheres to the godly path. These are the
characteristics of a true believer. One who possesses these qualities will earn
God’s blessing in this world as well as in the Hereafter.