Chapter 2: Surat Al-Baqarah (The Cow), verses 208-212
Translation:
“Believers,
enter into Islam wholeheartedly, and do not walk in Satan’s footsteps; he is
your sworn enemy. If you backslide after the clear signs that have been shown to
you, know that God is Mighty and Wise. Are they waiting for God to come down to
them in the shadow of a cloud, with all the angels? Their fate will have been
settled then. To God shall all things return. Ask the Children of Israel how
many clear signs We have given them. He that tampers with the blessing of God
after it has been bestowed upon him should know that God is stern in
retribution. For those who reject faith, the life of this world is made to seem
attractive. They scoff at the faithful, but those that fear God shall be above
them on the Day of Resurrection. God gives without measure to whom He will.”
(2:208-212)
Commentary:
There are
two ways of adopting Islam as one’s religion. One is to do so without any
consideration for one’s own interests and reservations; to do what Islam
enjoins on one and refrain from what it forbids.
This is to enter Islam wholeheartedly. The other way is to take up Islam,
only to the extent that it does not clash with one’s everyday life; and only
so long as it serves, or at least does not harm one’s own interests. One who
adopts the latter course does not let Islam undermine the habits he is
accustomed to, the creeds he cherishes, the profits he craves, the honour he
thrives on or the leadership he seeks to preserve and consolidate. His initial
enthusiasm for Islam cools when it requires him to make radical changes in his
pattern of thought, or forgo personal preferences and desires. He backslides,
adhering to Islam in name alone, without letting it prejudice his interests, or
interfere with his life in any way.
If
it is arguments that he seeks to make him truly believe in the message of Islam,
then arguments have been provided in full measure. If it is miracles he is
looking for, he has God’s entire universe before him. But those who cannot
bring themselves to accept clear arguments will not be won over by miracles of
this nature. What else is the doubter waiting for, but that God Himself should
appear, along with all the angels? When that happens, a sudden surge of belief
will not benefit any one, for that will be a time when fates are sealed, not
forged. The whole point of man’s being tested in this world is that he should
believe in God, without having seen Him and solely by virtue of His arguments.
It is believing without seeing that will profit man, not seeing and believing.
Those
who put their own interests first and Islam second, and those who
unconditionally enter into Islam are people of very different mettle. It is
usually the former who accumulate all the worldly splendours in this life, while
the latter remain bereft of things of worldly importance. Plenitude of material
resources makes the former group feel justified in assuming an air of
superiority. They may look down upon the true believers, but this state of
affairs is transitional in the extreme. The world will end, to give way to a new
and finer system in which the high will be brought low, and the great will be
cut down to size, and those who had been considered low will occupy high places.