Two Ways To Know Allah By Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah ------------------------------------------ Allah (swt) invites His servants to know Him in Two ways: The first one: by observing His creation and pondering. The second one is: by reflecting on His Qur’anic Verses. The first one is His signs in the universe, and the second one is the comprehension of His verses of the Qur’an. The first one is illustrated in the following Qur’anic verse. “Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of the night and day, and the ships which sail through the sea with that which is of use to mankind, and the water (rain) which Allah sends down from the sky and makes the earth alive therewith after its death, and the moving (living) creatures of All Kinds that He has scarttered therein, and in the veering of winds and clouds which are held between the sky and the earth, and indeed Ayah (signs) for people of understanding” (Al-Baqarah: 164) And the following Qur’anic verse, “Verily! In the creation of the Heavens and the Earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding.” (al-Imran, 190) There are many other verses having the same meaning. The second is illustrated by the Qur’anic verse, which goes as follows: “Do they not consider the Qur’an carefully?” (An-Nisa: 83) (also) “Have they not pondered over the Word (of Allah)” (Al-Mo’minun: 68) (also) “(This is) a Book (Qur’an) which We have sent down to you, full of blessings that they may ponder over its verses, and that men of understanding may remember” (Sad: 29) There are many other Qur’anic verses that have the same meaning. Creation indicates Actions, and Actions indicate (to) Attributes, for the creation indicates the existence of a Creator, and the requires His Existence, Ability, Will and Knowledge. It is impossible that a voluntary action proceeds something that is non-existant, helpless, lifeless, ignorant and having no will. Moreover, the various characteristics in the creation prove the existence of the Creator’s Will, and that His Action is repetitive. The elements of creation concerning interests, and praiseworthy purposes, indicate His Wisdom. Those parts of creation, which are beneficial, and good, indicate His Mercy. In the same way, the fact the He seizes, takes retribution and metes out punishment, indicates His Anger. The honour He bestows on His creatures, there closeness and care, indicate His Love. The fact the He banishes and abandons, indicates His Hatred and Abhorrence. Every element of nature begins in a weak and incomplete state, then develops and grows to its complete and final state and this fact points to the reality of Hereafter. The conditions of plants and animals, and the flow of water indicate the reality of the Hereafter. Man continually witness the effects of Mercy and Blessings upon creation and these indicate the fulfillment of prophecies. The creation of Allah (SWT) is perfect to the extent that if any of its elements are removed there would be some kind of inadequacy, and this indicates that the Giver of Perfection is truly deserving of Praise and Gratitude than anyone or anything else. Therefore, His creation really shows His Attributes and the Truthfulness of that which His Prophets reported about Him. The creation is then evidence that confirms the Ayah of (the) Qur’an to be true and draws our attention to the signs in creation. Allah (swt) say’s: “We will show them Our Signs in the Universe, and in their own selves, until it becomes manifest to them that this (Qur’an) is the truth” (Fussilat: 53) This simply means that the Qur’an is the truth. And He (swt) said that He will show them (the disbelievers) some of His Signs that can be seen, and will make clear to them the truthfulness of His Ayah (the Qur’an). He (swt) then said His Wisdom is sufficient for the truthfulness of the evidence and proof that He provided concerning the authenticity of His Prophet. Therefore, His Verses are true evidence, and He is a true witness for His Prophet through His verses. So He is a true Witness and the witnessed for and He is the Evidence and the Indicated to. He is the Evidence by Himself (swt) about Himself (swt), as some of the most knowledgable people of Allah (swt) said, “how can I ask for evidence of whom is an Evidence for me over all things?” If you ask for any evidence of Him, you will find that His Existence is more evident then all evidence. Realistically, everything in the universe is proven to be a created object by the fact that there must be a Creator, which is Allah (swt), yet, and by was of deductive reasoning, He Himself is recognised through the existence of such creatures as well as through His Actions and law, which organise the course of all creatures in the universe. [Extract from Fawaid]
Posted on: Sat, 13 Sep 2014 14:32:45 +0000