What is the spiritual path in Islam and what is its place in the life as a whole?
To answer this it is necessary to study carefully the difference between the
Islamic concept of spirituality and that of other religions and ideologies. Without
a clear understanding of this difference it often happens that, when talking
about the spirituality in Islam, many of the vague notions associated with the
word ‘spiritual’ unconsciously come to mind; it then becomes difficult for one to
comprehend that this spirituality of Islam not only transcends the dualism of
spirit and matter but is the nucleus of its integrated and unified concept of life.
Body-Soul Conflict
The idea which has influenced most the climate of philosophical and religious
thought is that body and soul are mutually antagonistic, and can develop only
at each other’s expense. For the soul, the body is a prison and the activities of
daily life are the shackles which keep it in bondage and arrest its growth.This
has inevitably led to the universe being divided into the spiritual and the secular.
Those who chose the secular path were convinced that they could not meet the
demands of spirituality, and thus they led highly material and hedonistic lives.
All spheres of worldly activity, whether social, political, economic or culture,were deprived of the light of spirituality: injustice and tyranny were the result.
Conversely, those who wanted to tread the path of spiritual excellence came to
see themselves as ‘noble outcasts’ from the world.
They regarded forests, mountains and other solitary places as ideal for spiritual
development because the hustle and bustle of life would not interfere with their
meditations. They could not conceive of spiritual development except through
with drawl from the world.
This conflict of body and soul resulted in the evolution of two different ideals for
the perfection of man. One was that man should be surrounded by all possible
material comforts and regard himself as nothing but an animal. Men learnt to fly
like birds, swim like fish, run like horses and even terrorise and destroy like
wolves- but they did not learn how to live like noble human beings.
The other was that the senses should be not only human beings.
The other was that the senses should be not only subdued and conquered but extra-sensory powers awakened and the limitations of the sensory world done away with.
With these......
new conquests men would be able to hear distant voices like powerful wireless
sets, see remote objects as one does with a telescope, and develop powers
through which the mere touch of their hand or a passing glance would heal the
unhealable.
The Islamic viewpoint differs radically from these approaches. According to
Islam, God has appointed the human soul as His Khalifah (vicegerant) in this
world. He has invested it with a certain authority, and given it certain
responsibilities and obligations for the fulfilment of which He has endowed it
with the best and most suitable physical frame.
The body has been created with the sole object of allowing the soul to use it in the exercise of its authority and the fulfilment of its duties and responsibilities. The body is not a prison for the soul, but its workshop or factory; and if the soul is to grow and develop, it is only through this workshop. Consequently, this world is not a place of punishment in which the human soul unfortunately finds itself, but a field in which God has sent it to work and do its duty towards Him.
So spiritual development should not take the form of a man turning away from
this workshop and retreating into as corner. Rather, man should live and work
in it, and give the best account of himself that he can. It is in the nature of an
examination for him; every aspect and sphere of life is, as it were, a question
paper: the home, the family, the neighbour-hood, the society, the marketplace,
the office, the factory, the school, the law courts, the police station, the
parliament, the peace conference and the battlefield, all represent question
papers which man has been called upon to answer. If he leaves most of the
answer-books blank, he is bound to fail the examination. Success and
development are only possible if man devotes his whole life to this examination
and attempts to answer all the question papers he can.
Islam rejects and condemns the ascetic view of life, and proposes a set of methods and processes for the spiritual development of man, not outside this world but inside it. The real place for the growth of the spirit is in the midst of life and not in solitary places of spiritual hibernation.
Criterion of Spiritual Development
We shall now discuss how Islam judges the development or decay of the soul.
In his capacity as the vicegerent (Khalifah) of God, man is answerable to Him for all his activities. It is his duty to use all the powers which he has been given in accordance with the Divine will. He should utilise to the fullest extent all the faculties and potentialities bestowed upon him for seeking God’s approval. In his dealings with other people he should behave in such a way as to try to please God. In brief, all his energies should be directed towards regulating the affairs of this world in the way in which God wants them to be regulated. The better a man does this, with a sense of responsibility, obedience and humility,and with the object of seeking the pleasure of the Lord, the nearer will he be to God. In Islam, spiritual development is synonymous with nearness to God.
Similarly, he will not be able to get near to God if he is lazy and disobedient.
And distance from God signifies, in Islam, the spiritual fall and decay of man.
From the Islamic point of view, therefore, the sphere of activity of the religious
man and the secular man is the same. Not only will both work in the same
spheres; the religious man will work with greater enthusiasm than the secular
man. The man of religion will be as active as the man of the world – indeed,
more active – in his domestic and social life, which extends from the confines of
the household to the market square, and even to international conferences.
What will distinguish their actions will be the nature of their relationship with
God and the aims behind their actions. Whatever a religious man does, will be
done with the feeling that he is answerable to God, that he must try to secure
Divine pleasure, that his actions only by his personal motives. This difference
makes the whole of the material life of a man of religion a totally spiritual
venture, and the whole of the life of a secular person an existence devoid of the
spark of spirituality.
.to be continued Inshaa Allah.
The Road to Spirituality
The first necessity for progression along the path of spiritual development in
iman (faith). The mind and heart of a man should.
To answer this it is necessary to study carefully the difference between the
Islamic concept of spirituality and that of other religions and ideologies. Without
a clear understanding of this difference it often happens that, when talking
about the spirituality in Islam, many of the vague notions associated with the
word ‘spiritual’ unconsciously come to mind; it then becomes difficult for one to
comprehend that this spirituality of Islam not only transcends the dualism of
spirit and matter but is the nucleus of its integrated and unified concept of life.
Body-Soul Conflict
The idea which has influenced most the climate of philosophical and religious
thought is that body and soul are mutually antagonistic, and can develop only
at each other’s expense. For the soul, the body is a prison and the activities of
daily life are the shackles which keep it in bondage and arrest its growth.This
has inevitably led to the universe being divided into the spiritual and the secular.
Those who chose the secular path were convinced that they could not meet the
demands of spirituality, and thus they led highly material and hedonistic lives.
All spheres of worldly activity, whether social, political, economic or culture,were deprived of the light of spirituality: injustice and tyranny were the result.
Conversely, those who wanted to tread the path of spiritual excellence came to
see themselves as ‘noble outcasts’ from the world.
They believed that it was impossible for spiritual growth to be compatible with a ‘normal’ life. In their view physical self-denial and mortification of the flesh were necessary for the development and perfection of the spirit. They invented spiritual exercises an ascetic practices which killed physical desires and dulled the body’s senses.
They regarded forests, mountains and other solitary places as ideal for spiritual
development because the hustle and bustle of life would not interfere with their
meditations. They could not conceive of spiritual development except through
with drawl from the world.
This conflict of body and soul resulted in the evolution of two different ideals for
the perfection of man. One was that man should be surrounded by all possible
material comforts and regard himself as nothing but an animal. Men learnt to fly
like birds, swim like fish, run like horses and even terrorise and destroy like
wolves- but they did not learn how to live like noble human beings.
The other was that the senses should be not only human beings.
The other was that the senses should be not only subdued and conquered but extra-sensory powers awakened and the limitations of the sensory world done away with.
With these......
new conquests men would be able to hear distant voices like powerful wireless
sets, see remote objects as one does with a telescope, and develop powers
through which the mere touch of their hand or a passing glance would heal the
unhealable.
The Islamic viewpoint differs radically from these approaches. According to
Islam, God has appointed the human soul as His Khalifah (vicegerant) in this
world. He has invested it with a certain authority, and given it certain
responsibilities and obligations for the fulfilment of which He has endowed it
with the best and most suitable physical frame.
The body has been created with the sole object of allowing the soul to use it in the exercise of its authority and the fulfilment of its duties and responsibilities. The body is not a prison for the soul, but its workshop or factory; and if the soul is to grow and develop, it is only through this workshop. Consequently, this world is not a place of punishment in which the human soul unfortunately finds itself, but a field in which God has sent it to work and do its duty towards Him.
So spiritual development should not take the form of a man turning away from
this workshop and retreating into as corner. Rather, man should live and work
in it, and give the best account of himself that he can. It is in the nature of an
examination for him; every aspect and sphere of life is, as it were, a question
paper: the home, the family, the neighbour-hood, the society, the marketplace,
the office, the factory, the school, the law courts, the police station, the
parliament, the peace conference and the battlefield, all represent question
papers which man has been called upon to answer. If he leaves most of the
answer-books blank, he is bound to fail the examination. Success and
development are only possible if man devotes his whole life to this examination
and attempts to answer all the question papers he can.
Islam rejects and condemns the ascetic view of life, and proposes a set of methods and processes for the spiritual development of man, not outside this world but inside it. The real place for the growth of the spirit is in the midst of life and not in solitary places of spiritual hibernation.
Criterion of Spiritual Development
We shall now discuss how Islam judges the development or decay of the soul.
In his capacity as the vicegerent (Khalifah) of God, man is answerable to Him for all his activities. It is his duty to use all the powers which he has been given in accordance with the Divine will. He should utilise to the fullest extent all the faculties and potentialities bestowed upon him for seeking God’s approval. In his dealings with other people he should behave in such a way as to try to please God. In brief, all his energies should be directed towards regulating the affairs of this world in the way in which God wants them to be regulated. The better a man does this, with a sense of responsibility, obedience and humility,and with the object of seeking the pleasure of the Lord, the nearer will he be to God. In Islam, spiritual development is synonymous with nearness to God.
Similarly, he will not be able to get near to God if he is lazy and disobedient.
And distance from God signifies, in Islam, the spiritual fall and decay of man.
From the Islamic point of view, therefore, the sphere of activity of the religious
man and the secular man is the same. Not only will both work in the same
spheres; the religious man will work with greater enthusiasm than the secular
man. The man of religion will be as active as the man of the world – indeed,
more active – in his domestic and social life, which extends from the confines of
the household to the market square, and even to international conferences.
What will distinguish their actions will be the nature of their relationship with
God and the aims behind their actions. Whatever a religious man does, will be
done with the feeling that he is answerable to God, that he must try to secure
Divine pleasure, that his actions only by his personal motives. This difference
makes the whole of the material life of a man of religion a totally spiritual
venture, and the whole of the life of a secular person an existence devoid of the
spark of spirituality.
.to be continued Inshaa Allah.
The Road to Spirituality
The first necessity for progression along the path of spiritual development in
iman (faith). The mind and heart of a man should.