November 29, 2021

The Purpose of Creation

The Question

One of the most, if not the most, fundamental questions one will ask oneself is regarding their purpose here; the limited time we have on this earth is a serious matter to consider.  At the same time, we all know that there is nothing more certain than death.  Everyone will die at some point and what adds to the potential anxiety is that one does not know when they will die.

So where does one begin?

Let us first look at human behaviour; after all, it is the human who is asking these questions.

The Human Nature

Everyone, with no exception, has a need to give reverence to something or take a role model.  Reverence means to glorify, to elevate or to highly respect.  It can even go as far as idolizing.  Can one doubt that?  This reverence and devotion is given to other things in existence.  Let’s see what this means.

Some people give reverence to celebrities.  They will buy their movies or songs, hang up their posters and will know everything about them.  A good part of their time becomes preoccupied with knowing as much as possible about such personalities.  Just look at what happens when a famous singer dies.  Another example is athletes.  People will devote a good part of their time to watching sports.  Some will go as far as going on a riot if their team loses, and sometimes property or even lives are lost in the process.  People become slaves to such things and this almost becomes their main purpose.

Some people worship money.  Accumulating wealth becomes their purpose in life.  They will go to any length to make money, even if it means taking other people’s rights in the process.  In the corporate world, it is said that “it is all about the bottom line”.  Corporations eat each other and the business world follows the law of the jungle, that is, survival of the fittest, even if it was done unethically.

Others love power.  They try to get into powerful positions of authority or hold onto their existing positions by any means.  They become obsessed with themselves to the point where they are literally worshipping themselves.  Pride and fame become the obsession.  Again, survival of the fittest is seen in this situation.

Other objects people may worship are things like trees, animals, the sun, stone idols, even human beings are worshipped.

The Human Nature – Continued

A number of keywords have been used thus far.  One word is worship.  Another word is slave.  Please keep these words in mind as you continue summoning your common sense, your innate nature.

When something is worshipped or revered, often time it is because some sort of supernatural power is attributed to that thing.  Historical examples make this very obvious.

Look at the trees people place in their living rooms at Christmas time today.  The infamous Christmas tree has its roots in paganism.  Historically, the tree (oak, fir or evergreen) was viewed as having some sort of magical or supernatural power due to its being the only tree remaining green during the harsh winter.  This tree was viewed as a symbol or source of life.

What do we call what we term as the seventh day of the week?  We call it the day of the sun – Sunday.  In fact, this is the first day of the week and the name is derived from astrology.  Some people will go to astrologers because they believe them to have hidden knowledge of the unseen.  Astrologers will read your hand, use cards and constellations of the planets to predict your future and fortune.

Overall, one can see this common human behaviour of needing to revere something or other.  One finds that when they are in trouble, they will naturally look up at the sky and call out for help.  Even in the movies some of us may watch, when a loved one dies, the character in the movie will look up at the sky and cry out, as if to call for a higher being for help.  It almost seems like human beings have a natural disposition, a certain nature.

The human beings, and other beings, are not self-sufficient.  They need to eat, drink, and sleep and so on.  Human beings have a freedom of choice.  We can choose what we want to do.  We do not follow any set natural order per se.  For instance, we don’t have a mating season.  Animals do.  We can choose to do good or evil.  Some animals prey on each other because it is within their nature to do so.  They are programmed that way.  Human beings are not programmed, at least not entirely.

In summary, human beings have a certain nature in some aspects but can make decisions in other aspects.  We become hungry, but we can choose what to eat.  We get into trouble, but we can choose who to call for help.

Common Sense

The human being has been endowed with an intellect that no other creature possesses.  Everything in nature seems to be subservient to us.  The earth and its resources are at our disposal.  With this intellect comes common sense.  Commons sense is not like logic, because logic is a system of thoughts which will vary from person to person.  People may have different logic; however, common sense is common to most people.  This is why it is called common sense.

For instance, if someone drew two dots on a piece of paper, and wanted to draw a line between those two dots, what kind of line brings forth the shortest distance?  The answer is a straight line.  A straight line is the shortest line between two dots.  Any other curved line will be longer.  This is common sense.

Being Objective

The human nature is very complex and one reason that it is as such is because we have emotions and desires.  Such emotions and desires many times will cause us not to use common sense.  They can also cause us not to be objective or fair.

For example, one may find that accepting the truth will sacrifice their stronghold of power, and because this person does not want to lose power, they will continue to follow falsehood.  On a smaller level, a manager of a company may know that they are guilty of fraud, yet they hide this and blame it on someone else because they don’t want to lose their position and pay for the consequences.

Therefore, if someone wants the truth, they must first be objective and sincere and put their desires aside.  This is not easy and it takes very strong self-motivation and will power.

So Where did it All Come from?

If you were walking in a desert and found a Rolex watch on the sand, what is your first thought?  You might think that this is your “lucky” day as this is a very expensive item that you found just lying there.  Obviously you know that someone must have dropped it on the ground; it did not just come by itself.  This is a foregone conclusion.

The other foregone conclusion is that this watch must have been originally assembled by someone.  The parts in the watch didn’t just come by themselves from the earth and assemble themselves by themselves.  Someone must have had to gather the minerals and build this watch to begin with.

These two paragraphs illustrate common sense because anyone with any basic intellectual capacity can understand them.

Now, one should take this to a bigger level.  This earth we are living on, the solar system that we are a part of and even the universe in its vastness and order did not assemble itself by itself.  The seasons are in order, the night and day are in order and there are many natural laws as we know them such as the law of gravity.  In other words, everything around us follows a certain order as opposed to being complete random chaos.

God?

Since the beginning of time, there have been people who claimed to be sent by God to warn humanity of going astray.  What were these people calling for?  They were calling the masses to believe and worship One God without associating any partners with Him.  That is, worship the Creator alone and not the creation.

Now, one should take this to a bigger level.  This earth we are living on, the solar system that we are a part of and even the universe in its vastness and order did not assemble itself by itself.

This whole universe must have been created by someone.  Like that Rolex watch mentioned above, it did not assemble itself by itself.  This universe, which is in order, did not come about randomly.  Order does not come from chaos.

The question is who is God?  What is God?  Where is God?  Many will ask these questions.

How Many Truths?

Before one can dwell on the question of God, there must be an established criterion.  This criterion has to do with discovering the truth.  How many truths can there possibly be?  Bringing forth an example of a simple mathematical question can help in seeing this point.  Without philosophizing, calculate 1 + 1 + 1.  There can only be one correct answer.  The answer is three.  This is the correct answer.  In other words, there can only be one correct answer, but there are many possible wrong answers.  One can say that 1 + 1 + 1 = 1 or that 1 + 1 + 1 = 2.  Or one can give any answer besides the only correct answer.  In conclusion, there are many falsehoods, but there is only one truth.

The Journey to Find the Truth

God, the Creator of everything, did not leave us to discover the truth on our own.  He sent us Prophets throughout history.  How does one know which ones are the Prophets?  Which religion is the true one?

There is only one religion from God, as noted, because the truth can only be one.  A true Prophet is one who comes with proof that he was sent by God.  This Prophet would be one who is supported by miracles from God.  He would be a Prophet who received revelation from God which survived the test of time.

This revelation would not have been tampered with.  It is a revelation which does not have contradictions.  It is a revelation which foretold future events and facts about the universe which were not understood by science until later on.  It is a revelation which is still preserved in the original language of that Prophet.

The Religion of Submission and Surrender to God

This last heading directly translates to the word: “Islām”.  All Prophets sent by God called to this.  This submission to God is one which is done sincerely in pure monotheism.  The last Prophet, Muḥammad ﷺ, called for this, just as all Prophets before him did.  This “Final Testament” is none other than the Noble Qur’ān.  If you have not explored Islām, then you owe it to yourself to learn about Islām, and then decide for yourself.  A good place to begin is https://www.islam-guide.com/

This life is but a temporary phase, it is not for amusement and play.  Allāh, the only deity worthy of worship, created the heavens and the earth so that justice is served.  This means that those who disbelieve will be punished, and those who believe and do righteous deeds will be rewarded.