The Muslim Mindset Towards Life

 

The Final and Complete Message To All Mankind

Life is a series of unforeseen events with which we all must contend when they happen to us.  According to a well-known saying, “the best laid plans of mice and men do sometimes go astray”.  We all encounter these moments. We even have a name for them: “Murphy’s Law”. Although we know that these moments will occur throughout our lives, many of us react to them as if they shouldn’t happen to us. We have coined terms for these events which imply that we view them as unnatural phenomena. We speak of people having “good or bad luck” or “good or bad fortune”, thereby relegating the process of Life to the whims and fancies of irrational Chance. 

The Muslim mind knows differently. By the Mercy of Allah, through His Quran, Muslims have been taught that Allah controls everything that happens in our lives. The concepts of “chance”, “luck” and “fortune” are frowned upon as fruits of ignorance. Every Muslim knows that nothing happens in the Creation without the knowledge and design of Allah, The Creator and Master of All things. In the Muslim mindset, there are no accidents or misfortunes; only tests from Allah for which consequences and rewards are predetermined.

The Quran informs every believer that human life is constructed in this fashion. It also informs us of the correct response and attitude to adopt when we each face these events in our personal lives.

“In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful:

Be sure We shall test you with something of fear and hunger,

Some loss in goods or lives or the fruits of your toil.

But give Glad tidings to those who patiently persevere –

Who say, when afflicted with calamity: ‘ To Allah we belong,

And to Him is our return’ – they are those on whom descend blessings

From their Lord and Mercy; and they are the ones that receive guidance.”

(Quran 2: 156 – 157).

It is only ignorant folk who misunderstand the relationship between Man, his Lord and his Life. In their view, God (Allah) is some sort of glorified servant who must give them whatever they need when they request it. He must protect them from the unwanted events of Life or face their indignation and wrath.  If He does not perform as they wish, they “punish” Him with disbelief and disobedience to His commands. They reserve for themselves the right to question, modify and reject any of His instructions that go contrary to their desires. In their misguided view, they consider themselves essential to His existence and not the other way around. That explains why “atheists” take pride in their professed denial of His existence. They demand that He “proves” His existence to them before they will acknowledge Him.

The Islamic attitude to life leaves no place for such arrogance and stupidity. By acknowledging that Allah is the Only Creator of all things (God), Muslims recognize who is the Master. We understand that we are dependent on Him, this universal environment belongs to Him and He has the authority to tell us how to behave in it. Every conscious Muslim understands that his personal life is a daily event presented to him for his development by His Lord and not a product of Chance. We understand that it is unacceptable to disobey Allah’s instructions in any form and that no good can come to us from such action. That is the reason that we hold His Messages to all mankind in such high regard, especially His final message, the Quran. It is also the reason that we hold the prophets as behavioral exemplars, especially Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). We know that “from Allah we came and to Him is our return” and that is enough for us. Whatever calamities or joys befall us each day, we accept it and persevere because Allah has already informed us to expect it. Allah and His Prophet spoke the Truth.