Chapter Abasa – Part 6

Recap: Human beings have not been able to fulfill what they are equipped with or recommended with i.e. the potentiality that we are given.  Human beings are limited within the capacity of this universe i.e. they can never reach the end of anything.  In other words, if human beings could get to the end, then they would face non-existence which is impossible because non-existence does not exist.

Our soul is created with endless qualities.  The wisdom behind the creation of human beings in such a way is that I can develop my capacity as much as I can and have no fear of coming to an end because my human capacity is given to me in order to acknowledge its Source of Existence.  This means that the human soul is coming directly through the will of the Creator, which gave the potentiality to the human soul to get to know His Absolute qualities.  The other creatures only reflect the manifested form of the Absolute qualities in a static way, whereas the human soul is dynamic.  This does not negate the fact that the other creatures don’t change in their existence, they change only as much as they are willed to be, but they do not develop their potentiality as human beings do.  

• Example: If you look at a sheep, it reflects the qualities of its Creator as much as its capacity i.e. animal capacity does not allow them to improve within themselves, whereas human beings can.

The human soul can make progress in acknowledging the infinite degrees of the Absolute qualities of the Creator.  That is why the road in front of us can never have an end.  I can develop as much as I can and I become aware of the qualities of the Creator through different attributes of the Creator because, by definition, the attributes of the Creator must be Absolute.  This argument is in the presentation of the Quran as per the previous verse we studied last week.  80:23 “By no means has he fulfilled what He has enjoined upon him!”  Now, the subject shifts and let’s investigate it. 

Why is there a sudden change in the verse given below?  In the previous verse (given above), it says that human beings cannot fulfill their capacity, which does not mean that it is not possible to make any progress in their capacity at all.  This is not to be seen as discouraging to human beings. Rather, we can make progress by recognizing the qualities of the Creator as much as we can without any end.  

80:24 “Then let the human being reflect on his food”

In this verse, the Creator of the universe is walking us through a step by step process i.e. start the journey of ascension with recognizing God.  Example: We all interact with food and we cannot avoid food in our practical life.  Yes, we cannot live without air and water as well. But produce, fruits and vegetables that constitute food has various varieties with colors, shape and taste.  Let us start the reflective journey with this example of food.  How do I appreciate creation?  My eyes, tongue and hands are engaged, and the body gets nourishment.  Let’s further reflect on it.  Food is prepared and ready for us to eat such as banana, apple, olives… 

• and you can easily conclude that there is a Conscious will behind the existence of this.   Now, eating the fruit, you say how it came into existence and who prepared it?

80:25 “It is We Who pour down the water, pouring it in abundance”

When we say, “it rains”, what do we mean by “it”?  The Quran says that “We pour down the water”, it means that rain is deliberately sent by a Conscious Being who has arranged the universe as we experience it. This means that a conscious source has willed the rain to fall and He is sending out as He wills.  You see that water evaporates apparently by itself but the water in and of itself has no conscious will, it is part of a system that enables such.  Everything is perfectly arranged in this system of the universe, the clouds, air pressure, gravity…  It is so obvious that a Conscious Will arranged this system.  Every element in the order is intertwined with each other.  That is why we say that water is being sent, meaning it is purposefully arranged in the way it comes out.  

• The Quran is not going to inform us about meteorology, rather it draws our attention to the main point that a Conscious Will is operating. Reflect on the rain falling. Reflect on how food/providence and every other quality is coming and how useful it is for your living?

80:26 “afterwards We cleave the earth asunder”

What happens to the seed in the soil when it receives water?  The earth cleaves.  Does it happen by itself?  It does not happen by itself, rather a Conscious Will deliberately sets it up.  The delicate shoot comes out and if you touch it, it dies.  This cannot be attributed to an accident; it is perfectly arranged.  The verse says that We bring the shoot out and let it develop.

80:27 “and We cause the grain to grow out of it”

The blueprint is already created for anything that comes into existence which demonstrates to human beings that there must be a Conscious will behind the existence of anything.  As a result, we can make sure that everything coming into existence is in the “know” of the Absolute Creator.  Example: DNA is the record of the Knowledge of the Creator letting human beings know that the Creator knows what He is doing.  That is, everything is perfectly set up before they appear in existence.

80:28 “the grape and the fresh vegetation”

Does not matter which creation we reflect on.  How do we explain the existence of anything in creation, how is a grape, for instance, coming into existence?

80:29 “and olive trees and date-palms”

Everything comes out of the same matter fundamentally i.e. water, soil, sunlight, air and a seed but the results are completely different.  Imagine a factory taking the same materials and then what comes out of it are all varieties of fruits and vegetables of different shape/color/size/taste including the climates they come out in.  There must be some Wise planning in the existence and growth of all the food and creation out there.  Bottom line, just by sending water, there are millions of benefits coming out and our human mind cannot comprehend how everything is coming, yet all fruits, vegetables and creatures are used for different reasons and adjusted according to our needs based on seasons.

Question: If our fate is known to the Creator (or the choices that lead to it), then how much of our choices and the net outcome is known to the Creator pre and post.

There is a suggestion to human beings in the Quran that “I created you in a way that you can see what is going on.  I also give you extra information that if you really want to develop your understanding of creation, then take heed of this guidance”.  In other words, the Speech of the Creator is just a suggestion to take it as guidance.

When we talk about God’s knowledge, we are talking about Absolute knowledge which has nothing to do with this universe.  “Before, after” are words valid for me in this universe.  When it comes to God, we cannot use these words.  I observe the manifestations of power and knowledge.  I cannot talk about the essence of Absolute i.e. Absolute power and Absolute knowledge.  That is, I can only talk about such a being existing, but I do not know its essence.  In other words, when the Creator wills to give existence to something, it happens with His will.  We need to keep these points in mind in order to understand human freewill and Absolute will.

• Example: You change the location of an object from point A to point B.  The place of the object is subject to your power.  When you do something, the action depends on your will.
• Let’s look into the nature of knowledge which is not like the nature of power.  That is, I know that the object is in point A.  My knowledge is subject to the position of the object.  

• Knowledge is dependent on the thing that is known. This is the definition of knowledge. 
• With regard to power, which works differently from knowledge, the result is dependent on my choice.  

• However, God’s knowledge cannot be spoken about past, present and future.  God knows without time limitation and what I choose is known to God because I chose in that way. In another word, I do not choose an action because God knew it in that way.

In order to give a form to a thing, that thing must be given existence altogether.  If there is no form, you cannot talk about other qualities such as beauty. There is a sequence in how the verse in the Quran presents that the thing is created (khaliq), given an original existence which is not repeated exactly the same as before (Bari’), and then gives form (musawwir.). 

• Only within my capacity, I can talk about the manifested form of the qualities of the Creator. It means that God knows according to what I am going to choose.  That is, I choose not because God knew it this way.

• My choice is within His Absolute knowledge as I choose. I cannot talk about His Knowledge in terms of time; that is, before I do it or after I do it. I can only understand that Absolute is not subject to time.   

We are hearing this message in order to fulfill our responsibility as much as possible.  It is not a coercion on our freewill which is completely free i.e. Am I going to bother about the qualities of the grape (one option) or am I just going to eat the grape without any reflection (second option)?   

• Always question: how is this grape coming into existence?

• Can the things happen by itself?  Think about it.

80:30 “and gardens densely planted,”

Why does the Quran mention garden?  Using the same elements of soil and water, based on the blueprint of a seed, the seed grows into a shoot accordingly.  Yes, we can change the DNA as much as the order allows us to.  All the trees and gardens have same materials, but the outcome is different.  On one side, there are potatoes, tomatoes and garlic on the other side lettuce and greens. This demonstrates to human minds that in the DNA, knowledge is presented differently with each fruit and vegetable having its blueprint. When we write a letter with ink, the ink is the same but what is written is different in each word and sentence. Is there any way to claim that the ink is writing the letter? Since the letter is arranged in a wise way, and the ink has no wisdom, there must be a conscious and wise author who wrote the letter with the same ink. It is exactly the way how we see that DNA is written with the same material but the result is perfectly arranged for a purpose. 

80:31 “the fruit-trees and the green pasture,”

Can things happen accidentally?  Again, think about it!

80:32 “all for you and your livestock to enjoy”

It means that we cannot attribute the outcome to anything in this universe such as soil, water and sunlight as if they got together to produce results.  Is this possible?  There is a deliberate purpose that everything is prepared for our enjoyment so we may benefit from it.  If we did not have the tongue to taste, nose to smell and eyes to see, then we would not notice anything.  There is a correspondence between me and what is created out there.  There is a tool in my tongue to make a distinction between each fruit and vegetable.   Can things happen accidentally?  If so, then why are we given the tools to make the distinction between all different varieties of fruits and food?  It is arranged for my physical and intellectual enjoyment.  

• The Quran points out the purpose in the existence of anything.   Look into vegetable gardens, all the vegetations are different but they all have one purpose. The livestock are made to serve human beings.  It does not mean that we can do whatever we want with creation, rather we must satisfy only our needs.  Also, my intellectual satisfaction needs to be satisfied.  Example: when I look at vegetation, I can easily say that soil and water have no conscious will, but the result is a conscious arrangement and I can conclude that the causes out there have no qualities to bring anything into existence.  For my intellectual satisfaction, can I express my gratitude to the soil or water?  No, they are all subject to the order.

We are free to choose how we want to satisfy ourselves, and we must be mindful of what we are choosing.  The Quran speaks in an extremely simple way and you do not need to be a native Arabic speaker to understand that.  If you study the Quran, you will see how the Quran presents evidence in order to establish belief in the Absolute qualities of the Creator (ghaib in Arabic or Unseen) i.e. such a Being must exist.  The eye of my intellect (consciousness) can see the Absolute qualities but the physical eye cannot see.  Although Absolute is not physically present in front of me, I am aware of Its existence i.e. the Creator, called God must exist.  Similarly, my feelings exist but I cannot experience them physically.  The meaning I get from creation is not physical i.e. I cannot see it.  Another example, when you speak to me, airwaves hit my ears, but I cannot physically see what you mean but the eye of my intellect grasps it.  These are “ghaib” within the conditions of this universe and we conclude that such a Being must exist.

Example: A biologist must know in details the qualities of the grape.  An agriculturist must know it differently.  

The Quran speaks to all generations.  It starts from the first generation as an example.  That is within the conditions of the first generation, the example of date-palms and camels.  What does it mean?  In our generation, we don’t experience date-palms and camels and we need to apply it to our conditions. That is, take these examples and apply it to your conditions.  Example: In New York City, people are familiar with apples and bikes.   Everything is created including the bikes and cars according to the order of the universe.  Whoever establishes the order of the universe, is the One giving existence to everything according to what humans choose within the order.

Thus far in the sequence of this Chapter Abasa we went over how human beings are created to how everything is provided to them.  And so, how can human beings still take an arrogant attitude?  If they don’t believe in God, they may define themselves as only a physical body.  Even if you consider yourself as a body, you will see that you are perfectly created with such enormous capacity that you can never get to the end.  Are you not taking this point into consideration seriously?

The causes that you are experiencing have no qualities of themselves but in their result, you see creation, knowledge, power and absolute free will.  We need to learn how to analyze an object.  Example:  Look into the material composition of, for example, a cupboard.  Mostly, made up of wood and metals.  When I investigate qualities of wood, they have no knowledge and power as they cannot choose the position.  The cupboard has organization and space, design…all qualities.  What are we going to do with these qualities?  These qualities cannot be attributed to the elements.  We cannot say that the design quality can be attributed to the cupboard.  What should I do then?  Look into an owner for these qualities?  Wood, chance…?  There must be a conscious agent behind these qualities manifested into the cupboard because we cannot attribute it to anything of the material of the cupboard.  This Owner must have the quality of power, mercy…so I can enjoy not only physical enjoyment but intellectually as well even though I cannot physically experience the owner of these qualities, the carpenter.  

We need to cut the causal chain and stop attributing material as the source of existence of the qualities to the outcome.  That is the way the Quran teaches us how to know our Creator by examining the qualities in the outcome and attributing these qualities to the One Who gave existence to this universe.  Look around creation and you will understand that you cannot attribute the qualities to any constituent part.