Chapter Asr – Part 5

103:1 “Consider the flight of time!”

Time is flying.  What is time related to?  It is related to the Originator that renews the universe.  Renewal of the universe is taking place by a One that is establishing the order of the universe because the order is:

• consistent, purposeful and deliberately put in an order (sequence of acts of creation).

We observe change or the order within space.  Change refers to time.  In other words, time is the result of change in human perception.

• Things are being changed within an order.

If I do not notice that things are being changed within an established order, then I think that things themselves are giving existence to their following positioning.  If one does not question the Source of Existence, then they are bound to go to the beginning of things as far as they can imagine and conclude that the universe must have a prime cause to bring things into existence at its initial positioning.  If this prime cause is not the cause of change now, then one has to refer to the change taking place to the things themselves or the adjacent thing to them.  You may think that the mechanism is working by itself.  That is why some people say that God has set the order in a way where things work themselves.  Just like a clock which is set up initially by an Engineer and now works on its own.

• The universe must have an initial set up by a One who continuously gives existence to things and makes their existence change within an order.

Some people may claim that, “Sun is created with the ability to change as the earth rotates around it.”  If you refer the action of the sun as moving by itself, then you are “lost” (referring to the verse we are studying).  Can the sun be the Source of Existence of its movement?  When the sun moves, it uses or gains energy and loses energy.  Can the sun be the Source of Existence of the change which takes place in its existence?  Can the Source of Existence be engrained in the sun?  Or every position in the sun is given existence anew.

Analogy: when you press on the keyboard, certain mechanics happen on the laptop?  Is the key the Source of Existence of what happens on the screen?  No.    If the universe is subject to change, then I must ask: what is the Source of Existence of this change?

The Source of Existence must be external to the sequence of change.  Whatever comes into existence anew, we must question: who is responsible for the qualities that comes anew? Does the program of the machine change during time?  No. Only if the Engineer changes the program, it does.

At every moment, new qualities are coming into existence.  In the universe, change is a constant. Does the moon change when it is time for evening?  Yes.  How does it happen?  It is a gradual and constant change. Do you think the moon is changing itself constantly and taking a new position, or, it is given existence constantly by the One Who is the Source of Existence of everything?

• Change is constant.
• Every moment has a different quality due to renewal or continuous change.
• Something must be giving new qualities to the moon or the change in its existence that you observe.
• The change must be the act of an Absolute One because you cannot attribute this change to anything within this universe.

Moon changes every nano-second, rather, with no intervals.  We cannot comprehend constant change at every moment.  Every change is an act of creation.  What does creation mean?  Coming into existence anew.  You can only conclude this logically.  How frequent is the change?  We cannot measure it.  Impossible! Because change is continuous.  If the effect is a continuous change, then the Source of the change must be Infinite.  Whoever is making the change in the universe, it must be Absolute.  Logically, infinite is beyond time-space.

Going back to the laptop example, the laptop uses previous existing qualities already engrained/programmed in it.  As far as the universe is concerned, the program is constantly changing in the universe and so the Programmer must have infinite knowledge.  With the laptop, the same output happens when the program is run because the program is fixed.  Whereas, within the universe, the program is not fixed, and the same thing does not take place.

In any case, the qualities need to be attributed to the Engineer.  We say: the programmer must be an intelligent being who knows all the functions of the program.  If the change is continuous, then the programmer of the universe must have infinite power and knowledge.

Understanding the time of the act of creation means to pay attention to the time dimension of the universe as we observed and remember the change. That is the base for belief in the Absolute Originator of the change.  From what we experience in the material world, how things are coming into existence, we logically conclude that the universe is created by an Engineer (the Originator.)  I do not have to experience the Engineer making the universe.  I conclude that the Engineer must have Absolute Knowledge.

• Who has established the order in the universe?

How is change happening?

What is present in front of me, I conclude that there must be a One giving existence to the change.  Some say: Belief cannot be rationally confirmed.  If you say that: ‘God is Powerful”, then that is not belief because it is your claim.  Rather, conclude: “God must be an all Powerful One”, that is your conclusion because of your experience of the things in the universe, which is belief and not a claim.

We see the constant in change, which materialists refer to as happening by itself.  How can things happen by themselves?  Use reasoning in establishing what the Quran says which encourages human being to use reasoning to establish belief.

• Reasoning comes before belief.

We should encourage people not to use religious language which already includes in it the concept of God.  Be a blank person and look at the universe, observe it and use your logic to make it justifiable to confirm for your mind.  Belief is the result, not the beginning.

When something is executed in a constant order, we call it “law”.  Just like the human laws are made to keep order in the society.  If laws are there and no one is executing them, what happens?  Then there is no law.  Laws do not have a physical existence, but they have a virtue when it is executed by an authority.  What is order?  Sequence of events taking place in an order.  The order itself is orderly made.

Nothing in the universe guarantees to take upon responsibility to give existence to tomorrow’s universe.  There is no guarantee in this universe that the next moment will exist.  As He reveals and experiences His knowledge, I know it.  Tomorrow is “ghaib” for us, we have not experienced it. But it should not be “ghaib” for the One Who Creates. “Ghaib” is anything beyond our physical experience but known to us as our logical conclusion.

Benefit from what we call “time” by utilizing the manifestations in the universe.

How can I make my deed perfectly working?  I should not contradict what I experience in the world.

What are we experiencing in this universe constantly?  The act of creation brought into existence by an Absolute Being.

The result of your choice is presented by Him not you (that is called consciousness), I have chosen but the result of my choice is created for me. I cannot create the result but wait for its creation. The next moment of universe includes what I have chosen.  We should not trust our actions as a means to go to Paradise.  Do you go to Paradise because of your actions?  No, you are not the actor of your actions.  Example: I pray, that action is not mine, it belongs to God.  The choice is mine but the choice does not create anything. And also, the ability to choose is given to me by the One Who created me. If you act in the Name of your Lord, that is pure action (Saleh), otherwise praying becomes cumbersome.

• Perform prayer but do not own it. It is only what you expressed your need to the Creator.

Example: I am a father, I educated my kids.  Here, I am attributing actions to myself and I am polluting amal al-salih (pure actions).

What is Islam?  Submission of your reality to Who Creates it.  Example: Car belongs to the existence giver of the car and I am using it in the Name of its existence giver.

Whatever I do in this world, I must do it in the Name of God.  In order to check whether your actions are amal al-saleh, ask yourself the following:

• Did I use my freewill in conformity with the Will of the Creator?
• Was there peace between my actions and the Will of their Creator?
• Are we the Owner of these qualities or are we given?
• Example: Feeling sorry for a destitute person is given to me. God is feeling sorry for this guy through me. Can I own my feeling?  It is given.

103:3 “Except those who believe, and do righteous deeds, and counsel each other unto the truth, and counsel each other to be patient.”

Counsel each other unto the truth.

What is the truth here?  What I am experiencing in the universe is nothing but continuous reflection of the manifestation of creation.  You saw a bird on the street. What do you see in the bird is nothing but the manifestation of the Absolute qualities of the Creator.  Bird does not fly itself.  The act of flying does not belong to the body of the bird.  The bird represents the quality of beauty in its existence as a reflection of its Creator.

How to make my life zikr (consciousness of your reality, who you are and what your Owner is)?

Keep making remembrance of God in every occasion, your life will become a zikr (remembrance of God).

“Patient” means to be persistent in this matter.