Chapter Sa’d – Part 15

Part 15

Recap: We wanted to understand why the Prophets are important, and the chosen people.  The Quran tells us not to try to become  Prophets, because the more you try to become better and perfect, the more you are getting far away from becoming a Prophet.  The Prophets are in their primordial nature, i.e., “Ummi”. The prophethood is not based on one’s earned quality, on the contrary, on one’s not spoiled primordial nature. 

God created human beings for a purpose, and that is what we are working on here with the message of the Quran.  We all need guidance to fulfill our purpose here on Earth, which is to serve my spirit for what it needs.  Most of the time, we are not aware of what we are doing in our given lives here, because we tend to attach values to transient and dependent beings.  

The Prophets are sent to corrupt people. We have deviated from our reality and are deceived by people who claim to be  experts in their fields of study and present their personal baseless interpretations under the pretext of being the authority.  In our eyes, what makes a man great is all the awards and recognitions he receives from this corrupt society.  

The Prophets are thirsty of the truth, full of questions, and problems but with no answers by themselves.  They are aware that the existing society is not proposing and giving any idea about the truth.  They have also come to the acknowledgment that they cannot know the truth by themselves.  They wonder why everything looks so great in this universe, and yet they don’t know what it means.  They are struggling to get answers for their human existential questions, but there is nothing in this universe that provides such answers.  The universe does point to the fact that there is meaning behind the existence of everything, but I don’t know how to understand it (or read i.e., “iqra” refers to this reading).  Example: the sunlight, the moon light, the stars shining up the sky, look so marvelous and meaningful, but why do they exist as they do?  How about myself?  I am wonderful, and full of potential, aims, skills, ambitions, but what does the existence of all my human qualities mean for me?

The spiritual needs need guidance.  That is, we need to be taught how to read the meaning of this universe.  We don’t know how to read it.  We need someone who knows the universe to teach us how to read it.  Can you learn reading without a teacher?  No.  The universe speaks to me with a silent, body language, and I must understand it in my language.  Example: A squirrel is telling me something in its existence, and I am given the capacity to understand that it is conveying some message to me.  But I don’t speak the language of the squirrel.  Similarly, another person comes and speaks to me in sign language, and I am puzzled, but I have the capacity to understand that s/he is saying something, but what?  Hence, the Source of my existence, my Creator must employ someone to teach me how to read creation in a human language.  This person must speak to me and let me know that in its creation the squirrel tells me to not only enjoy its act but also wonder about its existence, for it demonstrates artful qualities which points to its Maker.  That is, with this type of reading, I will be in communication with the Creator of the squirrel, who is at the same time my Source of existence.

The universe demonstrates that it has a Creator who exists at a different level than the universe’s existence.  The One who gives existence to this universe cannot be of the same nature as the universe, i.e., I can only describe Him as Absolute.  If He is Absolute, then He manifests His qualities in a limited timed way, in a squirrel, fruit, moon, trees, mountains and me…  We all have a limited existence.  Although the Source must not be limited for a limited being cannot be the Source of existence of this universe, that is manifesting His qualities in a perfectly harmonious way.  Everything here is paired up in a complementary way yet contradicting each other.  Example: predator and prey in the wild, it is given perfectly fitting teeth to get the meat of the prey…  This is an amazing and mind-blowing never-ending scenery presented to us in this creation.  So, I must have His guidance, even though by His nature and essence He must be Absolute and limitless, He must speak to me to introduce  Himself through the limited form of this creation, like a squirrel and tree.  As I see He manifested His knowledge in a limited form and His Speech must be given to me in a limited form.  Whichever way this Absolute power manifests itself in a limited form, the angels are employed to transfer the Absolute in a limited form so that human beings can experience it. I cannot experience the Absolute as He is.

In other words, the Knowledge of the Creator is revealed to me through the angels in the form of a squirrel, which is a sign language, but I need a human language to clearly understand it without falling into speculations.  Hence, the Creator’s language must be manifested through the capacity of a speaking human being. In order to understand it we must be perfectly pure and ready to obey the Truth like the particles and atoms of a squirrel.  They are so innocent that they have no other choice than existing as they are given existence with no distortion, and perfectly obeying.  Thus, there is a need for a man who will receive the manifestation of the language of God (e.g. the Quran) to give me guidance coming from the Absolute knowledge of God, the Creator.  Who can be as pure as the elements and particles of the body of the squirrel?  A man who is ready to receive guidance with no distortion, crookedness, and personal ideas.  In order to have this status, this person must have absolutely no claim and speculations, but must be ready to confirm the truth as s/he receives it.  (Like a clean slate, referred to as tabula rasa, check out part 14 notes)

There must be no other scribbles that originated from the man, white pages ready to be written without causing any confusion by the people who are reading what is written on it.  That is why we must be proud that the Prophets are pure, as born from their mother.  They have not polluted themselves and must be trustworthy, innocent, and loyal to the Truth.  That is, whatever they receive, they have no claim over it, just like the particles of the body of the squirrel/universe.  Example: They should be ready to submit the Truth and be ready to confirm it. So, they never say that, “I did not like this, so let me change it.”  

The Prophets are the people who have no claim and personal ideas to interfere and mix up with what they have received.  Also, they must be in the form of human beings, and they must speak with the language of human beings, and represent in  their lives the message they receive for God’s Speech, that must have infinite knowledge in it, to guide every human being.

The Quran claims that I am sent to mankind with no exceptions and time limitations.  It must speak to every human nature, and everyone at every time must have the capacity to follow it and receive guidance from it.  That is why human beings need “Ummi” Prophet (carpenter, shepherd…), and the purpose of the creation of everything is taught to human beings by their Creator.  We must establish a relationship with the Quran in a way to communicate with our Creator.

If I claim something that I deserve to be a Prophet, it means that I cannot, that is contradictory.  That is why, no one can desire, expect, and try their best to become a Prophet.  The more we try to become Prophets, the more we become far away from the profession of the Prophethood.  It must develop and happen in an “Ummi” way.  If I want to get guidance from the speech of the Creator, (Torah, Bible, Quran…) and His acts in the form of creation , I must have no claim and speculation.  I must realize and understand that I am in need of learning from professional teachers like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Muhammad…, as they are figures represented to us in Divine Speechs.  It does not mean that I don’t know anything, but I must ADMIT that I need guidance to know the meaning of existence.  I must understand His language so that I can receive spiritual help which I cannot by myself.  I must understand the meaning of my existence and need so that I can have a meaningful life.  There must be a reason for the existence of everything but, what is it? I need guidance from the Creator of everything to make sense of existence.

If we say that we understand how the universe works, then we fail.  There is no way that we can make sense of what is the right/wrong meaning of the existence of the universe by ourselves.  With such a “I know it all” attitude, we fail from the beginning.  The more I am hungry, the more I appreciate the value, benefit, and the taste of the food.  If I say that I already have some food in my stomach, then I cannot taste it really and benefit, because I am not really starving for tasty food.  Hunger and satisfaction are opposites, but complementary.  The more I need, the better I understand.

If I claim that I can also know the reality by myself without being taught by my Creator, the Owner of the universe, the more I claim this, the further away I become from the teachings of His Guidance, the Quran.  Example: The teacher is teaching in the classroom and if you claim that you already know the subject, then either you don’t come to the class or listen to it carelessly, because you have the claim that you know it and you don’t feel the need for it.  In other words, you are not ready to learn so that you feel the need to take your notes.  The more I realize that I don’t know, the better I pay attention to it, learn and digest it.  That is human reality.  

If someone comes to you with a question, and you don’t know what the answer is, that is it!  Example: The Prophet would go after people to speak with them and ask, do you know what will happen to you after you die?  If they say that they do not know, the Prophet would say, if you want me to tell you, then I will tell you.  The companions discovered this way of attaining guidance, and they are not very knowledgeable people, but are clever and sincere people.

If we claim that we know the meaning of the sign language of creation it can be a negative thing, if we want to become a perfect student of the most perfect teachers.  Sincerity, the need, and poverty is the essence of learning and becoming a good student.  Can I just say I don’t know anything and pretend? No, I must take the right attitude to benefit from the teacher.  The companions learned this and said, God and His Prophets know better, and the best, please tell us.  And the Prophet started teaching them.  If there was an occasion where they could not solve the problem and were puzzled, the Prophet looked at their conditions, and said that this is the answer to the question.  As a result, everyone was satisfied, and with pure attention they would listen to him.  That is how the companions were educated and trained, not through the knowledge, rather, through the perfect training and education they received from the Prophet.  They had no other source of teaching and rejected their cultural inheritance.  The companions emptied themselves from all societal influences and culture.  Can I empty myself?  Can I empty my claims?

It is hard to claim that I have no knowledge and I have no existence and life from myself.  I have no human qualities from myself, and I have no sure knowledge from myself. I need to be given all the things that my existence needs and I need to be taught.  

When the Quran is read out to you, listen to it attentively.  If you claim that you know the meaning of existence, then you will never learn anything from the teachings of God through the Prophet’s exemplary lives.  How did they learn it?  The Prophets were chosen and were “al-Mustafoon and al- Akhyar”, they were perfectly purified, and chosen among the best ones. They had no claim other than acknowledging their need to learn.

Can I at all claim any share in my existence?  No, I am given existence as I am. 

We call the Prophets “illiterate”, or uneducated, which refer to  what “Ummi” means.  The best part is that they have no claim.  To admit that we are “Ummi”in the sense of knowing the Reality is extremely difficult for human beings.  We must purge ourselves with the values of societal culture, and today’s secularized religion.  (Yes, most of the religions practiced around the world are, at least partially, secularized).  We must face our reality, because taken for granted belief will not work.  We must understand this, and we must learn the bases/foundations that the Quran presents to us.  Example: the Speech of God says in some verses, that the human being just puts forward his/her argument in front of us, forgetting his/her creation, how s/he came into existence as if s/he knows it all.  He challenges the news of the Qur’an and asks, “Who is going to give life to bones?”  There is nothing which gives life to rotten bones in this universe, that is how our secularized mind reasons.  The Speech of God does not impose on us that He is God who knows everything, and He will do it, rather He presents the evidence from his/her own experience of this world, asks him/her to think who has given you existence and life?  From scratch He gave you existence and equipped your life with abilities.  Now you are forgetting about how the things (feelings, memory, consciousness) are given to you from scratch.  Who gave me this existence from zero?  The One who gives existence to you from scratch can give existence to everything in another form.  Your own existence is evidence for it. (See the Qur’an, 36: 78-79) 

God does not speak like we do; therefore, we cannot repeat what the Creator says as an answer to my human existential questions.  Example: “How do you believe in the hereafter?”  “It is written in the Quran.”  Unfortunately, we claim to be so loyal to the Quran that we speak in a way contradictory to the Quran itself.  We must open up ourselves, stop our claims, and listen to the Quran with no claim that I know religion and the Quran. Rather than getting information or knowledge from the Quran, let us get guidance from the Quran on how to think and use our human abilities to think and experience it in our feelings.

When the Prophets receive something from God, it should not mean that they should keep it to themselves, rather Prophethood means to receive it, apply it to their lives, and spread it.  We must be watchful for not sharing and claiming that this is my idea.  Religion is so secularized that this is what is prevalent now.  In the 21st century, humanitarianism has replaced religion/belief.  What does belief mean?  

Belief is confidence in one’s conclusion about the meaning of the universe/existence, especially our human qualities.  Yes, we must follow our human feelings, but use the human feelings to understand the sign language of the act of the Creator (creation), with the guidance of the Creator through His instructors (Prophets).

38:48 “Also remember Ishmael, Elisha, and Zul-Kifl.  All are among the best.”

We are after guidance, not information.  The Prophets are not different creatures than us that you cannot communicate with them. They were purified because they had no claim, so they deserved to be fed, because they accepted that they were hungry for reality.  

38:49 “This is a reminder, for the God-conscious will have a good place of return.”

This is just a reminder for you to take in or not.  After they get the guidance, they will be the perfect candidate to get the perfect rewards/good grades.  Similarly, whoever takes the guidance from the Quran, they are scared of making mistakes, falling into speculations, and doing something wrong (muttaqee).  In other words, I must be concerned of not having any speculations from myself.  

What do Scientists claim now?  We have discovered the order of the universe and how it works.  This means that I can interpret existence according to my own whims as I like, 100% full of claims with no evidence in the way they interpret the meaning of the order of the universe.  Will this attitude receive any message from the guidance of the Creator?  No.

This attitude is not human.  When you say that things are evolving by themselves, what do you mean by “things evolve by themselves?”  It appears to be, and it seems to be, is all speculation.  How does measurement, motion, change, evolving, and development exist?  How come “improvement” exists by itself?  These are all qualities manifested in the universe.  What is the Source of Existence of all these qualifications that you observe and attribute to matter?  Yes, the universe works, not by itself, rather it has been created in such a way that it has no choice to choose to be working in a perfect order.  Things have no choice here; they are bound to follow the way they are given existence.  Nothing can change their essence of existence.  Example: I have no choice to change the essence of my existence, although I can claim to remember things and speculate about my future by using the past experiences.  However, I cannot claim anything as coming into existence from itself.  Everything in creation will be given their rewards because we understand from the way they are created they have accepted their reality as needy beings, whereas us human beings, we don’t feel needy, we pretend  to exist by ourselves, that is how we claim.

34:50 “The doors of Gardens of eternal pleasure will be kept wide open for them.”

There will be no obstacles that they claim to have from themselves, they realize that everything is from the Creator of the universe. “Come to Me”, do you have any obstacles that you claimed? Do you claim anything that has a share in the existence of your feelings apart from the Creator of the universe ?  They are all given to you.  If a very conscious man (muttaqee) says that I have no claim over the smallest thing, for I find myself in the world as being given existence by the Creator of the universe.  If I accept that whoever gave me life has all the rights to operate over me and now, He is giving me death, i.e., changing my position which I have been experiencing throughout my life on earth.  Example: my babyhood, childhood, adulthood… all died, not because I made myself in this form, rather someone is doing this, and giving me death.  I exist in the form I am in now while I am dying.  The One who created me from scratch is giving me death; there must be a reason.  It does not mean the end of my existence because my existence does not depend on my body. My body depends on its Creator.  This Creator promises through my feelings (my feelings expect eternal happiness), that all my needs are given to me by Him, as if saying: “leave it to Me, and put your trust in Me that I have created everything, and I can give you everything that your spirit needs.”  

As long as you claim nothing, put your trust in Me (leave everything to Me), acknowledge that I have created everything, and say that only My Owner has given everything to me, I promised you through your feelings that I created you with.  I admit that only You can give me what my infinite desires are dying for.  Since You gave it to me, you will satisfy this need of eternal happiness.  That is called Paradise, and its creation must take place, because I trust the Creator of my feelings and the Creator of everything in me, not myself or my cells.  Then, I will be in the presence of God directly, and every door will be open to me.

38:51 “They will be comfortably seated; they will call for abundant fruit and drink.”

“Mufattah” means “wide open”, that everything will be open to me if I do not contradict my reality.  Here, I must sow the seed to do the farming, and whatever I enjoy will be provided to me not in the same way that I experience here.  As much as I am acknowledging the Source of Existence while farming here, that much I will be given without having to do any farming.  The Creator is letting us know that: “I want you to express your need for Paradise to Me.”  I express my need bearing in mind that I need a tree as I have experienced it last year.  If you admit that I am the One who creates, then I will create it for you without you doing the farming in your next life in the hereafter.  That is why the description of Paradise in the Quran is given with examples of this world, so that I can experience it, confirm it and feel confident about my conclusion and understand that the Source of this fruit/tree must be an Absolute One, that gave me the feelings craving for eternal happiness, which needs limitless satisfaction, and so He promises that He will give it.  I want a perfect absolute fruit, He can give it, why not? He created the whole universe together with the fruit in it, so the fruit is nothing for Him to create.  That is why the description of Paradise must be given to me in the form of this world, so I can utilize the examples of this world as evidence, and understand and admit that they are created by God, so that I can go back to His infinite Power and qualities, “You can give me whatever You have given me the need for”, that is a perfect, ready, anytime I want fruit.  However, this fruit does not exist eternally in the conditions of this universe we are experiencing now, i.e., when we eat it, it disappears, and we must wait for the next season.  But I do not want to wait, and so He promises me that this desire will be met.  If the Source is permanent, then the fruit/Paradise must be in eternal form because I desire permanence.