Session 46 Notes
Believers are familiar with the five daily prayers as well as those prayers seeking the assistance of God when they find themselves in desperate need. We will expand the meaning of prayers in our lives and see what is the essence of prayers as described by the Qur’an. Although every believing human being prays to the Creator of the universe, sometimes we may fall short in keeping our relationship with Him or divert the direction of prayers to existing, created beings. Prayer is the criterion for our value as a human being, i.e. how much dignity we have. Let’s examine Figure 1 which shows a farmer milking the cow. The farmer may think the cow is the producer of milk as he sees it: “Thanks to the cow, I am getting milk”. With this understanding the farmer reduces his dignity by worshiping the cow because the milk is coming from the cow and he thinks the cow gives existence to milk. The cow is created just to be a means for the creation of the milk, it has no knowledge, power, or will to give existence to milk. Thus, instead of honoring the Creator of the cow and the milk, we may be honoring created beings.
Figure 1
We plant trees for fruits and vegetables, do we worship those plants or the farmers by attributing the creation of fruits and vegetables to them? What about the sun being the source of energy, should we be worshiping the sun? Many materialists say that the sun is producing energy, it is the source of the existence of energy. When we examine the sun we realize that it is created in this way with all the qualities; it is itself in need to be given continuous existence. The sun cannot do anything by itself, it is subject to the order it finds itself in. We must be very careful in terms of what we deem our object of worship. Who should our prayers be directed to? What can provide for our needs? What we worship defines our human dignity. Am I like a slave or worshipper of matter, or the worshiper of the conscious creator of the universe?
No one will claim to be worshiping matter. Who/What then are we grateful to when we receive things from the universe? If someone claims that they are the product of matter, or accidents, of nature then that is the human value they achieve. Thanking the cow is different than thanking the Creator of the universe. Human beings always look for value and honor; we want our life to be worthy, worth living. However the materialist thinkers find themselves without any value as at the end they become nothing. If one says that they are the result of random happenings, how much can this person feel valuable?
When human beings are in harmony with the universe in terms of their relationship with the universe, then their entire connection with the universe is turned into a prayer. Every time that we are in connection with the universe it becomes our prayer. Even when we are sleeping, we still find ourselves in the universe trying to rest, satisfy our bodily needs, we can turn that into a prayer. All of our daily habits can turn into worship of God.
How does this work for a believer? The choices we make by exercising our free will are a form of prayer, as long as those choices align with the order of the world. Since there is perfect order in how the universe is created, when we make choices that follow this order, it means that we are obeying the will of the Establisher of the order.
Everyone, in fact, is already making requests to the Creator of the universe by just following the order of creation. We are always in worship to our Creator. Two attitudes are there when we follow the order of creation. The materialist philosophers, physicists, biologists claim that they follow the order itself; matter happened to be in order. They cannot explain how matter established this order. However, a conscious believer in God needs to be aware that their choices are actually a prayer to God. By being conscious of what we are doing when we practice our free will, we can turn our daily choices and routines into worship of God. Whenever we are doing something,weI must be aware that we are obeying the will of my Creator. In every relationship we establish with the universe, whether we acknowledge it or not, we pray to God, who created it in an orderly fashion.Thus, a believer’s entire lives can be filled with worship.
We may think that we are connecting with the universe when in fact, we are connecting with the Will of the Creator of the universe. My body is connecting with the universe but my consciousness is connecting with the Creator and Owner of the universe. This awareness within us is the essence of worship. The Qur’an presents us with the message that everything glorifies their Creator, God and invites human beings to join this glorification. Glorification of God means to announce the qualities of God, His beautiful Names. I can join in this glorification made by the universe when I am conscious and aware of it. The Qur’an calls this the angelic side of creation that glorifies God and human beings are welcome to join in glorifying their Creator, God. In a way, along with the universe, human beings can form a congregational prayer and announce the qualities of their Creator. This is the Qur’anic world view through which we understand that all creation glorifies God. The Qur’an doesn’t force us but simply invites us to join in the glorification of the Creator of the universe and thus gain human dignity.
Let’s examine figure 2 which shows a human being working as a scientist studying and analyzing molecules.
Figure 2
This person is a believer in God as she recognizes that the molecules, atoms and everything are created by an Absolute Being. Whatever experiment she is performing, she is simply investigating how the Creator willed everything to exist within a perfect order. When she recognizes that whatever she is working with, her findings are all Divine creation, she is a believer in God performing Divine Service by discovering the qualities of the Creator manifested in it, thus getting to know Him better. Thus, she is joining the glorification of other beings to glorify God. We can all perform that glorification of God in whatever work we are doing when we recognize that everything is the product of Divine creation. I have to go through creation to recognize the qualities of the Creator; I can consciously connect with the Creator of the universe who is an Absolute Being through the objects that I am working with by seeing the qualities of their Creator. Although I may be working in a lab, if I am conscious, I can make it worship by communicating with the qualities of the Creator.
Human beings must pray in unity with the universe
Despite constant change, the universe is maintained in order
- Everything changes, yet a stable structure of the order (Sunnatu Allah) remains. The things cannot change themselves but are subjected to change within the structure of the order of the whole universe. Nothing in the universe has an independent existence or acts independently. They are created within the already established order. When we put food in our mouths, do I produce the nourishment, the digestive system, things going on in my stomach and other organs? We don’t even think or are aware of what is going on inside us. If we are not aware then how is it possible for matter to be aware of the changes it goes through.
- Change occurs within consistent orderly creation
The human mind also operates with order
- We think through patterns, logic, and relationships
- Our thinking is not random but structured. No one can dispute that 2+2 makes 4.
Mathematics as a bridge
- Mathematical equations express patterns the mind can grasp
- These patterns successfully describe the universe and they correspond with each other
Key Insight:
There is a clear correspondence between:
- The order in the universe: Everything in creation expresses their neediness
- The order in the human mind which works alongside the universe; any time that we use our free will, we act in harmony with the universe expressing our neediness: “We need the next moment to be created to obtain the result of what we want.”
Everyone can say that the universe is created for them. They are all given the tools to communicate with the universe in order to understand the meaning behind it. Through the meaning in the universe, I can communicate with the Creator of the universe who created this universe full of meaning. This correspondence perfectly expresses the reality that we cannot be accidental, worthless beings. We are all given enormous qualities, feelings that look for satisfaction. We cannot accept it to become compost in the graveyard at the end which is such an insult to human dignity. How can materialists insult human beings by calling them accidental beings – which court must they be taken to for such an insult?
We all have the inclination to be arrogant, claiming to be self-sufficient to sustain ourselves. It is the mercy of our Creator that we change and age which reminds us that we cannot sustain ourselves. No one can stop themselves from aging. My Creator reminds me that I do not own myself, cannot give existence to myself, do not exist accidentally. I must admit that I am continuously being given existence by the Creator of the whole universe.
Let’s examine Figure 3 showing how the universe is created seemingly contradictory but perfectly harmoniously. We must become God- conscious through observing the universe. Does anyone know who many galaxies and stars there are? We are only able to provide rough estimates based on observations. The countless beings exist in perfect order yet with no confusion.
Figure 3
The second aspect of the universe is about absolute speed yet in perfect balance. Our body is made up of cells. Do we wonder how many times our cells change, going through chemical reactions in a second? The scientists give a rough estimate of millions. We cannot really measure the speed of change, yet there is no defect in any of them. That indicates to us the Absoluteness of our Creator.
The third aspect of the universe is vast distances yet in perfect harmony. The galaxy and stars are set at distances where many of them take light years to reach. All of them exist in perfect harmony.
The fourth aspect of the universe is the intermixing yet the things remain perfectly distinct. For example, our body is arranged in such a way that things are intermixed yet they are distinct. There is no confusion between the lungs, the heart, the kidneys, the nerve system, the blood system, etc.
The fifth aspect of the universe is immense abundance yet every single creation is uniquely precious. Can any physicist claim that I have seen one galaxy which is exactly like another galaxy? I have seen one organ exactly like another organ in the body of an animate being. Everything is unique and precious. Scientists estimate there are 500.000 different species of flies and there may actually be 5–10 million insect species worldwide, yet not one of them lacks perfection in their life styles, nourishments, reproductions, defense abilities unit themselves; none of them is the same.
All these qualities bear witness to the Absolute Oneness of the Creator of the universe. My conclusion is that only an Absolute Creator can do all this. In our astonishment and appreciation of the qualities we witness in creation, we must be prostrating every minute of our lives. That is why the quote from Nursi is so real for us human beings where our only option is to glorify the Creator of the universe. It is not that only the Qur’an tells us to do but our own experience and conclusion makes us confirm the Absoluteness of our Creator.