5.22 Mercy of Allah

The Sword of Intellect
Book - 5
Mercy of Allah s.w.t
Mohammed Fareeduddin Siddique

Book Number: 5 Document number: 5.22 Dated Updated: 28th May 2004.
[Mercy of Allah s.w.t]

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Mr. Know-it-all now has a question to God even. The term Mercy of God Almighty is grossly misunderstood to be Mercy even if you commit a heinous crime. Our questioner asks us how merciful Allah s.w.t is. One thing to note here is Allah s.w.t being merciful does not implies that he has lack of wisdom or lack of judgment. Mr. Know-it-all has summarized his questions thus: He has prescribed mercy for himself [6:12], yet he does not guide some, even though he could [6:35, 14:4]. The basic theme of Mr. Know-it-all question is that at one place, the Qur'an says: He [Allah] has inscribed [prescribed] for himself (the rule of) mercy. According to Mr. Know-it-all, if God really is as merciful as the Qur'an says then He should have guided all of mankind to the right path and thereby allowed them the everlasting bliss of the life of Paradise. But, the Qur'an says that this is not the case. It says that even though Allah could have guided all of mankind to the path of His liking, but He still did it not: ... If it were Allah's will, He could gather them together unto true guidance. ... Instead, the Qur'an says that, rather than guiding all of mankind to the right path, He guided whom He pleased and the rest He led astray, as is clear from one of the verses of the Qur'an which reads as: Allah leads astray whom he pleases, and he guides whom He pleases, ... Mr. Know-it-all writes: If it is Allah's will that some perish, if it is his will that some are not guided as 6:35 clearly says, how can ayah 12 of the same Sura be true, that He has prescribed mercy for Himself? Is it merciful to lead astray...? In the article that follows, I shall try to briefly present my point of view regarding the verses and the concepts that Mr. Know-it-all seems to have misunderstood, because of which he believes that the referred verses contradict each other. Every Surah of Quran [Spare 1] starts with the words In the name of Allah the most merciful the Most beneficent Let us list out all the verses in question before we proceed ahead. 006.012: Say: "To whom belongeth all that is in the heavens and on earth?" Say:"To Allah. He hath inscribed for Himself (the rule of) Mercy. That He will gather you together for the Day of Judgment, there is no doubt whatever. It is they who have lost their own souls, that will not believe. 006.035: If their spurning is hard on thy mind, yet if thou wert able to seek a tunnel in the ground or a ladder to the skies and bring them a sign,- (what good?). If it were Allah's will, He could gather them together unto true guidance: so be not thou amongst those who are swayed by ignorance (and impatience)!
Page 2 of 8 ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ DISCLAIMER: This document in not intended to hurt any sects religious, emotional feelings. Any thing that is written by a human being is susceptible to errors (like the present day Bible). If there is any truth in this paper, then it is from Allh [ ,] the typo errors (if any) are from myself, Allh [ ] forgive me for my human / typo errors. I can be contacted at mailto:author@fareedsiddique.com. I will be happy to clarify any doubts from my Christian friends in particular and all others in general. Fareed Siddique

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014.003: Those who love the life of this world more than the Hereafter, who hinder (men) from the Path of Allah and seek therein something crooked: they are astray by a long distance. 004 We sent not a messenger except (to teach) in the language of his (own) people, in order to make (things) clear to them. Now Allah leaves straying those whom He pleases and guides whom He pleases: and He is Exalted in power, full of Wisdom. The basic questions are from two surahs of Quran Al Ana am 06 and Surah Ibrahim 014 These are the three verses on the basis of which Mr. Know-it-all has pointed out the said contradiction in the Qur'an. These three verses, as is quite obvious, deal with two separate phenomena. One is the obvious corollary of Allah's Mercy (the first verse), and the other is the wisdom behind the Allah's law regarding guidance of the human soul in the life of this world (the second and the third verse). Now, obviously, being merciful does not automatically imply lack of wisdom. What it does imply is that the wisdom should not negate mercy in anyway. As shall be seen in the following paragraphs, the two [i.e. wisdom and mercy] go hand in hand, and are in no way mutually exclusive or contradictory. Allahs s.w.t Mercy as said by the Qur'an: The Qur'an says that God is Most Merciful. He is Rahmaan and Raheem. Rahmaan means that the extent of His Mercy is beyond our comprehension. He is infinitely Merciful. While Raheem means that this level of His Mercy extends forever, it shall never reduce. According to the Qur'an, some of the signs of God's Mercy are that: His Providence and His blessings in the life of this world are not limited to those who submit to His commands. He is the Provider for everyone, whether a person is faithful to Him or whether he rejects His call. He does not punish the sinners for their sins immediately He gives them respite and time to correct their behavior; When a sinner turns to Him and asks His forgiveness with an honest heart and a sincere resolve to correction, He not only forgives his sins but also converts his bad deeds into good ones. When a person calls Him with a sincere and an honest heart and asks for His guidance, He opens the doors of His guidance for such a person. He does not put a man in such a situation where he is forced to lose his faith in Him; He does not hold man responsible for something that is against the commands of Allah, if man is forced to do such evil by external conditions [Like in Abu Gharib prisons]. He does not hold man responsible for something that is against the commands of Allah, if such evil is done in ignorance. He sent His prophets and messengers for man's guidance to the path of His liking. He rewards man for his intention of doing good, even though man is not able to carry out his intention.

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I am sure if a person looks at and around himself, he shall find innumerable items that are a sign of God's infinite Mercy. If our eyes see and our ears hear and our touch feels, and our tongue tastes and our hearts beat, it is only because of His infinite Mercy. He has provided everything that was not only essential for our subsistence on this earth but also that which makes our stay on the earth comfortable and enjoyable. He has filled the heart of parents with the love that a child needs. He has provided water with the quality to quench the thirst of a dry mouth. And He has bestowed trees with the cool shadow to provide the wayfarer a respite from the burning sun. He has given us our senses, He has bestowed on us the faculty of reason and, most of all, He has given us this life; A life which we never want to let go. The Qur'an also tells us that one of the obvious corollaries of God's Mercy is justice. Thus, the Day of Judgment; the day on which good and evil shall be separated and shall be given their respective rewards; according to the Qur'an is an essential requirement of God's infinite Mercy. The Law of Guidance of the Human Soul: The first part of the law of guidance of the human soul pertains to the freedom of choice that God has given man in a particular sphere. The Qur'an tells us that the life of this world is a test. Man is given this life and is bestowed with all the good things in life not because he earned these good things, but to be tested as to how he uses these things. The good times and the bad times in this life are generally distributed among individuals not as a reward or a punishment for their deeds, but to test them regarding whether they are thankful when given good times and whether they remain steadfast in the way of their Lord, when given bad times. The Qur'an tells us that for the purpose of this test man was given freedom to choose in a particular sphere -- especially the sphere in which he was being tested. Thus, man may, if he chooses, turn away from the right path or he may submit to its demands. God Himself gave man this freedom. If God had so wanted, He could have made all men follow the right path. But that would effectively have meant that man was not given any freedom to choose. And without this freedom the human soul could not have been tested. In such a case, all men would have been good, not by choice but by default. Reward or punishment would then have become meaningless. Thus, even though God could have guided all men to the right path, He did it not, so that man could be tested effectively and so that his good and bad deeds be truly called his own and so that he be rewarded for opting for the good and punished for opting for the evil. This is exactly what the following verse means: Had God pleased, He would have guided them all [to the right path].... (Al-Anàam 6: 35) The second part of the law of guidance of the human soul is that God opens His doors for guidance only to those who prove themselves deserving of this favor. If man honestly searches for the truth, God shall guide Him to the right path. But if man is wary of the truth, God shall only increase his hatred for the good. This law of guidance of the human soul has been explained by Dr. Khalid Zaheer, in one of his articles titled "The Qur'anic Law of Guidance", in the following words:

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According to the details available in the Qur'an on the nature of the law, each individual who has been put through the test of this worldly life has been provided with adequate abilities to distinguish right from wrong, truth from untruth. However, since the this-worldly part of man's life was meant to be only a trial in God Almighty's plan to decide as to who from amongst the human beings are going to be found deserving the privilege of entry into al-Jannah and who are not, wrong and untruth were allowed to be shrouded under tempting, attractive appearances. Thus, to tell a lie in many worldly situations accompanies some immediate material gains, while to tell a truth, it requires the truthful to make sacrifices in doing so. However, those who are declining to follow the right behavior for worldly gains have been provided with enough abilities to know from within their souls that what they are doing is in fact hideous. Therefore, an individual's act of lying, for example, may bring some immediate worldly benefits for him on the one hand, but would also be accompanied by a feeling of guilt in his conscience on the other. This voice of the conscience continues to condemn if the individual continues to defy its verdicts, although each subsequent stroke of conscience-pricking if ignored is likely to be less pronounced than the earlier ones. In other words, the facility of self-correction from within is not available to individuals unconditionally and endlessly. If the voice of the conscience is valued by the individual through his positive responses to its calls, it grows in strength. If it is ignored, it gets weaker until such time that it finally disappears into extinction. Likewise, if an individual demonstrates his willingness to respond to the calls of his conscience, no matter what the consequences, and as a result even when he commits a crime against its verdict, he earnestly regrets and corrects himself, this inner facility not only survives but grows from strength to strength. For such people the path of truth and righteousness is not only familiar but extremely pleasing. Thus, whenever the ultimate truth in the form of the message of a prophet of Allah approaches them, they find no hesitation in recognizing and acknowledging it. They, in fact, find it so familiar that they do not notice any variance between their inner conscience and the contents of the message. Accordingly, the message appears to them most convincing and appealing. Thus when Allah's message is presented before individuals, their responses are in direct correlation with the state of their conscience. There are some who give an immediately positive response. Such are the people who had preserved the sanctity of their conscience by always respecting the truth and nobility. Since they were always accustomed to acknowledging and respecting the truth, when the clearest manifestation of truth is presented to them, it is no wonder that they unhesitatingly incline towards it. It is an inviolable law which is enforced through subtle manipulations in the human feelings ultimately affecting the behavioral pattern of individuals. The application of the positive aspect of the law in an individual not only helps him in realizing the veracity of the truth, it furthermore leads him to the higher levels of achievement of it. Thus their life in this world is a spiritual journey made easier (tayseer) enabling them to be taken from the darkness of relative untruth towards the ever-brightening light of truth. But for those who have been consistently ignoring the truth in its different manifestations, they do not get the privilege of welcoming the message of Allah, the highest level of truth. It

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is as if when a student fails at a lower grade examination, he cannot be expected to make it to success at a higher one. They are not only deprived of acknowledging the truth, but are furthermore allowed to plunge into the ever-deepening darkness of ignorance (imhaal). However, it seems that not every one belongs to the category of people who possess the highest level of nobility of heart. There are many others who despite having duly respected verdicts of their conscience on many occasions, did show a tendency of going on the wrong side as well to fall into the trap of doing acts that were not acceptable to the conscience. Thus their inner souls are not as unmistakably clean as of those belonging to the first category. At the time when they are confronted with the message of truth, they are not as immediately clear about its veracity as is the case of those belonging to the first category. They might, therefore, hesitate, to begin with, in accepting it, even to the extent of apparently denying it. However, on later reconsideration, they realize that their earlier decision was incorrect. Thus they too ultimately get the privilege of acknowledging and valuing the truth. The Qur'an says, " And there are others who have confessed their faults. They mixed good works with others that are evil. It may be that Allah will turn to them with compassion. Surely Allah is Most Forgiving, Merciful.(9:102) As for those who have lost the true sifting ability of their souls as a consequence of their persistently wrong behavior, since their inner realization has perished, they do not find themselves able to appreciate the purity of the message that comes from Allah. The Qur'an mentions the description of a group of such people belonging to the tribe of Quraish thus: "So comply not with the wishes of those who reject (the Truth). They wish that you should compromise so that they may also compromise. Do not pay heed to any mean swearer, backbiter, one who goes about slandering, forbidder of good, transgressor, sinful, crude, and above all mean and infamous. Only because he possesses riches and children. When Our signs are recited before him, he says 'Tales of the ancient.'" (68:8-15) On another occasion it is mentioned thus: "Ah the woe that day for those who deny, who call the day of judgement a lie! None denies it but the wicked, the transgressor. When Our revelations are recited before him, he says: 'Fables of long ago.' No. In fact what they have been doing has rusted their hearts." (83:10-14) Even if people belonging to this category apparently accept the truth, it is only for worldly benefits and not for genuine consideration of acknowledging the voice of the truth. The Qur'an says, "When the hypocrites come to you, they say, 'We confirm that you are the messenger of Allah.' Allah indeed knows you are His messenger. Allah bears witness that hypocrites are indeed liars. They have made their oaths a shield, thus they obstruct others from the way of Allah. It is certainly evil what they do. That is because they came to believe, and then disbelievd, so their hearts were sealed and now they do not understand." (63:1-3) Those who deny the message of the prophets, they still get the opportunity from God to consider accepting it for a while. On persistent denial, however, the inner conscience begins to lose its God-given ability and when their intransigence goes beyond a certain divinely established limit, the inner damage is rendered irreparable. It is an inflexible aspect of the law of guidance in the case of such people that, as the Qur'an informs us, Allah seals their hearts, their ears and their eyes, such that they do not get any further opportunity from Him

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of acknowledging the truth. All attempts to bring them close to faith fail, because the inner ability that could enable them to acquire it has disappeared for ever. As a consequence the Qur'an informs us that Allah has, "... raised a barrier in front of them and a barrier behind them, and have covered them over so that they are not able to see (the truth). Whether you warn them or do not warn them, it is all the same; they will not believe." (36:9-10) They are described by the Qur'an as worse than beasts (7:179, 25:44, and 8:22) since they have allowed themselves to remain deaf, dumb and blind to the ultimate truth despite being blessed with such faculties which, if they were properly used, could have lead them to appreciating it. This is the basic outline of the law of guidance of the human soul. God gives guidance to man or leads him astray on the basis of this law. No one, even if he be a prophet of God, can influence Him in the implementation of this law. This is exactly what the verses, like the third cited verse (Ibra'heem 14: 4) mean. In the particular environment in which the Qur'an was revealed there were at least two groups who believed that they were the chosen one's of God. One were the Bani-Israil -- the Jews -- and the other were the leaders of Quraish. Both these classes of people tried to convince their followers by saying that if Mohammad (pbuh)'s message was really a blessing of God, and then no one could have surpassed them in accepting it. If God had chosen them to be the leaders over others during the past many centuries, then how anyone could; especially the poor and the homeless; surpass them in this case. It is primarily as a reply to such idiosyncrasies of the two groups that the Qur'an has stressed that no one has a monopoly over God's guidance. God guides and leads people astray, according to His own laws, and in the implementation of His laws, no one can have any influence on Him. He cannot, in anyway be bound by the likings of others. He is completely free in this implementation and does exactly how He pleases. It is to signify this fact that these verses in a number of instances are followed by the following attributes of God: Waasiànd àleem, (as in A'l Imraan 3: 73) meaning "Liberal" or "One whose mercy is not limited" or "Munificent" and "All Knowing" or "Omniscient" zul-fadhl al-àzeem, (as in A'l Imraan 3: 74) meaning "One with infinite or abounding grace"; àleem and Hakeem, (as in Al-Insaan 76: 30) meaning "All Knowing" or "Omniscient" and "All Wise"; and àzeez and Hakeem, (as in Ibra'heem 14: 4) meaning "Mighty" and "All Wise". The first set of attributes at the end of such a verse signifies that God's mercy is not limited to a particular people [as the Jews and the leaders of the Quraish would like it to be]. He is All Knowing, He guides whom He, according to His absolute Knowledge, knows to be deserving of this favor. The second attribute at the end of such a verse signifies the same meaning as "Waasi`". The third set of attributes at the end of such verses signifies that God knows who is deserving of His favors and that all His laws and decisions are based on infinite wisdom. While the fourth set of attributes at the end of such verses signifies that God is absolutely independent of any influence in the implementation of His laws. He is the Mighty. And all His laws and decisions are based on infinite wisdom.

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In the light of the explanation given above, we can say that the contradiction pointed out by Mr. Know-it-all is actually based on an incorrect understanding of the cited verses. Because these verses relate to separate phenomena, therefore there does not arise the question of any contradiction(s) whatsoever our Mr. Know-it-all has posed. When we know well that God Almighty Is the most merciful, why you Mr. Know-it-all and your fellow Christians do not revert to Allah s.w.t as good Muslims? O my Learned Christian readers and Mr. Know-it-all, do you really want shirk of Saul of Tarsus in your lives? Would you take man-made lies instead of truth in your lives? Do you have any sense of reason? Do they have any thinking-heads? Does God stop you from thinking reasonably? Or would you like to regret in the hereafter. They will say, "If only we had really listened and used our intellect, we would not have been Companions of the Blaze." (Noble Quran, Surat al-Mulk: 10) or would the followers of St. Paul like to regret! O Mr. Know-it-all ! Respond to your Lord before a Day comes from Allah [,] which cannot be turned back. On that Day you will have no hiding-place and no means of denial. (Noble Quran, Surat ash-Shura: 47) I invite you, O my Christian readers, to use your intellect and be a true believer, a truthful submitter to your God Allah [ .] May Allah [ ] bestow upon you his mercy and help you understand the fallacies of the Christian Pauline religion of Saul of Tarus...Ameen, ya Rabbiziljalaal. Allah [ ] makes it very evident for you "W e shall show them Our signs on the horizons and within themselves until it will become clear to them that it is the Truth. Does it not suffice that your Lord is Witness over all things?" The noble Qur'an, Fussilat (41):53. "Verily! this Qur'an guides to that which is most upright, and gives glad tidings to the believers who work deeds of righteousness that theirs will be a great reward" The noble Qur'an, Al-Isra (17):9 Sadakhallah alazeem. Color codes in this document: Red italics are the words of the present day bible KJV / RSV. Blue italics are the Holy verses of Quran Al-Kareem, Translations by Yousuf Ali / M. Pickthal. Normal blacks are my words, bolded emphases are added from my side. In this paper I am referring the name of the Author of the Anti-Muslim web sites as Mr. Know-it-all for the sole purpose of ease of my readers understanding.

5.22 Mercy of Allah

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The Sword of Intellect

Mercy of Allah s.w.t

Mohammed Fareeduddin Siddique

[Mercy of Allah s.w.t]

[Mercy of Allah s.w.t]

[Mercy of Allah s.w.t]

[Mercy of Allah s.w.t]

[Mercy of Allah s.w.t]

[Mercy of Allah s.w.t]

[Mercy of Allah s.w.t]

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