THE ROAD TO PARADISE
Beset by Challenges
THE world of nature is a zero defect world. In it, there are all kinds
of activities, but they do not produce any noise pollution. It has
‘factories’ operating round the clock but they do not produce
any smog. There are many great industries, but they do not sully the
water. For millions and millions of years, the world of nature has
been functioning, but without causing any deterioration. All its parts
are active, but we do not find anywhere that they have such a thing
as a labour problem. The world of nature, although ephemeral, is
nevertheless a complete world.
Of the numerous things in this world, everything has taken its ultimate
shape. We cannot think of any other colour for the sky except blue.
Neither can we think of any other colour for light and water. We cannot
think of any other form which the grass or the trees could have had.
Nor can we think of any other colour for the
vegetation but green. Even our greatest artists
could not produce any other model for the
ants or the tiger, for the deer or the elephant
or the birds. It is a fact that everything in this
world has been cast in its final mould. We just
cannot think of a better model for anything
that exists in this world of nature.
The present world,
in actual fact,
makes Paradise
understandable to
us. It is not Paradise.
But man often
mistakes it for his
destination, and his
life thus becomes
one of missed
opportunities.
Sometimes things happen which appear to be
undesirable, for instance, landslides, floods,
droughts, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes,
etc. Therefore, the opinion of some is that,
the world of nature is not evil-free. But such
remarks are the result of misunderstanding. In
fact, such apparently unwanted occurrences
are either to maintain a balance in the world of nature, or are aimed at
giving man a lesson—to cut him down to size. Such events, therefore,
are desirable so that the natural state of the world may be maintained.
In contrast to the above, the human world is beset by many flaws
and all kinds of defects and shortcomings, as a result of which man is
continually faced with a state of unrest. Our human world is marked by
the recurrence of the many unpleasant events. Here, there is suffering,
old age, accidents and death. Life is marked with all kinds of misery
and fear. Even when there does not appear to be any problem, there is boredom and tension which in themselves are unbearable. The human
story is one of continual effort to overcome this state of discontent.
Everyone cherishes a dream of a perfect world for himself.
When we look at the human world in comparison to the world of
nature and are aware of the fact that man dreams of a perfect world,
we get to the question—is there a perfect world? In answer to this the
beautiful world of nature in itself can be understood as a possibility of
the existence of a perfect world. But, why is our human world full of
imperfections?
The reason is the world of nature is governed by fixed laws and one can
predict their pattern; an example to understand this would be the fact
that man is able to predict the eclipses of the sun and the moon with
precision and prepare calendars for the years ahead.
In contrast to the above, as man is bestowed with freedom one cannot
predict consistent behaviour. The whole history of mankind is full of
incidents of man’s misuse of freedom and unpredictable behaviour.
The only exception being a few individuals who have lived a God
oriented life by surrendering themselves to God and living a life without
misusing their freedom. Such precious people
will get their desire fulfilled in a perfect world
in the kingdom of God, which is Paradise.
The Creator of the
universe made
another world
besides the present
one, in accordance
with the desires of
human beings. That
world is free of all
kinds of limitations
and disadvantages,
including fear
and pain.
Paradise puts an end to the contradiction.
The Creator of the universe made another
world besides the present one, in accordance
with the desires of human beings. That
world is free of all kinds of limitations and
disadvantages, including fear and pain. There,
man will have every opportunity to live to his
full capacity. His being will have its fulfillment.
It is moreover an eternal world, where one
shall remain young forever, and old age
will not afflict one any longer. One shall not
fall victim to any decline or decay. Paradise
signifies a perfect world of eternal comforts
and pleasures for man, a world invested with a meaning far greater
even than that immanent in the natural world. Paradise is an eternal
abode: a perfect place for all kinds of happiness and comforts. It is the
realization of human dreams of finding an ideal world. If the present
world is a ‘thorn,’ then the world of Paradise is the ‘rose’. Paradise is a
heavenly colony where peace, love and noble character prevail.
Perhaps it is this divine plan which has thus been alluded to by Jesus
Christ in these words:
Pray to God in these words: Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be
Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as
it is in heaven. (MATTHEW 6: 9-10)
The present world is just an introduction to Paradise. It is not Paradise
in itself. The present world is a passageway and not the destination.
It is the place for preparation, and not for reaping the harvest. The
present world is full of limitations. It does not have the means to fulfill
the unlimited desires of man. It has all the means of subsistence at the
animal level, but does not have the spiritual necessities of the higher
level for man.
In this world everyone suffers frustration and failure. The reason is that
everyone wants to find his desired world here itself, whereas the present
limited and ephemeral world is not created for this purpose. That is
why, despite all efforts, one fails to find one’s
dream world in this life. The present world, in
fact, makes Paradise understandable to us. It
is not Paradise. But man often mistakes it for
his destination, and his life thus becomes one
of missed opportunities.
A paradisiacal
person, that is,
one fit to inhabit
Paradise, is such
an ardent seeker
of Paradise that he
begins to feel as if he
is living in Paradise
while remaining
physically in this
world.
It is a waiting room and not the final
destination of the journey. The question,
“Who am I?” is asked by everyone, consciously
or unconsciously. The answer is: "I am a
traveller to Paradise". This world is a pathway
and Paradise is its final destination. Man has
come here to tread this path while on his way
to eternal bliss.
The animals have no consciousness of tomorrow. They live only in their
‘today’ and die in their ‘today’. Whereas, man has a sense of tomorrow.
Man cherishes a very pleasant consciousness of tomorrow, an aspiration
towards a better day, or the fulfillment of his dreams. All human beings
strive hard to make their tomorrow better and better. But they do not
find this ‘tomorrow’. The reason being that this ‘tomorrow’ is not to
materialize in this world, but will come into existence in the eternal life
to come, i.e. in the Hereafter.
However, the entry to the Paradise of the next world is not open to
all, being on a selective basis. It is only those who, in their life before death, come up to the standard of the citizenship of Paradise, who
will be granted an abode in this perfect world. Entry to this world of
Paradise has been restricted. It will be given only to those pure souls
who have brought with them the necessary qualification.
What is the necessary qualification and who are the pure souls?
The qualifying factor is for man to discover God who is in the unseen
and voluntarily surrender himself before Him. He should adopt divine
ethics without any external pressure to do so. He should develop his
intellectual and spiritual being to such an extent that he produces
in himself, the ability to inhabit the refined world of Paradise. Of
the inhabitants of this world, only those will find a place, who have
succeeded in maintaining a high moral character.
The qualifying
factor is for man to
discover God who is
in the unseen and
voluntarily surrender
himself before Him.
One who is able to discover Paradise, begins
his life in Paradise from this world itself. Here,
he will have the pleasure of its intellectual
discovery; and after death he will have the
pleasure of actually experiencing it. Today,
he is blessed with peace of mind; tomorrow
he will experience this peaceful life in his
external world also. Today he has the full
satisfaction of conviction at the intellectual
level, tomorrow he will find an opportunity to
live in the pleasures and comforts of practical life. Today he is living
in a world of limitations, tomorrow he will find an unlimited world
in which to live forever, in total freedom. Today he finds Paradise in
the intellectual sense, tomorrow he will find it in the practical sense.
Indeed, there is nothing greater than this for man.
Such are the souls who have discovered God, and whose greatest
concern is the Almighty. They worship only the one God, and devote
their lives to improving their intellectual and spiritual abilities to a
high degree. They have shunned the life of falsehood and adhered
steadfastly to the way of truth, staying away from hypocrisy and
remaining resolutely on the path of sincerity. They have adopted the
path of honesty throughout their lives; and have of their own imposed
the divine discipline upon their words and deeds. They reserve their
feelings of love and fear exclusively for God. Their life and death is
for truth. They do not live their lives for anything less than the higher
cause.
Their activities are Hereafter-oriented rather than world-oriented.
They succeed in steering clear of all negative feelings such as hatred, jealousy, prejudice, selfishness and other such shallow thinking, and
raise themselves to the highest moral level. They associate themselves
with people for the sake of truth and distance themselves likewise for
the sake of truth. They give and take for God alone. Their lips open for
the truth alone. They follow the way of forgiveness and not of revenge
in this world and do not embroil themselves in the attractions of the
world, but fix their gaze on the Hereafter in all situations.
A paradisiacal person, that is, one fit to inhabit Paradise, is such an
ardent seeker of Paradise that he begins to feel as if he is living in
Paradise while remaining physically in this world. If he has found
Paradise in terms of such a feeling, in the next world he will physically
become a resident of Paradise.
When this paradisiacal personality develops in human beings, their
intellectual plane reaches such heights that everything becomes
immaterial. They do not find any fulfillment in the material things of
the world. Owing to their heightened consciousness, they realize that
the present world is not the place that they have been created for.
Their hearts cry out to God: “O God! Bestow on us, the Paradise of the
Hereafter. Give us a place in the world of Your neighbourhood.”
God’s angels will welcome those men and women, who reach the
Hereafter with all the above qualities. The angels will come forward and
say: “Congratulations, O Blessed Souls! Enter God’s heaven by divine
decree. Here, there is no death and no parting from this joyous world.
The eternal life has been given to you for all eternity.” The Quran says:
O Soul at peace! Come to your Lord well pleased, and He will also
be well pleased with you. So enter among My chosen servants.
And enter My Garden. ( 89: 27-30 )
For one who has no concept of Paradise, total satisfaction in this
present world will turn out to be a lifelong quest, that will end in failure.
People expend all their energy in its pursuit, but they fail to construct
this dream world for themselves.
According to the Quran, after death everyone will discover that
‘tomorrow’. Those who have prepared for it will meet with all kinds
of success there, while those who have not made the necessary
preparations will be doomed. In the world of the Hereafter, all evil
people will be separated from the good. They will be denied all the
good things of that life.
