Thankfulness IF you were to enjoy a delicious meal and then say ‘Alhamdulillah’ in thankfulness to God, then this would be gratitude at a very base level. This is because the gratitude is based on taste

front of them and be reminded of the entire structure and organisation set up by God that made it possible to get the meal. God has set up a natural process that miraculously culminates in the conversion of

plate in its original form and by itself could not have been a source of energy for us. Consequently God has established a unique system to process the food in our body—the digestive system. This digestive

phenomena in the universe. The very fact of settling man on such an exceptional planet indicates that God wants to bestow on him some gift of an exceptional nature. That is, to create a unique world in the

limitations, an everlasting manifestation of God’s perfection. Now the question arises, who are those fortunate souls worthy of such special treatment by God? The present world provides us with the answer:

answer: The present world is a model of the heavenly world, the world of God’s choice. The perfect world of Heaven will be inhabited by those souls who are blissfully free of worldly considerations, who can

QURANThe Book of God WHEN the Prophet Muhammad claimed that the Quran was a divine book revealed to him by God for the guidance of man, there were many who did not believe him. The scriptures to them were

Instead, the revealed Book of God was made into the Prophet’s miracle: They say, ‘Why has no sign been given to him by his Lord?’ Say, ‘The signs are in the hands of God. I am but a plain warner.’ Is it

it. No one has been able to take up this challenge, and produce anything comparable to the Book of God. The greatest substantiation of the Quran’s claim that no one would be able to write a work like it

THE WORD OF GODFrom The Scriptures The Quran is the book of God. It has been preserved in its entirety since its revelation to the Prophet of Islam between CE 610 and 632. It is a book that brings glad

spiritual and intellectual level. Translated from Arabic and commentary by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan It is God who has subjected the sea to you so that you may sail thereon by His command, and so that you may seek

heaven and on the earth to you; it is all from Him. In that are signs for those who ponder. (45: 12-13) God has made water subject to such natural laws that large ships may sail back and forth across deep oceans

DISCOVERY REDISCOVERYWhen God made a covenant with the prophets, He said, “Here is the Book and the wisdom which I have given you. When there comes to you a messenger fulfilling that [predictions about

and accept the responsibility I have laid upon you in these terms?” They said, “We will affirm it.” God said, “Then bear witness, and I will bear witness with you.” (THE QURAN 3: 81) THIS verse from the

periods, the communities (ummah) of the prophets follow religion only because they were born into it. God does not require this inherited religiosity. That is why it becomes necessary for people of later generations

countering extremism and conflict resolution. THE QURAN THE Quran, addressed to humankind, tells us of God’s scheme for human existence—man is placed on earth for the purpose of being tested. The freedom he

books were sent by God so that man might be informed of the nature and purpose of his life. The teachings of the Quran can be summed up under two basic headings: 1. Believing in one God and worshipping Him

and actions of the Prophet Muhammad. The most repeated invocation in the Quran is “In the name of God, the most Beneficent, the most Merciful”. The occurrence of this invocation 114 times in the Quran

life. Those who play the role of God’s sign-posts appear to be in great suffering. But there is good news for them. On the Day of Judgment their deeds will be accepted by God. They may not have been able to

perform great deeds, but their patient and silent suffering will be accepted by God. Patience and willingness to endure what God had destined for them will alone suffice to gain entry into Paradise. The knowledge

SALVATION IN THE HEREAFTERThrough God’s Mercy Alone THERE is a saying of the Prophet of Islam that appears in many books of Hadith. In Sahih-al-Bukhari, the words of the Prophet are translated as: It is

Paradise or save you from the fire of Hell, nor will it be for me, except when it is through the mercy of God. From this and many other similar sayings of the Prophet, we learn that Paradise is not a recompense

Paradise is not granted solely on the strength of a person’s deeds, it is granted by the compassion of God. The worth of any number of deeds—however great they may be—can never be equivalent to the value of

THE DUTY OF MUSLIMS TO MANKINDTHE mission of Muslims is dawah or the communication of the Word of God. It is in its performance that they will be held deserving of being raised in the Hereafter as the

to convey the divine revelations to the people. This is the task which God wants Muslims to perform. According to the Quran, God has made the Muslims a middle nation, so that they may act as witnesses

thus in a hadith: “You are God’s witnesses on this earth.” All the problems which Muslims face in this life have a common solution — in the form of calling people to God. It is a known fact that