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To you who are aspiring to the Truth, seeking Him sincerely, His words are directed. He guides you to
realize that: you are created to survive, and your life is eternal. Your earthly existence is a transient
phase within an everlasting life. You existed before the earthly phase, and you will continue to be after
it comes to an end. You are not mere physical bodies, you are spirits. You have celestial, and not only
material existence. You will take off your material existence one day and move to another world that has
its own laws. Every activity that man practices here on earth is transferred into an energy that he finds
in his company when he moves to the afterlife. He will find good and luminous energy or evil and gloomy
energy depending on the way he was while on earth. The coming life is an uninterrupted continuation of
this life. Verses of Koran say that when man leaves earthly life, “Then shall anyone who has done an
atom's weight of good, see it! And anyone who has done an atom's weight of evil, shall see it” (HQ:99: 7,
8). Your whole earthly life is a good chance for you to acquire an eternal life. God has given you His
Trust (the divine part in you) to be qualified for gaining eternity. Every moment of this life, every
gesture can be adding to your eternal existence if it were helping in making you develop into “better
beings” on all levels, and in all aspects of life, infinitely.
An approach to Religion, with no primary realization of the meaning of our life and the role of the
earthly existence in helping us gain real life, will never be appropriate. Islamic Teaching as revealed
by Prophet Muhammad, reveals the Eternal Law of life to man by revealing a comprehensive system of laws.
Part of these laws was revealed to man through his primordial nature, then Revelations came confirming
and crystallizing those laws. When man is in harmony with those laws he gains his real self and gains
real life.
From the perspective of guiding man to live in harmony with the natural laws, we can understand why
all the Islamic aspects of worship are associated with the rotation of the earth around itself, around
the sun, and the movement of the moon around the earth. Times of regular prayer in Islam go along the
rotation of the earth around itself within the twenty four hours: the dawn, noon, afternoon, sunset, and
night. Fasting month starts with the birth of the crescent announcing a new turn of the moon around the
earth within a month. Time of pilgrimage likewise is decided according to the movement of the moon around
the earth. Almsgiving time goes along with the movement of the moon around the earth twelve rounds; and
because it is done once a year it is also related to the journey of the earth around the sun within
twelve months. Along natural phenomena Muslims have sacred feasts that symbolize the correlation between
man’s life on earth and the natural laws that govern the whole universe. All aspects of worship in Islam
are so rich with symbols and meanings that can be perceived by man if he works his thinking, and consider
them deeply. Every aspect of worship in Islam is a very special “message”. When man “decodes” some of its
symbols and meanings it reveals to him more and more, infinitely. Decoding the message happens when man
is touched by its meaning, experiences it and is transformed by it. Decoding the message does not happen
by reading letters and words. Words are mere vehicles that transfer meanings to man when he truly hears
and perceives. If the issue were mere reading of words, the whole thing would be over since Scripture was
read by everyone. The main issue is how man can be attached to a higher spiritual source and receives
spiritual power. With that power, he receives, man is able to remember the meanings of true life (because
they are actually imprinted on the texture of his soul but he forgets them when he is devoted to the
physical existence). Our gathering is one means of being attached to the higher source. Together we are
open to receive more. The closer we are to each other the more we receive. When one of us speaks it means
that he is the first to hear, and with him we all hear the words of truth within. Actually the true
existence within us is the speaker and the hearer. There is a secret that makes the group more capable of
receiving from the higher source than when man is by himself. That is why God commands that we come
together when we invoke Him. “And hold fast, all together, by the Rope which Allah (stretches out for
you), and be not divided among yourselves; and remember with gratitude Allah's favour on you; for ye were
enemies and He joined your hearts in love, so that by His Grace, ye became brethren; and ye were on the
brink of the Pit of Fire, and He saved you from it.(HQ:3: 103) “The Rope of Allah” is love. Love keeps
all hearts attached to each other, willing to commemorate God, seek His face, and listen to His words.
The Rope is the faith in the Eternal Law of life, and man’s keenness to seek righteousness in every
action while here on earth. If we feel this way Religion will spring from within us, and all the teaching
will be a confirmation of what we actually are.
To Sum Up: as much as all aspects of nature are living according to unchangeable natural laws, man’s
life is controlled by One Eternal Law. While here on earth man can make use of every moment, every
gesture, and every action in gaining a step forward in the path of eternal life. Every action can lead
man to develop spiritually, ceaselessly. Because all Revelations reveal that Eternal Law that controls
man’s whole existence, they are actually manifestations of One Religion. That one Religion was manifested
in Revelations previous to Prophet Muhammad, and with him all the meanings, concepts, and symbols were
condensed and regulated. Islamic Teaching as revealed by Prophet Muhammad can supply the whole humanity
with all the concepts and guidance that man needs to experience in order to gain eternal life. In other
words Islam as revealed by Prophet Muhammad is a comprehensive manifestation of the Primordial Religion:
the Eternal Law of life. If we go beyond names and labels we will find but One Primordial Religion. By
Primordial Religion we do not mean the outer forms and shapes of worship, we mean the “truths” that were
revealed through Prophet Muhammad’s Revelation. Those truths complimented and integrated the truths that
were revealed through previous Revelations. All verses in Koran remind us that the main issue of all
Revelations is one, and that all prophets carried one message. Koran says: “The Messenger believeth in
what hath been revealed to him from his Lord, as do the men of faith. Each one (of them) believeth in
Allah, His angels, His Books, and His Messengers. "We make no distinction (they say) between one and
another of His Messengers." And they say: "We hear, and we obey, (we seek) Thy forgiveness, our Lord, and
to Thee is the end of all journeys."(HQ:2: 285)
We do hope that the world is awaken to realize that there is One Religion, and that humans should not
stick to false racial prejudices and insist on ignorance. The world should realize that the shared goal
among men is to know God, seek His face, and to gain Truth. The world has to realize that human brethren
should talk to each other with open minds, discussing their shared goal: how to be real humans whatever
were their nationalities, civilizations, origins, or environment. We do not say whatever their religions
are because Religion is One, the Eternal Law of life is One; and it applies to all men here and there.
We call upon (the world) to join together, and be patiently searching for the Truth. "O People of the
Book! come to common terms as between us and you: that we worship none but Allah; that we associate no
partners with Him;” (HQ:3:54); “And converse ye not with the People of the Book, except by telling them
what is better (HQ:29: 46). The better is the Religion of the primordial nature, the Religion of Truth,
and the Religion of life. It is the Religion that pulls in whoever attempts to defeat It, because It is
the Religion of reasonability, Truth, the ceaseless search for what is better. That Religion is like a
stranger now, because we carry the name but the way we are actually does not reflect Its truth. It is the
Religion of Life that (alas) we neither appreciate, nor realize, or seek sincerely.
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