We believe that a true and comprehensive
understanding of Islam would not be possible without careful recognition of the
Prophetic Tradition and the Prophet's Household. And Allah is the Source of Strength.
Questioning Creation?
" Why did God create us, and then test us, and will then Judge us?
A question i do not like to answer, for how can we in our capacity give explanations for the acts, desires and decisions of the Almighty and Omnipotent? Our answer will never fully make comprehend the wisdom of Allah and his actions.
However, here are two possible answers out of many.
The first, as we tried to explain "He only says to It, Be, and It is", absolute authority does not require any reason for an action, else it looses its essence of absoluteness. So to simply put, he created us, then tested us and will then judge us, simply because He can.
Before we make the second attempt to answer, it is important to understand a paradigm.
In the football worldcup final, i made my debut in the same team as the worldclass messi. Our team lost the worldcup match. Although messi scored 2 goals, he missed one very easy chance which could have changed the story of the match. I on the other hand, had an awful night, made many mistakes and was substituted out of the game as well. After the game, who will be criticized more by pundits and fans, myself or Messi? Naturally messi, as he was expected to outperform everyone yet he made a very basic mistake and missed the chance which costed the team the game. Despite his 02 goals, Messi will be criticized.
Now the second answer; Allah was not the creator before he created. Of all of his attributes, all knowing, all seeing, all powerful etc, he did not become the creator until he created. And when he created, he created the best, or one of the best. And when the best was created, it was challenged by one of the other creations (angels and iblis), eventually the angels prostrated and iblis challenged the wisdom of the creator.
In the Proposition What
Am I Worth,
a Man's worth is assessed in the light of the fact that Allah had created the
day, the night, the sun and the moon, the wind and the cattle, all for us
humans.
Quoting from that proposition, He made the stars to guide me at night (Quran
6:97), and my mate so that I could love (Quran 7:189), and my sustenance for my
survival (Quran 15:20), and cattle to carry my load and feed me and cloth me (Quran
16:5), and the rain to give me drink (Quran 16:10), and the sea to provide me
with ornaments and flesh (Quran 16:14), and the fruit so that I can obtain
goodly provision from it (Quran 16:67), and my shelter (Quran 16:80), and the
night so that i can rest peacefully (Quran 25:47).
Additionally, man has been created in the best make (Quran 95:4) and we have been given an appropriate excellence over most of what Allah has created (Quran 17:70).
Not to forget the fact that despite faith in Angels of Allah a fundamental faith a man must have, angels prostrated to Adam (AS), angels brought message to men (Prophets) for the sake of other men (their guidance), angels take a man's soul at death and note the deeds of men. Angels have been working for the purposes of men.
If Messi was criticized more than myself, because he had been paid exorbitantly, given all the time, resources, expertise and finances to train into a fit athlete, the team strategy was built around him, he was given the team captaincy, and he had been bestowed with natural talent and skill as well as the best coaches, physios and dieticians, it was expected of Messi to utilize all of it and produce it into something for which he was given all of this, an excellent game, a victorious end result. If he fails to do so, he is liable to all of the criticism and scrutiny and repercussions vs when compared to a naive player.
Man therefore has been God's creation that God chose over many (if not all), that God has given many things (if not all things). It is therefore expected of this man to utilize all of it and produce it into something for which he has been given all of this, to prove the argument of God, his wisdom, to be right.
What should then happen to the creation who justified the arguments of the deceiver who challenged the creator himself? Iblis asked for respite till a certain time, during which he will deviate the best of creations of God, which shall prove his arguments against the will of the creator, to which Allah gave the respite to Iblis, to do his works, while Allah did his. "
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