THE verse in the Quran “Forgive our sins, absolve us of our misdeeds, and allow us each to die as one of the virtuous.” 3.193 concisely reminds us that our purpose in life is to worship Allah. Those who worship Allah without fail will have a beautiful end and beautiful things to look forward to in the hereafter. This world can deceive us temporarily but then there is this verse reminding us where we need to exert our energies. The people of intellect reflect on the creation & recognise that all this has not been made in jest. They remember Allah in all situations & make beautiful supplications for this world & the next.
Their purpose in life is more than just eating, drinking & enjoying family life. When we wake up first thing in the morning we should ponder over lessons from the Quran. Each chapter in the Quran including in the Surah Aal-e-Imran carries enough wisdom to illuminate our lives and in turn, our hereafter. Here is another lesson to learn from this beautiful and powerful chapter of the Quran:
“Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of the night and the day are signs for those of understanding.” Quran, 3:190. If we truly look at the plants, the trees, colours, scents, the light and darkness we will know there is only one Creator. It is important to always remember the purpose of life when we get distracted by work, play and family. The purpose is to worship Him alone and strive for His pleasure above all. In this verse Allah clearly asks us to reflect over everything we see around us: because in everything we see, are His signs.
“Those who remember Allah while standing, sitting, and lying on their sides, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth and pray, Oh Allah You have not created all of this without purpose. Glory be to You! Protect us from the torment of the Fire. Oh Allah whomever You cause to enter the Fire, You indeed brought disgrace to him, and there will be none to comfort the wrong-doers. Our Lord Indeed we heard a crier calling to the faith saying: Belief in your Lord; so we did believe. Our Lord, forgive us our sins, and wipe out our evil deeds and make us die with the righteous.” [Quran, 3:191-193]
This world is a test. Those who pass this test will be given something that is beyond the scope of their imagination. Every struggle and every pain will fade away in face of the reward promised by Allah. This world is a place of struggle. Paradise is to relax. Know whatever happens, however, low you feel or whatever the hardship you encounter in this life and when all people seem to break your trust: Allah made you promises and He will keep them. When you feel weak in will power to worship or do good deeds, get your act back together by reminding yourself that Allah will never allow one minute of work you did for His sake to be lost, your reward is stored with Him.
When we look at everything around us we see that it is all created for a reason and because mankind is given this sense of reasoning, it is only logical we will be asked about what we did with our wisdom. We will soon feel a strong conviction that the after-life is a reality and we will be asked about our deeds. We need to work for our Akhrah. We make this dua: Oh Allah Save us, from the Fire. Also pray Oh Allah forgive our sins and wipe out our evil deeds, so they do not even appear in Your book of records anymore and cause us to die with the righteous.
Oh Allah grant us what You promised us through Your messengers and do not disgrace us on the Day of Resurrection. Indeed, You do not fail in [Your] promise. And the Lord responded to them, Never will I allow to be lost the work of [any] worker among you, you are of one another. So those who emigrated or were evicted from their homes or were harmed in My cause or fought or were killed I will surely remove from them their misdeeds, and I will surely admit them to gardens beneath which rivers flow as reward from Allah , and Allah has with Him the best reward [Quran, 3/194-195]
We should not be deceived by the wealth and enjoyment of worldly life. It is but a small enjoyment; then their final refuge is Hell, and wretched is the resting place [Quran, 3: 196-197] But those who fear Allah will have gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding eternally therein, as accommodation from Allah . And that which is with Allah is best for the righteous [Quran, 3:198. Allah gives us a beautiful, comprehensive conclusion: be patient in both easy and hard times, keep your focus, know that life is temporary – remember all the promises in the former ayaat. Be brave against the enemies of Islam and think about Allah at all times. O’ you who have believed, persevere and endure and remain stationed and fear Allah that you may be successful [Quran, 3:200]
The believers are commanded to be patient in the religion that Allah chose for them, Islam. They are not allowed to abandon it in times of comfort or hardship, ease or calamity, until they die as Muslims. They are also commanded to endure against their enemies, those who hid the truth about their religion. May Allah enable us to revive the sunnah of reciting these ayaat when we wake, may we recite these ayaat with sincerity and may Allah give us an immense reward for them, ameen.
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