According to the Qur’anic or Islamic worldview, the human being – man and woman – is created by God in a naturally good and pure state, free from sin. This is called the state of fitrah. A babe at birth is totally innocent. He does not bear the sin or guilt of his parents or his ancestors. He starts off with a clean slate.
Good and Evil
The human being, as we mentioned earlier, was created with an inbuilt moral sense which allows him to recognise what is true and good from what is false and evil. ‘Good’ may be defined as whatever is pleasing to God and therefore beneficial to man. ‘Evil’ may be defined as whatever incurs the anger of God and is therefore harmful to man. Although God created mankind in a naturally good state, He also created him with the capacity or power to do both good and evil. He gave him the freedom to choose between doing good and doing evil. The existence of good and evil therefore is closely connected with man’s freedom of choice and responsibility for his actions. Evil comes from the intentions and actions of man. Evil does not come from God and God is not responsible for evil.
To preserve the pure and sinless state in which he was born, one of man’s main tasks is to keep away from or ward off evil. This is why taqwa, which is repeatedly stressed in the Qur’an , is the most important quality a person could develop in the relation to good and evil. Taqwa means to be conscious of God and to be careful of not overstepping the limits set by God. It is a defence against evil and temptation. It keeps man within the boundaries of his natural state. It is often difficult to remain within these limits because man, as we have mentioned, has the capacity or the power to go against his naturally good nature. He has a certain weakness from which all his major ills spring. This weakness is described in the Qur’an as da’f which also connotes ‘pettiness’ and ‘narrowness of mind’.
Man, if he is sensible, ought to follow his good nature and confirm this good nature with good intentions and actions. But he is often foolish and, encouraged sometimes by other foolish creatures, succumbs to his weakness and narrow-mindedness. This is expressed in pride, selfishness, hatred of others and other forms of evil. This in turn gives rise to greed, plunder, destruction, rapacious wars and other forms of injustice.
The more a person indulges in evil, the more ‘rust’ he accumulates on his pure heart until it may even become ‘sealed’ and impenetrable to good influences. Before this state is reached, a person may still have the opportunity to ‘return’ to his original good nature by repentance and good deeds. This is what the Qur’anic term ‘tawbah’ signifies – to return to one’s original good state. ‘Make tawbah, is the standard Islamic advice given to one who has erred.
Freedom and responsibility
We can see then that man was not created to be selfish and destructive. He was not created in vain, to live in hopelessness and despair. He was created with the noble and natural purpose of acknowledging an worshipping God. God favoured man with the power of intellect and honoured him by making him His khaliifah or steward on earth. Man thus enjoys an essential nobility and greatness over other creation. Being God’s khaliifah, he has a special role and responsibility to creation. Everything in the heavens and on earth has been put at the disposal of man as a trust or amaanah.
This trust requires man to live in harmony with the will of the Creator, in harmony with his own natural self and with the needs of the rest of creation. When man works for this universal harmony, he is a Muslim in the complete sense of the word. He is virtuous. On the other hand, when man works against this natural order, he creates discord, injustice and evil. He is vicious. By virtue of the intellect and the freedom of choice given to him, man is thus responsible for whatever he does.
The Future Life
It is unreasonable to expect that the virtuous and the vicious in this world should be treated in the same manner by the Wise, Just and Merciful Creator. This is why it is reasonable and natural to believe in a life after death and a judgement where all will be called to account for their deeds. Man’s responsibility and accountability is thus a major theme of the Qur’an.
The Qur’an asserts that a future life is both desirable and possible. If there is no future life in which the virtuous are rewarded and the vicious punished, there would no justice and there would be no purpose in creating men with a sense of responsibility and in sending prophets to them to remind them of their responsibilities. God says in the Qur’an:
‘What, does man reckon he shall be left to roam at will?’
‘What, did you think that We created you only for sport and that you would not be returned to Us?’
On the possibility of a future life and of resurrection, the Qur’an argues that if it is God who created man in the first place, why should it be impossible for Him to re-create him after he dies. Life after death is therefore an important part of the worldview of Islam.
From this brief description, we can therefore see that the Qur’an presents an integrated and harmonious view of reality. It describes the nature of God, the nature of the universe and the nature of man. It sets out the various choices and destinies open to man. It deals with the nature of good and evil. It deals with the causes of an individual’s happiness and discontent. It treats of societies and civilizations and points to the real reasons for their rise, decline and fall. Over and over, it encourages man to be mindful of his nature and his responsibilities and holds out the promise of eternal peace and satisfaction. Equally it warns of pain and punishment for those who transgress the limits set by God.
The Qur’an is not content merely to ask people to do good and eschew evil in a general way. It specifies the ways in which people can do good for their spiritual, physical, social, political and economic good. It specifies the ways in which they bring loss and destruction to their individual and collective existence. This is what gives Islam a certain stability. Its Ethical and Legal Code or Shari’ah contains not only detailed laws but fixed principles which define what is lawful and what is prohibited. All that it prohibits can be shown to be injurious to man and society and his environment. People are not left forever groping and experimenting.
Islam is capable of solving many of the problems that afflict individuals and humanity today. However, it is not just a set of solutions for problems but the natural way to all that is good in this world and the Hereafter. It is the way open and available to all men at all times who wish to learn the truth and shape all aspects of their lives by it.
‘For to God belong the east and the West and His mercy is near to all who call upon Him’.