Welcome to our weekly program "Path towards Enlightenment" in which we present you a fluent and easy-to-understand explanation of the ayahs of the holy Quran. First we listen to ayahs 25 to 27 of Surah Saba:

 “Say, ‘You will not be questioned about our guilt, nor shall we be questioned about what you do.”

“Say, ‘Our Lord will bring us together, then He will judge between us with justice, and He is the All-Knowing Judge.”

“Say, ‘Show me those whom you associate with Him as partners.’ No indeed! [They can never show any such partner]. Rather He is Allah, the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.”

In the previous edition of this programme we said Prophet Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny), in inviting people to monotheism, moral virtues and the path of righteousness, showed them how to use the gift of the intellect to choose the path of God by avoiding the pitfalls of vices and satanic temptations. The ayahs that we recited to you now mean to say that on the Day of Resurrection, everyone will be accountable for his/her choice during the life of the transient world, whether good or bad. The Almighty Creator Who is all aware of our deeds will judge on the basis of truth, wisdom and rationality. On that day the atheists will realize the folly of their thoughts, and the polytheists who used to worship the creation of their hands and the imagination of their warped minds, will realize the fatal mistake they had made in associating partners with Allah. But nothing will avail them on that day and the objects they had worshipped will be of no help to them.

From these ayahs we learn that:

1. On the Day of Resurrection, the judge is the All-Wise God and He will mete out justice, of course after showing His utmost mercy.
2. None of the imaginary gods and the objects of worship whom the polytheists had regarded as partners to the One and Only God will be of any help.

Now we listen to ayah 28 of Surah Saba:

“We did not send you except as a bearer of good news and warner to all mankind, but most people do not know.”

This ayah refers to universality of the mission of Prophet Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny). Although his early audience were the people of Hejaz, and the heavenly scripture sent down to him is in flawless Arabic, the message of Islam is not specific to the Arabs or any particular ethnic or lingual group, nor is it confined to the people of his times. Rather, the universal message of Islam is addressed to all humanity all over the world including the generations that will continue to arise till the end of the world.

The ayah says God has sent the Prophet of Islam as the bearer of good tidings for those who accept the truth, and at the same time he is the warner for all those who are trapped in vices, sins, and deviations, removed from the truth. But unfortunately many people are unaware of the role of faith and do not pay attention to these tidings and warnings.

From this ayah we learn that:

1. The mission of the Prophet of Islam is universal, and he has been sent as mercy unto all the creation.
2. Prophets convey the invitation of God to mankind, but do not force people to accept the truth, because as per the nature of human beings, belief should arise from the depth of heart and after rational contemplation.
3. Belief, if forced upon the people, would lead them towards hypocrisy, since whatever they are made to say would not be on the basis of conviction. 

Now we listen to ayahs 29 and 30 of Surah Saba:

“And they say, ‘When will this promise be fulfilled, should you be truthful?”

“Say, ‘Your promised hour is a day that you shall neither defer nor advance by an hour”

These ayahs address the issue of Resurrection, which will eventually occur, despite the denials of the disbelievers, since it is God’s promise to make truth prevail. As is clear from the ayah, it was the habit of the disbelievers to make a mockery of the Day of Resurrection by frequently asking the Prophets when it will come. In response, God means to say that like death which is certain and which no one knows for sure when they will die, the Day of Resurrection is a certainty that has its own unchangeable time, and will definitely occur, whether or not the disbelievers deny its occurrence.  

From these ayahs we learn that:

1. Only God knows the time of the Day of Resurrection, and even the prophets are not aware of its exact occurrence.
2. The very concept of Resurrection and the eventuality of the final judgment for determining the bliss of paradise for the believers and the punishment of hell for the disbelievers and intransigent sinners who die without repentance, ought to stimulate the minds of people for reforming themselves and rectifying their beliefs and behaviour, in order to avail of the mercy of our Loving Creator, rather than be raised to life on that day with empty hands and with either a blank report-card or a dark and blackened record of deeds.

AS/ME