IV
Hukm Wa
Iqamat
(Molding
the personal life of the individual
and the collective life of
the community according to the teaching of the Qur’an)
We have already considered three of the duties we owe
to
the Qur’an and now we proceed to consider the fourth. It is
that we should act upon
its teachings. Obviously, we
are required to believe in the Qur’an, study
it,
and ponder over its
meanings in order that we may act upon its teachings in our
actual life. The Qur’an is not a book of
magical formulas or
mantras which are chanted to ward off evil. It is
not a mere instrument for the attaining
of blessings. Its ayaat are
not to be recited only for the sake of getting a reward from Allah (SWT)
or for reducing the agony
of death. Nor is it a subject of investigation and research in the sense that it should provide a good exercise to our intellectual and imaginative faculties so
that we could
indulge in
all sorts of abstruse thinking
and useless hair-splitting in the interpretation
of its meanings.
The Qur’an, as we all know, is huda lil-naas, guidance for mankind. The purpose for which this Book has
been revealed will be realized only if people act upon its teachings and make it a guide for them in every
sphere of their life. The Holy
Prophet (SAW) has made it crystal clear that no useful purpose
will be served by reading the Qur’an and pondering
over
its meaning if
we
do not try to
mold
our lives according to
its
injunctions. If we disregard its injunctions, the reading
of the Qur’an, instead
of doing us any good, will undermine our
faith. In this context, the
Holy Book speaks in
unequivocal terms:
…and whosoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed,
such are the disbelievers. (Al-Ma’idah 5:44)
We have further clarification of, and emphasis over this point in
the
following traditions of the Holy Prophet (SAW):
None of you can become a believer until all his desires are
subordinated to
what I have brought
(i.e., the Revealed
Guidance). (Narrated in Sharah Al-Sunnah)
One who deems lawful what the Qur’an declares unlawful is
not a believer in the Qur’an (i.e., in reality, he does not hold it to be a Divine Revelation.) (Narrated by Tirmidhi)
The
case of a person
who is
still exploring
and wandering in quest of truth, and has yet to decide after a careful
study of the Qur’an whether it is the absolute truth
or not, is different.
However, the person who believes the Qur’an to be the Book of Allah (SWT) cannot benefit himself from it at all unless he studies it with a firm resolve that, however heavy the odds and however great the sacrifices, he would abide by its injunctions and modify his character according to its teachings. As we have already stated while explaining the literal meaning of the term tilawat, the Qur’an yields its perfect guidance only to those who abandon themselves to it and pore over it long and assiduously. Self-abandonment combined with a prolonged concentration born of a deep cultivated self-discipline generates that state of submissiveness and self-effacement which has been referred to in the above-quoted tradition viz: “None of you can become a believer until all his desires are subordinated to what I have brought.”
However, the person who believes the Qur’an to be the Book of Allah (SWT) cannot benefit himself from it at all unless he studies it with a firm resolve that, however heavy the odds and however great the sacrifices, he would abide by its injunctions and modify his character according to its teachings. As we have already stated while explaining the literal meaning of the term tilawat, the Qur’an yields its perfect guidance only to those who abandon themselves to it and pore over it long and assiduously. Self-abandonment combined with a prolonged concentration born of a deep cultivated self-discipline generates that state of submissiveness and self-effacement which has been referred to in the above-quoted tradition viz: “None of you can become a believer until all his desires are subordinated to what I have brought.”
Source:The Obligations Muslims owe to The Quran (Book by Dr. Israr Ahmad)
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