When He Invites You To What Enlivens You – Abdur Rahman’s Corner
Peace, one and all…
In Surah al-Anfal, we read the following words:
‘Believers, respond to God and His Messenger when he calls you to that which gives you life. Know that God comes between a man and his heart, and that you will be gathered to Him’ (Quran 8:24)
Imam Ja`far al-Sadiq (as) explains this powerful verse thus:
‘Life is life in God, and that is gnosis. As God, Most High, has said: ‘Verily, We shall enliven him with a good life’ [Quran 16:97]
Sitting with this beautiful ayah, and Hz. Imam’s exegesis, several things come to heart. Firstly, true life is life in God. The extent to which we are able to live in God, to live in presence, is also the extent to which we are truly living. From my own life, I recall moments of presence, and moments of dispersion. Presence is alive. Dispersion is life, but at a much lower frequency. Moreover, this is a hidden reality, not immediately obvious to others. Secondly, knowing this deeply is, itself, gnosis. Awareness of this state and its possibility is a kind of ma’rifa. As such, life in God means freedom from unhelpful, automatic behaviours – and indeed, from unhelpful, automatic thinking. That is, life in God is about awareness, it seems, about transforming robotic passivity into active, pregnant emptiness. To live fully in God, we have to do the work of ego transformation. Our nafs must become a willing, active servant in our own evolution. This growth is the ‘good life’ spoke of in Quran 16:97. Lastly, it is important that I get out of the way and let the Quran explain itself. If I want to understand the Quran, my first port of call has to be the Quran. This takes learning, growth and above all, time.
Allah is always inviting us to His door. The questions I must ask myself are these: am I actually listening? Am I actually responding? Is my response appropriate?
And our last prayer is in praise of God, Sustainer of all the worlds