The purpose of our Creation

 By Dr. Abdullatif Aljibury 

Oftentimes one wonders about one’s place in this planet earth and how one fits in this gigantic Architecture of our multidimensional Universe. As an individual one feels so insignificantly minute that one is forced to wonder as to the purpose of one’s existence within this Vast Creation. Once a lead is found, then one can proceed to see how one can aspire to meet the challenge and take the steps necessary to fulfill one’s obligation each in his or her own God’s endowed capacity.

To see how best one can go about answering the question and because of the enormity of the task, thinking and reflecting alone is agonizing and futile without seeking the help and inspiration of The Creator. After all, it is He who has created us and has equipped us with hearts and minds and set the standards for us to work and achieve whatever tasks He has assigned for us that fit the purpose for which we have been created. It becomes obviously clear that the best and most direct path that will lead us to the right answer is to look for it in His revelation and specifically His word in the Holy Quran.
Lo and behold and addressing this very issue God, the Almighty, has given us a clear answer in Chapter 51 verse 56 (5:56):

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنْسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ

“I have not created the Angels and the Humans except to worship Me.”

So, unequivocally, the purpose of our Creation is to worship God Almighty. Therefore, the essence in the purpose of our creation is to unlock what God meant by “worship Me!” Consequently, we will be on the right track if we submit to him and follow His directives, guidance and commands as are clearly spelled out in the Quran.

In the preparation and to qualify for the task first and foremost is to be steadfast in our faith and to believe in God as the One and only so as to be aware of His Omnipresence in our daily life so that our hearts, minds and souls are in constant harmony and in communion with Him throughout our lifetime.

By performing our daily prayers that are essential and basic part of our worship we are constantly conscious of God so that we are synchronized in our awareness of His Omnipresence and see what God sees and to hear what God hears and do what God intends for us to do and in compliance with His Grand design in His Creation. In addition to the daily prayers that God has prescribed as basic acts of worship we must be actively involved in the betterment of society by alleviating hunger through rendering charities according to one’s God given abilities, whether material or intellectual for which acts we will be generously rewarded with subliminal spiritual felicity, grace and tranquility and enhancing our standing in this life and the hereafter (2:2-3).

ذَٰلِكَ الْكِتَابُ لَا رَيْب ۛ فِيهِ ۛ هُدًى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ   الَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ الصَّلَاةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَاهُمْ يُنْفِقُونَ

This is the Book; in it is guidance sure, without doubt, to those who fear Allah;

Who believe in the Unseen, are steadfast in prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them;

Another basic act of worship, as described in the Quran (103,3) is to enjoin the Truth and hold onto it and promulgate it to be the standard to all actions and rhetoric. This tenant spreads out to encompass the root of the precepts of good deeds and flourishes into all the good physical and intellectual acts that will result in an orderly, productive and peaceful World. To carry out this hefty task we need to nurture and exhibit, as is clearly spelled out in this verse, another very basic trait in one’s behavior which is to face the everyday challenges with enduring and resolute patience.

To continue on our path of worship it is imperative to point out at the outset that God has entrusted humans to be his vicegerents and trustees on earth {2:30):

وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ إِنِّي جَاعِلٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً

And when thy Lord said unto the angels: Lo! I am about to place a viceroy in the earth,  

Therefore, to live up to our assignment we need to carry out missions and tasks that are necessary for the proper maintenance of our trust for a healthy environment and to uphold The Balance of His Creation as He commanded in chapter 55 verse 9:

وَأَقِيمُوا الْوَزْنَ بِالْقِسْطِ وَلَا تُخْسِرُوا الْمِيزَانَ

“And establish weight with equity and do not compromise the balance.”

Therefore, from this vantage point that all tasks and actions that we take are to be commensurate with protecting the world and its varied constituents, to establish order and harmony. The task is very challenging and must be commensurate with one’s God given abilities. This point becomes clearer as we progress in our quest.

As we continue on our path in search for acts of worship in the Holy Quran, our mission begins to unfold and the choice becomes quite apparent.
From the very beginning of the revelation of the Divine Writ God has assigned to mankind and ordered us (96:1-5) to

اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ  خَلَقَ الْإِنْسَانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ  اقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ الْأَكْرَمُ 

الَّذِي عَلَّمَ بِالْقَلَمِ  عَلَّمَ الْإِنْسَانَ مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمْ

“Read in the name of your Sustainer, who has created the human out of a germ cell.

Read for your Sustainer is The Most Bountiful One, who has taught the use of the pen,

taught the human what he did not know.”

It is worthy to note that His command for learning by reading and writing is a universal command. It is addressed to all humans of all genders and all ages. Therefore, the act of learning which has been given this eminent stature, at the very start of His weighty revelation to humankind, is well understood as it has been the work engine that continues to generate the scientific discoveries which have enabled mankind to acquire knowledge that God has made accessible through “the use of the pen.” The fact that He mentioned the process of creation of the Human from a germ cell, is pointing to us that through the scientific means of research and discovery we can unlock the mysteries of His Creation. Whatever knowledge that we shall acquire through reading and writing and whatever new discoveries that we make to unlock and fathom the secrets of His Creation will make us the more appreciative of the wonders of His Creation and to be closer to Him and to be of service to Him and to whosoever He wishes us to serve as an outcome of our dedication in His worship.

Through this act of worship, and through the proper use of the discoveries that ensued as a result of these discoveries, mankind has been enabled to know about the functioning of the world that we live in and to discover the truths in the surrounds of His Creation and to unlock the mysteries of our vast Universe. In so doing, God has made it possible for mankind to be able to fight disease and hunger and open new venues for social development and understanding between people of different ethnicities and speaking different languages and be able to communicate between people who live thousands of miles apart.

As we delve more in this subject matter to identify more of the acts of worship, one thing that comes out as common criteria for His worship is that all are acts of a true believer and exemplify the true believer’s way of life which are not only of benefit to the individual worshipper but are acts that bring about order and well-being to the human community and the environment as well as the entire world. These acts turn out to be the sum total of how we are structured to live our lives properly and in a way that meet the requirement of a balanced life and live up to expectation of our Creator in line with our duties as His trustees. These acts, when closely scrutinized turn out to be what the faithful and wise follow in their day to day living.

These acts are non- extreme that neither bend towards the physical aspect of the human life nor to the spiritual and monastic pursuits.2:143

وَكَذَٰلِكَ جَعَلْنَاكُمْ أُمَّةً وَسَطًا لِتَكُونُوا شُهَدَاءَ عَلَى النَّاسِ وَيَكُونَ الرَّسُولُ عَلَيْكُمْ شَهِيدًا

“and thus We have willed you to be a community of the middle way so that you bear witness to the truth before mankind and that the Apostle bears witness to it before you.”

Chief among the duties of the worshipper is to advocate and encourage acts of good deeds and shun and discourage acts of evil and bad deeds. In fact all acts of good deeds are but forms of worship for the fulfillment of which God has created us. Not surprisingly, our acts of worship turn out to be the tenants of a conscious individual who undertakes acts and carry them out with the best of his ability that give rise to a successfully structured family which forms the basis of a just and equitable society, (6:152)

...وَأَوْفُوا الْكَيْلَ وَالْمِيزَانَ بِالْقِسْطِ ۖ لَا نُكَلِّفُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا ۖ وَإِذَا قُلْتُمْ فَاعْدِلُوا وَلَوْ كَانَ ذَا قُرْبَىٰ ۖ وَبِعَهْدِ اللَّهِ أَوْفُوا  ذَٰلِكُمْ وَصَّاكُمْ بِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ

 “ … And in all your dealings give full measure and weight with equity, however we do not burden any human being with more than He can bear , and when you voice an opinion, be just even though it be against next of kin, and fulfill your covenant with God which He has enjoined upon you so that you fully keep it in mind.”

In dealing with others, the individual faces a severe test to live up to the expectation of the redeemer in ways that will shape the outcome of a successful and a well- structured society.