— Quran 26:7-8
(Source: ssiddiqui90, via bak1ava)
Walaikum Assalaam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu brother/sister,
I hope you’re well by the grace & blessings of Allah.
Due to this being is a slightly more complex question to answer than those I have received in the past, I would like to begin with the following beautiful du’a:
رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي وَيَسِّرْ لِي أَمْرِي
Rabb-ishrah li sadri, wa yassir li ‘amri“O my Lord! Expand me my breast; And ease my task for me”
(Surah Ta-Ha, 20:25-26)
I will try to answer your question to the best of my ability In shaa’ Allah, however it would be helpful to know the age of your brother so that I don’t use language or concepts that may be too complex for him to understand. In any case, I’ll try to keep it as simple as possible.
Foremost, Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala tells us in the Qur’an,
“And I (Allah) created not the jinn and humans except that they should ya’budoon (worship) Me.”
(Surah Adh-Dhariyat, 51:56)
And as we are all know, this is the sole purpose of our creation, and the reason behind His placing us on earth.
Furthermore, Allah tells us,
“The sovereignty on that Day will be that of Allah (the one Who has no partners). He will judge between them. So those who believed (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism) and did righteous good deeds will be in Gardens of delight (Paradise).”
(Surah Al-Hajj, 22:56)
The relationship between the two verses above is as follows:
“Allah created man and man belongs to Him. He (subhanahu wa ta’ala) ordained that one day man shall die and return to Him. This world is a transitional period. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) wanted man to shape his life according to what He (subhanahu wa ta’ala) had decreed. This is the meaning of worship. Worship requires absolute obedience, humility and love for Allah, Who promised an Eternal life in Paradise for those who obey and worship Him alone, and an Eternal abode in Hell for those who reject Him and His orders:
‘So those who believed (in the Oneness of Allah) and did righteous deeds will be in Gardens of Delight (al-Jannah, Paradise).’
(Qur’an, 22:56)
‘But those who disbelieve and belie Our Ayaat (proofs, evidences, verses, signs, revelations, etc.) such are the dwellers of the Fire, they shall abide therein forever.’
(Qur’an, 2:39)
Man’s life at home, as a farmer, a car-dealer, an electrician, a computer consultant, a president, a company’s C.E., a spouse, etc., has to abide by a way of life according to the guidelines Revealed by Allah. He is the one who defined what is good and what is bad. He stated that:
‘Whoever works righteousness, whether male or female, while he (or she) is a true believer (in the Oneness & Uniqueness of Allah), verily, to him We will give a good life (in this world with respect, contentment and lawful provision), and We shall pay them certainly a reward in proportion to the best of what they used to do (i.e., Al-Jannah).’
(Qur’an, 16:97)
The Revelation contains all the details about what is good and bad. It is not left for the limited nature of man to define what is good and what is bad:
‘And We have sent down to you the Book (the Qur’an) as an exposition of every thing and a guidance, Mercy, and glad tidings for those who have surrendered (to Allah as Muslims).’
(Qur’an, 16:89)
‘The command is for none but Allah. He has commanded that you worship none but Him (i.e. Pure Monotheism), that is the (true) straight religion, but most men know not.’
(Qur’an, 12:40)
Allah made it clear that:
‘Whosoever does righteous good deed it is for (the benefit of) his own self, and whosoever does evil, it is against his own self, and Your Rabb (Lord) is not at all unjust to (His) slaves.’
(Qur’an 41:46)”
[Taken from: The Purpose of Creation & the Return to the Creator by Dr. Saleh As-Saleh, 2nd Edition]
(Source)
As is made apparent above, Allah informs us that our goal on earth is to worship Him & Him alone, and that is the foundation of Islam, Tawheed. And He will grant Paradise to those who adhere to His command, and follow the example (Sunnah) of the Messenger of Allah (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam). This is the relationship between our worship (ibadah) of Allah and earning a place in Jannah.
Secondly, it’s crucial to understand that Allah is not in need of us, rather we are in need of Him, and our dependency on Allah is only for our own benefit.
As mentioned in the Qur’an:
“O mankind! It is you who stand in need of Allah, but Allah is Rich (Free of all wants and needs), Worthy of All Praise.”
(Surah Fatir, 35:15)
Dr. Saleh As-Saleh (rahimahullah) explains:
“Man always looks for what benefits him and what protects him from harm. However, to accomplish this, man must be able to realize what is harmful. He must then know whom he should need, trust, and love so that he can attain what is beneficial as well as feel good about his choice. He also must know the proper and good approach that would make him achieve this goal. This latter condition requires that man:
- Know about harm
- What ways can be used to drive harm away
Certainly, man can have no better guidance than that which comes from the One Who has perfected everything, and the One who Has No deficiency in Himself nor in His Attributes. The One Who is Ever-Living and who does not die. There can be no One better than the One Who Has no need for anything; the One Who is Rich; the Giver, the One Who, after all, controls man’s soul, and runs all affairs. Man is so poor to Him. He is Allah, the True and only God.
Man can bring harm to himself if he seeks other than Allah for help. Allah is the One Who can help man drive away any harm for it cannot occur without His Will and His Power.
Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) sent down His Books and chose His Messengers to guide man to:
A) Know His Lord
as He (subhanahu wa ta’ala) has explained about Himself, and
B) Seek Him Alone while living in accordance with His plan.
Knowing Allah’s Names and Attributes liberates man from worshipping any form of creation because creation is weak and imperfect and is in need of the Creator, Allah. The knowledge about Allah leads man to know that he is created to live according to Allah’s way as revealed to the last Messenger, Muhammad (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam).
This Revelation contains a complete code of life. Everything that is beneficial or harmful is established so that man can focus his life around this Revelation. If man commits wrong and knows that Allah is Oft-Forgiving he would turn to Him and to Him Alone seeking His forgiveness:
‘Know, therefore, that there is no God who deserves to be worshipped except Allah; and ask forgiveness for your sins.’
(Qur’an, 47:19)
It is wrong to think or believe that Allah created other “gods” besides Him so that man turns to them for help, loves them or fear them, etc. He is the same God of all nations. He does not order that people should make of stars, sun, fire, Jesus, Moses, etc. gods besides Him. He (Most Exalted) cannot be “contradictory.” He has one way (religion) that calls man to surrender his will only to Him.
He (subhanahu wa ta’ala) warned that if man, even Muhammad (sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and any Prophet or Messenger, would take partners with Him, then his work will fail and he will be among the losers:
‘And verily, it had been revealed to you (O Muhammad) as has been revealed to those before you: If you join others in worship with Allah (then) surely (all) your deeds will be in vain and you certainly be among the losers. Nay! But worship Allah and be among the grateful.’
(Qur’an 39: 65-66)”
(Source)
Our code of life and guidance has been presented from Allah in the form of the Qur’an & Sunnah, and in order to life a righteous & moral life, and attain the reward of Jannah, it is incumbent upon us to adhere to both.
Once we have attained Jannah however, we will leave this dunya and therefore no longer be bound by its limitations, tests, and trials.
Jannah is a perfect abode, and so too will our lives be free from imperfections as it is a reward from Allah the Most Merciful for our conduct in this dunya. Since Jannah is a place of beauty, tranquility, and a reward for adhering to Allah’s commands on this earth, which was/is ultimately for our own benefit, there will be no requirement to worship Allah in the manner in which we done have on earth.
As for whether there will be any form of worship in Jannah itself, Allah knows best.
For further information on this subject, please see the following:
In shaa’ Allah, I hope I was able to answer the question! Please feel free to send another message if the above doesn’t suffice or isn’t simple enough. And Ameen to your du’a!
May Allah forgive me if I have made any mistakes in the response above, and all good is from Him alone.
— Surat al-Waqi’ah (56:59-60)
(Source: zaytouneh, via honeststrangers-deactivated2012)
— Quran 16:40 (via quranquotes)
(via yourquotesonislam)
