Surah 1-2 - YasSarNal QuR'aN

Al-Baqarah (The Cow) | THE MESSAGE SPELT OUTCommentators and scholars have spoken at length about the origin and creation ofthe heavens and the earth. They have spoken about the order in which various partsof the universe were created. They have delved deep into the possible ways in whichGod could have ‘turned’ to heaven and ‘fashioned’ it. However, they overlook thefact that such dimensions of time and space are meaningless in relation to God. Theseare linguistic terms used to bring infinite concepts into the sphere of our finite minds.Endless disputes have periodically erupted among Muslim scholars about these andsimilar terms, over many centuries. These are part of the unfortunate legacy of Greekphilosophy and Jewish and Christian theological and scholastic arguments that hadcrept into Arabic and Islamic thought and theology. Today, we would be betteradvised to avoid engaging in such futile debates, which can only mar the clarity offaith and destroy the beauty of the Qur’ān.We should, therefore, look for those facts, ideas and concepts that lie beyond theseQur’ānic expressions and relate to the creation of all that is on the earth for thebenefit of man. Let us look into the purpose of human existence and man’s great roleon this earth, and its value in the sight of God. What value does Islam attach tohuman beings, and what role does it assign to them in the social system?“It is He who created for you all that is on earth.” (Verse 29) The key words in thissentence are “for you”. They explicitly assert that God created man for a momentousand important purpose, placing him in charge of the earth’s affairs: to own it and toplay an effective part in it.Man is the master of this expansive earthly realm, and his role in its developmentand well-being is the most crucial of all. Man is the master on earth, and he is themaster of the tools that are available to him on it. He cannot become a slave to thesetools, as he is perceived to be by modern materialistic thinking. Nor is he subservientto, or dependent on, the changes or developments brought about by technology andtheir influence on human relations and societies, as materialists today would have usbelieve. Such thinking belittles man’s role, lowers his status in the world, and rendershim inferior to machines instead of being their master.No material value should ever supersede human values, or subjugate or dominateman. Any cause that aims to depreciate man’s worth is anti-human, no matter howmuch material advantage it achieves. Man’s dignity and integrity override allmaterial values and ideals, which are of secondary importance.The grace and honour implied in these verses, of which God reminds mankind,even while He denounces their rejection of Him, are not only reflected in the fact thatHe has provided them with all that is on earth, but also that He has appointed manits master and set him above everything else on it. This honour is represented by thefact that man has been delegated by God to rule over the earth.45