2006, IV - The Muslim Sunrise

“O soul at rest thathas found comfortin God return toyour Lord, you wellpleased with Himand He wellpleased with you.Now join Mychosen servantsand enter into MyGarden”(89:28-31)“Every soul shall be paid in full” (2:281),(3:30); “As far those who say, Our Lord isAllah, and then remain steadfast, the angelsdescend upon them, saying: Fear not, norgrieve, and rejoice in the Garden that you werepromised. We are your friends in this life andthe Hereafter. Therein you will have that yoursouls desired” (41:31-32). “And no soulknows what joy of the eyes is kept hidden forthem, as a reward for their good works”(32:18).It is obvious that the term soul is frequentlyused (both in singular and plural forms) forliving person(s). The famous quote from theQuran:“Every soul shall taste of death” (3:185),(21:35), (29:57), clearly refers to everythingthat has life. Death of a person is mentionedat various places as death of a soul. Forexample, “And no soul dies but by the leaveof God, — a decree with a fixed term” (3:146).“And no soul knows what it will earntomorrow, and no soul knows in what land itshall die” (31:35). “We prescribed for theChildren of Israel that whosoever killed a soul(mun qatala nafsum)” (5:32). “You slay notthe soul God has forbidden” (6:152). “Mosessaid, My Lord, I killed a soul from among them(inni qatalto minhum nafsan)” (28:33).consistent striving, Soul reaches anelevated state of being firmly connected withGod. At this stage it is called the soul at rest –the contented souls (Nafse-Mutma’innah):“O soul at rest that has found comfort inGod return to your Lord, you well pleased withHim and He well pleased with you. Now joinMy chosen servants and enter into MyGarden” (89:28-31).Accountability of souls is one of the vastlydiscussed themes of the Qur’an. After assuringmankind that:“No soul is charged save to its capacity”(2:234), (6:153), (7:43). “And fear the daywhen no soul shall serve as a substitute foranother soul at all, nor shall intercession be14 MuslimSunriseaccepted for it; nor shall ransom be taken fromit; nor shall they be helped” (2:49).The believers are reminded to look aftertheir souls as they stand responsible for all theydid in this life (5:106) because:“God may recompense every soul for itsearnings” (14:51). “And let alone those whotake their religion for sport and a pastime, andwhom worldly life has beguiled. And admonishpeople thereby lest a soul be given up todestruction for what it has earned” (6:71). “Ifyou do good, it is your own souls you do goodto” (17:7), (17:15), (35:18), (39:41), (73:20).“Let every soul consider what it has forwardedfor the morrow” (59:18).Punishment and reward for the souls arefully covered in the Qur’an:But again, Soul (nafs) is something thatdeparts at the time of death:“And if you could only see, when thewrongdoers are in the agonies of death, andthe angels stretch forth their hands, saying,Yield up your souls (akhrijoo anfusakum)”(6:94). “Allah takes the souls of men at thetime of their death” (39:42).In the Qur’anic terminology, the term Soul(nafs) can also be translated as heart or mindor human conscience: “and whether youdisclose what is in your minds/hearts (fianfusakum)” (2:285); “They hide in theirminds/hearts what they disclose not to you”(3:155). “Allah knows best what is in theirhearts” (11:32). “Your Lord knows best whatis in your minds/hearts (fi nufuse kum)”(17:26). “And assuredly We have created manand We know what man’s mind (nafso ho)whispers in him” (50:17). “They denied them,though their souls acknowledged them”(27:14).The terms Spirit (Ruh) and Soul (Nafs) bothhave also been used in the Holy Quran withreference to God’s nature. The difference isthat God’s Spirit (Ruh) is always used as anoun, while God’s Soul (Nafs) is used as a