2.40. THE DAY OF ACCOUNTABILITY (to be continued)

God says

Verily, We have warned you of suffering near at hand – [suffering] on the Day when man will [clearly] see what his hands have sent ahead, and when he who has denied the truth shall say, “Oh, would that I were mere dust…! -- Q.78:40

Woe unto those who give short measure: those who, when they are to receive their due from [other] people, demand that it be given in full – but when they have to measure or weigh whatever they have to give to others, give less than what is due!*
-- Q.83:1-3

*This passage (verses 1-3) does not, of course, refer only to commercial dealings but touches every aspect of social relations, both practical and moral, applying to every individual’s rights and obligations no less than his physical possessions.


Prophet said

According to a Tradition quoted by Tirmizi and Ibn Hanbal on the authority of Abu Hurairah, on the Day of Judgment the earth will bear witness, as it were, to all that has ever been done by man.

“Everyone will be resurrected in the condition in which he died”. – H; Muslim. N: Jabir.

2.40. THE DAY OF ACCOUNTABILITY (to be continued)

God says

[Think now of] the time when He shall gather you all together unto the Day of [Last] Gathering – that Day of Loss and Gain! -- Q.64:9

O you who have attained to faith! Ward off from yourselves and those who are close to you* that fire [of the hereafter] whose fuel is human beings and stones…. Q.66:6
*Lit., “your families” or “your people”.
A warning for the believers!

Consider these [messages] that spread the truth far and wide, and thus separating [right and wrong] with all clarity* and then giving forth a reminder, [promising] freedom from blame or [offering] a warning!**
Behold, all that you are told to expect will surely come to pass. – Q.77:3-7

*Lit., “with all separation” (furqan): Cf. 8:29 “O you who have attained to faith! If you remain conscious of God, He will endow you with a standard (furqan: faculty of moral evaluation) by which to discern the true from false,”
** I.e., showing what leads to freedom from blame – in other words the right conduct – and what is ethically reprehensible and, therefore, to be avoided.

Did We not destroy [so many of] those [sinners] of olden days? And shall let them be followed by those of later times:* -- 77: 16,17
*The use of the conjunction thumma – which in this case has been rendered as “And”-- implies that suffering in the hereafter is bound to befall the sinners of later times (al-akhirun) even if God, in His unfathomable wisdom, wills to spare them in this world.


Prophet said

“…he whose account will be strictly taken will be ruined” – H: Baihaqi and Muslim. N: Bibi Ayesha.

2.40. THE DAY OF ACCOUNTABILITY (to be continued)

God says

Now as for those who indulge in sinful doings – do they think that We place them, both in their life and their death, on an equal footing with those who have attained to faith and do righteous deeds?* … Q.45:21
*The meaning is twofold: “that We consider them to be equal to those who …”, etc., and “that We shall deal with them in the same manner as We deal with those who…”, etc. The reference to the intrinsic difference between these two categories with regard to “their life and their death” points not only to the moral quality of their worldly existence, but also, on the one hand, to the inner peace and tranquility with which a true believer faces life’s tribulations and the moment of death, and on the other, to the nagging anxiety which so often accompanies spiritual nihilism, and the “fear of the unknown” at the time of dying.


Who is it that will offer up unto God a goodly loan, which He will amply repay?*
For such [as do so] shall have a noble reward on the Day when thou will see all believing men and believing women, with their light spreading rapidly before them and on their right, [and with this welcome awaiting them:] “A glad tiding for you today: gardens through running waters flow, therein to abide! This, this is the triumph supreme!”
On that Day shall the hypocrites, both men and women** speak [thus] unto those who have attained to faith: “Wait for us! Let us have a [ray of] light from your light!” [But] they will be told: “Turn back, and seek a light [of your own]!*** … Q.57:11-13
* Identical phrase has been used in 2:245. In the present instance the meaning is apparently much wider, applying to all that man may do selflessly, for the sake of God alone. Whereas in 2:245 it is parabolically connected with the subsequent call to the faithful to be ready to lay down their lives in God’s cause: an illustration of the fact that fear of physical death leads to the moral death of nations and communities, just as their regeneration (or “coming back to life”) depends on their regaining their moral status through overcoming the fear of death.

**Meant here are, apparently, not only outright “hypocrites, but also people who, being shaky in their beliefs and uncertain in their moral convictions, are inclined to deceive themselves.

***I.e., “you should have sought light while you lived on earth”.


Prophet said

“O God! I declare sinful any failure to safeguard the rights of two weak ones, namely, orphans and women”. – H: Nisai. N: Abu Shuraih Khuwalidi Ibn Amr Khuza’i.

2.40. THE DAY OF ACCOUNTABILITY (to be continued)

God says

Every human being is bound to taste death: but only on the Day of Resurrection will you be requited in full [for whatever you have done on earth] – whereupon he that shall be drawn away from the fire and brought into the paradise will indeed have gained a triumph: for the life of this world is nothing but an enjoyment of self-delusion -- Q.3:185

But he who commits a fault or a sin and then throws the blame therefor on another innocent person burdens himself with the guilt of calumny and [yet another] flagrant sin. --Q.4:112

Now whoever surrenders his whole being unto God, and is doer of good withal, has indeed taken hold of a support most unfailing: for with God rests the final outcome of all events. -- Q.31:22
*All forms of verb “aslama” occurring in the Quran, and terms muslim and Islam, repeated in the Quran several times, are translated in accordance with their original connotations, namely, “one who surrenders [or “has surrendered”] himself to God”, and “man’s self-surrender to God”. It should be borne in mind that the “institutionalized” use of these terms – that is their exclusive application to the followers of the Prophet Muhammad – represents a definitely post-Quranic development and, hence, must be avoided in the translation of the Quran.


Prophet said

“Wealth does not (necessarily) cause evil… Whoever acquires it lawfully and spends it lawfully, how excellent is his labour….” – H: Bukhari and Muslim. N: Abu Sayeed.