Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Fear

Surah 59 verses 18-24

18. Oh you who believe! Fear God, and let every soul look to what (provision)he has sent forth for the morrow. Yes, fear God, for God is well acquanited with all that you do.

19. And be not like those who forgot God, and he made them forget themselves! Such are the rebellious transgressors!

20.Not equal are the companions of the fire and the companions of the garden: It is the companions of the garden that will achieve felicity.

21. Had we sent down this Quran on a mountain, surely you would have seen it humble itself and cleave asunder for fear of God. Such are the similitudes which we propound to men, that they may reflect.

22. God is he , than whom there is no other god; he knows all things both secret and open; he, the most gracious, the most merciful.

23. God is he than whom there is no other god; the sovereign, the holy one, the source of peace and perfection. The guardian of faith, the preserver of safety, the exalted in might, the irrisistible, the justly proud, Glory to God! (High is he) above the partners they attribute to him.

24. He is God the creator, the originator, the fashioner, to him belong the most beautiful names: whatever is in the heavens (universe) and on earth, does declare his praises and Glory: and he is the exalted in might, the wise.

"The deep ethico-religious value of the fear of God, the lord of the day of Judgement, is largely due to the fact that it cannot but arouse in the mind of the believer a clear consiousness of life and incite him to moral ernestness and responsibility. Act always as if you were standing at this very moment before a divine Judge, before the judgement seat of Allah on the day of reckoning"----Toshihiko Itsuzu, The ethico-religious concepts in the Quran.

Taqwa =God awareness---Love of God that fears dissapointing him.



William Blake wrote

"Love seeketh not itself to please,

Nor for itself hath any care,

But for anotehr gives its ease,

And builds heaven in hells despair"



So sang a little clod of clay,

Trodden with the cattles feet,

But a pebble of the brook,

Warbled out these meters meet,



"Love seeketh only self to please,

To bind another to its delight,

Joys in anothers loss of ease,

And builds a hell in heaven's despite."




It is only when we truly care about someone that we worry about dissapointing them---their opinion of us matters because their love and approval matter. But not all love is other-centered.


"Love" can be divided into 2 types, the self-love and the selfless-love , the first type strives to fullfill the needs and desires of the self, the 2nd type strives to fulfill the needs and desires of the other. When we speak of Love of God---there is a problem because God has no needs or desires. So how do we express "Love of God"?---By willing submission (Islam). God has given us the Guidance, the Criteria (Furqan) to follow (which is for our own benefit) and by doing that, we hope to seek his pleasure. The other side of the "Love of God" is fear. The fear of dissapointing him, the fear of incurring his displeasure. When these two aspects are in balance--it creates harmony---we are neither filled with overconfidence/arrogance nor are we filled with despair.

The more we practice "love of God"---by willing submission/Islam---the more we become aware of his love, compassion and mercy. Our hearts fill with gratitude for his blessings , but this must be balanced with humility/awe of God. When we see only God's blessings, we can become proud/arrogant---and consider ourselves the special/beloved of God. This creates an imbalance/distortion. In order to restore harmony, both gratitude and humility must be balanced .

"humility, that low sweet root,

from which all heavenly virtues shoot" ---Thomas Moore.