There are so many instances in the Holy Quran and the Sunnah, where Allah Almighty stresses the interconnectedness between the two- with Dunya (life) representing the platform through which humankind practice their Deen; the law they abide by and adhere to in their living.
The inherited misconception of a seeming “split” between Deen “religion”, and Dunya “life” never ceased to prove erroneous. There are so many instances in the Holy Quran and the Sunnah, where Allah Almighty and His Prophet (pbuh) stress the interconnectedness between the two- with life representing the realm or the platform through which humankind practice their Deen; the law they abide by, and the method they adhere to in their living.
Idiomatically, Deen means a way of life or method to be fulfilled, so it’s strictly tied to a set of practices man follows during the course of his life. And as an Islamic term, Deen, or Religion, means the Law according to which Muslims are either rewarded or punished in this life and the hereafter.
It is highlighted in a variety of ways, directly and indirectly, in the Qur’an and the Sunnah, among other Islamic Legislative sources, that the Deen is the living manual and the source of light for people guiding them to salvation and enlightening them as to what earns them God’s satisfaction and what causes his Wrath, God forbids. It also guides them as to how to live this temporarily life, protecting their rights, telling them of their duties, and demystifying many truths about this transitional phase leading to an everlasting Paradise or Hell. Hence the Law of Islam or
Deen is for this life, it is to be applied during this life, and its result of its application is to be reaped in the hereafter.
This is the first argument proving the falsity of the claim detaching Deen from Dunya. The Deen has been ordained for the Dunya, and Dunya is the only possible realm of application for the Deen- as for the Hereafter, it is for Judgment, reward, and punishment.
Islam is an all-encompassing religion and way of life, covering all fields of living; let them be financial dealings, socio-political matters, human rights, spirituality, mental dilemmas, manners, or even health advices. So it’s a cohesive legislation and law safeguarding the order of this life.
Adhering to God’s law and Shariah, and this shouldn’t be restricted to Hudud and the set of punishments of major sins in Islam, ensures optimum protection to human rights, balancing the order of all fields of life, let alone preserving individuals’’ freedom and dignity and shielding them against the control of any person or institution. It’s the One’s law, and it’s the One’s will that makes things happen or put them to a halt.
Applying the Deen, furthermore, can be referred to as a practical assertion to a genuine and complete submission to the will of God and His commands.
Allah says in the Qur’an:
“Say (O Mohammad): “I have been commanded to worship Allah, making my Deen sincerely to Him, and commanded to be the first of His obedient-servants.”– (Quran 39:11)
The process of sending Messengers and Prophets with revelations from Almighty Allah went on unabated since the beginning of creation. Prophet after the other were sent down carrying messages of guidance and enlightenment, bringing resolution to much of the disputed matters of life, and putting an end to a variety of barbaric practices that inflicted all sorts of harm on humanity at large, setting up the law, or Deen, which only came into completion and perfection with the advent of the concluding Prophet, Muhammad Ibn Abdullah (peace be upon him).
“O followers of earlier revelations! Our Messenger has come to you bringing clarity after break (in the chain) of Messengers. This, lest you might claim, ‘We never received any announcer of good news nor any Warner.’ Now you have received an announcer of good news and a Warner. And Allah has power over everything”– Quran 5:21
Before the coming of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) the Arabian peninsula was home to abound of inhuman practices that encompassed all sorts of barbarism and vulgarity, new born girls being killed, brothers marrying their sisters, theft, brutality, oppression of the poor at the hands of tribal leaders, men having up till hundreds of wives, if they’re to be called so, homosexuality and many more. Islam, as a Deen, came to put right many wrongs. It set the legislation that would revive the human Fitra, or natural instinct, after deviation from its originality. The Deen was ordained to be used as a source of guidance and light in this life and not the hereafter. It brought along a new set of ethics and moral values which, when employed, provided much protection to human dignity, rights and freedoms.
In a beautiful verse of the Qur’an, Allah (SWT) outlines vivid characteristics of that who denies the Deen, portraying him as ill mannered, hard-hearted, and credited for much disorder in his community.
“Have you seen the one who denies Deen (the life after death)? He is one who spurns the orphan, and does not urge people to feed the needy and the indigent.– (Quran 107:1-3)
Deen and Dunya make up one entity, that is the way to salvation and genuine happiness in this life and the hereafter. And ignoring the Deen to get hold of as much worldly pleasure as one wishes for is trading a short lived joy, for an everlasting one.
This confounds clichés associating Deen with all that goes against the well being of individuals. It’s the Deen that ensures social justices and respect for human rights. It’s the Deen that set the rules for a balanced life void of brutality and barbarism, one that gives sovereignty only to Allah Almighty, and not anybody or any man-made law.
It’s through the Deen that humanity learned about freedom, justice, dignity and tolerance.
If fully and efficiently grasped and applied, Deen can be employed to avail a joyous, secure, and balanced life. There’s no conflict between Deen and Dunya as some claim. Deen safeguards the Dunya and through Deen individuals can live a prosperous kind of life that doesn’t put them at the mercy of others or even desires. Deen, or religion, makes humans more human, and imbibes in them the original purity and moral goodness upon which they were originally created.
And without Deen, people would easily fall back to those dark ages, where they were denied their basic human rights.
Wassalaam,
Maha Youssuf
Posted on: June 9, 2011
