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THE
PROPHETS MADE A COMPREHENSIVE INVITATION TO GOD
There was no
fragmentation or compartmentalization in the way of the Prophets. They dealt
with people and life in a holistic manner and never ignored or neglected any of
man’s faculties. They appealed to man’s intellect, reason, spirit and all
his outer and inner senses and feelings.
The position of a Prophet
in relation to Divine Revelation is like that of a corpse in the hands of one
who washes it. God directs and guides him in whatever fashion is required to
lead his people. Without this Divine direction, he would not be able to guide
anyone. Neglect of the intellect, for instance, would result in a community of
poor, docile mystics. Negligence of the heart or spirit, on the other hand,
would result in crude rationalism devoid of any spiritual dimension. Man
comprises intellect, spirit and body and each must be assigned its due part of
the Message. Also, man is an active being. Therefore, he should be led to
activity according to the purpose of his life as determined by God and
communicated by the Prophets. God did not leave him to become a passive recluse,
nor allow him to be an ‘activist’ without reason and spirit, or a ‘rationalist’
without spiritual reflection and activism. It is only when the intellect, spirit
and body are harmonized, and man is motivated towards activity in the
illuminated way of the Divine Message, that he can become a complete being and
attain true humanity. This was the aim of the Prophets, upon them all be peace,
and should be the aim of all those who wish to be their followers. The Qur’an
declares:
Say (O Muhammad): ‘This
is my way: I call (people) to God with wisdom and insight, I and those who
follow me.’ (Yusuf, 12.108)
The
Prophets Asked No Wage From People
A Prophet does not live
for himself. Dedicated to his mission wholly, a Prophet is an altruist and lives
for the happiness and good of others. His happiness lies in seeing people
devoted to God for ultimate salvation but he never expects from people anything
in return for what he does; his reward is from none but God alone. This is a
very important and indispensable aspect of a Prophet’s communication of the
Divine Message, one frequently emphasized in the Qur’an:
O my people! I ask of you
no wealth for it, my reward is from none but God. (Hud, 11.29)
The
Prophets Left The Results To God
The Prophets were charged
with conveying the Divine Message to people. They did their best to this end and
patiently faced many misfortunes and even torment. They fulfilled their
responsibilities without worrying about the result of their call to God. They
knew with all certainty that it is only God who will bring about the desired
result.
The three fundamentals
briefly outlined above set the principles for everyone who wishes to take up the
Divine responsibility to call to God in every subsequent age, in every place.
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