In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
Assalam alaikum wa rehmatullah wa barkatuhu [May peace, mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you]
There is stage in life where one may ask-
What is the purpose of living? Why are we here? Or- what am I here for?
Many of us who reflect or think about life will definitely consider and ponder upon these questions. Thus it is obvious that there may be several answers to the same from different people. One of the common replies is "I want to be RICH!"
For some, earning money is the ultimate goal. But the question that arises is if they were to acquire millions of dollars, what then would then be their purpose of life? The answer may probably be- Earn more money!
Well, lets accept it for a moment. Suppose, people scrape, struggle, cheat and live all their life to attain this particular goal but what after death becomes them? Do they take it along with them or leave it behind?
In simple terms-
If the purpose of life is to become wealthy, there would be no purpose after becoming wealthy.
The western world has most eminently given out this equation to live life-
WEALTH = HAPPINESS.
Earn so that you may have a better standard of living, so that people may recognize you not for your deeds but for your status, so that you may recline on couches and drive in a car of your own. In other words it means nothing but-CONSUME. Consume so that you may be happy. Buy this, buy that. Have this, Have that. Any sane person would be able to single out that the aim behind this equation is nothing but consumerism. They want people to consume so much so that they cannot do without consuming. It won’t be wrong if I say - They require you to be miserable.
For eg- It is common to see our sisters wanting to be like super models. They wish to attain a good figure, walk around with lovely hair and makeup, wear skimpy or even tight fitting branded clothes so that it makes them feel fashionable and wanted! They want our sisters to consume more and want more [cosmetics, clothes, shoes etc] so that their products are sold. It is simple to understand!
Besides women they have now targeted the men too. How?
We know very well that a fairness cream can never make anyone look beautiful or handsome. But still we see an ad of a fairness cream [Fair and handsome] which shows a young lad applying it and the result seems to be outstanding. The girls run behind him singing- Hi handsome, Hi handsome!
Other few adverts which are dangled on screens are of 2 such products for men- Axe and zatak [deodrants]. Just think how they fool people into believing that such things even happen. Besides that, they degrade the women in order to attract the male crowd. Is this how marketing is done?
We see women in skimpy clothes endorsing brands which they would never use. Though horrible but this is the truth of the moment.
The number of advertisements that are being aired or being displayed on the streets have somewhat a similar message- Go to a trip to such and such destination and relax. Buy a row house in this locality and feel privileged. Buy this drink and feel energized.
The society of consumerism is growing day by day. How would the poor cope up with this way of life? It is fine with the people who can afford such luxuries but now the poor too unfortunately have fallen in this trap. I have seen this happen especially in the middle class families. They tend to spend more than what they earn. Daddy earns a few thousands and the son spends much more than daddy’s income on the new phones and gadgets he wants to buy, on the bike he wants to ride, for the parties, for alcohol, clothes and girls. Daddy and mum wish to save for their daughter but she is so much into fashion that she must visit the parlor so that she looks beautiful, she must carry with her lovely expensive purse etc. Thus to live in this manner they wish to earn more.
It is not the same with everyone but it is happening with many youngsters who have fallen trap to this trickery.
The fact is that when people approach their purpose here in this life from the aspect of only gaining wealth, after collecting the money they have dreamed of their lives lose purpose. The rich thinks ‘How do I invest’ ‘How do I multiply’ ‘How do I save’
They live in restless tension suffering from a feeling of worthlessness.
How could wealth then be considered as the aim of life?
Does WEALTH = HAPPINESS really? Does acquisition of wealth guarantee happiness? Not at all.
We see it for ourselves that people with all the luxuries of life also commit suicide, are frustrated of their lives. How could we consider the purpose of life would be to gain great wealth?
Today, man is violent in the love of wealth.. And it is very much visible!
We see people running behind the temporary luxuries of this life. Of which some wish to attain degrees and some wish to be 'seen' among people, some making fashion their lives and some running behind other material pleasures.
But only if they know that they are going to depart someday and would leave all of it behind! What they would carry along is their record of 'Deeds'. Not their bank balance, not their cars, not their guitars, not their fancy mobiles, not their clothes, not their friends, not their families, not their degrees, not their things that they are so attached to which made them forget the real purpose of their lives on earth!
Allah would not question us on how much we earned but how much we spent in charity out of it.
Not how much we lived and enjoyed but how much we actually lived our lives according to the commandments.
Not how many friends we made or people we met but how many people did we share the truth and guidance with and call to good.Not how much we cried when our parents and family left this world but how much we did for them when they were alive!
Our journey of this life is from the cradle to the grave.
Our journey is from the womb to the tomb and yet we think that we may live forever to enjoy things and live a life far far away from reality?
In Islam both Deen and the duniya have to be balanced. Monasticism isn't allowed in Islam and thus a person cannot leave his responsibilities and go meditate on the mountains.
The person won’t attain closeness to God in the least bit by praying and fasting all day.
However, one cannot limit the good to oneself or be good just for the sake of being good.. A true believer would surely share the goodness with everyone around and holds concern for even the wrongdoers.
As Allah instructs in the Noble Qur’an, those who believe must be watchful about themselves, their parents, children, brothers and sisters, those they know and love.
We often hear people cry over their efforts saying- i tell so and so, so much but that person doesn't listen.. but ask yourselves if you really put in the required efforts?
We say we love our parents and children and friends- but do we instruct them about good often? Do we call them towards God and His commandments? Or do we call them for coffees and dinners and movies?
Do we share verses of God and remind them of His favors or do we share with them new songs in the block and sing along vain lyrics with them? Do we look at the lives of the Prophets (pbut) and take them as role models or the lives of the actors and adopt their ways?
Ask yourselves!
A true believer guides people to the truth and not to the deceptions of this world.
If a father were to know that there is a fire would he let his son near it?
or would he simply advise his son to not go close to it?
or would he run and grasp his son and bring him back to safety?
The answer is obvious and justified.
But-
How casual are we towards everything in life? Allah provided us with all that we need but we have forgotten Him in order to fulfill our needs. Such a pity!
What answers are we going to have when we stand before our Lord on the Day of Judgment?
It is the duty of every person who believes in God and the Last day to call people to good. That is true knowledge! The knowledge which gets you closer to the one who created you.
We weren’t just created for nothing!
If we even look at ourselves-
Our eyes- they have a purpose- to see.
Our ears- they have a purpose- to hear.
Our hands- they have a purpose- to work.
Our legs- they have a purpose- to walk.
Brain and heart- you know it well
but
What about us as a whole? No purpose at all?
These were rhetoric questions which I am sure you would ask yourself and try to find answers for!
Even now, we stand a chance to transform our lives and be as God wants us to be.. By exhorting people to good and creating an atmosphere that we truly must where no one despises the other but helps each other to walk their way to their Lord!
The true purpose of life is not acquisition of wealth or in running behind the material pleasures of this duniya but true purpose and success is in gratitude towards the one who created us, in acknowledgement, in self-contentment of knowing who you are, why you are here and what the purpose of life is.
The purpose behind this article is not to project that it is bad to acquire wealth or to improve on standard of living. I wish and pray that everyone gets all the good that is halal (lawful). It is the right of every individual to benefit from the good Allah has provided. But the ways things are being portrayed today is a big concern and something worth giving a thought.
May Allah guide us all to truth and keep us on sirat-al-mustaqeem (straight path)
jazakAllah khair..
ameen.
