Answers from the Quran - 2

Answer to those who ask "Religion is only a part of life. So, why do people need to live by the Qur'an's values in all aspects of life?"

Religion is not just one part of life; rather, it is a system that encompasses and regulates all aspects of it. Naturally, when we say "religion" here, we are referring to Islam, the true religion. Therefore, such fallacies as: "Religion is only a part of life" and "Devoting oneself entirely to religion is fanaticism" have no place in Islam. Muslims spend 24 hours a day in a manner that will be pleasing to Allah. When rising in the morning, eating, working, going to school, engaging in business or shopping, they abide by the moral values of the Qur'an commanded by Allah and strictly avoid any behavior which will not be pleasing to Him. The moral values of Islam cover not just part of life, but all of it, and even beyond.

Advocating an un-Islamic suggestion means accepting some parts of the Qur'an and disregarding the rest. Rejecting some part of the Qur'an, however, means rejecting the entire book, for:

Do you, then, believe in one part of the Book and reject the other? What repayment will there be for any of you who do that, except disgrace in the world? And on the Day of Resurrection, they will be driven off to the harshest of punishments. Allah is not unaware of what you do. (Qur'an, 2:85)

The religion described in the Qur'an has no room for any doubts or unfounded concerns, given that it relies on having faith in Allah, which is displayed through each believer's unconditional submission to Him and scrupulous observance of His commands and prohibitions. This unique attribute is related in many verses, some of which are given below:

The believers are only those who have believed in Allah and His Messenger, and then have had no doubt, and have struggled with their wealth and their selves in the Way of Allah. They are the ones who are true to their word. (Qur'an, 49:15)

Say: "My prayer and my rites, my living and my dying, are for Allah alone, the Lord of all the worlds." (Qur'an, 6:162)

… There are men who proclaim His glory morning and evening, not distracted by trade or commerce from the remembrance of Allah, the performance of prayers, and the payment of alms; fearing a day when all hearts and eyes will be in turmoil. (Qur'an, 24:36-37)

As these verses make clear, Muslims truly devote themselves to Allah by making it their sole goal to earn Allah's good pleasure at every instant of life, by seeking the goodness in everything that happens, and pondering about the Hereafter. The Qur'an refers to these Muslims, as follows:

Those who remember Allah, standing, sitting, and lying on their sides, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and Earth: "Our Lord, You have not created this for nothing. Glory be to You! So safeguard us from the punishment of the Fire." (Qur'an, 3:191)

We purified their sincerity through sincere remembrance of the Abode. (Qur'an, 38:46)

Such a noble morality is surely unimaginable for those who have no faith. According to their materialistic point of view, since death is a disappearance once and for all, one needs to make the most of this life. For those people who nurture such a distorted outlook, every moment that does not bring them pleasure is a loss.

Here, however, we focus our attention on people who claim to have faith in Allah and yet take every opportunity to convey and enforce upon those around them the fallacy that "religion covers only a minor part of life." Under the guise of being contemporary, modern, or enlightened, which are enchanting yet vague terms, they spread their distorted ideas. Allah warns believers against the lies of such people:

Among the people is someone whose words about the life of the world excite your admiration, and he calls Allah to witness what is in his heart, while he is in fact the most hostile of adversaries. (Qur'an, 2:204)

Those who fall into this category probably get extremely upset about being called an unbeliever or an atheist. Now and then, they express their gratefulness for being a Muslim. However, their corrupted outlook on life, which manifests itself in such ignorant phrases as "Religion is important, but it should be limited to certain aspects of life" or "Do not ponder deeply about religion, or you may lose your mind," they turn their faces and act arrogantly when reminded of the Qur'an's morality. Allah explains the situation of such people, as follows:

But there are some people who trade in distracting tales to guide people away from Allah's Way, knowing nothing about it and to make a mockery of it. Such people will have a humiliating punishment. When Our Signs are recited to such a person, he turns away arrogantly as if he had not heard, as if there was a great weight in his ears. So give him news of a painful punishment. (Qur'an, 31:6-7)

The Qur'an refers to such people as hypocrites, for they are assumed to have an Islamic identity, although they have nothing to do with Islam. Moreover, as they are aware of this fact, they act in ways that do not violate social norms and customs in order to avoid hostile reactions and to persuade people to follow their examples.

By claiming that they have faith, hypocrites seek to maintain their worldly interests. Furthermore, through distorted explanations, they try to alienate other people from the essence of Islam and the Qur'an. Their ultimate aim is to eliminate the people of sincere faith, who are likely to stir up pangs of conscience in them, for:

Among the people are some who say:

"We believe in Allah and the Last Day," when they are not believers. They think they deceive Allah and those who believe. They deceive no one but themselves, but they are not aware of it. There is a sickness in their hearts, and Allah has increased their sickness. They will have a painful punishment on account of their denial. When they are told: "Do not cause corruption in the land," they say: We are only putting things right." No indeed! They are the corrupters, but they are not aware of it. (Qur'an, 2:8-12)

Rather than Allah, these people take their whims and desires as their deities and serve them. The Qur'an relates this situation, as follows:

Have you seen him who has taken his whims and desires to be his deity? Will you then be his guardian? Do you suppose that most of them hear or understand? They are just like cattle. Indeed they are even more astray! (Qur'an, 25:43-44)

Hypocrites will surely suffer the consequences of assuming that they can deceive Allah and believers by professing belief and then concealing their efforts to harm believers and to divert them from the right path. The Qur'an informs us that their punishment will be even more severe than that of the unbelievers, atheists, and irreligious people, for they say lies in the name of Allah and show hypocrisy, insincerity, and dishonesty:

The hypocrites are in the lowest level of the Fire. You will not find any one to help them. (Qur'an, 4:145)

As for those people who remain under the influence of hypocrites and thereby develop a rationale of "managing both this world and the Hereafter," Allah relates the following verse:

Among the people there is one who worships Allah right on the edge. If good befalls him, he is content with it, but if a trial befalls him, he reverts to his former ways, losing both the world and the Hereafter. That is indeed sheer loss. (Qur'an, 22:11)

and I ask Allah to guide us to what pleases Him