Man is a creature of two worlds, a creature with two identities in a single body, the one perishable, the other immortal. It is difficult to conceive of a dialogue between God and His slave; it is far less difficult to conceive of one between God and His chosen Viceregent. It is in the hadith qudsi that we find the most striking references to reciprocity which is the basis of dialogue.
'I am with [My servant] when he makes mention of me. If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention of him to Myself...And if he draws near to Me a hand's span, I draw near to him an arm's length; and if he draws near to Me an arm's length, I draw near to him a fathom's length. And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him speedily.' Here the response to prayer or, indeed, to the simple act of bringing God to mind, is of incomparable magnitude, for the divine presence is obviously greater than any other imaginable gift. As for human supplication, this is not only heard, it is awaited: ' Our Lord who is blessed and exalted descends each night to the lowest heaven, when two-thirds of the night have passed, and asks, '"Who supplicates Me that I may answer him? Who asks of Me that I may give to him? Who begs for My forgiveness so that I may forgive him?"'
Even in this poor world, according to another hadith, 'Allah has angels who travel on the roads seeking those who remember Allah, and when they find people doing this they call to one another, "Come to what you are seeking!' and surround them with their wings up to the lowest heaven.' Their Lord asks them what these worshipers are saying, and the angels answer that they are glorifying Him,though they have never seen Him; they are asking for Paradise, though they have never seen it; and they are seeking refuge from hell, though they have never seen it. Their Lord then says to His angels: 'I call you to witness that I have forgiven them!'
Not everyone - to say the least - seeks communion, dialogue with God; most of those who turn towards the heavens in prayer do so from desire or from fear, and those who do so from fear are in search of forgiveness. We are told that God does not greatly care about the motive so long as people do turn to Him and thereby establish the essential link. This is brought out in an astonishing hadith: 'By Him in whose hand is my soul, had you not sinned Allah would have removed you and brought a people who sin, then ask for Allah's forgiveness and are forgiven.' According to a hadith qudsi, 'Allah has said: O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you what you have done and I shall not care. O son of Adam, though your sins reached the clouds in the sky, if you were then to ask for My forgiveness I would forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins almost as great as the earth [itself] and then face Me, ascribing to Me no "partner", I would bring you forgiveness in like measure.'
Excerpts from 'Islam and the Destiny of Man' by Charles Le Gai Eaton (aka Hasan Abdul Hakeem)
'I am with [My servant] when he makes mention of me. If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention of him to Myself...And if he draws near to Me a hand's span, I draw near to him an arm's length; and if he draws near to Me an arm's length, I draw near to him a fathom's length. And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him speedily.' Here the response to prayer or, indeed, to the simple act of bringing God to mind, is of incomparable magnitude, for the divine presence is obviously greater than any other imaginable gift. As for human supplication, this is not only heard, it is awaited: ' Our Lord who is blessed and exalted descends each night to the lowest heaven, when two-thirds of the night have passed, and asks, '"Who supplicates Me that I may answer him? Who asks of Me that I may give to him? Who begs for My forgiveness so that I may forgive him?"'
Even in this poor world, according to another hadith, 'Allah has angels who travel on the roads seeking those who remember Allah, and when they find people doing this they call to one another, "Come to what you are seeking!' and surround them with their wings up to the lowest heaven.' Their Lord asks them what these worshipers are saying, and the angels answer that they are glorifying Him,though they have never seen Him; they are asking for Paradise, though they have never seen it; and they are seeking refuge from hell, though they have never seen it. Their Lord then says to His angels: 'I call you to witness that I have forgiven them!'
Not everyone - to say the least - seeks communion, dialogue with God; most of those who turn towards the heavens in prayer do so from desire or from fear, and those who do so from fear are in search of forgiveness. We are told that God does not greatly care about the motive so long as people do turn to Him and thereby establish the essential link. This is brought out in an astonishing hadith: 'By Him in whose hand is my soul, had you not sinned Allah would have removed you and brought a people who sin, then ask for Allah's forgiveness and are forgiven.' According to a hadith qudsi, 'Allah has said: O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you what you have done and I shall not care. O son of Adam, though your sins reached the clouds in the sky, if you were then to ask for My forgiveness I would forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins almost as great as the earth [itself] and then face Me, ascribing to Me no "partner", I would bring you forgiveness in like measure.'
Excerpts from 'Islam and the Destiny of Man' by Charles Le Gai Eaton (aka Hasan Abdul Hakeem)
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