A Muslim Convert Once Before

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following is my answer to a Quora question: “ Is there any merit to argument that religious literature were not written to be taken literally but rather to convey messages of how to be a good human through stories? ”   By religious literature, I take it you are referring to Scripture?  Different scriptures have their own rules of exegesis.  And by them, some portions are taken literally, some metaphorically and most, both.   Proper exegesis can only be done with a mastery of the original language of the text.  Translations never tell even close to the depth of the original language.  And that alone is a major source of misinterpretation and misunderstanding.  Additionally, proper exegesis does require knowledge of the circumstances of Revelation and the historical context.  Without this, the lessons drawn may be contrary to the intent of the text.

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Shaykh Abu Sa’id ibn Abu al-Hasan Yasar al-Baswri ( q.s. ) said, “When love of this world enters the heart, fear of the Hereafter exits from it.  Beware of worldly distractions, for no servant opens a door of this world without several doors of works for the Hereafter being shut for him.”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, in “Stride Toward Freedom”, “Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable.  Even a superficial look at history reveals that no social advance rolls in on the wheel’s inevitability.  Every step towards the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.  Without persistent effort, time itself becomes an ally of the insurgent and primitive forces of irrational emotionalism and social destruction.  This is no time for apathy or complacency.  This is a time for vigorous and positive action.”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Alawi al-Haddad ( q.s. ) said, “Remove the love of gold and silver from your heart until they become as pebbles and sand in your eyes.  Remove the wish to be thought highly of from your heart until you are indifferent to people’s praise and condemnation, and to whether they are attracted or repulsed by you.  For the love of prominence is more harmful than that of money, and both indicate desire for the world.”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Khwaja Mu’in ad-Din Hasan hishty ( q.s. ) said, “For an ‘arif , it is an ordinary miracle that he ascends beyond the Heavens by taking only one step, and reaches the Veil of Divine Glory.  But God Alone Knows the secret implications of that stage.  He cannot say where it leads him ultimately to, and what he perceives in that mysterious state when he returns.”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Shaykh Muhyi ad-Din Abu Muhammad ibn Abu Swalih ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani ( q.s. ) said, “O young man, why do you care about this world?  When it gives you things, it keeps you busy; and when it deprives you of things, it fills you with sighs of disappointment.  If you have too little of this world, you become weak; and if you have too much of it, you feel too heavy.  While any of you is in the midst of things that he loves, diseases, illnesses, grieves, and cares attack him.  There is no benefit in it for anyone other than the person who spends it in obeying Allah ( s.w.t. ).”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Shaykh Abu Sa’id ibn Abu al-Hasan Yasar al-Baswri ( q.s. ) said, “If Satan looks at you and sees you consistent in God’s obedience, he will persist in coming after you.  Should you continue to maintain consistency, he will give up and leave you.  But if you do not and he sees you fluctuating, he will strive after you.”