Monday, August 28, 2006

Rain as a sign of Allah

وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ يُرِيكُمُ الْبَرْقَ خَوْفًا وَطَمَعًا وَيُنَزِّلُ مِنَ السَّمَاء مَاء فَيُحْيِي بِهِ الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا إِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لَآيَاتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَعْقِلُونَ

My dear brothers and sisters, one of the greatest challenges that believers have faced throughout time is whispers of doubt regarding either the existence of Allah or some or some of the qualities that Allah possesses or a denial of the Day of Judgment and the afterlife. In this age in particular some of these arguments have become more sophisticated with the use of scientific theories, such as the theory of evolution, which many atheists site in their defense of atheism.

As such, it is imperative for Muslims today to strengthen their sense of belief and certainty in the existence of Allah, and the qualities of our Sustainer, and in the reality that one day we will face accountability for our deeds in this world.

In fact, Imam Al-Haddad, who was a scholar and a mystic in 17th century Yemen, and is considered by many to have been the mujaddid, or renewer of the twelfth Islamic century, wrote a famous book by title of “The Book of Assistance.” In this book, Imam Al-Haddad begins with certainty [qaeen] as the first and foremost quality that a believer must possess in order to live a good and virtous life.

However, Allah does not expect us to have blind faith without any signs or proofs. And this is why Imam Al-Haddad in prescribing medicine to gain certainty, one of the things he mentions is that certainty is gained by “looking at the kingdom of the heavens and the earth, and the wondrous and astounding creatures that God made them flourish with.” And the proof of this is in the words of Allah:


“We shall show them Our signs on the horizons and within themselves until it becomes clear to them that this is the Truth. Is it not enough that your Sustainer is a witness over all things?”


As such, the Qur’an is filled with signs of Allah and constantly encourages us to observe the creation in order to remove any doubts from our hearts. Interestingly, given the season of rain that we are in these days, one of the most often used signs for the existence of Allah, and metaphors for the qualities of Allah, can be found in rain and thunder.


As proof of the existence of Allah, the Qur’an says:


24:43 Art thou not aware that it is God who causes the clouds to move onward, then joins them together, then piles them up in masses, until thou can see rain come forth from their midst? And He it is who sends down from the skies, by degrees, mountainous masses [of clouds] charged with hail, striking therewith whomever He wills and averting it from whomever He wills, [the while] the flash of His lightning well-nigh deprives [men of their] sight!


36:33 And [yet,] they have a sign [of Our power to create and to resurrect] in the lifeless earth which We make alive, and out of which We bring forth grain, whereof they may eat; 36:34 and [how] We make gardens of date-palms and vines [grow] thereon, and cause springs to gush [forth] within it, 36:35 so that they may eat of the fruit thereof, though it was not their hands that made it. Will they not, then, be grateful? 36:36 Limitless in His glory is He who has created opposites in whatever the earth produces, and in men’s own selves, and in that of which [as yet] they have no knowledge.

And as a sign for the ability of Allah to bring decaying bones back to life for resurrection the Qur’an again uses the metaphor of rain.


32:27 Are they not aware that it is We who drive the rain onto dry land devoid of herbage, and thereby bring forth herbage of which their cattle and they themselves do eat? Can they not, then, see [the truth of resurrection]?

And Allah also uses the rain to remind us of His divine Mercy and compassion towards the creation.


42:28 And it is He who sends down rain after [men] have lost all hope, and unfolds His grace [thereby]: for He alone is [their] Protector, the One to whom all praise is due.

50:9 And We send down from the skies water rich in blessings, and cause thereby gardens to grow, and fields of grain. 50:10 and tall palm-trees with their thickly-clustered dates, 50:11 as sustenance appor­tioned to men; and by [all] this We bring dead land to life: [and] even so will be [man’s] coming-forth from death.

Rain is such a powerful metaphor that Allah also uses it for reminding us of divine wrath and punishment that comes upon a people who reject Allah and persist in wrongdoings.


25:40 And they [who now deny Our messages] must surely have come across that town which was rained upon by a rain of evil: have they, then, never beheld it [with their minds eye]? But nay, they would not believe in resurrection!

2:19 Or [the parable] of a violent cloudburst in the sky, with utter darkness, thunder and lightning: they put their fingers into their ears to keep out the peals of thunder, in terror of death; but God encompasses [with His might] all who deny the truth.

And in conclusion,


10:24 The parable of the life of this world is but that of rain which We send down from the sky, and which is absorbed by the plants of the earth whereof men and animals draw nourishment, until -when the earth has assumed its artful adornment and has been embellished, and they who dwell on it believe that they have gained mastery over it -there comes down upon it Our judgment, by night or by day, and We cause it to become [like] a field mown down, as if there had been no yesterday. Thus clearly do We spell out these messages unto people who think!

So, let’s use this sometimes difficult and frightening season of rain to remind ourselves of the proof of Allah’s existence, in His Mercy, in His punishment, and in the day of resurrection where will to answer how did we live our lives. And in doing this let us strengthen our inner certainty for in the words of Imam Al-Haddad, “certainty is the essential thing, and all other noble ranks, praiseworthy traits of character and good works are its branches and results.” And in the words of the Prophet (s), “Certainty is the whole of faith.”

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

subhanAllah

3li said...

But which rain is the rain of anger, and which is the rain of mercy?

Is it the light rain ( lfaf) for mercy?

hmm,.,.

Anonymous said...

what do we say when it rains, what dua? just curious

Anonymous said...

Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now. Keep it up!
And according to this article, I totally agree with your opinion, but only this time! :)