Page 17 - Faith: The Way to Happiness

The Unhappiness of the Society of the Ignorant

wish, as Allah has pointed out in the verse, "Shall man then have
whatever he covets?" (Surat an-Najm: 24) People may at times fail to
achieve something they want very much or something may happen
suddenly which costs them everything they have gained.
Now consider a society in which all the people think in this
w a y. In such an atmosphere, people can give one another nothing
but unhappiness and trouble. Since everybody is just pursuing his
own advantage, they cannot display moral excellence to one another
or live together in harmony. They continually struggle against one
another because they work for their own advantage at every oppor-
tunity. Allah says in the Qur'an:
… You consider them united but their hearts are scattered
wide. That is because they are people who do not use their
intellect. (Surat al-Hashr: 14)
Allah makes us aware that there can be no friendship amongst
these people and, "their hearts are scattered wide" due to their
clashes over individual advantage. As Allah tells us in the verse, the
reason for this is that such people do not use their intellect. What is
it then that these people fail to apply their intellect to? Allah answers
that question in this verse:
The life of this world is nothing but a game and a diver-
sion. The Hereafter is better for those who guard against
evil. So will you not use your intellect? (Surat al-An‘am: 32)
Allah has told us that the life of this world is a diversion and
that true life will be lived in the next world. This is what unbelievers
do not exercise their intellect about. These people do not even come
close to accepting that their true abode is in the Hereafter. As a con-
sequence, they enter into a struggle for gain in the life of this world,
which they believe to be the true life, and because of this rivalry they
constantly harm one another and make one another unhappy.

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