Page 67 - Faith: The Way to Happiness

The Secret of Happiness: Allah's Good Pleasure

comfortable and happy life - what is wrong is the methods used by
these people to achieve this desire.
The reason these people are so devoted to their own gain is that
they do not adhere to the standards of the Qur'an which Allah sent
down as a guidance and warning for people and they ignore the re-
sponsibilities the Qur'an places on them. They live their entire lives
in ignorance of the Here a f t e r, as Allah tells us in the verse, " T h e y
know an outward aspect of the life of this world but are heedless
of the Hereafter." (Surat ar-Rum: 7) Death, what they will encounter
after death, the accounting they will give to Allah for what they have
done during their lives and whether they will wind up in Heaven or
Hell are subjects which do not cross their minds or which they do
not want to have cross their minds.
The most important factor which pushes these people into be-
having in this heedless and unintelligent way is that they re g a rd
themselves as a long way from the Hereafter. They think they have
plenty of life still ahead of them and they do not want to sacrifice
their whole lives, their profits and the plans they have made, for
something they never think about or whose likelihood they do not
regard as very great even if they do think about it. They regard such
thinking as a great loss. They re g a rd the life of this world and
worldly advantages as a lot closer and a lot easier than what they
will gain in the Hereafter. They try to cram all their enjoyment into
the life of this world. They pass their entire lives ignoring Allah and
what is pleasing to Him, indiff e rent as to whether or not their be-
havior is acceptable to Him, and they spend their time in pursuit of
their own worldly passions and ambitions.
As we have explained in previous sections, a passion for the life
of this world makes people unhappy. Allah tells us in the Qur'an
that people who set themselves against His word at every opportu-

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