Page 80 - Those Who Exhaust All Their Pleasures In This Life

78 THOSE WHO EXHAUST ALL THEIR PLEASURES IN THIS LIFE

experience this same tension and fear in the very place
where they should feel safe and at ease. Almost every day,
behind closed doors there are family fights and children
are treated with impatience; these are but two of the pos-
sible sources of this tension. The situation is no different in
the workplace. There is rivalry in which one colleague is
intolerant of another and each tries jealously to undermine
the other; as a result discontent reigns. Everyone in the
department is terrified of making a mistake; and the great-
est tension comes from trying to hide errors that have
already been committed. Many cannot trust their closest
friend; there is always the possibility that they will be
duped or betrayed; and this gives rise to continual tension.
Everywhere in the world, children may steal from their
families, families may beat the children to the point of
death, and people can kill others in the streets without hes-
itation for money. Every day, scenes of fear and horror are
dramatized on television. In many countries, terror and vio-
lence have become commonplace. Crowded shopping
centers or workplaces are frequently bombed, a suppos-
edly secure bank is robbed or the manager embezzles cus-
tomers’ money, a person may be unfaithful to a spouse, a
fellow worker, or someone he or she has protected and
cared for. Newspapers are full of such stories. So, what is
the cause of all this? The main reason is that people do not
follow the Qur’an’s morality and do not believe in Allah. If
people feared Him as they ought to, they would not treat
other people unjustly. Everyone would think well of others,
support them, and behave morally. Thus, no anxiety or ten-