Page 22 - True Wisdom Described in the Qur'an

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TRUE WISDOM DESCRIBED IN THE QUR'AN

or education. Of course, a wise person possesses these qualities
and uses them in the most useful ways. But the real source of
wisdom is faith; therefore, one who has no sincere faith in Allah
can never achieve the superiority of wisdom whatever he does,
neither by imitation nor in any other way.
Also, wisdom is not limited to specific manners used only at
certain times. On the contrary, it is a quality of perfection that
changes according to circumstances, conditions and situations.
The man of faith shows clear insight in situations he never ex-
pected or in fact never encountered before, as well as in situa-
tions he encounters every day.
It is not possible for people who lack wisdom to imitate such
perfection. They usually panic in situations they are experienc-
ing for the first time, they don’t know what to do, or cannot hit
on the right thing to do, and usually end up without a solution.
Such people do not possess the qualities that wisdom brings
such as speed, quick-wittedness, ability to solve problems, and
dynamism.
In the Qur’an, Allah mentions people who try to present
themselves as religious and want to associate themselves with
believers, even though they have no faith. These people, hyp-
ocrites as Allah calls them, can imitate certain qualities of the be-
lievers. For example, they may pray as Allah orders, may give
alms, or preach religious sermons. Allah refers to the ostentation
of their behaviour in the following verses:
… Those who spend their wealth to show off to peo-
ple, not believing in Allah and the Last Day... (Surat an-
Nisa’: 38)
Hypocrites think they deceive Allah, but He is deceiv-
ing them. When they rise to pray, they do so lazily,