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the point of death or lying in a hospital bed may think that the closest being to him is the doctor at his bed-
side, his mother who is embracing him, or his friends touching him and holding his hand. But as it says in
this verse, God is closer to him at that time than anyone else. Moreover, God is the single closest Being to
him not only at that particular moment, but from the first moment of his existence. But, because people do

not see it with their eyes, they are ignorant of this reality.
The fact that God is not circumscribed by space but embraces all things is revealed in another verse:
Both East and West belong to God, so wherever you turn, the Face of God is there. God is All-Encompassing,

All-Knowing. (Surat al-Baqara: 115)
In another verse, God explains this reality in this way:

It is He Who created the heavens and the earth in six days, then established Himself firmly on the Throne. He
knows what goes into the earth and what comes out of it, what comes down from heaven and what goes up
into it. He is with you wherever you are—God sees what you do. (Surat al-Hadid: 4)

All of this implies that God is the One, True, Absolute Existence. With His Knowledge, God embraces
human beings who are shadow beings and every other thing. This fact is also pointed out in the following
verse:

Your God is God alone, there is no deity but Him. He encompasses all things in His knowledge. (Surah Ta
Ha: 98)
In another verse of the Qur’an, God warns people against being heedless:

What! Are they in doubt about the meeting with their Lord? What! Does He not encompass all things? (Surah
Suffilat: 54)

Human Actions Also Belong To God

God has created man as a shadow being with no power or will independent of Himself. This reality is
revealed in this verse:
But you will not will unless God wills... (Surah Fussilat: 30)

Some people are unaware of this great fact. They accept that God created them, but think that the work
they do belongs to them. However, every action performed by a human being is created with the permis-
sion of God. For example, a person who writes a book writes it with the permission of God; every sentence,

every idea, and every paragraph is composed because God wishes it. God reveals this very important prin-
ciple in several verses; one of these verses is, "... God created both you and what you do?". (Surat as-Saffat:
96) In these words "... when you threw; it was God Who threw... ", (Surat al-Anfal: 17) God reveals that
everything we do is an act that belongs to Him.

In other verses, God instructs the prophet to take charity from believers, but in the continuation of the
verse, He explains that it is really He Who takes charity:

Take charity from their wealth to purify and cleanse them and pray for them. Your prayers bring relief to
them. God is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. Do they not know that it is God Who receives repentance from His
servants and accepts such acts of charity, and that God is the Ever-Returning, the Most Merciful? (Surat at-
Tawba: 103-104)

The great Islamic scholar Muhyiddin Ibn al-'Arabi explains that the deeds we do belong to God:

As for the spirits, the source of the actions that derive from them is not found in their entities. It is God alone
who puts spirits and objects into action continuously. If there is nothing in the world but impressions, that
means that there is nothing in reality but one being. Spirit and matters are not comprised of chosen beings and
determined facts. They are comprised of divine acts; various manifestations of the almighty being. In the same

way, things that are said to be finite or infinite are nothing but a single entity seen from two different points. 36

As Muhyiddin Ibn al-'Arabi explains, it is God Who creates every deed and makes the soul of the doer
believe that it is he himself who is performing it. God creates this sense so realistically in every soul that

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