Page 12 - The Vision of Islam

The Essence of Religion

It is a situation of love and fear in which man runs towards the very
Being he fears, hoping to receive from Him His divine blessings.
It is a state of mental anguish, yet at the same time it is a state of
complete solace.
Thus we learn that prayer is basically a psychological experience
rather than an external event. Man, in the last analysis, is a sensitive
thinking being: so in its definitive form, prayer in relation to
man, is the expression of an inner state rather than of an external
happening. The Prophet has clearly stated that “righeousness is a
thing of the heart.” According to the Quran, the essence of worship
is to be God-fearing. This finds expression in a hadith. Once the
Prophet observed pointing to his heart, ‘The fear of God lies here,’
(At Taqwa ha huna) (Bukhari).
The Quran states: ‘O men, serve your Lord Who has created
you and those who have gone before you, so that you may guard
yourselves against evil’ (2:21).
Worship, in terms of external expression, means bowing before
the Sustainer, while in its inner sense it stands for that deep
realization of and strong attachment to God in which man is so
involved that he can experience the very presence of God. The
Prophet is reported to have said, “Pray to God as if you are seeing
Him.” (Mishkat, Chapter on Faith). According to this saying, the
most sublime form of worship is that in which the worshipper is so
lost in thoughts of God that he finds himself very close to Him. His
apprehension of the divine presence should be as keen as if God
were actually seeing him. This state of psychological proximity is
the most sublime state of prayer.
All rites of worship are aimed at arriving at that state. The
postures to be adopted in the performance of these rites are
ordained by God Himself. Anyone who asserts that it is possible to
pray to God independently of these God-ordained rites, is making
a false claim. Without performing these rites, no one can become a
worshipper, in the real sense of the word. Although man is another
name for that particular soul which is not visible to us, it is also
a fact that man’s existence cannot be conceived of in this world
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