Conscience and The Qur'an Show Man The Real Purpose of Life
'…Did you suppose that We created you for amusement and that you would not return to Us?' (Surat al-Mu'minun:115)
Someone who thinks through his conscience will ponder the purpose of his life and during his search for the answer, will naturally turn to the Qur'an, Allah's revelation. When someone intends to read the Qur'an, it is of the utmost importance that his conscience remains open, and that he reads every verse with great sincerity, with the intention to practise and live by them.
He who reads the Qur'an will find the answer for the purpose of his creation. In the Qur'an, this purpose is stated as follows:
I only created jinn and man to worship Me. I do not require any provision from them and I do not require them to nourish Me. Truly Allah, He is the Provider, the Possessor of Strength, the Sure. (Surat adh-Dhariyat: 56-58)
The purpose of man's life on this earth is his being tested:
He Who created death and life to test which of you is best in action. He is the Almighty, the Ever- Forgiving.
(Surat al-Mulk: 62) We made everything on the earth adornment for it so that we could test them to see whose actions are the best. (Surat al-Kahf: 7)
We created man from a mingled drop to test him, and We made him hearing and seeing. We guided him on the Way, whether he is grateful or ungrateful. (Surat al-Insan: 2-3)
He who reads the above verses will understand that Allah created life to test man. He will immediately think about his own life, as well as the life of others. Most of the people around him are constantly rushing and struggling for the life of this world. They have very detailed plans, all concerning worldly things: the school they will go to, the job they will get, their marriage, their children, the house they will live in, the car they will buy, how high their salary is, where to spend the new year, what presents they will get on their birthday, their retirement, the holidays they will go on, etc. Everyone has such plans and goals in mind, though interestingly enough, no one takes the time to think of the real purpose of their presence in the world. The conscientious man witnesses this behaviour and understands it for what it is: heedlessness and folly.
It is Allah Who created man, gave him life and lets him live on. Allah made the purpose of creation very clear: 'To be a slave to Him.' The only thing that will make man happy is to bow in submission to Allah in accordance with the purpose of his creation, and to dedicate everything he owns to Him in order to gain His approval. Yet most people, as if they do not know this fact at all and as if they have come into this world only to enjoy it, live on heedlessly and greedily. On the other hand, a man thinking with his conscience sees that the majority of people are falling into a dangerous state of negligence. Thus he comes to realise that other people cannot be a reference for him, and that his following other people, saying, 'Most of them do this,' will prevent him from following the book of Allah and taking the Qur'an as his only guide.
