Friday, November 18, 2005

The meaning of Worship

Kevin wrote in his Blog under the title Love or Worship

In orthodox Islam, the object of creation is the worship of God," said Najaf. "This is a relationship of subordination - a one-way relationship in which God is the master and the devotee is the slave. This relationship means that if you worship God, you will get rewarded - on the Day of Judgement, you will go to paradise - and if you do not, you go to hell.
He goes on the say how sufis do not agree with this but I think the difference is not so much a disagreement . I think sufis believe the same , that the object of the creation of the human ie insan is for worship of God as is stated in the Quran (Wa ma khalaqta jinni wal ins Illa lya'budun).

I think the difference is in the understanding.When we understand what worshipping God means we will understand the reason for our creation:
It is true that the Quran says that the reason for creation of Insan is to worship God. But worship does NOT mean formal worship as in prayer and fasting and going for Haj..These are only the vehicles to get to the connection with God and this communication then reveals to us our purpose in life and fulfilling that purpose is the worship that is meant . In the end the worship that is required of us has to effect an evolution of not only our humanity but the collective consciousness of the universe

After thoughts:
These after thoughts came as a result of a private communication I had with a beloved friend on email. She has been unhappy with her not regular at prayers husband. I have this to say about this:Many people say their prayers regularly like clockwork but the rote prayers do nothing for them to increase their connection with the Divine. Then again there are some who hardly say any prayers but are very connected. I am not saying one need not say prayers , Lord knows I say mine like a broken clock ( ie sometimes slightly late) but never missed.
I am only saying prayers are a means to an end and you need not judge a person by their prayers or lack of it since it is between that person and God. What we do need to do with people especially our nearest and dearest is to focus on their goodness and pray for their increased connection to the Divine for only in that lies salvation .

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm quite intrigued by this sentence "Then again there are some who hardly say any prayers but are very connected."

Please could you elaborate more? since i'm afraid i may misunderstood that; i've always thought that the five times prayers is the way to be connected to Allah.

for example, lots of my friends are free hair but many of them also pray regularly. i used to think how very contradicting this is. they pray, but still it doesn't help them to start covering their aurah. but then i realize that they're making an effort to be connected and to fulfill their topmost priority as a Muslim, and who knows, through their solah Allah will give them hidayah to become an even better person than me.

just my thoughts....

Suriya said...

Crimonson
Of course those who pray should be more connected that those who do not. There are however some rare people who have not been trained in proper religion , who struggle and try their best and they do not pray regularly because regular prayers need a training and a discipline and for these people, it is between them and God, you do not judge them just take them at face value and enjoy their sweetness and kindness.

abdullahjones said...

hmmmm...

Suriya said...

AJ hmmm hmmm??

Anonymous said...

thanks! i see your point clearly now :)

dith said...

Yes, I do agree that if we pray regularly but with no 'roh' in it i.e. its empty and without khusyuk, then it's meaningless...oh Allah swt, please give me constant blessing to attain khusyuk in my prayers!

anggerik merah said...

Nurelhuda, I am indebtly blessed that Allah show me to you..is that aura or karma? After spending many many hrs last nite going tru yr archives...yes, the way and evenue is there...my true reason of blogging! The puzzle is partly in its shape now. Sephia & Sepia?? What a clue..all have its own meaning.. the mystery of life which I kept searching...Honestly, I found part of my life in you... I will take it slowly yet keep going..that is what life is all about right?? Love and hug from me..