Belief in the Hereafter divides people into three distinct categories.
First, there are those who do not believe in the Hereafter and regard life on this earth as the only life. Naturally, they judge good and evil by the results which manifest themselves in this world. If an action produces beneficial results it is good, a
nd it brings about harmful results it is evil. Quite often the same action is regarded as good when the results are good and bad when its results are bad.
Second, those people who do not deny the Hereafter, but who depend on the intercession or atonement of someone to absolve them of their sins. Among them - there are some, who regard themselves as God's chosen people, who will receive only nominal punish
ment however grave their sins. This deprives them of the moral advantage which they could have derived from their belief in the Hereafter. As a result they also become very much like the people who deny the Hereafter.
Third, are those people who believe in the Hereafter in the form in which Islam presents it. They do not delude themselves that they have any special relationship with God, or that anyone can intercede on their behalf. They know that they alone are res
ponsible for their actions. For them the belief in the Hereafter becomes a great moral force. A person who has the conviction that he is fully accountable for all his actions finds a permanent guard, stationed within himself, who cautions him and admoni
shes him whenever he deviates from the right path. There may be no court to summon him, no policemen to apprehend him, no witnesses to accuse him, and no public opinion to press him, but the guard within him is ever on the alert, ready to seize him when
ever he transgresses. The consciousness of this inner presence makes man feat God even wen he is all by himself. Should he succumb to temptation, and violate the law of God, he is ever ready to offer sincere regrets, and to enter into a firm contract wi
th the future that he will not repeat the mistake. There can be no greater instrument of moral reformation nor any better method to help man to develop a sound and stable character. It is for this reason that Islam attaches great importance to the belie
f in the Hereafter, and without it even the belief in God and the Prophet is not sufficient for men's guidance.
Islam represents a whole civilization.
Islam provides moral guidance in all walks of life. That is why Islamic values are not for the ascetic who renounces the world, but for him who actively participates in different spheres of life, and works within them. The moral values which people look
for in convents, monasteries, and cloisters, are presented by Islam right in the current of life. Heads of governments, governors of states, judges, members of the armed forces and police services, elected representatives of the people in the parliament
s, leaders of finance, trade and industry, college and university teachers and students alike receive guidance to organize their lives according to the principles of Islam. There is no distinction in Islam between private and public conduct. The same mo
ral code which one observes at home applies to one's conduct in public. Every institution of society and every department of Government must conform to the laws of Islam. Politics must be based on truth and justice. nations should deal with one another
on the basis of mutual recognition of rights, and due discharge of obligations. When man decides to submit to the will of God, and accepts His law as the supreme law, and organizes his life and laws in accordance with the revealed moral code, on the pri
nciple of accountability of God, the equality and character of his life cannot be limited to the precincts of prayer halls. It must extend itself to every sphere of this work as a man of God.
This, briefly, is what Islam stands for. This is no dream or
Utopia. The Prophet of Islam, and his companions, developed and
established a complete model of Islam on this earth for mankind to follow.
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