The Darkness of the Enlightenment vs. Enlightenment of the Divine

The enlightenment ideas upon which the secular system is founded have been steadily metamorphosing the system of thoughts of people and nations. It can be sensed in the general thoughts and ideas of the people, which generally, do not regard religion as an active element in seeking a good life! It can also be felt in the common avoidance of religion. There are actually some who express disgust when talking about religion. “And when Allah Alone is mentioned, the hearts of those who believe not in the Hereafter are filled with disgust, but when those [worshiped] other than Him are mentioned, immediately they rejoice” (39:45).

Under the dense clouds of such thoughts, peoples’ self-determination has been observing a historical detour, traveling gradually more distant from the inner disposition upon which humans were set. In fact, the embrace of absolutism in modern society, where excessiveness, extremism, and waste are qualified as an expression of freedom, led to the leaning toward decadence in the human condition and the degeneration of morality. What was once obscene is becoming today accepted, defended and enforced as one’s right. Growing within such a plagued environment, and despite the clarity of the meaning of obscenity and profanity in the Islamic creed, you find many Muslims, mostly unconsciously, adhering to the new ill standards of ethics in modern society. It is observed in the confusion many Muslims express and the difficulties faced when balancing between the requirements of the Deen and living a lifestyle dictated by the society of today. Wrongly conceived as being completely distinct, the balancing between them is thought to be unrealistic. How can someone love to make money and still can work hard to be successful in the Hereafter? How can someone love dear ones, love things, love to have fun and still be able to fulfill the mandatory love of Allah (swt)? 

Such a situation has actually created among many believers a hidden feeling of discomfort. On one hand there is the fear of failing in the Hereafter, and on the other hand, there is the craving to achieve the dreams of this life. In fact, trying to push away uncomfortable thoughts or wishing them to fade away without any adequate action, leads one to suffer a deep anxiety. To be liberated from such a dilemma, some Muslims deformed the Deen to fit their whims and to live in “peace” with the system of life dictated by the secular system. Some even with great pride and conviction affirm adhering to the modern concept of inclusiveness (including unethical sexual and gender choices) and to plurality, as per the standards of the secular system. They actually created a space that they call a Masjid, with an emblem “Spiritual care for marginalized Muslims.” Allah already said that everyone is free to do whatever he/she wills: “Do whatever you will; indeed, He is Seeing of what you do” (41:40).

But, how can a sincere believer find the coherent balance between honoring the requirement of the Deen and enjoying the worldly life ... a balance which guides one toward true peace and drives him/her toward achieving excellence in the way of the goodness?

The solution should not start with fighting the conflicting poles within one’s self, in order to find the balance within. It should start by first understanding the root idea which led to the erratic orientations and the constitution of the system of thoughts excluding the Deen. It should include understanding specifically the perception/concept of the human condition, life and death, which were at the origin of building the system of life we are witnessing today. 

One of the renowned authors of the Enlightenment wrote in describing the human condition: “Man is an animal. The upshot of the modern body of work called ethology, (of Lionel Tiger, Robin Fox, Konrad Lorenz, and a host of others), is that it reminds us of the basic human condition: that man is first and and foremost an animal moving about on a planet shining in the sun. Whatever else he is, is built on this. The argument of these people is that we shall never understand man if we do not begin with his animal nature.” He continued, saying: “he (man) is an organism who knows that he wants food and who knows what will happen if he doesn't get it, or if he gets it but falls ill and fails to enjoy its benefits. Once we have an animal who recognizes that he needs prosperity, we also have one who realizes that anything that works against continued prosperity is bad. And so we understand how man has come, universally, to identify disease and death as the two principal evils of the human organismic condition. Disease defeats the joys of prosperity while one is alive, and death cuts prosperity off coldly.”

The system of thoughts, as portrayed briefly in the above lines, has reduced the human to an aggregation of animal instincts, driving him/her to achieve prosperity by fighting the concepts of evils, diseases and death, all by using the tools of reason and science. Yet humans, in their pursuit of prosperity, caused more damage to themselves and to the world than prosperity. This is, indeed, the basic premise of the Enlightenment.

Based upon this system of thoughts, one can clearly understand the global new religion of today’s world, which pivots essentially around serving the body, with the sole objective of constant growth of production, more consuming and never ending entertainment. Just look around you!

Following are some Ayat which one needs to reflect upon to see how the Quran describes the system of thoughts of today: “Perhaps those who disbelieve will wish that they had been Muslims. Leave them alone, to enjoy (the good things of this life) and to please themselves. Let (false) hope amuse them. Soon will knowledge (undeceive them)” (15:2-3). “Have you seen the one who takes as his god his own desire? Then would you be responsible for him? Or do you think that most of them hear or reason? They are not except like cattle. Rather, they are [even] more astray in [their] way” (25:43-44).

One cannot cover this vast and critical topic in these few lines, but we are just intending to underline some important threads that can help with comprehending the path to balance within and to a coherent reconciliation between the Deen and the life in the world of today. 

SubhanAllah, excluding the Deen means disregarding the most noble element in the human being, which is the soul. It means also neglecting the truth, presented in the Revelation of the Divine. Indeed, excluding the Deen renders the life in this world to be absurd. The answer to absurdity of life led to absolutism, which led to waste and excessiveness, which then led to the abundance of corruption witnessed today in the world. “Satan threatens you with poverty and orders you to immorality, while Allah promises you forgiveness from Him and bounty. And Allah is all-Encompassing and Knowing” (2:268). 

The solution starts then by liberating one’s self from the vision of the Enlightenment, which reduces the human being to a set of instincts and desires, as mentioned above. Following this liberation, one then needs to embrace wholeheartedly the vision of the Divine. This vision provides a comprehensive understanding of the existence: the world of the seen and the world of the unseen, essence and existence, life and death, etc. It provides a coherent explanation of the correlations between them, their vocations and their purpose. It mirrors the Fitrah (inner disposition) upon which humans were set. Take this example, by nature humans long to live forever, and the Divine vision stipulates that humans were created to live forever, that indeed, death is not the end of the journey. Death is a step on the journey of existence. 

By adhering to this vision, one feels honored and dignified: “And We have certainly honored the children of Adam and carried them on the land and sea and provided for them of the good things and preferred them over much of what We have created, with [definite] preference” (17:70). He/she feels honored and grateful to be a part of a kind whose origin goes back to the “soul of Allah,” as is illustrated in the following ayah: “And when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My [created] soul, then fall down to him in prostration”(15:29). He/she feels that he/she is able to play a big role in the betterment of the creation. One can see how the Divine vision, by providing a coherent explanation of the existence, which resonates perfectly with one’s inner disposition, the human can find hope and joy that the philosophy of the Enlightenment failed to produce! “Whatever you have will end, but what Allah has is lasting. And We will surely give those who were patient their reward according to the best of what they used to do. Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do” (16:96-97).

The believer, by making the vision of the Divine dominant in his/her thoughts and managing the actions, his/her efforts will be focused on virtues such as patience, perseverance, striving, and not consumed by worries and anxiety. He/she then finds the balance between the Deen and the the life of this world. The latter becomes the field of plantation for a harvest to be reaped in the Hereafter. 

The journey to this coherent balance starts by working on the elements which develop the love of Allah (swt). This love does not prevent or conflict with the love of dear ones, the love of things, or the love to have fun. The love of Allah and His Messenger (pbuh) protect all the other loves, by being a fortress to them, guiding them and keeping them balanced and upright. The love of Allah guides them to contribute in the fulfillment of the ultimate objective: to be admitted into the eternal mercy of Allah (swt).

When one renowned western author came to face death, what he really experienced was anxiety about the meaning of his life. As he lamented in his confession: "What will come of my whole life. . . . Is there any meaning in my life that the inevitable death awaiting me does not destroy?” But a righteous predecessor said at his death bed to one of his students who was in tears, “are you crying in my wedding day?" meaning celebrating eternity in the mercy of Allah, inshaAllah.