It makes a man wonder, and it makes a wonder of a man; what destiny underlies his anguish? What purpose did the Heavens have in mind as they let Adam loose and what have they now, as they watch the dreadful turmoil unfold?
I wonder still, and empathize even more…and yet i am realising, quite simply, that in a grandeur sense, what is, is what must be. This is in some sense how the Merciful responded to the innocent bewilderment of the Angels, assuring them that, beyond all, there is more to man then what meets the eye. There lies a purpose and destiny that even a high arch-Angel Azazeel turned Shaytan, could not stomach with ease, and in many senses, neither can i. Man’s ultimate purpose and destiny will remain, in much in the same way as it began, contentious and difficult to grasp. The difference however, is where Satan turned away in rebellion, masking his ignorance with denial; the Angels harkened in submission, accepting their ignorance in the face of what Providence ultimately had in store. This too, is required of Adam’s children, as they wonder over their plight—for they are expected to wonder, but lest their wonder turn to frustration with the Divine, and worse yet, lest their frustration turn into denial.
What is clear is that the Lord is incomprehensible and evidently how can the musings of a limited and obtuse creation ever encompass the unparalleled ‘thoughts’ and ‘intentions’ of his creator? Never mind his ability to encompass ‘him’; he can barely articulate his thoughts of him, for what combination of letters can describe his sublimity and what imageries can capture his majesty?
How then does he seriously expect to fathom the Lords intentions for bani-Adam and the ultimate purpose and destiny that underlie his creation; one that supersedes and overbears the clearly inexcusable corruption and bloodshed we see everyday?
This may very well fall on deaf ears, considering we live in a world where man’s ability to discern is seriously overrated—he naively feels he can understand anything, and anything that can’t be understood is better off deemed as non-existent, at least that would somehow afford him some comfort (or so he thinks).Ultimately though, it is God and God alone, who can divulge perhaps a morsel, a meagre fragment of such purpose to our feeble minds—and even that would be a bargain.
So when i open the shaitan-box and bustle (noo not busal, whoever you are you must be Arab and hungry) to see the news, and all that’s seen is suffering, I empathize with the Angels and wonder what is to become of man in this epic we call life.
"When your Lord said to the Angels, 'Ineed I am going to set a viceroy on the earth,' they said, 'Will You set in it someone who will cause corruption in it, and shed blood?! while we celebrate Your praise and proclaim Your sanctity?' He said, 'Indeed I know what you do not know'." Quran 2:30
