Author: Abdul Hai Lay'yan
Religious Needs Assessment of Human Beings in the Light of Islamic Teachings (Part 16)
Human Responsibility and the Necessity of Divine Judgment (Continuation)
The Five Core Indications of the Proof of Reviving the Earth
Allah has made this phenomenon — the revival of the earth — a sign and proof for five fundamental matters:
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The existence of the Maker (the Creator):
And that He is the Absolute Truth — which itself entails the affirmation of all His perfect attributes, including power, will, life, knowledge, wisdom, mercy, and action.
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That Allah is the One who gives life to the dead.
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That His power encompasses all things.
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That the Day of Resurrection will surely come and there is no doubt about it.
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That He will bring forth the dead from their graves just as He brings forth vegetation from the earth.
The Response to the Deniers of Resurrection
Allah the Exalted has repeatedly used this argument — the revival of the earth — throughout the Qur’an because of the soundness of its premises, the clarity of its indication, and its freedom from any ambiguity. (1)
Another instance in which Allah refutes the doubts of those who deny the Resurrection is in the following verse: “وَقَالُوا أَإِذَا كُنَّا عِظَامًا وَرُفَاتًا أَإِنَّا لَمَبْعُوثُونَ خَلْقًا جَدِيدًا”(2) Translation: And they say, “When we have become bones and dust, will we indeed be resurrected as a new creation?”
A Decisive Proof of Allah’s Power to Recreate
Allah the Exalted gave them a conclusive response — one that stands as a firm and irrefutable proof of His power to restore them to a new creation. As He says: “قُلْ كُونُوا حِجَارَةً أَوْ حَدِيدًا * أَوْ خَلْقًا مِمَّا يَكْبُرُ فِي صُدُورِكُمْ فَسَيَقُولُونَ مَنْ يُعِيدُنَا قُلِ الَّذِي فَطَرَكُمْ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ فَسَيُنْغِضُونَ إِلَيْكَ رُءُوسَهُمْ وَيَقُولُونَ مَتَى هُوَ قُلْ عَسَى أَنْ يَكُونَ قَرِيبًا.” (3) Translation: Say, “Be stones or iron, or any other creation which you deem hardest [to bring to life].” They will then say, “Who will bring us back [to life]?” Say, “The One who created you the first time.” Then they will shake their heads at you and say, “When will that be?” Say, “Perhaps it will be soon.”
Summary of the Argument
When the deniers of resurrection considered it impossible to be brought back to life after having turned into bones and ashes, Allah the Exalted said: “Even if you were to become stones or iron — or any creation which, in your estimation, is harder and further removed from the possibility of life (such as the heavens, the earth, or even death itself) — still My power would prevail over you.”
The essence of this decisive proof is that you are created beings, completely under the dominion of your Creator and subject to His will. You have no power to transform yourselves into a form immune from decay, such as stone or iron. And even if you were to possess such hardness, the decree, power, and will of Allah would still take effect upon you. You could neither escape His authority nor resist His command.
This is among the most definitive and irrefutable proofs — one into which no doubt can enter, and before which all sound intellects must submit and yield in humility.
Dispute About the Time of Resurrection
When the denying people realized the strength and validity of this proof, they shifted to another obstinate question: “Who will give us life again?” — and Allah the Exalted responded: “Say: the One who created you the first time.”
When they saw that this answer was irrefutable, they turned to another form of stubbornness and mockery, asking about the time of the Resurrection. They shook their heads in astonishment and denial, saying, “When will that be?” — to which Allah commanded: “Say: Perhaps it is near.”
Indeed, the life of the Hereafter is truly the season of harvest — the time to reap the fruits of what every human being has sown with his own hands in the field of this world. That eternal life is not merely a station of rest; it is the true continuation and ultimate destination of our journey of existence.
This worldly life is but a farm, and the Hereafter is the market — where every soul will trade only in what it has cultivated. Whoever, through recognizing the noble purpose of creation — worship and beneficence — has planted seeds of righteousness and good deeds, will, in the Hereafter, reap the abundant reward of eternal bliss in proportion to his sincerity and merit.
But woe to the one who wasted his precious lifetime in vanity and heedlessness and turned away from the true purpose of creation. In that Great Court of Justice, such a person will inevitably taste the bitter consequence of his failure — the torment of eternal regret and painful punishment.
The absolute justice of Allah demands that no effort — whether good or evil — goes unnoticed or unrewarded. The final outcome of each person will be a precise reflection of his conduct during this brief trial of worldly life.
Thus, we come to realize that the secret of true happiness lies in understanding and fulfilling the very purpose of creation.
To be continued…
References:
- Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr ibn Ayyub ibn Sa‘d Shams al-Din, Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, I‘lam al-Muwaqqi‘in ‘an Rabb al-‘Alamin, Vol. 1, p. 139.
- Surah Al-Isra, Verse 49.
- Surah Al-Isra, Verses 50–51.
