Living The Quran
From Issue: 580 [Read full issue]
Human Struggle
Al-Maarij (The Stairs of Ascent) Sura 70: Verse 19
"Surely human has been created with a restless, impatient disposition."
Each person has two aspects: one angelic, pure, and spiritual; and the other one turned to the elements, plants, and animals. All people are "children of the world." We have been equipped with lust, and anger, and intellect. By nature, we are fallible, forgetful, neglectful, fond of disputing, obstinate, selfish, jealous, and much more. Since our free will distinguishes us from other conscious beings, such as angels, these powers, faculties, and negative-seeming feelings are not restricted. However, to attain individual and collective happiness in both worlds, and to rise to higher ranks of humanity, we should restrict these powers according to certain precepts and channel them into virtues. For example, impatience and restlessness can be channelled into the virtue of alertness to danger, or the pre-emptive preparation against it; or into the virtue of promptness and impulsiveness towards what is best, when there is the occasion or opportunity to do good things.
Our human nature is no more than our struggle against the negative and/or negative-seeming aspects of our character, restricting or channelling these into virtues, and acquiring distinction with good qualities so that we may become good, worshipful servants of God and useful members of society.
Compiled From:
"The Quran: Annotated Interpretation in Modern English" - Ali Unal, p. 1172