This being the World Service, you are talking to people many of whom will have no idea of what it is like to live in Scotland. And let's face it if there is one distinctive feature of the west coast of Scotland it is the landscape's love affair with rain.

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim - In the Name of God the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate.

[Quran, from the chapter called the Romans, vv. 17-25]

So Glory be to God, both in your evening hour and in your morning hour. His is the praise in the heavens and the earth, alike at the setting sun and in your noontide hour. He brings forth the living from the dead, and brings forth the dead from the living, and He revives the earth after it is dead - even so shall you be brought forth.

And of His signs is that He created you of dust; then lo, you are mortals, all scattered abroad. And of His signs is that He created for you, out of yourselves, husbands and wives, that you might rest at peace within them, and He has set between you love and mercy. Surely in that are signs for a people who consider.

And of His signs is the creation of the heavens and earth and the variety of your tongues and colours. Surely in that are signs for all living beings. And of His signs is your sleeping by night and day, and your searching for His bounty. Surely in that are signs for a people who hear.

And of His signs He shows you the lightning, for fear and hope, and that He sends down out of heaven water and He revives the earth after it is dead. Surely in that are signs for a people who understand. And of His signs is that the heaven and earth stand firm by His command; then, when He calls you once and suddenly, out of the earth you will come forth.

When I first came home to Scotland, after years spent living in places that were a great deal hotter and drier, the hardest thing to face was returning to the Scottish weather. Rain, rain, and yet more rain, sometimes a downpour, and sometimes steady drizzle, or on sunny days just occasional showers, so I quickly remembered to wear a raincoat and always carry an umbrella. If I forgot, the cold water running down my neck and soaking through my clothes soon reminded me, and on those occasions to ease my discomfort I would try to remember the frequent verses in the Qur'an which speak of the rain being one of the signs of God bringing life to a dead land.

In deserts the occasional shower can have a miraculous effect, as the barren earth is suddenly covered in a shimmering green carpet of life, but everywhere is constantly green around Glasgow, and the hills of the highlands are as filled with lakes as the city streets are filled with puddles. The rain keeps things green, and even the name of the city means the Dear Green Place, but with the skies so full of rainclouds watering the greenery, how often I missed the heat of the sun.

Yet the Scots have an endearing habit of greeting the daily rainshowers with complete surprise. "Oh my goodness!", they will say, "Look at that - It's raining, would you believe it, and here I am without my umbrella!", as though they were under a spell of forgetfulness whereby each nights sleep puts out of mind the cold soaking of the day before, and restores the hope of another long hot sunny Scottish day. Humans can quickly forget much greater suffering or discomfort. All thoughts of the pains of childbirth will vanish when a mother holds her new born infant in her arms.

A sailor caught in a storm at sea may pray desperately to God for his deliverance from the waves, yet when his boat has safely reached the harbour, and he walks once again on dry land, he can quickly forget his fear and even forget the existence of the God to whom he prayed, even though he saw the signs of God quite clearly when he was in the eye of the storm. The Qur'an is filled with the Signs of God surrounding us, ever present reminders of God's Majesty and Power, His Mercy and His Bounty. Yet how easily we forget. To God belongs the East and the West. Wherever you turn, there is the Face of God, and God is All-Embracing, All-Knowing.