Relating

From the moment that we accept there is an entity,

a being, that is God,

our lives are inevitably intertwined

with concerns as to the nature of our relationship.

When we look at the scale and power of the Creation that we are capable of comprehending,

and recognise that it all issues from no more than the Will of the Creator,

we have to wonder if that means that everything we do is predestined.

If nothing exists if not for the Will of God,

what is going on when it feels like we are making decisions

and changing outcomes?

This is a philosophical and theological problem

which has been discussed with great intensity

since the earliest days of Islam.

As a topic of argument it was considered a hugely important question

in the days around 500 years after the death of the Messenger,

and it is a topic that is still capable of eliciting

a wide range of different opinions today.

It involves what in Arabic are known as

'Qada' and 'Qadar',

Decree and Destiny.

Qada is what God has decided for all the worlds,

and that has no change,

created from outside of time,

and thus seen from that perspective as incapable of change.

Qadar, however is the individual fate or destiny

of each one of all God's creatures existent in time,

God's application of Qada in time.

It is fixed and unchanging when seen from higher dimensions,

but residents of that dimension have the impression of moving through time,

propelled through that dimension by their choice and intent.

Choices can be made for many reasons,

from pragmatic to little more than a whim,

but intent goes deeper and knows in its heart

that all intention includes an understanding of the good and bad of what is involved.

That capacity to recognise and distinguish between good and bad

is what we know of as having a conscience,

our hearts feeling comfortable with good,

but uncomfortable with bad

and hoping that others don't find out.

That doesn't mean that moral judgements are the same for all people,

and as we learn more about life our opinions may change,

but the feeling in the heart is always

a warning of the effect on an individual,

their personal right and wrong.

God is closer to us than the blood running through our bodies,

closer than our most important part,

our understanding and our souls,

and wherever we look for understanding,

there is the Face of Allah.

God created the universe for us to look at and learn from.

We are looking at the Word.

In an instant you can see

an image that you will never forget,

but a word has a start and a finish,

it takes time to say.

The Bible says “In the beginning was the Word”,

and God tells us in the Qur'an that when Allah wills for something

Allah just says 'Be' and it is

The process that we are involved in

is a continuous ongoing creation, emanating from a single word

a word that takes place through us as well as around us,

for God is everywhere.

When we look at the creation around us,

we see signs of order everywhere,

and looking for that order has always been a major pastime of human beings,

It is an approach that nowadays is mostly considered under the name of maths and science,

though people also search for order in many other ways.

But wherever we look

we see God's order,

from the unimaginably large

to the infinitesimally small,

from grandiose intergalactic brushstrokes

to tiny particulates

blinking in and out of existence.

All this is there for us to see,

and God sees through our eyes.