Voice of British Muslim Women

Tooba Khokhar, Cambridge

There was once a time when man worshipped the sun, moon and stars. To these bright orbs, prayers were made and offerings laid out in forests and boughs.

Then, God slowly revealed to man of Himself. In a brilliant exposition, the Quran addresses pagan practices in their many forms.

We read of an argument by Abraham (on whom be peace), one of the earliest monotheists, where he hypothetically sets out to worship the stars, the moon and the sun in sequence. However, each orb though brilliant in its zenith in turn fades from view, leading him to proclaim, “I like not those that set”[1].

He seeks instead the company of a God Who is Omnipresent, not the momentary distraction offered by breakable idols or turning stars.

In the Holy Qur’an, God assures us

To Allah belong the East and the West so whithersoever you turn, there will be the Face of Allah. Surely, Allah is Bountiful, All- Knowing.[2]

From this verse, we learn of a God Who surrounds us in every moment. Of a God that is not limited to a particular geography, contrary to the polemics of today that present a secular West against a faithful East.

However, laying aside questions of culture, what of the problem of suffering? Can we see the Face of God in the misery of man? And turning away from the world around us, when we are wracked with turbulence in our inner world, are we then gazing upon the Face of the Absolute?

To those who see God only through His Attributes of Mercy and Justice, and conclude that their own understanding of those terms as applied to their situations is absolute, there may be times when they do not recognise the Divine Presence at all.

However, if our desire is to know God, then trials and tribulations can afford us a glimpse of Divine Attributes that would otherwise be entirely veiled from us while at the same time readying our own hearts and souls that we may better know ourselves and Our Maker.

The world is a stage where the Divine Attributes present themselves to those who would look. We may see glimpses of the Divine in the beauty, fortune, and discomforts that visit us. And in the natural world, we see the Mighty in the mountains that tower over us, and the Fashioner in the intricate detail of petals and leaves.

It is in this sense that wherever we turn, the Face of God is truly before us.

And as we read in the Holy Qur’an

He is Allah, and there is no God beside Him, the Sovereign, the Holy One, the Source of Peace, the Bestower of Security, the Protector, the Mighty, the Subduer, the Exalted. Holy is Allah far above that which they associate with Him.

He is Allah, the Creator, the Maker, the Fashioner. His are the most beautiful names. All that is in the heavens and the earth glorifies Him, and He is the Mighty, the Wise.[3]

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[1] Chapter 6, verse 77

[2] Chapter 2, verse 116

[3] Chapter 59, verses 24-5