Only the one following divine guidance has the certainty of the uprightness of the path he/she has taken on the journey of life. It is certainty bloomed from the firm belief in the unseen, assuring serenity in the heart, firmness on the path and trust and confidence in navigating life challenges.
But in today’s world, one’s travel on the path is clouded with the influence of a secular environment, preventing the attainment of such assurance. In fact, this influence is affecting deeply the system of thinking and perceiving. For this, the believer was commanded to safeguard his/her firmness on the divine guidance – “O you who have believed, upon you is [responsibility for] yourselves. Those who have gone astray will not harm you when you have been guided. To Allah is your return all together; then He will inform you of what you used to do” (5:105). This Ayah does not instruct to leave the enjoining of good and the forbidding of evil, but urges the believer to hold on to the divine guidance when reality is marked with moral decadence.
The following Hadith gives a full description of this moral decay affecting the world today. Abu Umayyah al-Sha'bani, said: “I came to Abu Tha'labah al-Khushani and said to him, 'How do you interpret this verse?' He said, 'Which verse?' I said, 'The verse in which Allah says: “O you who believe, take care of your own selves. Those who go astray will not harm you when you have been guided.”' (5:105) He said, 'Indeed, I asked someone knowledgeable about it; I asked the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and he said: “No, rather do enjoin good and forbid evil. But, when you see greed being obeyed, desires being followed, the world being given preference (over the Hereafter), and everyone being impressed with their own opinions, then take care of your own self and leave the common folk. For, behind you are days of patience, in which patience will be like holding onto hot coals. During those days, the one who acts righteously will have the reward of fifty men who do the same as you.” I said: “O Messenger of Allah, the reward of fifty men from among us or from among them?” He said: “Rather, the reward of fifty men from among you.”'”
The believer is then recommended to be highly alert, lest he/she become absorbed by the ideology dominating the reality of today. He/she has to know the nature of the influence that the system of ideology of secularism is having on minds, so he/she can shield him/herself from being influenced. The following are three main aspects one should know to understand the scope of this influence.
The first is that reasoning in this system is instrumental and not critical, meaning that the reason is used as an instrument for determining the best or most efficient means to achieve a given end, without caring about the nature of the goals – which might actually be destructive for humankind. This instrumental reason excludes from its scope the human high objectives, as the aim of the process of rationalization is replacing values, emotions, and traditions with concepts based solely on reason and rationality. How then would one be able to think if the function of the mind is reduced to an instrument, making one blind to see the obvious?
The second aspect is that the materialistic monism – believing that the physical, material world is primary – made the relationships between human beings to be contractual, negotiable, utilitarian, and not any more based on compassion or governed by divine moral standards.
The third aspect is that morals are not based on a divine guidance any more, but are defined on the basis of interests and agendas. Every party sees that their way is right, making the good for some to be evil for others. Such a perception corrupts the balance and causes the leading astray.
Under the dominance of materialistic thinking, which is the primary characteristic of the secular ideology, an individual feels alienated from his/her human essence and lives a superficial life. He/she feels separated from his/her own self, society, and the true value of his/her existence. Life becomes meaningless! “They only know the worldly affairs of this life, but are totally oblivious to the Hereafter” (30:7).
This bitter reality was described by the Prophet (pbuh) as “the years of deceit.” He (pbuh) said: “There will come upon the people years of deceit, in which the liar will be believed, and the truthful will be disbelieved, the treacherous will be trusted, and the trustworthy will be considered treacherous. And the insignificant one will speak in matters concerning the public." It was said: "What is 'the insignificant one'?" He said: "A foolish man who speaks about the affairs of the people.”
In order for the believer to be liberated from the cage of this reality and be safeguarded from its influence, he/she has to have his/her heart turn away from its luring glamour and rely upon Allah (swt), so as to be able to see with the light of Allah. This is, indeed, the guidance of the Quran, “So turn away from them, and put your trust in Allah, And sufficient is Allah as Disposer of affairs.” (4:81).
The trust in Allah is to be expressed with actions: the audacity to stand for justice, to proclaim it, and to strive with rightful meanings to have it be established, and observing exemplary conduct. “Be gracious, enjoin what is right, and turn away from those who act ignorantly” (7:199). For this practical trust to be observed, it needs the power of patience to sustain it. It is then that the taste of life becomes sweet, as ahead of the believer is the fulfillment of the promise of the eternal bliss.
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