Do they not travel through the earth,
and see what was the end of those before them? They
were superior to them in strength: they tilled the
soil and populated it in greater numbers than these
have done: there came to them their messengers with
Clear (Signs). (Which they rejected, to their own
destruction): It was not Allah Who wronged them, but
they wronged their own souls. (Surat ar-Room: 9)
All the peoples we have reviewed
until now, had some qualities in common such as: transgressing
against Allah, associating partners with Him, behaving arrogantly
in the land, wrongfully devouring other's property, tending
to sexual perversion, and insolence. Another common feature
they had was their oppression and iniquity towards the Muslims
in their vicinity. They tried in every way to intimidate
the Muslims.
The purpose of the warnings of the Qur'an is surely not
just to give history lessons. The Qur'an states that the
stories of the prophets are told only to set an "example".
Those nations who were earlier destroyed, should lead those
who come after them to the right way:
Is it not a warning to such men (to call to mind)
how many generations before them We destroyed, in whose
haunts they (now) move? Verily, in this are Signs for
men endued with understanding. (Surah Ta-Ha: 128)
If we consider all of these to be "examples",
then we can see that some parts of our society are no better,
in terms of degeneration and transgression, than the peoples
who perished and which are described in these stories.
Particularly, an important group of the "leading people
of the society" - who are also known as "high
society", are not very much different from the peoples
who perished described in the Qur'an. The members of this
group, most of whom are aware of the principles of the religion
of truth, do not hesitate to perform every kind of perversion.
Their hostility towards the Muslims is known by everyone.
The most interesting point is the fact that most societies
in our day have a high population of sodomists and homosexuals
within them which remind us of the "People of Lut".
The homosexuals, attending sex parties with "leading
people of the society", display all kinds of perversions
outdoing their counterparts in Sodom and Gomorrah. Especially,
there are a group of them living in the largest cities of
the world, who have "gone even further" than those
in Pompeii.
All the societies we have examined have been punished through
natural disasters such as earthquakes, storms, flood etc.
Similarly, the societies that go astray and dare to commit
the offences of past peoples may well be punished in a like
manner.
It should not be forgotten that Allah may punish whatever
person or nation He wills whenever He wills. Or, He may
let whomever He wills lead a ordinary life in this world,
and punish him in the Hereafter. The Qur'an states:
Each one of them We seized for his crime: of them,
against some We sent a violent tornado (with showers of
stones); some were caught by a (mighty) Blast; some We
caused the earth to swallow up; and some We drowned (in
the waters): It was not Allah Who injured (or oppressed)
them. They injured (and oppressed) their own souls. (Surat
al-Ankaboot: 40)
The Qur'an also tells about a believer, who was from the family
of Fir'awn and lived during the period of Musa, but who concealed
his belief. He said to his people:
"O my people! Truly I do fear for you something
like the Day (of disaster) of the Confederates (in sin)!-
Something like the fate of the People of Nuh, the 'Ad,
and the Thamud, and those who came after them: but Allah
never wishes injustice to his Servants.
And O my people! I fear for you a Day when there will
be Mutual calling (and wailing) - "A Day when ye
shall turn your backs and flee: No defender shall ye have
from Allah: Any whom Allah leaves to stray, there is none
to guide..." (Surat al-Ghafir: 30-33)
All of the prophets warned their people, pointed out to
them the Day of Judgement and attempted to make them frightened
of Allah's punishment, just as did this believer who concealed
his faith. The lives of all the prophets and messengers
were passed in explaining these matters to their people
over and over again. Yet most often, the people to whom
they were sent accused them of untruthfulness, of seeking
to acquire material gains, or trying to assert their superiority
over them and then they went on to practise their own systems
without thinking of what the prophet said or without questioning
their deeds. Some of them have gone further and attempted
to kill or drive away the believers. The number of the believers
that obeyed and followed was often very few. However, in
the cases of the rebellious communities, Allah always saved
only the prophets and their followers.
Despite the thousands of years that have gone by, and the
changes in places, manners, technologies and civilisations,
yet not much has changed in the aforementioned social structures
and the systems of the unbelievers. As we have emphasised
above, a certain part of the society in which we live has
all the qualities of the people described in the Qur'an.
Just like Thamud who gave short measure, there are also
a great number of forgers and swindlers today. There exists
a "homosexual community", which is defended whenever
the occasion shows itself, and the members of which do not
fall short of the people of Lut in whom sexual perversion
had reached its peak. A great part of society is made up
of people as ungrateful and rebellious as Saba, as unthankful
for the wealth endowed to them as the people of Iram, as
unsubmissive and insulting towards the believers as the
people of Nuh, and as heedless of social justice as 'Ad.
These are very significant signs…
We should always bear in mind that whatever differences
come about in societies or at whatever stage of technological
advancement they are or whatever their potentials are, that
these have no importance whatsoever. None of these can save
one from Allah's punishment. The Qur'an reminds us all of
this reality:
Do they not travel through the earth, and see what
was the end of those before them? They were superior to
them in strength: they tilled the soil and populated it
in greater numbers than these have done: there came to
them their messengers with Clear (Signs). (Which they
rejected, to their own destruction): It was not Allah
Who wronged them, but they wronged their own souls. (Surat
ar-Room: 9)
|
