What Is Life In The Duniya Looks Like Allah Swt Summarized In Just One Ayaat

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Al Hadid (57:20)

Honestly, I have encountered this ayat or the ones similar multiple times in the Quran. Yet I never really had dedicated the time and effort to ponder this verse in depth. However, last week I had a chance to do it when I listened to Nouman Ali Khan's sharing. It was quite mind-blowing, and I think I should jot it down in this blog so I can recall it back again someday when I feel like reading.

Ketahuilah bahawa (yang dikatakan) kehidupan dunia itu tidak lain hanyalah (bawaan hidup yang berupa semata-mata) permainan dan hiburan (yang melalaikan) serta perhiasan (yang mengurang), juga (bawaan hidup yang bertujuan) bermegah-megah di antara kamu (dengan kelebihan, kekuatan, dan bangsa keturunan) serta berlumba-lumba membanyakkan harta benda dan anak pinak; (semuanya itu terhad waktunya) samalah seperti hujan yang (menumbuhkan tanaman yang menghijau subur) menjadikan penanamnya suka dan tertarik hati kepada kesuburannya, kemudian tanaman itu bergerak segar (ke suatu masa yang tertentu), selepas itu engkau melihatnya berupa kuning; akhirnya ia menjadi hancur bersepai; dan (hendaklah diketahui lagi, bahawa) di akhirat ada azab yang berat (di sediakan bagi golongan yang hanya mengutamakan kehidupan dunia itu), dan (ada pula) keampunan besar serta keredaan dari Allah (disediakan bagi orang-orang yang mengutamakan akhirat). Dan (ingatlah, bahawa) kehidupan dunia ini tidak lain hanyalah kesenangan bagi orang-orang yang terpedaya.So, let me divide this single ayat into three parts.  The first one....
Ketahuilah bahawa (yang dikatakan) kehidupan dunia itu tidak lain hanyalah (bawaan hidup yang berupa semata-mata) permainan dan hiburan (yang melalaikan) serta perhiasan (yang mengurang), juga (bawaan hidup yang bertujuan) bermegah-megah di antara kamu (dengan kelebihan, kekuatan, dan bangsa keturunan) serta berlumba-lumba membanyakkan harta benda dan anak pinak;The three main words that Allah mentions in the sequence are..

Life in this world is nothing but play, amusement (entertainment) and decoration. Did you notice that the sequence of these words is related to humans' behaviour, growing up from just a child, then becoming a teenager and lastly as an adult?

Play - if you have a child, you will definitely notice how much your kid loves to play. I'm not a parent myself but from my observation, the toys/books that the parents bought will only catch their interest for only a short period of time. At first, when they want you to buy it for them, they were like desperately in need of the toy, but once they own it, you will find the toy or the book everywhere around the house. They lose interest. And the next time you went out with them shopping, they will ask again for a new toy, feeling all excited and the same thing happens again. Kids seek happiness through playing, and they just can't feel satisfied with just one new toy. Happiness needs to be refilled again.

Amusement (Entertainment) - if you have a teenage sister or brother, try to observe their interest and behaviour. What are their tendencies in everyday life? Netflix? Endless Korean dramas and movies, gameshow and 24 hours of music? Well all of us have gone through teenage period right. When I was a teenager, I can say that my passion at that time was seeking something that is entertaining. A simple example, I am excited when my favourite movie is out in the cinema. But one thing I noticed, I just never get enough of them all.

I am seeking happiness through watching movies, I did feel happy, but sometimes disappointed with the outcomes. But even when I felt happy, I was always looking forward to the next one, probably to fill up my happiness level, from time to time. The same goes to the people who are watching countless dramas. After they had finished 1 drama, even when they feel happy and satisfied, they will move to another one, and the seek for happiness from watching dramas will never stop. As humans, we will never be satisfied.

Decoration - As an adult, probably the simplest example for men is owning a motorbike or a car. For those who buy a new car, the latest design. They felt proud of owning one. But after a few years when the new facelifted version is out on the market. They feel like the one that they own looks so ugly and is lacking something.  Or perhaps the women never get satisfied with just one handbag, furniture and etc.

I can say that even as an adult, what we want in this life is just the same with what the kids want. We all just want to be happy, by not knowing that happiness is not something we can earn, but is gifted from Him. And the point is, whatever that we do to fill the need to be happy, the happiness that we seek can never fill us up. We need to constantly refill it. That is why Allah mentions that what we have been seeking is just a false type of happiness. Because we constantly seek for new happiness as if the one that we just got is not the one that can fill us up.

And this story reminds of something familiar,
Dunia ini adalah perhiasan, dan sebaik-baik perhiasan adalah wanita yang sholehah" (H.R. Muslim)For a woman to be considered as a decoration in this world, it also means for a man to lose the excitement of knowing a woman in his life after some time they were together. Whether they are husband and wife or not, perhaps the love is still there, but the excitement when you first get to know a new person in your life, you can never maintain it the whole time. It is not because men are bad people. It is because Allah already mentions to us that this is what the world looks like and feels like. Even as a woman, after several relationships, I also noticed how the excitement faded away from time to time. Even when I love that person wholeheartedly....

3 Aug 2020 / 3: 52am


.. to be continued (Part 2)

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