A032
Surah: 009 - Ayah: 032
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9:32
It is evident from the Holy Qur'an that the light which God has sent for the guidance of mankind cannot be extinguished by the disbelievers (9:32, 61:8). This implies that the light of guidance which existed in the Prophet, as the spirituality of the Qur'an, still exists and continues in the chain of Imamat with exactly the same luster and radiance of spirituality.
When the Noble Qur'an says that God's light is neither extinguished nor can it be extinguished (9:32; 61:8), in that case, certainly the purpose of the Qur'an is that we should believe in the law of the transference of the light from one personality to another from the time of Hazrat Adam, may peace be on him, till the Resurrection. Otherwise, there cannot be any concept of the living and speaking Revealed Light (nur-i munazzal). Thus the light which was in the Seal of the Prophets (5:15) transferred to his Wasi (legatee), i.e. Mawla Ali, so that the door of the sciences of the Qur'an may not close and the means of future guidance of Islam should always remain available.
Transformation of Bodies (tabaddul-i ajsam):
Question: Is there any life after death? Is it possible for the soul to live in many successive bodies?
Answer: (a) First proof: It should be known that the Spirit of God and the Light of God is one and the same thing. When the Qur'an used to reveal to the holy Prophet, God proclaimed that His Light was never going to be extinguished (9:32; 61:8). This means that the Spirit, which God had breathed into Adam (15:29; 38:72) has continued in the chain of succession of the Prophets and Imams from one body to another. This is a proof that human souls also change one body for another. For the Spirit of God in its practical guidance has presented this model.
(b) Second proof: According to the Qur'an we are the children of Adam and when Noah’s Ark was floating in the deluge we were in the loins of his companions in the form of small spiritual particles (17:3) and we have appeared here having passed through generation after generation. So it is a fact that the soul continues to change its body.
(c) Third proof: According to the Qur'anic verse (29:64) the abode of the hereafter is alive, and that which is alive is first and foremost the human being and then the animal. This shows that before appearing in this world, the human being was in a body and will be transferred to a body after leaving the present body; whether the body is subtle (latif) or dense (kathif), whether human or animal. Thus, it is a valid proof that the soul always uses bodies like garments.
(d) Fourth proof: Our body decays completely in forty days, wearing itself out in the form of atoms. At the same time in the same span of time it is re-constituted completely by means of new atoms. According to this calculation our body changes nine times in the year. An assessment of how the body continues to be constituted from one side and wears out from the other can be made from the growth of hair and nails. It is evident from this that the human body always continues to change. That is, the soul continues to change bodies, one after the other.
(e) Fifth proof: It is mentioned in several places of the Qur'an and particularly in the chapter Yasin (36:36) that God has created all things in pairs in such a way that they cannot subsist without being pairs, such as the body and soul. This means that without the body the soul cannot stay and without the soul the body perishes, as is clear from the [decayed] body, which the soul has left. The cause of the subsistence of this universe is that it has a great soul that is called the Universal Soul. This shows that the soul cannot stay without the body rather it transfers from one body to another.
(f) Sixth proof: Our soul has three kinds of body; one is physical (khaki) which is the present body, the second is luminous (nurani) and the third is originated (ibda'i). Their knowledge is related to spiritual experience as well as to Qur'anic wisdom (16:81). Thus, the soul always has a link with these bodies.
This book is written on the basis of the above mentioned principles. Further, this view is upheld in it, so that the importance of religious sciences may be clear to those Muslim students who are not aware of their benefits, or who being bewitched by material science are repelled by religion. This, however, does not mean that we do not appreciate material progress. In fact, we believe that religion is based on nothing but the [material] world. Thus, worldly progress is nothing but material progress, however it is necessary to be certain that no worldly achievement is possible without God’s Will. As true Muslims it is necessary to believe that spiritual power is higher than atomic power. Spiritual power includes everything. If someone asks: As the true religion of God and His Prophet, why does Islam not have the central position and supreme power among the religions of the world?, the answer is that the promise of the All powerful God [to make it prevail over every religion, 9:32; 48:29; 61:9] is true, and its time has come. For the people of the world now feel an overwhelming need for ethical unity.
Thus, with the respect to the transference of the physical aspect of the light (i.e. the different bodies of Prophethood and imamat), the lamp is the most appropriate and compatible example and with respect to the spiritual aspect, i.e. with respect to the place of the Universal intellect and Universal soul, the best and most appropriate example is that of the sun and the moon. Now, according to the principle think carefully about the following verse and determine which aspect of the light is mentioned in it: “They (unbelievers) intend to put out the light of Allah with their mouths (erroneous arguments); but Allah disdains (aught) save that He completes His light, even though the unbelievers may detest it”.(9:32)
Q330 The subject of both the verses (9:32; 61:8) is the same. Translation of verse (9:32): “They intend to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths; and Allah disdains save that He perfects His light, even though the infidels may detest it.” Whose was the first unsuccessful attempt to put out the light of Allah? What is the wisdom of “Allah perfects His light”?
A330
- Cain was the first to attempt to extinguish the light of Allah.
- In azal, the light is perfect and complete, i.e. there is no deficiency in the light itself, but when it rises in the person of the Prophet or the Imam, its feat is not completed in a single day. Rather it is a process in which the bearer of light advances from one stage to the next until it eventually becomes complete.
- The perfection of light is also with respect to a cycle in the sense that seven Imams constitute a minor cycle and there is a great cycle of seven times seven Imams.
Islam is the religion of God, therefore, it is eternally present and established (9:36, 12:40, 30:30, 30:43). In accord with the time, it is called the religion of nature, because God has created people according to His nature i.e., His religion (30:30). To understand the meaning of the religion of nature, one should reflect upon the best example in nature i.e., a human being who after being born as a little baby progresses through the different stages of life and gradually reaches perfection. In a similar way Islam gradually passes through different stages of progression and its light becomes complete and perfect (9:32, 61:8). The proof that the light reaches the stage of perfection as a result of Islam’s all-embracing progress is that as the true religion, it will surpass all the other religions of the world (9:33, 61:9).
This verse has been referred 11 times.