What is the Purpose of life in Islam?
In Islam, man’s ultimate life objective is to worship the creator Allah SWT (English: God) by abiding by the Divine guidelines revealed in the Qur’an and the Tradition of the Prophet. Earthly life is merely a test, determining one’s afterlife, either in Jannah (Paradise) or in Jahannam (Hell).
Muslims believe that Almighty Allah is the only creator of this world and all other things which are present in this world. Everyone in this world thinks about what’s the purpose of our life? Why have we been created? Why are we here in this world? Answer of all these questions we will discuss in this article that is particularly according to Islam and Quranic verses.
We believe that there is only One Creator Who created us and we acknowledged Him, we all know that He created us (humankind) to serve Him. Now the question comes to mind that How we can serve Him? There is a reason behind the creation of this world and humankind. In the Holy Quran, Almighty Allah Almighty mentioned the reason of creation of this world that is: “And to Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and Allah is over all things competent. Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of the night and the day are signs for those of understanding. Who remember Allah while standing or sitting or [lying] on their sides and give thought to the creation of the heavens and the earth, [saying], “Our Lord, You did not create this aimlessly; exalted are You [above such a thing]; then protect us from the punishment of the Fire..”(Quran 3: 189-191)
So, from above verse of Holy Quran, we came to know that Allah has created this world and humankind for His worship and we should always remember Allah Almighty because He is the one Who created day and night, heavens and earth and all other things that we see in this world. He didn’t create anything without purpose everything is created due to some reason and have some purpose in life. We as a Muslim have a clear perception in our mind that the creation o this world and humankind is to praise and worship of our Creator. Islam addresses the reason of what and why of human existence. The point of view that Islam gives refers to human existence is quite different from other religions wherein some there is no purpose for human existence, or if there is any, it is beyond human intelligence.
Allah Almighty created man to serve Him, meaning that men should believe in the One Lord and do well. This is the main objective of human life. Allah says, “I have not created men except that they should serve Me” (Quran, 51:56). This life is a preparation for the Hereafter the ‘Eternal Home’ that will not be going to an end to which all human beings ultimately go. So, Muslims are required to observe righteousness in their daily life, based on Quranic teachings, like eating halal food, wearing modest clothing, performing prayers, giving alms, etc, because of the fact that they live for Allah alone. And to those who aim to attain nearness to Him, Almighty Allah sees to it.
The reason of knowing and understanding of the creation of this world and human existence by Muslims is due to the fact that Allah Almighty has given us the book Quran which contains all the guidance related to the life of this world and the Hereafter too. If we want to know about the existence of this world and humankind then we have to understand it through Holy Quran because all the answers are present in Holy Quran. Below we will discuss the view of Islam related to human existence in the light of Quran.
Purpose of Life According to Quranic Verses
In Quran Almighty Allah says:
“[Remember] when your Lord extracted from the loins of Adam’s children their descendants and made them testify (saying): ‘Am I not your Lord?’ They said: ‘Yes, we testify to it.’ [This was] in case you say on the Day of Judgment: ‘We were unaware of this.’ Or you say: “It was our ancestors who worshipped others besides God and we are only their descendants. Will you then destroy us for what those falsifiers did?” (Quran, 7:172-173)
From the above ayah it is clear that when Allah Almighty made the souls of all the humans, the first thing He did was to take an oath from the entire human race in which they testified to His Lordship. This oath shows the fact that all the humans were made aware of the fact that Allah is their Lord and they need to remember it. What this ayah and the acts of people in during the oath and when they come to this earth gives the prime purpose of human existence in Islam i.e. knowing the Lord or identifying Him is the primary objective of human existence.
Allah Almighty says in Quran: “Did you think that We had created you in play (without any purpose) and that you would not be brought back to Us?” (Quran 23:115)
From above verse, we can conclude, we were indeed created for a purpose beyond that of simply play and enjoyment in this life. We have the purpose of life that we should know and have to live life according to that purpose.
In another verse of Quran Allah Almighty says that: “Know that the life of this world is but amusement and diversion and adornment and boasting to one another and competition in increase of wealth and children – like the example of a rain whose [resulting] plant growth pleases the tillers; then it dries and you see it turned yellow; then it becomes [scattered] debris. And in the Hereafter is severe punishment and forgiveness from Allah and approval. And what is the worldly life except the enjoyment of delusion.” (Quran 57:20)
In above verse, Allah states that the reality of this life is one of deception and we should not fall for its temporary enjoyments.
In Quran, Allah Almighty says: “I have created the jinn and humankind only for My worship.” (Quran, 51:56)
From the ayah, it is clear that the creation of humans, as well as jinns, is for the purpose of worshiping Allah Almighty. When a Muslim worships Allah Almighty, he or she actually accept His Lordship which is the same as they did on the oath that was taken before their birth. Thus, the more a Muslim worships Allah the closer to Him he or she gets and the meaning of existence starts emerging.
In another verse of Holy Quran, Almighty Allah says: “Satan’s plan is to incite enmity and hatred among you with intoxicants and gambling, and hinder you from the remembrance of Allah and regular prayer. Will you not then abstain?” (Quran, 5:91)
In the above verse, Allah Almighty informed us and clear that when humans will indulge in hatred of each other then they will definitely select hating others as a purpose of their life which will turn them from the true purpose and that is the remembrance of Allah. Therefore, in order to fulfill the purpose of knowing the Lord, a Muslim needs to refrain from evil in the same extent to which he or she is inclined towards doing well.
In short, Almighty Allah has guided people to the purpose of life that is worshipping Him and seeking His pleasure. The Holy Quran in this regard is one of the best ways of knowing the ways in which a person can fulfill this purpose of pleasing Almighty Allah and give meaning to his or her life. The main reason for our creation is worship. We should fulfill this purpose of our life by following Allah’s commands given in Quran.
