The sound of the word "err" says it all -- you wanted to stop it in its track and go back in time. An error of judgment can easily get you in deep waters. It is not planned and executed, it just happens -- maybe because we didn't pay enough attention, or maybe we thought it would be fine. Most times we don't even notice it until it's too late. Yes, some do notice and react strongly, but even they realize soon that their hands are soiled, too. Eventually, the society accepts it with all its consequences. It becomes the norm -- a necessary evil of the society.
This is depicted in the Holy Bible and the Holy Quran as the fall of Adam. Adam represents humans. Of course, a fall is involuntary, not deliberate. The Holy Quran uses words like "He slipped," "He forgot" or even assuring that "We did not find any intent on his part." It was an inadvertent sin. Errors or mistakes do have consequences -- the wages of sin. The Holy Quran says, Prophet Adam (Peace be on him.) became aware of his weaknesses as a human. He became extremely remorseful and begged Allah for forgiveness. Allah turned to him with mercy and taught him some prayers to recite and forgave him. God turned the clock back, so to say, and made Adam (Peace be on him.) whole, just as he was before, without blemish. God corrected the error.
For Adam -- the humans -- as they were being expelled from the garden, God said: Go forth, all of you, from here. But, whenever guidance comes to you from me, those who will follow my guidance shall have no fear, nor shall they grieve. (Holy Quran, Chapter 2, Verse 39). In other words, as the followers of any religion move away from the time of their respective founding teachers, they are destined to fall short of the high marks they had attained in moral and spiritual fields earlier. This decline is a natural phenomenon as regimentation, constant hard work and a selfless commitment are required for staying at the top. Without a divinely inspired teacher at the helm, it is nearly impossible to keep up with the extreme demands of altruism. After reaching their pinnacle, all societies deteriorate morally and spiritually. Humans cannot pull themselves out of such a quagmire on their own. At such times, the divine hand reaches out with mercy to them and a prophet is sent down to show them the path to salvation and success. It takes a law-bearing prophet and a sequel of divinely inspired teachers -- or follower prophets -- to bring the society around to become a beacon of success for many a nation around them.
According to the Holy Quran, Prophet Adam (Peace be on him.) was the first prophet to the early settled humans in the Arabian Peninsula. He and his people inhabited a land of plenty -- a land where streams flowed, and fruit trees blossomed around the year to provide them all plenty of food and shelter from the elements. They were also taught about the harmfulness of a couple of trees. The trees, fruitful and harmful, symbolize good and evil, respectively. Allah says in the Holy Quran: Do you not see how Allah sets forth the similitude of a good word? It is likened unto a good tree, whose root is firm and whose branches reach into heaven. It brings forth its fruit at all times by the command of its Lord. Allah sets forth similitudes for men that they may reflect. And the case of an evil word is like that of an evil tree, which is uprooted from above the earth and has no stability.
Allah strengthens the believers with the word that is firmly established -- both in the present life and in the hereafter -- and Allah lets the wrongdoers go astray. And Allah does what he wills. (Holy Quran 14:.25-28.
After Prophet Adam (Peace be on him.), human settlements spread far and wide, and the merciful God turned to them time and again with clear exhortations through his chosen messengers. Allah says in the Holy Quran: There is no people to whom a warner (messenger) has not been sent (35:25). Noah (Peace be on him.) was sent as a messenger to his people around 5,000 years ago, and Abraham (Peace be on him.) around 4,000 years ago. Moses (Peace be on him.) was sent around 3,500 years ago to the children of Israel with Torah. He was followed by many a messengers and prophets who followed the Torah to spiritually guide the Jews. Finally, Jesus (Peace be on him.) was sent as the Messiah among them about 2,000 years ago to show them again the path to salvation. At the end, about 1,400 years ago, Allah sent the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace be on him.) as his final messenger to all of humanity. He was followed by divinely guided successors and imams who kept his light going over the centuries. And finally, a perfect servant of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be on him.), Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (Peace be on him.), was sent as a Messiah and Imam Mahdi for these latter days.
As humans have not ceased making errors, God continues to send his messengers to correct them. In fact, the world is at the brink of destruction and the need is dire.
Hameed Naseem is the president of the Tulsa chapter of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. He is also the faculty advisor of Al-Islam Students Association, a registered student organization at the University of Arkansas. Contact him at hanaseem@gmail.com.
NAN Religion on 09/16/2017