Epigraph:
"Do
not regard yourselves as pure; He is most knowing of who is righteous." — Qur’an 53:32
“Judge
not, that ye be not judged.”— Jesus
Christ (Matthew 7:1)
One of the
most troubling ailments afflicting the contemporary Muslim psyche is the
tendency to assume divine prerogatives—assigning salvation or damnation to
others as though we possess the keys to Paradise and Hell. From pulpits to
drawing rooms, the discourse has often devolved into passing judgments on who
is worthy of God's mercy and who is irredeemably bound for Hellfire.
This
attitude is not only theologically untenable—it borders on blasphemy. It is, in
essence, “Playing God.” The Qur’an is unambiguous: only God knows the
inner secrets of the heart. Regardless of their station, human beings have not
been granted access to such divine knowledge. Even the Prophets themselves did
not claim this authority. Only through revelation, mediated by the Archangel
Gabriel, the Prophets came to know certain hidden matters—and even then, they
exercised humility and restraint.
Indeed,
the Prophets were embodiments of compassion, not condemnation. They prayed for
their people—even for those who opposed them. The Qur'an recounts a poignant
divine instruction to Prophet Muhammad:
“Whether
you ask forgiveness for them or do not ask forgiveness for them—if you should
ask forgiveness for them seventy times—never will Allah forgive them.”
(Qur’an 9:80)
This verse
reflects not only the gravity of divine decree but also the Prophet's
extraordinary capacity for mercy—persistently seeking forgiveness for even the
most obstinate disbelievers.
The Qur'an
reminds us of God's intimate knowledge of the soul’s whispers:
“And We
have already created man and know what his soul whispers to him, and We are
closer to him than [his] jugular vein.”
(Qur’an 50:16)
Parallel
teachings are echoed in the Christian tradition. In the Sermon on the Mount,
Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him) cautioned against self-righteous judgment:
“Why do
you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to
the plank in your own eye?”
(Matthew 7:3)
Both the
Qur’anic and Biblical traditions converge on this moral imperative: humility
before divine knowledge, mercy over judgment, and introspection over
condemnation.
As
Muslims, we are not tasked with sitting on God’s throne. We are called to walk
humbly on His earth. To love, not to hate. To correct, not to curse. To guide,
not to gloat. In this age of digital fatwas and viral denunciations, perhaps
the greatest service we can render to our faith is to refrain from playing
God—and to become human again.
Aamir Yazdani
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