Tranquility of heart impossible without Allah’s love: Prof Ahmed

LAHORE: Renowned religious and spiritual scholar Prof Ahmad Rafique Akhtar has said that tranquility of the heart is unachievable without the love of Allah and submission to His word. 

He said this while addressing a ‘Fikri Nishist’ (thought-provoking sitting) on the topic "Knowledge, Practice and Thought Patterns." He said that in the world of today where the lines between right and wrong were getting blurred, it was most important to keep reminding (zikr) oneself of one’s Creator. He said that dichotomy between preaching and practice was one of the key issues plaguing the world today. However, he said that even if hypocrisy was eliminated and everyone became honest and rich at the same time, they would still lack internal peace. "There will be chaos of the heart and mind within all society regardless of geography and nationality unless people make Almighty Allah part of their everyday life," he observed.     

Explaining the concept further, he said that the root of anxiety and unrest in our lives was the rust of materialism and its obsession. "This rust of materialism corrodes at the core of our existence and deprives us of peace we long for," he added. 

Prof Rafique Akhtar said that the word of Almighty Allah was ultimate and unquestionable and the sooner we understand and accept it, the better.  "Remembering and reciting the word of Almighty Allah is the agent that holds the key to our peaceful existence because it protects us from the evil of Satan. If one chooses to fill their heart with the love of Allah, there would be no space for evil to occupy and no force in the world would be able to harm us," he said. 

Talking about the evils of interest banking, he said that once the people decide to practice giving alms and Sadqa as told by Almighty Allah, there would be no need of interest banking and the system would die its own death. 

He said that the Holy Quran, the Book of Allah, holds a solution to every problem imaginable. "From guidance of regarding every sociological phenomenon, the worldly engagements of peace and war time, to matters and knowledge pertaining to domains beyond terrestrial bounds, the Book offers ultimate and optimum elucidation regarding everything. Even to the extent that two chapters of the Quran can protect one from the fiercest destructive magic against oneself," he added. 

"However, for anyone to benefit from all of this, one needs to nurture the purity of unquestioned, undoubted belief in Almighty Allah and all that He has bestowed upon us through His word as the Holy Quran," he concluded.