man does not stand alone________maulana wahiduddin khan

Man Does Not Stand AloneJULIAN HUXLEY, (1887-1975) the well-known Britishwriter, did not believe in God. He believed that mandid not need God, a concept explained in his aptlytitled book: Man Stands Alone.

It is noteworthy that a reputed American scientist,Cressy Morrison, countered Huxley’s thesis witha book titled: Man Does Not Stand Alone.

Even more so today, many people express the viewthat they do not need God; that success can betheirs without their believing in the Almighty. Butif you conduct a survey, you will find that theirviews do not reflect mature perception. In fact, suchremarks are spawned by immature minds mostlybelonging to the under forty-age group.Psychological and biological studies show thathuman beings attain maturity only after reachingmiddle age. Prior to this, they are not in a positionto form any sound opinions on the realities of life.Surveys show, indeed, that superficial remarksabout God are made mostly by those who are asyet immature. But with the transition fromimmaturity to maturity, which comes with theacquisition of experience and knowledge, a greatnumber of people, including atheists and apostates,become serious in their approach to the subject ofGod. A thinker has aptly said:

A smattering of knowledge turns people awayfrom God. Greater knowledge brings them backto Him.

Here are a few examples to illustrate this point.

Let us take the case of a youth who, having grownup with romantic ideas, enthusiastically enters intomatrimony by opting for a “love marriage”. But verysoon this love turns to hate and the coupleultimately separate. Then the husband realizes thathis acceptance of love as the “summum bonum”

was the result of his own immaturity. Consciouslyor unconsciously, he begins to feel that hisperception has not been clear enough to understandlife in depth and that a superior guide is requiredto compensate for his inexperience.

Then there is the example of an ambitiousbusinessman who starts a business. His businessgoes on expanding until a time comes when itbecomes unmanageable. Now he realizes thatcertain personal limitations bar him from fulfillinghis desires and ambitions. He comes to feel that heneeds a vaster world in order to realize his dreams.

Similarly, yet another youth forms a political partyin order to fulfill his ambitions, and a time comeswhen he finally contrives to secure an importantpolitical niche for himself. But then he meets thefate similar to the one faced by Jawaharlal Nehru.Like Nehru, after he is elevated to the position ofPrime Minister of India, he suffers from secondthoughts. He feels that there exists a far greaterpower than himself and that, without thecooperation of this power; he cannot carry his plansinto effect.

Most young people enter life with great ambitions.But again and again they undergo such experiencesas remind them of their helplessness. Disease,accidents, losses, and disadvantages—all theserepeatedly remind them that their lot in life is oneof unfulfilled desires. Then they see that, howevergreat one’s material success, one inevitably dieswithin the span of 100 years, leaving all one’swealth behind. Such bitter reflection shows thatall the sweet dreams of childhood and youthstemmed from ignorance. For it is impossible tohave complete fulfillment in this present imperfectworld.

One’s goal in life—whether it be the making ofmoney, the acquisition of fame or power, or

anything else of this nature—proves less than ideal.After the individual manages to achieve thesethings, he again suffers from the feeling thatwhatever he has achieved falls far below hisexpectations. Thus he remains as unsatisfied asever. Finding success becomes as meaningless asnot finding it.

In this way, in the course of daily life, a feeling ofhelplessness comes over man. This helplessness canbe compared with the kind of helplessness that heexperiences after the observation of the universethrough a telescope.

God—A Source of ConvictionIf yOU have a super-telescope that can view theentire Universe, you will first of all see the rareplanet called Earth. You will observe that, amidstthe totally lifeless universe, this tiny planet has anabundance of life and all kinds of life-supportingelements. This rare, exceptional sight is sooverwhelming that you will be wonder-struck.

You will also see that—the Earth, along with itsmoon and the other planets, is continuously inmotion, i.e. it rotates on its axis, and orbits aroundthe sun. Then this entire solar system revolves inthe wider circle of the galaxy. And this galaxyrotates in the much wider circle of the othergalaxies.

The movement of the stars and planets in this vastendless space will appear astonishingly strange toyour sight. You will then see an unbelievablenumber of vast balls of fire, called stars, which rotatewith great speed. Amidst all these astral bodies, ourEarth appears hardly bigger than a grain of sand.And this sight will be so strange to you that yourown existence will appear to be totally insignificantand valueless. This experience will lead you to thediscovery of two things at the same time. Firstly,

Man Does NotStand Alone

there is a powerful God in this universe, who is itsCreator as well as its Sustainer. If you can recallthis sight of the universe to your mind, your heartwill automatically call out that the universe itselfis a clear proof of its Creator. Secondly, you willfeel that you are a helpless and an insignificantcreature in this universe, and that without God,your very existence is not possible. This is the mostimportant reality of life. When one comprehendsthis reality, one will voluntarily turn towards God.With one’s whole being, one will call out: “O God,help me! For, without Your help everything will gowrong.”

In this vast universe, man’s only source of supportis God. It is by God’s guidance that man’s ship isbrought safely to the shore. Belief in God is themost important thing for man. Man is nothingwithout this belief.

All men and women have the feeling that theysuffer from limitations when they cannot achievewhat they want. These limitations make them feelhelpless. Each one of us has experienced a loss,illness, accidents, death or old age. Theseexperiences repeatedly remind us of the fact thatwe are in need of a Superior Power. Without thehelp of such a Superior Power, we cannot go on inlife. These feelings amount to a psychological proofof the existence of God. We go through thispsychological experience at some point of time inour lives. Each one of us, in his inner feelings,witnesses the existence of God,

The nature of every human being constantly urgeshim or her to recognize the need for God. WithoutGod, our lives cannot be complete. Without the helpof God, we cannot succeed in life.

Man’s position is further illustrated by thisbeautiful example:

A hundred years ago, a ship sailed from the coastof America to Africa. When the ship was farout to the deep sea, a severe storm broke out.The ship began to shake and jolt. All thepassengers were in a state of great fear andanxiety. At this time of crisis, one of thepassengers saw a little girl sitting in a corner ofthe deck. She was playing with her dolls, quiteundisturbed by the storm. On seeing this, hebecame curious and asked her, “Do you knowwhat is happening to our ship?” She asked,“What is the matter?” The passenger told herthat the ship was caught in a dangerous storm.The girl calmly replied: “You know, my father isthe captain of this ship. He is not going to let itsink.”

The girl’s faith in her father saved her from beinga victim of fear at this crucial moment. The same istrue of a religious person. He has the same childlikefaith in his Creator, God Almighty. But his is a faithof far greater intensity. When catastrophethreatens, he can say with much strongerconviction that God Almighty is the captain of theship of his life: He will never let it sink at any timeor in any situation.

This is the type of conviction that man needs inhis life and God is the only source of suchconviction.

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

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