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Volume 39 - No. 01-02
Jan- February 2010

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The ever-increasing distance away from religious scriptures, in general, and from the Holy Qur’ān, in particular, has distorted rather perverted many of our concepts. The commonplace intellect, strongly influenced by materialistic ideas and motives, has become the criterion of right and wrong. Not only atheists, but even those who profess to be the followers of a religion, do not consult their scriptures to seek guidance for social, political and economical matters, as if these scriptures are completely devoid of such guidance. Though these so-called believers do not reject God, regrettably they limit His role in their lives to a minimum. They remember Him only when they need Him but ignore Him when He requires them to do His work. Allāh says in the Holy Qur’ān:
And when trouble befalls a man, he calls on Us, lying on his side, or sitting, or standing; but when We have removed his trouble from him, he goes his way as though he had never called on Us for the removal of the trouble that befell him. Thus it is that the doings of the extravagant are given a fair appearance in their eyes. [10:13] One such perverted concept, now commonly prevailing among the followers of almost every religion especially in the developed world, is that natural disasters, such as earthquakes, floods, tsunami etc, which cause massive deaths and destruction, are mere natural phenomena. Ironically, these socalled believers, who profess the dogmatic principle that ‘no leaf shakes without the Divine Will’ claim that: 

As evident from contemporary intellectual discussions appeared in media, this poses an intriguing puzzle. Contemporary man has fathomed deep into previously unknown secrets of nature. He has carried out painstaking research into the cause and effect of these disasters – how; where; and why do these calamities occur. He has gradually begun to remove the cloaks of mystery and myth which surround the secrets of the cosmos. Discovered after painstaking research and experimentation, these facts reveal that natural disasters occur as a result of natural causes. There is no divine intervention in such natural incidents.
The Holy Qur’ān claims that these divine punishments are not merely related to evil deeds but also to the rejection of God’s chosen prophets. In fact, this Qur’ānic claim goes as far as to state that irrespective of the transgressions committed by man, no punishments afflicts man until such time that God has sent His Messenger or Prophet to such people and that the Messenger or Prophet has warned and admonished the people and invited them to that which is good for them well ahead of time.
However, Islam does not claim anywhere that all natural disasters and calamities represent decrees of divine punishment. We most certainly come across the claim in the Holy Qur’ān that at times God Almighty used physical and natural laws to unleash a havoc on those world powers which were not only opposed to religious and spiritual movements, but also had used all their material strength and resources to annihilate the emerging and nascent religions.
DISTINGUISHING FEATURES OF DIVINE PUNISHMENTS
DISASTEROUS EVENT FORETOLD The foremost feature to distinguish a divine punishment from natural disaster is that divine punishment is foretold before it is afflicted. Indeed, not only is it foretold but the precise nature of the punishment is described in great detail. A very clear example of this can be found during the time of Hadhrat Noahas. He had forewarned his people that they would be destroyed because of their evil ways and their constant rejection of his claims. He forewarned them in the same breath that the means of their destruction would be water, a deluge whose like had never been seen before and that neither man nor animal would be safe from it.
MADE CONDITIONAL The second hallmark of a punishment from on high is that it is made conditional upon some act as a result of which some earthly or heavenly visitation should directly manifest itself. We have the example of Hadhrat Salihas who was sent unto the tribe of Thamūd. As long as these people refrained from preventing the she-camel from taking water and tormenting her, God’s wish of restraining the forces of nature from manifesting themselves was fully complied with, but when the she-camel was withdrawn from water and hamstrung, the forces of nature were permitted to unleash themselves and show their might.
BELIEVERS ARE SAVED Then shall We save Our Messengers and those who believe. Thus does it always happen; it is incumbent on Us to save believers. [10:104] The third sign, which distinguishes divine punishments from natural disasters, is that the chastisement is not allowed to destroy believers along with the unbelievers. Believers are invariably saved and the unbelievers exterminated. This is a distinction for which we can find no natural explanation. Why is it that a run of the mill disaster should wipe out a large majority of the people and yet make an exception for a chosen few, passing them by without afflicting any loss on them? It does not end there. Perhaps even more surprising is that part of a nation comprising the most powerful and materially superior host and which is the fittest for survival should be utterly destroyed and a community of poor and aged weaklings commanding no physical resources for survival should be saved from that calamity.
LEARN LESSONS FROM HISTORY! The Holy Qur’ān narrates these stories for us to ponder upon them and mend our ways accordingly. Regrettably, modern man considers these narrations as mere legends and does not reflect upon them. And all of the tidings of the Messengers, whereby We make thy heart firm, We relate unto thee. And herein has come to thee the truth and an exhortation and a reminder for believers. [11:121] Assuredly, in their narrative is a lesson for men of understanding. It is not a thing that has been forged, but a fulfillment of that which is before it and a detailed exposition of all things, and a guidance and a mercy to a people who believe. [12:112]
NO EXCEPTION! The Holy Qur’ān states that no nation or people are an exception to this punishment. Even those who were once very dear to Allāh did not escape the consequences of their evil deeds. The Jews and the Christians say, ‘We are sons of Allah and His loved ones.’ Say, ‘Why then does He punish you for your sins? Nay, you are only human beings among those He has created.’ He forgives whom He pleases and punishes whom He pleases. And to Allah belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and what is between them, and to Him shall be the return. [5:19] COLLECTIVE SINS -
COLLECTIVE PUNISHMENT Collective sins and immoral behaviour result in a collective punishment and wrath of God. A whole society, plunged in immorality and perverted acts, is destroyed as a whole, as mentioned in the following verses:
How many a town have We destroyed! And Our punishment came upon it by night or while they slept at noon. So when Our punishment came upon them, their cry was nothing but that they said: ‘We were indeed wrongdoers!’ [7:5, 6] Are the people of these towns, then, secure from the coming of Our punishment upon them by night while they are asleep? And are the people of these towns secure from the coming of Our punishment upon them in the early part of the forenoon while they are engaged in play? [7:98, 99] The Holy Qur’ān mentions that there is no dwelling on earth that shall not be destroyed before the Day of Resurrection. There is not a township but We shall destroy it before the Day of Resurrection, or punish it with a severe punishment. That is written down in the Book. [17:59]
NO PUNISHMENT BEFORE A PROPHET The Holy Qur’ān tells us that Prophets are sent as warners. The divine mercy and justice demand that no town is punished unless a Prophet comes to its inhabitants to warn them, lest people say why were they not warned before punishment. Say, ‘I only exhort you to do one thing: that you stand up before Allah in twos and singly and then reflect. You will then know that there is no insanity in your companion; he is only a Warner to you of an impending severe punishment.’ [34:47] ...We never punish until We have sent a Messenger. [17:16] And if We had destroyed them with a punishment before it they would have surely said, ‘Our Lord, wherefore didst Thou not send to us a Messenger that we might have followed Thy commandments before we were humbled and disgraced?’ [20:135]
GOD IS NOT VINDICTIVE The Holy Qur’ān states that The Merciful God, Whose mercy encompasses all things (7:157). He removes the punishment if people repent and seek God’s forgiveness. Why was there no other people, save the people of Jonah, who should have believed so that their belief would have profited them? When they believed, We removed from them the punishment of disgrace in the present life, and We gave them provision for a while. [10:99]
GOD GIVES RESPITE The Holy Qur’ān states that Allāh is so Merciful that He does not hasten in punishment and gives respite. People mistakenly think that this respite is good for them and under this phony impression, they continue rather grow in their sins and become more deserving of Divine wrath. And thy Lord is Most Forgiving, full of mercy. If He were to seize them for what they have earned, then surely He would have hastened the punishment for them. But they have an appointed time from which they will find no refuge. [18:59] Say, ‘The Gracious God does give those who are in error long respite until, when they will see that with which they are threatened — whether it be punishment or the Hour — they will realize who is worse in respect of position and who is weaker in forces. [19:76] And let not the disbelievers think that Our granting them respite is good  for them; the result of Our granting them respite will only be that they will increase in sin; and they shall have an humiliating punishment. [3:179] He punishes only those who remain stubborn in their evil deeds and disbelief, in certain forms, like earthquakes; floods; heavy rain; sectarianism; and even through their wealth and progeny. Such causes and forms are mentioned in the Holy Qur’ān as follows:
CAUSES OF PUNISHMENT REJECTING A PROPHET And indeed there has come to them a Messenger from among themselves, but they treated him as a liar, so punishment overtook them while they were wrongdoers. [16:114] And as to the people of Noah when they rejected the Messengers, We drowned them, and We made them a Sign for mankind. And We have prepared a painful punishment for the wrongdoers. [25:38]
PERVERSION IN DIVINE WORD AND DISOBEDIENCE The transgressors changed it for a word other than that which was said to them. So We sent down upon the transgressors a punishment from heaven, because they were disobedient. [2:60]
INTENTIONAL MURDER OF A BELIEVER And whoso kills a believer intentionally, his reward shall be Hell wherein he shall abide. And Allah will be wroth with him and will curse him and will prepare for him a great punishment.[4:94]
HYPOCRISY Give to the hypocrites the tidings that for them is a grievous punishment [4:139]
DISBELIEF ‘Then as for those who disbelieve, I will punish them with a severe punishment in this world and in the next, and they shall have no helpers. [3:57
WRONGDOING Say, ‘What think ye? If the punishment of Allah come upon you suddenly or openly, will any be destroyed save the wrongdoing people?’ [6:48]
TURNING MEN AWAY FROM THE WAY OF ALLĀH Do, then, those who devise evil plans feel secure that Allah will not make them sink into the land, or that the punishment will not come upon them from whence they do not know? [16:46]
FORGETTING THE DIVINE ADMONITION And when they forgot all that with which they had been admonished, We saved those who forbade evil, and We seized the transgressors with a severe punishment because they were rebellious. [7:166]
HINDERING FROM SACRED MOSQUE And what excuse have they now that Allah should not punish them, when they hinder men from the Sacred Mosque, and they are not its true guardians? Its true guardians are only those who are righteous, but most of them know not. [8:35]
HOA RDING WEALTH O ye who believe! surely, many of the priests and monks devour the wealth of men by false means and turn men away from the way of Allah. And those who hoard up gold and silver and spend it not in the way of Allah — give to them the tidings of a painful punishment. [9:34]
NOT DOING JIHAD If you do not go forth to fight, He will punish you with a painful punishment, and will choose in your stead a people other than you, and you shall do Him no harm at all. And Allah has full power over all things. [9:39]
BEING UNGRATEFUL And remember also the time when your Lord declared, ‘If you are grateful, I will, surely, bestow more favours on you; but if you are ungrateful, then know that My punishment is severe indeed.’ [14:8]
IMMORALITY Those who love that immorality should spread among the believers, will have a painful punishment in this world and the Hereafter. And Allah knows, and you know not. [24:20]
FORMS OFPUNISHMENT BY FALLING DOWN ROOFS
Those who were before them did also plan, but Allah came upon their structure at the very foundations, so that the roof fell down upon them from above them; and the punishment came upon them from where they knew not. [16:27]
BY SINKING IN THE LAND Do, then, those who devise evil plans feel secure that Allah will not make them sink into the land, or that the punishment will not come upon them from whence they do not know? [16:46]
BY DIVIDING INTO SECTS Say, ‘He has power to send punishment upon you from above you or from beneath your feet, or to confound you by splitting you into sects and make you taste the violence of one another.’ See how We expound the Signs in various ways that they may understand! [6:66] And say, ‘I am, indeed, a plain Warner.’ [15:90] Because We have decided to send down punishment on those who have formed themselves into groups against thee; [15:91] Who have pronounced the Qur’an to be so many lies; [15:92]
 BY RUTHLESS RULERS And remember the time when thy Lord proclaimed that He would truly raise against them, till the Day of Resurrection, those who would afflict them with grievous torment. Surely, thy Lord is quick in retribution, and surely He is also Most Forgiving, Merciful. [7:168]
BY WEALTH AND CHILDREN So let not their wealth nor their children excite thy wonder. Allah only intends to punish them therewith in the present life and that their souls may depart while they are disbelievers. [9:55]
BY OVERSHADOWING GLOOM So they declared him to be a liar. Then the punishment of the day of overshadowing gloom overtook them. That was indeed the punishment of a dreadful day. [26:190] It is now upon us to ponder which cataclysms fall under the category of natural disasters and which are those caused by our own misdeeds and deviation from natural and religious laws.
WARNING FROM THE DIVINE WARNER Truly do I say that the turn of this land, too is approaching fast. The times of Noah shall reappear before your eyes, and your own eyes will be witnesses to the calamity that overtook the cities of Lot. But God is slow in His wrath. Repent that you may be shown mercy! He who does not fear Him is dead, not alive.” (Haqiqatul Wahī, pp.256-57).