Does Islam Value Life?
In Islam, one of the Attributes of God is "Life". The "Life" of God
is the most perfect and complete life that does not have a beginning
nor an end. It's from this attribute that His Name "al-Hayy" is
derived. Since God does not attribute to Himself any imperfect
character, let alone a vile one, one concludes that life in Islam is a
very sacred entity.
When Allah reminded us of the bounty of water, He said, "and we have made from water everything that is living". So, water is a bounty because it's the source of life. Life is one of the greatest bounties of Allah.
There is nothing that shows more contrast between life and death than the Quran and the Sunnah. In Surat Faatir, Allah told us, "And they cannot be equal those who are alive and those who are dead". The Prophet told us in the Hadith, "The example of the one who remembers Allah and the one who does not is like the example of the one who is alive and the one who is dead". Such is the distance between life and death in Islam.
The life of a human being occupies the highest levels of sanctity in Islam. In the Quran, there is a clear warning that if one intentionally kills a believer, then his punishment is Hell forever!! This verse caused some debate among the scholars since it's known that Shirk is the only sin that can lead to eternal punishment. But, the hadith of the Prophet sheds some light on this issue, "A believer will keep having room in his religion until he gets illegal blood on his hand". So, if someone runs out of room in the circle of religion, Allah may not guide him to make repentance. Furthermore, Allah might make him fall into the sin of kufr or shirk after the sin of killing so his chances are even less. All of this to show us the sanctity of life in Islam.
Now, one might say that this is limited to Muslims between themselves. But, this is not the case. For example, the Prophet said in one Hadith that if a Muslim kills a Mu'aahid [a non-Muslim living in Muslim land under a contract] then he will not smell the fragrance of Jannah [i.e. he will not even come near it].
One might then say, well what about all the killing that's happening these days in the name of Islam?? well, we say that our Prophet has foretold all this. He has told us in a prophecy that one of the signs of the hour is that killing becomes so rampant and widespread. However, the Prophet in the same Hadith told us that ignorance will be common and knowledge will be scarce. In a way, the Prophet is telling us that this killing will happen because of ignorance and misunderstanding of religion and that knowledge and correct understanding of religion would have prevented this from happening.
Islam values the life of any creature. One hadith praises a man who descended to a well and filled his shoe with water in order to save a thirsty dog. At the end of this Hadith, the Prophet remarked that there is a charity in every living being. Even the plants are not excluded from this plan. The Prophet said that if the Hour was to start and in one's hand there is a plant, and he's able to plant it before the Hour happens then one should do so. One might question the benefit of such plant if the Hour is going to happen and destroy big mountains let alone a small plant. And the answer can be that Islam values life to the farthest extremes.
However, Islam does not want us to live any life. Allah admonished the people who want to live just any life. In Surat al-Baqara He said, "You will find them the most eager to live any life". Islam wants us to live a quality life, "Whoever does a good action, male and female, while he's a believer, then we will make live a good life".
Another dimension that Islam adds is the life of the Hereafter. Many people who talk about the value of life limit their talk to this life. But, since Islam wants the best for us, it has to tell us about the value of the next life. The Quran says, "And indeed the life of the Hereafter is the real life". The Prophet told us in the Hadith, "the area that a whip occupies in Jannah is better than this life and it contains". So, we should put things into perpective and not value one life on the expense of the other.
When Allah reminded us of the bounty of water, He said, "and we have made from water everything that is living". So, water is a bounty because it's the source of life. Life is one of the greatest bounties of Allah.
There is nothing that shows more contrast between life and death than the Quran and the Sunnah. In Surat Faatir, Allah told us, "And they cannot be equal those who are alive and those who are dead". The Prophet told us in the Hadith, "The example of the one who remembers Allah and the one who does not is like the example of the one who is alive and the one who is dead". Such is the distance between life and death in Islam.
The life of a human being occupies the highest levels of sanctity in Islam. In the Quran, there is a clear warning that if one intentionally kills a believer, then his punishment is Hell forever!! This verse caused some debate among the scholars since it's known that Shirk is the only sin that can lead to eternal punishment. But, the hadith of the Prophet sheds some light on this issue, "A believer will keep having room in his religion until he gets illegal blood on his hand". So, if someone runs out of room in the circle of religion, Allah may not guide him to make repentance. Furthermore, Allah might make him fall into the sin of kufr or shirk after the sin of killing so his chances are even less. All of this to show us the sanctity of life in Islam.
Now, one might say that this is limited to Muslims between themselves. But, this is not the case. For example, the Prophet said in one Hadith that if a Muslim kills a Mu'aahid [a non-Muslim living in Muslim land under a contract] then he will not smell the fragrance of Jannah [i.e. he will not even come near it].
One might then say, well what about all the killing that's happening these days in the name of Islam?? well, we say that our Prophet has foretold all this. He has told us in a prophecy that one of the signs of the hour is that killing becomes so rampant and widespread. However, the Prophet in the same Hadith told us that ignorance will be common and knowledge will be scarce. In a way, the Prophet is telling us that this killing will happen because of ignorance and misunderstanding of religion and that knowledge and correct understanding of religion would have prevented this from happening.
Islam values the life of any creature. One hadith praises a man who descended to a well and filled his shoe with water in order to save a thirsty dog. At the end of this Hadith, the Prophet remarked that there is a charity in every living being. Even the plants are not excluded from this plan. The Prophet said that if the Hour was to start and in one's hand there is a plant, and he's able to plant it before the Hour happens then one should do so. One might question the benefit of such plant if the Hour is going to happen and destroy big mountains let alone a small plant. And the answer can be that Islam values life to the farthest extremes.
However, Islam does not want us to live any life. Allah admonished the people who want to live just any life. In Surat al-Baqara He said, "You will find them the most eager to live any life". Islam wants us to live a quality life, "Whoever does a good action, male and female, while he's a believer, then we will make live a good life".
Another dimension that Islam adds is the life of the Hereafter. Many people who talk about the value of life limit their talk to this life. But, since Islam wants the best for us, it has to tell us about the value of the next life. The Quran says, "And indeed the life of the Hereafter is the real life". The Prophet told us in the Hadith, "the area that a whip occupies in Jannah is better than this life and it contains". So, we should put things into perpective and not value one life on the expense of the other.