Three Types of Human Beings

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n the highest plan of Islamic faith, one should fear God, always turning to Him, and acting as if one knows that He is watching over one. People who are so inclined may never have seen God, but they live more in awe of Him than of all the visible powers. When they reach God, their hearts will already have been turned towards Him, and God desires and loves such servants. When they enter the life of eternity, having borne worldly affliction for God’s sake, their Lord will felicitate them, and bid them come inside a paradise of fresh green gardens, in which they shall forever abide. “There”, as the Quran states, “their desires will be more than fulfilled by God!” (50:31-35)

Then there are those who believe in God and do good. They may sometimes err, but they never persist in their misconduct. They acknowledge their faults and constantly seek God’s forgiveness. They repent and incessantly attempt to make amends to their Lord. Hopefully, God will be merciful to them. When they turn towards God, God also relents towards them, for He is the All-Forgiving, the All-Merciful. (9:102)

There are yet others who have taken to self-worship, materialism and arrogance. They never, for God’s sake, constrain themselves in thought, word or deed. They live for themselves rather than for God and think of the world rather than the afterlife. How, then, can they hope to find a place of honour in the everlasting world of God? Nothing but hellfire awaits such people in eternity. (11:15-16)