Islam and security

One of the basic needs of man is to feel secure.  The feeling of security is a psychological need which has to be satisfied so as to achieve the individual's harmony and adjustment.  As we know, human needs are two types: physical and psychological. Physical needs include the needs for water, food, and warmth.  Psychological needs include the needs for belonging, security, and affection.  If a physical need is not satisfied, this usually ends up with the destruction of the body.  On the other hand, if a psychological need is not satisfied, this usually leads to psychological disorders, lack of happiness, anxiety, and a variety of maladjustment symptoms.

Internal Harmony:

Islam emphasizes the moral and ethical aspects, because man needs more than bread to live happily.  Man needs internal harmony.  Man is body and soul.  Man is not body only or soul only.  Therefore, man needs what satisfies his body and what satisfies his soul.

Islam provides man with the feeling of security.  This feeling of security is built in different ways.

Death is not the End:

Islam instructs believers that death is not the end of life, that this life is just a stage of life, that there is another life after death, that death is a bridge between two lives, and that death is a turning point and not a terminal point.  This means that a Muslim believes that his life is continuous.  This belief gives man a feeling of security.  How can a person who believes that death is his end feel secure? Islam tells us to rest assured that we continue living even after death, though in a new way of living.  A Muslim is not horrified by death, because he knows that death is a transitory stage and not the end of life.

If a person does not believe in the other life, he will be horrified by the idea of death.  He will also be under a tremendous pressure of running after money and lusts, because he thinks that this life is his only and final chance.  This pressure will deprive man of his internal harmony, security, and balance.

The Second Life:

A Muslim believes in the hereafter, i.e., in the other life.  This makes him self-satisfied and secure.  He feels secure about the continuity of his life.  He feels secure with regard to his deeds in this life:  he knows that he will be rewarded for his good deeds, for his patience, for his good behavior, and for his sacrifices.  A Muslim feels secure with regard to his life continuity and Allah's justice.  This feeling will remove away despair, hopelessness, and anxiety, and will make man more hopeful, more active, and more self-confident.

Allah's Mercy

Islam instructs the believer that Allah is the most merciful.  This concept of Allah's mercy is essential in Islam.  Allah's mercy affects the Muslim in two ways: example and forgiveness.  If Allah is the Merciful, man must be merciful.  Man must merciful to other persons of all races and all religions.  Man must be merciful to animals as well.  Man must be merciful to other men and women, to relatives and strangers, to parents and sons, and to all living beings.

This atmosphere of mercy in Islam gives the person a feeling of security, because mercy is something you give to others and something others give to you.  If everybody is merciful in his own way, everybody will enjoy mercy and feel secure about his life, his honor, his rights, hand his property.

Allah's mercy works in another way.  If man sins, he is not driven out of Allah's blessings forever.  In Islam, if you sin, the door of Allah's forgiveness remains open.  If you  sin and then sincerely repent, Allah forgives.  This formula of Allah's mercy and forgiveness keeps the Muslim secure about his relation with Allah and secure about his ethical code and moral future.

Human Mercy:

This concept of Allah's mercy and interhuman mercy is emphasized by Islam.  When a Muslim eats, he begins by saying, "In the name of Allah, the most merciful and the most gracious."  When a Muslim reads in the Quran or quotes the Quran, he starts by mentioning Allah's mercy.  In prayer, the Muslim mentions Allah's mercy dozens of times every day.

Thus the Muslim repeats the concept of mercy dozens of times daily.  A Muslim lives in an atmosphere of mercy, both physically and psychologically.  A Muslim is led to feel that God is merciful and that his brethren are merciful. If a person's relations with Allah and men are controlled by mercy, this will make him feel secure about today and tomorrow.

Belief in Allah:

The belief in Allah gives the believer a sense of security.  How can a person feel secure if he does not believe in Allah?  Research has shown that mental disorders show up in non-believer more frequently and more severely than in believers.  A non-believer is not sure about anything.  He is not sure about his beginning , his end, or his goals.  A non-believer is not sure about values, ideals, right, wrong, good, or bad.  A non-believer is usually a skeptic person, anxious, disordered, and hesitating.

On the contrary, a Muslim knows how he began.  A Muslim knows how his life will develop.  A Muslim is one hundred percent sure about what is right and what is wrong, what is good and what is bad.  a Muslim is certain about himself, his life, the universe, his social relations, his rights, and his duties.  A Muslim is sure of his ideals and values.

Certainty of Values:

The Muslim's certainty about his values and ideals springs from the comprehensive code of ethics given by God to man.  When a person has clear values, clear ideals, a clear beginning, and a clear destination, he feels secure, because he knows where he is going and how he is going.

Coming to more specific data, if we look at some non-Islamic communities, we find that there is a high frequency of persons with mental disorders.  This is due to the lack of religiousness in those communities.  With no religiousness, man feels lost, feels unsupported, and feels that he has no significant purposes. On the other hand, with belief in Allah, man feels secure, because he feels that he is guided and supported by Allah and that he has significant purposes.

Thus Islam provides man with the psychological security he needs.  Islam provides man with security through the continuity of life, through the guidance of Allah.

When you know that your life is continuous, you feel secure.  When you know that Allah is merciful, you feel secure.  When you know that Allah guides and protects those who believe in Him, you feel secure.

 -Muhammad Ali Alkhuli.