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WHAT
IS TENASUKH
(REINCARNATION)?
DOES
IT CONFORM IN ANY WAY TO
THE TEACHINGS OF ISLAM?
Tenasukh
refers to the
transmigration of souls,
the doctrine that after
death the soul moves on
to inhabit another
body. This cycle
continues as long as
necessary. This doctrine
is called reincarnation.
It is not Islamic.
Belief
in some form of
reincarnation can be
found in almost all
societies, whether
primitive or
sophisticated.
Variations exist
according to the local
and regional differences
in faith and popular
culture. In the most
materialistic societies
especially, whose formal
culture denies any
spiritual life, there is
almost a fashion for
pseudo-religious belief
among certain small
circles of people who
claim for whatever
reason that the
souls of the dead wander
about, sometimes taking
physical form, and
influence the living
until they (the spirits)
settle into their “new”
bodies. Rather than
going into such
digressions, I will
describe its main tenets
and consider it from the
Islamic viewpoint.
One
argument for the
antiquity of
reincarnation is the
“evidence” in
ancient literature, such
as tales of
metamorphosis for
example, Ovid’s
colorful extravagances
of that name, in which
“deities” take on
human and animal
forms, human beings
assume a diversity of
different shapes, and so
on. But these tales do
not constitute a
doctrine; the doctrine
proper is that an
individual spirit must
pass through every “level”
of creation, every
species of life form,
whether animate or
inanimate, sentient or
non-sentient. The
emigration of a human
soul to another human
body is called “transmigration,”
and to an animal body,
“metamorphosis.”
If
we reflect upon this, we
soon realize that the
doctrine is an
elaboration on the soul’s
immortality. Its
kernel, the soul’s
immortality, is true;
the rest is not. The
doctrine also may have
arisen from seeing
similar physical and
other traits between
parents and offspring.
In other words, the
biological phenomenon
of heredity, perfectly
explained by genetics,
are given a less
intelligible, indeed
irrational, explanation
by the doctrine of
reincarnation.
In
addition, we can see a
correlation between
reincarnation and such
similar false beliefs as
incarnation (the
doctrine that God takes
on human form or has a
body in human form) and union
(the union of a human
soul with God). This
doctrine also may come
from the belief of a
universal soul taking on
different forms, which
gave rise to monism.
The
doctrine is said to have
emerged in the Nile
basin and then spread as
far a field as India,
for example, and then
westward to Greece.
There, the eloquence of
philosophers
rationalized it
(incredibly, it seems to
us) into a source of
consolation and hope for
those who long for
eternity. Among the
major religions, the
doctrine entered Judaism
through Kabbalists, via
Jewish thinkers into
Christianity, and
finally into the ideas
of some Sufis despite
the hard labors of
Muslim theologians to
refute such a
distortion.
To
support it, every
apologist put forward
some “evidence.” For
instance, the Kabbalists
mention the
transformation of Niobe
(mentioned in the Old
Testament) into a marble
statue, and of Prophet
Lot’s wife into a
pillar of salt. Others
have referred to a
literal transformation
of Jews into monkeys and
pigs.
Another
argument for it is that
it explains an animal’s
instinct and
intelligence, and the
splendors of the plant
kingdom, as they once
had human intelligence
and vitality. This idea
debases humanity and
shames its proponents.
It is really difficult
to accept that such an
assertion, even if
made on the spur of the
moment, could be made by
people of any
understanding. Certainly
there is a program and a
predetermined destiny
for plants and inanimate
creations. But it is
rather far-fetched to
trace the harmony and
order we see in the
plant or mineral
kingdoms to souls that
formerly lived as or in
human beings. Actually,
plants and trees have a
certain life, a
plant-life, a direction
of growth toward light
and moisture. But this
does not mean that this
is the activity of a
formerly human soul, or
a soul on its way up the
levels of creation.
Despite
efforts to corroborate
this, no one has ever
received a message
from a plant confirming
that it contains a soul
that once belonged to a
human being, nor have we
heard any person say
that they were once
souls in a plant or
animal. Tabloids and
other media spread tales
of people recollecting
“past lives,” even
recounting specific
incidents. Where these
claims are not totally
absurd and ridiculous,
their substance can
easily be explained as
recollections of what
the individual has seen
or read and then,
knowingly or otherwise,
elaborated and
transformed as in any
ordinary human fiction.
The
fact that Niobe and
Prophet Lot’s wife
were transformed into
marble and salt statues,
respectively, even if
accepted literally, does
not prove reincarnation.
What we have here is a
physical transformation
having nothing to do
with the soul’s
transmigration.
Petrified bodies are not
an arcane phenomenon:
many such corpses have
been found preserved by
the absolute dryness of
volcanic ashes. Consider
the case of Pompeii, a
city destroyed by a
sudden volcanic eruption
and unearthed from
layers of ash only
centuries later.
Subsequent excavations
revealed numerous
Niobe-like petrified
bodies. In these ruins,
and in the petrified
faces and bodies of
those so busy in their
self-indulgent vices and
so secure in their
arrogance, we can, if we
wish, read the signs of
Divine wrath and
punishment. Perhaps
these figures had their
way of life solidified
in ash and thus
preserved so that future
generations might
witness and take heed.
To interpret them as
evidence of
reincarnation is simply
untenable.
Belief
in reincarnation in
Egypt, India, and Greece
developed out of a
distorted version of
belief in the Hereafter
and from a longing for
immortality of the soul.
Neither in Akhenaten’s
Egypt nor Pythagoras’
Greece knew of
reincarnation. Akhenaten
believed when human life
ends, a different one
starts in heaven. As
soon as one dies, one’s
soul sets off on its
journey to reach “the
Greatest Court” in
heaven. It goes so high
that it reaches the
presence of Osiris, and
hopes to give an account
of itself in words like
these: “I have not
done falsehood against
men. I have not
impoverished my
associates. I have done
no wrong in the Place of
Truth. I have not
learned that which is
not. I have done no
evil. I have not made
people labor daily in
excess of what was due
to be done for me ..”
Those who can so speak
join Orisis’
congregation; those
who cannot, whose evil
deeds outweigh their
good, are hurled into
Hell and tortured by
demons.
Such
sound belief also is
witnessed in epitaphs
relating to Akhenaten’s
religion as follows: “What
You have done is too
much, and our eyes
cannot perceive most of
them. O One, Only God!
No one possesses such
might as You have. It is
You who have created
this universe as You
wish and You alone. It
is You who decree the
world suitable for human
beings, for all animals,
whether big or small,
whether they walk on the
Earth on their legs or
they fly up in the sky
on their wings. And it
is You alone who sustain
and nourish them. Thanks
to You, all beauties
come into existence. All
eyes see You by means of
those. Verily, my heart
belongs to You (You are
in my heart).” The
ideas quoted verbatim
above were believed as
truth some 4,000 years
ago in Egypt.
Likewise,
in ancient Greece,
belief in the
Resurrection and the
soul’s immortality
were quite sound. The
great philosopher
Pythagoras, for example,
believed that the soul,
on leaving the body,
acquires its own kind of
life. In fact, any soul
has this kind of life
even before it quits the
Earth. It is
commissioned with some
responsibilities on
Earth. If it commits any
evil, it will be
punished, thrown into
Hell, and tormented by
demons; if it does good,
it will be given a high
rank and blessed with a
happy life. Allowing for
changes that might have
been made in his views
over time, we can still
see that there are
fundamental similarities
with the Islamic creed
of the Resurrection.
Plato’s account is not
so different either. In
his famous The
Republic, he says
that the soul on leaving
the body forgets the
material (corporeal)
life totally, and
ascends into an
appropriate spiritual
realm saturated with
wisdom and immortality,
where it is free from
all scarcity,
deficiency, error, fear,
and from the passion and
love that afflicted it
on Earth. Being free of
all evil consequences of
human nature, it is
blessed with eternal
bliss.
In
essence, the doctrine of
reincarnation, despite
its numerous variations,
is a distorted version
of a sound belief: the
soul’s immortality and
the intrinsic human
desire for eternity. In
addition, the human soul
has an existence that is
different from, and even
independent of, that of
the body. For example,
St. Thomas Aquinas, one
of the most famous
Christian theologians
and philosophers, writes
that the key concept of
humanity is that the
soul and body are united
in an apt composite. He
adds that animal souls
develop with animal
bodies, whereas human
souls are specially
created at some time
during early
development.
Over
time, borrowings from or
interactions with
certain ancient beliefs
have caused such false
doctrines to filter into
sound beliefs. One
cannot miss the relation
between reincarnation
and the deification of
Jesus, which is related
to such false doctrines
as union and incarnation.
In
a comparable way, no
doubt through mistaken
(whether deliberate or
not) translations from
the original language
and later distortions,
the ancient Egyptian,
Indian, and Greek
religions became
unrecognizable. The
doctrine of
reincarnation may well
be one such alteration
from an originally sound
conception of the soul’s
immortality and its
return to the Divine
Judgment. After
reincarnation was
inscribed into the
beliefs of the ancient
Egyptians, it became one
of the central themes of
songs and legends
throughout the Nile
region. Elaborated
further with the
eloquent expressions of
Greek philosophers, it
became, with the
expansion of Greek
influence, a widespread
phenomenon.
Hindus
consider matter the
lowest manifestation of
Brahman, and deem the
convergence of body and
soul as demeaning to the
soul, a decline into
evil. When a person
dies, the only “death”
is that of the physical
body. The mind, which
contains a person’s
mental impressions,
continues after the body’s
death. When the person
is reborn, the “birth”
is of a new physical
body accompanied by the
old mind with the
impressions or “grooves”
from previous lives.
However, this process
doesn’t go on
eternally. When the soul
attains God-realization
or Self-realization, the
law of karma is
transcended, the Self
gives up its
identification with the
body and mind, and
regains its native
freedom, perfection and
bliss.
Hindus
are polytheistic. One of
their gods is Vishnu.
His preserving,
protecting powers have
been manifested to the
world in a variety of
forms, called Avatars,
in which one or more of
his divine attributes
were embodied in the
shape of a human being
or an animal or a
human-animal combined
form, possessing great
and sometimes
supernatural powers. All
these Avatars of Vishnu
appeared in the world
either to correct some
great evil or to effect
some great good on
earth. These avatars are
ten in number, however,
the Bhagwad Purana
increases them to twenty
two and adds further
that are innumerable. It
is important to note
that the all the Avatars
are earthly form of Lord
Vishnu. The tenth and
the last avatar of
Vishnu, Kalki, is yet to
appear. Kalki will
appear at the end of the
Kalyuga, when everything
will have been upset and
the world . This avatar
will appear seated on a
white horse with a drawn
sword blazing like a
comet.
According
to the Vedanta,
one of the important
Hindu religious books,
the soul is a part, a
fragment, of Brahman
that will never be free
of suffering and
distress until it
returns to its origin.
The soul achieves gnosis
by isolating itself from
the ego and all
wickedness pertaining
to the ego, and by
running toward Brahman,
just as a river flows to
a sea. When the soul
reaches and unites with
Brahman, it acquires
absolute peace,
tranquility, and
stillness. This doctrine
also is found in the
Buddhist idea of
Nirvana. There is an
abatement of active
seeking, and a passivity
of soul in the latter,
whereas the soul is
dynamic in Hinduism.
Some
Jewish sects adopted
reincarnation. After
refusing belief in the
Resurrection and
Judgment, the followers
of such people, who can
be inordinately covetous
of life yet remain
fascinated by the soul’s
immortality, could do
little else than accept
reincarnation. Later,
the Kabbalists
transferred it to the
Church of Alexandria
through certain regional
monastic orders. The
doctrine has had a
negligible effect on
Islam. However, it was
introduced to Muslims by
the Gulat-i Shi‘a
(an extremist Shi‘a
faction).
All
ancient, new, and
contemporary versions of
reincarnation have one
root characteristic:
belief in incarnation.
There is a shared
failure of intellect to
both grasp and accept
the Absolute
Transcendence of God.
Corrupted by this
failure, people
believe that the
Divine mixes with the
human, and that the
human will (or can) mix
with the Divine. This
error is, except for
Islam which has retained
its strict purity of
belief, all but
universal. The central
figure in each
distorted belief is an
incarnation or
reincarnation─Aten
in Atenism, Brahman in
Hinduism, Ezra (Uzair)
in Judaism, Jesus in
Christianity, and ‘Ali
in the Gulat-i Shi’a
faction who, if they
exist at all within
Islam, must be seen as
on its very outermost
fringes. Allegations
that some Sufi writings
and utterances support
reincarnation are
either plainly malicious
or the result of an
absurdly literal
understanding of their
highly symbolic and
esoteric discourse.
Islamic scholars and
theologians, certainly
among the 90 percent of
Sunnis, unanimously
and unequivocally reject
reincarnation as
contrary to Islam. This
is true of scholars in
every field jurisprudence,
theology, Qur’anic
commentary (tafsir),
or Hadith commentary.
Their reason: the
absolute centrality in
Islam that each
individual lives and
dies according to his or
her own destiny, carries
his or her own load,
will be resurrected and
called individually to
answer for his or her
intentions and actions
and their consequences,
and will be judged
individually by God
(with perfect justice)
according to the same
criteria.
We
now present the cardinal
reasons why Islam
rejects reincarnation.
-
Belief
in Islam requires
belief in (both
bodily and
spiritually)
Resurrection and
Judgment, when
justice is meted out
to each individual
soul according to
that individual’s
record in life. If
the individual soul
passes into
different lives, in
which form or
personality will it
be resurrected,
commanded to give
account, and
rewarded or
punished?
-
Despite
its darkness and
density in contrast
to water, air, and
light, earth is the
means and source of
all the varieties of
the works of Divine
art, in meaning it
has some superiority
to the other
elements. Also,
despite its density,
on account of being
comprehensive and
provided it is
purified, the human
selfhood gains some
kind of superiority
to his/her other
senses and
faculties. Likewise,
the human body is a
most comprehensive
and rich mirror to
the manifestations
of the Divine Names.
It has been equipped
with the instruments
to weigh and measure
the contents of all
of the Divine
treasuries. For
example, if the
sense of taste in
the tongue was not
the origin of as
many measures as the
varieties of food
and drink, it could
not experience each
and recognize them;
it could not measure
them. Furthermore,
the instruments with
which to experience
and recognize the
manifestations of
most of the Divine
Names, and the
faculties for
experiencing the
most various and
infinitely different
pleasures are also
in the body. Since,
as is understood
clearly from the
conduct of the
universe and the
comprehensiveness of
humanity, the Maker
of the universe
wants through the
universe to make
known all the
treasuries of His
Mercy, and all the
manifestations of
His Names, and to
make us experience
all the varieties of
His bounties, for
sure, the world of
eternal happiness,
which is a mighty
pool into which the
flood of the
universe flows and a
vast exhibition of
the products of the
loom of the universe
and the everlasting
store of the crops
produced in the
field of the world,
will resemble the
universe to a
degree. The All-Wise
Maker, the
All-Com-passionate
Just One, will give
as wages for the
duties of the bodily
organs and in reward
for their services
and particular types
of worship,
pleasures particular
to each. To think
otherwise would be
contrary to His
Wisdom, Justice and
Compassion. So, if
the individual soul
lives in several,
different bodies, in
which one will it be
resurrected,
commanded to give
account, and
rewarded or
punished?
-
This
world is created to
test and try the
soul so that it may
benefit thereby. One
focus of the test is
belief in the ghayb
(the Unseen).
According to
reincarnation, those
who live a bad life
pass into a lower
form of life
(animal, tree, etc.)
after death. After
undergoing cycles of
suffering, their
lives will end in
some way, which
means the end of the
cycles of
reincarnation.
Therefore, by its
very nature,
reincarnation is not
a final end and its
cessation means
contradicting the
world’s final
destruction and the
Supreme Judgment.
-
To
get round this,
believers in this
doctrine have a
doctrine of
forgetfulness─the
soul “forgets”
its past existence.
In that case, for
all practical
purposes, having had
(or not having had)
a past existence is
of no consequence.
Plainly, the
doctrine contradicts
itself and has no
bearing on the “current”
life except to
make the individual
accept his or her
condition, whatever
it may be, without
actively striving
for salvation.
-
If
each individual is
supposed to go
through a painful
cycle of
transmigration to
acquire eternal
bliss, then God’s
promise to punish
the wicked and the
sinful, and to
reward the good and
the righteous, has
no meaning for the
individual life.
This is unacceptable
for Providence, for
God is neither vain
nor futile in His
actions.
-
The
Qur’an and other
Divine Books state
that sins will be
forgiven (if truly
repented). This
proves how
unnecessary and
cumbersome a
doctrine
reincarnation is.
How much better do
the concepts of
mercy and
forgiveness befit
God, the Beneficent,
Merciful Creator.
-
In
Islam, there is no
sin that God will
not forgive, as He
wills. God, the
All-Mighty, reveals
and promises in the
Qur’an that He
will forgive those
who repent and
sincerely intend to
abandon such
behavior. In this
respect, God does
not see how great or
little your sins
are, nor how late
your penitence is.
This may mean that a
sinner who disobeys
and rebels against
God throughout his
or her life can be
forgiven by a
single act of true
repentance, done
with absolute
sincerity and a
profound
understanding of
servanthood and
dependence on God.
Due to his/her very
nature, every
sentient person
feels the pain of
committing sins in
his/her conscience
and is given during
his/her life-time so
many opportunities
to repent for them
and reform himself
or herself as there
will be left no
requirement for
another, painful
life cycle. As for
those whose hearts
have been hardened
and sealed so that
they will no longer
be able to awake to
the truth, it would
mean nothing to them
even if they were to
pass through
innumerable cycles
of life.
-
Long
and tiresome cycles
of rebirth are
contrary to the
mercy, favor, and
grace of God, the
All-Compassionate.
If He wills, He
takes ordinary,
worthless, inferior
things and turns
them into what is
purest, best, and
beyond price. His
blessings and
munificence are
Infinite
-
Many
followers of the
Prophets led wicked
lives but then
reformed within an
incredibly short
time and became
revered models of
virtue for later
generations. After
meeting the Prophets
and embracing the
Divine Message, some
surpassed previous
followers and came
to be even more
revered. This
indicates that, by
the favor of God,
one can rise easily
and quickly to the
summit, even if one
seemed to be
destined for the
pit. It shows,
again, how unnecessary
the doctrine of
souls “graduating”
into higher levels
of being is. Indeed,
the doctrine may
have the effect of
lessening incentives
to moral effort.
-
To
believe that God,
the All-Mighty, has
created a soul for
each individual is
part of belief in
His Omnipotence. To
believe that a
limited number of
souls migrate from
body to body argues
the illogical
proposition that the
Omnipotent is not
Omnipotent. The
sheer abundance of
life, its infinite
variety, its refusal
of mere repetition
of form, is
everywhere evident:
God is indeed
All-Mighty. There
are approximately 6
or 6.5 billion
people in the world.
In recent times, we
have learned how to
prove that each
individual is
absolutely unique─an
idea urged by many
verses of the Qur’an
by looking at
fingerprints or
genetic codes. These
facts are so
reliable that they
are used in forensic
science to identify
criminals. Another
example is the
observation, over 30
years, of millions
of pictures of
snowflakes not one
of which is ever
exactly like any
other. We cannot
even imagine how
many snowflakes fall
in one season on one
mountainside, let
alone all that have
ever fallen. How
foolish to imply,
then, that the
Omnipotent could not
create an infinite
number of individual
souls and supply
each with a unique
body.
-
Could
not a few million
people out of the
billions now living
have at least some
marks, signs,
evidence, or
something convincing
to tell of their
memories,
adventures, and
experiences in
different forms and
bodies? Has there
not been an
accumulation of
knowledge,
experience, and
culture in some of
those reincarnated
beings or those who
have completed their
cycles? If this
happened in only one
out of a million
people, should we
not expect to see a
great number of
people now living
with extraordinary
virtue and
competence? Should
we not have met a
few of them even in
our own countries?
If so, where are
they?
-
Even
if some in
non-Muslim countries
people claim to
remember past lives,
why do so few people
in the Muslim world
make such claims?
-
It
is his or her soul
which determines the
bodily,
distinguishing
features of a
person. Thus, if the
souls of the wicked
come to the world
again in other
bodies, should we
not see Nimrods,
Pharaohs, Neros,
Hitlers and many
tyrants in different
periods of history?
Even if we do not
accept that the soul
determines one’s
distinguishing
features, then
should there not be
many who claim that
they are such and
such wicked people
of the past? If a
soul comes to the
world again
oblivious of its
former life, then
what is the benefit
of coming to the
world once more to
reform itself?
-
If
reincarnation
educates souls so
that they become
pure enough to
attain salvation,
would it not be
logical for those
returning to the
world to remember
their former, sinful
lives and draw
lessons from them?
-
If
the souls of the
wicked experience
many cycles of life
in different bodies,
would it not be an
utter injustice and
mercilessness to
many innocent
parents because of
their babies who
have come to their
world carrying the
souls of those
wicked ones? Whereas
Islam declares that
every person comes
to the world
sinless.
-
When
a body reaches an
age (say of 3 or 4),
a measure of
physical maturity,
should we not expect
the soul to emerge
with all that it has
acquired and
achieved in its
former lives? Should
we not expect
prodigies? There
have been quite a
few prodigies in
recorded history,
but their special
gifts need not be
the result of former
lives. Such cases
can be explained
equally well as a
special combination
of genetic
characteristics
occurring in a
particular time and
place, which is
attributable to
Divine Grace and
Favor. Added to this
is the individual’s
own supreme effort
to understand his or
her own gift in the
tradition and
context in which it
is given.
-
No
faculty unique to
human beings has
ever been found in
any non-human
entity, whether
animate or
inanimate. But we
should expect such a
discovery if there
were any truth in
reincarnation. If a
lower form of life
is, so to speak, the
consequence
(punishment) for
particular evil
deeds in a
previous life,
then presumably the
good in that life
(outweighed by the
evil) must be
carried forward. In
other words, some
part of the
individual’s
previous life should
be retained in the
next life. In this
case, we would
expect the
boundaries of
particular forms to
be frequently burst
open─with, for
example, plants
suddenly showing
animal-like
properties. But, by
the Mercy of God,
zoology and botany
have not, for all
their many welcome
advances in recent
years, discovered
any such monsters.
-
If
being a human or an
animal is the
consequence of one’s
deeds in a former
life, which existed
first: human or
animal, the higher
or the lower?
Advocates of
reincarnation cannot
decide or agree on
any form for the
first creature, for
every generation
implies a preceding
generation in order
that the succeeding
generation may be
considered as the
consequence of the
former. And if
generation is an
evil, as some who
believe in
reincarnation also
believe, why did the
whole thing start?
Why did life begin
at all? Plainly, the
doctrine leads again
and again to
absurdity.
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