Reflections on: Malik e Yaumiddeen

 Three things for today.

Salam Alaikum - Today we will explore the phrase ‘Malike yaumideen’ which translates to: Allah is the Master of the day of Judgement, from Sura Alhamd. Now, we say this a minimum of 10 times everyday, if we simply consider the wajib daily prayers. Ofcourse, people who offer more than this, repeat it several times over. 

So, what are the three things we can take away from this oft repeated verse?

1. Allah is the Master designer and implementer of the system of Justice 
2. When there is justice there is accountability 
3. Because there is accountability: every thought word and action has to be recorded, examined and judged.

The first bit of understanding we gain from this is: there is accountability. Nothing we think say or do is in vain or lost. It is recorded in every minute detail - saved to be retrieved later. 

A good way to understand this is a look at any one of the social media platforms. We may have said something decades ago - yet it can be accessed and we can be judged by society for what we said or did eons later - after we have even forgotten having said it ourselves.

Secondly, if we are to be held accountable, then it is imperative   that our thoughts, words and deeds should be re-examined. Therefore, we must come face to face with all our choices and their consequences: both good and bad. We must then, judge them - ourselves. 

Imagine our life being re-played on a screen - a film that can be re-wound any number of times and experiences re-lived and re-felt until there is absolute clarity within us of the rights and the wrongs of our deeds. 

Thirdly, the natural progression from this is to ensure that justice prevails. Every human is hard wired to recognise that good must be rewarded and bad must be punished. That is the irrevocable law that governs Allah’s system. You might ask how we know humans are hard wired to seek justice? Well, the fact that we have laws and courts in every country is clear proof. 

Having examined our life’s details thoroughly, we must then, judge ourselves and decide where our next abode should be. And then walk towards our rightful destination because we recognise that that is the place we deserve.  

An important thing to take away from this is that Allah has established a  system governed by laws; he and His creation automatically conforms to His laws. Furthermore, His system is based on a natural and just progression of things. 

For example if water heats it must turn to vapour. If it is vapour then it must rise because it is lighter. When it rises high enough then it must freeze into clouds because it is too cold. At a point the clouds must shed their moisture because the frozen droplets are too heavy. And when the moisture is shed it must come down to the earth because the gravity must attract the rain downwards. You see? These are  a series of causes and effects conforming to the Laws of Allah. 

In conformity then - we human must gravitate towards the destination we have designed through our life’s choices - destinations that have been defined as jannat and jahannum by the Quran. From this we must acknowledge that Allah does not go about ‘punishing’ people for their sins. He has formulated a natural system of choices and consequences; of causes and effects.  When we are negligent and irresponsible with our privileges and opportunities, we end up punishing ourselves as a natural consequence of our actions.  

Having said the above - all is not bleak and stark for the human race - Allah (swt) in His infinite Mercy, has offered us the recourse to dua and repentance. When we turn to Him in submission and align our ways to His Justice in our life time,  we can re-route and re-design the course of our journey.