Photo by : Hamras Mohamed C P ( HAMRAS MADE's Admin )
As a universal religion born initially in the harsh
deserts of Arabia to complete the message of
former prophets and convey the divine
revelation in its last testament (Qur’an), Islam
ascribes the most sacred qualities to water as a
life-giving, sustaining, and purifying resource. It
is the origin of all life on earth, the substance
from which God created man (Qur’an 25:54). The
Qur’an emphasizes its centrality: "We made from
water every living thing"(Qur’an 21:30). Water is
the primary element that existed even before
the heavens and the earth did: "And it is He who
created the heavens and the earth in six days,
and his Throne was upon water". (Qur’an 11:7).
The water of rain, rivers, and fountains runs
through the pages of the Qur’an to symbolize
God’s benevolence: "He sends down saving rain
for them when they have lost all hope and
spreads abroad His mercy" (Qur’an 25:48). At
the same time, the believers are constantly
reminded that it is God Who gives sweet water
to the people, and that He can just as easily
withhold it:"Consider the water which you
drink. Was it you that brought it down from the
rain cloud or We? If We had pleased, We could
make it bitter" (Qur’an 56:68-70). In this verse
the believers are warned that they are only the
guardians of God’s creation on earth; they must
not take His law into their own hands.
Saving Water
In Islam major importance is placed upon purity
and cleanliness, but also the essential role water
plays in Islam. Purification through ablution is an
obligatory component of the Islamic prayer
ritual; prayers carried out in an impure state are
not valid. This means Muslims are obliged to
carry out ritual ablution before each of the five
daily prayers. In addition, a more thorough
ritual is required on specific occasions. The
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) urged
moderation and thriftiness in the use of water
during ablution.
The harsh desert climate of Arabia, the Near
East, and Saharan North Africa makes water a
highly valuable and precious resource. Islamic
Law goes into great detail on the subject of
water to ensure the fair and equitable
distribution of water within the community.
The Arabic word for Islamic Law "Shari`ah"
itself is closely related to water. It is included in
early Arab dictionaries and originally meant “the
place from which one descends to water.”
Before the advent of Islam in Arabia, the
shari`ah was, in fact, a series of rules about
water use: the shir`at al-maa’ were the permits
that gave right to drinking water. The term later
was technically developed to include the body
of laws and rules given by God.
Water is a gift from God. It is one of the three
things that every human is entitled to: grass
(pasture for cattle), water, and fire. Water
should be freely available to all, and any Muslim
who withholds unneeded water sins against
God: “No one can refuse surplus water without
sinning against God and against man.” The
Prophetic Traditions say that among the three
people God will ignore on the Day of
Resurrection there will be “the man who, having
water in excess of his needs refuses it to a
traveler.” (Reported by Bukhari)
Water in Images of Islamic Paradise
The Qur’anic metaphors in which water is used
to symbolize Paradise, righteousness, and God’s
mercy are quite frequent. From the numerous
Qur’anic references to cooling rivers, fresh rain,
and fountains of flavored drinking water in
Paradise, we can deduce that water is the
essence of the gardens of Paradise. It flows
beneath and through them, bringing coolness
and greenery, and quenching thirst. The
believers will be rewarded for their piety by
"rivers of unstagnant water; and rivers of milk
unchanging in taste, and rivers of wine, delicious
to the drinkers, and rivers of honey purified".
(Qur’an 47:15). The water in Paradise is never
stagnant; it flows, rushes, unlike the festering
waters of Hell. The Qur’an also equates the
waters of Paradise with moral uprightness: "In
the garden is no idle talk; there is a gushing
fountain". (Qur’an 88:11-12).
The many specific statements about the
topography of Paradise in the Qur’an led to
many attempts to map Paradise. Throughout
history, Muslim rulers from Moorish Spain to
Persia sought to reproduce the image of Paradise
in the design of their palace gardens, creating
elaborate water features, pools, and fountains.
The gardens of the Alhambra in Spanish
Granada, the Bagh-é-Tarikhi in Iran’s Kashan,
and the gardens of the imperial palaces in
Morocco’s Marrakesh all testify to this desire to
emulate Qur’anic Paradise on earth. All are
designed around water features and fountains
that have been subtly woven into the layout of
the beautiful parks, hence combining water and
the beauty of natural landscape to fill the
human soul with faith, joy, and happiness.
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