Maulana Wahiduddin Khan | Soulveda | April 07, 2017
There is a verse in the Quran which makes a mention of iron. It is this word ‘iron’ after which the entire chapter is named. “We have sent our apostles with clear signs and brought down with them scriptures and the scales of justice, so that men might deal with, fairness. We have sent down iron, with its mighty strength and diverse uses for mankind, so that God may know those who support Him, though unseen, and support His apostles. Powerful is God, and Mighty.” (57:25)
God has created the material world in such a way that it serves as an ethical model for man. In this verse two things from the material word—scales and iron—have been mentioned, for they both contain attributes that man too is required to adopt.
Scales tell us the weight of things. If we want to know how heavy something is, then we weigh it up on a pair of scales. Only then can we tell if it is as heavy as it should be, whether it is up to the required weight. God’s scriptures are also scales, but in an ethical rather than material sense; they are used for weighing actions rather than things.
By weighing up our actions on the scales of the divine scriptures we can tell whether they are right or wrong. One who wishes to be successful in the next world should ensure that his words and actions in this world are up to the required weight, for if they are not, he is doomed to failure in the hereafter.
The second object mentioned in this verse is iron. Iron has certain properties that should also be adopted by man. It is a reliable metal, a basis of strength and firmness. Any bridge or construction founded on iron can be depended upon to fully withstand the force of storms and gales. It is men and women of this nature who are required for service of the divine cause on earth. So taxing is this task that it can only be performed by people endowed with an iron will; people who display no weakness even when faced with severe difficulties; ones who remain as rigid as steel under the pressure of the inward and outward enemies who rise to thwart one in this task.