English

Paradise is another name for eternal life in the neighbourhood of God (66:11). It is the eternal ideal world in which man will attain complete fulfilment. Called the ‘Home of Peace’ (10: 25), it is said that the people of Paradise will wish peace for one another. In the world before death, those who live in the neighbourhood of God at the psychological level will, in the world Hereafter, live in the eternal neighbourhood of God—Paradise—in reality. In the words of the Quran, God will say to them: “O Soul at peace! Come to your Lord well pleased, and He will be well pleased with you.

A meaningful creation is evidence of the Creator, that is, God. However, despite all its meaningfulness, man’s world is defective in its present state. Man experiences that the world of his dreams cannot come into being in the present world and under the present conditions. For this, another world, and other conditions, are needed. We cannot fulfil our hopes and dreams in this world. The place where our desires will be fulfilled is the next world, the Hereafter, and not the present world.

God has made the present world a selection ground. God has divided man’s life into two periods—the pre-death phase to serve as a trial period and the post-death period for reward or punishment. The conditions of this world serve as an examination paper for man. Here, at every moment, man is being tested. Every person’s word and deed are being recorded here. Based on this record, it will be decided who will be eligible to be settled in Paradise and who will not. Those who limit their freedom, bow before the truth without compulsion, and lead principled lives will be settled in Paradise.