What is the meaning of the saying of Allah the Exalted: "And this worldly life is not except diversion and amusement, and indeed, the Hereafter is the true life, if only they knew"?
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The Shaykh : Yes?
The questioner : I am asking you to explain this verse from the Qur'an.
The Shaykh : Huh?
The questioner : I am asking you to explain this verse from the Qur'an, in the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful:[Al-'Ankabut 29:64].
The Shaykh : Yes, the meaning is that the reality of this world is that it is diversion, in which people engage in play.
And amusement: they play with it, and it is not serious.
So, purely worldly work is nothing but play that vanishes into nothingness.
[Al-'Ankabut 29:64] means: it is the complete life. The word "al-hayawan" here does not mean the known animal; rather, it refers to the complete life, as Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Fajr 89:24] So, it is the complete life.
And His saying:[Al-Baqarah 2:102] means: if they had been among those with knowledge, they would not have preferred the world over the Hereafter.
The questioner : I am asking you to explain this verse from the Qur'an.
The Shaykh : Huh?
The questioner : I am asking you to explain this verse from the Qur'an, in the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful:
And this worldly life is not but diversion and amusement. And indeed, the home of the Hereafter - that is the [eternal] life, if only they knew.
وما هذه الحياة الدنيا إلاّ لهو و لعب وإن الدار الآخرة لهي الحيوان لو كانوا يعلمونThe Shaykh : Yes, the meaning is that the reality of this world is that it is diversion, in which people engage in play.
And amusement: they play with it, and it is not serious.
So, purely worldly work is nothing but play that vanishes into nothingness.
And indeed, the home of the Hereafter - that is the [eternal] life
وإنّ الدّار الآخرة لهي الحيوانHe will say, "Oh, I wish I had sent ahead [some good] for my life."
يقول يا ليتني قدّمت لحياتيAnd His saying: