CHANGE IS THE law of the universe and life, the sole constant in creation. In fact, change is so persistent in our lives that it almost defies description and analysis. This is so true of change that some philosophers consider the constancy of it baffling:
How could something, which changes in property (due to change), remain the same thing? Some of them believe change makes sense only if it is held to be an inconsistency. Others believe it to be a case of nonidentity. These approaches take analyzing the process of change to extremes. They warrant no worthy results for us because they seek to restrict their analysis of change to an absolute frame of mind that ignores other major facts and laws of life. Most importantly, this line of thinking ignores that this life has a Creator and a Master who is the only absolute there is. He is the One who gave both life and man their transformational nature-as eloquently argued, with respect to man, in this issue's cover article. Let me give you two reasons I reject what they say about change. First, complete understanding of change as the law of life may not be possible without knowing the basic nature of God's laws or sunan as described in the Qur'an. In essence, Allah created life and the universe based on the physical laws that are responsible for the "cause-effect" phenomenon we all know and experience. The first scientist to coin this interesting phrase was Isaac Newton, who famously stated that "for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction." This was given more meaning and relevance by Einstein who said: "Nothing happens until something moves."This is true not just materially but spiritually and emotionally also-at least metaphorically.
To continue reading this article, please log in or Subscribe to Aljumuah Magazine