Individual Freedom

Man’s formation

The creation of mankind was for a purpose: for mankind to act as the vicegerent of God on earth. As such, he is supposed to be in the best of formation (see: Qur’an, 95:4-9).

However, mankind is by nature weak in character (see: Qur’an, 4:28), hasty (see: Qur’an, 17:11), restless (see: Qur’an, 70:19), fretful (see: Qur’an, 70:20), niggardly (see: Qur’an, 70:21). But all these weaknesses can be swept away if man follows God’s ordinances correctly and indeed uses the faculties endowed to him, like “hearing” (faculty of receiving instructions) and “seeing” (faculty of intellectual and spiritual insight) (see: Qur’an, 76:2).

These negative traits of man’s formation make it clear that man’s freedom is not absolute. It is true that God has honored him over other creations (see: Qur’an, 17:70), as God’s vicegerent on earth, but that honor comes with great responsibility and trial. And for that reason he has been given freewill. This freedom is not absolute, because if it were absolute for individuals, it would certainly cause chaos in the society. Thus, God’s instructions are necessary to guide men, both individuals and societies.

Man’s inner power

The Qur’an talks about “nafs” (the self) of human being. This “nafs” inspired by God carries two contrasting features: moral failings and a consciousness of God. With all faculties given to him, human being deserves freewill, which has an inner power that gives him the ability to choose which path he wants to trace.

God says: “And consider “the self” and how it is formed (in accordance with what it is meant to be); so it was imbued with moral failings as well as with consciousness of God. Indeed, successful will be the one who purifies it, and indeed will have to fail he who eclipses it” (91:7.10).

“Eclipsing” one’s self means disgracing the power given to him by God to resist against the negative “power” of Satan. Man is expected to resist by using all faculties in his possession (his inner power).

And “purifying” one’s self means to free it from sin, guilt or any other defilement, so that he is immune from Satan’s temptations, and courageously opposing it.

God says in the Qur’an: “As for him who shall have transgressed the bound of what is right, and preferred the life of this low-world, Hell-fire will indeed be the abode. But as for him who feared the stance before his Lord, and forbade the self from pursuing destructive desire, Paradise will indeed be the abode” (79:37-41).

Satan’s temptation

From the Qur’anic statements we can be certain that in God’s Plan, Satan is the eternal tempter by which man is tried between the Straight Path shown by God and the adorned devil’s temptation. Thus here is where man exercises his freewill. God has sent His messengers with the purpose of guiding people to endure with their faith and consciousness of God, so that they can be immune to the temptation and blandishment of Satan. God has given instructions and explained how individuals and societies can confront devil’s temptation.

The Qur’an recounts the capability of the devil to influence human being, but at the same time it states that devil cannot succeed in toppling down the strength of the freewill of a Godly-devoted person: (see: Qur’an, 15:28-44). God incites man to fight the allies of Satan and assures him that the “power” of the evil is always negative, thus weak: “… verily, Satan’s guile is feeble indeed” (4:76).

Satan is always tempting human beings by beautifying all kinds of means of comfort, like lust, children, wealth, luxuries, in order to attract them towards these temptations rather than to have them struggle for moral and higher ambitious values (see: Qur’an, 3: 14-17).

Potential meaning of life

After observing the real nature of human being and what kind of duties is entrusted to him by the Creator, we can grasp that human’s life is not for nothing. There must be meaning to it.

God says in the Qur’an: And I did not create the jinn and mankind except that they may worship Me” (51:56).

Worshiping God means developing one’s “cognition of the existence of God and, hence, his conscious willingness to conform his own existence to whatever he may perceive of His Will and Plan”(Muhammad Asad in his masterpiece: “The message of the Qur’an”). It is this twofold concept of cognition and willingness that gives the deepest meaning to what the Qur’an describes as “’ibadah” (= worship). And this spiritual call does not arise from any supposed “need” on the part of the Creator, who is Self-Sufficient and infinite in His power, but is designed as an instrument for the inner development of the worshiper, who by the act of his conscious self-surrender to the All-pervading Creative Will may hope to come closer to an understanding of that Will and, thus, closer to God Himself.

So it is safe to say that ‘ibadah (= worshiping God) can strengthen one’s inner power to use his individual freedom correctly and then make his life meaningful.

According to a well-known psychiatrist, Dr. Victor Frankl (1905-1997), even in the most absurd, painful, and dehumanized situation, life has potential meaning and, therefore, even suffering is meaningful. This conclusion served as a strong basis for his logotherapy and existential analysis. He is quoted as saying, “What is to give light must endure burning”! (See his book “Man’s Search for Meaning: An introduction to logotherapy”, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1959).

Logotherapy is a highly directive existential psychotherapy that emphasizes the importance of meaning in the patient’s life especially as gained through spiritual value.