I love to go to a nature center close to us here in Southern California, Santa Rosa Plateau. Some of the rock formations look like sculptures.
The oak trees are very old, and there are pastures and small streams that go through it. There are coyotes, deer mountain lions, and all types of birds.
We used to enjoy going through there, and at times we have prayed. It is a very peaceful place to walk and sit near a stream and eat breakfast. There are beautiful wildflowers there after the spring rain and verdant ponds.
There is so much beauty in the world to see, and just walking and meditating, we can appreciate it so much. It is a miracle, and that we are a part of that miracle.
Al-Jameel
Al-Jameel is one of Allah’s names. It means the absolute beauty of Allah. Beauty in the universe is proof of His beauty, especially everything has its own order.
Our Beloved Prophet said that Allah, Al-Jameel, is the most beautiful and the source of all beauty to be found in creation. He is perfect and the most beautiful in His essence and in action.
Allah says in being Al-Jameel that we are a beautiful part of His creation, as well as other living beings. Human beings are the best of His creation and the stewards of nature, being like other living plants and animals.
We are universes within ourselves. We are made of trillions of cells. Allah wants us to also be a beautiful part of nature. He wants us to keep our mental and physical selves healthy. We should be beautiful with integrity and appearance. We should see beautiful things, do beautiful things and keep ourselves beautiful.
Supreme Artist
He is the Supreme Artist. If we look at the system and beauty of His creation, everything is organized in such a manner. This is evidence of His existence. Everything has its own law of nature.
Scientists are now discovering that trees communicate with each other. Plant species purposely grow together. If you look at a leaf, how beautiful it looks in the sunlight. There is Divine Symmetry that shapes everything. Artists try to recreate it.
“That is the design of Allah, who has perfected everything…” (27:88)
Miracle of the Universe
There are rules throughout the sciences, such as physics, that are followed throughout the universe from the sub-particles to the largest celestrial bodies.
Gravity holds these bodies together. Our sun is a star. It rises in the morning and sets in the evening.
We have the beauty of each season. Different plants and trees bloom, bear fruit at different times. In the winter, things seem to die, but they come back in the spring.
And He is the One Who spread out the earth and placed firm mountains and rivers upon it, and created fruits of every kind in pairs.1 He covers the day with night. Surely in this are signs for those who reflect. (13:3)
The Oneness of Allah
When I was a young girl, in Massachusetts, my home was heavily wooded. I would go behind the woods of my home, and lay on the ground surrounded by birch, evergreen trees, and aspen. I would look at the top of the aspen, whose leaves spin in the air, up to the vastness of the sky, and I would feel the Oneness of Allah in all living organisms.
I would hear a brook near by and feel the beauty of the rushing sound and hearing the songs of birds. I felt reverence. I could hear the rustling of squirrels and other small animals.
Say, “Allah is the Creator of all things, and He is the One, the Supreme” (13:16)
Life is Precious
Modern society keeps us away from nature. Many people lose contact with nature. But nature makes us feel alive. It makes us aware of our true relationship with Allah, that He created everything so beautifully which humans cannot create even with science, great literature and the arts.
We are calmed by the silence of walking in the woods, or the rhythmic sound of the ocean. It is meditative. We are mystified by looking up into the vastness of the sky and to our own seemingly small insignificance. But we feel a great deal of purpose and it is an extreme source of comfort.
We are also stewards and caretakers of nature. We should not destroy nature. It is being destroyed by climate change, overpopulation, consumerism, urbanization, and pollution. We should respect nature and other living beings, even the animals and plants that we eat.
Life is precious. Our beloved Prophet, peace be upon him, would not destroy the vegetation, trees and animals of his enemies. He was the best example in creation and in character.
and do not go about spreading corruption in the land (2:60)
Hope and Respect
We should have a great reverence for this earth. The beauty of Nature inspires us every day to think and worship. It gives a great purpose of life. It is Allah’s gift to us. It gives meaning to wake up every day no matter the situations in our lives.
It gives us hope. That is why we should take care of it.
Are you doing your best to protect planet earth?
(From Discovering Islam archive)