Ch 4 — Glorification of God

Badges mark quoted or attributed material (Qur'an, hadith, another author, an opposing view). Unbadged passages are Maulana Wahiduddin Khan's own words.

Contents (44 chapters)

1. Foreword
2. Ch 1 — The Majesty of God in the Vast Universe
3. Ch 2 — The Consciousness in Human Nature of God's Existence
4. Ch 3 — The Omnipotent God and Helpless Man
5. Ch 4 — Glorification of God
6. Ch 5 — Consciousness in Nature
7. Ch 6 — Limitless Majesty of God
8. Ch 7 — Relationship with God
9. Ch 8 — Two Aspects of God-Realization
10. Ch 9 — The Importance of the Fear of God
11. Ch 10 — Loving God the Most
12. Ch 11 — Love, Obedience
13. Ch 12 — Love of God
14. Ch 13 — Closeness to God
15. Ch 14 — Two Levels of Realization (Maarifah)
16. Ch 15 — Making God One's Supreme Concern
17. Ch 16 — Submission to God
18. Ch 17 — Acknowledgement of God
19. Ch 18 — Cause of the Failure to Love God
20. Ch 19 — Praise Be to God (Alhamdulillah)
21. Ch 20 — The Source of the Love of God
22. Ch 21 — The Price of the Love of God
23. Ch 22 — Strong, Emotional Attachment to God
24. Ch 23 — Real Love, Relative Love
25. Ch 24 — Two Categories of Paradise
26. Ch 25 — Intense Love of God
27. Ch 26 — Strong Believer, Weak Believer
28. Ch 27 — People Worth Envying
29. Ch 28 — Sacred Narration
30. Ch 29 — A Case of Exceptional Mercy
31. Ch 30 — God in Our Hearts
32. Ch 31 — The Remembrance of God
33. Ch 32 — Two Lifestyles
34. Ch 33 — The Power of Helplessness
35. Ch 34 — Crying in Remembrance of God
36. Ch 35 — The Spirit of Religion
37. Ch 36 — God's Pleasure, Man's Pleasure
38. Ch 37 — Initial Hamd (Praise), Ultimate Hamd
39. Ch 38 — Thankfulness and Acknowledgement
40. Ch 39 — The High Degree of the Divine Experience
41. Ch 40 — The Feelings of Worship
42. Ch 41 — The Experience of God
43. Ch 42 — Seeking God's Pleasure
44. Ch 43 — In the Company of God

Glorification of God p. 14

Hamd or acknowledgment entails man’s acknowledgement of the innumerable blessings he receives from God. Offering the utmost gratitude to God enables one to gain entry into Paradise. p. 14

Man is required to glorify God. That is to say that a believer’s God-realization should be so deep that he may acknowledge God from the innermost recesses of his heart. From the Quran we learn that this, the glorification of God, is also required from the whole world of nature. According to the Quran, “All that is in the heavens and on the earth extols the glory of God.” (64:1) p. 14original + quote

What does this mean? It means that what God wants from His creatures more than anything else is Hamd, that is acknowledgment. Besides man, all the things of the universe are constantly engaged in God’s glorification, albeit in an unspoken language. God has exceptionally granted man speech, so he is required to glorify God in spoken language. On seeing how highly meaningful the universe is, man cannot but make a profound acknowledgement of God. This is known as Hamd, or praise. p. 14

When man thinks about himself, he finds that God has created him in the best of moulds (95:4). Similarly, when he reflects on the creatures of God, he finds that everything is in the ultimate state of perfection. “God has ordered all things to perfection.” (27:88) p. 15original + quote

Reflection on all these things produce vibrant praise for God within him. Man, with all his heart, soul and mind, starts acknowledging God. p. 15

The Quran tells us, “He has given you all that you asked of Him.” (14:34) p. 15Qur'an

That is, God has given man everything he asked for. When you realize this it means that God gave to man all that he wanted, without his even asking for it. When man thinks of the innumerable blessings given by God, then he offers the utmost gratitude to God. It is Hamd or acknowledgment of this high order that will enable the believer to gain entry into Paradise. p. 15