Dunya Islam Meaning
Jacinda Saleeby
In Islam, dunyā (Arabic: دُنْيا) refers to the temporal world and its earthly concerns and possessions. In the Quran, "dunya" is often paired with the word "life" to underscore the temporary and fleeting nature of the life of this world, as opposed to the eternal realm of the afterlife, known as "akhirah".
According to the Quran, humans and other communities have a limited time on earth before they pass on to the afterlife. In fact, the Quran teaches that everything that exists is temporary and will ultimately fade away. The pursuit of nearness to God is thus emphasized as the ultimate purpose in life, as only God's Being and Essence endure forever.
In Surah 28 verse 88, the Quran tells that "All things perish, save His (God's) Face".[8] The same message is repeated several times as in 55:26-27: "All that is upon it passes away. And there remains the Face of thy Lord, Possessed of Majesty and Bounty." [8] According to The Study Quran, these verses are "taken by most as a reference to the earth, the face of the earth, or this world in general, thus indicating that all of creation will eventually 'pass away'",[8] only God's Being and Essence remains.[8]
According to a prophetic tradition, "This world is the cultivating field for the other world", meaning that the consequences of a person's actions in this life will impact the state of that person's soul in the afterlife.[9][10] In another hadith, the Prophet is reported to have said that even the person who had the most luxurious life in this world but ends up in the Fire will be brought before God on the Day of Resurrection and dipped once into the Fire. Then God will ask the person if he has ever experienced any good or bliss. The person will reply that he has not, indicating that the temporary pleasures of this world cannot be compared to the eternal consequences of the afterlife. Similarly, the person who had the most difficult life in this world but ends up in the Garden will be brought before God and dipped once into the Garden. Then God will ask the person if he has ever experienced any misery or hardship. The person will reply that he has not, emphasizing the incomparable joy and bliss of the next world.[5]
The term dunya is originally an Arabic word that derives from the root d-n-w (د ن و 'to bring near'). In that sense, dunya is "what is brought near".[11] The term has spread to many other languages, particularly those with large groups of Muslim speakers. For example;
Hello there! We take your privacy seriously, and want to be as transparent as possible. So: We (and our partners) use cookies to collect some personal data from you. Some of these cookies we absolutely need in order to make things work, and others you can choose in order to optimize your experience while using our site and services. It's up to you!
Additionally, we and our advertising partners store and/or access information on your device and also process personal data, like unique identifiers, browsing activity, and other standard information sent by your device including your IP address. This information is collected over time and used for personalized ads, ad measurement, audience insights, and product development specific to our ads program.
If this sounds good to you, select \"I Agree!\" below. Otherwise, you can get more information, customize your consent preferences, or decline consent by selecting \"Learn More\". Note that your preferences apply only to Tumblr. If you change your mind in the future you can update your preferences any time by using the Privacy link beneath each ad. One last thing: Some of your data may be processed by our advertising partners based on legitimate interests instead of consent, but you can object to that by choosing \"Learn More\" and then disabling the Legitimate Interests toggle under any listed Purpose or Partner on their respective settings pages.
Clothes, silver, gold, money, wealth, wife and kids are not necessarily dunya, provided they do not make a person unmindful of Allah. In other words, all these things are kept according how Allah wants them to be, and he does not use any of these things in disobeying Allah, then this person is a man of God, and is not materialistic. On the other hand you have a person who is broke. He spends his life hungry and goes through financial difficulties, but is negligent of Allah, and disobeys Allah, and then this person in reality is materialistic even though he has nothing.
The word dunya comes from danaa (root: dal nun wau). This root word has two meanings: 1) near and 2) lowly. This life has been called al-hayaat ad-dunya because it is the near (or "nearest"), the apparent and the current existence which we know and also because it is lesser, despicable and superficial in comparison to the real life as Allah called it - the life in the hereafter.
Ad-Dunya is the place which contains all the objects of desire of the human nafs in this life. It is in reality a mere transition or place of passing and has no permanence or lasting meaning. The life of this world and all that is in it is like the beautiful plants or crops which impress those who look on them but which shortly are turned into dead leaves and dust blown about by the wind.
The life of this world has been made attractive and desireable to mankind. Unlike some other religions, Islam does not negate this love nor deem it as inherently evil. Rather, they are natural desires which Allah created in us and only need to be channelled into what Allah has allowed or encouraged and not allowed to control our actions and beliefs even in disobedience to Allah Most High. So this life is a temporary place of testing which determines our permanent condition in the life hereafter.
When the desires of this world are tempting us to neglectd obedience to Allah and to follow them instead of Allah, we should remember the lowliness of this life and its insignificance in comparison to the life hereafter except as a testing ground where Allah watches what we do.
The only good that we can get out of this life is whatever obedience and worship we can offer to Allah while we are here. Of utmost importance in this regard is learning our din and teaching what we have learned to others along with calling others to enter into belief, submission and practice of Islam. The most important thing to realize here is that the human heart by nature is a slave to something. If that slavery ('uboodiya) is not directed to Allah Most High, then it will surely find something else to which to attach itself.
This has been made beautiful to people: the love of the desires such as women, sons, piled up heaps of gold and silver, branded horses, cattle and land. That is the provision of this life but with Allah is the best place of return.
May peace be with you
This blog is dedicated to Quranic/Islamic terminology which can be used on a daily basis and help us understand our scriptures and our deen better.
By taking words and presenting them in a flashcards format and adding a bit of information upon each term as well without flooding it will insha'Allah help us remember and use these words.
i am no scholar of Islam, but i will Inshallah do my level best to ensure the words and meanings i provide are authentic and not misleading. However, I am a human after all and prone to mistakes so do not hesitate to point them out and correct them at any time.
Submissions are always open :)
my intentions are pure and clean
Allah is my witness
Allah knows best
:)
Az-Zuhd is, "The opposite of being eager and concerned about the dunya (the life of this world)." Further, Ibn al-Qayyim said, "Az-Zuhd, in the Arabic language, the language of Islam, entails abandoning a matter while despising it and while belittling its significance, so that one will exchange it for what is more significant."
c80f0f1006