A Brief Treatise to an Atheist

A Brief Treatise to an Atheist

The Scholarly Committee of the Islamic Content Service Association for Languages

We live in an astonishing universe, governed by precise laws that exhibit a wondrous consistency and a precise, awe-inspiring order.

The more one delves into understanding the laws of the universe, the more a question arises to which physics has no answer: What is the source of these laws? And why do they exist in the first place?

I do not write to offer a ready-made answer, but to share with you a logical question that is worth raising, irrespective of religious or intellectual background.

Is it logical for laws to arise from nothing, for order to arise without purpose, and for awareness to arise from mindless matter?

Let us start from the beginning, with the clearest and, at the same time, most profound question:

Can nothingness create anything?

Is it logical to say that this wondrous universe, with its' precise system and perfect harmony, emerged from nothingness and without a cause?

The sound human mind rejects this completely; for in our lives, we do not see anything coming from nothing.

Reflect with me, within yourself: Who is the One who created you from a humble drop, and fashioned you as a human, hearing and seeing?

Who created your body with such perfection, and endowed you with an eye to see, an ear to hear, and an intellect that analyzes and reflects?

Who is the One Who provided for you while you were in your mother's womb, helpless and powerless, nourishing you from your mother's blood and preparing for you everything you needed to grow and come forth into life?

Did you create yourself? Or did nature do it?

Nature has no mind, intent, or will. How can it produce a system more complex than the greatest computer can? How can it create consciousness, perception, and emotions?

How can nature instill in a mother's heart an instinctive love for her child? Or cause your heart to grieve at the sight of injustice, and rejoice at the sight of justice?

Who implanted these sublime concepts within us? From where did values come? From where did the conscience come?

Everything around you proclaims the existence of the Creator.

Look at the sky: who raised it without pillars?

Look at the sun: Who designed its precise, unaltering course?

Reflect on your heart: Who makes it beat without your permission, throughout your life?

Did all of this just happen to exist by chance? And can coincidence repeat itself billions of times with this system?

Would you believe that a precise book, like a dictionary or a scientific encyclopedia, appeared by coincidence from an explosion in a printing press?

How then can you believe that the universe, which is greater than all books, emerged from a blind explosion?

Islam does not call you to put your mind away; rather, it calls you to use it. Allah Almighty says in the Qur'an: (...Can there be any doubt about Allah, the Creator of the skies and earth...) [Surat Ibrāhīm: 10].

Is it conceivable to doubt the existence of the One who created everything?

Allah also says: {and also within yourselves (there are signs). Do you not see?} [Surat adh-Dhāriyāt: 21]

An invitation to you to reflect upon your body and your soul, to see the proof before you.

Then contemplate the Noble Qur’an, the last Divine Book revealed.

A Book revealed more than 1400 years ago challenged humanity to produce the like of it, yet they have failed.

A book that combines creed, legislation, stories, knowledge, and language, in an unparalleled style.

It reported on nations that perished, events of the past, and discoveries that became known only after centuries, such as: the development of the fetus, the formation of clouds, the layers of the earth, and the precise orbits of the planets.

Then, reflect upon the life of the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him): a man who grew up in a desert far from the centers of civilization, who could neither read nor write, and was not taught by any human being. Yet he brought to humanity an eternal message that enlightens the minds, purifies the souls, and brings about a tremendous transformation in the course of history.

With words that descended upon him in a cave, he led humanity from the worship of man and stone to the worship of the sole Creator of the universe and the establishment of the values of justice, mercy, and dignity.

What is this power that changed the world, touched the hearts, and whose echo still resounds despite the centuries?

O you who is reading these words: Your Lord does not need anything from you, but it is you who stand in need of Him.

He created you, provides for you, protects you, and gives you respite, so that you may reflect and return.

He does not wrong anyone, and when one sincerely returns to Him, He accepts him, forgives him, and turns his sins into good deeds.

I do not impose anything upon you, but I entreat you to grant your heart an opportunity for sincerity.

To divest oneself of anger, and of the inner noise, and to think for a moment:

What if I was wrong?

What if there was a God, life after death, Paradise, and Hellfire?

Will you be remorseful then, when remorse is of no avail?

Take a sincere step towards the truth and begin your journey with the Qur’an... You may find in it answers that were absent, and a Light you have been missing.

Translation of the meanings of the Noble Qur'an