ISHRAQ US MAY - JULY 2024

THE CASE
AGAINST ATHEISM
Javed Ahmad Ghamidi

Religion, which invites belief in God, has always faced opposition from those who view the
universe itself as humanity's creator. This is called atheism. Before the seventeenth century,
religion and religious thought dominated politics on a global scale. For almost a thousand years
after the advent of prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him), this dominance remained
intact with the same authority. This duration has explicitly been described in the divine
scriptures.1 It was a prophecy of God's messengers, thus it was fulfilled to the letter, and now this
dominance has ended globally. In the resulting environment, a large number of prominent
standard-bearers of atheism have emerged, and they are making their case against religion with
strong conviction and certainty. The case they present is fundamentally based on four objections.
We will explain here the manner in which the Quran has responded to them:

First Objection

The first objection is that the concept of God is the result of the intellectual evolution of
mankind. Therefore, we can see that the God introduced by the Quran does not have any traces
in the early history of humans. Wherever you look, the manifestations of polytheism are present
in every direction, but monotheism is nowhere to be seen. Thus, the reality is that the concept of
a single God gradually emerged in this history, and even then, it was presented by its proponents
in various roles depending on the circumstances: as a king, as a proud husband, and as a
sympathizer of the poor, taking the position of a religious leader. Moreover, monotheism has

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 THE CASE AGAINST ATHEISM

carried along the rites of worship from polytheistic religions, and in every era has demanded
ascribing those rituals to it specifically. Keeping that in view, how is it possible for any rational
being to readily accept this God, created by humans, as their creator, master, and deity?

In response to this objection, it must be stated that this tale of evolution is nothing more than
fiction. It finds no basis in the realm of facts. Regarding the history of human religious thought,
the information obtained so far can take us back at most five thousand years. However, is this
also the age of humans on earth? If we consider the research carried out so far, even the lowest
estimate of human existence on earth predates these figures by thousands of years. Then how can
one refute the Quranic assertion that initially all humans followed a single religion whose
guidance had directly descended from their Lord Himself? Deviations in their religious thought
occurred afterward, leading to disputes. Polytheism emerged from that era. Hence, the truth is
that the journey of religious thought has been from monotheism to polytheism, not the other way
around.

Allah Almighty says:

‫َو َم ا َكاَن الَّناُس ِاَّل٘ا ُاَّم ًة َّواِح َد ًة َفاْخَتَلُفْو اَو َلْو َلا َكِلَمٌة َس َبَقْت ِم ْن‬
‫َّر ِّبَك َلُقِض َي َبْيَنُه ْم ِفْيَما ِفْيِه َيْخَتِلُفْو َن ۔‬
[They should not give reference of their forefathers with regard to this polytheism of theirs.] In
reality, people were one community only; later they have differed with one another and had a
matter not been decided by your Lord previously,2 the issue in which they are differing would
have been decided among them. (Surah Yunus 10:19)

The history of the last two thousand years also testifies to this truth. Scholars know that the
beginning of this history was initiated with the call to monotheism by two distinguished prophets
of God, Jesus and Muhammad, peace be upon them. However, subsequently, observe how the
mix of philosophy and mysticism has caused deviations in their teachings, to the extent that the
followers of Jesus, peace be upon him, have turned him into the son of God and his mother into
the Mother of God, praying to them for intercession, and among the followers of Muhammad,
peace be upon him, people have appeared who see the Unique (Ahad) behind the veil of Ahmad
(Muhammad) and in a state of ecstasy exclaim:

‫ویہوجوتسمیرعشاھتدخاوہرک‬
‫ارتڑپاےہدمےنیںیمٰیفطصموہرک‬

“He who was God, the Occupier of the throne,

Has descended in Medina in the guise of Mustafa (Muhammad).”

Subsequently, it becomes unnecessary to seek further evidence to assert that worship rituals were
essentially designated by God and for God alone, but when polytheism created its own objects of

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worship, it adopted these rites with some modifications for its own deities as well. Therefore,
when the prophets were sent, their first and foremost demand in their call to the people was this:
O people, these rites of worship are exclusive for God and should remain so, because only He is
your sustainer, the King of the universe, and the only deity; there is no deity besides Him.

As for the perception that the concept of God appears to be different in divine scriptures, it is
entirely based on a misunderstanding. These scriptures are the finest examples of sublime
literature. Hence, it can be shown on each occasion by segregating the verses of these scriptures
from the historical accounts of their compilers, that people have demonstrated a lack of
knowledge, contemplation, and refinement in attempting to understand and explain these
scriptures, thus completely destroying their beauty with their interpretations. After that, it can
only be said that: ‫( شعر مرابہ مدرسہ کہ برد۔‬How did my verse reach the Madrasah?)

Second Objection

The second objection pertains to the way religious adherents have perceived and consequently
developed religious thought, which embodies a collection of contradictions. There is a lack of
consensus on the concept of God, His attributes and actions, His ways of dealing with humans,
His commands and guidance, His demands from humans, or His conjectures regarding humans
and the universe; as if to say: all friends have brought a different news from the gathering of
elegance, !(‫ )الئے ہیں بزم ناز سے یار خبر الگ الگ۔‬After this, can any sane person be expected to
consider this collection of contradictions worthy of attention or believe in it?

The response to this objection is that the capacity for understanding existential realities and
deriving conclusions from them, which has been granted to humans, inevitably leads to these
differences. The achievements humans have displayed in this world are the fruits of this capacity.
There is no doubt that its misuse has led to problems, but upon reflection, it becomes evident that
this very ability is the true honor of a human being. It is what makes a person human. The
Creator made him this way and has also promised eternal life with this very capability. After this,
how can one expect God to snatch this ability from humans just to create unity in the
understanding of guidance. Absolutely not, He has clearly decreed that ‫( آِاْک َراَہ ِفی الِّدْیِن‬There is
no compulsion in religion),3 meaning no one is forced in matters of faith, nor will they ever be.

However, this does not mean that as a result, humans have been left to wander in the labyrinths
of disagreements. The Quran has stated that the religion of God is only one, and it has always
been known as 'Islam', but as soon as this state of confusion in understanding emerged, God
began sending His prophets to every nation, and with them, He also sent down His scriptures.
These scriptures were revealed as a scale (Meezan) and criterion (Furqan) to distinguish between
truth and falsehood so that people could resolve their differences through them and thus establish
justice in matters of truth. The Almighty says:

‫ّٰل‬
‫َكاَن الَّناُس ُاَّم ًة َّواِح َد ًة َفَبَع َث ال ُه الَّنِبّٖي َن ُم َبِّش ِر ْيَن َو‬
‫ُم ْنِذ ِر ْيَن ﵣ َو َاْنَز َل َم َعُه ُم اْلِك ٰت َب ِباْلَح ِّق ِلَيْح ُكَم َبْي َن‬
‫الَّناِس ِفْيَما اْخَتَلُفْو ا ِفْيِه ۔‬
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[They present differences among people as a pretext for their hypocrisy. They should know that]
mankind was just a single community. Then [differences arose between them. So,] God sent forth
prophets as bearers of glad tidings and as warners, and with them He sent down His Book as the
decisive truth so that it may settle between people the differences among them. (Surah Al-
Baqarah 2:213)

The last scripture in this series is the Holy Quran. In the world of divine literature, it is now the
only book about which it can be said with complete certainty that it is in our hands exactly as it
was given, without any slightest alteration, in the same language, and the same order. Its
continuous transmission (tawatur) itself is a miracle, because it is the only book in the world that
even now, millions of Muslims can recite orally from memory—from the first chapter to the last.
History informs us that this tradition of recitation has not been interrupted even for a single day
over the past fourteen hundred years. This clearly indicates that its preservation has been
arranged by the Creator of the world Himself. The aspects of the Quran to which the Quran itself
draws attention at various places, as described in the words of Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi, are as
follows:

"First, during the period of the Quran's revelation, Allah Almighty specifically ensured that the
devils could not interfere with the process of revelation of the Quran. It is a permanent
arrangement in this cosmic system that devils cannot hear the discussions of divine matters,
but…especially during the period of the Quran's revelation this arrangement was made so that
the devils could not insert anything before it ( ‫)ِم ْۣن َبْي ِن َيَد ْيِه‬.4

Second, the angel chosen by the Almighty to reveal the Qur’ān has been described in the Qur’ān
(81:20-21) as 'the one endued with power, held in honor before the Lord of the Throne, obeyed
in the Heavens, moreover trustworthy.’ In other words, the angel is so mightily powerful that evil
spirits cannot overcome him, he is the leader of all angels, and he cannot forget anything.
Whatever is entrusted to him by the Almighty, he executes precisely. There is not a semblance of
a chance that the slightest of change can take place in the revelation entrusted to him. He has a
very high rank before the Almighty, which signifies that he surpasses all creation in terms of his
abilities. It is obvious that this arrangement has also been made so that the possibility of any
falsehood entering the Quran from its origin is eliminated.

Third, the very person who was entrusted with the Qur’ān was firstly the best of creation in every
aspect, and secondly, the responsibility for remembering the Quran and its preservation and
arrangement was not placed solely on him, but Allah Himself took up this responsibility. Hence,
in Surah Al-Qiyamah, it is said:

‫َلا ُتَح ِّر ْك ِبٖه ِلَس اَنَك ِلَتْع َج َل ِبٖه ۔ ِاَّن َع َلْيَنا َجْمَع ٗه َو ُقْر ٰا َنٗه ۔ َفِاَذا‬
‫َقَر ْاٰن ُه َفاَّتِبْع ُقْر ٰا َنٗه ۔ ُثَّم ِاَّن َع َلْيَنا َبَي اَنٗه ۔‬
To acquire this Qur’ān [O Prophet!] Do not move your tongue hastily over it. Indeed, upon Us is
its collection and recital. So when We have recited it, follow this recital [of Ours]. Then upon Us
is to explain it [wherever need be] (Surah Al-Qiyamah 75:16-19)

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Narratives confirm that the portion of the Quran that had been revealed was kept memorized by
the Prophet, peace be upon him, and his close companions and every Ramadan the Prophet
would review it with Angel Gabriel to ensure there was no chance of error or forgetfulness, and
this review was done in the order that Allah Almighty had preferred to arrange the Quran. It is
also known from narratives that the Prophet, peace be upon him, conducted this review twice
during the last Ramadan of his blessed life. Then the entire Quran was transferred to written
form in that same order and with the same recitation, and later the Rightly Guided Caliphs sent
its copies to other cities of the state. No previous scriptures received such attention and care in
its arrangement. For instance, it is not even known when and by whose hands the different
scrolls of the Torah were compiled.

The fourth point is that the Quran is a miracle with respect to its eloquence in words and its
profundity in meanings, making it such that the speech of others cannot be integrated with it.
Even the speech of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, despite his being the bringer of
the Quran and the most eloquent among the Arabs and non-Arabs, cannot compete with it. Thus,
there is no chance that the speech of another could be mixed with it. The attempts of those who
have dared to produce a response to the Quran are recorded in the books of literature and
history. Just place their examples in comparison with the Quran, and you will see the difference
between substance and fluff as clear as day. In this way, the path for interpolation into the
Quran from behind ( ‫ )َو اَل ِم ْن َخْلِف ٖه‬5 has been effectively blocked.

Fifth, along with the protection of the Quran, Allah Almighty has also promised the preservation
of its language until the Day of Judgment. In the case of other heavenly scriptures, countless
distortions entered through translations, due to the disappearance of their original languages,
and now it is impossible to trace them. However, the original language of the Quran is preserved
and will remain so until the Day of Judgment. Therefore, there is no chance for the intrusion of
falsehood into it through translations and interpretations. If there is any attempt to insert
falsehood into it, scholars can examine it against the original and cleanly separate out the
falsehood.” (Tadabbur-e-Quran 7/112)

Third Objection

The third objection is that religion invites belief in a God whose behavior is extremely cruel. He
makes children cry and kills them through illnesses and suffering, makes humans slaughter
millions of animals daily and pits them against each other, does not stop a murderer or oppressor
but instead provides them with opportunities to commit their injustices, creates countless
creatures just so that humans can domesticate them and rule over them, utilizing every aspect of
them for their own use, and even encourages humans to fight and kill each other, promising
rewards for it. Moreover, this world created by Him is not perfect in every regard. It has
earthquakes, lightning, famines, and pains. Not only this, deficiencies can also be pointed out in
some places. How can one believe that such an entity is the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,
the All Knowing, and the All Wise, with an unlimited mind and boundless power?

The answer given by the Quran to this objection is that the world where God’s attributes of
perfection, majesty, and beauty will predominantly manifest is currently hidden from our view,

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and human beings were essentially created for that world. The colossal universe and its billions
of galaxies that appear barren in front of Him are merely the materials for the construction of that
world, scattered throughout the vast expanse of space. The Quran states that the day is not far
when this world will be transformed into a different earth and sky, and all creatures will stand
exposed before Allah, the One and the Overpowering 6. Thereafter, a new world will come into
existence, with its expanse as large as the entire universe. This will be a world of God’s
dominion and His mercy and favor. The world in which we open our eyes of conscience is
merely a prelude to that world. It is not set up for administering divine justice, nor to display the
entirety of His splendor. Its sole purpose is to test us, and both jinn and humankind are in a state
of trial. It is said:

‫اَّلِذ ْي َخ َلَق اْلَمْو َت َو اْلَح ٰي وَة ِلَيْبُلَو ُكْم َاُّيُكْم َاْح َس ُن َع َمًلا َو ُهَو اْلَع ِز ْيُز اْلَغ ُفْو ُر ۔‬
[He] Who created death and life to test you as to which of you does better deeds. And He is also
Mighty and Forgiving. (Surah Al-Mulk 67:2)

As a result, existence in this world is inextricably intertwined with dualities: life with death, joy
with sorrow, pleasure with pain, tranquility with anxiety, relief with affliction. Blessings, too, are
often accompanied by tribulations, as if these pairs were designed as inseparable twins. This
world is a place of regrets of the past and fears of the future. The knowledge and wisdom gifted
to humanity are for the purpose of understanding this reality. The Quran declares that this
realization is the true wisdom, and whoever grasps it, attains a great treasure of good 7. It is
through this understanding that a person recognizes the limits of human knowledge, and instead
of blaming God, attempts to comprehend His plan with humility and confession of their
incapacity, always remaining in prayer: "My Lord! Increase me in knowledge" (‫)وَّرِّب ِزْدِنْي ِع ْلًم ا‬.8
The greatest deprivation of the disciplines of science and philosophy is the lack of this wisdom.
It is the lack of this wisdom that gives rise to objections against God and consigns humanity to
perpetual darkness, beyond which there is no light.

Fourth Objection

The fourth objection is that in the era of human infancy, there might have been a need for
religion, but now that human beings are mature and intelligent, they have discovered the key to
solving every problem through their knowledge and science, based on experience, observation,
deduction, and induction. They have also come to understand the universe around them to a great
extent, and for the organization of society and the needs of politics and economy, they have
created highly sophisticated social structures and institutions. By observing these, one can
estimate how superior and elevated human knowledge is compared to those religious laws which
human beings have been carrying around their necks in the name of religion for centuries. After
this, who would be willing to accept these religious laws at any level?

In response to this objection, it is stated that only those who are unfamiliar with religion can
make such a comparison. The reason for this assertion is because religion was never intended for
any of these purposes. It was not revealed to teach humans the laws of science, nor was it meant

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 THE CASE AGAINST ATHEISM

to fulfill their medical needs, nor to teach them how to organize society and address the needs of
politics and economy by creating social structures and institutions. Whatever humans have
accomplished in this world was meant to be done by humans themselves. Their Creator endowed
them with extraordinary powers and abilities for this purpose. The objective of religion is the
purification of a person's knowledge and actions, and of their individual and collective life. The
contents of religion, described as Sharia include teachings and guidance regarding worship,
physical cleanliness, purification of food and drink, and instructions for the refinement of moral
conduct. All these things are essentially not required for this world, but for the hereafter. It is
God's decree that His paradise is only for those who will attain purification in the above matters.
Apart from these, religion has no interest in anything else. Therefore, God's law must be
understood in light of this objective and goal. Its necessity will also be determined from this
angle, and its status and rank among the sciences and arts of the world will also be determined
accordingly.

‫َّل‬
‫ُهَو ا ِذ ْي َبَع َث ِفي اْلُاِّم ّٖي َن َر ُس ْو ًلا ِّم ْن ُه ْم َيْتُلْو ا َع َلْيِه ْم ٰا ٰي ِت ٖه َو ُيَز ِّك ْيِه ْم‬
‫َو ُيَع ِّلُمُه ُم اْلِك ٰت َب َو اْلِح ْكَمَة َو ِاْن َكاُنْو ا ِم ْن َقْب ُل َلِف ْي َض ٰلٍل ُّم ِبْي ٍن ۔‬
It is He who brought forth among the unlettered a Messenger from among them, who recites to
them His revelations and purifies them and for this instructs them in the Law and in Wisdom. In
reality, these people were in manifest error before this. (Surah Al-Jumu'ah 62:2)

REFERENCES:

[1]. The Bible, Revelations 20:7-9

[2]. That is, the decisions on difference of opinion will be made on the Day of Judgment.
[3]. Al-Baqarah 2:256
[4]. Surah As Sajdah 41:42
[5]. Surah As Sajdah 41:42
[6]. Surah Ibrahim 14:48
[7]. Surah Al-Baqarah 2;269
[8]. Surah Taha 20:114

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