How Can We Adapt Ourselves to the Characteristics of Life in the Hereafter?
Our survival in any environment depends on our harmony with its living conditions. In other words, we must have compatibility and harmony with the characteristics of an environment in order to use and benefit from its resources. If we are in the world, we must be in harmony with the characteristics of this world, and if we are in the hereafter, we must be in harmony with the characteristics of life in the hereafter. This is because our body is designed in a way that it can survive in certain temperatures, levels of humidity, and amount of oxygen. In fact, these limitations determine in which parts of the earth we can live and in which parts we cannot live and survive without special equipment. Because of the lack of compatibility with the conditions outside the earth’s atmosphere, underwater, or in polar and desert regions, no one is willing to live there, despite the vast amount of land in these areas.
Although we constantly and mostly unconsciously use the life tools of the world, we think less about their origin and how they came into being. Our eyes are designed to perceive a certain range of colors and light; our ears are capable of hearing sounds with specific frequencies; our heart is designed to pump blood throughout the body without interruption; and our hands are capable of performing many daily tasks. All these tools, each a collection of billions of cells of various shapes and sizes, are formed in the mother’s womb without our intervention. Although we can survive without these tools, our lives will definitely be filled with many difficulties.
Isn’t it interesting that during nine months of living in an environment that is billions of times smaller and more limited than the world, we produce organs that we can live with in the world for the rest of our lives? It is even more interesting that right now, and in the womb of this world, we are making tools for the hereafter. These tools are created and acquired in the world but in harmony with the living conditions and characteristics of life in the hereafter. In fact, just as our body is designed for life in this world, our tools in the hereafter must be in harmony with the characteristics of life in the hereafter.
The Differences Between the Living Environments in the World and the Hereafter
We humans face two stages of birth in the path of our creation: birth into the physical world and birth into the hereafter.
While both of these births are related, they represent two different stages of our existence and require their own characteristics and conditions. Our physical body is formed in the mother’s womb. This body is designed to live and survive in specific environmental conditions in the physical world. We have no control or authority over the process of our growth at this stage, but after birth into the world, a new opportunity begins for us in a completely voluntary way. This is an opportunity to shape and complete the tools of life in the hereafter and prepare for the living conditions and characteristics of life in the hereafter.
While before being born into the world, parents try to ensure the physical growth and health of the fetus in the womb and are aware of the importance of “baby’s health,” in our worldly life, we ourselves are responsible for shaping and developing the dimensions of our existence and preparing ourselves in harmony with the characteristics of life in the hereafter. The most bitter moment, both for parents who are waiting for the birth of their baby into the world and for us who are going to be born into the hereafter, is the moment when we are born into a new environment with a defect or an extra organ. A baby born with such conditions must endure the suffering of treatment and the inability to use the world’s resources for at least a few decades. In our birth to the hereafter, where we will have an eternal life, we will be trapped for eternity.
In the previous lessons, we learned that everything we acquire in the world, such as assets, wealth, position, reputation, and even knowledge and social relationships, is only useful within the bounds of our worldly life and will lose its status and importance in the hereafter. In contrast, the sound heart, which God has referred to in the Quran, is the only tool and asset we have for life in the hereafter. This heart is different from the pine-shaped heart in our chest, and its definition is related to the human and immaterial dimension of our existence.
We usually check the conditions of a place before entering it, and depending on the duration of our stay, we prepare the supplies we need there. Our spiritual and ethical development in the world is also a prerequisite for entering the hereafter. We are born into the world with material and physical tools, but we must prepare ourselves to live in a world that is beyond matter. This preparation requires knowing our true self, the characteristics of the place we want to enter, and acquiring tools that are compatible with the living conditions there.
Life Tools and Characteristics of Life in the Hereafter
The concept of the “heart” and its “soundness” in the context of the hereafter is a key issue that refers to the deeper dimensions of our existence. In order to adjust ourselves to the characteristics of life in the hereafter, we definitely need to know what is meant by a “sound heart” and how we can prepare ourselves for this eternal journey by acquiring a sound heart. Naturally, the creator of anything knows its characteristics best. The same God who created our worldly body in the closed and dark environment of the mother’s womb with completely accurate mathematics and in harmony with the laws of the world has also informed us about the mathematics of the infinite realm of Malakut and the characteristics of life in the hereafter, and He has asked us to prepare ourselves for it by acquiring a sound heart.
In this context, the “heart” refers to a center for our human dimension and true self. It differs from the common meaning of heart as an organ that circulates blood in the body. The spiritual heart refers to deeper aspects of our personality, morals, emotions, and spirit. Being “sound” also means that it is healthy, pure, and untainted from an ethical and spiritual point of view. A heart that is sound is free from jealousy, hatred, arrogance, and other negative qualities and is full of love, peace, happiness, and a deep understanding of the truths of life.
In order to prepare ourselves according to the characteristics of life in the hereafter, we need to practice and pay attention to these spiritual and ethical aspects of our existence, which can only be achieved through self-knowledge and the acquisition of a sound heart. In fact, anything other than a sound heart which has the ability to connect with its true Beloved can be harmful to us and cause troubles in the hereafter.
In this article, we discussed the importance of adapting to the characteristics of life in the hereafter. We mentioned that our comfort and survival in any environment depend on our compatibility with its living conditions. Just as we need a healthy body to live in this world, our life in the hereafter also requires different tools that we will acquire through a sound heart. In fact, a sound heart is our only asset in the hereafter, and if we do not take it with us, we will be eternally deprived of the resources and wonders of the hereafter.
Have you thought about the characteristics of life in the hereafter? How ready are you to use its resources and characteristics?
We look forward to reading your thoughts on this topic.