A popular position on this issue, held by altruistic moralists (for want of a better description), is this: One must be selfless; and therefore, doing good and shunning evil should be done for their own sake. A man ought to feel good doing the right, and that should be motivation enough for him. Selfish concerns like reward (Paradise) and punishment (Hell) at best take the sheen off one’s good acts. At worst, they spoil good deeds completely.
As lofty-sounding philosophies go, this ranks right up there with Marxism. Like Marxism it also suffers from the grave defect that it cannot be lived. Our lives are all based on rewards and punishments, provided one considers both in their broader meaning, which makes the above philosophy untenable. For if a good deed assuages one’s conscience or makes one feel wonderful, that is itself a reward, which renders the altruistic moralist’s case against any utilitarian basis for morality inconsistent. Nobody does anything just for the heck of it. Especially good, which takes a lot of doing, is never done for its own sake. There is always a motivation behind it. Any philosophy that suggests otherwise is impossible to live, no matter how impressive it may sound.
Companionship, sexual gratification, monetary comforts, aesthetic fulfilment, and the various fruits – in the literal as well as the figurative sense – are not trivial considerations for man. They are important for him on account of his very nature. Of course, there are limits of permissible behaviour regarding each, but there is nothing shameful or ignoble about any of them. Any philosophy that does not take this fact into consideration is bound to be a non-starter. Man depends on God for each breath of air he draws, the food he eats, the water he drinks, and the comfort that he derives from a healthy life, along with all his other bodily and psychological needs and wants. Man’s whole life is governed by attraction for these and aversion to hunger, thirst, loneliness, discomfort, and ugliness. Looking forward to similar blessings from God in the next life is merely an extension of it. How can somebody in his right mind have contempt for Paradise when it stands for everything that he desires? Doing good in anticipation of rewards from God or out of fear of retribution from Him, far from being unworthy of man as claimed by some, is in fact indicative of his appreciation of his proper place in the scheme of things.
Another way this thought could be expressed is that one should do good deeds for the love of God. It should be noted however that by his very nature, man cannot have a selfless relationship with God. God is Absolute and Independent; man is needy and dependent. Therefore, he cannot be indifferent to rewards and punishments from God. Being altruistic is a desirable quality, and he should be as selfless as he can when it comes to his dealings with fellow human beings. However, when he pretends to be selfless in his relationship with God, it is a form of arrogance on his part. What is more, it is a pretence, because man can be anything but indifferent to how God deals with him.
Broadly speaking there are two approaches to life. One, that bases itself on how things should be (wishful thoughts); and two, that bases itself on how things are (reality). The Quran deals solely with the latter. That is why it treats none of the topics of women, sex, money, or food with contempt – a tendency in many religious systems, and the reason why many ‘enlightened’ souls accuse the Quran to be animalistic or sensuous. The Quran talks about all these things as legitimate aspects of man’s life unless a person violates the bounds of proper behaviour regarding them, in which case he is condemned. Knowing man’s nature, the Quran promises the same things in Paradise as well.
The start of wisdom is knowing one’s limitations, including the level of selflessness one is capable of. A successful life can only be built on the foundation of an appreciation of realities about the universe and about one’s own self; never on delusions, however magnificent sounding.
The Quran condemns man’s tendency of reaching for heights that are unattainable as much as it forbids stooping to lows unworthy of him. Where philosophies like Hedonism barely distinguish human beings from animals, treating man essentially as an accident of evolution; the altruistic moralist believes man to be capable of going against his very nature, ignoring his bodily needs altogether. The Quran characteristically shows the way to a balanced stance: one that takes into consideration both the spiritual as well as the corporeal side of man – scoffing at neither, sweeping neither under the carpet. Those with an eye on the history of man know that the consequences of celibacy and self-denying abstemiousness have scarcely been less catastrophic than those of Hedonism and such. The Quran reminds man not to pretend to be pure [53:32]. One must act in the best possible manner, but it is not a good idea for him to aim for the kind of nobility that is impossible to achieve on account of his nature. In the conflict between human nature and lofty slogans, there can only be one winner, no points for guessing which one.
The Quran explicitly describes people who have the right attitude: that they are never arrogant, and they call upon their Lord in fear and in aspiration [32:15-16]. This (fear and aspiration) is the ideal attitude, not merely an acceptable one. God’s prophets as well as their followers are all expected to have it. It is futile for man to pretend that he is not interested in God’s blessings – in this life or in the next.
The start of wisdom is knowing one’s limitations, including the level of selflessness one is capable of. A successful life can only be built on the foundation of an appreciation of realities about the universe and about one’s own self; never on delusions, however magnificent sounding.
A thoughtful piece of writing.
I do, however, believe that altruistic behaviour is not uncommon.
Selflessness does exist, as I have witnessed on many an occassion. Sure, there may be a subconcious element of scoring brownie points in the process, because we (Muslims) are all to aware that Allah sees all, and knows all.
But how does one explain the absence of brownie point expectations in an agnostic, or for that matter an atheist. There is no denying that people such as this do indulge in acts of selflessness for the sake of it.
One of the first words of advice I gave my children was not to do good with the intention of gaining admission to Paradise, but to do good, because it was the right thing to do, because if they did good just for reward, then it was not pure in its motive.
Paradise would automatically follow because good deeds never go unrecognised by Allah.
Mercifully, for my children, my words of wisdom were limited in number.