The definition of goodness must be reliable, and for that it must be grounded in truth.
”Goodness” (الاِحْسَانُ) is correctly defined by God, who is The Source of Good (المُحْسِنُ). Praise be to God.
The vegetation of Paradise is the best vegetation. Subhaanallah walhamdulillah. Indeed, Paradise is presented to us as a garden, which a place of vegetation. Allah could have described Heaven as a beautiful city, a sandy beach, or a cave made of crystal, but He did not. He has told us repeatedly in the Qur’an that it is a garden. The place of ultimate happiness is a garden, no less, which is a land of beautiful and bountiful plants.
Dear Readers,
Please find below a guest post by Abdullah Reed. We thank him for his contribution. Please do take some time to read this, it will liberate your mind and soul.
Good and Bad Plants
By: Abdullah Reed
Defining Good Trees
This short essay is here to introduce and establish a simple but extremely important piece of knowledge: plants can be good and bad. While they’re not moral actors, the degree of utility is clearly different from one plant to another.
This applies not only from species to species, but also from one exemplar to another within the same species
Plants can be good or bad. Under the prevailing Darwinian worldview, most people are not sure what that really means.
“Good” doesn’t simply mean good for the environment. It isn’t enough to think that goodness is defined by market trends, mythology, or metastudies either. No – those definitions are slippery.
The definition of goodness must be reliable, and for that it must be grounded in truth.
”Goodness” (الاِحْسَانُ) is correctly defined by God, who is The Source of Good (المُحْسِنُ). Praise be to God.
The vegetation of Paradise is the best vegetation. Subhaanallah walhamdulillah. Indeed, Paradise is presented to us as a garden, which a place of vegetation. Allah could have described Heaven as a beautiful city, a sandy beach, or a cave made of crystal, but He did not. He has told us repeatedly in the Qur’an that it is a garden. The place of ultimate happiness is a garden, no less, which is a land of beautiful and bountiful plants.
The vegetation of Hellfire is the worst. Subhaanallah. Seek refuge with Allah from it. It is vegetation created by Allah to cause suffering to the people there by adding to their torture.
So the plants in Paradise are blissful and the plants in Hell are punishing. Our awareness of this must inform us when we consider how to judge the plants we encounter here on earth.
The idea that profitability is the leading indicator of goodness is wrong.
Productive and Strong
A good tree has firm roots, good growth, and is plentiful. Not all plants have these characteristics, so we need to be selective.
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In The Name of God, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful
And it is He who spread the earth and placed therein firmly set mountains and rivers; and from all of the fruits He made therein two mates; He causes the night to cover the day. Indeed in that are signs for a people who give thought.
And within the land are neighboring plots and gardens of grapevines and crops and palm trees, growing out of single roots or otherwise: watered with the same water, yet some of them We make more excellent than others to eat. Indeed in that are signs for a people who reason.
The Qur’an, The Thunder, verses 3 – 4
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Applications
▪️Be selective. Selection criteria must include palatability (الأُكُلُ), because this word is from verse 4 of chapter 13 of the Qur’an. It must be important to us because has been given importance by Allah, The Most Exalted.
▪️Obviously, trees and plants that are culrivated for wood and other non-consumable produce are not judged by their taste. Judge them by the quality of the product they provide, in shaa Allah.
▪️Allah has said that the excellence of one exemplar over another is a difference that is seen when they are watered with the same water.
▪️Pray for crops that are good in a way that pleases The Creator (الخَالِقُ). Allah will be pleased with you, and will respond to your prayer, in shaa Allah.
▪️Keep nurturing good trees. Give them royal treatment and share their fruit as it should be shared, and these acts will glorify Allah, in shaa Allah.
