Man begins as a speck in the dark and ends as a traveller without limits. The Quran tells this story twice, once in the body and once in the soul. The two journeys mirror each other, and the mirror teaches a great deal.
The Quran opens the description with the success of the believers. Al Muminun 23:2 says:
Qad aflahal mu’minoon: The believers shall attain their goal.
It then lists their marks. They are humble in Prayer and shun all that is vain. They pay the Zakat and guard their chastity. They keep their trusts and covenants and are strict in their Prayers. Their reward is given in Al Muminun 23:11-12:
Ulaa’ika humul waarithoon. Alladheena yarithoonal firdaws, hum feehaa khaalidoon: These are the true heirs. Who will inherit Paradise; they will abide therein.
The Quran then turns to the body. Al Muminun 23:13 says:
Wa laqad khalaqnal insaana min sulaalatim min teen: Verily, We created man from an extract of clay. Al Muminun 23:14
continues:
Thumma ja’alnaahu nutfatan fee qaraarim makeen: Then We placed him as a drop of sperm in a safe depository.
The next verse sets out the stages. Al Muminun 23:15 says:
Thumma khalaqnan nutfata ‘alaqatan fakhalaqnal ‘alaqata mudghatan fakhalaqnal mudghata ‘izaaman fakasawnal ‘izaama lahman thumma ansha’naahu khalqan aakhar, fatabaarakallaahu ahsanul khaaliqeen: Then We fashioned the sperm into a clot; then We fashioned the clot into a shapeless lump; then We fashioned bones out of this shapeless lump; then We clothed the bones with flesh;
Thumma ansha’naahu khalqan aakhar then We developed it into another creation. So blessed be Allah, the Best of creators.
Death follows, and then a second birth. Al Muminun 23:16 says:
Thumma innakum ba’da dhaalika lamayyitoon: Then after that you must surely die.
Al Muminun 23:17 adds:
Thumma innakum yawmal qiyaamati tub’athoon: Then on the Day of Resurrection will you be raised up.
Man is like a child in the womb in this life. Death is his birth into a fuller life that never ends.
That life has its own road. Al Muminun 23:18 says:
Wa laqad khalaqnaa fawqakum sab’a taraa’iqa wa maa kunnaa ‘anil khalqi ghaafileen: For your advancement in that life We have fashioned seven spiritual paths. We were not neglectful of Our creation.
The two journeys match in number. The embryo passes through seven stages, counting the preparation before the sperm. The soul passes through seven stages, counting Paradise as the last. The body is a lesson for the soul.
Eight attributes mark the true believer, and they are set in rising order. At Taubah 9:112 says:
At taa’iboonal ‘aabidoonal haamidoonas saa’ihoonar raaki’oonas saajidoonal aamiroona bil ma’roofi wan naahoona ‘anil munkari walhaafizoona lihudoodillaah, wa bashshiril mu’mineen: They are the ones who turn to God in repentance , who worship Him , who praise Him, who go about in the land serving Him, who bow down to God, who prostrate themselves in prayer, who enjoin good and forbid evil, and who watch the limits set by Allah. And give glad tidings to those who believe.
Repentance comes first. Worship follows, as the believer submits to the Will of God. Praise comes third, offered even in hardship. The fourth stage is leaving home for God and giving Him one’s whole attention. In the fifth, every limb serves Him. In the sixth, the believer falls in prostration and loses himself in the dust. The Holy Prophet(sa) taught that a servant is nearest to God in that posture.
The seventh stage looks outward. The one who has drawn near must now call the straying sheep back to the fold. He enjoins good and forbids evil. The eighth stage is that of God’s Khalifah, the Divine Reformer. He guards the limits of God’s Law and keeps its ordinances strictly.
Clay becomes flesh, and flesh becomes spirit. Each stage prepares the next, and none is skipped. A person who knows how carefully his body was shaped might ask how carefully he is shaping his soul. Which of the eight stages is he standing in today?