In other words...

In other words, all actions must be performed in the shadow of the three basic principles of Islam: Divine Unity, Prophecy, and the Last Day. “Say O People of the Scripture [Jews and Christians]! Come to an agreement between us and you: that we shall worship none but Allah, and that we shall ascribe no partners unto Him, and that none of us shall take others for lords beside Allah.

And if they turn away, then say Bear witness that we are they who have surrendered (unto Him).” (1) From the previous discussion, it has become clear that in the religion of Islam the path to be followed in life has been ordered and arranged in such a way that man’s social and material life resembles a cradle in which the spiritual life is nurtured.

The inner spiritual light of the practising Muslim is such that all of his individual and social actions contribute to purifying his soul and strengthening its radiance. Although outwardly he is with people, inwardly he is with God, and although he is in the midst of a crowd, he dwells in the spiritual retreat of the divine secret.

At the same time that he is running here and there in pursuit of material goals and is undergoing a series of events both bitter and sweet, pleasant and unpleasant, beautiful and ugly, and in general is involved in the events of the tumultuous external world, his heart is free and exists in a world of tranquillity in which he sees the Face of God wherever he looks. And whither so ever ye turn, there is Allah’s countenance.

(2) A pious Muslim extends his spiritual life into every aspect of his material life. Wherever he is and whatever he is doing he is in contact with God. Everything with which he occupies himself in the material world is a mirror in which he sees God reflected. On the other hand, non-Muslims who turn towards the spiritual life imagine that their natural and everyday life is a veil between themselves and the Truth they are seeking.

As a result, they are forced to abandon normal life and assume an unaccustomed manner of living in their quest for spiritual perfection. Whatever the advantages of such a way, from the point of view of a person who lives a normal life it is a difficult road to follow and one in which to persevere requires an extreme degree of willpower.