is much more subtle in this sphere than in other spheres. A man may
casually take a wrong turning and may go on committing trivial
misdeeds, without being aware of the gradual harm he is doing to
his personality, One day, he will be shocked when he realises the
cumulative deterioration in his personality. Though subtle, the
working of the Law of Requital in this sphere is relentless. Every
action leaves its effect, good or bad, on the personality. The effect at
a time may be so slight as to be hardly perceptible, but if the man
continues to act in the wrong way, the cumulative effect may
transform his personality. The infection of bad actions may be
negligible at the beginning but it works insidiously, and gradually
undermines the self. The man who is morally sensitive can perceive
this effect coming about and check himself in time and retrace his
steps before an irretrievable damage is done.
III. Its WorkingAll our actions are not subject to the Law of Requital.
Involuntary acts and those performed heedlessly or with little ego-
involvement may be regarded as morally neutral. But deliberate acts,
through which we express our real self and which we can
acknowledge as our own, are inevitably rewarded if right, and
punished if wrong. The moral order in the universe is based on this
Law. We can claim only what is due to us. Only right actions entitle
us to reward. The Qur'an confirms this view:
And unto Allah belongs whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever
is in the earth, that He may (according to His Law of Requital) reward
those who do A'maal-us-Sayyiah with what they have done, and reward
those who do A'maal-ul-Hasanah (good deeds) with goodness (53:31).
God has granted man a measure of freedom but He keeps watch
over man to see how he uses the freedom:
And He it is Who created the heavens and the earth .... that He might
afford you opportunity to show which of you is best in conduct (11:7).
The Qur'an declares that God "sees" not only the overt actions
of man but also his inner motives and hidden intentions, and His
judgment of man is on this broad basis;
Alike to Him is he among you who hides his word, and he who speaks it
aloud, and he who hides by night and he who goes forth openly in the
day. He has pursuers from before him and from behind him, who
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