Seven Steps to Moral Intelligence: Based on Imam Ghazali's Teachings

by Musharraf Hussain

Spirituality is defined as the awareness of the Lord of the universe, having faith in His Benevolence, trust in His infinite Power, and accepting the responsibility of being His representative on Earth as well as being His trusted servant. One Islamic term used to describe spirituality is taqwa, which means God-consciousness, piety, fear of God, and awareness of and attentiveness towards God. Another term for spirituality is ikhlas, which means having sincerity and genuineness towards God in one’s intention and actions, and loving God as He is the One who truly deserves our love. The Islamic forms of worship like the five daily prayers (salat), remembrance (dhikr) and glorification (tasbih) of God, singing devotional poetry (qasa’id or anashid), invoking His beautiful Names (al-asma’ al-husna) and fasting (siyam) are all effective spiritual exercises. The result of all these is drawing closer to God, feeling happy in His presence, recognising the Lord and living in His presence.