AT the heart of Islamic spirituality lies a profound question: What does it mean to exist? The Qur’an, Hadith, the teachings of the Ahl al-Bayt, philosophy and mysticism approach this differently, yet converge on one truth: existence comes from God, depends upon God and ultimately returns to God. The Qur’an declares, “Indeed, we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we return” (2:156). This is more than a statement about death. It describes existence itself. We come into being through Divine command, live within a reality sustained by God and journey towards the source of our being. Existence and divine reality: We understand the world through identities: a human being, a tree, a mountain or a star. Philosophy asks us to look deeper. Before anything can be something, it must exist. Yet created things do not possess existence independently. Human beings are born and die. Stars appear and disappear. Civilisations rise and fall. Everything carries the signs of dependence and change. God alone is independent. This gives metaphysics a spiritual meaning. The deeper we contemplate creation, the more we recognise that nothing is self-sufficient. Everything points beyond itself towards its source. Creation therefore becomes a universe of signs, or ayat. Nature becomes a language of signs through which the awakened mind........

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