Overview
Understanding Purpose of Life: Given, Made, or Discovered?
summary
Meaning Is Not Only One Question
argument
Meaning in a Secular Worldview
scripture
Created to Worship
Key passage
Quran
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ ٱلْجِنَّ وَٱلْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ
سورة الذاريات · الآية ٥٦
And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me.
Quran 51:56
Translation: Saheeh International
argument
Stewardship, Freedom, and Test
Key passages
Quran
وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةِ إِنِّى جَاعِلٌۭ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةًۭ ۖ قَالُوٓا۟ أَتَجْعَلُ فِيهَا مَن يُفْسِدُ فِيهَا وَيَسْفِكُ ٱلدِّمَآءَ وَنَحْنُ نُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِكَ وَنُقَدِّسُ لَكَ ۖ قَالَ إِنِّىٓ أَعْلَمُ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
سورة البقرة · الآية ٣٠
And [mention, O Muhammad], when your Lord said to the angels, "Indeed, I will make upon the earth a successive authority." They said, "Will You place upon it one who causes corruption therein and sheds blood, while we declare Your praise and sanctify You?" Allah said, "Indeed, I know that which you do not know."
Quran 2:30
Translation: Saheeh International
Quran
ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ ٱلْمَوْتَ وَٱلْحَيَوٰةَ لِيَبْلُوَكُمْ أَيُّكُمْ أَحْسَنُ عَمَلًۭا ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْغَفُورُ
سورة الملك · الآية ٢
[He] who created death and life to test you [as to] which of you is best in deed - and He is the Exalted in Might, the Forgiving -
Quran 67:2
Translation: Saheeh International
argument
Death and the Scale of a Life
Key passage
Quran
أَفَحَسِبْتُمْ أَنَّمَا خَلَقْنَٰكُمْ عَبَثًۭا وَأَنَّكُمْ إِلَيْنَا لَا تُرْجَعُونَ
سورة المؤمنون · الآية ١١٥
Then did you think that We created you uselessly and that to Us you would not be returned?"
Quran 23:115
Translation: Saheeh International
interpretation
Purpose Is Not a Slogan About Pain
notes
Living the Question
summary
Key Takeaways: Purpose of Life: Given, Made, or Discovered?
Sources
Sources and further reading
Primary texts and works cited in this article.
The Quran — Tanzil Uthmani text with Saheeh International translation
quran
Source linkUthmani-script Arabic text from Tanzil with the Saheeh International English translation.
The Holy Bible, World English Bible (public domain)
bible
Source linkPublic-domain English translation from the World English Bible.
Man's Search for Meaning
book | Viktor E. Frankl | Beacon Press | 2006
Source linkA classic psychiatric and existential reflection on meaning amid severe suffering; the work should not be treated as a specifically Islamic argument.
The Vision of Islam
book | Sachiko Murata and William C. Chittick | I.B. Tauris | 1994
A substantial introduction organized around Islamic practice, faith, and spiritual excellence, published by I.B. Tauris, an imprint of Bloomsbury.
The Quran and the Secular Mind: A Philosophy of Islam
book | Shabbir Akhtar | Routledge | 2008
Source linkA philosophical engagement with Quranic claims and modern secular objections.