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Foreword
Some readers may think that the subject of this book is not one that interests them very much. They may tell themselves both that a book about a little insect has nothing in it for them, and that the busy pace of their lives leaves them no time for such a book. Then again, these same people may feel that a book on economic or political research, or perhaps a novel, would be more attractive and "useful." Or they may think that books on other subjects will be of greater interest to them. Whereas the fact is that this book the reader is holding will be a great deal more "useful" than many he has hitherto read, and has much more to offer him. Because this book is not a biology text written to give detailed information about this tiny animal called the spider. The book may have the spider as its subject, but its true importance lies in the truth about life it reveals and the message it has to give.
Like a key… A key is a tool which looks pretty unimportant in itself. If you give one to a person who has never seen one before, and who is therefore unaware of the relationship between key and lock, he will consider the thing in his hand meaningless and a useless piece of metal. Whereas sometimes a key, depending upon what lies behind the door that it opens, can be one of the most valuable things in the world. This book has been written, not with the aim of taking the spider as a subject on its own, but to use it as a "key." As for the reality behind the door which this key opens, it is the greatest truth anyone can ever discover throughout the course of his life. Because it demonstrates how baseless is the theory of evolution, propounded by people who want to deny the truth, is andprovides answers to questions, answers that mankind has been searching for since the dawn of time. The answers to such fundamental questions as "Who am I?" "How were the universe and I created?" and "What is the point and meaning of life?" are the reality behind this door. The answer is this: human beings and the universe they inhabit were created, down to the tiniest detail, by one Creator, and exist to show that He exists and to praise Him. That Creator, who has no imperfections or weaknesses, but who is infinitely powerful, is God. As God has revealed in the Qur'an, the sole reason for the existence of any human being is to understand the act of his and the universe's creation and to serve God, who is Lord of all. It takes some effort to acquire this understanding. Part of this consists of observing everything that exists, considering it, and being able to decipher the message within. Because everything which exists, and especially every living thing in nature, is a sign of God's existence and bears witness to His being. God draws our attention to these verses in the Qur'an, which He revealed to show the true way to the human beings He had created: In the creation of the heavens and earth, and the alternation of the night and day, and the ships which sail the seas to people's benefit, and the water which God sends down from the sky – by which He brings the earth to life when it was dead and scatters about in it creatures of every kind – and the varying direction of the winds, and the clouds subservient between heaven and earth, there are Signs for people who use their intellect. (Surat al-Baqara: 164)
On examination, what the Qur'an reveals in the above verse may seem perfectly normal events in many peoples' eyes. The alternation of night and day, ships floating instead of sinking, the rain's giving life to the soil, the movement of winds and clouds… Modern man thinks that all of these can be explained by science and with a mechanical logic, for which reason he thinks that they carry with them no element of surprise. However, science only considers naked material truths, but is never able to provide an answer to the question "Why?" It is from the condition of widespread ignorance created by the religionless social order dominating the world that people are prevented from considering these verses and understanding the different meanings which lie behind them. Essentially, and in fact, the Qur'an says that the nature of those verses can be perceived only by "people who reflect." For a "people who reflect", basically every part of nature is a sign, or in other words a key to the door to truth. Since nature can be split up into a nearly infinite number of parts, the number of doors and keys is also nearly infinite. But sometimes it is enough to open just one door to lead a person to the truth. Just one part extracted from nature, for example, a single plant or a single animal, can bring a truth-seeker closer to an understanding of the entire universe. For this reason, God states in the Qur'an that "God is not ashamed to make an example of a gnat or of an even smaller thing", because "as for those who believe, they know it is the truth from their Lord." (Surat al-Baqara: 26) Such tiny creatures as the mosquito, and the spider, are mentioned in God's verses. In the same way as the gnat is considered unimportant by people, so is the spider: but "people who reflect" can see the miracle these verses convey. These tiny animals can each be seen as a key, and can open the door to seeing the perfection of God's creation. This book, which describes the surprising and incredible characteristics of the spider, known by so few people, and which will in describing them also ask "how?" and "why?" has been written with that end in mind. And for that reason alone this book is more significant than many books you may have read up until now. Because to become one of the "people who reflect" is more essential to man than anything else. And He has made everything in the heavens and everything on the earth subservient to you. It is all from Him. There are certainly Signs in that for people who reflect.(Surat al-Jathiyya: 13)
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