On Aliveness
By Zubair Ali
There is a quiet but undeniable truth many of us overlook in the movement of our days. We rise to meet our obligations, fulfill responsibilities, and live as we must. Yet often, though we are alive in body, our hearts remain asleep. To exist is one thing; to be truly alive is another.
To be alive is to awaken to the essence of life itself: to perceive, to feel, to choose, and to act with awareness of the One from whom all life flows. Allah calls Himself Al-Ḥayy, the Ever-Living, whose life is eternal, uncaused, and perfect. Imam al-Ghazālī, in al-Maqṣad al-Asnā fī Sharḥ Asmāʾ Allāh al-Ḥusnā, writes that life (ḥayāt) is not the motion of the body but the capacity to perceive (idrāk) and to will (ḥarakah irādiyyah). Life, in its truest sense, is awareness joined with intention.
Awareness
Awareness is the light through which we perceive truth. It is not mere observation but presence—a consciousness that witnesses both the outer world and the inner one. True awareness is not confined to thought; it is the stillness beneath thought, the seeing that recognizes Allah’s signs in all things. It is the eye of the heart (baṣīrah) that allows us to discern meaning, to understand what moves us, and to see beyond illusion.
Without awareness, we live in reaction, moved by circumstance rather than guided by insight. Awareness is what brings life into focus and reveals the sacred within the ordinary.
Intention
Intention is the motion of that awareness—the will to align our choices with what we know to be true. It transforms perception into purpose. In Arabic, niyyah carries both direction and sincerity. It is the conscious act of orienting the heart toward Allah in all that we do.
Intention animates awareness; it is the bridge between knowing and becoming. To live with intention is to take part in creation, to shape one’s life as a reflection of divine will rather than personal impulse.
Together, awareness and intention are the two wings of aliveness. One allows us to see; the other allows us to move. Awareness opens the heart to meaning, and intention gives that meaning form in the world. Without awareness, action becomes blind. Without intention, awareness becomes idle. When they unite, the soul awakens—living not by habit or reaction but as a conscious response to the Giver of Life.
Every living being draws from that divine source. Our consciousness, our choices, our ability to reflect and act are not random human traits; they are traces of divine vitality. We are alive because He is the Ever-Living, and our task is to live in a way that mirrors that sacred life.
The Qur’an reminds us of this deeper dimension of living:
“Is one who was dead and We gave him life and made for him a light by which he walks among the people like one who is in darkness from which he cannot emerge?” (Al-Anʿām 6:122)
The one who was “dead” is not lifeless in body but in spirit—the one whose heart has turned away from remembrance. The “life” bestowed by Allah is the awakening of the heart, and the “light” is awareness and guidance that allow one to walk with clarity and discernment.
Allah further calls:
“O you who believe, respond to Allah and to the Messenger when he calls you to that which gives you life.” (Al-Anfāl 8:24)
This verse reveals that true life is not physical endurance but spiritual responsiveness. To answer the divine call is to awaken, to become conscious, to live in remembrance, and to act with purpose.
The Living Heart
For al-Ghazālī, the life of the heart is the highest form of life. It is the seat of perception, where divine awareness takes root. The Qur’an describes the living heart as one whose breast has been expanded to Islam and filled with light:
“Is one whose breast Allah has expanded to Islam and he is upon a light from his Lord like one whose heart is hardened against the remembrance of Allah?” (Az-Zumar 39:22)
The living heart perceives, understands, and responds. The dead heart resists, hardens, and forgets. The more alive a person is inwardly, the more sensitive they become to truth, beauty, and meaning. Life in this sense is not measured by years but by depth—by the degree to which one perceives reality through the light of awareness.
When the heart awakens, the world itself begins to come alive. Work becomes service. Silence becomes remembrance. Emotion becomes enlightening. Each experience becomes a reminder of the One who breathes life into all things.
Emotional Awareness: The Gateway to Aliveness
This awareness of life does not remain abstract. It moves through us as emotion, thought, and intention. Our emotional world is not separate from our spiritual one; it is part of how the soul experiences and interprets life.
Emotional intelligence, in this light, is not merely a skill of the mind. It is a refinement of the heart. It is the practice of perceiving what arises within us—fear, anger, sadness, joy—with consciousness and sincerity. It is learning to listen to our emotions as reflections of deeper needs and values without being ruled by them.
To live with emotional intelligence is to live with discernment. Every emotion carries information: fear points to what we value, anger to where boundaries are crossed, grief to where love once existed, and joy to where truth is aligned. When held in awareness, emotions become not obstacles but pathways toward understanding ourselves and our relationship with Allah more deeply.
True aliveness is marked by emotional vibrancy—a quality of the heart that gives depth and vitality to one’s inner life. It is the ability to feel fully while remaining centered, to experience emotion without losing balance or awareness. Emotional vibrancy is not indulgence; it is responsiveness.
Many mistake stoicism for strength, believing that detachment protects the self from chaos. But rigidity is not resilience. A heart that suppresses its natural rhythms in the name of control is not strong; it is constrained. This resistance diminishes our aliveness and distances us from our fiṭrah—the pure, God-given inclination of the heart to feel, respond, and turn toward truth.
To be alive is to let the heart move freely within the boundaries of wisdom. When we feel sincerely and respond consciously, emotion itself becomes a form of worship—a movement of the soul toward the One who fashioned it to feel.
Self-Mastery and Purpose
Awareness alone is not enough. Aliveness also calls for self-mastery—the ability to act upon what we know to be true. Self-mastery is not domination over the self but alignment within it. It is harmony between mind, heart, and will.
Integrity is that harmony in action: when what we know, what we feel, and what we choose are not in conflict. To live with integrity is to live transparently before Allah, to prefer sincerity over impression, and to act in private as one does in public.
Authenticity flows from this same soil. It is the courage to be inwardly and outwardly consistent—to express what is real rather than what is expected. Authenticity is not impulsive honesty; it is truthfulness of being.
Purpose arises when awareness and intention mature into responsibility. Every person is created with a unique configuration of gifts, desires, and trials, each pointing toward a specific form of service. Purpose transforms effort into worship and makes ordinary actions luminous with intention.
Allah says:
“Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer—We will surely cause him to live a good life.” (An-Naḥl 16:97)
The “good life” is not wealth or comfort but the serenity of a heart aligned with truth.
Choosing to Live
Aliveness is a choice: to live awake, to feel deeply, to act with sincerity, and to remember the Source in every breath. It is to walk with the light of Al-Ḥayy in our awareness and to live in a way that reflects divine vitality.
The deepest aliveness cannot be forced; it is received. It arrives when the heart softens, when awareness turns into gratitude, and when the self no longer stands between the human and the Divine.
To live is to keep returning to the mystery that breathes through everything—to remember that even in stillness, life continues to speak, and that the Ever-Living is never silent.
Author
Zubair Ali holds a Master’s degree in Transformational Leadership and Coaching and explores emotional intelligence, authenticity, and spirituality as foundations for conscious and purposeful living.
References
The Qur’an: Al-Anʿām 6:122; Al-Anfāl 8:24; Az-Zumar 39:22; An-Naḥl 16:97.
Al-Ghazālī, Abū Ḥāmid. The Ninety-Nine Beautiful Names of God (al- al-Asnā fī Sharḥ Asmāʾ Allāh al-Ḥusnā). Translated by David B. Burrell and Nazih Daher. Louisville, KY: Fons Vitae.
