We never quite know how things are going to turn out, do we? We never know just what life has in store for us. Rome's great Colosseum, for example, has gone through many changes in its time. How many of the Roman gladiators who went to their deaths within its walls could have imagined it one day as a day trip for coach parties of tourists? How many of the Christians who died there for their beliefs at the hands of pagan emperors could have imagined the Pope of Rome himself leading a religious service every year in their memory? No, we never know how things will turn out. Italy's legacy to the world is incomparable. The Colosseum has stood for nearly two thousand years at the centre of Rome. It speaks to the world of man's achievement in being able to create such a monument, yet it also reminds passers-by of a great empire which is now no more than stones. The Colosseum, which measures 48m high, 189m long and 156m wide, takes its name from a statue of the Emperor Nero that used to stand on the same spot. This despotic Roman ruler had built for himself a vast palace complex covered in gold, known as the Domus Aurea, on land seized from the Roman people, and next to it was a lake and a colossal bronze statue of himself. After the much-hated emperor's death, his successors demolished the palace and filled in the lake. In their place, another colossal structure was built next to the statue – an amphitheatre to amuse the Roman crowds. The name stuck, though, and the Flavian Amphitheatre became known to successive generations simply as the Colosseum. As for the statue, it also had to suffer the twists of fate, eventually being melted down and used for cannon for the papal army and as a canopy over the High Altar in St Peter's Basilica. Nero would no doubt have turned in his grave! In turning Nero's lake over to use as an amphitheatre, the emperor Vespasian won the popularity of the Roman crowd – at least for a while. It was financed with money and treasures taken from Jerusalem, when the Romans brutally crushed a Jewish revolt there in AD 70, and construction started almost immediately. The Colosseum was finished, four storeys later, by the emperor Titus in AD 79. It is said that in the hundred days of festivities to inaugurate the amphitheatre, 11,000 wild animals were killed. Bread and circuses were still the most popular ways of pleasing the citizens of Rome. Made famous to many nowadays by the Hollywood film, Gladiator, the Colosseum was, in fact the largest entertainment complex in the city. There were many other amphitheatres around Rome, but this one was right at the centre, just next to the Roman Forum. The spectacles to be watched there were simply the biggest and the best. Gladiators went to their deaths or fought with fierce lions and tigers. The whole arena could be flooded with water and spectators were entertained with mock naval battles. A vast awning could be drawn over in time of inclement weather. Holding up to 50,000 people at a time, the Colosseum was the city's heart, where bloodthirsty crowds could be distracted from the concerns of life. Bread and circuses! The amphitheatre's fate followed the decline of the Roman Empire itself. Although badly damaged by fire in AD 240, gladiators and animal hunts continued right up until the 6th Century. By the Middle Ages it had fallen into complete disrepair. Different suggestions were made for how the vast ruin could be used. One pope, Sixtus V, suggested turning it into a factory to provide alternative employment for the city's vast number of prostitutes. Other popes plundered it as a quarry until, in 1749, Pope Benedict XIV endorsed a view that the Colosseum was a sacred site, the scene of Christian martyrdom on a great scale. Whilst some Christians did undoubtedly go to their deaths here, no such cult to their memory existed well into the Middle Ages. This, however, did not stop those who wanted to romanticise and sanctify the place. To this day, the Pope of Rome leads a procession and religious service here every Good Friday. Whilst the floor is now completely unstable and the whole Colosseum can now only hold a few hundred spectators in temporary seating, it is still used as a romantic setting for concerts and performances, both by Italian and international artists. British Pop singer, Sir Elton John, used the Colosseum as the floodlit backdrop to his outdoor Rome concert in 2005. Muslims read in the Holy Qur'an: “No soul knows what it will earn tomorrow." 31:34 No matter how much we plan ahead, the fact is that we have no control over our own future. Flavian's great Amphitheatre, built and named in honour of the Emperor, is now known by a different name and Flavian himself is forgotten to history. Many of the tourists getting on and off their tour coaches to take a quick snapshot of this great building know nothing of his name or of the history of this great place. What stories its stones could tell if they were able to speak! There is more to life, though, than bread and circuses. Putting things off for the future is a dangerous game. None of us knows what the future may hold. We don't even know what tomorrow itself may bring. Tomorrow after all, is promised to no one. Let the ruins of the Colosseum of Rome remind us of that, before we are caught unawares. British Muslim writer, Idris Tawfiq, teaches at Al-Azhar University. The author of nine books about Islam, he divides his time between Egypt and the UK as a speaker, writer and broadcaster. You can visit his website at www.idristawfiq.com and join him on Facebook at Idris Tawfiq Page.
