Second Word

(In the name of Allah the Merciful the Compassionate) بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

([those] who believe in the unseen)ٱلَّذِينَ يُؤۡمِنُونَ بِٱلۡغَيۡبِ

If you wish to understand what a great happiness and blessing and what a great joy and comfort exist in faith, observe [and] listen to this short allegory:

One time two men go on a journey for both pleasure and business. One of them, self-centered, sets off and goes to an ill-fated direction; the other, God-knowing, to another pleasant direction.

Since the self-centered man is also selfish, self-worrying, and pessimistic, he falls into a much unpleasant country in his view as a punishment for pessimism. He sees that everywhere the weak helpless ones are crying out from the hands and destructions of horrendous domineering men. Everywhere he travels, he sees such an upsetting painful state. The whole country has taken the form of a general mourning place. He cannot find a solution besides drunkenness in order to avoid feeling this painful and dark condition, because everybody seems an enemy and a foreigner to him. And also in the surroundings he sees tragic corpses and despairing crying orphans. His conscious is left in pain.

The other was God-knowing, worshiper of God and thinker of truth with good manners, so that he fell into a much pleasant country in his perspective. Now this decent man sees a general cheerfulness in the country he enters. Everywhere [are] places of dhikr in a happiness, a merriment, an overwhelmingness and joy. Everybody seems a friend and relative to him. In the whole country, he sees a celebration of a general discharge [from work] with hurrays and thanks. Also, he hears a drum [and] a musical sound for enrollment into the army with cheerfulness and exclamations of “Allah is the Greatest” (Allahu Akbar) and “There is not God but Allah” (La Ilaha Illa Allah). In the place of suffering for both his and the general public’s pain as the former unfortunate one, this pleasant one is cheerful and comforted by the cheerfulness of both himself and that of the general public. Also, he obtains a successful business. He thanks Allah.

He then turns, comes across the other man, understands his situation, [and] says to him “Look you have become mad. The ugliness within you must have reflected on your outer world so that you have thought of laughing to be crying, discharge [from work] to be pillage and looting. Come to your senses. Cleanse your heart. So that this troublesome curtain will be lifted from your view, [and] you may see the truth. Because the country of such an utmostly just, merciful, caring, powerful, orgainized, and compasionate ruler, and a country that visibly shows signs of development and perfection to such a degree cannot be in the form that your thought has shown [to you].” Then that unhappy one comes to his senses, repents, [and] says “Yes, I had become mad from drunkenness. May Allah be pleased with you as you saved me from a hellish state.”

O my soul (nafs)! Know that the former man is a disbeliever (kafir) or a heedless (ghafil) sinful individual. This world in his view is a general mourning place. All living beings are orphans crying from the slap of separation and dissapearance. The human and animal, on the other hand, are lonely lawless beings dismembered by the claw of death. Large beings like mountains and seas are equaivalent to soulless hefty corpses. More of such very painful, depressing, horrifying thoughts emerging from disbelief and wrongfulness (dalalah) spiritually torture him.

The other man, in contrast, is a believer. He knows [and] affirms The Almighty Truth (Janab al-Haqq). In his view, this world is a place of dhikr for The Merciful (Rahman), a place of education for the mankind and the animals, and a field of examination for the human and the jinn. As for all animal and human deaths, [they] are a discharge [from work]. Those who complete duties of life go, from this transient place, to another spiritually pleasing [and] noiseless world. So that space may be opened for new officials [and] they may come and work. As for all the animal and human births, [they] are an enrollment into the army, coming under arms and on duty. Each of all the living beings is an on duty cheerful soldier, an upright satisfied official. As for all the sounds, [they] are either a dhikr and a praise of God in the beginning of a duty and thanks and relaxation coming from break time, or a chanting emerging from the joy of work. All beings, in the viewpoint of that believer, are each a delightful servant, a friend employee, a lovable book of their Generous Master and Compassionate Owner. So many more of such pleasant, lofty and savory, sweet truths are manifested [and] made apparent by his faith.

Thus, faith carries the seed of a spiritual Tuba [tree] of heaven. Whereas disbelief hides the seed of a spiritual Zaqqoom [tree] of hell.

Thus, peace and secureness is only in Islam and faith. Since that is so, we must always say,

اَلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ عَلى دِينِ اْلاِسْلَامِ وَ كَمَالِ اْلاِيماَنِ

Praise be to Allah for the religion of Islam and the perfection of faith.