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CHOOSING
THE RIGHT WAY BY
DOING THE PRESCRIBED PRAYERS
In the
Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate
O you
people, worship... (2:21)
If you
wish to understand the bliss and benefit that come with
prayer, and the grave loss and destruction that come from vice
and dissipation, from not carrying out the commands of God,
then listen to this short symbolic story and try to understand
it.
Once
upon a time, two soldiers are ordered to go to a far town.
They walk together till they come to fork. A wise man standing
at that point tells them: ‘The road on the right is
risk-free and nine out of ten travelers on that road meet with
great advantage but no difficulty. On the other hand, the one
on the left offers no benefit and nine out of ten travelers on
it suffer great loss. Both roads are the same in length. But
there is this one difference-the traveler on the left road,
which has no regulation and no one in authority, travels
without equipment or arms. He therefore appears to be very
comfortable and in an easy situation. The case for the other
soldier is just the opposite; the road he is taking is under
military regulation. He must carry a bag full of nutritious
rations four kilos or so in weight and a mighty army weapon of
considerable weight which will defeat any enemy easily.’
After
listening to the wise man’s advice, one of the two soldiers,
the fortunate one, takes the right fork. He lifts the
considerable (but not unbearable) load onto his back; but
his heart and soul are at the same moment freed of very
burdensome debts and fears. The other man, the unfortunate
one, opts out of military service, he refuses to be under
regulation and takes the left fork. His body is free of that
considerable weight but his heart and soul suffer from
innumerable dangers and anxieties. He is constantly fearful
and forever in need. At last, he gets into the town. There, he
is treated as a rebel and fugitive.
The
soldier who accepts military regulation, keeping his bag and
weapon and going on the right road, goes in peace, without
feeling any indebtedness to, and being afraid of, anybody. He
too reaches the town, but is treated there as an honest
soldier who fully performs his duties.
Now, O
my undisciplined, carnal soul, pay attention: One of the
soldiers represents an obedient servant of God while the
other represents the rebellious and those who follow their own
caprices. That road is the life-line coming from the world of
souls, passing through this world and the grave and continuing
towards the Hereafter. The weight (considerable but not
unbearable) and the weapon are the obligation of worship and
piety. Prayers seem to be a strenuous demand, but in fact,
they give such peace and comfort as cannot be explained in
words. The one who prays recites in his prayers ashhadu an
la ilaha ill-Allah, that is, ‘I bear witness that there
is no god but God, Who is the Creator and All-Provider.
Everything whether of harm or benefit is in God’s gift. He
is both the All-Wise, He never does useless things; and He is
the All-Compassionate; His mercy and bounty are abundant.
Having faith, the believing soldier sees in every
eventuality a door to the wealth of God’s Mercy, and knocks
on it with his supplication. He realizes that everything in
the universe is at the disposal of his Rabb, his Lord
and Sustainer. He takes refuge in Him. Putting his trust in
God in full submission, he guards himself against all the
evils of the world. His faith gives him complete confidence.
As with
every good action, the source of courage is faith in, and
loyal devotion to, God; and as with every bad action, the
source of cowardice is misguidance. Even if the earth explodes
like a bomb, it would not frighten a good servant of God with
a truly illuminated heart. He may even observe the event in
admiration as a marvel of the Eternally-Besought’s
Power-whereas a rationalist and famous but non-believing
philosopher might tremble at the sight of a comet in the sky,
fearful lest it should strike the earth. (Such was indeed the
response of some people in America to the recent sighting of
Halley’s comet.)
Man has
endless demands, but his capacity to supply them is ever
slight. He is under the threat of many afflictions while his
individual strength is quite inadequate to withstand them. In
other words, while his strength is limited to wherever he can
reach, his wishes and demands, his suffering and sorrow, are
as wide as his imagination.
Now
anyone not wholly blind to the truth will understand that it
is a great benefit, happiness and bounty for so poor, impotent
and weak a creature as man to submit to God, to worship,
believe and have confidence in Him. As everyone will agree,
the safe road is preferable to the dangerous one, even if
there is a very low probability of safe passage. The way of
belief which we are trying to explain is the safe way and
leads one to endless bliss with near certainty. However, the
way of unbelievers and transgressors, as agreed upon by
innumerable experts and people of insight and observation, and
even admitted by transgressors themselves, is not profitable
with near certainty of endless loss.
In sum,
we may put it in this way: just like the bliss of the other
world, the happiness of this world, also, depends upon
submission to God and being His devoted servant. Then, we
should continually praise God, saying, ‘Praise be to God for
obedience and success in His way’, and thank Him that we are
Muslims.
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