10. Yunus

One who does not embrace the Faith is, in the eyes of God, mufsid (a disturber of the peace) because it is only by disturbing his nature that it is possible for anyone to prevent himself from accepting the truth. Such a man curbs the voice of his conscience; he does not put to use his thinking capacity; he ignores clear reasoning by uttering false words; he is not receptive even after listening and does not try to understand even after having had everything explained to him. He gives preference to his prejudices, and his self-interests overwhelm the truth. Those who argue falsely, and at length, go on arguing till the last, saying: ‘You mind your own business and I’ll mind mine.’ To make such a statement seems to them like a way of avoiding defeat. But a missionary performs his work, rising above the psychology of victory or defeat. So, when he observes that the opponent has stooped to adopt an adamant and stubborn attitude and finds that there is no use in arguing further, he disassociates himself by saying that real decision is with God; and that his opponent’s final fate will be in accordance with his position in God’s assessment.

Certain rejectors of Truth are clearly such right from the beginning. But the clever ones among them make a show of attentively listening, as if they really want to understand things, though in their hearts they maintain that they do not have to understand. They look at the signs of the veracity of the Prophet as if they want to observe them with an open heart, though they are already determined not to observe and not to accept. The preacher is thus misled into thinking that they are about to accept the Truth. But, in the eyes of God, they are people who are deaf in spite of having ears and blind in spite of having eyes. Such people do not receive inspiration from God to accept the Truth. God has blessed man with superior capacities. If he utilises these capacities, he will never go astray. But man, finding himself free, misunderstands things. He falls to indulging in utter arrogance. This happens because he fails to understand God’s plan. The things given to him purely for the purpose of putting him to the test are taken by him to be rightfully his.

Certain rejectors of Truth are clearly such right from the beginning. But the clever ones among them make a show of attentively listening, as if they really want to understand things, though in their hearts they maintain that they do not have to understand. They look at the signs of the veracity of the Prophet as if they want to observe them with an open heart, though they are already determined not to observe and not to accept. The preacher is thus misled into thinking that they are about to accept the Truth. But, in the eyes of God, they are people who are deaf in spite of having ears and blind in spite of having eyes. Such people do not receive inspiration from God to accept the Truth. God has blessed man with superior capacities. If he utilises these capacities, he will never go astray. But man, finding himself free, misunderstands things. He falls to indulging in utter arrogance. This happens because he fails to understand God’s plan. The things given to him purely for the purpose of putting him to the test are taken by him to be rightfully his.

Certain rejectors of Truth are clearly such right from the beginning. But the clever ones among them make a show of attentively listening, as if they really want to understand things, though in their hearts they maintain that they do not have to understand. They look at the signs of the veracity of the Prophet as if they want to observe them with an open heart, though they are already determined not to observe and not to accept. The preacher is thus misled into thinking that they are about to accept the Truth. But, in the eyes of God, they are people who are deaf in spite of having ears and blind in spite of having eyes. Such people do not receive inspiration from God to accept the Truth. God has blessed man with superior capacities. If he utilises these capacities, he will never go astray. But man, finding himself free, misunderstands things. He falls to indulging in utter arrogance. This happens because he fails to understand God’s plan. The things given to him purely for the purpose of putting him to the test are taken by him to be rightfully his.

Today, the Hereafter is not before man; today, a man desirous of seeing it has to see it with the eye of his imagination. Therefore, to a man who is not serious about the Hereafter, it will appear to be a far-away thing. But when the Hereafter sweeps over him as the greatest reality, and when he starts seeing it in all its rigour with his own eyes, he will forget his arrogance. At that time, all those worldly matters which had made him neglectful and careless about the Hereafter, will appear to him lowly, frivolous and contemptible. The Hereafter will not occur in any strange world, but in this thoroughly-familiar world of ours. Then, man will find himself in the same atmosphere in which he had earlier rejected the Truth; he will find himself among the same persons on the strength of whose support he indulged in arrogance. But, at that time, none of them will be of any avail. Everything will be fresh in his mind, as if no time had elapsed at all. The relation between a preacher and his hearers is the most delicate of all affairs. If the preacher has come forward in actuality to bring the Truth, he is God’s representative in this world. Accepting him is like accepting God and rejecting him amounts to rejection of God. Such events cannot be without consequences. After the appearance of the preacher of Truth, it necessarily follows that the divine discourse which falls from his lips, will leave his hearers speechless. This is the first victory of Truth over falsehood. The second victory will take place in the Hereafter when his opponents, by God’s grace, will be powerless before Him. The first event necessarily occurs right here in this world. The second event also occurs to a certain extent in this world, if God wishes to reveal it in the present world. This sort of happening is bound to take place with every group when, prior to its being directly presented before God, it is indirectly presented before God’s representative in this world. In this way, God sees who surrenders himself to Him.

Today, the Hereafter is not before man; today, a man desirous of seeing it has to see it with the eye of his imagination. Therefore, to a man who is not serious about the Hereafter, it will appear to be a far-away thing. But when the Hereafter sweeps over him as the greatest reality, and when he starts seeing it in all its rigour with his own eyes, he will forget his arrogance. At that time, all those worldly matters which had made him neglectful and careless about the Hereafter, will appear to him lowly, frivolous and contemptible. The Hereafter will not occur in any strange world, but in this thoroughly-familiar world of ours. Then, man will find himself in the same atmosphere in which he had earlier rejected the Truth; he will find himself among the same persons on the strength of whose support he indulged in arrogance. But, at that time, none of them will be of any avail. Everything will be fresh in his mind, as if no time had elapsed at all. The relation between a preacher and his hearers is the most delicate of all affairs. If the preacher has come forward in actuality to bring the Truth, he is God’s representative in this world. Accepting him is like accepting God and rejecting him amounts to rejection of God. Such events cannot be without consequences. After the appearance of the preacher of Truth, it necessarily follows that the divine discourse which falls from his lips, will leave his hearers speechless. This is the first victory of Truth over falsehood. The second victory will take place in the Hereafter when his opponents, by God’s grace, will be powerless before Him. The first event necessarily occurs right here in this world. The second event also occurs to a certain extent in this world, if God wishes to reveal it in the present world. This sort of happening is bound to take place with every group when, prior to its being directly presented before God, it is indirectly presented before God’s representative in this world. In this way, God sees who surrenders himself to Him.

Man finds himself free in this world. It seems to him that whatever he may do, there is nobody to catch hold of him and nobody to punish him. This state of affairs makes him unheeding, so much so that when the preacher warns him on behalf of God about the outcome of his deeds, he ridicules the missionary and asks, ‘When will the warning of retribution for my arrogance which you have been giving me materialise?’ The reason behind all such talk is nothing but foolishness; because this punishment is executed not on behalf of the preacher but on behalf of God; and at all times God is revealing in this world of His that His way is not that of inordinate haste. If a boat has a hole in it and if a sailor heedlessly sets sail in it, then in accordance with the law of God, it will sink. But such a boat does not sink immediately. It does so only at its appointed time and according to God’s law. Such instances abound in the world and they acquaint man with the methods of God. But, in spite of observing all this, man says, ‘If all such deeds entail God’s punishment, why does not this punishment come soon?’ The reason for asking such pointless questions is that man is not serious about God’s scourge.

Man finds himself free in this world. It seems to him that whatever he may do, there is nobody to catch hold of him and nobody to punish him. This state of affairs makes him unheeding, so much so that when the preacher warns him on behalf of God about the outcome of his deeds, he ridicules the missionary and asks, ‘When will the warning of retribution for my arrogance which you have been giving me materialise?’ The reason behind all such talk is nothing but foolishness; because this punishment is executed not on behalf of the preacher but on behalf of God; and at all times God is revealing in this world of His that His way is not that of inordinate haste. If a boat has a hole in it and if a sailor heedlessly sets sail in it, then in accordance with the law of God, it will sink. But such a boat does not sink immediately. It does so only at its appointed time and according to God’s law. Such instances abound in the world and they acquaint man with the methods of God. But, in spite of observing all this, man says, ‘If all such deeds entail God’s punishment, why does not this punishment come soon?’ The reason for asking such pointless questions is that man is not serious about God’s scourge.

Earthquakes and storms are God-managed events. These events show that whenever an issue arises between God and man, the power of deciding rests entirely with the former. But man does not take this factor into consideration. He sees only that the Law of God is not immediately coming into effect; and this being so, he remains neglectful. But when God’s decision comes into force, man will find himself ready to accept everything, though accepting at that time will be of no avail, because that will be the time when one is faced with the consequences of deeds already performed, with no account taken of the performance of fresh deeds.