11. Hud

When the Ark was ready, stormy winds started blowing at God’s behest. Torrents of water started gushing out of the ground and there was continuous rainfall. So much so that there was water everywhere and all the people were drowned. The only survivors were a few human beings and some animals who had boarded Noah’s Ark. Even Noah’s son was drowned. In the eyes of God a man’s worth is judged according to his deeds and not according to relationship, even if the relationship is with a prophet. When all those destined to perish had drowned, God commanded the storm to stop and it stopped; the water drained into seas and rivers and the earth again became habitable.

On the occasion of Noah’s flood, a strange happening was to be seen: those who had taken refuge by climbing tall peaks were drowned, while those who boarded the Ark were safe, in spite of the fact that the boat had been tossed about on a terrible stormy sea. The reason for this was neither in the peaks themselves nor in the Ark itself. The reason was that this was a matter of God’s will. Had God’s command focussed on the peaks, they would have saved those who had taken refuge on them, while those who had boarded the Ark would have lost their lives. But on this occasion, God’s command focussed on the Ark. So, those who were on it were safe and those who sought refuge in other things were drowned. The system of ‘cause and effect’ in this world is only a veil; otherwise, whatever is happening happens by the direct orders of God. It is the test of a human being that he should be able to tear asunder the outward veil and see the reality; he should discover the divine powers working behind the screen of cause and effect.

On the occasion of Noah’s flood, a strange happening was to be seen: those who had taken refuge by climbing tall peaks were drowned, while those who boarded the Ark were safe, in spite of the fact that the boat had been tossed about on a terrible stormy sea. The reason for this was neither in the peaks themselves nor in the Ark itself. The reason was that this was a matter of God’s will. Had God’s command focussed on the peaks, they would have saved those who had taken refuge on them, while those who had boarded the Ark would have lost their lives. But on this occasion, God’s command focussed on the Ark. So, those who were on it were safe and those who sought refuge in other things were drowned. The system of ‘cause and effect’ in this world is only a veil; otherwise, whatever is happening happens by the direct orders of God. It is the test of a human being that he should be able to tear asunder the outward veil and see the reality; he should discover the divine powers working behind the screen of cause and effect.

On the occasion of Noah’s flood, a strange happening was to be seen: those who had taken refuge by climbing tall peaks were drowned, while those who boarded the Ark were safe, in spite of the fact that the boat had been tossed about on a terrible stormy sea. The reason for this was neither in the peaks themselves nor in the Ark itself. The reason was that this was a matter of God’s will. Had God’s command focussed on the peaks, they would have saved those who had taken refuge on them, while those who had boarded the Ark would have lost their lives. But on this occasion, God’s command focussed on the Ark. So, those who were on it were safe and those who sought refuge in other things were drowned. The system of ‘cause and effect’ in this world is only a veil; otherwise, whatever is happening happens by the direct orders of God. It is the test of a human being that he should be able to tear asunder the outward veil and see the reality; he should discover the divine powers working behind the screen of cause and effect.

Among those who were drowned in the great flood of Noah, was Kan‘an, Noah’s son. Noah wanted him to board his Ark, but he refused to do so out of sheer stubbornness. Then Noah prayed to God for his protection and the answer was that such questions should be avoided as showing a lack of understanding, on the part of Noah, of God’s plan. The fact is that God does not treat as redeemed the children of holy men or those who attach themselves to certain ‘holy men’, nor does He settle them in the Gardens of Paradise. God’s decisions regarding redemption are based purely on deeds and not on relationships, descent or group attachments. In this world, family relationships are of great importance. This will not be so in the Hereafter, there moral relationships outweigh all else. Noah’s flood had occurred in order that all divisions of human beings other than moral ones be abolished, and all doers of righteous deeds be saved by accommodating them in the Divine Ark, while the unrighteous were consigned to the merciless waves. There will be a repetition of such an event on Doomsday, only on a larger scale and to the uttermost degree.

Among those who were drowned in the great flood of Noah, was Kan‘an, Noah’s son. Noah wanted him to board his Ark, but he refused to do so out of sheer stubbornness. Then Noah prayed to God for his protection and the answer was that such questions should be avoided as showing a lack of understanding, on the part of Noah, of God’s plan. The fact is that God does not treat as redeemed the children of holy men or those who attach themselves to certain ‘holy men’, nor does He settle them in the Gardens of Paradise. God’s decisions regarding redemption are based purely on deeds and not on relationships, descent or group attachments. In this world, family relationships are of great importance. This will not be so in the Hereafter, there moral relationships outweigh all else. Noah’s flood had occurred in order that all divisions of human beings other than moral ones be abolished, and all doers of righteous deeds be saved by accommodating them in the Divine Ark, while the unrighteous were consigned to the merciless waves. There will be a repetition of such an event on Doomsday, only on a larger scale and to the uttermost degree.

Among those who were drowned in the great flood of Noah, was Kan‘an, Noah’s son. Noah wanted him to board his Ark, but he refused to do so out of sheer stubbornness. Then Noah prayed to God for his protection and the answer was that such questions should be avoided as showing a lack of understanding, on the part of Noah, of God’s plan. The fact is that God does not treat as redeemed the children of holy men or those who attach themselves to certain ‘holy men’, nor does He settle them in the Gardens of Paradise. God’s decisions regarding redemption are based purely on deeds and not on relationships, descent or group attachments. In this world, family relationships are of great importance. This will not be so in the Hereafter, there moral relationships outweigh all else. Noah’s flood had occurred in order that all divisions of human beings other than moral ones be abolished, and all doers of righteous deeds be saved by accommodating them in the Divine Ark, while the unrighteous were consigned to the merciless waves. There will be a repetition of such an event on Doomsday, only on a larger scale and to the uttermost degree.

When all the evil people were drowned, the flood abated. The water was gradually absorbed in the ground or drained away into the seas. Noah’s Ark ran aground on Mount Judi. Noah and his companions then disembarked. At God’s command the earth again became lush green and well-populated. The people among whom Noah appeared were those who believed in Adam’s prophethood. After Noah his people stayed on the right path, but only in the beginning. When later generations began to stray, prophets were again sent to them. These later prophets appeared in the communities who had accepted the prophethood of Noah. In spite of this, since they did not accept any prophet of their own times, and did not reform themselves, they were destroyed. This means that for the purpose of salvation, it is not enough to accept a prophet or to associate oneself with a prophet. Rather such Faith is required as is an active and live Faith, and has the power to turn a man’s life into one of righteous action. The history of Noah teaches the lesson that lovers of falsehood may appear to be all-powerful and they may be very long-lived, but they are nevertheless destined to face destruction. On the contrary, men of Faith may be very few in number and may appear to be quite powerless, but by God’s will, these are the very people who will ultimately share His graces in the present world, in the beginning and, finally, in the Hereafter.

The Prophet Hud, successor of Noah, was chosen to guide the ‘Ad community, of which he himself was a member. This has always been God’s way in the matter of prophets. The wisdom of this is that, being of their own brethen, these prophets are thoroughly conversant with the psychology, conditions and language of the community, and can, therefore, very effectively discharge their function as missionaries of Truth. Hud gave to his community the message that they should worship the one and only God. Furthermore, he pointed out that their ‘religion’ was simply a lie of their own fabrication. This shows that a prophet’s way of preaching was not simply to present his message in a ‘positive manner,’ but also at the same time to resort to open criticism because, unless untruth is exposed as such by means of criticism and analysis, the Truth being Truth cannot be properly understood. In the case of the prophets in all ages, if they were to be accepted by their opponents, it was necessary for them to be highly placed officials with great wealth at their disposal and for them to reside in dwellings of great grandeur. But this standard of judging a preacher of Truth is not correct. The right standard by which to test the veracity of the preacher is to see whether he is serious and sincere in his mission; whether his message is rational in every detail; whether he is above every worldly interest; whether whatever he says is fully based on reality; and whether his message is perfectly consistent with the universal system; so that accepting it amounts to stepping on to the highway to success. ‘He will add strength to your strength.’ This statement does not mean an increase in material power, because in those days the ‘Ad community was already very powerful. The Quran states that when the Prophet warned them about God’s punishment, they said, ‘Who is stronger than us?’ ( 41:15 ). So, from the point of view of the call to truth, the promise of an increase in material power could not have been very attractive to them. In this verse, an increase in power means the addition of the power of Faith to material power. The Prophet meant to say that if they adopted the life of Faith, they would attain moral and spiritual power; with their present material strength, if they attained moral and spiritual power, their total power would not decrease but rather increase many times over.