Ahmadiyyat or The True Islam — Page 108
108 personal desires. By revelation I mean Divine revelation alone which is clearly distinguishable from mental delusions or the fancies born of one’s desires. Still, as there is yet left some room for doubt and confusion here, revelation is not as perfect and as sure a means of Divine realization as is required for absolute certainty of faith which should exclude every possibility of doubt or misgiving. Islam emphatically claims that this stage of perfect and absolute certainty can be at- tained through it. It enjoins its followers to repeat in the five daily S al a ts , about forty or fifty times a day, the prayer, 'Lord, guide us along the straight path, travelled by those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy favours. ' At another place the Holy Quran explains that those on whom God has bestowed His favours are the Prophets; the S idd i ques , i. e. , those who are close to the Prophets; the Shah i ds i. e. , those who are not close to prophethood, but nevertheless can, in their persons, demonstrate the operation of Divine attributes, and can on the basis of their personal experience lead people to God; and the Sa lih i n , or the righteous. Unless a man attains to one of the three first-mentioned dignities he cannot attain to perfect certainty of faith. How can we benefit by Divine attributes? For in- stance we are told God is All-Knowing. Can we have a certain proof of His knowledge? Until we can see with our own eyes the workings of this attribute, how can we, with confidence, nay, how can we with honesty, say that He is All-Knowing? We are told He quickens the dead to life, but if we have no evidence of it how can we honestly say that He brings the dead to life? We are told