Ahmadiyyat or The True Islam — Page 183
183 the real object of vengeance, viz. , the reform of the offender, is not achieved. Another natural instinct of man is love which is again common to man and other animals. The opposite of love is hate. Both these natural instincts are converted into moral qualities by the use which is made of them. We can neither love everything nor hate everything; it is necessary to place restrictions and limitations on the working of these instincts. We find that we naturally love those objects that are either useful to us or which yield comfort or pleas- ure to any of our senses. But this is not a moral quality, for such feelings of love are to be found among animals also. Love will be a moral quality, first , if it is exercised in proper proportion, that is to say, those who deserve a greater portion of our love than others should receive more of it, secondly , if it is based more on gratitude for benefits, received in the past; than on the hope of re- ceiving benefits in the future, for the former is an obli- gation and the latter mere self-interest, and thirdly , if it has regard not merely to immediate benefits and pleas- ures but also to remote ones. When thus regulated the instinct of love becomes a moral quality, otherwise it is mere natural passion. Islam prescribes these three conditions. The Holy Quran says: