Allah The Exalted — Page 36
3 virtue of Ra h m a niyyat that He grants respite to the disbe- lievers and pagans and does not seize them quickly. At another place Ra h m a niyyat is referred to as: 41 (Part Number: 29) Do they not observe the birds flying above them with their wings spread out and closed down. It is the Gra- cious One Who keeps them from falling down. This means that the grace of Ra h m a niyyat so encom- passes all animates that even birds which seem to have little value, fly joyously in the current of this grace. As this grace follows naturally after Rub u biyyat , it has been mentioned in that order in S u rah F a ti h ah. The third type of grace is special grace. The difference between this and general grace is that in the case of the general grace, a beneficiary is not under obligation to make himself good, or to bring his ego out of the cover- ings of darkness, or to put forward any effort to take advantage of it. By virtue of general grace, God Al- mighty bestows upon every animate all that it needs according to its nature without asking and without any effort on its part. But in the case of special grace, striving and effort, purification of the heart and supplication, at- tention towards God and all kinds of appropriate efforts are needed. He alone receives this grace who seeks it and this grace descends upon one who works for it. The exis- tence of this grace is also proved by observation of the law of nature. It is obvious that those who strive in the cause of God and those who are indifferent cannot be equal. Without doubt, a special mercy descends upon 41 al-Mulk, 67:20 [Publisher]