Forty Gems of Beauty — Page 69
69 dominion of the True Master and the True Ruler and bow to such beings as have no personal power over us. It is, however, painful to note that in our contemporary age, highly progressive nations, in spite of their great cultural advancement, are not free from the filth of Shirk. As for instance, the Christian nations who treat Jesus [who possessed no attribute which was not shared by other prophets] as God, and are thus still caught up in the quagmire of Shirk. The gods of the Hindu Pantheon are legion and well known. The second great sin, according to this Hadith, is “‘aq u qul- w a lidain. ” ‘Aq u q in the Arabic language means “cutting off”, and idiomatically it will thus signify disobedience to parents, not paying their due respect, or not treating them with tenderness of heart and neglecting to look after them. Obedience to parents and dutiful service to them are obligations that relate to the rights of the servants of God, and in the order of priorities under this heading, it holds probably the first place of sanctity, so that the Holy Prophet (May peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) says in another Hadith: The pleasure of Allah is in the pleasure of parents, and His displeasure is in their displeasure. ” 16 He (May peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) says in another Hadith: “Whoso found his parents in old age and did not open for himself the way to Paradise through service to them, is the unluckiest person. ” 17 16 Al-Mu‘jam al-Kabīr, Ch: Abdullah bin Amr bin Al-Aas 17 S a h ī h Muslim, Book of Righteousness and maintaining good relations with relatives, Chapter: the disgrace of one whose parents, one or both of them, reach old age…”