Fountain of Christianity — Page 57
57 how learn about the hidden love someone has for him, why cannot God, Who is All-Knowing, learn about a man’s true love for Him? Love is a wonderful thing. Its fire consumes the fire of sin and extinguishes the flame of disobedience. There can be no question of 'punishment' where there is perfect and true love. One of the signs of true love is that the lover dreads the very thought of being estranged from his beloved. He thinks himself doomed at his smallest fault, and sees the beloved’s displeasure as a deadly poison. He is also beset by a great longing to meet his beloved, and absence and separation takes the very life out of him. That is why he does not only regard as sinful, actions which are regarded as such by the common man— e. g. , murder, adultery, theft and bearing false witness— rather, he considers even the slightest estrangement from God, and the slightest inclination towards anything other than Him, as a grave sin. He, therefore, constantly seeks forgiveness ( Istighf a r) from his Eternal Beloved. Since he can never bring himself to accept separation from Him at any time, the slightest neglect—which he might commit due to his human weakness—appears to him like a moun- tain of sin. It is for this reason that those who enjoy a holy and perfect relationship with God always occupy them- selves with Istighf a r. A true lover is always apprehensive lest his beloved should become annoyed with him, and his heart is filled with the thirst to please Him perfectly, and he is not content even when God Himself informs him that He is pleased with him. Just as a drunkard is not satis- fied with drinking once and is constantly asking for more,