Life Supreme — Page 8
LIFE SUPREME 11 indifferent about it; nor did they only mildly wish for it. They earnestly wished for it and as a result of their enthusiasm to become virtuous they were successful and became the recipients of God's favours and blessings, as the next verse reveals. "So Allah rewarded them for what they said with gardens beneath which streams flow. Therein shall they abide; that is the reward of those who do good. " (5:86). Let us enter this crusade to develop and improve moral virtues within ourselves earnestly and with enthusiasm, then our efforts are sure to bear fruit, blessed and rewarded by God. . PRAYERS. The next point is the subject of prayer. The Promised Messiah has said that that person is proud who places complete faith in one's own powers and does not recognise the omnipotence of God. He declared that his only weapon was prayer and that he relied on the help of God for everything. It is essential that we resort to prayer and seek God's assistance in our efforts to develop moral virtues. Since prayer is itself a virtue as stated in the Holy Quran: "Remembrance of Allah is, indeed, the greatest virtue. " (29:46). God tells us in the Holy Quran another great benefit of prayer: "Surely prayer restrains one from indecency and manifest evil. (29:46) 22. In these permissive times we need every ounce of strength to resist the multifarious temptations which assail us from all directions. God tells us that the answer lies in prayer: so the next step for us is to give more attention to prayer. Not only should we be regular in our daily prayers but we should also pray for protection against the incitements of satan. The Holy Prophet (may peace be on him) has also spoken on the efficacy of prayer in times of temptation. He said: "As to those who are virtuous, when a suggestion from satan assails them, they remember God: and beholdı They begin to see things right. . THINKING ". Now I come to another point which is the management of our thoughts because everything originates from thought. I would like to quote a short passage from the Bible: