Mahzarnama (The Memorandum) — Page 64
64 Mahzarnama centre in Him. Then to the degree to which a person, discarding his self and his will, acquires nearness to the Being-Who-is-All- Good, to that degree Divine qualities are reflected in his soul. Thus all the good qualities and true culture that a person acquires proceed from his nearness to God. That is as it should be, for creatures are nothing in themselves. Thus the reflection of Divine moral qualities is manifested in the hearts of those who follow the Holy Quran perfectly. Authentic experience would show that the pure behaviour, and the spiritual eagerness, and the upsurge of love with which high moral qualities are manifested by them, are not equalled anywhere in the world. Others might claim and have boastful pretensions, but these are the only people who can pass safely through the narrow door of experience. Such good qualities as are manifested by other people are shown artificially by hiding their deficiencies and their diseases. They display a false culture and their reality is exposed on the occasion of every little test. They import artificiality and make-believe in the exercise of moral qualities, in order to maintain an orderly life; if they were to follow on all occasions their inner deficiencies, their way of life would be upset. Though they carry a seed of good qualities according to their natural capacity, it is mostly suppressed under the thorns of the desires of their ego. It is not manifested purely for the sake of God and is mixed up with selfish desires and cannot attain to perfection. This seed develops into perfection purely for the sake of God only in those people who are devoted wholly to God and whose souls are filled by God with His own pure qualities, as they are empty of everything beside God. He makes those high qualities as dear to their hearts as they are dear to Him. Through their devotion they acquire such a high rank of adorning themselves with Divine qualities that they become as it were, an instrument in the hands of God through which He manifests His own qualities. Finding them hungry and thirsty, He gives them to drink of pure water from His special spring in which no creature is His partner. Another great bounty that is bestowed on the perfect followers of