Malfuzat – Volume II — Page 189
189 perfect quality, and Who is the Lord and King of mankind, the One Who is truly worthy of worship and sought by all. This chapter is such that although it retains the true essence of God’s Oneness, along with this, it also indicates that one must not fail to fulfil the rights of other human beings either, who are a reflection, as it were, of these titles. Two Manifestations of Divine Providence— Parents and a Spiritual Guide The Arabic word for ‘Lord,’ which is rabb, indicates that although it is God in reality who cares, nurtures and brings a thing to completion, in the partial sense, by way of reflection, there are two other beings as well who are manifestations of God’s providence (rububiyyat) —one physically and the other spiritually. In the physical sense there are parents, and in the spiritual sense, a spiritual mentor and guide. In another instance, Allah the Exalted states in greater detail the follow- ing: 1 اِلَّاۤ اِيَّاهُ وَبِالْوَالِدَيْنِ اِحْسَانًا تَعْبُدُوْۤا رَبُّكَ اَلَّا وَ قَضٰى Thy Lord has commanded, “Worship none but Him, and show kindness to parents. ” Meaning, God desires that you worship no one else and treat your parents with kindness. Truly, what a remarkable sort of providence it is that when a human be- ing is a child and has no power whatsoever, a mother renders invaluable service, and during this time, just observe how a father supports the efforts of the mother. It is merely out of His grace that God Almighty has created two agents to sup- port His weak creation and has made them to reflect the light of His own love. However, it ought to be remembered that the love of parents is partial, while the love of God is true in essence. Until hearts are inspired by Allah the Exalted, no human being, not even a friend, neither equal nor a ruler, can love anyone; and it is a mystery of God’s boundless providence that a mother and father love their children to such an extent that they will happily bear all sorts of pain to care for them. So much so that parents will not even hesitate in laying down their own lives to save their children. Hence, in order to perfect the higher morals of man, in the words rabb-in-nas (the Lord of Mankind), God Almighty has alluded to parents and spiritual guides, so that thankfulness for the system that is apparently 1 Bani Isra’il , 17:24