Malfuzat – Volume III — Page 127
127 1 َنَّهُمْ سُبُلَنَا ی ِ لَنَهْد فِيْنَا ْنَ جَاهَدُوْا ی ِ وَالَّذ In other words, as for those who strive and struggle in Our path, We ultimately guide them in Our ways; doors are opened to them. It is true that those who seek, find. Someone has beautifully stated: ط�ب�ی� ب تسہ ورگہن ت �یس� ن � اے وخاہج درد Honourable sir! The pain simply does not exist, for the physician is at hand. The Etiquette of Seeking God It is my view that those who come to visit me and engage in a brief exchange, and then leave hastily without sitting with me, as if mock God. This is not how one finds God, nor has Allah the Exalted established such a law. Hence, the first condition in the search for God is a sincere desire. Secondly, one must remain engaged in this quest with patience. It is a matter of principle that the older a man becomes, the more experience they accumulate. Then, in order to develop divine insight, is it not crucial for one to remain in the company of a holy person for a good amount of time? I have seen many people who in the prime of their youth abandon the world completely, and then they wail and lament. Ultimately, I have found that such people became engrossed in the world of materialism and turned into worms of the earth. You may observe how certain trees are accustomed to false fruiting. For example, a kind of temporary fruit grows on the mulberry tree, which eventually falls off completely. It is after this process that the real fruit grows. Similarly, the search for God is an inclination that grows temporarily at an inner level. If a person does not demonstrate patience and remain firmly per- sistent with a positive mindset, the temporary passion which surges forth from within, not only dissipates with time, but is in fact, forever expunged from the heart completely and turns a person into a worm of the earth. However, if one remains sincere and determined, after this temporary fervour and thirst to seek God, one develops a true and genuine yearning and desire which grows with every passing day. So great does this longing become that even if one is faced with a mountain of hardships and afflictions, one does not care in the least, and one continues to advance on this path. Therefore, an individual, who remains 1 al-Ankabut, 29:70 p. 113