Malfuzat - Volume IV — Page 133
133 Malfuzat – Volume IV other things that are spiritual in nature, will be seen in a physical form. When God makes it possible in this very world for His holy servants to witness the phenomenon of spiritual things taking on an apparent form by way of creation and birth, does He not have the power to exhibit similar manifestations in the hereafter also? In fact, these apparent forms bear a very close relationship with the next world, because whereas this apparent form of birth is manifested to the holy in this world—a place of manifestations that is not wholly detached from the temporal realm—then why would these forms not be seen in the hereafter, which is an abode that is completely and wholly detached from this worldly realm? One ought to bear in mind clearly that all of those wonders are manifested to a godly person in this very world, which a person who is distanced from God reads in verses of the Holy Quran as stories relating to the hereafter. Therefore, as for the person whose sights do not reach the deeper essence, they consider these descriptions to be strange. In fact, sometimes their hearts begin to harbour objec - tions and it seems illogical and far from the truth to them that God Almighty would sit on His throne on the Day of Judgement, that the angels would stand in rows, that deeds would be weighed on scales, that people would walk over the bridge leading to paradise, that after reward and punishment is handed out, death would be slaughtered like a goat, that deeds would be presented before the people as beautiful or unsightly human beings, and that there would be rivers of milk and honey in paradise, and so on and so forth. ” 1 3 December 1901 The Combining of Prayers as a Sign of the Mahdi The following is an address of 3 December 1901 delivered in Mubarak Mosque after the Maghrib Prayer by His Holiness, the Sign of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, on the combining of Prayers. The Promised Messiah as said: “Let it be known to all of the gentlemen here that for some time now, God knows, perhaps for six months, maybe more or less, the Zuhr and Asr prayers are being combined. I realise that as the Prayers are being combined continuously for quite some time now, a newcomer or someone who has recently become a follower (and is not aware of my aims and objectives) may perhaps entertain the thought that we probably combine the prayers due to 1 Al-Hakam , vol. 7, no. 22, dated 17 June 1903, p. 1 p. 404