Malfuzat - Volume IX — Page 215
28 March 1907 215 people still are not realising that physical precautions are all useless. One should bow down before Allah the Exalted; on the contrary, people are still suggesting the eradication of mosqui- toes and the killing of fleas, but until they turn to annihilating their selves, they will never escape it. Fruit of Hard Work It was mentioned that even those who are not truly worshippers of God Almighty—albeit engaging in protracted acts of worship either pretentiously or by adopting a false path—seem to attain some degree of acceptance and benefits. The Promised Messiah as said: Since they bear severe hardship, they are given something by way of recompense. It is related that a Zoroastrian continued to sit before a fire, worshipping it for forty years. When he rose after forty years, people would use the dust on his feet in their ailing eyes and their eyes would be cured of the ailment. On observing this, a Sufi became perturbed, and wondered how a person following falsehood came to acquire this miracle and he became doubtful of his own condition. At this, a voice from heaven reached him that said: ‘Why are you perturbed? Reflect that if God Almighty did not waste the hard work of a false and misguided person, then what would be the status of a truth- ful one who would go towards Him? And how great a reward would he receive?’ Do you not see in this age that Christian priests, despite being false, have assembled 400 million follow- ing them on account of their hard work?