Muhammad The Great Exemplar — Page 4
Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad 4 come to manifest the highest excellences. This discussion is of an intellectual kind and cannot be understood in all its details without delving deep into psychology. The limited space I have to conclude this essay is certainly not sufficient to cover it fully. Therefore, with the aid of one or two examples, I will shed some light on this subject before turning to the actual topic at hand. Loyalty is, for instance, a commonly esteemed trait. However, if it is used to keep undesirable company, it can and does lead to harmful consequences. [Let us take the example of] two criminals who conduct a felony. If one of them was unsettled by guilt, but made to sway from his good judgement by an inordinate sense of loyalty which overwhelmed his ability to distinguish between good and evil and silenced his conscience, while also whispering in his ear that regardless of what happens he should remain loyal to his friend, [then this would be an unfortunate consequence]. Again, love for one’s children is commendable and also essential for the continuation of the human race. But if this emotion impedes the development of other excellences by exceeding the appropriate bounds, it becomes a sin and also causes one’s progeny to go astray. To excel in one or several human attributes is not a sign of true excellence. Instead, in certain circumstances, it