A Present to Kings — Page 31
( 31 ). THE PRACTICAL LIFE OF THE MUSLIMS THE GREATEST. ENEMY OF ISLAM. . What a pity! Once the fact of being a Muslim was a sufficient guarantee for one's being immune from vice, and whoever associated himself with Islam was credited with immunity from all manner of turbulence and wickedness (save as God might know and cases rare to a negation). But to-day the fact of being a Muslim has come to mean that a man is an idler and an extreme spendthrift who eschews no kind of sin. . There are even instances of men whose condition has become so far degraded that they unreservedly declare that they are. Muslims and therefore necessarily live in constant indebtedness spending away whatever comes in their way-as if to signify that it is the teaching of Islam that men should be spendthrifts and live in chronic indebtedness. Many a rich man I have seen who prefers Hindu employees to Muslim ones on the ground that they are more honest, industrious and diligent in their duties. This is certainly a most shameful fact for the Muslims, واحد. Islam has many enemies, and in my opinion all the other religions are enemies of Islam. Islam posseses the truth and the other systems are well aware of the fact that if there is any religion which can attract the hearts of men by its intrinsic beauty, it is Islam. Accordingly, they are not mutually afraid of one another, but all are equally afraid of Islam, and therefore make a common cause against it. . It is to this that the Holy Prophet referred, when he said. La meaning that in opposing Islam all the other religions combine into one, though as a matter of fact among themselves they have a good deal of difference. And this is what is to be expected of them. We see among the grazing animals that how much so ever they may fight amongst themselves, but as soon as a beast of prey makes its appearance, they all combine to fight it, because they know that the chance of safety against the enemy is but small. Similarly, because. Islam is, by virtue of its simplicity and beauty, so attractive that whoever with a mind free from prejudice goes to make a