Arba'in — Page 180
180 to be in the clutches of death at every moment. Sufferers of these illnesses melt away as if seized by tuberculosis and quickly perish. Or, their end is like those who suffer from carbuncle or cancer. Now tell me, under such dangerous circumstances, is the vigour with which I am engaged in preaching, the work of a fabricator of lies against God? When I see one illness in the upper part of my body, and another illness in the lower part, then my heart perceives that these are the same two sheets that were foretold by His Holiness the Messenger of Allah, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. Purely by way of advice, and for the sake of Allah, I say to the ulema who oppose me, and those who think like them, that abuse and vilification is not the way of decency. If this is indeed your natural inclination, then it is your choice but if you people consider me false [in my claim], then you also have the option to assemble in your mosques collectively or individually to pray against me before God—weeping and wailing—wishing for my destruction. Then, if I were to be false [in my claim], your prayers would certainly be accepted. And all of you do indeed pray con- stantly, but remember that if you pray to such an extent that your tongues become sore, and fall [upon your noses] in prostrations weeping and wailing to such a degree that your noses are worn out, and the area around your eyes begins to rot from tears and your eyelashes fall off, your vision becomes impaired due to excessive weeping and wailing, and, in the end, your brain is so affected that you begin to suffer from epilepsy or melancholia— even then those prayers will not be accepted because I have come from God.