Claims and Teachings - Ahmad The Promised Messiah and Mahdi — Page 303
303 is always anxious of adding to what he has done. By the are meant not only supererogatory prayers, but every voluntary addition or accession to obligatory good deeds. There is a desire in the heart of the true believer to do more and more good deeds, and advancing thus in goodness, he comes nearer and nearer to God, while God also comes nearer and nearer to him, until having completely annihilated his own self, he finds himself under the shadow of God and is illuminated by Divine lights. His eye then becomes the eye of God and his ear the ear of God, for he does not go against the will of God in what he does. ". . "I. have often exhorted my followers to establish such a con- nection, for unless all worldly conections are severed and the heart is dead to the love of the world, the nature of the man must remain divoid of zeal for the love of God. It has been said that the companions of the Holy Prophet used to be so en- grossed in their prayers that when they were ended, they could hardly recognise one another. In fact, every true believer should be so engrossed in his prayer. According to the Muslim law when a man meets his companions after seperation, he must say fil-t |* W ) "Peace be on you. " In this lies the secret of ending prayer with *JJj &** ; 3 fty* f ^ J J. "Peace be on you and the mercy of God. " When a man stands up for prayers and begins his devotions by saying Allah-o-Akbar (God is great), he stands in the Divine presence and is, as it were, removed into another world being absorbed in the contemplation of Divine Glory and Majesty. When the prayers are ended, he comes back into this world and hence at the end he says ^^ ^ fyk JLJ ) *U'J " Peace be on you and the mercy of God. " Having met his friends after separation. But if only dull ceremonies are gone through without realizing their deep significance, no good