Haqiqatul-Wahi (The Philosophy of Divine Revelation) — Page 754
754 HAQIQATUL-WAḤI-THE PHILOSOPHY OF DIVINE REVELATION should learn a lesson from the plight of others. Does it surprise you you too might be facing the same trial as God caused the Jews to face? Allah the Almighty says: that الم أَحَسِبَ النَّاسُ أَنْ يُتْرَكُوا أَنْ يَقُولُوا آمَنَّا وَهُمْ لَا يُفْتَنُونَ Know for certain that this whole enterprise is from God and not of man. Therefore, be the first to accept. Do not quarrel with God as to why He did this in this way. If you examine righteously you will realize that the way you are holding fast to the contradictory reports is not incumbent upon you on the basis of reason and justice; it is all a collec- tion of conjectures, which is susceptible of being untrue and also stands in need of interpretation. Therefore, have mercy on your souls. Why do you discard what is certainly true? Can a conjecture ever be equal to certainty? Is it not possible that the traditions you believe to be authen- tic are untrue or perhaps have a different interpretation? Can you not be confronted by the same predicament as was faced by the Jews by their insistence upon the fulfilment of all the signs (as they understood them)? Therefore, try to benefit from their mistakes. Remember, no unequivocal verse of the Holy Quran proves that Ḥaḍrat ‘Īsā is sitting in the heavens alive. On the contrary, it is his death which is so positively established. Therefore, why do you claim he is alive whom the Holy Quran declares to be dead? Of course, the Prophets are alive in Heaven but they are all alive in the same way. 'Isā is not invested with any unique life of his own. And most of all, our Holy Prophet, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is invested with a heavenly life more blessed than anyone else. Read Sūrah Nūr dil- igently. You will find that all future successors [of the Holy Prophet³] will be raised from among this very ummah. Does tradition not testify 1. I am Allah, the All-Knowing. Do men think that they will be left alone be- cause they say, 'We believe', and that they will not be tested? (Surah al-Anka- būt, 29:2-3) [Publisher]