Haqiqatul-Wahi (The Philosophy of Divine Revelation) — Page 888
888 AL-ISTIFTA' SUPPLEMENT TO HAQIQATUL-WAḤI possessed all the worldly bounties and comforts that one can imagine and was heedless of times of distress and hardship. He clothed himself in silk garments and rode swift and luxurious mounts. He had completely forgotten the arrow of death and believed he would be bestowed a long life. He con- sumed his days as people who are prostrated to, worshipped, and held in great esteem; at night, he slept in soft and velvety beds. But, when Allah made His decree manifest in order to testify to what I had foretold about his end, the time of jubilation and happiness changed for him, and Allah showed him the days of pain and hardship. It was then that he was bitten by his own snakes; that is, the snakes of his misdeeds and evil conduct. So, the himlaj¹ turned into a qaṭūf. ² Silk bro- cade was replaced by rough wool. Similarly, in other matters too he experienced such a reversal of fortune that he was expelled from the very town he had built by squandering enormous treasures. He was deprived of the palatial homes he had erected. and solidified by spending huge sums out of his hoarded wealth. But that was not the end of what God did to him; divine providence overpowered 1. Al-Himlāj: An easy and quick-paced horse. (Author) 2. Al-Qatuf: A slow-paced and short-stepping horse. (Author)