Invitation to Ahmadiyyat — Page 142
142 and every evil. Friend and foe alike admitted to my honesty and truthfulness. How come then that while until yesterday I could be trusted for my honesty and truthfulness, and falsehood was alien to me, and I would sacrifice myself for the sake of truth, and you trusted me in all things great and small and believed everything I told you, now, all of a sudden, you say that I am the worst of the human beings and the most hardened of liars. If I did not lie about men, how would I suddenly start telling lies about God? Is such a sudden shift in one’s character possible? Does human experience offer an example of such extraordinary transformation? If I had been truthful and trustworthy for a few days or a year, you could have said I had put on an appearance. You have seen me as a child and as a man. Can a child put on an appearance of righteousness? A child is innocent and cannot act in a way that is not natural to him. Also, could I have concealed my real character behind a facade during adolescence when one is subject to all kinds of nat - ural impulses and passions? Could I have presented a character that was alien to me? If, upon reflection, you find all my earlier life spotless and clean and an embodiment of integrity and honesty, you do not have any right to brand me a liar or impostor. Seeing the sun, you cannot deny that it is day. Seeing its light, you cannot complain of darkness. Do you need proof other than my own past life? My character is my witness. My life is my witness. Consult your consciences and hear your inner voice and it will tell you that my life is truth personified. I am the truth and the truth is me. I honour truth and truth honours me. To prove my truth I need no argument because I am my own argument. The proof of the sun is the sun.