Life Supreme — Page 58
LIFE SUPREME hours after midnight to communicate the tidings, found, much to his astonishment, Napoleon dressed and seated at his table, with maps, books and charts spread out before him. "What!" enquired his friend, "Are you not in bed yet?" "In bed?" Napoleon replied. "I have had my sleep, and am already risen. " "What, so early!" the other rejoined. "Yes," continued Napoleon, "so early. Two or three hours sleep are enough for any man. " (Life of Napoleon Bonaparte by Abbott). He was a personification of the following poem: "The heights by great men reached and kept. Were not attained by sudden flight;. But they, wile their companions slept. Were toiling upward in the night. 22 61. Similarly in the spiritual field the Prophets and holy men of God have spent and do spend the greater part of their nights in prayer and labour. The Promised Messiah once said: 'Who told our brethren that life is long? There is no season for death; it may overtake you at any time. So we must value whatever time we have. We will not have these times again. There will remain only stories of them. ' (Character Sketch of the Promised Messiah). The Promised Messiah is reported to have said that he regreted so much time is wasted in the toilet and it would have been well even if that time could be spent in the service of Islam. . He condemned laziness in no uncertain terms: 2 'Everyone among you who relaxes and becomes lazy shall be thrown out of the Community as a dirty thing is discarded and thrown out. He shall die with regret in his heart and he shall not be able to injure God in any way. (Noah's Ark). Laziness is one of the reasons why Muslims are negligent in the regular observance of the five daily prayers and as a result their spiritual growth is stunted; but even the offering of prayers is of little value unless preformed with attention and the spirit of earnestness. . The Promised Messiah has advised: