Malfuzat – Volume III — Page 123
123 of the Aryas, who has neither created a single soul (jiv), nor matter, and who does not have the power to grant true peace and eternal salvation to the seekers and truthful ones who tread on His path. Nay! The God which Islam has presented is One who is unparalleled and matchless in His strengths and powers. However, in view of the law that He has established, everything happens in a systematic and gradual manner. Therefore, if one does not remain patient and think positively, success is difficult. I recall that once a person came to visit me and said that in previous times, saints would elevate people to the highest spiritual stations by a single incantation. I told the person that they were mistaken; this is not how the law of God Almighty operates. For example, if one was to lay flooring in a house, one will have to first repair any sections that may be damaged, and wherever there is filth and rubbish, one will have to clean it with phenyl and the like. In short, only after numerous repair works and preparations have been made will the space be ready for flooring. Similarly, before a person’s heart becomes worthy enough to be the dwelling place of God Almighty, it remains the seat of Satan and is ruled by the kingdom of Satan. In order to usher in the heavenly kingdom, the king- dom of Satan must be uprooted. Most unfortunate is the one who sets out in search of the truth but does not keep a positive frame of mind. Just observe the many lengths that a potter must go to in order to craft a clay vessel. Observe the countless steps that a washer- man must go to when he begins to clean spoiled and dirty clothes. At times, a launderer will put clothes over the heat, he will rub them with soap, and then he will employ various techniques in order to remove the dirt and grime. Finally, after all this, the clothes become clean and brilliant white, and all the dirt on the clothes is washed off completely. So, even insignificant things such as these require a great deal of patience. How foolish then is the person who wants to see their life reformed and their heart purified of its filth and impurities by having an incantation blown on them that would purify their heart? Bear in mind that patience is a condition for reformation. Secondly, one’s mor- als and inner self cannot be purified until one remains in the company of some- one who is able to purify the souls of others. Firstly, the door that is opened on this path can only be opened to a person when they cleanse themselves of impu- rity. Those impurities which bear an affinity with a person’s disposition remain hidden within, but when one is blessed with the antidote of saintly company, this inner impurity begins to gradually disappear. This is because a person cannot p. 109