Malfuzat – Volume III — Page 21
21 begin to comprehend the essence of prophethood and the insight of the Holy Quran. One who does not understand my claim can neither develop full cer- tainty in the Holy Quran, nor in the institution of prophethood. ” Following the Leader The Promised Messiah as said: “There is a verse in the Holy Quran: 1 ْ الْاِبِلِ كَيْفَ خُلِقَت ی َنْظُرُوْنَ اِلَ ی اَفَلَا Do they not then look at the camel, how it is created? This verse is very helpful in expounding the philosophy of prophethood and spir- itual leadership. There are about one thousand words in the Arabic language for ‘camel. ’ What then is the secret in using the word ibil for camel in this instance? The words in this verse could have been ilal-jamal as well. The wisdom in this seems to be that the word jamal is used for ‘one camel’ whereas the word ibil is a collective noun. In this verse, it is the purpose of Allah Almighty to show the manner in which this animal socially coexists together in collective harmony. This deeper sense is not conveyed in the word jamal , which refers to one, individual camel. It is for this reason that Allah the Exalted pre- ferred the word ibil in this context. Camels possess a nature whereby they follow and obey. Just observe how camels move in a long line, and how they walk in a particular manner and speed behind the camel that is in front. The camel that is at the very front of the line, as a leader and guide, is the most experienced and familiar with the route. Moreover, all the camels walk one behind the other at the same pace; none of them feel greed in their heart to walk shoulder to shoulder with the one in front, as is the case with horses and other animals. That is to say, an established phenomenon that is observed in the nature of the camel is that it follows its leader. Allah the Exalted states: 2 ِ الْاِبِل ی َنْظُرُوْنَ اِلَ ی اَفَلَا Do they not then look at the camel? By stating these words, God Almighty alludes to the overall, collective state of camels when they are moving forward in the form of a line. Similarly, a leader is 1 al-Ghashiyah , 88:18 2 al-Ghashiyah , 88:18 p. 19