So Said The Promised Messiah (as) — Page 143
of His pleasure. All the good deeds that he performs are a matter of pleasure for him and he feels a sort of sweetness by doing them; he finds no difficulty in those good and virtuous deeds. These good deeds of his turn every difficulty into comfort. A true Muslim loves God the Almighty taking Him to be his beloved and his Master who is all benevolence. It is for this reason that he puts down his head at His doorstep. If a true Muslim is told that he would get no reward for these good deeds of his-and also that there is no Paradise and no Helf, nor is there any comfort or pleasure, he would never abandon his good deeds and he would never do away with his l~>Ve for God, for, he does not worship God nor he obeys Him in the hope of any rewards from Him. He does all these things because he thinks that his very existence is aimed at the recognition of God and His love and obedience, and that there is no other aim of his life than this. When he uses his powers in doing good and appropriate deeds, he sees God before his eyes-he does not mind paradise or hell. If I am told that I would be severely punished for my love for God and my obedience to Him I would bear all the hardships and I would take the pains of the punishment as a great pleasure and I would never-leave loving or obeying Him. Even one step away from obedience to God tantamounts to a thousand rather innumerable deaths and collection of all the difficulties and hardships. It is as if a king were to announce that a mother who would give no suck to her baby would be rewarded; no mother would abandon giving suck to her baby in the hope of the reward from the king. Likewise a true Muslim, whatever the promises of reward and comforts for him, would never go even one step away from obedience to God; he would deem it a total destruction for himself. (Malfoozat Vol. III, p. 182) 143