The Mirror of the Excellences of Islam — Page 390
LETTER TO NAWWAB MUHAMMAD ALI KHAN For example, when the greatest among the Truthful, Hadrat Abū Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, believed in the Holy Prophet, peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him, he did not demand a miracle. On being asked why he had believed in him, he replied that it had been proven to him that Muhammad, peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him, was Amin [the Trustworthy] and that he firmly believed that he [the Holy Prophetsas] had never spoken a lie about anyone, let alone that he should lie about God. Similarly, each Companion—according to his personal inclinations-believed in the Holy Prophet, peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him, upon witnessing one or another of his moral excellences or teachings and taking that as a proof of his truth after minutely pondering over it. None of them had asked for a Sign. To make a distinction between truth and falsehood, it sufficed for them to know that the Holy Prophet, peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him, occupied the highest position in righteousness, was bold and steadfast in the proclamation of his mission, had brought a teaching that was clearer and purer than all other teachings, was a Light pure and simple, was incomparable in all praiseworthy morals, held the most glorious degree of God-given zeal, and the truth was manifestly evident upon his countenance. Thus, they were led to believe that he was truly commissioned by God Almighty. It should not be taken to mean here that no miracles were manifested by the Holy Prophet, peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him. On the contrary, he showed more miracles than all the other Prophets, but the way of Allah has always been that, in the beginning, manifest miracles and Signs remain con- cealed, so that the sincerity of the believers and the denial of the deniers may be put to the test. This time [the beginning] is the time of trial, and no manifest Sign is shown in it. When, how- ever, some pure-hearted people, through their profound vision, 389