Saturday, March 21, 2020

The Reality of Divine Wrath

The Signs of Allah- II

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, while I was praying for Divine Guidance on the present subject, Allah directed my attention to a revealed text which He taught me in February 2006 on what is happening around the world and about His Divine punishment, and the fact that I have come as the Reviver of Faith of this era.

The Holy Quran and the other Divine scriptures disclose that the ruin and destruction imposed in this life on people as punishment are not afflicted because those people follow a wrong doctrine, for instance, because they worship idols, planets or fire, or some other created things or person.

So no one is punished in this life merely on account of doctrinal errors or beliefs. Indeed this world is a paradise for the disbelievers and it is mostly the believers who suffer pain and torment in this world. There is a saying, which is a great lesson for us: “This world is the paradise of the disbelievers and the prison of the believers.” 

Now if this world is the paradise of the disbelievers, and indeed observation testifies that the disbelievers are richly endowed with wealth and the bounties of this world, and the Holy Quran repeatedly announces that the disbelievers are endowed with every worldly bounty, then how is it that some disbelieving people were afflicted with torment in this world and God Almighty destroyed them with great calamities, with stones, storms and diseases?

The answer is that these torments were not inflicted merely on account of disbelief, but because those people who were so afflicted and ruined had transgressed grievously in their denial of divine messengers and their mockery and jesting and persecution, and in the estimation of God Almighty, their mischief and wickedness and cruelty and persecution had reached extreme limits and thus they themselves became the cause of their ruin.

Then Allah’s wrath was roused and they were destroyed through diverse types of punishment. This shows that disbelief is not the cause of punishment in this world; its cause is extreme wickedness and arrogance. Such a one, even if he is a believer, when he transgresses the limits in wrong-doing, persecution and arrogance, and forgets altogether the majesty of Allah, will draw upon himself divine punishment.

On the other hand, when a disbeliever is meek and is fearful, in this particular case he will not be punished on account of his misguidance. This is the ancient and confirmed philosophy behind punishment in this world and this is the way of Allah to which all divine books bear testimony. As the Holy Quran says: “When We decide to destroy [the people of] a town, We (first) send a definite order to those among them who are given the good things of this life and yet transgress; so that the word is proved true against them: then (it is) We destroy them utterly.” (Bani Isra’il, 17: 17).

In another verse it is said: “We never destroy a town except when its people reach the limit in wrongdoing.” (Al-Qasas, 28: 60).

It should be kept in mind that though association of anything with God is also not only a wrong but an enormity, yet in this context, by wrongdoing is meant such disobedience and misconduct as transgress the limit. For mere association of others with God which is not accompanied by persecution and arrogance and disorder, and attacks upon the preachers of God’s true faith, and plans for their killing, and such extreme sinfulness whereby the fear of God is totally excluded from the hearts, then the punishment for such a sin is promised in the hereafter, and may not be earthly. But if along with association of others with God Almighty, if the people commit any of the other wrongs which I have just mentioned, like persecuting the preachers of the true faith and exceeding all limits in wrongdoing, then the wrath of Allah seizes those people both on earth and the hereafter.

Chastisement in this life is inflicted only at the time of extreme transgression as it is said in another verse: “Messengers before you also were mocked at, but I granted respite to the disbelievers: in the end, I took them to task- how terrible My punishment was!” (Ar-Rad, 13: 33).

Moreover, the disbelievers made plans to finish Islam. The Holy Quran says: “And they planned a plan, and We planned a plan, while they perceived not. Then look how was the outcome of their plan - that We destroyed them and their people, all. Now such were their houses, - in utter ruin, - because they practiced wrong-doing. Verily in this is a Sign for people of knowledge.” (An-Naml,  27: 51-53)

All these verses show that divine chastisement is inflicted in this world only when a person transgresses in haughtiness and exaggeration. It does not happen that a disbeliever is inflicted with a lightening of divine chastisement who is fearful in the extreme, or that a polytheist may be stoned who is terrified to death on account of his fear. God Almighty is merciful and compassionate to the highest degree. He seizes with punishment in this world only those who provide with their own hands the cause for such punishment.

More specifically, there is the fulfilment of the Quranic prophecy that the corpse of the Pharaoh would survive the vicissitude of time and after thousands of years it serves as a warning lesson for mankind. The Holy Quran had presented a powerful argument as proof of this being a divine punishment.

However, the matter does not end there. It needs to be remembered that the Holy Quran always presents such clear evidence in support of its arguments as would satisfy an unbiased mind. Although from one point of view, the system of divine punishment is essentially linked to natural laws, yet from some other angles, this system enjoys quite separate status and aspect.

When we look for guidance from the Holy Quran and Hadith, we see that the victory of Islam can be divided into two distinct eras. The first rise of Islam is obviously connected with nascent Islam and its time frame stretches from the times of the Holy Founder of Islam, to the time decreed for its growth to slow down and come to a halt.

In this period of decline and material impotence, Islam would encounter extreme danger, when its days would seem to be an impending night.

When God Almighty revealed to the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) that Islam would prevail once again over all other faiths of the world, a companion enquired when that would be. 

The Holy Prophet (pbuh) responded: “This will happen when the Messiah will descend.” When we reflect over these prophecies, our hearts are comforted by the thought that if the period of the decline of Islam was fulfilled to the letter, then undoubtedly the glad tidings of Islam prevailing over all religions of the world must surely be shortly fulfilled after cessation of the decline. If winter comes, can spring be far behind? So when we ask ourselves: How is it that prophets and their followers escaped the web of destruction, the response is that either the prophet left with his companions or the people of that age had themselves exiled the prophet and his companions from their territory. In either case, the divine punishment was afflicted when the prophet and his companions were not physically present in that territory.

So, there are some kinds of disasters which cannot be barred from touching the people physically. Despite this, such disasters have no power to destroy God’s holy people. This is because prophets are told in advance of such a disaster and God instructs them to adopt certain preventive measures, apart from which they adopt no further measures. 

Even then the opponents, who are capable of adopting all measures available to them, find themselves unable to escape the disaster. Yet the prophet and his companions are protected by God’s power, and others are left baffled at the prevailing situation. They cannot seem to decide what to think of the forces which directs the prophet and the believers, forces which seem to them unknown and mysterious.

In other words, God Almighty does not descend His wrath on the wrongdoing people, more specifically the polytheists, in one go. It is a gradual process depending on the deeds of those people and their frame of mind at the impending punishment. But the punishment may be delayed for them for a little while only, i.e., during their time on this temporal world, while the eternal punishment shall be enduring. And God Almighty arranges His plan for the destruction of these people in this way till the time is ripe for the ultimate triumph of His faith over all other faiths. Truth does not remain powerless always. Falsehood may appear to be powerful during a period of time but this is only flimsy and illusionary for truth always triumphs at the end. How can truth ever be lost when Allah is Al-Haqq (the Truth) and the protector of His every truth in this world and the hereafter?

The victory of disbelievers are only temporary for the might of Allah always shows them at the end of the day that it is most powerful and encompassing and the divine punishment crushes the culprits in manifold ways.

In the wake of the Coronavirus, like I told you in my Friday Sermon of 31 January and my message of 11 March 2020, God Almighty already prepared us for such situations. He already revealed to His Khalifatullah and informed His sincere servants of such impending dangers and He comes forward with a reassuring nod to the exaltation and execution of His promises in magnificent ways.

Till date, from what is officially known, more than 230,000 positive cases for the Coronavirus have been registered, with over 9000 deaths. Many American celebrities, political figures and even royals [e.g. the Prince of Monaco, Albert II], among many, have been contaminated by the virus. Little Mauritius also has not been spared whereby day by day new cases are being discovered. Officially, only seven cases have been reported.

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[Then Huzur proceeded to relate an important dream which he made this morning].

Dream Of Hazrat Khalifatullah
18 March 2020 (After Tahajjud Prayers * around 03.00)

I woke up that morning with much difficulty. Usually, I wake up for Tahajjud prayers without any problem. But on that day, my head was heavy, and I felt very weak, but I made an effort to get up and made my Wa’zu for the Tahajjud prayers and duahs. As I was still very weak, after Tahajjud prayers and some duahs – not like my everyday routine – I went back to bed and continued with my duahs. No sooner that I went to bed that I fell asleep and dreamt:

[In Mauritius, no news of any official claim of contamination from the Coronavirus had yet been proclaimed when Huzur (atba) made that dream].

So, around 03.30, I dreamt that a big and beautiful white BMW car came and stopped in front of my residence [in Petit-Raffray] and I was looking at it from inside. I saw a high personality, the chief of the state of Mauritius got out from the car. I came out of the house and stood by my garage entrance, and then I went forward to open the main gate. He came and shook hands with me and told me: “I have come to meet you; pray a lot for the country. Our country is in a very precarious (difficult) and critical situation.” He told me also lot of things and then he stated that it is verily true that the Coronavirus has already entered our country. We are in a very difficult situation. And the population will be very much traumatized and suffer with this. And he also told me: “Pray for me also for I feel that my health is not good.” There is a fright in him for he has also gone abroad. I told him, ok, you are telling me all this, but you can tell the same thing that you are telling to all the other religious priests – the priests, pundits, maulanas etc. – of the various religions [in Mauritius]. He said that yes, he could have told them. These are priests, pundits and maulanas but they are not Messengers of God. 

So, even when I woke up for Fajr prayers, I continued to reflect on that dream, and I reminiscence the words of the Prime Minister where he maintained his stand and was adamant to state that there was no case of the Coronavirus in Mauritius. In his interviews – perhaps in Quatre-Soeurs and Souillac – he said that such people that are saying the contrary are creating a psychosis in the mind of the population and there is no need to panic for there was nothing to worry about. But that same night, unbeknownst to me – for it was later on that I was informed that the Prime Minister addressed the nation and informed about 3 positive cases of Coronavirus in the country, and now yesternight (19 March 2020) he addressed the nation once again to announce four new positive cases, which now totals to seven (7).

We do not rejoice on the misfortune of anyone. On the contrary, it is very sad all that is happening. My disciples and family around me can witness that since the start of the new year – as from the morning of 1st January 2020 I told them something – they know what I told them – and what I felt. I was repeating that so many times that finally they told me to stop saying such things. I stopped me from saying this.

So, today look at the prevailing situation. We need to pray a lot. This is the call that I make to all our Mauritian brothers, sisters and children as well as those of the nearby islands and the different countries [of the world], and especially all the listeners and readers of my sermons who do not miss to listen and read my sermons, even if they are not found in the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam and even if they are not even Muslims – they are from other religions – and who love to read and listen to the Friday Sermons and speeches; some of them even met me during the course of this week. So, you are all in my thoughts. It really saddens me all that is happening in the world, the entire world. Like Allah revealed to me once, saying that one day you will be very sad and have mercy for these people; especially those who persecuted us and created all sorts of problems for us; who put blames and various accusations on us; who tried to do everything to eliminate us since the beginning – 1st January 2001 till now.

So, many times I received this revelation: The machinery of Allah is On. So, as for you, keep going [keep doing your work]. Take a beautiful patience [Fasbir Sabran Jamila].

We, humans, our knowledge is very little. If Allah does not give us knowledge, if He does not make us understand things, thus our knowledge would be very limited. So, when Allah says that the His machinery is on, it is for those people who harmed me; not only me, those who harmed ISLAM, and even those people are the ones who rejected the signs of Allah; even those who tormented the prophet [the actual one, as well as the person and memory of our beloved prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and the Promised Messiah (as)] and drew various caricatures and who made the Muslim believers suffer.

Fear have gripped the world and our little island as well, handicapping the people in many ways. Even the World Health Organisation had no option but to define it as a pandemic as it has crossed boundaries and infected many in the different countries of the world. Indeed, God Almighty has the power to do as He wills. He crushes down the people in such a way to make them reflect, if only they could reflect!

Indeed, He informed us of these dangers in advance like He warned His previous prophets and their followers. And our beloved prophet (pbuh), more than fourteen hundred years ago also provided us with clear advices in cases of such-like epidemic situations:

Narrated Saud (ra): The Prophet (pbuh) said, “If you hear of an outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; but if the plague breaks out in a place while you are in it, do not leave that place.” (Bukhari).

Thus, we see how the Holy Prophet (pbuh) had since long given clear instructions about such situations, and how it is advisable to stay in a place where an epidemic had already broken so that one does not contaminate others when he moves out of that place. If that person was sincere in his Islam and pious, martyrdom is reserved for him, but as for the wrongdoers and hypocrites, they meet with atrocious punishment in the hereafter. But for those who are protected by the divine promise during the lifetime of a prophet of Allah, they suffer no decline.

As for those who have exceeded all limits and persecuted the prophet of their time as well as his followers and continue to be arrogant and hold no fear of the divine chastisement coming down on them, even if they say that they believe in God Almighty, those are the ones who shall suffer divine chastisement in the severest ways as a clear sign and warning for posterity.

Ordinary disasters are not influenced by the condition of man’s heart. If feelings of regret, remorse and repentance over past sins begin to emerge, and attitudes begin to incline towards seeking forgiveness, then divine punishment is averted. Referring to this distinctive feature, the Holy Quran states: “Allah would not punish them while they seek forgiveness.” (An-Anfal, 8: 34).

May Allah have mercy on humanity, and enable the people to change their lives for the better by recognising His ultimate signs and Messengers! Insha-Allah, Ameen.

---Friday Sermon of 20 March 2020~25 Rajab 1441 AH delivered by Hazrat Khalifatullah Munir. A. Azim (atba) of Mauritius.