In his Friday Sermon of 03 March 2023~10 Shabaan 1444 AH,Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam International Hazrat Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius continues his profound reflections on the larger meaning of the recent, devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.
Every disaster is a grim reminder of the mighty forces of nature at work: be it floods, earthquakes, land slides, forest fires. Man needs to learn his lessons from experiences and observations, and act wisely. With prudence and responsible behaviour, much of the disaster-related damage and destruction can be contained, if not prevented altogether. Collective choices of a society in terms of development model pursued can make a difference. Consider for instance, ecological sensitivity and fragility of certain regions. Public consciousness around environmental protection and wider issues of sustainability need to be foregrounded in rules and regulations for common welfare. Moreover, we owe a duty to care for our neighbours, to help them in times of distress and disaster, to mitigate their suffering through selfless service, reminds Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) in this discourse.
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.”
As the Lord and Sustainer of all the worlds, God's commandments are binding on all of humanity in life's varied settings, including in man's relationship with fellow humans, animals and the wider natural environment. Trampling upon, or interfering with the sublime Order of the Universe as Will-ed or created by the Exalted Lord in a balanced, harmonious, and ultimately equitable way, can and does upset the entire universal equilibrium, and threatens the very existence of humans in this small world. In an age of extraordinary disasters and upheavals turning the world upside down thanks to human interference, it is critical for humanity to reclaim the values of humility, justness, balance and equity, peace, harmony and residual goodwill in order to set things rightly among all humans, as well as to protect our social and natural environment.
The Holy Qur'an emphatically testifies that Elects of God are raised in every era of human kind in order to call people to the correct and straight mode of living- recognizing and worshipping the Lord, and respecting the dues of His creatures amidst whom humans spent their days in this world. The messengers invite people to their God, by explaining and demonstrating the normative underpinnings of a just and ethical life at peace and harmony with fellow beings and the natural environment. These messengers invariably advice people to remain within the bounds of the Shariah, and be upright in all their undertakings, and warn humankind against the dangers and pitfalls of injustice and imbalance, including the unsustainable exploitation of natural environment.
It might astonish people who come to discover this fact:an Elect of God lives amongst us, and His Creator had foretold him about the most important incidents that took place in the last two decades-devastating floods and natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, Tsunami of 26 December 2004, forest fires, outbreak of pandemics, huge accidents involving airplanes, etc. In his Friday Sermon of 13 March 2020~ 18 Rajab 1441 AH, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir. A. Azim (atba) of Mauritius succinctly summarizes some of these Signs as they have unfolded after being foretold in Divine revelations vouchsafed to him. Based on recurring Divine revelations, Hadhrat Saheb (atba) warns about severe disasters that will put humanity on a dangerous curve in its very existence on planet earth. Hadhrat Saheb (atba) further prays for forgiveness and mercy for all humanity- for it to be able to return from the brink of disasters, and for the ultimate establishment of the Divine Way in human hearts, Insha Allah, Aameen.
Earlier
this week, on 22 April 2019 there was the International Mother Earth
Day which commemorates the Earth and all the riches it has brought us
through the sheer grace of God Almighty. It comes as a reminder that
the Earth is in danger that we all humans have the absolute duty to
protect it, each at our level!
Indeed,
nature is a gift of God given to mankind to enable each and every
individual lead a joyful, prosperous and peaceful life. However, the
greed of people and/ or nations to accumulate wealth by all means,
coupled by superfluous consumption has prevented them to make a
judicious use of the free natural resources at their disposal and has
put humanity in the situation it is in today.
Never
before has the human race found him to be so uncomfortable, so
insecure and so uncertain about the future. Calamities like flood,
drought, tsunami, earthquake, tornado, fire, smoke....(Like on Monday 15 April 2019 in Paris where part of one of the largest cathedrals of France and the world, Notre Dame de Paris burned in a fire. France and the Christian world in general have witnessed the destruction of one of their biggest symbols - gone up in smoke!...)
And also intense heat and cold in every nook and corner of the world
and occurring even in odd seasons and in unexpected places, are
taking everyone by surprise. Disaster of such dimension never
occurred before. Many experts say that such changes (i.e. climate
change), brought by the hands of man itself have destroyed the ozone
layer protecting our Earth, thus causing global warming and bringing
in its wake many other calamities. Such natural calamities as they
are termed by man have transformed into divine reminders for them to
change their evil ways and to embrace a righteous way of life.
God
Almighty says in the Holy Quran: “Calamities
have appeared on land and sea because of what the hands of the people
have earned, so that He (Allah) makes them taste some of what they
did, in order that they may return (to the right way).”(Ar-Rum 30: 42).
On December 4, 2018 the Peace Park Library- the cultural wing of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam in South Kerala- at Mathra organized a social outreach programme in solidarity with the victims of the recent, devastating floods in Kerala- the worst ever in its modern history, and also to recognize and honour the humanitarian and charitable works being undertaken by Mrs. Jameela Rajagopalan, an ageing social worker in the village. On the occasion, pecuniary contributions made by members of the South Jamaat to the Kerala Chief Minister's Disaster Relief Fund was handed over to a senior official of the government. Village officials, public servants, civil society activists, writers and journalists were present on the occasion, and they applauded the works being done by Mukarram Amir Jamaluddin Saheb of Mathra in channeling his spiritual convictions towards humanitarian relief works and service to the people. The event was widely covered in the local press, electronic media/television as well as YouTube channels in Kerala, and the comprehensive Blog report on the same shall be published later, Insha Allah.
In a Special Address delivered on the occasion,Imam-Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hadhrat Muhyi-ud-Din Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Saheb (atba) of Mauritius pointed to the profound dangers facing our common humanity. Reflecting on recent catastrophic events and vast disruptions, Hadhrat Khalifatullah (atba) raised fundamental questions that require credible engagement by all those who are concerned about what is happening to our 'lonely' planet, the living Earth with all the profound challenges of atmospheric pollution, natural calamities; global warming and climate change. The obvious, and almost irreversible, imbalances that have been caused to the earth's stability and carrying capacity by the greed and corruption of the humans and their industrial and economic development models require a radical course correction, and that requires turning back to the ethical and spiritual way of life at the core of the teachings of Divine Elects in every era of humanity. It is when mankind begins to worship the True Divine- and not their false gods of riches and selfishness-that it will be in a position to do true service to humanity in a spirit of solidarity, recognizing the values of common humanity amidst all the diversity, alludes to Hadhrat Khalifatullah (atba) in his subtle but profound message, Alhamdulillah, Soumma Alhamdulillah.
Read the Speech Below:
Humanity
in Danger
Honourable
guests and my dear disciples,
May
the Peace & Blessings of God Almighty be upon you all.
The
world in which we are living is in a deplorable state. Calamities of
every kind are striking the earth from the sky, the sea and from
within the land itself. The question is why all this is happening?
Why so many calamities? Are these merely natural calamities or signs
of the displeasure of God Almighty?
From
an Islamic point of view, as established in the Holy Quran, God
Almighty says: “Corruption has appeared on
land and sea because of what the hands of men have earned, that He
(Allah) may give them a taste of some of their deeds: in order that
they may return (to righteousness).”(Chapter 30, Verse
42).
If
we look all around us, especially here itself in Kerala which has
recently, in August 2018, faced major floods and landslides, we see
desolations and destructions of houses and roads and many people’s
homes have been destroyed. More than 500,000 people have been
displaced to refugee camps and over 500 people have lost their lives.
Floods and landslides of such magnitude have not been witnessed since
the great flood of 1924.
That’s the defining
thoughts for everyone who face the trial of misfortune and loss.
Tragedy has
come home to people in our land this week. Cyclone Ockhi, the most devastating
cyclonic storm in the northern Indian Ocean region since 2015 has struck many lands in its
tentacles: the coastal regions of Sri Lanka, the South Indian states of Tamil
Nadu and Kerala, the Lakshadweep Islands, and also the Maldives.
Nature’s fury in the form
of bad winds and cyclonic storms has taken away the lives of scores of people; hundreds
of fishermen are missing after the storms, with no information about their
whereabouts and search and rescue operations by the Indian agencies still ongoing
till now. Beyond the shattered lives, possessions and property worth millions
and millions has been destroyed. The damage to electricity transmission lines, agricultural
crops, roads and passageways will continue to leave a chain of negative effects
on the everyday life world of the affected regions and peoples for the months
to come.
What are natural
disasters, according to human terms? These are on one hand repressible
calamities and on the other uncontrollable disasters varying according to the
intensity of the calamities in question, for example:earthquakes, storms,
droughts, floods etc.They are classified into two parts: (1) those which manifest
as the consequences of what the hands of men have brought forth. For e.g. Global
warming by the greenhouse effect, pollution, etc. (2) those which manifest by
the nature itself of how the earth and the heavens function, sometimes
predictable, sometimes unpredictable.
In themselves, by their
nature they are form an integral part in the overall scheme of things in which
all life is created. Their roles in this scheme are determinants and are not at
all nonsense. So in the interest of a great number of lives, some small
individual interests are often sacrificed. This is the accepted principle.
Because of the important role that these disasters play in the planning of things
and in the journey of life and progress, they cannot then be taken as
meaningless just because some individuals are victims are them.
Ethics of Creative Destruction
The general philosophy
behind these disasters could be understood if you study the phenomenon of life
and death – the fight of one in the face of the other. Every step forward in
the evolution of life brings in its wake millions and millions of victims. Each
step causes the destruction of countless potential life. Even when we see in
the universe millions of species and a number, which cannot be counted, of
creatures in various forms of life – then what is their ultimate goal? If you
understand how things are patterned you will discover that they are made to
serve man and their roles are ultimately to serve the ecology of which man
needs. All this is only part of the process. Thus the number is sacrificed for
the profit of quality. This is the essence of this whole plan. If billions of
lives are sacrificed for the benefit of man – the superior creature/ being – in
order to increase his qualities and this after taking the test/ trial – then
some sacrifices are justified for this great planning of things.
Divine Messengers are human beings, with the simple but profound and quiet but substantial difference that they are recipients of Divine revelations as against the ordinary folks like us. They work among the people day in and day out, calling them to an ethical and spiritual life that draws its sustenance from an abiding faith in the Unicity of Allah the Almighty. They bear witness to their times and their people by inviting to prudent conduct. They deliver glad tidings to those who follow guidance. And they caution the world against the egregious violations of ethical norms. When their warnings are fulfilled and disaster strikes the land, they are pained at the suffering humanity, even as they recognize that the nature and the times are witnessing to their truthful prophecies and warnings. Such is the image of the Divine Messengers of the past emerging from their lived history as recorded by the Holy Qur'an.
The Divine Messenger of our times Hadhrat Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius has predicted and warned against great calamities waiting to unfold in Mauritius and elsewhere, in recent months. The DELUGE in Mauritius, the tragedy and loss of which shook the nation to its core last week and led to collective mourning, in its own way, testified to the majesty and might of the Lord who descended the Message on His Messenger. In the aftermath of the Great calamity of stunning proportions- "NABAA AL AZIM", to use a Qur'anic metaphor [78: 3]- in Mauritius, Hadhrat AZIM Sahib (atba) himself led the relief and social work undertaken by the members of Jamaat Ul Sahib Al Islam.
