A believer amongst the non-believers and the polytheists is like a living amongst the dead. Whatever the Quran says is not a poetic brag but indeed the truth. It should not be rated as a mere mock up. Life is the ability given to each and every creation to achieve its purpose. True to the purpose, the creation is busy carrying out its duties, whether a heavenly or an earthly body. From the sun, moon and stars down to the air, clouds, water, soil, plants and animals etc. anything that loses its ability to perform its task will be considered dead. For example, if the sun fails to shine, or the trees bear no fruit or if the land becomes waterlogged, or if the fire fails to produce heat, or an animal is rendered unfit to perform its task, it will be considered useless and dead.
Similarly human being is the creation entrusted with a great responsibility. He has to conduct himself keeping in mind the beginning and the end of this worldly life, and the end result of all his activities so as to ensure eternal bliss. We must take as guides such people who can lead him to the right path. That is why it is obligatory' to believe in the Prophethood. Without the Prophets-AS’ no one could have an access to the intricacies of this vast Held. The great task entrusted to mankind has given it superiority over the rest of the creations. Otherwise the so called intellectuals who define man as a rational animal have actually lined him up in the row of donkeys and beasts.
If the sole aim of man's creation was to build a house, eat, drink, procreate and die, then there are many other animals which excel him in these qualities. The animals are clad in a natural covering and are more healthy and strong; they eat and select their food; they, too, make abodes and rear young ones; whereas man has to depend upon all sorts of machines. The animals live a simple and carefree life, and are well aware of friend and foe. Moreover, their bones, skin, fur, meat etc. are useful to others. Even in the plant kingdom not only the flowers or the fruits but also the wood and the bark are beneficial. The benefits of all these are confined to this life whereas the build up of a human being has the ability to attain the nearness of Allaah-SWT . The life of the entire creatures ends with this world except for the human being who is to live eternally. If not striving for eternal bliss, the basis of which is faith, then his Ruh is a corpse in the grave of his physical body being dragged around. Faith is light in the sense that it lights up the road of life, enabling a person to sec the ups and downs of this long winding journey, rather than falling into ditches. A non believer deprived of this light often falls into the dark dungeons of misguidance and is eventually destroyed. Faith is also called light in another sense. Because of it, light from the gleaming Qalb of the Holy Prophet-SW establishes a link with the Qalb of a believer. The more he obeys the Holy Prophet-SW, the stronger this light gets whereby those coming in contact with him also receive guidance. In short, such a believer actively participates in practical life and constantly endeavours to enrich the path of life. He does not merely confine himself to a corner nor does he renounce the world. Viewed spiritually, it will bring home the fact that the Qalb of every believer is connected to the most dynamic Qalb of the Holy Prophet-SW. The strength of light one receives, however, depends upon the level of obedience to him.
Light of Faith and Tasawwuf
The hearts of those who enjoyed the company of the Holy Prophet-SW as believers became beaconlights, and they were honoured by the title of Companions. This, after Prophethood, is the highest status for mankind. Because of this exalted status they were blessed with total obedience. The Prophetic lights were acquired by the Tab'ain in the company of the Companions', who in turn passed these on to Tab’a Tab’ain and from them to the accomplished saints. This system of transmission and acquisition is Tasawwuf, the quintessence of all endeavours. And this is the greatest benefit which mankind receives from a believer, that the hearts of those coming in contact with him are also enlightened.
On the contrary, those deprived of this light, that is, the non believers, grope in the darkness. They cannot find a way out and obviously can never be equal to those who believe. In fact the gloom of their disbelief has changed their temperaments. To make matters worse, they harbour the false notion that to cover their hearts with layers of darkness is indeed a great achievement. This perversion has been created in their temperaments by Allaah-SWT because of their sins. Hence they are plunging deeper into this ocean of darkness and ignorance. Generally the affluent class suffers more conspicuously from this disease because they have more resources. So when they went deep down in their sins, Allaah-SWT instilled trickery in their hearts. This is not only the case with the present community of disbelievers but also with the nations gone by So when they started promoting their evils, the poor and the weaker classes also copied them in evil and infidelity. Therefore, neither their numerical strength be considered nor the opinion of the influential class be paid any heed. Rather, the standard should be truth alone, and whoever is on the right path must be supported. The non believers apparently try their best to defeat the truth. But all their schemes go against their own interest, and will lead them to eternal failure and defeat. Look at the state of these people who have received Allah's Message, and His-SWT Messengers-AS has given them the glad tidings of a blissful life. But they say that they will only believe when they receive Allah's Message directly, as does the Holy Prophet-SW. They argue that when they too are human beings, why should they hear the Message through an intermediary?
The Institution of Prophethood .
These unwitted and ignorant folk are unaware of the greatness of the Prophethood and the Messengership. It is their silly notion that since they are wealthy leaders who enjoy power or have a strong heritage, they too deserve Divine Revelations. Whereas only the Prophets-AS are entitled to conversing with Allah-SWT, a special favour bestowed only upon His-SWT chosen souls. No one on the basis of lineage, power, knowledge, skill and hardwork can become a Prophet-AS. Only Allaah-SWT knows how He-SWT selects His-SWT Messengers-AS and confers upon them this honour. No doubt that the Prophets"-AS are human beings, but they are the model of humanity. They, by virtue of their creation, possess special qualities. They are innocent, without any element of error. A person not created innocent, may not err all his life but the possibility of going wrong is always there. Hence he cannot be the bearer of Divine Revelation. Only those chosen by Allaah-SWT can attain this blessing. So those claimants of humanity must compare their childhood, adolescence and youth with that of the Holy Prophet-SW and see the marked difference. Those, who keeping in mind their own human short comings, altogether deny the Prophets"-AS as being human suffer from the same misconception. It is true that if we, with so many flaws, qualify as human, then the Holy Prophet-SAAW should be considered much superior to us. But the fact is that lie is the most perfect human being, and whatever adherence to him we inculcate in ourselves is humanity, while the beliefs or the conduct deprived of his lights is nothing but animalism. The demand of directly conversing with Allaah-SWT is not only denial but also grave arrogance for which they will be tormented and humiliated, reducing their pride to dust. This will happen in the Hereafter for sure, while such arrogants have been disgraced throughout history'. Amongst these were some incidentally with the crowd merely following what others did. They were eventually given the chance to repent and join ranks with the servants of the Holy Prophet"-SW. But those who opposed him under all circumstances died in disgrace.
Opening of Heart (for Guidance)
When Allaah-SWT decides to guide someone, He-SWT opens up his heart to Islam. This implies that whoever seeks guidance from Allaah-SWT is provided such means by Him-SWT that enlightens his heart, giving it the capacity to accept His-SWT Word. Take for instance, the Companions-RAU, who were blessed with the charming company of the Holy Prophet-SW and as a result their hearts accepted the Divine Injunctions without an iota of doubt or objection to anything. Their questions were only to seek clarifications and further . But never did they raise any objection because their hearts were open to accept the truth at once and reject falsehood. This is why Allaah-SWT declared them as the model of righteousness. This blessing is dissipated in the company of the custodians of the legacy of the Holy Prophet"-SW. And the effort to acquire this blessing made under the guidance of an accomplished Shaikh is termed as Tasawwuf. The standard of evaluation is that the heart longs for virtue and develops fear of Allaah-SWT . Given this, a Shaikh is indeed an elixir, because Kashf or the manifestation of supernatural events is not the aim. Moreover, the best way of clearing doubts is also through Tasawwuf, as it is not possible to acquire a strong belief with logic and reasoning alone. On the contrary, if Allaah-SWT is annoyed because of the wayward conduct of a person, He-SWT straitens his heart toward Islam. As a result accepting Islam becomes the most difficult task on earth and the Divine Obedience the most tedious. And the impurity of the heart and darkness grows in density because of opposing the Aulia. The straight and the most favoured Divine Path is the noble company of the Aulia' which leads to virtue.-Such a guidance can come from the righteous only. A person who himself is not on the straight path and practises wrong beliefs, cannot benefit anyone. Therefore, it is imperative to be in the company of the righteous to attain knowledge and truth, but to seek such company for some worldly benefit is unfair. Everything has been clearly spelled out for the seeker of guidance; but he who only wishes to indulge in futile arguments shall gain nothing.
Kashf is also a Great Reward
For the righteous are the abodes of peace with Allaah-SWT i.e. Paradise in the Hereafter and support in this world, because they are the seekers of His-SWT Countenance, have accepted Islam and joined the company of the Aulia'. They never worry over worldly problems because, according to Mu'arif-al-Quran, Allaah-SWT displays the blessings of the Hereafter before them in this life, which makes its problems appear trivial. It is amazing how hard people work for the attainment of worldly gains that a month's hardwork is endured in the hope of salary. And to gain mundane power and status no stone is left unturned. Similarly if Allaah-SWT reveals unto someone the blessings and rewards of the Hereafter, the worldly troubles carry no significance. This is possible only by the light of faith and the beneficence of the Holy Prophet-SW. The second reward the righteous win is the realization of Allah-SWT's Omnipresence; His-SWT Approval and Support in all the affairs of life. As a result when they face any trouble or failure, the feeling of Allaah-SWT ’s Pleasure keeps them at case and the apparent distress turns into comfort for them.
Link with Satan
As for the other group i.e. the non believers they are not alone; the darkness of their hearts has facilitated a link with the Satan. They not only seek his guidance but also expect the fulfillment of their desires through him. This will be brought home on the Day of Judgement, when Allah-SWT shall summon everyone together. He will ask the Jinn (the followers of Satan) that they indeed had brought many human beings under their control. Their friends amongst the mankind will admit that undoubtedly they had mutually benefited from one another. The benefit that the Satanic Jinns enjoyed was that they misguided many people and made them follow their path. While the people who turned Satans under their influence, learnt ways to fulfil their desires. They acquired various tricks from Satan and impressed other people. In the process they plundered their wealth and honour. This is the secret behind the manifestation of supernatural acts at the hands of the wicked. Therefore, both the groups, deprived of the blessings of the Hereafter and surrounded by sin and the darkness of their disbelief shall meet their destined end. It will then be announced, that the abode for both of these groups is Hell where they shall dwell forever. No one save Allah-SWT can rescue them and He-SWT has already decided that He-SWT shall never let any non believer out from there. His-SWT decisions are always accurate as He-SWT is the Wisest and the Most Prudent.
Company in Hereafter
We-SWT keep the wrongdoers with their own kind because of their identical deeds. The Commentators have given many explanations. Firstly, on the Day of Judgement, the reckoning shall not be based upon lineage, colour, nationality or language but on the basis of beliefs and practices. The non believers will be with the non believers, while the believer shall be with the believers no matter how different they had been in their worldly lives in terms of colour and caste or how separated they were in time and space. This is why for certain sins, the Hadith warns of requital along with the Pharaoh and Haman on the Day of Judgement. The non believers will be classified in accordance with their deeds, though generally they will all be the same being disciples of Satan, whose association played havoc with them. Similarly the believers will be with the believers of their kind; some with those who excelled in worship, others with those who fought for Allah-SWT , yet some with those who toiled in the field of knowledge, while some with those who spent in Allah-SWT ’s Cause. In short, the mundane classification on the basis of party, colour and caste is neither dependable nor will it be of any significance there.
The second explanation is our daily observation that persons associate themselves with those of their own taste. If the heart desires virtue Allaah-SWT ushers the seeker into the company of the righteous where the capacity to do good increases and the heart opens up to guidance and enlightenment. But if the heart is rusted with sin, the person gets involved in bad company which misleads him even further. According to Hadith, if Allaah-SWT is pleased with a ruler, He-SWT provides him noble deputies and ministers. The Government is run with justice and as a result prosperity prevails. And if He-SWT is annoyed, He-SWT assigns the ruler evil governors who do not let him do any good even if he wants to.
Identical is the case of wrongdoing nations that in punishment an evil ruler is imposed on them. The third version is that evil begets evil and a wrongdoer of a higher degree is imposed as a ruler on the malefactors and so on, until the Divine Punishment grips all. The temporal life reflects the fate in the Hereafter, with only one difference; here the option to repent is open. If someone wishes to turn back from evil the door of penitence is not closed unto him, whereas the Hereafter is a place of no return.
