The Thirteenth Flash

There is a folk tale about one of these fame-mad fools who once defiled a place of prayer so that people would talk about him. Even when people spoke of him with curses, the vein of fame-seeking in him made that cursed notoriety seem pleasant.

O helpless human being, created for the eternal world yet captivated by the transient world! Reflect on the mystery of the verse:

فَمَا بَكَتْ عَلَيْهِمُ السَّمَٓاءُ وَ الْاَرْضُNeither the heaven nor the earth wept for them. — The Qur’an 44:29

and listen to its message. Its explicit meaning declares the following:

When one of the people of misguidance dies, the heavens and the earth, which are connected with mankind, do not weep over his death; rather, they are pleased by it.

And its indicative meaning expresses this: when the people of guidance die, the heavens and the earth weep over their passing; they do not wish to be separated from them. For the whole universe is connected with the believers and is pleased with them. Since, through their īmānFaith; belief in the six articles of faith: Allah, His angels, His revealed scriptures, His prophets, the Hereafter, and divine decree (qadar)., they know the Creator of the universe, they appreciate the value of the universe and treat it with reverence and love. They do not belittle its value or harbour hidden hostility toward it, as the people of misguidance do.

O human being, think carefully! You will certainly die. If you follow the nafsThe aspect of the soul associated with lower desires and negative traits. and Satan, your neighbours, and even your relatives, will be relieved to be freed from your evil when you die.

But if you say:

اَعُوذُ بِاللّٰهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجٖيمِ‌I seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the accursed.

and follow the Qur’an and obey the Beloved of the All-Merciful (saw)Sallallāhu alayhi wa sallam (Peace and blessings be upon him), then the heavens, the earth, and all beings will, according to your spiritual degree, grieve at your separation and, as it were, shed tears. With an exalted mourning and a majestic funeral procession, they will indicate that beyond the gate of the grave, in the eternal world, a beautiful future awaits you according to your spiritual rank.

The Thirteenth Sign

It consists of three points.

The First Point

One of Satan’s greatest deceptions is that, because of the narrowness of people’s thought and their short-sightedness, he misleads them concerning the grandeur of the truths of īmānFaith; belief in the six articles of faith: Allah, His angels, His revealed scriptures, His prophets, the Hereafter, and divine decree (qadar). by saying: “They claim that a single Being governs and administers all atoms, planets, stars, and other beings, in every circumstance, under His dominion. How can one believe such a thing? How can the heart affirm it? How can the mind accept it?”

In this way, he tries to stir up feelings of denial arising from human powerlessness.