Note: The Alislam Team assumes full responsibility for any errors or inaccuracies in this translation of the Friday Sermon.
Friday Sermon – January 11, 1924 Delivered by Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad(ra) Published in Al-Fazl, January 18, 1924
Topics: Governance, Love vs. Coercion, Religion, Faith, Spiritual Authority
After recitation of the tashahhud, ta'awwudh, and Surah Al-Fatihah, Huzoor(ra) said:
Today the time for prayer has been delayed, so I shall briefly touch upon a few matters. There are two kinds of governance in the world. One is established through love, and the other through compulsion. The governance that is established through compulsion is an outward, worldly governance, whereas the governance established through love is the governance of God.
People say that the true teaching is that which is accepted from the heart, not out of fear. On this basis, they raise the objection that Islam has instituted reward and punishment to induce desire and fear. We can respond to this objection by noting that since the very same feature is found in the religions of the objectors themselves, the objection is baseless. Many people raise objections against others while forgetting that the same thing exists in their own religion. This objection is therefore void, because reward and punishment are found in other religions as well. But even if they were not, we would not view Islam's position as cause for embarrassment. Had no other religion presented this feature, Islam would have appeared even more luminous — as presenting something no other religion had offered.
We observe that people do not accept religion on account of the prospect of paradise and hell. Rather, they accept religion because they believe in its truthfulness. Has anyone ever abandoned Hinduism because it prescribes punishment for minor sins? Or has anyone ever left Christianity because it paints a terrifying picture of hellfire? The Hindu belief holds that if a person spends his entire life in wickedness but at the time of death constructs a well, a pond, or some other work of public benefit, all his sins are forgiven thereby. And no one believes in Jesus Christ(as) merely because believing in him results in the forgiveness of all sins. If someone were to stand up and claim that Christianity's doctrine attracts followers through the lure of reward, the response would be: your assumption is mistaken, because no Christian, no Hindu, and no follower of any religion accepts their faith out of desire for reward or fear of punishment. The prospect of paradise and hell after death does not, by itself, motivate human action in this world. People do not become righteous simply from the thought that they will have to enter heaven or hell. This does not mean that these concepts have no effect — rather, it means that they are not the primary means by which religion is initially accepted.
The first means by which religion is accepted is the conviction that God exists and that one must establish a relationship with Him. People are not drawn to righteous deeds merely through desire and fear. Consider: a person who does not believe in the existence of jinn — if you tell him not to take a certain path because a jinn with ten heads, fifty arms, and eyes like burning coals lives there, he will feel no fear whatsoever. On the other hand, a person who does believe in jinn — even if you tell him there is one with merely two heads and five arms — will be frightened. Thus, while the notion has crept into Muslim thinking — following the example of other religions — that the punishment of hell is eternal and that one can never escape it, there is in reality no basis for this in the Quran or Hadith. And yet, despite the vivid descriptions of hellfire and paradise that Muslim preachers present, these depictions have no practical effect on the conduct of Muslims. This is because mere ideas cannot influence conduct unless they are transformed into deep conviction. And when conviction does arise, it will be said that a person acts not out of desire or fear, but out of yaqeen — certainty.
Thus, obedience to God comes from love. This is why God has kept punishment hidden. One who wishes to compel people to act through fear does not conceal punishment — rather, he administers it visibly. God's concealment of paradise and hell is not because He intends people to be drawn toward Him by these means; rather, He conceals them so that sanctity (taqdees) may be cultivated within people. The governance of heaven, therefore, is born of love. The governance of God's manifestations — that is, the Prophets — and of their manifestations — that is, the Caliphs and Reformers — has its foundation in love. It then becomes manifest through deeds. Whoever seeks in deeds the compulsion of the sword is ignorant of God's governance, which is founded on love. Accepting by the sword is not part of God's governance. God does wield a sword, but it is a hidden sword that has no connection with the outward world. God's sword is concealed. Likewise, people accept God's Prophets through love, not through compulsion. For example, when Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddiq(ra) accepted the Holy Prophet(sa), he did so through love — no desire for gain or fear of the sword played any part in it. It was the love of truth that drew Hazrat Abu Bakr(ra) forward. In contrast, Abu Jahl refused. Neither fear nor desire would move him; rather, he believed — we seek God's refuge from this statement — that he could crush Muhammad(sa). The persecutions visited upon the Muslims bear witness to his intentions.
Therefore, the reward and punishment for accepting or rejecting God and His Prophets is concealed. The pain of opposing them and the reward of accepting them — both are hidden. The worldly wise consider it inconceivable that rejecting the Prophets can cause them any harm, or that accepting them can bring them any reward. Thus, from God's side, the paradise and hell of the Prophets are kept hidden, so that the relationship formed with them is based purely on love. The same is true of those who serve as the successors of the Prophets. No doubt someone might say: the Prophets also had swords — David(as) had a sword, Solomon(as) had a sword. Yes, certain Prophets did possess swords, but this was related to matters of statecraft, not to matters of faith and spirituality. These Prophets were kings, and kingship compelled them to employ the sword as well, because they were obliged to impose worldly punishments in order to maintain peace. For instance, someone commits theft — our Sharia prescribes the cutting off of the hand for this crime. Yet it never occurred once that the sword was used on account of a person's rejection of the Holy Prophet(sa). So if the sword was given, its use pertained to political and administrative matters.
The physical punishments prescribed by the Sharia relate to political governance and administration. But religion has to do purely with love and sanctity. Observe that despite the existence of kingship, the sword was never used in matters of the spirit — which proves that the sword belongs to statecraft, not to religion. Thus the divine governance that manifests in spiritual matters is not founded on compulsion but on love. Political governance is conducted through compulsion. The distinguishing mark between religious and worldly governance is precisely this quality of love and the impulse of love. To overlook this distinction — which religious governance holds in the form of love — and still await compulsion in religious matters is a grave error and a deception. Whoever falls into it does not understand God's governance, which is established through love. Such a person waits for compulsion to come upon him before he obeys God. But the obedience of such a person is of no use. The punishment for rejecting God's Prophets is not the sword. Yes, in worldly governance, the punishment for rebellion is the sword. Therefore, religion is not established through punishment but through love and sanctity.
Love is that affection which is born of love itself, and sanctity is that attachment one has toward another. Until a person possesses this yearning and this attachment, his obedience in religion is not acceptable. Sanctity draws sanctity. A person becomes a friend of another only through attachment, and love grows through attachment alone. When a person feels within himself love and attachment for God, he takes steps toward God — and this is sanctity. In God's affairs, a person can only be regarded as righteous — and his claim to love God can only be a welcome one — when his obedience to God, His Messengers, and His Caliphs is rendered through personal sanctity. The human self is limited, and God's Being is unlimited. Without sanctity, no relationship is possible. The Holy Prophet(sa) has said that whoever experiences the joy (bashaashat) of faith entering his heart will never turn away from truth in any manner.¹ Yet many people are so heedless that they cannot taste this sweetness. In religious governance, the punishments that exist carry no element of revenge in them. Therefore, those who wait in anticipation of what punishment they might receive for not performing a certain deed, or who wonder what anyone can do to them, are ignorant of spiritual love, and there is a deficiency in their faith.
I cannot elaborate on this matter at greater length, as I have already spoken beyond what I had intended. And for the wise, a hint is sufficient. May Allah grant you all the tawfiq (strength) to understand the true nature of religion, to know what He requires of you, and to refrain from verbal disputes, so that faith may enter your hearts.
Funeral Prayers
When Huzoor rose for the second sermon, he announced: Today I will offer three funeral prayers (janazah).
The first is the janazah of Muhammad Hussain Sahib Havaldar, who at one time studied at Madrasa Ahmadiyya. He passed away in a place where there was no one else to offer his funeral prayer.
The second is the janazah of the mother of Syed Bishaarat Ahmad Sahib. Despite belonging to a nobleman's family (nawab khandaan), her piety and righteousness had a profound influence on the entire family. She upheld the dignity of Ahmadiyyat in the face of opposition and became a means of guidance for many.
The third is the janazah of our brother Ahmad, who was in Calicut, Malabar. His brother Muhammad has visited Qadian several times and he too had visited. He was a righteous man. The community there was not of sufficient number to offer his funeral prayer. Let all present offer his funeral prayer and supplicate for him.
(Al-Fazl, January 18, 1924)
Footnotes
¹ This is a reference to the hadith narrated by Anas ibn Malik(ra): the Holy Prophet(sa) said, "Whoever possesses the following three qualities will have the sweetness (halawa) of faith: the one to whom Allah and His Messenger become dearer than anything else; who loves a person only for Allah's sake; and who hates to revert to disbelief after Allah has saved him, just as he would hate to be thrown into fire." — Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 16
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