ভূমিকা

A Mu'min ought to realize that whatever God decrees for him, irrespective of poverty and affluence, life and death, sickness and soundness of health, are for his good. Since God is Wise and Aware of the wellbeing of His servants, whatever He decrees is in their best interests. If one comes to acquire a firm conviction in the divine Wisdom and Prudence, sorrow would dissipate from the hearts, happiness would enter into the lives and none would have any anxiety with respect to one’s livelihood.

Fetters upon the Feet Muhammad Mahlabi, a minister relates: Once before I became a minister, I had embarked on a journey by ship from Basrah to Baghdad. Amongst the others in the ship was person who was very frivolous and jocose. In jest, his friends bound his feet by means of chains. However, a little later when they wanted to remove the chains, to their horror they realized they were unable to do so.

When we reached Baghdad, we called for a blacksmith in order to cut the chains, but he refused saying: I cannot do this without the order of the judge. The inmates of the ship proceeded to approach the judge and narrating the entire episode, requested him to instruct the blacksmith to cut the chains. At that juncture a youth happened to enter the gathering; looking angrily at the person in chains, he said: Are you not such and such person, who, in Basrah had killed my brother and escaped?

It has been some time now that I have been in search of you. He then brought some people of Basrah, who testified before the judge. The judge, on the basis of the testimony of the witnesses, put the person to death as a retaliation punishment for the murder committed by him.