Documents of the Right Word

ARTICLE II
THE PROOF OF MUHAMMAD’S
(’alaihi ’s-salâm) PROPHETHOOD
Deeds and events carry a number of benefits that are so
beyond the comprehension of the intellect, that it sometimes even
denies these benefits. We shall deal with the evidences proving
the existence of these benefits. Some medicines kill some people
when they are given in small doses, while they do not harm others
even when they are given in much greater amounts. [1]
Many
people do not believe this, though it is a fact established by
experience. They even attempt to prove to the contrary. So did
the ancient Greek philosophers and worshippers of matter, who
denied the existence of Prophets and put forward some reasons
for their disbelief. Supposing the information about Allâhu ta’âlâ,
Prophets, genies, angels, Paradise and Hell to be like the things
that can be comprehended by their intellect, they denied their
own suppositions. If you attempt to describe dreaming to a
person who has never dreamt and add, “Man sometimes gets into
a state in which all his senses, reason and thoughts are suspended;
in this state he sees things the intellect cannot grasp,” he will not
believe it; he will say that it is impossible. If he is told, “There is a
small thing in this world which, when put in a city, will consume
the entire city. Then it will consume itself,” he will answer that it
is impossible. However, these words describe fire. Those who
deny the heavenly religions and life in the Hereafter resemble
him. They believe and take the necessary precautions when a
scientist of doubtful trustworthiness says, out of supposition and
suspicion, that a catastrophe is impending; but they do not believe
the dangers in this world and the next as foretold by Prophets,
whose truthfulness is well-known and who have dislayed many
mu’jizas. They do not take any measures in order to escape
indescribably bitter and eternal torment. They liken ’ibâdât, the
[1] Examples of these are given in the (Turkish) book Se’âdet-i-ebediyye;
refer to ‘idiosyncrasy’ and ‘allergy’.
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