THE SIXTY-FIFTH DISCOURSE On the prohibition of resenting Allah for deferring response to supplication

Why are you angry with your Lord on account of delay in the acceptance of your prayers? You say that you have been forbidden to ask of people and have been commanded to ask of Him and that while you pray to Him, He does not respond to your prayer. My reply to you is: "Are you a free man or are you a bondman?" If you say you are a free man, you are an unbeliever. And if you say you are a slave, I should ask you: Are you finding fault with your master on account of delay in the acceptance of your prayer and are you entertaining doubt concerning His wisdom and His mercy with regard to you and the whole of the creation and in His knowledge of all their affairs? Or are you not finding fault with Him? If you do not blame Him and acknowledge His wisdom and purpose and sense of practical necessity in your case in delaying the acceptance of prayer, it is incumbent on you to be thankful to Him because He has adopted the best procedure for you and a thing which is a blessing and which prevents harm. And if you are blaming Him in this matter, you are an unbeliever on account of your finding fault with Him because thereby you are ascribing to Him injustice whereas He is not in the least unjust to His servants. He does not admit of any injustice and it is impossible for Him to be unjust, seeing that He is your Master, the Master of everything; and the Master has the fullest control over his possession to the measure of his liking. So the term "injustice" is not applicable to Him because forsooth an unjust person is he who interferes in the possession of another person without the latter's permission. So, do not give way to resentment against Him in His action manifesting itself through you, even if it goes against your liking and against the desires of your self and even though outwardly it may be injurious to you. So it is incumbent on you that you should adopt thankfulness and patience and concord and pleasure with Him and should renounce resentment and accusation and the attitude of disobedience of your mind and its desires — things that will lead you astray from the path of God. It is also incumbent on you to persist in prayers and in the sincerity of solicitation, and in entertaining good notion about your Lord and in waiting for better times, and in having faith in His promise and in exhibiting modesty in your attitude towards Him, and in showing accord with His commandment and in guarding His unity, and in your quickness in carrying out His orders and in keeping away from indulging in things He has prohibited, and in assuming the position of a dead man at the time of the manifestation of His decree with regard to you and of His act in respect of you. If it is unavoidable that you should cast blame and be lacking in confidence at all cost, then to blame your own self which by its very nature commands evil and disobedience to its Lord, the Mighty, the Glorious, is better than the other course. Your ascribing injustice to this self of yours is more proper than your ascribing it to your Lord. So beware of being in accord with your own self and of being friendly with it and of being pleased with its action and its word in all conditions, because it is the enemy of God and your enemy, is a friend of the enemy of God and your enemy, that is, the accursed devil. It is the vicegerent of the devil and its spy and is sincerely devoted to him. So fear God and again fear God! Beware! Make good your escape! make good your escape! Accuse your own self and ascribe injustice to it and read to it the word of God: Why should Allah chastise you if you are grateful and believe? (4:147) Also the following words: This is for that what your own hands have sent before, and because Allah is not in the least unjust to the servants (3:181) Also remind it of these words of God: Surely Allah wrongs not men in aught, but men wrong themselves (10:44) Read to yourself these words and other verses of the Qur'an to this effect and also the sayings of the Holy Prophet. Be at war with your own self for the sake of God. Be inimical to it on His behalf and fight with it and try to kill it and be a commander of His forces and army, because your self is the greatest enemy among the enemies of God. God has said: "O David, discard your desire because there is no one who disputes with Me in My possession except the desire of man."