Surah 63: al-Munāfiqūn
63:1 When the hypocrites come to thee they say, “We bear witness that thou art indeed the Messenger of God.”
On the first day in the era of the Beginningless He sent the diver of power into the ocean of Adam's loins to bring out the night-brightening pearls and the black beads to the shore of existence. There were both faithful and hypocrites, and just as He brought forth the faithful, so also He brought forth the hypocrites. But with His bounty He brought the faithful and kept them at the front of the hall of exaltedness on the carpet of gentleness, without bias; and with His justice He kept the hypocrites in the back with the shoes beneath the carpet of severity and abasement, without iniquity. He placed the crown of felicity on the heads of the faithful, and their portion of the Book was this: “So rejoice in your sale you have made to Him” [9:111]. He placed the bonds of abasement and the shackles of degradation on the feet of the hypocrites, and their portion of the Book came to be this: “Die in your rage!” [3:119]. This is why the Lord of the Worlds says, “Those-their portion of the Book will reach them” [7:37]. About the faithful He says, “in a seat of truthfulness, at an Omnipotent King” [54:55], and about the hypocrites He says, “in the lowest reach of the Fire” [4:145].
Be as your luck lets you be,
I'll be as my lot allows.
Tomorrow in the courtyards of the resurrection the hypocrites will ride on the coattails of the faithful and will go with their brightness until they reach the Narrow Path. Then the faithful will go ahead and cross over the bridge with the light of their faith and self-purification. The unbelief and hypocrisy of the hypocrites will seize their skirts so that they remain in darkness and bewilderment. They will call out, “Wait for us so that we may borrow some of your light” [57:13]. They will ask for light and brightness from the faithful, but the faithful will respond, “Turn you back behind and request a light” [57:13], that is, “'Turn back to the decree of the Beginningless and seek light from the apportioning.' Seek for the light from the decree of the Beginningless, not from us.”
Anyone who is given light was given it on that day. Anyone left aside was left aside on that day. And he to whom God assigns no light has no light. [24:40]. When God desires ugliness for a people, none can repel it [13:11]. “Surely a man may do the deeds of the folk of the Garden while in God's eyes he is one of the folk of the Fire, or he may do the deeds of the folk of the Fire while in God's eyes he is one of the folk of the Garden.” In fear of this station, the hearts and livers of all the great ones of the Tariqah have burned. He put into effect what was precedent as He knew, and He laid down the outcome as He wanted. How many seclusions of the great ones has He struck with fire! How many haystacks of obedience has He given to the wind! How many livers of the sincerely truthful has He ground to dust under the millstone of the decree!
There are thousands upon thousands of realms in this road, but the portion of the ill-fortuned is nothing but dismissal. When wretchedness turns its face toward a man, he may have filled earth and heaven with striving, but that will have no profit for him.
Do not suppose that wretchedness lies in unbelief. On the contrary, unbelief lies in wretchedness. And do not suppose that felicity lies in the religion. On the contrary, the religion lies in felicity. The dog of the Companions of the Cave had the vileness of unbelief, and the robe of Balaam Beor had the embroidery of the religion. But felicity and wretchedness were waiting in ambush from both directions. When good fortune showed itself, that dog's hide covered Balaam's face, for it was said, “So his likeness is the likeness of a dog” [7:176]. And Balaam's cloak was put on that dog, for it was said, “They were three, and the fourth of them was their dog” [18:22]. The haystack of obedience is given over to the wind of unneediness at the moment of the soul's extraction, for We shall advance upon what work they have done and make it scattered dust [25:23]. There is many a flourishing breast that turns into ruins in the state of death's agonies, for there will appear to them from God that with which they had never reckoned [39:47]. There is many a face that is turned away from the kiblah in the grave. There is many a familiar called a stranger on the first night. To one it is said, “Sleep the sleep of a bride.” To another it is said, “Sleep the sleep of the ill-fated.” The explanation of one is Their mark is on their faces, the trace of the prostration [48:29]. The mark of the other is The offenders will be recognized by their mark [55:41]. “Do not be deluded by the praise of the people, for surely the outcome is obscure.”
My poor heart-it knows a lot,
but it falls short in knowledge of the outcome.