Note: The Alislam Team assumes full responsibility for any errors or inaccuracies in this translation of the Friday Sermon.

The True Well-Wisher Is God Alone

Friday Sermon delivered by Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad (ra) Khalifatul Masih II July 13, 1923

Topics: God as True Well-Wisher, Wisdom Behind Unanswered Prayers, Wise vs. Foolish Love, Parenting Analogy, Dangers of False Expectations from Prayer

After reciting Tashahhud, Ta'awwuz, and Surah Al-Fatihah, Huzoor (ra) said:

Two Kinds of Well-Wishers in the World

In the world, there are two kinds of well-wishers. One kind is such that despite their desire for the good of the one they love, their actions always end up causing harm to the one they love. The reason for this is that they cannot bear the temporary distress of their beloved — and because of this, they actually end up harming their loved ones. This is why people have said: "A wise enemy is better than a foolish friend." Because a wise enemy inflicts harm with calculation, and he fears the risk of his own disgrace — but a foolish friend has no thought of caution. He neither fears the blame of people, nor does it occur to him that he will be disgraced or that he will suffer any loss. Such a person is harmful to his loved ones.

The Example of Foolish Parents

In the world, how much parents are well-wishers of their children — yet they too ruin their children. For example, if a teacher has punished a boy at school, the parents, out of consideration for this temporary distress, remove the child from school. It is a separate question whether the teacher's beating was permissible or not — but they remove the child from school and deprive him of education. However, wise parents do not do this. They never remove their child from school. Rather, they devise some other way to protect the child from being beaten.

Similarly, some parents do not like their children to sleep less or to face any difficulty regarding food and drink. And parents who call themselves Muslim do not even wake their children for Salat. The result is that such children become indulgent, heedless, and lacking in ambition. Resilience is not developed in them.

Likewise, some parents want their children to eat well. Then when the children steal, the parents do not stop them — and when they grow up, they become thieves and people of bad character. So when parents, out of love, say nothing to the child, the opposite harm results — because those very children, when they grow up, curse their parents, saying: "Our parents neither taught us knowledge, nor cared for our morals, nor looked after our conduct."

The Example of Wise Parents

But there are also parents who look after every matter concerning their children. They do not cover up their children's offenses — rather, they sometimes even punish them and make them hardworking. Such parents are well-wishers in terms of the outcome. To the onlooker, it may appear that they do not love the child — yet in reality, they are the true well-wishers. They are not like ill-wishing parents. Looking after children and correcting them is the true well-wishing, and in terms of outcome as well, this alone is the real well-wishing.

God Is the True Well-Wisher — Not Like Foolish Parents

So there are two kinds of well-wishers in the world: those whose hearts contain true well-wishing, and those who are temporary well-wishers but are, in reality, ill-wishers.

Allah the Almighty is also a well-wisher of His servants — and a true well-wisher. He is not a well-wisher like foolish parents; rather, He exercises true well-wishing.

Some people say: "God did not accept our prayers." But parents too do not comply with every demand of their children — yet no one says of them: "These parents never agree to anything their children say, and they have no love for their children."

The Rejection of Some Prayers Is Itself a Form of Acceptance

In the same way, God Almighty — who is the true well-wisher — does not grant some of the requests of His servants, because the non-acceptance of some requests is, in reality, their acceptance — since in their non-acceptance lies benefit, and in their acceptance lies harm. The purpose of prayer is to receive benefit. So sometimes the non-acceptance of a prayer is to the servant's benefit — and at such a time, the non-acceptance of the prayer is a sign that God is his well-wisher. Conversely, accepting such a prayer would indicate that God does not have a relationship of well-wishing with him.

So when a person prays for something harmful, the non-occurrence of that thing is the acceptance of his prayer.

Examples of Harmful Prayers Being Wisely Refused

Sometimes it happens that a person prays for employment, but that employment is in reality harmful to him — because it is possible that he may come under an officer who would dismiss him from service. Or sometimes it happens that a person, upon becoming wealthy, becomes heedless of religion. A person who remembers God during physical hardship but becomes negligent of God during comfort — if he continues to remember God while remaining in physical hardship, that is better for him than being in ease and comfort and becoming heedless of God. Because the physical hardship is only for a few days, but in exchange for it, he will receive comfort forever.

So just as a moment's incision of the lancet brings about comfort, in the same way, such hardships also bring about comfort.

God Is Not Like Foolish Parents Who Give Sweets to the Sick Child

So God Almighty is not like foolish parents. Sometimes a child has pain in his intestines — which is a form of tuberculosis. That child, in his pain, asks for sweets, and foolish parents give him sweets, which are extremely harmful. Regarding God — who is the Knower of the Unseen — to hold the expectation that He agrees to everything is foolishness.

Is God, the All-Wise, not even like foolish parents who do not comply with some of their children's requests? People see that parents refuse some of their children's demands and sometimes even punish them — but they do not say of them: "They never agree to anything their children say." Yet regarding God Almighty, they readily declare: "Why does He not agree to everything?"

So God — who is the Knower of the Unseen — how can He agree to every single request of His servant? God Almighty has no concern with accepting every request of His servant, even if it be harmful. But He certainly does care that He should not agree to such a request of the servant that would bring him harm or cause his destruction.

The Danger of Believing Every Prayer Must Be Accepted

Some people become lax in their prayers because some of their prayers were not accepted. Regarding parents, they do not say that parents accept everything a child says — but regarding God, they hold the assumption that He listens to and accepts every prayer of His servants. And if God rejects any prayer of theirs, they say: "That's it — there is no God at all! If God existed, He would certainly have answered our prayer."

The result is that their enthusiasm for prayer cools down. They no longer have any fervor for future prayers — and some people even become atheists.

Regarding one person, I always had the apprehension that sooner or later he would stumble — because his belief was that every prayer is accepted. Therefore, I feared that whenever any prayer of his was not accepted, he would certainly stumble. And that is exactly what happened.

So because of this false assumption, many people stumble. Therefore, always remember that God Almighty is not like foolish parents who agree to everything. He acts like wise parents — rather, even beyond them, and with even greater wisdom.

So remember this point, so that you may never stumble in the matter of prayers.

(Al-Fazl, July 20, 1923)