-
Ghazali_Letters_To_Statemen, page : 45
power could to Muslims. The world is a prison and these men of the world are its
prisoners. How strange that prisoners should revel in misery? Whosoever prides himself
upon this world is lowly; he who is rich is in fact poor and he whose power rests upon it
is frail. The Holy Prophet, praise and peace be upon him, said: "Allah will inflict
punishment on those who worship wealth and wear expensive clothing." It is a
17
characteristic of the spirit to hoard wealth and to adore decoration of the exterior in all
phenomena. This is a curtain that closes to the heart to all perceptions of the unknown.
The second group of men, the wise, compare this world to the next, and prefer the latter
to the former. The true meaning of the following verse in the Holy Koran says: "But the
Hereafter is better, and more enduring." Koran, Chapter 87 verse 17. They attain a
higher position by discarding the world by occupying themselves with the Hereafter, for
their ideal lies in the next world which is higher, more honorable and lasting. They will
be satisfied with whatever they get in the next world, yet they are not enlightened on the
mysteries of Divine affairs, which is indeed a pity.
prisoners. How strange that prisoners should revel in misery? Whosoever prides himself
upon this world is lowly; he who is rich is in fact poor and he whose power rests upon it
is frail. The Holy Prophet, praise and peace be upon him, said: "Allah will inflict
punishment on those who worship wealth and wear expensive clothing." It is a
17
characteristic of the spirit to hoard wealth and to adore decoration of the exterior in all
phenomena. This is a curtain that closes to the heart to all perceptions of the unknown.
The second group of men, the wise, compare this world to the next, and prefer the latter
to the former. The true meaning of the following verse in the Holy Koran says: "But the
Hereafter is better, and more enduring." Koran, Chapter 87 verse 17. They attain a
higher position by discarding the world by occupying themselves with the Hereafter, for
their ideal lies in the next world which is higher, more honorable and lasting. They will
be satisfied with whatever they get in the next world, yet they are not enlightened on the
mysteries of Divine affairs, which is indeed a pity.