Page 70 - Why Do You Deceive Yourself ?

The Advantages of Sincerity

Over Self-Deception

hroughout eternity a person is tested only once and this pe-

riod of testing is made up, on average, of six or seven
T decades. A person's behavior during this testing period de-
termines the form of his eternal life. If someone spends this brief but
extremely important period in self-deception, he fails the test. The
truth is this: By deceiving himself, a person can neither change the
truth nor evade his responsibility. On the contrary, running away from
the truth works only against the person himself. At every moment
when he silences his conscience and tries to comfort himself with all
kinds of illusory excuses and rationalizations, he is really suffering a
terrible loss. Unless Allah wills it, the return for this lack of intelligence
will be a sorrow which can never be relieved.
Since this is the case, there is no need for self-deception. It is suffi-
cient to carry out one's duty of serving Allah with very clear knowl-
edge and care. This is possible if the person heeds the voice of his con-
science and conforms to Allah's Book. For a sincere believer, there is no