Page 45 - The Importance of Following the Good Word

These whose eyes would otherwise seem to be able to see,
and whose ears can hear, are, in actuality, blind and deaf, in
the Qur'anic senses of the terms. Specifically, with the verse,
"It is not their eyes which are blind but the hearts in their
breasts which are blind." (Surat al-Hajj, 46), Allah declares
the spiritual blindness of their hearts. This is, however, a
grave incapacity brought about by Allah in those who deny
His religion. In return for their arrogance and disbelief, Allah
has disabled their intelligence and taken away their ability to
comprehend. For this reason, they can never understand the
message, despite being able to hear it. In another verse, Allah
relates this condition of the disbelievers as follows:
Some of them listen to you but We have placed covers
on their hearts, preventing them from understanding
it, and heaviness in their ears. Though they see every
Sign, they still have no faith…(Surat al-An`am, 25)
For this reason, Allah has announced that calling such
people to moral excellence is little different from calling one
who is dead:
You will not make dead men hear and you will not
make deaf men hear the call when they turn their
backs in flight. You will not guide blind men out of
their error. You will not make anyone hear except for
those who believe in Our Signs and so are Muslims.
(Surat an-Naml, 80-81)
Being incapable of seeing what is in front of him, failing
to hear and comprehend what he sees and listens to, in other
words, being sealed of heart, is the ultimate recompense for
disbelief. However, disbelievers persist in their aggressive-
ness, rebellion and insolence, without recognizing that such

Complying with the Good Word 43