Page 14 - The Secret Behind Our Trials

THE SECRET BEHIND OUR TRIALS
and that everyone must work hard to attain the life of the Hereafter:
The world is a guest-house, and as for man, he remains there only a short
time. He is a guest with many duties and in a brief lifetime is charged

with preparing all the necessities for eternal life. 2
Bediuzzaman describes the shortness of human life as a tem-
porary visit and, in another example, says that "human beings, like
animals, have been given existence to perpetuate their life in the
world." He then adds:
O my soul and my friend! Come to your senses! Do not spend the capital
and potentialities of your life on pleasures of the flesh and this fleeting life
like an animal, or even lower. Otherwise, although you are fifty times su-
perior with regard to capital than the highest animal, you will fall fifty
times lower than the lowest. 3
As he says, human beings are endowed with such superior
qualities as intelligence, conscience, and common sense. Thus, the
purpose of their creation is clearly not to chase after the temporary
pleasures of this short and highly deficient worldy life, but to attain
the beauty of eternity by using their superior qualities to pass the
tests in this world.
People are tested according to how they respond to what they
encounter in the world, as well as how they exercise their moral
characters and intentions. It is definitely not enough for them to say
"I believe"; rather, they must show their faith through their actions
and words. On the Day of Judgment, everything they have done,
both public and private, will be revealed and they will have to give
a detailed account. While doing so, they will not suffer any injustice,
for the Qur'an says "They will not be wronged by so much as the
smallest speck." (Surat an-Nisa', 49). Those whose good deeds
weigh heavy in the balance will be received into the eternal beauties

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