Chapter II: Foundation of Belief
(8) To believe in the other words. It is to attest to the prophethood of Muhammad. God sent the unlettered Quraishite Prophet Mahammad as an apostle to all the Arabs and non- Arabs, to the jinn and men and by his law he abrogated all other laws. He gave him superiority to all other Prophets and made him leader of mankind and did not make complete any faith with the words of Tauhid till it was followed by the attestation that Muhammad is His servant and apostle. He made compusolory to believe whatever he said about this world and the next world. He does not accept the faith of a man unless he believes in these articles of faith along with the following.
(a) To believe in Munkar and Nakir. They are two terrible angles. They will make the dead one sit up with his soul and body and ask him about his religion and his Prophet. This is the first examination after death, (b) To believe in the punishment of grave as true, (c) to, believe in the Balance with two scales and a tongue the magnitude of which is like the stages of heaven and earth. Therewith the actions of men will be weighed. The weight would be like a mote or mustard seed to establish exact justice, (d) To believe in the Bridge. It is a bridge stretched ever Hell, sharper than the edge of the sword and thinner than a hair. The feet of the unbelievers will slip and they will fall down into Hell.
The feet of the believers will be firm upon it by the Grace of God and so they will cross it to paradise, (e) To believe in the Fountain. It is a fountain of the Prophet. The believers will take drink from it and enter paradise after crossing the bridge.
Whoever will drink therefrom once will never be thirsty. Its water "will be whiter than milk and sweeter than honey. There wiH be so many pitchers around like so many stars in firmament.
102 THE BOOK OF WORSHIP Vol-I
(f) To believe in the judgment. Some will render little account, some great and some will enter paradise without account. They will be in the neighborhood of God. Those who believe in Tauhid will come out of Hell after their due punishment in Hell, (g) To believe in the intercession of the Prophets then the learned, then the martyrs, then the rest of the believers. They will have the right of intercession in proportion to their ranks to God. (h) To believe in the goodness of the companions, first of Abu Bakr, then of Omar, then of Osman and then of Ali. You will have good idea about them and praise them as God and His Apostle praised them.
EXCELLENCE OF BELIEF