The miraculous explanations of Paradise and Hell contained in the Wise Qur'an, and the proofs of the existence of Paradise and Hell to be found in the Risale-i Nur, which is a commentary upon the Qur'an and derived from it, leave no need for further clarification.
They reflect on the creation of the heavens and earth, saying, "O our Sustainer! Indeed You have nol created this in vain; Glory be unto You; and protect us from the torment of the Fire.'"⁶ * О our Sustainer! Avert from us the torment of Hell; indeed its torment is a grievous affliction, and evil it is as a resting-place and abod.⁷
The content of numerous verses such as the above, the frequent use by the Most Noble Messenger (Upon whom be peace and blessings) and all the prophets and people of the truth of phrases such as: Protect us from the Fire; deliver us f rom the Fire; save us from the Fire, in their prayers and their repetiton of the plea "Preserve us from Hell" because of certainty based on visible revelation — all of this shows that the greatest concern of man is to escape the torment of Hell. Hell is an imperious, majestic and awesome truth for all beings; some, the people of witnessing, uncovering and realization, observe it directly, and others perceive only its traces and shadows, and awestruck by these, cry out "Deliver us!" Yes, the opposition and interaction throughout the cosmos of good and evil, pleasure and pain, heat and cold, beauty and ugliness, guidance and misguidance, is inspired by great and wise purpose. Were there no evil, good could not be known. Were there no pain, pleasure could not be perceived. Were there no darkness, light would have no value. Degrees of heat can be established only by reference to cold. By means of ugliness, the essence of beauty, as well as its thousand degrees, comes into being. So too without Hell, many of the pleasures of Paradise would remain unknown, and in general it can be said that everything is made known by its opposite, and that from one truth, numerous truths blossom forth and emerge.
Now all of the complex phenomena that exist must depart from the transient realm for the realm of eternity. Things such as good, pleasure, light, beauty and faith are directed by their nature to Paradise, and harmful substances such as evil, pain, darkness, ugliness and unbelief are
discharged into Hell. The torrents that ceaselessly pour forth from all beings flow into these two pools, and come to rest there. We will curtail our discussion of this matter here, referring the reader to the points made at the end of the Twenty-Ninth Word.
О fellow pupils of mine in this Josephian school! An easy way to escape from the awesome and eternal prison of Hell is now made available to us. We may make use of our imprisonment in this world by seeking forgiveness for our past sins (being in any event compelled to refrain from committing new sins), by performing our fundamental religious duties, by turning every hour of our life in prison into a day spent in worship, and thus come to save ourselves from eternal imprisonment and enter Paradise. If we squander this opportunity, we will weep both in this world and in the Hereafter; and the verse:
He has lost this world and the Hereafter.⁸
will be like a blow descending upon us.
While these lines were being written the Festival of Sacrifice arrived, and it occurred to me, with absolute certainty, that the utterance of "Allahu akbar, Alláhu akbar, Alláhu akbar" by one fifth of humanity; the proclamation of "God is Most Great!" by three hundred million people; the re-echoing of this sacred phrase —God is Most Great.'— by the vast earth, in a manner proportionate to its size, as if to convey the cry to its companions, the planets traversing the heavens; the proclamation "God is Most Great! " at Arafat, on the day of the Festival, by more than twenty thousand pilgrims; the utterance and propagation of this great phrase —God is Most Great!— by the Most Noble Messenger (Upon whom be peace and blessings), together with his Family and Companions, thirteen hundred years ago —it occurred to me that these manifold declarations of "God is Most Great!" are like an echo of the universal manifestation of the Divine dominicality that is proclaimed under the title of Sustainer of the Earth and Sustainer of All the Worlds, like a cosmic response of worship and servitude to that manifestation.
It then occurred to me that this sacred phrase might have some connection with the topic we are discussing. Suddenly it crossed my mind that all the sacred phrases that are called "permanent good deeds," headed by God is Most Great! and including. Glory be to God! and All praise be to God! and There is no god but God! do indeed contain an indication of our topic and its realization.
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6. Qur'an, 3:191.
7. Qur'an. 25:65.
8. Qur'an, 22:11