Article appeared Friday, May 16th, 2014 in The News Today, Bangladesh

The Revelation !2"# yo$s$% &ah'$'$l (sla&, )h*

+ow &$ch wealth wo$ld p$rchase )aradise, -an the wealth that one has gathered 'e $sed to
'$y a place in )aradise, .hat a strange /$estion0 B$t is it, There are two no$ns in the
/$estion 1 one is wealth and the other is )aradise2 (s there a relationship 'etween the two, To
help $s $nderstand, the 3a&aican singer, songwriter, g$itarist and activist Bo' Marley 1445 1
1461# {1} sang the %ollowing words7
*on8t gain the .orld 9 lose yo$r so$l, wisdo& is 'etter than silver or gold2 {2}
.e are generally engrossed in &atters o% &oney 1 how to ac/$ire:&a;e &ore &oney, s&all tal;
a'o$t who is &a;ing how &$ch, how to avoid spending too &$ch, rising in%lation, the e<or'itant
cost o% good things, how to &a;e ends &eet, etc. Money &atters generally en=oy the highest
priority in o$r lives2 .ith o$r tho$ghts loc;ed with s$ch concerns, do we overloo; the val$e o%
the gi%t o% li%e that we have, *o we %orget to 'e grate%$l %or what we have, >n the contrary,
?ig&$nd Fre$d 1656 1 14!4# {3} arg$ed that we are not only pre@occ$pied with s$ch &atters,
'$t that we also &eas$re o$r stat$s in ter&s o% &oney and power7
(t is i&possi'le to escape the i&pression that people co&&only $se %alse standards o%
&eas$re&ent A that they see; power, s$ccess and wealth %or the&selves and ad&ire
the& in others, and that they $nderesti&ate what is o% tr$e val$e in li%e2 {2}
?o a co&&on standard o% &eas$re&ent is 'y what others have in ter&s o% power, s$ccess and
wealth2 .ith the added di&ensions o% power and s$ccess in addition to wealth, the /$estion that
this article started with can 'e &odi%ied7 can power, s$ccess and:or wealth '$y a place in
)aradise, .hat e<actly is )aradise, (s it an island so&ewhere on earth, (s it a %eeling that we
wo$ld 'e in paradise when we have eno$gh wealth, >r is it a place o% reward in the li%e a%ter
death %or those who please the -reator, To $nderstand, let $s eval$ate a prayer o% )rophet
?olo&on p'$h#, /$oted in the B$rCan, the &ost recent and %inal Revelation %ro& the -reator7
DMy Eord, ena'le &e to 'e grate%$l %or Fo$r %avor which Fo$ have 'estowed $pon &e
and $pon &y parents and do righteo$sness that wo$ld please Fo$2 And ad&it &e 'y
Fo$r Mercy to the ran;s o% Fo$r righteo$s servants2 G2"214H
.hy did )rophet ?olo&on wish to 'e grate%$l, .hy did he as; %or the a'ility to 'e grate%$l,
.ho is it that gives a'ility, .hy did he wish to do things to please the -reator, *oes the prayer
o% ?olo&on re%lect a correct $nderstanding o% who the -reator is and the relationship 'etween
+i& and the gi%t o% li%e and the %avors that we are en=oying, It is when we demonstrate gratitude
to the Creator that we acknowledge Him and establish belief. (% we are $ngrate%$l %or the gi%ts o%
li%e we in e%%ect de&onstrate arrogance and dis'elie%2 In=oying the %avors given 'y the -reator
and 'eing $ngrate%$l is tanta&o$nt to transgression as pointed o$t 'y the -reator in the B$rCan7
And the *ay those who dis'elieved are e<posed to the Fire it will 'e said to the&#7
JFo$ received the good things o% li%e o% the world and e<ha$sted yo$r pleas$res o$t o%
the&, so this *ay yo$ will 'e awarded the p$nish&ent o% e<tre&e# h$&iliation7 'eca$se
yo$ were arrogant $pon the earth witho$t right and 'eca$se yo$ were de%iantly
diso'edient i.e. yo$ transgressed repeatedly#2 G46220H
(t is the right o% the -reator to 'e ac;nowledged %or the gi%ts that +e has lavishly 'estowed on
$s2 Those who ac;nowledge +i& will 'e granted the %$rther gi%t o% )aradise2 The alternative %or
the arrogant and $ngrate%$l is the Fire o% +ell2 >$r li%e on earth presents:o%%ers a choice 1
whether to 'e grate%$l or $ngrate%$l2 (n case we %ind the concepts o% the *ay o% 3$dg&ent and
a%terli%e di%%ic$lt to digest, the -reator as;s $s to consider what happened to the generations
'e%ore o$r ti&e2
As was in the case o% generations 'e%ore yo$ 1 they were &ightier than yo$ in power
and &ore %lo$rishing in wealth and children2 They had en=oy&ent o% li%e given to the&7
and yo$ are en=oying li%e as they did 'e%ore yo$K and yo$ ind$lge in idle tal; =$st as they
did2 Their wor;s are %r$itless in this world and in the +erea%ter and they will lose all
spirit$al good#2 G4264H
Lenerations in the past who si&ilarly were $ngrate%$l and diso'edient were co&pletely
destroyed, i.e. there are no s$rviving descendants o% s$ch people2 They, in %act, had &ore
power and %lo$rished in wealth and children2 +owever, there are no s$rviving generations to 'e
%o$nd, as they were co&pletely destroyed2 The -reator there%ore as;s,
9.70 Has not the story of those before them, reached? The peope of !oah, and
"the tr#bes of$ %ad and Tham&d and the peope of %braham, and the d'eers of
(adyan and the to'ns o)ert&rned? To them came the#r messen*ers '#th cear
proofs. +t #s not %ah 'ho 'ron*s them, b&t they 'ron* the#r o'n so&s.
.hen archeologists e<cavate they %ind re&ains o% civiliMations who have no s$rvivors le%t, yet at
one ti&e they were %lo$rishing in wealth and children2 >ne &eaning o% Novert$rnedO can 'e
$nderstood %ro& the %act that these cities are %o$nd $nder several layers o% earth0 ?o the
-reator en=oins those who wish to 'e grate%$l help each other $nderstand the p$rpose o% li%e
and %ind ways to please +i&2
9.71 The be#e)ers men and 'omen are protectors of one another, they en-o#n
'hat #s -&st and forb#d 'hat #s e)#, they obser)e re*&ar prayers pract#ce re*&ar
char#ty and obey %ah and H#s %poste. .n them '# %ah po&r H#s (ercy, for
%ah #s /0ated #n 1o'er, 2#se.
The Perse a'ove spells o$t the visi'le characteristics o% 'elievers2 To the grate%$l, i.e. those
who de&onstrate 'elie%, the -reator pro&ises )aradise2 The %ollowing Perse contains a 'rie%
description o% )aradise2
9.72 %ah has prom#sed to be#e)ers, men and 'omen, *ardens &nder 'h#ch
r#)ers fo', to d'e there#n '#th bea&t#f& mans#ons #n *ardens of e)erast#n*
b#ss. 3&t the *reatest b#ss #s #n the 4ood 1eas&re of %ah, that #s the s&preme
fe#c#ty.
@@@@@@@@
{!otes}7
{1} http7::www2goodreads2co&:a$thor:show:252412Bo'QMarley
{2} http7::www2goodreads2co&:/$otes:tag:wealth
{3} http7::www2goodreads2co&:a$thor:show:1001"2?ig&$ndQFre$d