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When Life Begins ---------
ahead of him. Saleh had understood my feelings and he felt it was
necessary to explain:
“Indeed, they are the angels of punishment…”
“And they are there to beat me up and cleanse me of my sins?” I
interrupted him in mid-sentence.
He chuckled on hearing my words and replied:
“Remember, if you were to be beaten up, running away would not
help. No one can match the pace and might of these angels. For your
information, they are not standing here to beat you up. They are here
only to discourage any criminal of God from coming this way.”
As we approached them, they separated in two groups to make way
for us. They also moved their whips behind them as a gesture of
kindness. I hoped that they would smile or show expression of joy on
seeing us, but despite my best efforts, I could not detect any such
expression. Saleh commented:
“One of the reasons for their presence here is to make you
appreciate the blessing of God that has saved you from angels like
them.”
Words of praise for the Lord flowed from my lips involuntarily.
Having passed through the angels, we approached the door and it
opened automatically. As soon as that happened, I saw a picturesque
view. The land beyond appeared to be especially blessed by the Divine
Throne. I could feel pleasant cold winds seeping through my core while
an aroma of enchanting fragrances enthralled me. As we entered
through the door, I saw rows after rows of angels in front of us. They
were attractive and their faces were adorned with beautiful smiles.
They stood in reverential attentiveness with their hands held together
in front. As we passed through them, they greeted us with prayers,
salaam, and welcoming words. I could feel the warmth of their
genuinely welcoming behaviour deep inside my soul; the fragrances
emanating from their bodies were overwhelming my emotions.
When I entered that place, I felt the sensation of an extraordinary
change within me. However, at that time all my attention was focused
on the angels and the pleasant environment around. Hence, I did not
pay much attention to it and attributed it to a change in the
environment.
As we walked along, a thought came to my mind. I whispered in
Saleh’s ear:
“I can appreciate that these people are welcoming me because they
regard me as a person who has succeeded but I do not know them
personally. Are you acquainted with any of them?”
Saleh laughed on hearing this and replied:
“Abdullah, today every person will be recognised by what shows on
his forehead. You may not be aware of it but your whole introduction is
recorded there. Just watch what happens next.”
A handsome angel, who stood at the end of the row and appeared
to be their leader, came to me and greeted me, calling me by my name.
I greeted him in reply. He then spoke in a soft and affectionate tone:
“Congratulations on ever-lasting success!”
I thanked him; he asked:
“Would you like to have a look in the mirror?”
I could not fathom whether he was serious or was trying to be
humorous, as I could not find any reason to look in the mirror. He did
not wait for my reply and signalled to an angel. The next moment, there
was a full-length mirror in front of me. I looked at it and became sure
that it was some sort of a practical joke as this was not a mirror. Rather,
it looked like an extremely beautiful and life-like portrait of a handsome
young man; in fact, he was more of a prince standing dressed in regal
attire. However, it was painted so well that it looked like a real man
standing in front of the mirror.
I looked at the angel and said smilingly:
“You have a good sense of humour but the painting is even better.
You seem to be its painter, but who is the model?”
The angel replied soberly:
“The real painter is ‘
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