4. TWO DAYS IN NIZAMUDDIN

4. TWO DAYS IN NIZAMUDDIN ~ 119 ~ today, nature and tradition shape the personalities of almost 99 percent of the people. Those who are born Muslims have an extra element in their favour; that is, they are brought up in the Muslim tradition, and in most cases they are imparted religious education in their childhood. At an unconscious level, at least, the religious outlook has a firm hold upon them. They might outwardly appear irreligious but, owing to the nature and tradition that they have inherited, in their inner selves, almost all are Islamic. The hold is usually upon their feelings and not upon their beliefs. That is why they respond to the impassioned appeals made by the missionaries. They hear the details of heaven and hell, their hearts are moved, the chords of their inner feelings are struck by means of prayer, even avowedly irreligious people break down and cry, deeply touched. Their appeal may not be endowed with reason, but it has an ecstatic value in it. And gradually the unconscious self comes to dominate when it is regularly exposed to such voices and is reborn. The greatest secret of success of the Tabligh mission lies in their exploiting the inherent emotional basis rather than attempting to