The Second Forbidden Tree

will be enabled to think realistically about their affairs and plan their actions in a far better and result-oriented way. Chapter 2 of the Quran tells us of the way of God for man. It reads: “ We shall certainly test you with fear and hunger, and loss of property, lives and crops. Give good news to those who endure with fortitude, who say, when afflicted with a calamity, ‘We belong to God and to Him we shall return,’ They are the ones who will have blessings and mercy from their Lord: it is they who are on the right path!” (2:155-57) The system of the present world is designed in such a way that here man suffers all kinds of losses. These losses are apparently occasioned by the wrongdoings of others. That is why it generally happens that those afflicted by loss hold some person or group responsible and then make them the objects of their hatred. This hatred sometimes escalates into violence. But such thinking is against the way of God, that is why violence born of hatred does not yield any positive result to the perpetrator. The right way to deal with this situation is not to lay the blame for loss at the door of others. Instead, one should engage in introspection. When reflecting upon the losses of this world, the Hereafter must also be remembered. Indeed, these losses should be taken as a divine warning and an attempt should be made to reform oneself. If such losses are seen and accepted as parts of the system of nature established by God Himself, then positive thinking will ensue. Man will be saved from falling a prey to frustration because of any adversity he suffers, and he will plan his future anew, learning lessons from past events instead of becoming embittered by them. Everyone may be born to die, but it is a must for the living to keep thoughts of death in abeyance. Every gain at some time or the other turns into loss. In such matters it is necessary for man to forget whatever has been lost, just as he keeps thoughts of the dead out of his mind. This is no simple matter. It is a fact that when one thing is lost, hundreds and thousands of things are still available to man. In such a situation, man pays a very heavy price for not forgetting what is lost: that is, he is deprived of the true feeling of gratitude. He tends to forget that sorrowing for what is lost is responsible for depriving him of true gratitude for the things he already has. By giving importance to the small loss of this world we run the risk of incurring a very great loss in the Hereafter. By allowing temporary loss to suppress The Second Forbidden Tree