The Inhabitants of Paradise

P

aradise is for those, and those alone, who reject all material forms of greatness in order to assert the majesty of Almighty God, who empty their hearts of every other affection and enshrine God therein.

Paradise is for the just, not the cruel, the humble, not the haughty. He who mistreats and degrades others, even when he has grounds for complaint against them forfeits the right to enter Paradise. Plotting to destroy others with whom one is on bad terms and taking delight only in one’s own honour and esteem can close the gates of Paradise to one forever. Neither is one fit for Paradise if one’s feelings of love and attachment are wounded by criticism of anyone other than God; for Paradise is the domain of those chaste souls who reserve their adoration for God alone, who delight in hearing God’s praise and find solace in the sight of God’s majesty.

No one who is blind to the truth can enter Paradise, for Paradise is for those alone who associate themselves so closely with the truth that they never fail to see falsehood and reality for what they truly are.