Those who lost their own souls

 

Silently the angel walked. It was easy for him to read the minds of those who were being dragged into the fire of Hell.

 

Among the leading personalities of this group was the king who had disputed with Ibrahim (Abraham) about his Lord. The king was recalling his meeting with Ibrahim, as this meeting was

a crucial point in his life. It was also the cause of his being among the most notorious criminals who were now being dragged by the angels to the fire of Hell.

 

Being very distinguished and distinctive in the world of crime and delusion those criminals were worthy of being dragged to a similarly distinguished and distinct fire, which is called Saqar.

 

The king was now recalling the whole situation from the beginning. The story began from the moment he had deified himself and pretended to be a god. He then heard of Ibrahim, the man who was calling people to worship Allah the One and Only, the only true God of all mankind. It was a new and a strange idea for the king and so he summoned Ibrahim.

 

Ibrahim confidently said, "My Lord is the One Who gives life and causes death."

 

And here the king arrogantly said, "I can give life and I can cause death."

 

How foolish and stupid he was! The king was now thinking of this on his way to the fire of Hell.

 

Ibrahim had a stronger proof and he had said, 4Verily! Allah causes the sun t0 rise from the east; then cause it you to rise from the west.)

 

The king remembered very well how he had been utterly I defeated that day and how false and fragile his argument appeared to be but despite this he had insisted on his false pretence of divinity. Ibrahim had exposed him but his vanity and arrogance prevented him from listening to the voice of reason and from admitting his mistake and so his end was in Hell.

 

In the end the king believed himself to be the loser. He ruled for only twenty years then he became sick and died. The twenty years now appeared to be nothing beside the eternity that he Would have to spend in the fire of Hell.

 

Regret was eating up his heart. How could he have been so foolish in life! He was now so wretched as there was no hope to fix anything today. The time for second chances was finished and now the time of punishment had begun.

 

Al-Walid ibn Al-Mughirah was another eminent personality among this group. He was thinking of what had happened to him in his worldly life. The Quraysh had wanted to have his opinion about some of the Qur'anic verses and the question was clear and definite, "Are those verses the words of mankind or the words of Allah, the Almighty?"

 

Al-Walid flattered the Quraysh and falsely said that the verses were merely the result of magic practiced by human beings. His verdict completely satisfied the Quraysh but unfortunately it led al-Walid himself directly to Saqar.