Introduction to the Author:
Dr. Qudsi Rizvi is currently a Visiting Faculty in the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology Allahabad. He has been actively engaged in teaching, evaluation and content development for more than eight years. His area of interest lies in English Literature (Feminism, Psychoanalysis, Gender studies), Philosophy, English Language (Grammar, Language Lab, Soft Skills) and Human Values & Professional Ethics. He has been active in poetry/prose writing and has published his works in various bi-refereed reputed international journals.
Faith is the Answer
After the burial wash, the waiting pall bearers carried the corpse of the ‘Age of Ignorance’ to the graveyard of history. The air of the graveyard was calm and the inhabitants silent. After the departure of the followers, the graveyard soon got imbued with remarks, murmurs and condolences. But the Age of Ignorance lay listless, eyes wide open, a look of pain had congealed upon the face. What had happened? Death! No, never. How could she be dead? She had never thought of her demise. Not such a humiliating one! Thoughts and visions came pouring in with the sting of severe pain and lashings. She was so oblivious of the stark reality; she was so drunk that her vision was blurred. She could now recall and see her follies, her tyranny and her despotism, her indulging in debased pleasures of various kinds. She had become dark and had remained slave of darkness. She could never penetrate the layers of darkness as her consciousness was being benumbed and weakened. She was utterly deceived! “This very darkness had promised me youth and immortality”, she could recall. But the darkness itself engulfed her and annihilated her. She was foolish and unaware of the dangers which prevailed as a result of her slavery. The dark authority had been so cruel and despotic. She had made lust and debauchery rampant in the society. Everywhere there were pleasures, greed, intoxication, luxuries and wealth to suit various nefarious tastes. It was then a gala time for the children of dark forces to enjoy and feel free. It was the freedom of body over soul, of materialism over spiritual ideals. She remembered how she had butchered those remnants of the Light, the followers of that Unseen Reality, the people of Faith! Darkness engulfed and ate up everyone, had blocked every divine passage. But it was the gravest folly. There remained some, very scanty in number, who still had connections with the Unseen and who still would strengthen their souls and had controlled over their material self.
The Age of Ignorance became majestic and powerful in due course of time and thought there was no place for the Divine Light to spread. But it was the fatal illusion that she believed in and anchored upon. She could easily see into those times when the few frail and suffering people of faith were subjected to mountains of inexorable pain and trauma. But never for a moment was their faith wavered, nor did they ever complain to their Lord about the hell they were being subjected to and thrown into. She now could see the erroneous theories of historical materialism and evolution crumbling down. What was that which gave those fistful of torn, dejected, frail, mocked and poor people to stand bravely and rely upon their faith and not submit and surrender to the dark forces? What was that which made them so powerful internally so that they suffered huge sufferings and tyranny without broken or bought? Why could not any temptation in the form of wealth, power, lust, greed and authority deceived and astray them? The atheists and the rejecters of the Divine Faith & Religion knew very well and were dumbfounded! The more the amount of sufferings, the greater would be the intensity of faith. O! How their children were axed, how their women trampled upon and toyed! How they were tortured to the gravest degree but astonishingly they did not for a moment even pause to rethink! They would thank their Lord despite being too frail to pray and despite such sufferings and pains! And their Lord was very near to them, He was regularly oiling their lamps of faith that shone so brightly and fought so valiantly with the deceptive, strong, black winds of darkness.