JANUARY 14
The News of an Earthquake
On June 21, 1990, the north-western part of Iran was hit by an earthquake so severe in its intensity that it left 80,000 dead and 200,000 injured in its wake. A comment frequently heard at that time was that this was God’s chastisement on the Iranians.
Such remarks are absurd. Any tragedy befalling this world is designed to make God’s servants tremble in fear of their Maker, and are not occasions for righteous castigation of supposed wrongdoers. The truth is that this earthquake related neither to Iran’s iniquity nor to God’s chastisement. An earthquake is a geophysical event; it is meant as a lesson for everyone, and not just for the people of Iran, or any other country for that matter.
Every severe earthquake causes a similar amount of devastation. According to the Times of India of June 23, 1990, not a single house in the affected area had been left standing. In reality, an earthquake’s true significance lies in its being a reminder of Qiamat (Doomsday). What happens before, during and after an earthquake is simply a miniature version of what will actually happen on a horrendous scale on the Day of Reckoning.
God has built this world as a temporary testing ground. When this period of trial is over, God will cause a severe earthquake to take place. Under its impact all structures will collapse, all bastions of human greatness will simply vanish from the face of the earth, and civilization as we know it will cease to exist. Then God, in His omnipotence, will create a new world in which He will reward each of His creatures according to his or her deeds.
The correct attitude to natural calamities is that one should learn a lesson from them. Attributing them to the misdeeds of others will only bring down God’s wrath upon one’s own head.
