Ghazzali's Alchemy of Happiness. 



119 



lusts of the world ; the second is the fire of shame, igno- 

 miny and reproach ; and the third is the fire of exclusion 

 from the beauty of the one Lord. These fires only burn 

 the soul and do not touch the body. 



There is in the world a cause or source of each kind of 

 torment. Then let us examine the cause of the fire of se- 

 paration from the lusts of the world. In explaining pre- 

 viously the torments of the grave, we said that they arose 

 from love of the world. Love and desire constitute the 

 Paradise of the heart. So long as the heart is with its be- 

 loved object, it is in paradise, and as soon as the heart is 

 separated from its beloved object, it is in hell. The men 

 of this world, by their supreme love of the world, have 

 made it to be their beloved object, and as long as they are 

 in the world it is a real paradise to them ; but as soon as 

 death comes and separates them from their beloved, their 

 state is a real hell to them. Believers, by loving God and 

 the future world, have made them their best beloved, and 

 as long as they are separated from them they are in hell. 

 But as soon as this separation is annihilated, and they leave 

 this world and go to the other, having attained their chief 

 purpose and desire, they are in paradise in reality. 



Suppose a person, a prince, had been passing his life in 

 banqueting and pleasure, and every one around him had 

 been submissive and obedient to his orders. But an enemy 

 comes and deprives him of his principality, enslaves bis 

 wife and servants, and they plunder him of his money and 

 property before his eyes. His pearls and jewels are wasted 

 upon trifles, and his beautiful studs of horses and his re- 

 tinue are dispersed. He b.ecomes a subject in his own city, 

 is compelled to wear coarse clothing in the presence of his 

 former servants, and is appointed to guard and feed the 

 dogs. Can you in any wise appreciate the misfortune into 

 which the prince has fallen, and how deeply he must be a 

 prey to anguish ? Probably he exclaims many times in a 



