The ranks of transgressors have swelled while the ranks of the righteous have dwindled. Those who claim that they are undoubtedly steadfast on God’s religion—Islam—their hearts have been deadened by the toxins of sins. There is nothing left in their hands except the mere name of religion and they have become like animals. They have taken filthy things in exchange for the pure and shrouded their nature in darkness. They have disregarded the remembrance of Allah, for they are inclined towards the lower realm and sensual desires. So, as they turned away from the presence of God Almighty, their selves stagnated; and due to their relationship with unholy things, their natures inclined towards the luster of this world and material objects; hence, their greed, desire and craving for these grew manifold and their sensual desires landed them in sin. They inclined towards the mortal realm and its transient lustre. Whenever they desired abundance in this world and their greed for it grew, they always returned unsuccessful, humiliated and crushed, without having achieved their desires. These endeavours of theirs had no result except a decrease in provisions and repeated torture of their soul. Their lies, conspiracies and mischief in pursuit of this world did not benefit them in the least. God Almighty took away peace from their souls, removed tranquillity and the feeling of security from their hearts as they neglected the faith and went astray, so they were left languishing, in sorrow and apprehension. They no longer felt passion in prayer, nor pleasure in worship.
In summary, the people of the present age have become divided into two groups, both of which have been afflicted with specific maladies, in accordance with the will of the Lord of both worlds. The first are the Christians. You can see that they are intoxicated with this world and are like prisoners in their worship of a mortal. The second are the Muslims, who claim that they are righteous, even though most of them possess neither the sweetness of faith nor the knowledge of the Book of God Almighty, the Quran. They have strayed far away from acts of righteousness, wisdom and piety, and have turned away from the paths of prosperity towards the paths of viciousness. Their embers have turned to ashes and their righteousness has turned into mischief. They are inclined towards this wretched world, and, having previously tread the paths of piety for the sake of the Almighty Lord, have now stopped. They have abandoned the example of Abraham and instead adopted hellish paths. It is as if they have been shackled in the chains of Satan and drawn in his fetters. Having abandoned prayers, they have through their own hands, caused the mosques of God Almighty to become empty. The majesty of the call to prayer or the respect for the muezzin has evaporated from their eyes, for they do not hasten towards the mosques despite hearing the calls of the muezzin. They tell lies without any fear. They act dishonestly and do not fear God. They approach that which God has forbidden and do not shun it. They act immorally and do not stop. Their bellies are full of the unlawful and their tongues are polluted with falsehood. Their eyes fornicate and they do not fear the wrath of the All-Knowing God. Due to their evil deeds, they have become accomplices of the unbelievers, and have pleased Satan with their misguided ways. Honesty has disappeared from among them and faith has evaporated. There is no sin left that they have not committed, nor any crime that they have not been guilty of. They have abandoned the Quran and the commandments toward which it beckons, and have followed the Devil and his enticements. Like the Jews, they have become humiliated apes, whereas they used to be ferocious lions. This is why they have tasted humiliation after honour, and following days of sovereignty have become smitten with destitution. This chastisement is from the Lord of the worlds due to closed hearts and constricted chests. Woe betide these Muslims who have abandoned their religion for the sake of this world, and have preferred this mortal realm over the final abode! They loved mischief and turned against truth and righteousness. They forgot the example of those people who, out of their utmost obedience, accepted martyrdom sacrificing their selves wholeheartedly. Those were the people who watered the gardens of the religion with their blood, and, for the pleasure of their Maker, demolished the foundations of their very being. However, in this day and age, the world is filled with such people who have polluted themselves with the filth, garbage and refuse of the world. They have lost their piety and through a multitude of sins attracted the fury of their Lord. You can see that the hearts of most of them are enamoured with wealth, possessions and women. Their hearts have become hardened due to their love of silver and gold. They have wasted away their souls in anguish for this world, even after Islam and faith had illuminated their horizons. When they find some of their worldly matters in disarray, they are stricken with suppressed grief and anguish. Yet they do not care for their faith even if its pillars are demolished and its walls are torn down. They dislike adorning upon their bodies anything that may symbolise Islam and instead like to dress in the apparels of idolaters and infidels.
They have abandoned the obligations of prayer and fasting during Ramadan and despite hearing the call to prayer, do not attend the mosques. Indeed, many arrogant ones do not even like to leave their homes for the Eid Prayer; hence, apart from wearing new clothes, there is no practice left among them of the Islamic Eid. You will find that most of them have carried the water-skins of the heretics and follow the example of the infidels. They are under the illusion that the only way to get close to the government is through trickery, displays of pride and dissoluteness. After deliberation they have come to the conclusion that success lies in chicanery and deception. Therefore, they always remain in pursuit of this and like a hunter, lie in wait for an opportune moment.