The Teachings of Islam
Who Should Preach?
~ 41 ~
WHO SHOULD PREACH?
A sage once said that the desire to preach should
have the same compulsive quality about it as the
desire to satisfy any other normal human urge.
Preaching is not like playing a record; nor should it
be aimed at eliciting applause from an appreciative
audience. Preaching is an externalisation of inner
conviction. It is communication to others of a
discovered reality; to be a living witness to a truth
long hidden from people’s eyes. This does not mean
just putting a few words together; it is an extremely
difficult task. One can only accomplish this task
when one feels so desperate an urge to convey one’s
message that one is ready in the process to face
unpopularity and self-sacrifice.
The same applies to writing. Before putting pen to
paper, one should study so much that knowledge of
itself starts overflowing from one’s mind. It is only
after sifting through all the available material on
any relevant topic, and feeling an irresistible urge to
add something of one’s own, that one should begin
to write. Those who write without experience or
inspiration are only defacing the paper on which
