M6:1667 — هر کجا آیی تو در جنگی فراز / بینی آنجا دو عدو در کشف راز

Translation: Wherever you come forth into a battle, You will see two adversaries in the unveiling of secrets. Meaning: This verse asserts that in any conflict, adversaries inevitably reveal each other's hidden secrets. Mowlana considers this phenomenon a miniature example of the Day of Judgment and the divine unveiling of concealed truths.

Mowlana, in this verse, points to a profound and subtle truth that intimately links human destiny with divine providence. He opens a parenthesis within the tale of the thieving tailor and the overconfident Turk—who boasts that no one can steal from him—to arrive at a universal principle.

I contend that Mowlana here reveals the Day of Judgment, not in its grand, ultimate manifestation, but in its smaller, everyday guises. The Holy Quran describes one of the characteristics of Qiyāmah as «Yawmu Tablā as-Sarāʾir» (the Day when secrets are unveiled). Mowlana suggests that if you wish to see a glimpse of that Day, you need not look to a distant future; it suffices to observe a quarrel or conflict between two individuals. When two people engage in a dispute, their first instinct is to expose each other's hidden secrets. Each lays bare the flaws, deficiencies, and disgraces of the other; this very scene is a miniature Day of Judgment, a public «kashf-i rāz» (revelation of secrets).

When Mowlana states, «And that secret-telling throat, consider it the trumpet (sūr)», he makes a direct reference to the Trumpet of Isrāfīl on the Day of Judgment. Just as Isrāfīl's trumpet announces the commencement of the Last Day, the throat of the one who reveals secrets during a conflict does the same; it declares, 'Here, Judgment Day has arrived!' This is a matchless simile, equating a social phenomenon with a cosmic event.

But why does this occur? Mowlana attributes this to divine providence, stating: «For God has prepared the causes of wrath / And cast forth those disgraces into the street.» This implies that sometimes God Himself orchestrates the conditions for anger and conflict so that secrets that must be exposed are indeed revealed. Mowlana articulates this point more clearly elsewhere: «When God desires to tear someone's veil / He inclines him to slander the pure.» That is, if God wishes to expose someone's honor and reveal their disgrace, He guides them towards slandering others. The natural consequence of such an act is that their own veil is torn.

This serves as a serious warning to all of us. What transpires in conflicts and revelations of secrets is not merely a human action; it can be the manifestation of a greater will. Therefore, let us beware of slandering and exposing the secrets of others, for this itself might be a means by which our own hidden secrets are brought to light. God is Sattār (the Concealer of faults), but if we transgress and tear down veils ourselves, that very Sattār God will transform into a Ghammaz (informer) and reveal our secrets.

Key takeaways

• Conflicts and the revelation of secrets within them are miniature manifestations of «Yawmu Tablā as-Sarāʾir» (the Day when secrets are unveiled).
• The exposure of secrets in disputes often occurs by divine will to manifest hidden truths.
• The gossip-monger or secret-revealer in a conflict acts as the 'Trumpet of Isrāfīl,' announcing a localized Judgment Day.
• If God wills to expose someone, He inclines them to slander others, leading to their own exposure.
• God is Sattār (the Concealer), but if a person crosses the line in unveiling others' faults, He will become Ghammaz (the Informer) for them.