4. Al Qasd Wal Ruju : Aim and return attributed to Al Muhasibi Part 4

الْقَصْدُ وَالرُّجُوعُ إِلَى اللّٰهِ

Al-Qaṣdu wa-al-Rujūʿu ʾilā Allāhi

Aiming for God and Returning to Him

نَصٌّ بَاقٍ مَنْسُوبٌ إِلَى الْحَارِثِ بْنِ أَسَدٍ الْمُحَاسِبِيِّ

Naṣṣun bāqin mansūbun ʾilā al-Ḥārithi bni ʾAsadin al-Muḥāsibiyyi

Surviving text attributed to al-Ḥārith ibn Asad al-Muḥāsibī

Source page 305

مَسْأَلَةٌ ٢٩

Masʾalatun 29

Question 29

فِي شَرْحِ مَحَبَّةِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لِلْعَبِيدِ

Fī sharḥi maḥabbati Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla li-al-ʿabīdi

Explaining the love of God, mighty and majestic, for His servants

قُلْتُ: رَحِمَكَ اللّٰهُ، إِنَّ عَلَامَةَ مَحَبَّةِ الْعَبْدِ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: مَرْضَاةُ اللّٰهِ، وَالتَّمَسُّكُ بِسُنَنِ رَسُولِ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَمَا عَلَامَةُ حُبِّ اللّٰهِ لِلْعَبْدِ؟

Qultu: raḥimaka Allāhu, ʾinna ʿalāmata maḥabbati al-ʿabdi li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla: marḍātu Allāhi, wa-al-tamassuku bisunani rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallama, fa-mā ʿalāmatu ḥubbi Allāhi li-al-ʿabdi?

I asked, “May God have mercy on you, the sign of a servant's love for God, mighty and majestic, is seeking God's pleasure and holding fast to the practices of the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace. What is the sign of God's love for the servant?”

قَالَ: مَا الَّذِي كَشَفَ لَكَ عَنْ هٰذَا؟

Qāla: mā alladhī kashafa laka ʿan hādhā?

He said, “What made this clear to you?”

قُلْتُ: قَالَ اللّٰهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: ﴿... إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللّٰهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللّٰهُ...﴾. فَعَلِمْتُ: أَنَّ عَلَامَةَ مَحَبَّةِ الْعَبْدِ لِلّٰهِ اتِّبَاعُ رَسُولِ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ. ثُمَّ قَالَ: ﴿... يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللّٰهُ...﴾. فَمَا عَلَامَةُ مَحَبَّةِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لِلْعَبْدِ؟

Qultu: qāla Allāhu ʿazza wa-jalla: ﴿... ʾIn kuntum tuḥibbūna Allāha fa-ittabiʿūnī yuḥbibkumu Allāhu...﴾. Fa-ʿalimtu: ʾanna ʿalāmata maḥabbati al-ʿabdi li-llāhi ittibāʿu rasūli Allāhi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallama. Thumma qāla: ﴿... Yuḥbibkumu Allāhu...﴾. Fa-mā ʿalāmatu maḥabbati Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla li-al-ʿabdi?

I said, “God, mighty and majestic, says, ‘...If you love God, follow me; God will love you...’ So I knew that the sign of a servant's love for God is following the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace. Then He says, ‘...God will love you...’ What is the sign of the love of God, mighty and majestic, for the servant?”

قَالَ: لَقَدْ سَأَلْتَ عَنْ عِلْمٍ رَصِينٍ، وَخَطَرٍ جَسِيمٍ، غَابَ عَنْ كَثِيرٍ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ فَهْمُهُ، نَعَمْ يَا فَتَى، إِنَّ عَلَامَةَ مَحَبَّةِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لِلْعَبْدِ: أَنْ يَتَوَلَّى سِيَاسَةَ هُمُومِهِ، فَتَكُونَ جَمِيعُ هُمُومِهِ هُوَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ الْمُسَيِّرَ لَهَا، فَهِيَ الْهُمُومُ الَّتِي لَا تَعْتَرِضُ عَلَيْهَا حَوَادِثُ الْقَوَاطِعِ، وَلَا سَبِيلَ لَهَا إِلَى التَّوَقُّفِ.

Qāla: laqad saʾalta ʿan ʿilmin raṣīnin, wa-khaṭarin jasīmin, ghāba ʿan kathīrin min ʾahli al-ʿilmi fahmuhu, naʿam yā fatā, ʾinna ʿalāmata maḥabbati Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla li-al-ʿabdi: ʾan yatawallā siyāsata humūmihi, fa-takūna jamīʿu humūmihi huwa ʿazza wa-jalla al-musayyira lahā, fa-hiya al-humūmu allatī lā taʿtariḍu ʿalayhā ḥawādithu al-qawāṭiʿi, wa-lā sabīla lahā ʾilā al-tawaqqufi.

He said, “You have asked about profound knowledge and a matter of immense importance that many people of learning have not understood. Yes, young man: the sign of the love of God, mighty and majestic, for the servant is that He takes charge of directing his concerns. All his concerns are guided by Him, mighty and majestic. These are concerns that no interrupting events obstruct and that have no path to a standstill.

فَأَخْلَاقُهُ عَلَى السَّمَاحَةِ، وَجَوَارِحُهُ عَلَى الْمُوَافَقَةِ تَصْرُخُ بِهِ، وَتَحُثُّهُ بِالزَّجْرِ وَالتَّهْدِيدِ.

Fa-ʾakhlāquhu ʿalā al-samāḥati, wa-jawāriḥuhu ʿalā al-muwāfaqati taṣrukhu bihi, wa-taḥuththuhu bi-al-zajri wa-al-tahdīdi.

“His character is marked by willingness, and his limbs by accord. They cry out to him and spur him on through rebuke and warning.”

Source page 306

قُلْتُ: مَا الدَّلِيلُ عَلَى ذٰلِكَ؟

Qultu: mā al-dalīlu ʿalā dhālika?

I asked, “What is the evidence for that?”

قَالَ: خَبَرُ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «إِذَا أَحَبَّ اللّٰهُ عَبْدًا جَعَلَ لَهُ وَاعِظًا مِنْ نَفْسِهِ، وَزَاجِرًا مِنْ قَلْبِهِ، يَأْمُرُهُ وَيَنْهَاهُ».

Qāla: khabaru al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallama: «ʾidhā ʾaḥabba Allāhu ʿabdan jaʿala lahu wāʿiẓan min nafsihi, wa-zājiran min qalbihi, yaʾmuruhu wa-yanhāhu».

He said, “The report of the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace: ‘When God loves a servant, He gives him an admonisher from within himself and a restrainer from his heart, commanding and forbidding him.’”

قُلْتُ: زِدْنِي مِنْ عَلَامَاتِهِ.

Qultu: zidnī min ʿalāmātihi.

I said, “Give me more of its signs.”

قَالَ: لَيْسَ شَيْءٌ أَحَبَّ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ أَدَاءِ فَرَائِضِهِ، بِمُسَارَعَةٍ مِنَ الْقَلْبِ وَالْجَوَارِحِ، وَالْمُحَافَظَةِ عَلَيْهَا.

Qāla: laysa shayʾun ʾaḥabba ʾilayhi min ʾadāʾi farāʾiḍihi, bimusāraʿatin mina al-qalbi wa-al-jawāriḥi, wa-al-muḥāfaẓati ʿalayhā.

He said, “Nothing is dearer to him than fulfilling his obligatory duties, with the heart and limbs hastening to perform them and carefully maintaining them.

ثُمَّ الْعَلَامَةُ بَعْدَ ذٰلِكَ: كَثْرَةُ النَّوَافِلِ، كَمَا قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «يَقُولُ اللّٰهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: مَا تَقَرَّبَ عَبْدِي إِلَيَّ بِشَيْءٍ أَحَبَّ إِلَيَّ مِمَّا افْتَرَضْتُهُ عَلَيْهِ، وَلَا يَزَالُ عَبْدِي يَتَقَرَّبُ إِلَيَّ بِالنَّوَافِلِ حَتَّى أُحِبَّهُ، فَإِذَا أَحْبَبْتُهُ كُنْتُ لَهُ سَمْعًا وَبَصَرًا، وَإِنْ دَعَانِي أَجَبْتُهُ، وَإِنْ سَأَلَنِي أَعْطَيْتُهُ».

Thumma al-ʿalāmatu baʿda dhālika: kathratu al-nawāfili, kamā qāla al-nabiyyu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallama: «yaqūlu Allāhu ʿazza wa-jalla: mā taqarraba ʿabdī ʾilayya bishayʾin ʾaḥabba ʾilayya mimmā iftaraḍtuhu ʿalayhi, wa-lā yazālu ʿabdī yataqarrabu ʾilayya bi-al-nawāfili ḥattā ʾuḥibbahu, fa-ʾidhā ʾaḥbabtuhu kuntu lahu samʿan wa-baṣaran, wa-ʾin daʿānī ʾajabtuhu, wa-ʾin saʾalanī ʾaʿṭaytuhu».

“The next sign is abundant voluntary worship. As the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: ‘God, mighty and majestic, says: My servant draws near to Me with nothing dearer to Me than what I have made obligatory for him. My servant continues to draw near to Me through voluntary acts until I love him. When I love him, I become hearing and sight for him. If he calls upon Me, I answer him; if he asks Me, I give to him.’”

قُلْتُ: صِفْ لِيَ الْآنَ مِنْ عَلَامَاتِ وُجُودِ قَلْبِهِ.

Qultu: ṣif liya al-ʾāna min ʿalāmāti wujūdi qalbihi.

I said, “Now describe some signs of what his heart experiences.”

قَالَ: نَفْسُهُ مَحْبُوسَةٌ فِي سِجْنِ الْمُلَاطَفَةِ، مَخْصُوصَةٌ بِعِلْمِ الْمُكَاشَفَةِ، مُتَلَذِّذٌ بِنَعِيمِ النَّظَرِ فِي مُشَاهَدَةِ الْغَيْبِ، وَحِجَابِ الْعِزِّ، وَرِفْقَةِ الْمَنَعَةِ.

Qāla: nafsuhu maḥbūsatun fī sijni al-mulāṭafati, makhṣūṣatun biʿilmi al-mukāshafati, mutaladhdhidhun binaʿīmi al-naẓari fī mushāhadati al-ghaybi, wa-ḥijābi al-ʿizzi, wa-rifqati al-manaʿati.

He said, “His self is held in the prison of gentle kindness, singled out for the knowledge of unveiling. He delights in the bliss of contemplation while witnessing the unseen, the veil of might, and the companionship of protection.

فَهِيَ الْقُلُوبُ الَّتِي أُسِرَتْ أَوْهَامُهَا بِعَجِيبِ إِنْفَاذِ إِتْقَانِ الصُّنْعِ، فَعِنْدَهَا تَصَاعَدَتْ فِي الْمُنَى، وَتَوَاتَرَتْ عَلَى جَوَارِحِهَا فَوَائِدُ الْغِنَى، فَانْقَطَعَتِ النُّفُوسُ عَنْ كُلِّ مَيْلٍ إِلَى دَاعِي رَاحَةٍ، وَانْزَعَجَتِ الْهُمُومُ وَفَرَّتْ مِنَ الرَّفَاهِيَةِ، فَنَعِمَتْ بِسَرَائِرِ الْهِدَايَةِ، وَغُذِّيَتْ بِلَطِيفِ الْكِفَايَةِ، وَأُرْسِلَتْ فِي رَوْضَةِ الْبَصِيرَةِ، فَأَحَلَّتِ الْقُلُوبَ مَحَلًّا نَظَرَتْ فِيهِ بِلَا عِيَانٍ، وَجَالَسَتْ بِلَا مُشَاهَدَةٍ، وَخُوطِبَتْ بِلَا مُشَافَهَةٍ.

Fa-hiya al-qulūbu allatī ʾusirat ʾawhāmuhā biʿajībi ʾinfādhi ʾitqāni al-ṣunʿi, fa-ʿindahā taṣāʿadat fī al-munā, wa-tawātarat ʿalā jawāriḥihā fawāʾidu al-ghinā, fa-inqaṭaʿati al-nufūsu ʿan kulli maylin ʾilā dāʿī rāḥatin, wa-inzaʿajati al-humūmu wa-farrat mina al-rafāhiyati, fa-naʿimat bisarāʾiri al-hidāyati, wa-ghudhdhiyat bilaṭīfi al-kifāyati, wa-ʾursilat fī rawḍati al-baṣīrati, fa-ʾaḥallati al-qulūba maḥallan naẓarat fīhi bilā ʿiyānin, wa-jālasat bilā mushāhadatin, wa-khūṭibat bilā mushāfahatin.

“These are hearts whose imaginations have been captured by the marvel of perfectly executed workmanship. They rise in their aspirations, and the benefits of sufficiency come successively upon their limbs. Selves break off every inclination toward an invitation to ease; concerns are roused and flee comfort. They delight in guidance's inward secrets, are nourished by subtle sufficiency, and are set free in the garden of insight. They bring hearts to a place where they look without physical seeing, sit in company without visible encounter, and are addressed without spoken conversation.

Source pages 306–307

فَهٰذِهِ يَا فَتَى صِفَةُ أَهْلِ مَحَبَّةِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْمُوَافَقَةِ وَالْحَيَاءِ، وَالرِّضَا وَالتَّوَكُّلِ، فَهُمُ الْأَبْرَارُ مِنَ الْعُمَّالِ، وَالزُّهَّادُ مِنَ الْعُلَمَاءِ، وَالْفُقَهَاءُ مِنَ الْحُكَمَاءِ، وَالْحُكَمَاءُ مِنَ النُّجَبَاءِ، وَهُمُ الْمُسَارِعُونَ مِنَ الْأَبْرَارِ، وَهُمْ رُعَاةُ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ، وَأَصْحَابُ صَفَاءِ التَّذْكَارِ، وَأَصْحَابُ الْفِكْرِ وَالِاعْتِبَارِ، وَأَصْحَابُ الْمِحَنِ وَالِاخْتِبَارِ، مَنْ أَسْعَدَهُمُ اللّٰهُ بِطَاعَتِهِ، وَحَفِظَهُمْ بِرِعَايَتِهِ، وَتَوَلَّاهُمْ بِسِيَاسَتِهِ، فَلَمْ تَشِذَّ لَهُمْ هِمَّةٌ وَلَمْ تَسْقُطْ لَهُمْ إِرَادَةٌ.

Fa-hādhihi yā fatā ṣifatu ʾahli maḥabbati Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla min ʾahli al-muwāfaqati wa-al-ḥayāʾi, wa-al-riḍā wa-al-tawakkuli, fa-humu al-ʾabrāru mina al-ʿummāli, wa-al-zuhhādu mina al-ʿulamāʾi, wa-al-fuqahāʾu mina al-ḥukamāʾi, wa-al-ḥukamāʾu mina al-nujabāʾi, wa-humu al-musāriʿūna mina al-ʾabrāri, wa-hum ruʿātu al-layli wa-al-nahāri, wa-ʾaṣḥābu ṣafāʾi al-tadhkāri, wa-ʾaṣḥābu al-fikri wa-al-iʿtibāri, wa-ʾaṣḥābu al-miḥani wa-al-ikhtibāri, man ʾasʿadahumu Allāhu biṭāʿatihi, wa-ḥafiẓahum biriʿāyatihi, wa-tawallāhum bisiyāsatihi, fa-lam tashidhdha lahum himmatun wa-lam tasquṭ lahum ʾirādatun.

“This, young man, describes those who belong to the love of God, mighty and majestic: people of accord, shame, contentment, and trust. They are the righteous among workers, the renunciants among scholars, the deeply understanding among the wise, and the wise among the noble. They are the swift among the righteous, guardians of night and day, people of pure remembrance, reflection and consideration, trials and testing. God has blessed them with obedience to Him, preserved them through His watchful care, and taken charge of directing them. No aspiration of theirs strays and no intention collapses.

Source page 307

هُمُومُهُمْ فِي الْجِدِّ وَالطَّلَبِ، وَأَرْوَاحُهُمْ فِي النَّجَاةِ وَالْقُرْبِ، يَسْتَقِلُّونَ الْكَثِيرَ مِنْ أَعْمَالِهِمْ، وَيَسْتَكْثِرُونَ الْقَلِيلَ مِنْ نِعَمِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، إِنْ أَنْعَمَ عَلَيْهِمْ شَكَرُوا، وَإِنْ مُنِعُوا صَبَرُوا.

Humūmuhum fī al-jiddi wa-al-ṭalabi, wa-ʾarwāḥuhum fī al-najāti wa-al-qurbi, yastaqillūna al-kathīra min ʾaʿmālihim, wa-yastakthirūna al-qalīla min niʿami Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, ʾin ʾanʿama ʿalayhim shakarū, wa-ʾin muniʿū ṣabarū.

“Their concerns are in earnest striving and seeking; their spirits are in salvation and nearness. They count many of their deeds as little and a little of the blessings of God, mighty and majestic, as much. If He favors them, they give thanks; if they are denied, they are patient.

يَكَادُ يَهِيجُ مِنْهُمْ صُرَاخُ الْأَحْزَانِ إِلَى مَوَاطِنِ الْخَلَوَاتِ، وَمَعَادِنِ الْعِبَرِ وَالْآيَاتِ وَالْحَسَرَاتِ، قُلُوبُهُمْ فِي تَرَدُّدٍ، وَخَوْفُ الْفِرَاقِ فِي صُدُورِهِمْ يَتَوَقَّدُ، أَذَاقَهُمُ اللّٰهُ طَعْمَ مَحَبَّتِهِ، وَنَعَّمَهُمْ بِدَوَامِ الْعُذُوبَةِ فِي مُنَاجَاتِهِ، فَقَطَعَهُمْ ذٰلِكَ عَنِ الشَّهَوَاتِ، وَجَانَبُوا اللَّذَّاتِ، وَدَامُوا فِي خِدْمَةِ مَلِكِ الْأَرْضِ وَالسَّمَوَاتِ.

Yakādu yahīju minhum ṣurākhu al-ʾaḥzāni ʾilā mawāṭini al-khalawāti, wa-maʿādini al-ʿibari wa-al-ʾāyāti wa-al-ḥasarāti, qulūbuhum fī taraddudin, wa-khawfu al-firāqi fī ṣudūrihim yatawaqqadu, ʾadhāqahumu Allāhu ṭaʿma maḥabbatihi, wa-naʿʿamahum bidawāmi al-ʿudhūbati fī munājātihi, fa-qaṭaʿahum dhālika ʿani al-shahawāti, wa-jānabū al-ladhdhāti, wa-dāmū fī khidmati maliki al-ʾarḍi wa-al-samāwāti.

“Cries of sorrow almost burst from them toward places of solitude, sources of lessons, signs, and regrets. Their hearts waver, and fear of separation burns in their breasts. God has given them a taste of His love and blessed them with continual sweetness in intimate prayer to Him. This cuts them off from appetites; they avoid pleasures and remain in the service of the King of earth and heavens.

قَدِ اعْتَقَدُوا الرِّضَا قَبْلَ وُقُوعِ الْقَضَاءِ، مُنْقَطِعِينَ عَنْ إِشَارَةِ النُّفُوسِ، مُنْكِرِينَ لِلْجَهْلِ الْمَأْسُوسِ، طَابَ وَاللّٰهِ عَيْشُهُمْ، وَدَامَ نَعِيمُهُمْ، فَعَيْشُهُمْ سَلِيمٌ، وَغِنَاهُمْ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مُقِيمٌ، كَأَنَّهُمْ نَظَرُوا بِأَبْصَارِ الْقُلُوبِ إِلَى مَحْجُوبِ الْغُيُوبِ، فَقَطَعُوا كُلَّ مَحْبُوبٍ، وَصَارَ اللّٰهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ هُوَ الْمُنَى وَالْمَطْلُوبَ.

Qadi iʿtaqadū al-riḍā qabla wuqūʿi al-qaḍāʾi, munqaṭiʿīna ʿan ʾishārati al-nufūsi, munkirīna li-al-jahli al-maʾsūsi, ṭāba wa-Allāhi ʿayshuhum, wa-dāma naʿīmuhum, fa-ʿayshuhum salīmun, wa-ghināhum fī qulūbihim muqīmun, kaʾannahum naẓarū bi-ʾabṣāri al-qulūbi ʾilā maḥjūbi al-ghuyūbi, fa-qaṭaʿū kulla maḥbūbin, wa-ṣāra Allāhu ʿazza wa-jalla huwa al-munā wa-al-maṭlūba.

“They resolve upon contentment before the decree arrives, cut off from the promptings of their selves and rejecting deep-rooted ignorance. By God, their life is good and their bliss endures. Their life is sound, and their wealth resides in their hearts. It is as though they have looked with the eyes of their hearts into the veiled unseen. They have severed every cherished attachment, and God, mighty and majestic, has become their aspiration and their goal.

دَعَاهُمْ إِلَيْهِ فَأَجَابُوهُ بِالْجِدِّ وَدَوَامِ السَّيْرِ، فَلَمْ يَقُمْ لَهُمُ اشْتِغَالٌ إِذَا اسْتَيْقَنُوا دَعْوَةَ الْجَبَّارِ. فَعِنْدَهَا غَابَتْ عَنْ قُلُوبِهِمْ أَسْبَابُ الْفِتْنَةِ بِدَوَاهِيهَا، وَظَهَرَتْ أَسْبَابُ الْمَعْرِفَةِ بِمَا فِيهَا، فَصَارَتْ مَطِيَّتُهُمْ إِلَيْهِ الرَّغْبَةَ، وَسَائِقُهُمُ الرَّهْبَةَ، وَحَادِيهِمُ الشَّوْقَ مِنَ الْمَحَبَّةِ، حَتَّى أَدْخَلَهُمْ فِي رِقِّ عُبُودِيَّتِهِ، وَبَصَّرَهُمْ عَظِيمَ رُبُوبِيَّتِهِ، فَلَيْسَ تَلْحَقُهُمْ فَتْرَةٌ فِي نِيَّةٍ، وَلَا وَهْنٌ فِي عَزْمَةٍ، وَلَا ضَعْفٌ فِي خِدْمَةٍ، وَلَا تَأْوِيلٌ فِي رُخْصَةٍ، وَلَا مَيْلٌ إِلَى دَوَاعِي غِرَّةٍ.

Daʿāhum ʾilayhi fa-ʾajābūhu bi-al-jiddi wa-dawāmi al-sayri, fa-lam yaqum lahumu ishtighālun ʾidhā istayqanū daʿwata al-jabbāri. Fa-ʿindahā ghābat ʿan qulūbihim ʾasbābu al-fitnati bidawāhīhā, wa-ẓaharat ʾasbābu al-maʿrifati bimā fīhā, fa-ṣārat maṭiyyatuhum ʾilayhi al-raghbata, wa-sāʾiquhumu al-rahbata, wa-ḥādīhimu al-shawqa mina al-maḥabbati, ḥattā ʾadkhalahum fī riqqi ʿubūdiyyatihi, wa-baṣṣarahum ʿaẓīma rubūbiyyatihi, fa-laysa talḥaquhum fatratun fī niyyatin, wa-lā wahnun fī ʿazmatin, wa-lā ḍaʿfun fī khidmatin, wa-lā taʾwīlun fī rukhṣatin, wa-lā maylun ʾilā dawāʿī ghirratin.

“He called them to Himself, and they answered with earnestness and unceasing travel. No preoccupation could stand in their way once they were certain of the Compeller's call. The causes of temptation and their calamities then disappeared from their hearts, and the means of knowledge appeared with all they contain. Their mount toward Him became longing, their driver dread, and their camel-song the yearning born of love, until He brought them into the bondage of His service and showed them the greatness of His lordship. They suffer no slackness of intention, weakening of resolve, frailty in service, interpretation seeking license, or inclination toward deceptive promptings.”

Source page 308

قُلْتُ: أَرَى هٰذَا مُرَادًا بِالْمَحَبَّةِ.

Qultu: ʾarā hādhā murādan bi-al-maḥabbati.

I said, “I see this as someone chosen for love.”

قَالَ: هٰذِهِ صِفَةُ الْمُرَادِينَ بِالْمَحَبَّةِ.

Qāla: hādhihi ṣifatu al-murādīna bi-al-maḥabbati.

He said, “This describes those chosen for love.”

قُلْتُ: كَيْفَ الْمِحَنُ عَلَى هٰؤُلَاءِ؟

Qultu: kayfa al-miḥanu ʿalā hāʾulāʾi?

I asked, “How do trials fall upon these people?”

قَالَ: سَهْلَةٌ فِي عِلْمِهَا، صَعْبَةٌ فِي اخْتِبَارِهَا، هَيِّنَةٌ فِي مُبَاشَرَتِهَا، فَمِحْنَتُهُمْ عَلَى قَدْرِ إِيمَانِهِمْ.

Qāla: sahlatun fī ʿilmihā, ṣaʿbatun fī ikhtibārihā, hayyinatun fī mubāsharatihā, fa-miḥnatuhum ʿalā qadri ʾīmānihim.

He said, “Easy to know, difficult to be tested by, light to undergo. Their trial is in proportion to their faith.”

قُلْتُ: مَنْ أَشَدُّهُمْ مِحَنًا؟

Qultu: man ʾashadduhum miḥanan?

I asked, “Which of them faces the severest trials?”

قَالَ: أَكْثَرُهُمْ مَعْرِفَةً، وَأَوَاهُمْ يَقِينًا، وَأَكْمَلُهُمْ إِيمَانًا، وَقَدْ قِيلَ فِي الْخَبَرِ: «أَكْثَرُ النَّاسِ بَلَاءً الْأَنْبِيَاءُ، ثُمَّ الْأَمْثَلُ فَالْأَمْثَلُ».

Qāla: ʾaktharuhum maʿrifatan, wa-ʾawāhum yaqīnan, wa-ʾakmaluhum ʾīmānan, wa-qad qīla fī al-khabari: «ʾaktharu al-nāsi balāʾan al-ʾanbiyāʾu, thumma al-ʾamthalu fa-al-ʾamthalu».

He said, “The most knowledgeable, [an unclear qualification] in certainty, and the most complete in faith. A report says, ‘The people most afflicted are the prophets, then those most like them, and then those most like them.’”

Source page 309

مَسْأَلَةٌ ٣٠

Masʾalatun 30

Question 30

فِي خَوْفِ الْمُحِبِّينَ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ

Fī khawfi al-muḥibbīna li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla

The fear of those who love God, mighty and majestic

قُلْتُ: هَلْ يَلْحَقُ الْمُحِبَّ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ خَوْفٌ؟

Qultu: hal yalḥaqu al-muḥibba li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla khawfun?

I asked, “Does fear come upon someone who loves God, mighty and majestic?”

قَالَ: نَعَمْ، لَا يَزُولُ عَنْهُمْ خَوْفُ عَذَابِ التَّقْصِيرِ.

Qāla: naʿam, lā yazūlu ʿanhum khawfu ʿadhābi al-taqṣīri.

He said, “Yes. Fear of punishment for falling short never leaves them.”

قُلْتُ: مَتَى حَلَّ هٰذَا بِقَلْبِهِ: فِي أَوَّلِ شَأْنِهِ، أَوْ فِي آخِرِ مَقَامِهِ؟

Qultu: matā ḥalla hādhā biqalbihi: fī ʾawwali shaʾnihi, ʾaw fī ʾākhiri maqāmihi?

I asked, “When does this settle in his heart: at the beginning of his path or at the culmination of his station?”

قَالَ: هٰذَا لَازِمٌ لَهُ كَمَا لَزِمَهُ الْإِيمَانُ، لَا يَزُولُ إِلَّا بِزَوَالِهِ، وَهٰذَا الْخَوْفُ هُوَ الَّذِي يَكُونُ فِي بِدَايَتِهِ، حَتَّى إِذَا صَارَ إِلَى خَوْفِ الْفَوْتِ، صَارَ إِلَى الْخَوْفِ الَّذِي يَكُونُ فِي أَعْلَا حَالٍ.

Qāla: hādhā lāzimun lahu kamā lazimahu al-ʾīmānu, lā yazūlu ʾillā bizawālihi, wa-hādhā al-khawfu huwa alladhī yakūnu fī bidāyatihi, ḥattā ʾidhā ṣāra ʾilā khawfi al-fawti, ṣāra ʾilā al-khawfi alladhī yakūnu fī ʾaʿlā ḥālin.

He said, “It remains with him as faith remains with him, and disappears only when faith disappears. This is the fear present at his beginning, until he reaches fear of loss and arrives at the fear belonging to the highest state.

فَكَانَ الْخَوْفُ الْأَوَّلُ يَطْرُقُهُ خَطَرَاتٍ، وَصَارَ خَوْفُ الْمَوْتِ وَطَنَاتٍ.

Fa-kāna al-khawfu al-ʾawwalu yaṭruquhu khaṭarātin, wa-ṣāra khawfu al-mawti waṭanātin.

“The first fear used to visit him as passing thoughts; fear of death [as printed, rather than the preceding ‘loss’] becomes settled dwelling places.”

قُلْتُ: كَيْفَ أَخَافُ مَنْ أُحِبُّهُ؟

Qultu: kayfa ʾakhāfu man ʾuḥibbuhu?

I asked, “How can I fear the One I love?”

Source pages 309–310

قَالَ: اِفْهَمْ عَنِّي وَيْحَكَ، وَاجْمَعْ هَمَّكَ لِلْجَوَابِ، إِنَّ الْمُحِبَّ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ يَعْلَمُ أَنَّ مَوْلَاهُ يُحِبُّ مِنْهُ الْخَوْفَ، فَلَزِمَهُ الْخَوْفُ ضَرُورَةً، لِأَنَّ اللّٰهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ يُحِبُّ مِنَ الْمُحِبِّينَ لَهُ الْخَوْفَ مِنْهُ، وَلَوْ لَمْ يَخَفِ الْمُحِبُّ اللّٰهَ لَمْ يَكُنْ مُوَافِقًا لَهُ سُبْحَانَهُ، لِأَنَّ الْمَحَبَّةَ اتِّبَاعُ مَحَابِّ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَلَوْ سَقَطَ عَنْهُ الْخَوْفُ وَقَعَ بِهِ الْأَمْنُ، وَدَخَلَ فِي الْمَحْظُورِ، لِأَنَّ الْأَمْنَ مَحْظُورٌ، لِأَنَّ اللّٰهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ يَقُولُ: ﴿... فَلَا يَأْمَنُ مَكْرَ اللّٰهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ﴾. وَلَوْ زَالَ الْخَوْفُ عَنْ قَلْبِهِ لَزَالَتِ الْمُرَاقَبَةُ مِنْهُ.

Qāla: ifham ʿannī wayḥaka, wa-ijmaʿ hammaka li-al-jawābi, ʾinna al-muḥibba li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla yaʿlamu ʾanna mawlāhu yuḥibbu minhu al-khawfa, fa-lazimahu al-khawfu ḍarūratan, li-ʾanna Allāha ʿazza wa-jalla yuḥibbu mina al-muḥibbīna lahu al-khawfa minhu, wa-law lam yakhafi al-muḥibbu Allāha lam yakun muwāfiqan lahu subḥānahu, li-ʾanna al-maḥabbata ittibāʿu maḥābbi Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, wa-law saqaṭa ʿanhu al-khawfu waqaʿa bihi al-ʾamnu, wa-dakhala fī al-maḥẓūri, li-ʾanna al-ʾamna maḥẓūrun, li-ʾanna Allāha ʿazza wa-jalla yaqūlu: ﴿... Fa-lā yaʾmanu makra Allāhi ʾillā al-qawmu al-khāsirūna﴾. Wa-law zāla al-khawfu ʿan qalbihi lazālati al-murāqabatu minhu.

He said, “Understand me, poor you, and gather your attention for the answer. Whoever loves God, mighty and majestic, knows that his Master loves fear from him; fear therefore becomes necessary for him. God, mighty and majestic, loves those who love Him to fear Him. If the lover did not fear God, he would not be in accord with Him, glory be to Him, for love is following what God, mighty and majestic, loves. If fear fell away, complacent security would arise, and he would enter what is forbidden, for complacent security is forbidden. God, mighty and majestic, says, ‘...None feels secure from God's devising except those who lose.’ If fear left his heart, watchfulness would leave him.”

Source page 310

قُلْتُ: الْحَالَةُ الَّتِي تَكْشِفُ لَهُمْ عَنْ قُلُوبِهِمْ شَدِيدَ الْخَوْفِ، وَكَثْرَةَ الْأَحْزَانِ، مَا هِيَ؟

Qultu: al-ḥālatu allatī takshifu lahum ʿan qulūbihim shadīda al-khawfi, wa-kathrata al-ʾaḥzāni, mā hiya?

I asked, “What state lifts intense fear and abundant sorrow from their hearts?”

قَالَ: الرَّجَاءُ بِحُسْنِ الظَّنِّ، لِمَعْرِفَتِهِمْ بِسَعَةِ فَضْلِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَأَمَلُ النَّظَرِ إِلَى ذِي الْكِبْرِيَاءِ إِذَا وَرَدُوا عَلَيْهِ.

Qāla: al-rajāʾu biḥusni al-ẓanni, limaʿrifatihim bisaʿati faḍli Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, wa-ʾamalu al-naẓari ʾilā dhī al-kibriyāʾi ʾidhā waradū ʿalayhi.

He said, “Hope accompanied by thinking well of Him, because they know the vastness of the favor of God, mighty and majestic, and hope to gaze upon the Possessor of Grandeur when they come before Him.

وَلَوْ لَمْ يَحْسُنْ ظَنُّهُمْ بِاللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فَيَأْمَلُونَ مِنْهُ أَنْ يَظْفَرُوا بِمُرَادِهِمْ، لَوْلَا ذٰلِكَ لَتَقَطَّعَتْ أَنْفُسُهُمْ حَسَرَاتٍ، وَمَاتُوا كَمَدًا.

Wa-law lam yaḥsun ẓannuhum bi-Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla fa-yaʾmalūna minhu ʾan yaẓfarū bimurādihim, lawlā dhālika lataqaṭṭaʿat ʾanfusuhum ḥasarātin, wa-mātū kamadan.

“If they did not think well of God, mighty and majestic, and hope to attain from Him what they seek, their selves would be torn apart by regret and they would die of grief.

وَقَدْ رَوَى عَبْدُ الْوَاحِدِ بْنُ زَيْدٍ قَالَ: قَالَ الْحَسَنُ بْنُ أَبِي الْحَسَنِ الْبَصْرِيُّ: «لَوْ عَلِمَ الْمُحِبُّونَ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فِي الدُّنْيَا أَنَّهُمْ لَا يَنْظُرُونَ إِلَى اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فِي الْآخِرَةِ، لَتَقَطَّعَتْ أَنْفُسُهُمْ حَسَرَاتٍ، وَمَاتُوا كَمَدًا، وَلَمَا هَنَاهُمْ عَيْشُ الدُّنْيَا، وَلَتَنَغَّصُوا مِنَ الْوَلَهِ، لِشِدَّةِ قُلُوبِهِمْ بِرَجَاءِ رَوْحِ الظَّفَرِ بِمَقْعَدِ صِدْقٍ عِنْدَ مَلِيكٍ مُقْتَدِرٍ».

Wa-qad rawā ʿAbdu al-Wāḥidi bnu Zaydin qāla: qāla al-Ḥasanu bnu ʾAbī al-Ḥasani al-Baṣriyyu: «law ʿalima al-muḥibbūna li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla fī al-dunyā ʾannahum lā yanẓurūna ʾilā Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla fī al-ʾākhirati, lataqaṭṭaʿat ʾanfusuhum ḥasarātin, wa-mātū kamadan, wa-lamā hanāhum ʿayshu al-dunyā, wa-latanaghghaṣū mina al-walahi, lishiddati qulūbihim birajāʾi rawḥi al-ẓafari bimaqʿadi ṣidqin ʿinda malīkin muqtadirin».

“ʿAbd al-Wāḥid ibn Zayd related that al-Ḥasan ibn Abī al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī said, ‘If those who love God, mighty and majestic, in this world knew that they would not gaze upon God, mighty and majestic, in the hereafter, their selves would be torn apart by regret and they would die of grief. Worldly life would bring them no pleasure, and bewildered longing would embitter them, because their hearts are so firmly bound to hoping for the relief of attaining a seat of truth with an all-powerful Sovereign.’

فَيَهْدَأُ رَوْعُهُمْ، وَيَسْكُنُ هَيَجَانُ خَوْفِهِمْ، وَتَرْجِعُ إِلَيْهِمْ قُلُوبُهُمْ، فَهُوَ يَتَوَلَّاهُمْ بِصُنْعِهِ وَتَقَوِّيهِ، وَيَتَعَاهَدُهُمْ بِلُطْفِهِ، وَيُسْعِفُهُمْ بِتَوْفِيقِهِ، فَأَمْرُهُمْ عَلَى الْإِصَابَةِ وَالتَّوْفِيقِ، هُمْ أَكْثَرُ النَّاسِ صَوَابًا، وَأَطْهَرُهُمْ أَخْلَاقًا، لَيْسَ شَيْءٌ آثَرَ عِنْدَهُمْ مِنَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَلَا لَهُمْ غَيْرَةٌ وَلَا غِنًى إِلَّا بِهِ، وَلَا يُؤَمِّلُونَ غَيْرَهُ، وَلَا يَرْجُونَ سِوَاهُ.

Fa-yahdaʾu rawʿuhum, wa-yaskunu hayajānu khawfihim, wa-tarjiʿu ʾilayhim qulūbuhum, fa-huwa yatawallāhum biṣunʿihi wa-taqawwīhi, wa-yataʿāhaduhum biluṭfihi, wa-yusʿifuhum bitawfīqihi, fa-ʾamruhum ʿalā al-ʾiṣābati wa-al-tawfīqi, hum ʾaktharu al-nāsi ṣawāban, wa-ʾaṭharuhum ʾakhlāqan, laysa shayʾun ʾāthara ʿindahum mina Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, wa-lā lahum ghayratun wa-lā ghinan ʾillā bihi, wa-lā yuʾammilūna ghayrahu, wa-lā yarjūna siwāhu.

“Their alarm then quiets, the surge of their fear subsides, and their hearts return to them. He cares for them through His workmanship and ‘growth in strength’ [the printed form and its connection are uncertain], tends them with His kindness, and aids them with His enabling help. Their affairs follow rightness and divinely granted success. They are the most correct in judgment and the purest in character. Nothing is dearer to them than God, mighty and majestic. Their jealous devotion and sufficiency are only through Him; they aspire to no other and hope in none besides Him.

Source pages 310–311

قَدِ اتَّخَذَهُ وَكِيلًا فِي جَمِيعِ أَحْوَالِهِ، رَاضِيًا بِفَضْلِهِ، شَاكِرًا لِآلَائِهِ وَنَعْمَائِهِ، مُوقِنًا بِعَظَمَتِهِ وَكِبْرِيَائِهِ، رَاضِيًا غَيْرَ مُخْتَارٍ، يَتَوَقَّعُ مَوَاقِعَ الْقَدَرِ مِنَ الْجَبَّارِ، قَدْ أَخْرَجَ مِنْ قَلْبِهِ التَّمَلُّكَ وَالِاخْتِيَارَ لِنَفْسِهِ، لِمَوْضِعِ الثِّقَةِ مِنْهُ بِرَبِّهِ، وَحُسْنِ الظَّنِّ بِسَيِّدِهِ،

Qadi ittakhadhahu wakīlan fī jamīʿi ʾaḥwālihi, rāḍiyan bifaḍlihi, shākiran li-ʾālāʾihi wa-naʿmāʾihi, mūqinan biʿaẓamatihi wa-kibriyāʾihi, rāḍiyan ghayra mukhtārin, yatawaqqaʿu mawāqiʿa al-qadari mina al-jabbāri, qad ʾakhraja min qalbihi al-tamalluka wa-al-ikhtiyāra linafsihi, limawḍiʿi al-thiqati minhu birabbihi, wa-ḥusni al-ẓanni bisayyidihi,

“He has taken Him as trustee in all his states, content with His favor, grateful for His blessings and gifts, certain of His greatness and grandeur, content without choosing for himself, awaiting the decrees of the Compeller. He has removed from his heart the wish to possess control and choose for himself, because of his trust in his Lord and his good opinion of his Master.

Source page 311

فَأَلِفَ الْقَلْبُ مَحَبَّتَهُ، وَاشْتَاقَ إِلَى رُؤْيَتِهِ، فَأَلْهَمَهُ عِلْمًا مِنْ عِلْمِهِ، وَعَرَّفَهُ مَا لَمْ يَكُنْ يَعْرِفُ، فَعَنِ اللّٰهِ سُبْحَانَهُ أَخَذَ عِلْمَهُ، وَبِأَمْرِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ أَدَّبَ نَفْسَهُ، حَتَّى طَهُرَتْ لَهُ أَخْلَاقُهُ، وَغَابَتْ مَسَاوِيهِ، وَظَهَرَتْ مَحَاسِنُهُ، لَمَّا آثَرَ رَبَّهُ، عَلَى مَحَبَّةِ نَفْسِهِ، فَتَمَّتْ عَلَيْهِ مِنَ اللّٰهِ النِّعْمَةُ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ.

Fa-ʾalifa al-qalbu maḥabbatahu, wa-ishtāqa ʾilā ruʾyatihi, fa-ʾalhamahu ʿilman min ʿilmihi, wa-ʿarrafahu mā lam yakun yaʿrifu, fa-ʿani Allāhi subḥānahu ʾakhadha ʿilmahu, wa-bi-ʾamri Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla ʾaddaba nafsahu, ḥattā ṭahurat lahu ʾakhlāquhu, wa-ghābat masāwīhi, wa-ẓaharat maḥāsinuhu, lammā ʾāthara rabbahu, ʿalā maḥabbati nafsihi, fa-tammat ʿalayhi mina Allāhi al-niʿmatu fī al-dunyā wa-al-ʾākhirati.

“The heart becomes familiar with loving Him and longs to see Him. He inspires it with knowledge from His knowledge and teaches it what it did not know. He takes his knowledge from God, glory be to Him, and disciplines his self by the command of God, mighty and majestic, until his character becomes pure, his faults disappear, and his virtues emerge. Because he preferred his Lord to love of himself, God's blessing upon him becomes complete in this world and the hereafter.”

قُلْتُ: فَفِي أَيِّ شَيْءٍ أَكْثَرُ صَنِيعِهِمْ؟ وَمَا الْغَالِبُ عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ فِي جَمِيعِ أَحْوَالِهِمْ؟

Qultu: fa-fī ʾayyi shayʾin ʾaktharu ṣanīʿihim? Wa-mā al-ghālibu ʿalā qulūbihim fī jamīʿi ʾaḥwālihim?

I asked, “What do they do most, and what predominates in their hearts in all their states?”

قَالَ: كَثْرَةُ الذِّكْرِ لِمَحْبُوبِهِمْ عَلَى طَرِيقِ الدَّوَامِ، لَا يَنْقَطِعُونَ وَلَا يَمَلُّونَ وَلَا يَفْتُرُونَ. أَجْمَعَ الْحُكَمَاءُ عَلَى أَنَّ مَنْ أَحَبَّ شَيْئًا أَكْثَرَ مِنْ ذِكْرِهِ، فَذِكْرُ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ هُوَ الْغَالِبُ عَلَى قُلُوبِ الْمُحِبِّينَ لِلّٰهِ تَعَالَى، لَا يُرِيدُونَ بِهِ بَدَلًا، وَلَا يَبْغُونَ عَنْهُ حِوَلًا.

Qāla: kathratu al-dhikri limaḥbūbihim ʿalā ṭarīqi al-dawāmi, lā yanqaṭiʿūna wa-lā yamallūna wa-lā yafturūna. ʾAjmaʿa al-ḥukamāʾu ʿalā ʾanna man ʾaḥabba shayʾan ʾakthara min dhikrihi, fa-dhikru Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla huwa al-ghālibu ʿalā qulūbi al-muḥibbīna li-llāhi taʿālā, lā yurīdūna bihi badalan, wa-lā yabghūna ʿanhu ḥiwalan.

He said, “Abundant and continual remembrance of their Beloved. They do not stop, grow weary, or slacken. The wise agree that whoever loves something mentions it often. The remembrance of God, mighty and majestic, predominates in the hearts of those who love God Most High. They want no substitute for it and seek no change from it.

وَلَوْ قُطِعُوا عَنْ ذِكْرِ سَيِّدِهِمْ لَفَسَدَ الْعَيْشُ عَلَيْهِمْ، وَلَتَشَتَّتُوا فِي أُمُورِهِمْ، وَلَتَنَغَّصُوا فِي أَحْوَالِهِمْ، فَذِكْرُ اللّٰهِ هُوَ الْمُسْتَوْلِي عَلَى هُمُومِهِمْ وَعُقُولِهِمْ كَمَا قَالَ فَتْحٌ الْمَوْصِلِيُّ: «إِيثَارُ مَحَبَّةِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ عَلَى مَحَبَّةِ نَفْسِكَ مِنْ عَلَامَةِ حُبِّكَ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ».

Wa-law quṭiʿū ʿan dhikri sayyidihim lafasada al-ʿayshu ʿalayhim, wa-latashattatū fī ʾumūrihim, wa-latanaghghaṣū fī ʾaḥwālihim, fa-dhikru Allāhi huwa al-mustawlī ʿalā humūmihim wa-ʿuqūlihim kamā qāla Fatḥun al-Mawṣiliyyu: «ʾīthāru maḥabbati Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla ʿalā maḥabbati nafsika min ʿalāmati ḥubbika li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla».

“If they were cut off from remembering their Master, life would be spoiled for them, their affairs would scatter, and their states would become bitter. Remembering God holds sway over their concerns and intellects. As Fatḥ al-Mawṣilī said, ‘Preferring the love of God, mighty and majestic, to love of yourself is a sign of your love for God, mighty and majestic.’

Source pages 311–312

فَالْمُحِبُّ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لَا يَجِدُ مَعَ الْحُبِّ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ لِشَيْءٍ لَذَّةً، وَلَا يَغْفُلُ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ. قَالَ فَرْقَدٌ السَّبَخِيُّ: «فِي بَعْضِ الْكُتُبِ: لَنْ يَسْأَمَ الْمُحِبُّونَ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مِنْ طُولِ اجْتِهَادِهِمْ، يُحِبُّونَهُ وَيُحِبُّونَ ذِكْرَهُ، وَيُحَبِّبُونَهُ إِلَى خَلْقِهِ، وَيَمْشُونَ بَيْنَ عِبَادِهِ بِالنَّصَائِحِ، وَيَخَافُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ يَوْمَ تَبْدُو الْفَضَائِحُ، أُولٰئِكَ أَوْلِيَاؤُهُ وَأَحِبَّاؤُهُ وَأَهْلُ صَفْوَتِهِ، فَأُولٰئِكَ لَا رَاحَةَ لَهُمْ دُونَ لِقَائِهِ».

Fa-al-muḥibbu li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla lā yajidu maʿa al-ḥubbi li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla lishayʾin ladhdhatan, wa-lā yaghfulu ʿan dhikri Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla. Qāla Farqadun al-Sabakhiyyu: «fī baʿḍi al-kutubi: lan yasʾama al-muḥibbūna li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla min ṭūli ijtihādihim, yuḥibbūnahu wa-yuḥibbūna dhikrahu, wa-yuḥabbibūnahu ʾilā khalqihi, wa-yamshūna bayna ʿibādihi bi-al-naṣāʾiḥi, wa-yakhāfūna ʿalayhim yawma tabdū al-faḍāʾiḥu, ʾulāʾika ʾawliyāʾuhu wa-ʾaḥibbāʾuhu wa-ʾahlu ṣafwatihi, fa-ʾulāʾika lā rāḥata lahum dūna liqāʾihi».

“The lover of God, mighty and majestic, finds no pleasure in anything alongside love for God, mighty and majestic, and is never heedless of remembering God, mighty and majestic. Farqad al-Sabakhī said, ‘In one of the books: Those who love God, mighty and majestic, will never tire of their prolonged striving. They love Him, love remembering Him, make Him beloved to His creatures, and walk among His servants with sincere counsel. They fear for them the day when disgraces are exposed. These are His friends, His beloved ones, and His chosen people. They have no rest short of meeting Him.’

Source page 312

وَقَالَ بَعْضُ الْحُكَمَاءِ: «مَا تَلَذَّذَ الْمُتَلَذِّذُونَ بِشَيْءٍ أَلَذَّ مِنْ ذِكْرِ اللّٰهِ تَعَالَى وَمَحَبَّتِهِ».

Wa-qāla baʿḍu al-ḥukamāʾi: «mā taladhdhadha al-mutaladhdhidhūna bishayʾin ʾaladhdha min dhikri Allāhi taʿālā wa-maḥabbatihi».

“A wise man said, ‘Those who seek delight have found nothing sweeter than remembering and loving God Most High.’

وَيُرْوَى عَنْ رَجُلٍ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْبَحْرَيْنِ يُكْنَى أَبَا سُلَيْمَانَ أَنَّهُ كَانَ يَقُولُ فِي جَوْفِ اللَّيْلِ: «قُرَّةَ عَيْنِي، وَسُرُورَ قَلْبِي، مَا الَّذِي أَسْقَطَنِي مِنْ عَيْنِكَ، ثُمَّ صَرَخَ صَرْخَةً وَأَتْبَعَهَا الْبُكَاءَ ثُمَّ قَالَ: إِلٰهِي، طُوبَى لِقُلُوبٍ مَلَأْتَهَا مِنْ خَشْيَتِكَ، وَاسْتَوْلَتْ عَلَيْهَا مَحَبَّتُكَ فَخَشْيَتُكَ قَاطِعَةٌ لَهَا عَنْ سَبِيلِ كُلِّ مَعْصِيَةٍ، خَوْفًا لِحُلُولِ سَخَطِكَ، وَمَحَبَّتُكَ مَانِعَةٌ لَهَا مِنْ كُلِّ لَذَّةٍ غَيْرِ ذِكْرِكَ وَمُنَاجَاتِكَ».

Wa-yurwā ʿan rajulin min ʾahli al-Baḥrayni yuknā ʾAbā Sulaymāna ʾannahu kāna yaqūlu fī jawfi al-layli: «qurrata ʿaynī, wa-surūra qalbī, mā alladhī ʾasqaṭanī min ʿaynika, thumma ṣarakha ṣarkhatan wa-ʾatbaʿahā al-bukāʾa thumma qāla: ʾilāhī, ṭūbā liqulūbin malaʾtahā min khashyatika, wa-istawlat ʿalayhā maḥabbatuka fa-khashyatuka qāṭiʿatun lahā ʿan sabīli kulli maʿṣiyatin, khawfan liḥulūli sakhaṭika, wa-maḥabbatuka māniʿatun lahā min kulli ladhdhatin ghayri dhikrika wa-munājātika».

“It is related of a man from Bahrain, known as Abū Sulaymān, that in the depth of night he would say, ‘Delight of my eyes and joy of my heart, what has made me fall from Your regard?’ Then he cried out, followed it with weeping, and said, ‘My God, blessed are hearts You have filled with awe of You and over which Your love has taken hold. Awe of You cuts them off from every path of disobedience, in fear that Your anger might descend. Your love prevents them from every pleasure except remembering You and speaking intimately with You.’

وَيُرْوَى عَنْ أَبِي نُوحٍ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ رَجُلًا مِنَ الْعُبَّادِ يَقُولُ: إِذَا سَئِمَ الطَّالِبُونَ مِنْ طَلَبِهِمْ فَلَا يَسْأَمُ مُحِبُّوكَ مِنْ ذِكْرِكَ وَمُنَاجَاتِكَ.

Wa-yurwā ʿan ʾAbī Nūḥin qāla: samiʿtu rajulan mina al-ʿubbādi yaqūlu: ʾidhā saʾima al-ṭālibūna min ṭalabihim fa-lā yasʾamu muḥibbūka min dhikrika wa-munājātika.

“It is related that Abū Nūḥ said: I heard a worshipper say, ‘When seekers grow weary of their seeking, those who love You do not tire of remembering You and speaking intimately with You.’

وَكَانَتْ رَابِعَةُ الْعَدَوِيَّةُ إِذَا جَنَّهَا اللَّيْلُ تَقُولُ: «قَدْ جَاءَ اللَّيْلُ، وَاخْتَلَطَ الظَّلَامُ، وَخَلَا كُلُّ حَبِيبٍ بِحَبِيبِهِ، وَخَلَوْتُ بِكَ يَا مَحْبُوبِي».

Wa-kānat Rābiʿatu al-ʿAdawiyyatu ʾidhā jannahā al-laylu taqūlu: «qad jāʾa al-laylu, wa-ikhtalaṭa al-ẓalāmu, wa-khalā kullu ḥabībin biḥabībihi, wa-khalawtu bika yā maḥbūbī».

“When night covered her, Rābiʿa al-ʿAdawiyya would say, ‘Night has come, darkness has gathered, and every lover is alone with the beloved. I am alone with You, my Beloved.’

وَقَالَ ذُو النُّونِ: «مَا أُولِعَ امْرُؤٌ بِذِكْرِ اللّٰهِ سُبْحَانَهُ إِلَّا أَفَادَ مِنْهُ حُبَّ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَالْغَالِبُ عَلَى قُلُوبِ الْمُحِبِّينَ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ كَثْرَةُ الذِّكْرِ لِلّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ».

Wa-qāla Dhū al-Nūni: «mā ʾūliʿa umruʾun bidhikri Allāhi subḥānahu ʾillā ʾafāda minhu ḥubba Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, wa-al-ghālibu ʿalā qulūbi al-muḥibbīna li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla kathratu al-dhikri li-llāhi ʿazza wa-jalla».

“Dhū al-Nūn said, ‘No one becomes devoted to remembering God, glory be to Him, without gaining from it the love of God, mighty and majestic. What predominates in the hearts of those who love God, mighty and majestic, is abundant remembrance of God, mighty and majestic.’”

Source page 313

مَسْأَلَةٌ ٣١

Masʾalatun 31

Question 31

فِي شَرْحِ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ وَبَيَانِهَا

Fī sharḥi al-murāqabati wa-bayānihā

Expounding watchfulness and explaining it

قُلْتُ: رَحِمَكَ اللّٰهُ، مَا الْمُرَاقَبَةُ؟ مَا أَوَائِلُهَا؟

Qultu: raḥimaka Allāhu, mā al-murāqabatu? Mā ʾawāʾiluhā?

I asked, “May God have mercy on you, what is watchfulness? What are its beginnings?”

قَالَ: عِلْمُ الْقَلْبِ بِقُرْبِ الرَّبِّ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ.

Qāla: ʿilmu al-qalbi biqurbi al-rabbi ʿazza wa-jalla.

He said, “The heart's knowledge of the nearness of the Lord, mighty and majestic.”

قُلْتُ: وَكُلُّ مَنْ عَلِمَ قُرْبَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مِنْهُ هُوَ مُرَاقِبٌ، وَيَسْتَحِقُّ اسْمَ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ؟

Qultu: wa-kullu man ʿalima qurba Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla minhu huwa murāqibun, wa-yastaḥiqqu isma al-murāqabati?

I asked, “Is everyone who knows the nearness of God, mighty and majestic, to him watchful, and does he deserve the name of watchfulness?”

قَالَ: إِنَّمَا سَأَلْتَنِي عَنْ أَوَائِلِ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ، وَكُلُّ مَنْ كَانَ مَعَهُ الْعِلْمُ بِهٰذَا فَمَعَهُ شَيْءٌ مِنَ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ، وَلَا يَسْتَحِقُّ أَنْ يُقَالَ لَهُ: مُرَاقِبٌ.

Qāla: ʾinnamā saʾaltanī ʿan ʾawāʾili al-murāqabati, wa-kullu man kāna maʿahu al-ʿilmu bi-hādhā fa-maʿahu shayʾun mina al-murāqabati, wa-lā yastaḥiqqu ʾan yuqāla lahu: murāqibun.

He said, “You asked me only about the beginnings of watchfulness. Anyone who possesses this knowledge has something of watchfulness, but does not yet deserve to be called watchful.”

قُلْتُ: فَمَا الْمُرَاقَبَةُ فِي نَفْسِهَا، الَّتِي تُورِثُ صَاحِبَهَا وَتُكَمِّلُ لَهُ الِاسْمَ، وَيَسْتَحِقُّ أَنْ يُسَمَّى مُرَاقِبًا، وَيُسَمَّى بِهَا؟

Qultu: fa-mā al-murāqabatu fī nafsihā, allatī tūrithu ṣāḥibahā wa-tukammilu lahu al-isma, wa-yastaḥiqqu ʾan yusammā murāqiban, wa-yusammā bihā?

I asked, “What is watchfulness itself, which bestows and completes the name for its possessor, so that he deserves to be called watchful and identified by it?”

قَالَ: دَوَامُ عِلْمِ الْقَلْبِ بِعِلْمِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فِي سُكُونِكَ وَحَرَكَتِكَ عِلْمًا لَازِمًا لِلْقَلْبِ، بِصَفَاءِ الْيَقِينِ، وَكَشْفِ غِطَاءِ حُجُبِ الظُّلَمِ، غَيْرَ قَاطِعٍ عَنِ النَّظَرِ بِمُشَاهَدَةِ الْغَيْبِ.

Qāla: dawāmu ʿilmi al-qalbi biʿilmi Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla fī sukūnika wa-ḥarakatika ʿilman lāziman li-al-qalbi, biṣafāʾi al-yaqīni, wa-kashfi ghiṭāʾi ḥujubi al-ẓulami, ghayra qāṭiʿin ʿani al-naẓari bimushāhadati al-ghaybi.

He said, “The heart's constant awareness of the knowledge of God, mighty and majestic, in your stillness and movement: an awareness that remains with the heart through the purity of certainty and the lifting of the covering of darkness's veils, without breaking off contemplation through witnessing the unseen.

فَعِنْدَهَا يَا فَتَى تَغِيبُ أَسْبَابُ الْغَفْلَةِ عَنِ الْقُلُوبِ بِدَوَاهِيهَا، فَيَعْقِلُ عَنِ اللّٰهِ نَصَائِحَ الْحِكْمَةِ بِمَا فِيهَا، وَيَكْشِفُ لَهُ الْيَقِينُ عَمَّا فَاتَ مِنْهَا.

Fa-ʿindahā yā fatā taghību ʾasbābu al-ghaflati ʿani al-qulūbi bidawāhīhā, fa-yaʿqilu ʿani Allāhi naṣāʾiḥa al-ḥikmati bimā fīhā, wa-yakshifu lahu al-yaqīnu ʿammā fāta minhā.

“Then, young man, the causes of heedlessness and their calamities disappear from hearts. He understands from God the counsels of wisdom and all they contain, while certainty unveils for him what he has missed of them.”

قُلْتُ: رَحِمَكَ اللّٰهُ فَمَا يُوصِلُهُ إِلَى هٰذِهِ الْحَالَةِ؟

Qultu: raḥimaka Allāhu fa-mā yūṣiluhu ʾilā hādhihi al-ḥālati?

I asked, “May God have mercy on you, what brings him to this state?”

Source page 314

قَالَ: قَطْعُ عَلَائِقِ الْأَشْغَالِ، وَلُزُومُ الْعِلْمِ، وَالتَّعَاهُدُ بِالْعِنَايَةِ وَالرِّعَايَةِ.

Qāla: qaṭʿu ʿalāʾiqi al-ʾashghāli, wa-luzūmu al-ʿilmi, wa-al-taʿāhudu bi-al-ʿināyati wa-al-riʿāyati.

He said, “Cutting the ties of preoccupation, adhering to knowledge, and continually tending oneself with attention and watchful care.”

قُلْتُ: مَا عَلَامَةُ ظَاهِرِ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ؟

Qultu: mā ʿalāmatu ẓāhiri al-murāqabati?

I asked, “What is the outward sign of watchfulness?”

قَالَ: إِنَّ الْحَالَةَ الَّتِي تَكْشِفُ عَنْ حَالِ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ: اجْتِمَاعُ أَطْرَافِهِ، وَالِانْفِرَادُ بِهَا عَنْ غَيْرِهَا، حَتَّى إِذَا نَظَرَ إِلَيْهِ نَاظِرٌ قَالَ: هٰذَا سَاهٍ مَشْغُولُ الْقَلْبِ، مَفْسُودُ الْعَقْلِ، لِمَا قَدْ تَمَكَّنَ فِيهِ مِنْ دَوَامِ مُرَاعَاةِ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ، وَلُزُومِ الْعِنَايَةِ.

Qāla: ʾinna al-ḥālata allatī takshifu ʿan ḥāli al-murāqabati: ijtimāʿu ʾaṭrāfihi, wa-al-infirādu bihā ʿan ghayrihā, ḥattā ʾidhā naẓara ʾilayhi nāẓirun qāla: hādhā sāhin mashghūlu al-qalbi, mafsūdu al-ʿaqli, limā qad tamakkana fīhi min dawāmi murāʿāti al-murāqabati, wa-luzūmi al-ʿināyati.

He said, “The condition that reveals watchfulness is the gathering in of his limbs and his setting himself apart in it from other things. An onlooker may say, ‘This man is absent-minded, preoccupied, unsound in intellect,’ because constant observance of watchfulness and sustained attention have become so firmly established within him.”

قُلْتُ: اكْشِفْ لِي مَا تَقُولُ، أَيُّ شَيْءٍ عَلَامَةُ هٰذَا، حَتَّى يَصِحَّ عِنْدِي أَنَّهَا هِيَ؟

Qultu: ikshif lī mā taqūlu, ʾayyu shayʾin ʿalāmatu hādhā, ḥattā yaṣiḥḥa ʿindī ʾannahā hiya?

I said, “Make what you say clear to me. What is its sign, so that I can be sure it is this state?”

قَالَ: نَعَمْ يَا فَتَى، رُبَّمَا مَرَّ الرَّجُلُ الَّذِي يَعْرِفُهُ فَيُنْكِرُهُ، وَرُبَّمَا كُلِّمَ فَلَمْ يَتَكَلَّمْ، وَرُبَّمَا مَشَى فَلَمْ يَلْتَفِتْ، حَتَّى يَصِيرَ إِلَى الْمَوْضِعِ الَّذِي يُرِيدُهُ، لِمَا غَلَبَ عَلَى عَقْلِهِ، وَاسْتَوْلَى عَلَى هَمِّهِ مِنْ أَخْذِ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ لِقَلْبِهِ،

Qāla: naʿam yā fatā, rubbamā marra al-rajulu alladhī yaʿrifuhu fa-yunkiruhu, wa-rubbamā kullima fa-lam yatakallam, wa-rubbamā mashā fa-lam yaltafit, ḥattā yaṣīra ʾilā al-mawḍiʿi alladhī yurīduhu, limā ghalaba ʿalā ʿaqlihi, wa-istawlā ʿalā hammihi min ʾakhdhi al-murāqabati liqalbihi,

He said, “Yes, young man. Someone he knows may pass by, and he does not recognize him. He may be spoken to and not speak, or walk without turning aside until he reaches his intended place, because watchfulness has seized his heart, overwhelmed his intellect, and taken hold of his concern.

كَمَا رُوِىَ عَنْ عُتْبَةَ الْغُلَامِ أَنَّهُ كَانَ يَمْشِي فِي طُرُقَاتِ الْبَصْرَةِ بِإِسْقَاطِ التَّمْيِيزِ فِي الْخَلْقِ، وَرُبَّمَا مَرَّ بِوَالِدِهِ فَلَا يُكَلِّمُهُ وَلَا يُسَلِّمُ عَلَيْهِ حَتَّى يَعْتِبَهُ وَيَشْكُوَهُ إِلَى إِخْوَانِهِ، فَيَقُولُونَ لَهُ: إِذَا مَرَّ بِكَ بَعْدَ هٰذَا فَحَرِّكْهُ، فَإِنَّهُ لَا يَعْلَمُ بِمَكَانِكَ.

Kamā ruwiya ʿan ʿUtbata al-Ghulāmi ʾannahu kāna yamshī fī ṭuruqāti al-Baṣrati bi-ʾisqāṭi al-tamyīzi fī al-khalqi, wa-rubbamā marra biwālidihi fa-lā yukallimuhu wa-lā yusallimu ʿalayhi ḥattā yaʿtibahu wa-yashkuwahu ʾilā ʾikhwānihi, fa-yaqūlūna lahu: ʾidhā marra bika baʿda hādhā fa-ḥarrik-hu, fa-ʾinnahu lā yaʿlamu bimakānika.

“It is related that ʿUtba al-Ghulām walked through the streets of Basra without distinguishing the people around him. He might pass his father without speaking to him or greeting him, until his father reproached him and complained of him to his companions. They told him, ‘When he passes you next time, rouse him, for he is unaware that you are there.’

وَكَمَا رُوِيَ عَنْ عَبْدِ الْوَاحِدِ بْنِ زَيْدٍ أَنَّهُ قِيلَ لَهُ: هَلْ تَعْرِفُ فِي زَمَانِكَ هٰذَا رَجُلًا قَدِ اشْتَغَلَ بِحَالِهِ عَنِ الْخَلْقِ؟ قَالَ: مَا أَعْرِفُهُ، إِلَّا أَنَّ رَجُلًا سَيَدْخُلُ عَلَيْكُمُ السَّاعَةَ. فَمَا كَانَ أَسْرَعَ مِنْ أَنْ دَخَلَ عُتْبَةُ الْغُلَامُ، فَقَالَ لَهُ عَبْدُ الْوَاحِدِ بْنُ زَيْدٍ: مِنْ أَيْنَ جِئْتَ؟ قَالَ: مِنْ مَوْضِعِ كَذَا وَكَذَا، وَكَانَ طَرِيقُهُ عَلَى السُّوقِ. فَقَالَ لَهُ عَبْدُ الْوَاحِدِ: مَنْ لَقِيتَ فِي طَرِيقِكَ؟ قَالَ: مَا رَأَيْتُ أَحَدًا.

Wa-kamā ruwiya ʿan ʿAbdi al-Wāḥidi bni Zaydin ʾannahu qīla lahu: hal taʿrifu fī zamānika hādhā rajulan qadi ishtaghala biḥālihi ʿani al-khalqi? Qāla: mā ʾaʿrifuhu, ʾillā ʾanna rajulan sayadkhulu ʿalaykumu al-sāʿata. Fa-mā kāna ʾasraʿa min ʾan dakhala ʿUtbatu al-Ghulāmu, fa-qāla lahu ʿAbdu al-Wāḥidi bnu Zaydin: min ʾayna jiʾta? Qāla: min mawḍiʿi kadhā wa-kadhā, wa-kāna ṭarīquhu ʿalā al-sūqi. Fa-qāla lahu ʿAbdu al-Wāḥidi: man laqīta fī ṭarīqika? Qāla: mā raʾaytu ʾaḥadan.

“It is also related that ʿAbd al-Wāḥid ibn Zayd was asked, ‘Do you know anyone in your time whose inward state has occupied him to the exclusion of people?’ He said, ‘I do not know him, except that a man will enter upon you shortly.’ Almost immediately, ʿUtba al-Ghulām entered. ʿAbd al-Wāḥid ibn Zayd asked him, ‘Where have you come from?’ He replied, ‘From such-and-such a place.’ His route had passed through the market. ʿAbd al-Wāḥid asked, ‘Whom did you meet on your way?’ He replied, ‘I saw no one.’

وَكَمَا رُوِيَ عَنْ بَعْضِهِمْ: أَنَّهُ كَانَ يَخْتَلِفُ إِلَى أُسْتَاذَيْهِ عِشْرِينَ سَنَةً، وَكَانَ طَرِيقُهُ عَلَى السُّوقِ، وَلَمْ يَكُنْ يُمَيِّزُ بَيْنَ رَجُلٍ وَامْرَأَةٍ.

Wa-kamā ruwiya ʿan baʿḍihim: ʾannahu kāna yakhtalifu ʾilā ʾustādhayhi ʿishrīna sanatan, wa-kāna ṭarīquhu ʿalā al-sūqi, wa-lam yakun yumayyizu bayna rajulin wa-imraʾatin.

“It is related of someone that he visited his two teachers for twenty years, taking a route through the market, without distinguishing between a man and a woman.

Source pages 314–315

وَكَمَا رُوِىَ عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ زَكَرِيَّا عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ: أَنَّهُ مَرَّ بِامْرَأَةٍ فَدَفَعَهَا عَلَى وَجْهِهَا، فَقِيلَ لَهُ: لِمَ فَعَلْتَ هٰذَا؟ فَقَالَ: مَا ظَنَنْتُهُ إِلَّا جِدَارًا.

Wa-kamā ruwiya ʿan Yaḥyā bni Zakariyyā ʿalayhi al-salāmu: ʾannahu marra bi-imraʾatin fa-dafaʿahā ʿalā wajhihā, fa-qīla lahu: lima faʿalta hādhā? Fa-qāla: mā ẓanantuhu ʾillā jidāran.

“It is related of John son of Zechariah, peace be upon him, that he passed a woman and pushed her onto her face. He was asked, ‘Why did you do that?’ He replied, ‘I thought it was only a wall.’

Source page 315

فَهٰذَا يَا فَتَى عَلَامَةُ صِدْقِ الْمُرَاقَبَةِ: أَنْ تُصَيِّرَ الْهَمَّ وَاحِدًا.

Fa-hādhā yā fatā ʿalāmatu ṣidqi al-murāqabati: ʾan tuṣayyira al-hamma wāḥidan.

“This, young man, is the sign of true watchfulness: that you make your concern one.”

قُلْتُ: فَإِلَى أَيِّ شَيْءٍ تَنْقُلُهُ الْمُرَاقَبَةُ وَتُؤَدِّيهِ؟

Qultu: fa-ʾilā ʾayyi shayʾin tanquluhu al-murāqabatu wa-tuʾaddīhi?

I asked, “To what does watchfulness carry and lead him?”

قَالَ: تُبَلِّغُهُ إِلَى الْحَيَاءِ مِنَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَالْعَظَمَةِ لَهُ، وَكُلِّ حَالٍ جَمِيلٍ، كَمَا رُوِيَ عَنْ أَبِي الْوَلِيدِ: قَالَ نُبِّئْتُ أَنَّ امْرَأَةً كَانَتْ بِالْبَصْرَةِ تَقُولُ لِقَلْبِهَا: فَقَدْتُكَ مِنْ قَلْبٍ، فَمَا أَقْسَاكَ، أَصْبَحْتَ وَأَمْسَيْتَ لِعَظَمَةِ اللّٰهِ نَاسِيًا، يَا إِلٰهِي، فَكَيْفَ لِي بِالْقُرْبِ مِنْكَ وَقَاسِي الْقَلْبِ مِنْكَ بَعِيدٌ.

Qāla: tuballighuhu ʾilā al-ḥayāʾi mina Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, wa-al-ʿaẓamati lahu, wa-kulli ḥālin jamīlin, kamā ruwiya ʿan ʾAbī al-Walīdi: qāla nubbiʾtu ʾanna imraʾatan kānat bi-al-Baṣrati taqūlu liqalbihā: faqadtuka min qalbin, fa-mā ʾaqsāka, ʾaṣbaḥta wa-ʾamsayta liʿaẓamati Allāhi nāsiyan, yā ʾilāhī, fa-kayfa lī bi-al-qurbi minka wa-qāsī al-qalbi minka baʿīdun.

He said, “It brings him to shame before God, mighty and majestic, reverence for Him, and every beautiful state. Abū al-Walīd is reported to have said: I was told that a woman in Basra used to say to her heart, ‘May I be rid of you, heart! How hard you are! Morning and evening you forget God's greatness. My God, how can I attain nearness to You when the hard-hearted are far from You?’”

Source page 316

مَسْأَلَةٌ ٣٢

Masʾalatun 32

Question 32

فِي مَعْنَى الْحَيَاءِ وَبَيَانِهِ

Fī maʿnā al-ḥayāʾi wa-bayānihi

The meaning of shame and its explanation

قُلْتُ: رَحِمَكَ اللّٰهُ، مَا مَعْنَى الْحَيَاءِ؟

Qultu: raḥimaka Allāhu, mā maʿnā al-ḥayāʾi?

I asked, “May God have mercy on you, what does shame mean?”

قَالَ: تَقَبُّضُ الْقَلْبِ مِنْ مُطَالَعَتِهِ.

Qāla: taqabbuḍu al-qalbi min muṭālaʿatihi.

He said, “The heart's drawing inward under His gaze.”

قُلْتُ: زِدْنِي عِلْمًا بِالْحَيَاءِ.

Qultu: zidnī ʿilman bi-al-ḥayāʾi.

I said, “Give me more knowledge of shame.”

قَالَ: حَظْرُ الْقَلْبِ وَقَصْرُهُ وَحَصْرُهُ عَنِ الِانْبِسَاطِ.

Qāla: ḥaẓru al-qalbi wa-qaṣruhu wa-ḥaṣruhu ʿani al-inbisāṭi.

He said, “Restricting, curbing, and holding the heart back from expansive ease.”

قُلْتُ: شَيْءٌ غَيْرُ هٰذَا؟

Qultu: shayʾun ghayru hādhā?

I asked, “Anything else?”

قَالَ: الِامْتِنَاعُ مِنْ كُلِّ خُلُقٍ رَدِيءٍ لَا يَرْضَاهُ اللّٰهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ.

Qāla: al-imtināʿu min kulli khuluqin radīʾin lā yarḍāhu Allāhu ʿazza wa-jalla.

He said, “Refraining from every bad trait that God, mighty and majestic, does not approve.”

قُلْتُ: مَا عَلَامَةُ الْمُسْتَحِي مِنَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ؟

Qultu: mā ʿalāmatu al-mustaḥī mina Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla?

I asked, “What is the sign of someone who feels shame before God, mighty and majestic?”

قَالَ: لَا يُرَى فِي الْمَكَانِ الَّذِي يَسْتَحِي مِنْهُ.

Qāla: lā yurā fī al-makāni alladhī yastaḥī minhu.

He said, “He is not seen in the place in which he would feel ashamed before Him.”

قُلْتُ: فَمَا الَّذِي يُقَوِّي الْحَيَاءَ، وَيَزِيدُ فِي قَدْرِهِ؟

Qultu: fa-mā alladhī yuqawwī al-ḥayāʾa, wa-yazīdu fī qadrihi?

I asked, “What strengthens shame and increases its degree?”

قَالَ: مَعْرِفَةُ الْقَلْبِ بِظَاهِرِ النِّعْمَةِ، مَعَ اعْتِقَادِ كَثْرَةِ التَّفْرِيطِ، وَتَضْيِيعِ الشُّكْرِ لِلّٰهِ تَعَالَى.

Qāla: maʿrifatu al-qalbi biẓāhiri al-niʿmati, maʿa iʿtiqādi kathrati al-tafrīṭi, wa-taḍyīʿi al-shukri li-llāhi taʿālā.

He said, “The heart's recognition of manifest blessing, together with the conviction of one's many failings and neglect of gratitude to God Most High.”

قُلْتُ: أَلَيْسَ فِيهِ جَوَابٌ غَيْرُ هٰذَا؟

Qultu: ʾalaysa fīhi jawābun ghayru hādhā?

I asked, “Is there not another answer?”

قَالَ: عِلْمُ الْقَلْبِ بِمَعْرِفَةِ السُّؤَالِ، وَالْوُقُوفِ بَيْنَ يَدَيِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، فَيَسْأَلُهُ عَنْ مَثَاقِيلِ الذَّرِّ.

Qāla: ʿilmu al-qalbi bimaʿrifati al-suʾāli, wa-al-wuqūfi bayna yadayi Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, fa-yasʾaluhu ʿan mathāqīli al-dharri.

He said, “The heart's knowledge of the questioning and of standing before God, mighty and majestic, when He asks him about even the weight of tiny particles.”

Source page 317

قُلْتُ: مَا الَّذِي يَزِيدُ فِي قُوَّةِ قَدْرِ الْحَيَاءِ؟

Qultu: mā alladhī yazīdu fī quwwati qadri al-ḥayāʾi?

I asked, “What further increases the strength of shame?”

قَالَ: أَنْ تَعْلَمَ أَنَّكَ بِعَيْنِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فِي جَمِيعِ مُنْقَلَبِكَ، لَا يَخْفَى عَلَيْهِ شَيْءٌ مِنْ حَرَكَتِكَ وَسُكُونِكَ.

Qāla: ʾan taʿlama ʾannaka biʿayni Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla fī jamīʿi munqalabika, lā yakhfā ʿalayhi shayʾun min ḥarakatika wa-sukūnika.

He said, “Knowing that you are under the eye of God, mighty and majestic, wherever you turn, and that nothing of your movement or stillness is hidden from Him.”

قُلْتُ: مَا الْغَالِبُ عَلَى قَلْبِ الْمُسْتَحِي؟

Qultu: mā al-ghālibu ʿalā qalbi al-mustaḥī?

I asked, “What predominates in the heart of the person who feels shame?”

قَالَ: تَعْظِيمُ رُؤْيَةِ مَنْ يَرَاهُ، الْمُقْتَدِرِ عَلَى عُقُوبَتِهِ، الْمُسْبِلِ عَلَيْهِ سِتْرَهُ، الْمُتَوَاتِرِ عَلَيْهِ نِعَمُهُ، الَّذِي يَعْلَمُ مِنْهُ حَزَازَ حَرَكَةِ الضَّمِيرِ، وَخَفِيَّ مَكْنُونِ سُوَيْدَاءِ الْقَلْبِ.

Qāla: taʿẓīmu ruʾyati man yarāhu, al-muqtadiri ʿalā ʿuqūbatihi, al-musbili ʿalayhi sitrahu, al-mutawātiri ʿalayhi niʿamuhu, alladhī yaʿlamu minhu ḥazāza ḥarakati al-ḍamīri, wa-khafiyya maknūni suwaydāʾi al-qalbi.

He said, “Reverence for the sight of the One who sees him, who has power to punish him, spreads His covering over him, and showers blessings upon him in succession; the One who knows his innermost stirrings and the hidden secrets at the core of his heart.”

قُلْتُ: مَا عَلَامَتُهُ فِي ظَاهِرِهِ؟

Qultu: mā ʿalāmatuhu fī ẓāhirihi?

I asked, “What is his outward sign?”

قَالَ: تَقَبُّضُ الْجَوَارِحِ عَنِ الِانْبِسَاطِ. وَالدَّلِيلُ عَلَى ذٰلِكَ فِعْلُ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ حِينَ كَشَفَ فَخِذَهُ، فَدَخَلَ عُثْمَانُ بْنُ عَفَّانَ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُ فَقَبَضَهَا وَقَالَ: «أَلَا أَسْتَحِي مِنْ رَجُلٍ تَسْتَحِي مِنْهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ»؟

Qāla: taqabbuḍu al-jawāriḥi ʿani al-inbisāṭi. Wa-al-dalīlu ʿalā dhālika fiʿlu al-nabiyyi ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallama ḥīna kashafa fakhidhahu, fa-dakhala ʿUthmānu bnu ʿAffāna raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhu fa-qabaḍahā wa-qāla: «ʾalā ʾastaḥī min rajulin tastaḥī minhu al-malāʾikatu»?

He said, “The limbs' restraint from expansive ease. The evidence is what the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, did when his thigh was uncovered and ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān, may God be pleased with him, entered. He drew it in and said, ‘Should I not feel shame before a man before whom the angels feel shame?’

وَقَالَ مَالِكُ بْنُ دِينَارٍ: «قَدِ اسْتَحْيَيْتُ مِنَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مِنْ دُخُولِيَ الْخَلَاءَ، وَدِدْتُ اللّٰهَ تَعَالَى جَعَلَ رِزْقِي فِي حَصَاةٍ أَمَصُّهَا حَتَّى أَمُوتَ».

Wa-qāla Māliku bnu Dīnārin: «qadi istaḥyaytu mina Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla min dukhūliya al-khalāʾa, wadidtu Allāha taʿālā jaʿala rizqī fī ḥaṣātin ʾamaṣṣuhā ḥattā ʾamūta».

“Mālik ibn Dīnār said, ‘I have felt ashamed before God, mighty and majestic, to enter the privy. I wish God Most High had placed my sustenance in a pebble I could suck until I died.’

وَكَانَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ الصِّدِّيقُ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُ لَا يَدْخُلُ الْخَلَاءَ إِلَّا مُتَقَنِّعًا حَيَاءً مِنَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ.

Wa-kāna ʾAbū Bakrin al-Ṣiddīqu raḍiya Allāhu ʿanhu lā yadkhulu al-khalāʾa ʾillā mutaqanniʿan ḥayāʾan mina Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla.

“Abū Bakr al-Ṣiddīq, may God be pleased with him, never entered the privy without covering his head, out of shame before God, mighty and majestic.

فَهٰذَا مِنْ عَلَامَاتِ الْحَيَاءِ مِنَ اللّٰهِ تَعَالَى فِي الظَّاهِرِ، وَكَذٰلِكَ تَقَبُّضُهُ فِي الْبَاطِنِ امْتِنَاعًا مِنْ كُلِّ لَذَّةٍ وَشَهْوَةٍ لَا تُوَافِقُ مَحَبَّةَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ.

Fa-hādhā min ʿalāmāti al-ḥayāʾi mina Allāhi taʿālā fī al-ẓāhiri, wa-ka-dhālika taqabbuḍuhu fī al-bāṭini imtināʿan min kulli ladhdhatin wa-shahwatin lā tuwāfiqu maḥabbata Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla.

“These are outward signs of shame before God Most High. Likewise inwardly, he draws back, refraining from every pleasure and appetite that does not accord with the love of God, mighty and majestic.”

قُلْتُ: فَهَلْ فِي حَالَةِ الرُّخْصَةِ لِمَوْضِعِ الشُّبْهَةِ؟

Qultu: fa-hal fī ḥālati al-rukhṣati limawḍiʿi al-shubhati?

I asked, “Is there any scope for concession where there is doubt [the printed question is compressed]?”

Source pages 317–318

قَالَ: سُبْحَانَ اللّٰهِ، وَاللّٰهِ إِنَّهُمْ لَيَسْتَحْيُونَ مِنَ اللّٰهِ أَنْ يَنْبَسِطُوا إِلَى فُضُولِ الْمُبَاحِ، فَكَيْفَ يَنْبَسِطُونَ إِلَى الشُّبُهَاتِ؟

Qāla: subḥāna Allāhi, wa-Allāhi ʾinnahum layastaḥyūna mina Allāhi ʾan yanbasiṭū ʾilā fuḍūli al-mubāḥi, fa-kayfa yanbasiṭūna ʾilā al-shubuhāti?

He said, “Glory be to God! By God, they feel ashamed before God to indulge in superfluous permissible things. How, then, could they indulge in doubtful things?”

Source page 318

قُلْتُ: زِدْنِي مِنْ عَلَامَاتِهِ الظَّاهِرَةِ.

Qultu: zidnī min ʿalāmātihi al-ẓāhirati.

I said, “Give me more of its outward signs.”

قَالَ: رُبَّمَا مَشَى فَغَطَّى رَأْسَهُ حَيَاءً مِنَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَخُشُوعًا لَهُ، وَتَذَلُّلًا وَاسْتِكَانَةً وَهَيْبَةً، لِعِلْمِهِ بِنَظَرِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فِي حَالَتِهِ، وَرُبَّمَا لَمْ يَرْفَعْ رَأْسَهُ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ حَيَاءً مِنَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ.

Qāla: rubbamā mashā fa-ghaṭṭā raʾsahu ḥayāʾan mina Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, wa-khushūʿan lahu, wa-tadhallulan wa-istikānatan wa-haybatan, liʿilmihi binaẓari Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla fī ḥālatihi, wa-rubbamā lam yarfaʿ raʾsahu ʾilā al-samāʾi ḥayāʾan mina Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla.

He said, “He may walk with his head covered out of shame before God, mighty and majestic, humility toward Him, lowliness, submission, and awe, knowing that God, mighty and majestic, sees his state. He may refrain from raising his head toward the sky out of shame before God, mighty and majestic.

وَهٰكَذَا كَانَ عَطَاءٌ السُّلَمِيُّ. وَقِيلَ لِبَعْضِهِمْ: لِمَ تُصَلِّي خَارِجَ الْمَسْجِدِ؟

Wa-hākadhā kāna ʿAṭāʾun al-Sulamiyyu. Wa-qīla libaʿḍihim: lima tuṣallī khārija al-masjidi?

“This was how ʿAṭāʾ al-Sulamī was. One of them was asked, ‘Why do you pray outside the mosque?’

قَالَ: أَسْتَحِي مِنَ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ.

Qāla: ʾastaḥī mina Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla.

“He replied, ‘I feel ashamed before God, mighty and majestic.’

وَيُمْسِي وَيُصْبِحُ وَلَيْسَ لَهُ جَارِحَةٌ تُضْمِرُ عَلَى مَا يَكْرَهُ اللّٰهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، فَأَفْعَالُهُ بِهَا عَلَى حُسْنِ الْإِصَابَةِ، وَمَذَاهِبُهُ عَلَى الْمُوَافَقَةِ، كَثِيرُ الِاحْتِمَالِ، وَاسِعُ الْعِلْمِ، حَسَنُ السَّمْتِ، عَظِيمُ الْحِلْمِ، دَائِبُ الْفِكْرِ، كَثِيرُ الذِّكْرِ، مُنْكَسِرُ الظَّاهِرِ، قَلِيلُ الْمُؤْنَةِ، دَائِمُ الْكَدِّ، ظَرِيفُ الْمَذْهَبِ.

Wa-yumsī wa-yuṣbiḥu wa-laysa lahu jāriḥatun tuḍmiru ʿalā mā yakrahu Allāhu ʿazza wa-jalla, fa-ʾafʿāluhu bihā ʿalā ḥusni al-ʾiṣābati, wa-madhāhibuhu ʿalā al-muwāfaqati, kathīru al-iḥtimāli, wāsiʿu al-ʿilmi, ḥasanu al-samti, ʿaẓīmu al-ḥilmi, dāʾibu al-fikri, kathīru al-dhikri, munkasiru al-ẓāhiri, qalīlu al-muʾnati, dāʾimu al-kaddi, ẓarīfu al-madh-habi.

“Morning and evening he has no limb inwardly set upon what God, mighty and majestic, dislikes. His actions through them are rightly directed, and his ways are in accord. He is greatly forbearing, broad in knowledge, dignified in bearing, immense in patience, constant in reflection, abundant in remembrance, outwardly humble, undemanding, unceasing in effort, and refined in his way.”

Source page 319

مَسْأَلَةٌ ٣٣

Masʾalatun 33

Question 33

فِي مَعْنَى الظَّرْفِ

Fī maʿnā al-ẓarfi

The meaning of refinement

قُلْتُ: فَمَا مَعْنَى الظَّرْفِ؟

Qultu: fa-mā maʿnā al-ẓarfi?

I asked, “What does refinement mean?”

قَالَ: تَرْكُ أَخْلَاقِ الرِّيَبِ، مَعَ دَوَامِ السَّخَاءِ وَالْكَرَمِ، طَاهِرُ الْأَخْلَاقِ، صَافِي الْهَمِّ، حَسَنُ اللَّفْظِ، كَثِيرُ الصَّمْتِ، دَائِمُ الْفِكْرِ، الْغَالِبُ عَلَيْهِ الْخَوْفُ وَالْحَيَاءُ مِنْ أَنْ يَشِينَ قَدْرَهُ بِحَالَةٍ تَسْتَرِيحُ إِلَيْهَا نَفْسُهُ، فَيَمِيلَ إِلَى طِبَاعِهَا.

Qāla: tarku ʾakhlāqi al-riyabi, maʿa dawāmi al-sakhāʾi wa-al-karami, ṭāhiru al-ʾakhlāqi, ṣāfī al-hammi, ḥasanu al-lafẓi, kathīru al-ṣamti, dāʾimu al-fikri, al-ghālibu ʿalayhi al-khawfu wa-al-ḥayāʾu min ʾan yashīna qadrahu biḥālatin tastarīḥu ʾilayhā nafsuhu, fa-yamīla ʾilā ṭibāʿihā.

He said, “Leaving suspicious traits while remaining generous and noble. He is pure in character, clear in concern, gracious in speech, often silent, and constant in reflection. Fear and shame predominate over him, lest he blemish his standing by a state in which his self finds comfort and so incline toward its natural dispositions.

فَهٰذَا الَّذِي صَدَقَ فِي حَيَائِهِ مِنَ اللّٰهِ تَعَالَى.

Fa-hādhā alladhī ṣadaqa fī ḥayāʾihi mina Allāhi taʿālā.

“This is someone true in his shame before God Most High.”

قُلْتُ: مَا الَّذِي يَشِينُ الْحَيَاءَ وَيُوهِنُهُ؟

Qultu: mā alladhī yashīnu al-ḥayāʾa wa-yūhinuhu?

I asked, “What disfigures shame and weakens it?”

قَالَ: الْإِشَارَةُ إِلَى مَوْضِعِ الْأَطْمَاعِ كَمَا قَالَ الْحَكِيمُ: يَسْتَحْيُونَهُ أَنْ يَرَاهُمْ يُشِيرُونَ بِالْأَرْوَاحِ نَحْوَ سِوَاهُ.

Qāla: al-ʾishāratu ʾilā mawḍiʿi al-ʾaṭmāʿi kamā qāla al-ḥakīmu: yastaḥyūnahu ʾan yarāhum yushīrūna bi-al-ʾarwāḥi naḥwa siwāhu.

He said, “Pointing toward objects of covetousness, as the wise man said: ‘They are ashamed before Him that He should see them directing their spirits toward anyone besides Him.’”

قُلْتُ: زِدْنِي فِي شَرْحِ الْحَيَاءِ وَمَا يُوهِنُهُ.

Qultu: zidnī fī sharḥi al-ḥayāʾi wa-mā yūhinuhu.

I said, “Explain shame further, and what weakens it.”

قَالَ: إِذَا تَرَكَ مَا وَصَفْتُ اتَّسَعَتْ بِهِ الْخُطَا عَنْ مَوَاضِعِ أَعْمَالِ الرِّيَبِ.

Qāla: ʾidhā taraka mā waṣaftu ittasaʿat bihi al-khuṭā ʿan mawāḍiʿi ʾaʿmāli al-riyabi.

He said, “When he abandons what I described, his strides carry him far from the places of suspicious deeds.”

قُلْتُ: وَمَا أَعْمَالُ الرِّيَبِ؟

Qultu: wa-mā ʾaʿmālu al-riyabi?

I asked, “What are suspicious deeds?”

Source pages 319–320

قَالَ: كَثْرَةُ الْحِرْصِ، وَتَضْيِيعُ الْهَمِّ، وَالْمَيْلُ مَعَهُ إِلَى الرُّخْصَةِ، وَأَخْذُ مَا لَا يَضُرُّهُ فَقْدُهُ، وَمُحَالَفَةُ الْأَطْمَاعِ الْكَاذِبَةِ مَعَ طُولِ الْأَمَلِ، وَخَوْفِ الْفَقْرِ، وَتَضْيِيعِ الشُّكْرِ.

Qāla: kathratu al-ḥirṣi, wa-taḍyīʿu al-hammi, wa-al-maylu maʿahu ʾilā al-rukhṣati, wa-ʾakhdhu mā lā yaḍurruhu faqduhu, wa-muḥālafatu al-ʾaṭmāʿi al-kādhibati maʿa ṭūli al-ʾamali, wa-khawfi al-faqri, wa-taḍyīʿi al-shukri.

He said, “Excessive greed, dissipating one's concern, inclining with it toward license, taking what one can do without unharmed, allying oneself with false hopes of gain along with long expectations, fear of poverty, and neglect of gratitude.”

Source page 321

مَسْأَلَةٌ ٣٤

Masʾalatun 34

Question 34

فِي صِفَةِ الْخَوْفِ وَشَرْحِ نَعْتِ الْخَائِفِينَ

Fī ṣifati al-khawfi wa-sharḥi naʿti al-khāʾifīna

Describing fear and explaining the character of the fearful

قُلْتُ: رَحِمَكَ اللّٰهُ، مَا السَّبِيلُ إِلَى خَوْفِ الْخَائِفِينَ، بَعْدَ الِانْتِقَالِ مِنْ خَوْفِ الْمُسْتَأْنِفِينَ؟

Qultu: raḥimaka Allāhu, mā al-sabīlu ʾilā khawfi al-khāʾifīna, baʿda al-intiqāli min khawfi al-mustaʾnifīna?

I asked, “May God have mercy on you, what is the way to the fear of those established in fear, after moving beyond the fear of beginners?”

قَالَ: يَا فَتَى، أَمَّا خَوْفُ الْمُسْتَأْنِفِينَ فَهُوَ: خَوْفُ الْجِنَايَاتِ وَالْعُقُوبَاتِ، فَعِنْدَهَا يَجِدُّونَ فِي الْمُكَابَدَاتِ، وَيُخْلِفُونَ الرَّاحَاتِ بِالتَّقَرُّبِ إِلَى اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ فِي اللَّيَالِي الدَّاجِيَاتِ.

Qāla: yā fatā, ʾammā khawfu al-mustaʾnifīna fa-huwa: khawfu al-jināyāti wa-al-ʿuqūbāti, fa-ʿindahā yajiddūna fī al-mukābadāti, wa-yukhlifūna al-rāḥāti bi-al-taqarrubi ʾilā Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla fī al-layālī al-dājiyāti.

He said, “Young man, beginners fear offenses and punishments. They then strive earnestly in struggles and replace comforts with drawing near to God, mighty and majestic, in the dark nights.

وَأَمَّا خَوْفُ الْخَائِفِينَ فَهُوَ أَعْلَى مِنْ هٰذَا، هُوَ: خَوْفُ الْعَارِفِينَ، وَهُوَ: خَوْفُ مَعْرِفَةِ سَطَوَاتِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَنِقَمِهِ، وَسُرْعَةِ الْقُدْرَةِ فِي النَّكَالِ وَالْمَثُلَةِ، لِيَكُونَ مِنْهُمُ الْخَوْفُ عَلَى قَدْرِ الْمَخُوفِ، وَالرَّهْبَةُ عَلَى قَدْرِ الْمَرْهُوبِ، لِأَنَّهُ لَيْسَ خَوْفُكَ مِنَ الْأَسَدِ كَخَوْفِكَ مِنَ الْقِطِّ، وَلَيْسَ خَوْفُكَ مِنَ الْمَلِكِ كَخَوْفِكَ مِنْ أَعْوَانِهِ.

Wa-ʾammā khawfu al-khāʾifīna fa-huwa ʾaʿlā min hādhā, huwa: khawfu al-ʿārifīna, wa-huwa: khawfu maʿrifati saṭawāti Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla wa-niqamihi, wa-surʿati al-qudrati fī al-nakāli wa-al-mathulati, liyakūna minhumu al-khawfu ʿalā qadri al-makhūfi, wa-al-rahbatu ʿalā qadri al-marhūbi, li-ʾannahu laysa khawfuka mina al-ʾasadi kakhawfika mina al-qiṭṭi, wa-laysa khawfuka mina al-maliki kakhawfika min ʾaʿwānihi.

“The fear of those established in fear is higher: it is the fear of those who know God, fear arising from knowledge of the mighty onslaughts and retribution of God, mighty and majestic, and the swiftness of His power in exemplary punishment. Their fear is in proportion to what they fear, and their dread to what they dread. Your fear of a lion is not like your fear of a cat, nor your fear of a king like your fear of his assistants.

وَكَذٰلِكَ لَيْسَ خَوْفُكَ مِنَ النَّارِ وَشِدَّةُ حَرَكَتِكَ عِنْدَ ذِكْرِهَا كَشِدَّةِ خَوْفِكَ وَحَرَكَتِكَ عِنْدَ ذِكْرِ صَاحِبِ النَّارِ، الْمَالِكِ لَهَا، لِأَنَّ النَّارَ لَا تَضُرُّ وَلَا تَنْفَعُ إِلَّا بِأَمْرِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، الَّذِي يَمْلِكُ الضَّرَّ وَالنَّفْعَ. وَكَذٰلِكَ الْخَوْفُ فِي الْقُلُوبِ يَا فَتَى.

Wa-ka-dhālika laysa khawfuka mina al-nāri wa-shiddatu ḥarakatika ʿinda dhikrihā kashiddati khawfika wa-ḥarakatika ʿinda dhikri ṣāḥibi al-nāri, al-māliki lahā, li-ʾanna al-nāra lā taḍurru wa-lā tanfaʿu ʾillā bi-ʾamri Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, alladhī yamliku al-ḍarra wa-al-nafʿa. Wa-ka-dhālika al-khawfu fī al-qulūbi yā fatā.

“Likewise, your fear of the Fire and the intensity of your agitation when it is mentioned are not like your intense fear and agitation when its Master and Owner is mentioned. The Fire neither harms nor benefits except by the command of God, mighty and majestic, who holds harm and benefit. Such is fear in hearts, young man.”

قُلْتُ: وَالْخَوْفُ فِي نَفْسِهِ مَا هُوَ؟ وَمَا مَعْنَاهُ؟

Qultu: wa-al-khawfu fī nafsihi mā huwa? Wa-mā maʿnāhu?

I asked, “What is fear in itself, and what does it mean?”

قَالَ: هُوَ مُطَالَعَةُ الْقُلُوبِ لِسَطَوَاتِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَنِقَمِهِ، فَيُوَلِّدُ عَلَى الْقَلْبِ فَزَعَ خَوْفِ الْوَعِيدِ، فَهٰذَا نَعْتُ الْخَوْفِ فِي الْقُلُوبِ.

Qāla: huwa muṭālaʿatu al-qulūbi lisaṭawāti Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla wa-niqamihi, fa-yuwallidu ʿalā al-qalbi fazaʿa khawfi al-waʿīdi, fa-hādhā naʿtu al-khawfi fī al-qulūbi.

He said, “It is hearts' contemplating the mighty onslaughts and retribution of God, mighty and majestic. This brings upon the heart the alarm of fearing His threat. This describes fear within hearts.”

Source page 322

قُلْتُ: فَمَا عَلَامَةُ الْخَائِفِ؟

Qultu: fa-mā ʿalāmatu al-khāʾifi?

I asked, “What is the sign of the fearful person?”

قَالَ: الْفِرَارُ مِنْ مَوَاطِنِ الْعُقُوبَاتِ رَجَاءَ السَّلَامَةِ، وَشِدَّةُ الْحَرَكَةِ، وَكَثْرَةُ الْبُكَاءِ، وَطُولُ الْعُزْلَةِ، وَالنُّفُورُ مِنْ ذِكْرِ الْعَاصِينَ.

Qāla: al-firāru min mawāṭini al-ʿuqūbāti rajāʾa al-salāmati, wa-shiddatu al-ḥarakati, wa-kathratu al-bukāʾi, wa-ṭūlu al-ʿuzlati, wa-al-nufūru min dhikri al-ʿāṣīna.

He said, “Fleeing places of punishment in hope of safety, intense agitation, abundant weeping, prolonged seclusion, and aversion to mention of the disobedient.”

قُلْتُ: صِفْ لِي مَا عَلَامَتُهُ الظَّاهِرَةُ؟

Qultu: ṣif lī mā ʿalāmatuhu al-ẓāhiratu?

I said, “Describe his outward sign for me.”

قَالَ: تَغَيُّرُ اللَّوْنِ عِنْدَ الْحَوَادِثِ وَالرِّيحِ الْعَاصِفِ، وَالرَّعْدِ الْقَاصِفِ، وَقَدْ كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذَا سَمِعَ الرَّعْدَ تَغَيَّرَ لَوْنُهُ، وَدَخَلَ وَخَرَجَ، وَعِنْدَ كُسُوفِ الشَّمْسِ وَالْقَمَرِ، وَمِثْلِ الشُّهُبِ فِي السَّمَاءِ، وَالظُّلْمَةِ، وَالزَّلْزَلَةِ،

Qāla: taghayyuru al-lawni ʿinda al-ḥawādithi wa-al-rīḥi al-ʿāṣifi, wa-al-raʿdi al-qāṣifi, wa-qad kāna al-nabiyyu ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa-sallama ʾidhā samiʿa al-raʿda taghayyara lawnuhu, wa-dakhala wa-kharaja, wa-ʿinda kusūfi al-shamsi wa-al-qamari, wa-mithli al-shuhubi fī al-samāʾi, wa-al-ẓulmati, wa-al-zalzalati,

He said, “A change of color at sudden events, violent wind, and crashing thunder. When the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, heard thunder, his color would change and he would go in and out. The same occurs at eclipses of the sun and moon, meteors in the sky, darkness, and earthquakes.

وَقَدْ رُوِيَ عَنْ عَطَاءٍ السُّلَمِيِّ وَكَانَ فِي بَغْدَادَ ذَاتَ يَوْمٍ، فَخَرَجَ مِنْهُمْ رَجُلٌ فَنَظَرَ فِي السَّمَاءِ وَرَجَعَ فَقَالَ: سَحَابَةٌ قَدْ نَشَأَتْ فِي السَّمَاءِ، فَوَثَبَ فَزِعًا، فَنَظَرَ إِلَيْهَا، ثُمَّ وَضَعَ يَدَهُ عَلَى أُمِّ رَأْسِهِ وَجَعَلَ يَبْكِي وَيَقُولُ: ﴿فَلَمَّا رَأَوْهُ عَارِضًا مُسْتَقْبِلَ أَوْدِيَتِهِمْ قَالُوا هٰذَا عَارِضٌ مُمْطِرُنَا بَلْ هُوَ مَا اسْتَعْجَلْتُمْ بِهِ رِيحٌ فِيهَا عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ﴾.

Wa-qad ruwiya ʿan ʿAṭāʾin al-Sulamiyyi wa-kāna fī Baghdāda dhāta yawmin, fa-kharaja minhum rajulun fa-naẓara fī al-samāʾi wa-rajaʿa fa-qāla: saḥābatun qad nashaʾat fī al-samāʾi, fa-wathaba faziʿan, fa-naẓara ʾilayhā, thumma waḍaʿa yadahu ʿalā ʾummi raʾsihi wa-jaʿala yabkī wa-yaqūlu: ﴿fa-lammā raʾawhu ʿāriḍan mustaqbila ʾawdiyatihim qālū hādhā ʿāriḍun mumṭirunā bal huwa mā istaʿjaltum bihi rīḥun fīhā ʿadhābun ʾalīmun﴾.

“It is related of ʿAṭāʾ al-Sulamī that one day, when he was in Baghdad, one of the men went out, looked at the sky, and returned saying, ‘A cloud has appeared in the sky.’ ʿAṭāʾ sprang up in alarm, looked at it, put his hand on the crown of his head, and began weeping and saying, ‘When they saw it as a cloud approaching their valleys, they said: This is a cloud bringing us rain. Rather, it is what you sought to hasten: a wind containing painful punishment.’

وَقَالَ جَعْفَرُ بْنُ سُلَيْمَانَ الضُّبَعِيُّ: هَاجَتْ رِيحٌ بِالْبَصْرَةِ، فَسَعَى النَّاسُ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ، فَأَتَيْتُ عَطَاءً لِأَنْظُرَ مَا حَالُهُ، فَإِذَا هُوَ قَائِمٌ فِي حُجْرَتِهِ، وَيَدَاهُ عَلَى أُمِّ رَأْسِهِ وَهُوَ يَقُولُ:

Wa-qāla Jaʿfaru bnu Sulaymāna al-Ḍubaʿiyyu: hājat rīḥun bi-al-Baṣrati, fa-saʿā al-nāsu ʾilā al-masjidi, fa-ʾataytu ʿAṭāʾan li-ʾanẓura mā ḥāluhu, fa-ʾidhā huwa qāʾimun fī ḥujratihi, wa-yadāhu ʿalā ʾummi raʾsihi wa-huwa yaqūlu:

“Jaʿfar ibn Sulaymān al-Ḍubaʿī said: A wind rose in Basra, and people hurried to the mosque. I went to ʿAṭāʾ to see how he was. He was standing in his room with both hands on the crown of his head, saying:

إِلٰهِي وَسَيِّدِي، لَمْ أَكُنْ أَظُنُّ أَنَّكَ تُنْظِرُنِي حَتَّى تُرِيَنِي أَعْلَامَ الْآخِرَةِ.

ʾIlāhī wa-sayyidī, lam ʾakun ʾaẓunnu ʾannaka tunẓirunī ḥattā turiyanī ʾaʿlāma al-ʾākhirati.

“‘My God and Master, I never thought You would grant me respite until You showed me the signs of the hereafter.’

Source pages 322–323

وَقَالَ الْعَوَّامُ: كُنْتُ إِذَا رَأَيْتُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ النَّخَعِيَّ رَأَيْتُهُ كَأَنَّهُ غَضْبَانُ، وَكُنْتُ إِذَا رَأَيْتُ عَبْدَ اللّٰهِ بْنَ أَبِي الْهُذَيْلِ رَأَيْتُهُ كَأَنَّهُ مَذْعُورُ الدَّهْرِ كُلِّهِ.

Wa-qāla al-ʿAwwāmu: kuntu ʾidhā raʾaytu ʾIbrāhīma al-Nakhaʿiyya raʾaytuhu kaʾannahu ghaḍbānu, wa-kuntu ʾidhā raʾaytu ʿAbda Allāhi bna ʾAbī al-Hudhayli raʾaytuhu kaʾannahu madhʿūru al-dahri kullihi.

“Al-ʿAwwām said: Whenever I saw Ibrāhīm al-Nakhaʿī, he looked as though he were angry. Whenever I saw ʿAbd Allāh ibn Abī al-Hudhayl, he looked as though he were frightened all the time.

Source page 323

وَذُكِرَ عَطَاءٌ أَنَّهُ كَانَ إِذَا هَاجَتِ الرِّيحُ بِالْبَصْرَةِ، أَوْ حَدَثَ بِهَا حَادِثٌ قَالَ: «هٰذَا مِنْ أَجْلِي يُصِيبُهُمْ، لَوْ مَاتَ عَطَاءٌ لَاسْتَرَاحَ أَهْلُ الْبَصْرَةِ».

Wa-dhukira ʿAṭāʾun ʾannahu kāna ʾidhā hājati al-rīḥu bi-al-Baṣrati, ʾaw ḥadatha bihā ḥādithun qāla: «hādhā min ʾajlī yuṣībuhum, law māta ʿAṭāʾun lāstarāḥa ʾahlu al-Baṣrati».

“It was reported of ʿAṭāʾ that whenever the wind rose in Basra or some event occurred there, he said, ‘This afflicts them because of me. If ʿAṭāʾ died, the people of Basra would have relief.’

وَذُكِرَ عَنْ عُتْبَةَ الْغُلَامِ أَنَّهُ اشْتَرَى تَمْرًا بِنِصْفِ دَانِقٍ، فَهَاجَتِ الرِّيحُ ذٰلِكَ الْوَقْتَ، فَخَرَجَ عُتْبَةُ هَارِبًا عَلَى وَجْهِهِ وَهُوَ يَقُولُ: يَا رَبِّ لَا أَعُودُ، يَا رَبِّ لَا أَعُودُ. فَلَمَّا سَكَنَتِ الرِّيحُ أَقْبَلَ عَلَى نَفْسِهِ، وَجَعَلَ يُعَاتِبُهَا وَيَقُولُ: يَا نَفْسِي، هٰذَا مِنْ جُرْأَتِكِ عَلَى اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَشِرَائِكِ التَّمْرَ بِالْقَرَارِيطِ.

Wa-dhukira ʿan ʿUtbata al-Ghulāmi ʾannahu ishtarā tamran biniṣfi dāniqin, fa-hājati al-rīḥu dhālika al-waqta, fa-kharaja ʿUtbatu hāriban ʿalā wajhihi wa-huwa yaqūlu: yā rabbi lā ʾaʿūdu, yā rabbi lā ʾaʿūdu. Fa-lammā sakanati al-rīḥu ʾaqbala ʿalā nafsihi, wa-jaʿala yuʿātibuhā wa-yaqūlu: yā nafsī, hādhā min jurʾatiki ʿalā Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, wa-shirāʾiki al-tamra bi-al-qarārīṭi.

“It was reported that ʿUtba al-Ghulām bought dates for half a dāniq. The wind rose just then, and ʿUtba fled without looking back, saying, ‘Lord, I will not do it again! Lord, I will not do it again!’ When the wind quieted, he turned upon his self, reproaching it: ‘My self, this comes from your boldness toward God, mighty and majestic, and your spending small coins on dates.’

وَكَانَ عَبْدُ الْوَاحِدِ بْنُ زَيْدٍ يَقُولُ: إِذَا ارْتَفَعَ هٰذَا الْغَيْمُ لَأَنَّتْ بَطْنُ عَطَاءٍ مِنْ شِدَّةِ أَنْ يَنْزِلَ بِهِ الْعَذَابُ.

Wa-kāna ʿAbdu al-Wāḥidi bnu Zaydin yaqūlu: ʾidhā irtafaʿa hādhā al-ghaymu laʾannat baṭnu ʿAṭāʾin min shiddati ʾan yanzila bihi al-ʿadhābu.

“ʿAbd al-Wāḥid ibn Zayd used to say, ‘When this cloud rises, ʿAṭāʾ's belly would groan [the printed reading is uncertain] from the intensity of his fear that punishment might descend upon him.’

وَكَانَ يُقَالُ: مَا هَلَكَ مَنْ هَلَكَ حَتَّى حِيلَ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ السَّمَاءِ.

Wa-kāna yuqālu: mā halaka man halaka ḥattā ḥīla baynahu wa-bayna al-samāʾi.

“It used to be said, ‘No one who perished did so until a barrier was placed between him and heaven.’

فَهٰذِهِ عَلَامَةُ الْخَائِفِ فِي ظَاهِرِهِ.

Fa-hādhihi ʿalāmatu al-khāʾifi fī ẓāhirihi.

“This is the outward sign of the fearful person.”

قُلْتُ: فَمَا الْعَلَامَةُ فِي بَاطِنِهِ؟

Qultu: fa-mā al-ʿalāmatu fī bāṭinihi?

I asked, “What is the inward sign?”

قَالَ: إِنَّهُ رُبَّمَا أَرَادَ أَنْ يَسْأَلَ اللّٰهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ حَاجَةً أَوْ يَدْعُوَهُ، فَيَنْقَطِعُ عَنْ ذٰلِكَ مَخَافَةَ أَنْ يُمْنَعَ، لِمَعْرِفَتِهِ بِنَفْسِهِ، وَعَظِيمِ قَدْرِ اللّٰهِ تَعَالَى عِنْدَهُ، وَلَا تَحَرَّكَ حَارِكٌ إِلَّا وَظَنَّ أَنَّهُ مَأْخُوذٌ عِنْدَهُ بِالْعَاجِلِ، كَمَا رُوِيَ عَنْ مُطَرِّفِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللّٰهِ بْنِ الشِّخِّيرِ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ ضَجَّةَ النَّاسِ بِعَرَفَاتٍ، فَهَمَمْتُ أَنْ أَحْلِفَ أَنَّ اللّٰهَ قَدْ غَفَرَ لَهُمْ، ثُمَّ ذَكَرْتُ أَنِّي فِيهِمْ فَأَمْسَكْتُ.

Qāla: ʾinnahu rubbamā ʾarāda ʾan yasʾala Allāha ʿazza wa-jalla ḥājatan ʾaw yadʿuwahu, fa-yanqaṭiʿu ʿan dhālika makhāfata ʾan yumnaʿa, limaʿrifatihi binafsihi, wa-ʿaẓīmi qadri Allāhi taʿālā ʿindahu, wa-lā taḥarraka ḥārikun ʾillā wa-ẓanna ʾannahu maʾkhūdhun ʿindahu bi-al-ʿājili, kamā ruwiya ʿan Muṭarrifi bni ʿAbdi Allāhi bni al-Shikhkhīri qāla: samiʿtu ḍajjata al-nāsi bi-ʿArafātin, fa-hamamtu ʾan ʾaḥlifa ʾanna Allāha qad ghafara lahum, thumma dhakartu ʾannī fīhim fa-ʾamsaktu.

He said, “He may wish to ask God, mighty and majestic, for something or call upon Him, yet stop for fear of being refused, because he knows himself and holds God Most High in such great esteem. No movement occurs [the printed expression is unusual] without his thinking he will be seized immediately. As Muṭarrif ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Shikhkhīr is reported to have said, ‘I heard the clamor of the people at ʿArafāt and almost swore that God had forgiven them. Then I remembered that I was among them, and held back.’

Source pages 323–324

وَرُوِيَ عَنْ مَسْرُوقِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ، وَكَانَ مِنَ الْخَائِفِينَ: أَنَّ رَجُلًا مِنْ خَثْعَمٍ قَرَأَ عَلَيْهِ: ﴿يَوْمَ نَحْشُرُ الْمُتَّقِينَ إِلَى الرَّحْمٰنِ وَفْدًا وَنَسُوقُ الْمُجْرِمِينَ إِلَى جَهَنَّمَ وِرْدًا﴾. فَقَالَ: أَعِدْ عَلَيَّ وَيْحَكَ، فَإِنِّي أَرَانِي مِنَ الْمُجْرِمِينَ، وَلَا أَرَانِي مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ. فَأَعَادَهَا عَلَيْهِ، فَشَهَقَ شَهْقَةً لَحِقَ مِنْهَا بِالْآخِرَةِ.

Wa-ruwiya ʿan Masrūqi bni Muḥammadin, wa-kāna mina al-khāʾifīna: ʾanna rajulan min Khathʿamin qaraʾa ʿalayhi: ﴿yawma naḥshuru al-muttaqīna ʾilā al-raḥmāni wafdan wa-nasūqu al-mujrimīna ʾilā jahannama wirdan﴾. Fa-qāla: ʾaʿid ʿalayya wayḥaka, fa-ʾinnī ʾarānī mina al-mujrimīna, wa-lā ʾarānī mina al-muttaqīna. Fa-ʾaʿādahā ʿalayhi, fa-shahaqa shahqatan laḥiqa minhā bi-al-ʾākhirati.

“It is related of Masrūq ibn Muḥammad, one of the fearful, that a man of Khathʿam recited to him: ‘On the day We gather the mindful to the All-Merciful as an honored delegation, and drive the guilty to Hell in thirst.’ He said, ‘Repeat it to me, poor you. I see myself among the guilty, not among the mindful.’ The man repeated it, and Masrūq gave a gasp through which he passed into the hereafter.”

Source page 324

قُلْتُ: كَيْفَ حَالُهُ عِنْدَ سُكُونِ هَيَجَانِ الْخَوْفِ عَنْهُ؟

Qultu: kayfa ḥāluhu ʿinda sukūni hayajāni al-khawfi ʿanhu?

I asked, “What is his state when the surge of fear subsides?”

قَالَ: تَرَاهُ قَاعِدًا مُسْتَوْفِزًا، كَأَنَّهُ يُرِيدُ شَيْئًا يُرِيدُهُ أَوْ يُرَادُ بِهِ، كَمَا قَالَ عَبْدُ اللّٰهِ بْنُ الْمُبَارَكِ:

Qāla: tarāhu qāʿidan mustawfizan, kaʾannahu yurīdu shayʾan yurīduhu ʾaw yurādu bihi, kamā qāla ʿAbdu Allāhi bnu al-Mubāraki:

He said, “You see him sitting poised to rise, as though he were seeking something he desires or something were intended for him. As ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Mubārak said:

مُسْتَوْفِزِينَ عَلَى رَحْلٍ كَأَنَّهُمْ رَكْبٌ يُرِيدُونَ أَنْ يَمْضُوا وَيَنْتَقِلُوا

Mustawfizīna ʿalā raḥlin kaʾannahum rakbun yurīdūna ʾan yamḍū wa-yantaqilū

“Poised upon a saddle, as though they were riders wanting to press on and depart.

حَتَّى لَقَدْ جَعَلُوا أَوْقَاتَهُمْ إِبِلًا فَلَنْ يَحُطُّوا رِحَالَ الْإِبِلِ أَوْ يَرِدُوا

Ḥattā laqad jaʿalū ʾawqātahum ʾibilan fa-lan yaḥuṭṭū riḥāla al-ʾibili ʾaw yaridū

“They have made their hours into camels and will not unload the camels' saddles until they arrive.”

قُلْتُ: وَالْحَرَكَاتُ الَّتِي يَظُنُّ أَنَّهُ مَأْخُوذٌ عِنْدَهَا، مَا هِيَ؟

Qultu: wa-al-ḥarakātu allatī yaẓunnu ʾannahu maʾkhūdhun ʿindahā, mā hiya?

I asked, “What are the movements at which he thinks he will be seized?”

قَالَ: مِثْلُ: الْهَدَّةِ، وَالْوَجْبَةِ، وَالضَّجَّةِ عَلَى غَفْلَةٍ، وَالرَّعْدِ، وَالْبَرْقِ، وَالرِّيحِ، أَوْ كَلِمَةٍ تُصَادِفُ مِنْهُ مَوَاجِيدَ قَلْبِهِ.

Qāla: mithlu: al-haddati, wa-al-wajbati, wa-al-ḍajjati ʿalā ghaflatin, wa-al-raʿdi, wa-al-barqi, wa-al-rīḥi, ʾaw kalimatin tuṣādifu minhu mawājīda qalbihi.

He said, “Such things as a crash, a thud, an unexpected uproar, thunder, lightning, wind, or a word that coincides with his heart's inward experiences.

وَقَدْ رُوِيَ عَنْ بَعْضِهِمْ أَنْ كَانَ يُوقِدُ تَحْتَ قِدْرٍ لَهُ، فَأَصَابَ وَجْهَهُ شَيْءٌ مِنْ سَوَادِ الْقِدْرِ، فَقَالَتْ لَهُ ابْنَتُهُ: يَا أَبَتَاهُ، وَجْهُكَ أَسْوَدُ. فَصَاحَ صَيْحَةً خَرَّ مَغْشِيًّا عَلَيْهِ، فَلَمَّا أَفَاقَ مَسَحَ بِيَدِهِ عَلَى وَجْهِهِ وَقَالَ: خِفْتُ أَنْ يَكُونَ اللّٰهُ قَدْ سَوَّدَ وَجْهِي فِي الدُّنْيَا قَبْلَ الْوُصُولِ إِلَى الْآخِرَةِ.

Wa-qad ruwiya ʿan baʿḍihim ʾan kāna yūqidu taḥta qidrin lahu, fa-ʾaṣāba wajhahu shayʾun min sawādi al-qidri, fa-qālat lahu ibnatuhu: yā ʾabatāhu, wajhuka ʾaswadu. Fa-ṣāḥa ṣayḥatan kharra maghshiyyan ʿalayhi, fa-lammā ʾafāqa masaḥa biyadihi ʿalā wajhihi wa-qāla: khiftu ʾan yakūna Allāhu qad sawwada wajhī fī al-dunyā qabla al-wuṣūli ʾilā al-ʾākhirati.

“It is related of someone that he was tending a fire beneath his cooking pot when some soot from the pot reached his face. His daughter said, ‘Father, your face is black.’ He cried out and collapsed unconscious. When he recovered, he wiped his face with his hand and said, ‘I feared that God had blackened my face in this world before I reached the hereafter.’

أَلَا تَرَى أَنَّهَا لَمَّا صَادَفَتِ الْكَلِمَةُ مَا قَامَ فِي وَهْمِهِ مِنَ التَّخَوُّفِ اسْتَغْرَقَ قَلْبَهُ فِي تَعْجِيلِ النَّكَالِ؟

ʾAlā tarā ʾannahā lammā ṣādafati al-kalimatu mā qāma fī wahmihi mina al-takhawwufi istaghraqa qalbahu fī taʿjīli al-nakāli?

“Do you not see that when the word met the fear already present in his imagination, it absorbed his heart in the prospect of immediate punishment?

وَقَدْ رُوِيَ عَنْ زُرَارَةَ بْنِ أَوْفَى: أَنَّهُ قَرَأَ فِي مِحْرَابِهِ: ﴿فَإِذَا نُقِرَ فِي النَّاقُورِ فَذٰلِكَ يَوْمَئِذٍ يَوْمٌ عَسِيرٌ﴾. فَشَهَقَ شَهْقَةً وَرُفِعَ مِنَ الْمِحْرَابِ مَيِّتًا.

Wa-qad ruwiya ʿan Zurārata bni ʾAwfā: ʾannahu qaraʾa fī miḥrābihi: ﴿fa-ʾidhā nuqira fī al-nāqūri fa-dhālika yawmaʾidhin yawmun ʿasīrun﴾. Fa-shahaqa shahqatan wa-rufiʿa mina al-miḥrābi mayyitan.

“It is related that Zurāra ibn Awfā recited in his prayer niche, ‘When the trumpet is sounded, that day will be a difficult day.’ He gave a gasp and was carried from the prayer niche dead.

Source pages 324–325

وَقَالَ عُثْمَانُ بْنُ عُمَارَةَ: أَخْبَرَنِي صَالِحٌ الْمُرِّيُّ، وَكَانَ وَصَّافًا لِطَرِيقِ الْعَابِدِينَ، قَالَ: قَدِمَ عَلَيْنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ صُبَيْحٍ السَّمَّاكُ، فَقَالَ: أَرِنِي عَجَائِبَ عُبَّادِكُمْ. فَذَهَبْتُ بِهِ إِلَى رَجُلٍ، فَإِذَا هُوَ فِي خُصٍّ لَهُ، فَاسْتَأْذَنَّا وَدَخَلْنَا، فَإِذَا هُوَ يَعْمَلُ الْخُوصَ، فَقَرَأْتُ عَلَيْهِ: ﴿إِذِ الْأَغْلَالُ فِي أَعْنَاقِهِمْ وَالسَّلَاسِلُ يُسْحَبُونَ فِي الْحَمِيمِ ثُمَّ فِي النَّارِ يُسْجَرُونَ﴾. فَشَهَقَ شَهْقَةً، فَإِذَا هُوَ قَدْ يَبِسَ مَغْشِيًّا عَلَيْهِ.

Wa-qāla ʿUthmānu bnu ʿUmārata: ʾakhbaranī Ṣāliḥun al-Murriyyu, wa-kāna waṣṣāfan liṭarīqi al-ʿābidīna, qāla: qadima ʿalaynā Muḥammadu bnu Ṣubayḥin al-Sammāku, fa-qāla: ʾarinī ʿajāʾiba ʿubbādikum. Fa-dhahabtu bihi ʾilā rajulin, fa-ʾidhā huwa fī khuṣṣin lahu, fa-istaʾdhannā wa-dakhalnā, fa-ʾidhā huwa yaʿmalu al-khūṣa, fa-qaraʾtu ʿalayhi: ﴿ʾidhi al-ʾaghlālu fī ʾaʿnāqihim wa-al-salāsilu yusḥabūna fī al-ḥamīmi thumma fī al-nāri yusjarūna﴾. Fa-shahaqa shahqatan, fa-ʾidhā huwa qad yabisa maghshiyyan ʿalayhi.

“ʿUthmān ibn ʿUmāra said: Ṣāliḥ al-Murrī, who often described the path of worshippers, told me: Muḥammad ibn Ṣubayḥ al-Sammāk visited us and said, ‘Show me the wonders of your worshippers.’ I took him to a man in his reed hut. We asked permission and entered, finding him working palm fronds. I recited to him, ‘When fetters are around their necks, and chains; they are dragged through boiling water, then set ablaze in the Fire.’ He gave a gasp and became rigid, unconscious.

Source page 325

فَخَرَجْنَا مِنْ عِنْدِهِ، وَتَرَكْنَاهُ عَلَى حَالِهِ ثُمَّ أَتَيْنَا رَجُلًا آخَرَ، فَاسْتَأْذَنَّا عَلَيْهِ، فَقَالَ: ادْخُلُوا إِنْ لَمْ تَشْغَلُونَا عَنْ رَبِّنَا. فَدَخَلْنَا، فَإِذَا هُوَ جَالِسٌ فِي مُصَلًّى لَهُ، فَقَرَأْتُ عَلَيْهِ: ﴿... ذٰلِكَ لِمَنْ خَافَ مَقَامِي وَخَافَ وَعِيدِ﴾. فَشَهَقَ شَهْقَةً بَدَرَ الدَّمُ مِنْ مَنْخِرَيْهِ، ثُمَّ سَقَطَ مُتَشَحِّطًا فِي دَمِهِ، مَغْشِيًّا عَلَيْهِ.

Fa-kharajnā min ʿindihi, wa-taraknāhu ʿalā ḥālihi thumma ʾataynā rajulan ʾākhara, fa-istaʾdhannā ʿalayhi, fa-qāla: udkhulū ʾin lam tashghalūnā ʿan rabbinā. Fa-dakhalnā, fa-ʾidhā huwa jālisun fī muṣallan lahu, fa-qaraʾtu ʿalayhi: ﴿... Dhālika liman khāfa maqāmī wa-khāfa waʿīdi﴾. Fa-shahaqa shahqatan badara al-damu min mankhirayhi, thumma saqaṭa mutashaḥḥiṭan fī damihi, maghshiyyan ʿalayhi.

“We left him as he was and went to another man. We asked permission to enter, and he said, ‘Come in if you will not distract us from our Lord.’ We entered and found him sitting in his place of prayer. I recited, ‘...That is for whoever fears standing before Me and fears My threat.’ He gave a gasp; blood burst from his nostrils, and he fell unconscious, writhing in his blood.

فَخَرَجْنَا مِنْ عِنْدِهِ، وَتَرَكْنَاهُ عَلَى حَالِهِ، حَتَّى أَدَرْتُهُ عَلَى سِتَّةِ أَنْفُسٍ، كُلٌّ نَخْرُجُ مِنْ عِنْدِهِ وَنَدَعُهُ عَلَى مِثَالِ صَاحِبِهِ.

Fa-kharajnā min ʿindihi, wa-taraknāhu ʿalā ḥālihi, ḥattā ʾadartuhu ʿalā sittati ʾanfusin, kullun nakhruju min ʿindihi wa-nadaʿuhu ʿalā mithāli ṣāḥibihi.

“We left him as he was. I took my companion around to six people, leaving each in a condition like the previous one's.

حَتَّى أَتَيْنَا السَّابِعَ، فَاسْتَأْذَنَّا عَلَيْهِ، فَقَالَتِ امْرَأَةٌ مِنْ وَرَاءِ الْخُصِّ: ادْخُلُوا. فَدَخَلْنَا، فَإِذَا شَيْخٌ كَبِيرٌ فَانٍ فِي مُصَلَّاهُ، فَسَلَّمْنَا وَجَلَسْنَا، فَلَمْ يَعْقِلْ مَقْصُودَنَا وَلَا سَلَامَنَا، فَقُلْتُ لَهُ بِصَوْتٍ عَالٍ: إِنَّ لِلْخَلْقِ غَدًا مَوْقِفًا وَمَقَامًا.

Ḥattā ʾataynā al-sābiʿa, fa-istaʾdhannā ʿalayhi, fa-qālati imraʾatun min warāʾi al-khuṣṣi: udkhulū. Fa-dakhalnā, fa-ʾidhā shaykhun kabīrun fānin fī muṣallāhu, fa-sallamnā wa-jalasnā, fa-lam yaʿqil maqṣūdanā wa-lā salāmanā, fa-qultu lahu biṣawtin ʿālin: ʾinna li-al-khalqi ghadan mawqifan wa-maqāman.

“Then we came to the seventh and asked permission to enter. A woman behind the reed hut said, ‘Come in.’ We entered and found a very old, frail man in his place of prayer. We greeted him and sat down, but he did not grasp our purpose or our greeting. I said loudly, ‘Tomorrow creatures will have a place to stand and a station.’

فَقَالَ: بَيْنَ يَدَيْ مَنْ وَيْحَكَ؟ ثُمَّ بَقِيَ مَبْهُوتًا، فَاتِحًا فَاهُ، شَاخِصًا بِبَصَرِهِ، وَيَصِيحُ بِصَوْتٍ ضَعِيفٍ، حَتَّى انْقَطَعَ صَوْتُهُ.

Fa-qāla: bayna yaday man wayḥaka? Thumma baqiya mabhūtan, fātiḥan fāhu, shākhiṣan bibaṣarihi, wa-yaṣīḥu biṣawtin ḍaʿīfin, ḥattā inqaṭaʿa ṣawtuhu.

“He said, ‘Before whom, poor you?’ Then he remained stunned, his mouth open and his gaze fixed, crying in a weak voice until his voice failed.

Source page 326

فَلَمَّا سَمِعَتْ ذٰلِكَ امْرَأَتُهُ قَالَتْ: اخْرُجُوا عَنْهُ، فَإِنَّكُمْ لَا تَنْتَفِعُونَ بِهِ، فَخَرَجْنَا مِنْ عِنْدِهِ، وَتَرَكْنَاهُ عَلَى حَالِهِ، فَلَمَّا كَانَ بَعْدَ ذٰلِكَ سَأَلْتُ عَنِ الْقَوْمِ، فَإِذَا ثَلَاثَةٌ مِنْهُمْ أَفَاقُوا، وَثَلَاثَةٌ لَحِقُوا بِاللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، وَمَكَثَ الشَّيْخُ ثَلَاثَةَ أَيَّامٍ عَلَى حَالَتِهِ لَا يَعْقِلُ، وَلَا يُؤَدِّي فَرْضًا وَلَا نَفْلًا.

Fa-lammā samiʿat dhālika imraʾatuhu qālat: ukhrujū ʿanhu, fa-ʾinnakum lā tantafiʿūna bihi, fa-kharajnā min ʿindihi, wa-taraknāhu ʿalā ḥālihi, fa-lammā kāna baʿda dhālika saʾaltu ʿani al-qawmi, fa-ʾidhā thalāthatun minhum ʾafāqū, wa-thalāthatun laḥiqū bi-Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla, wa-makatha al-shaykhu thalāthata ʾayyāmin ʿalā ḥālatihi lā yaʿqilu, wa-lā yuʾaddī farḍan wa-lā naflan.

“When his wife heard this, she said, ‘Leave him, for you will gain nothing from him.’ We left him as he was. Later I asked about the people: three had recovered, three had gone to God, mighty and majestic, and the old man had remained for three days in his state, without awareness and performing neither obligatory nor voluntary worship.

وَقَالَ صَالِحٌ الْمُرِّيُّ: قَالَ لِي مَالِكُ بْنُ دِينَارٍ: يَا أَبَا بِشْرٍ، اغْدُ بِنَا نَزُورُ أَبَا جُهَيْنٍ مَسْعُودًا الضَّرِيرَ. قَالَ: فَغَدَوْتُ إِلَى الْجَبَّانِ، فَإِذَا هُوَ قَدْ سَبَقَنِي وَمَعَهُ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ وَاسِعٍ، وَثَابِتٌ الْبُنَانِيُّ، وَحَبِيبٌ الْفَارِسِيُّ، فَلَمَّا رَأَيْتُهُمْ قُلْتُ: وَاللّٰهِ هٰذَا يَوْمُ سُرُورٍ.

Wa-qāla Ṣāliḥun al-Murriyyu: qāla lī Māliku bnu Dīnārin: yā ʾAbā Bishrin, ughdu binā nazūru ʾAbā Juhaynin Masʿūdan al-ḍarīra. Qāla: fa-ghadawtu ʾilā al-jabbāni, fa-ʾidhā huwa qad sabaqanī wa-maʿahu Muḥammadu bnu Wāsiʿin, wa-Thābitun al-Bunāniyyu, wa-Ḥabībun al-Fārisiyyu, fa-lammā raʾaytuhum qultu: wa-Allāhi hādhā yawmu surūrin.

“Ṣāliḥ al-Murrī said: Mālik ibn Dīnār told me, ‘Abū Bishr, come with us in the morning to visit Abū Juhayn, the blind Masʿūd.’ I went in the morning to the cemetery and found that he had arrived before me, with Muḥammad ibn Wāsiʿ, Thābit al-Bunānī, and Ḥabīb al-Fārisī. When I saw them, I said, ‘By God, this is a day of joy.’

قَالَ: فَانْطَلَقْنَا نُرِيدُ أَبَا جُهَيْنٍ، حَتَّى أَتَيْنَا مَوْضِعَهُ، فَسَأَلْنَا عَنْهُ، فَقَالُوا: الْآنَ يَخْرُجُ إِلَى الصَّلَاةِ. قَالَ: فَانْتَظَرْنَاهُ حَتَّى خَرَجَ عَلَيْنَا رَجُلٌ إِنْ شِئْتَ قُلْتَ: نُشِرَ مِنْ قَبْرِهِ. فَوَثَبَ رَجُلٌ مِنَّا فَأَخَذَ بِيَدِهِ فَأَقَامَهُ عَلَى بَابِ الْمَسْجِدِ، فَأَذَّنَ، ثُمَّ أَمْهَلَ يَسِيرًا، ثُمَّ دَخَلَ فَصَلَّى مَا شَاءَ اللّٰهُ، ثُمَّ أَقَامَ الصَّلَاةَ، فَصَلَّيْنَا مَعَهُ،

Qāla: fa-inṭalaqnā nurīdu ʾAbā Juhaynin, ḥattā ʾataynā mawḍiʿahu, fa-saʾalnā ʿanhu, fa-qālū: al-ʾāna yakhruju ʾilā al-ṣalāti. Qāla: fa-intaẓarnāhu ḥattā kharaja ʿalaynā rajulun ʾin shiʾta qulta: nushira min qabrihi. Fa-wathaba rajulun minnā fa-ʾakhadha biyadihi fa-ʾaqāmahu ʿalā bābi al-masjidi, fa-ʾadhdhana, thumma ʾamhala yasīran, thumma dakhala fa-ṣallā mā shāʾa Allāhu, thumma ʾaqāma al-ṣalāta, fa-ṣallaynā maʿahu,

He said, “We set out for Abū Juhayn until we reached his place and asked about him. They said, ‘He is just coming out for prayer.’ We waited until a man appeared who, you might have said, had been raised from his grave. One of us sprang up, took his hand, and stood him at the mosque's door. He gave the call to prayer, waited a little, went inside, and prayed as much as God willed. Then he gave the call to begin the prayer, and we prayed with him.

فَلَمَّا قَضَى صَلَاتَهُ جَلَسَ كَهَيْئَةِ الْمَهْمُومِ، فَتَأَمَرَ الْقَوْمُ فِي السَّلَامِ عَلَيْهِ، فَتَقَدَّمَ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ وَاسِعٍ فَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ، فَرَدَّ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامَ وَقَالَ: مَنْ أَنْتَ؟ يَرْحَمُكَ اللّٰهُ. قَالَ: أَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ وَاسِعٍ. فَقَالَ: أَهْلًا وَسَهْلًا وَمَرْحَبًا. أَنْتَ الَّذِي يَزْعُمُ هٰؤُلَاءِ أَنَّكَ أَفْضَلُهُمْ؟ يَعْنِي أَهْلَ الْبَصْرَةِ، لِلّٰهِ أَنْتَ إِنْ قُمْتَ بِشُكْرِ ذٰلِكَ. اجْلِسْ.

Fa-lammā qaḍā ṣalātahu jalasa kahayʾati al-mahmūmi, fa-taʾamara al-qawmu fī al-salāmi ʿalayhi, fa-taqaddama Muḥammadu bnu Wāsiʿin fa-sallama ʿalayhi, fa-radda ʿalayhi al-salāma wa-qāla: man ʾanta? Yarḥamuka Allāhu. Qāla: ʾanā Muḥammadu bnu Wāsiʿin. Fa-qāla: ʾahlan wa-sahlan wa-marḥaban. ʾAnta alladhī yazʿumu hāʾulāʾi ʾannaka ʾafḍaluhum? Yaʿnī ʾahla al-Baṣrati, li-llāhi ʾanta ʾin qumta bishukri dhālika. Ijlis.

“When he finished his prayer, he sat looking troubled. The group consulted about greeting him. Muḥammad ibn Wāsiʿ stepped forward and greeted him. He returned the greeting and asked, ‘Who are you? May God have mercy on you.’ He replied, ‘I am Muḥammad ibn Wāsiʿ.’ He said, ‘Welcome, a warm welcome! Are you the one these people,’ meaning the people of Basra, ‘claim is the best among them? God bless you if you give thanks for that. Sit down.’

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قَالَ: فَقَامَ إِلَيْهِ ثَابِتٌ الْبُنَانِيُّ، فَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ، فَرَدَّ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامَ وَقَالَ: مَنْ أَنْتَ؟ يَرْحَمُكَ اللّٰهُ. قَالَ: أَنَا ثَابِتٌ الْبُنَانِيُّ. قَالَ: مَرْحَبًا يَا ثَابِتُ، أَنْتَ الَّذِي يَزْعُمُ أَهْلُ الْبَصْرَةِ أَنَّكَ أَطْوَلُهُمْ صَلَاةً؟ اجْلِسْ، لَقَدْ كُنْتُ أَتَمَنَّاكَ عَلَى رَبِّي.

Qāla: fa-qāma ʾilayhi Thābitun al-Bunāniyyu, fa-sallama ʿalayhi, fa-radda ʿalayhi al-salāma wa-qāla: man ʾanta? Yarḥamuka Allāhu. Qāla: ʾanā Thābitun al-Bunāniyyu. Qāla: marḥaban yā Thābitu, ʾanta alladhī yazʿumu ʾahlu al-Baṣrati ʾannaka ʾaṭwaluhum ṣalātan? Ijlis, laqad kuntu ʾatamannāka ʿalā rabbī.

He said, “Thābit al-Bunānī went up and greeted him. He returned the greeting and asked, ‘Who are you? May God have mercy on you.’ He replied, ‘I am Thābit al-Bunānī.’ He said, ‘Welcome, Thābit. Are you the one the people of Basra claim prays longer than all of them? Sit down. I have been asking my Lord for you.’

فَقَامَ إِلَيْهِ حَبِيبٌ أَبُو مُحَمَّدٍ، فَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ، فَرَدَّ عَلَيْهِ، وَقَالَ: مَنْ أَنْتَ؟ يَرْحَمُكَ اللّٰهُ. قَالَ: أَنَا حَبِيبٌ أَبُو مُحَمَّدٍ. قَالَ: مَرْحَبًا يَا أَبَا مُحَمَّدٍ، أَنْتَ الَّذِي يَزْعُمُ هٰؤُلَاءِ أَنَّكَ لَنْ تَسْأَلَ اللّٰهَ شَيْئًا إِلَّا أَعْطَاكَ؟ فَهَلَّا سَأَلْتَهُ أَنْ يُخْفِيَ لَكَ ذٰلِكَ؟

Fa-qāma ʾilayhi Ḥabībun ʾAbū Muḥammadin, fa-sallama ʿalayhi, fa-radda ʿalayhi, wa-qāla: man ʾanta? Yarḥamuka Allāhu. Qāla: ʾanā Ḥabībun ʾAbū Muḥammadin. Qāla: marḥaban yā ʾAbā Muḥammadin, ʾanta alladhī yazʿumu hāʾulāʾi ʾannaka lan tasʾala Allāha shayʾan ʾillā ʾaʿṭāka? Fa-hallā saʾaltahu ʾan yukhfiya laka dhālika?

“Ḥabīb Abū Muḥammad went up and greeted him. He returned the greeting and asked, ‘Who are you? May God have mercy on you.’ He replied, ‘I am Ḥabīb Abū Muḥammad.’ He said, ‘Welcome, Abū Muḥammad. Are you the one these people claim never asks God for anything without His giving it to you? Why, then, did you not ask Him to keep that hidden for you?

اجْلِسْ يَرْحَمُكَ اللّٰهُ، وَأَخَذَ بِيَدِهِ وَأَجْلَسَهُ إِلَى جَنْبِهِ.

Ijlis yarḥamuka Allāhu, wa-ʾakhadha biyadihi wa-ʾajlasahu ʾilā janbihi.

“‘Sit down, may God have mercy on you.’ He took his hand and seated him beside him.

قَالَ: فَقَامَ إِلَيْهِ مَالِكُ بْنُ دِينَارٍ، فَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ، فَرَدَّ عَلَيْهِ وَقَالَ: مَنْ أَنْتَ؟ يَرْحَمُكَ اللّٰهُ. قَالَ: أَنَا مَالِكُ بْنُ دِينَارٍ. قَالَ: بَخٍ بَخٍ، إِنْ كُنْتَ كَمَا يَقُولُونَ، أَنْتَ الَّذِي يَزْعُمُ هٰؤُلَاءِ أَنَّكَ أَزْهَدُهُمْ؟ اجْلِسْ، الْآنَ تَمَّتِ النِّعْمَةُ، وَأُمْنِيَّتِي عَلَى رَبِّي.

Qāla: fa-qāma ʾilayhi Māliku bnu Dīnārin, fa-sallama ʿalayhi, fa-radda ʿalayhi wa-qāla: man ʾanta? Yarḥamuka Allāhu. Qāla: ʾanā Māliku bnu Dīnārin. Qāla: bakhin bakhin, ʾin kunta kamā yaqūlūna, ʾanta alladhī yazʿumu hāʾulāʾi ʾannaka ʾazhaduhum? Ijlis, al-ʾāna tammati al-niʿmatu, wa-ʾumniyyatī ʿalā rabbī.

He said, “Mālik ibn Dīnār went up and greeted him. He returned the greeting and asked, ‘Who are you? May God have mercy on you.’ He replied, ‘I am Mālik ibn Dīnār.’ He said, ‘Excellent, excellent, if you are as they say! Are you the one these people claim renounces the world most fully? Sit down. Now the blessing is complete, and so is the wish I placed before my Lord.’

قَالَ صَالِحٌ الْمُرِّيُّ: فَقُمْتُ إِلَيْهِ، فَسَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ لَهُمْ: انْظُرُوا غَدًا كَيْفَ تَكُونُونَ بَيْنَ يَدَيِ اللّٰهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ بِجَمْعِ الْقِيَامَةِ. قَالَ: فَسَلَّمْتُ عَلَيْهِ، فَرَدَّ عَلَيَّ وَقَالَ: مَنْ أَنْتَ؟ قُلْتُ: أَنَا صَالِحٌ الْمُرِّيُّ. قَالَ: أَنْتَ الْفَتَى الْقَارِئُ، وَأَنْتَ أَبُو بِشْرٍ؟ قُلْتُ: نَعَمْ. قَالَ: اقْرَأْ يَا صَالِحُ، لَقَدْ كُنْتُ أَتَمَنَّاكَ، وَأُحِبُّ أَنْ أَسْمَعَ قِرَاءَتَكَ.

Qāla Ṣāliḥun al-Murriyyu: fa-qumtu ʾilayhi, fa-samiʿtuhu yaqūlu lahum: unẓurū ghadan kayfa takūnūna bayna yadayi Allāhi ʿazza wa-jalla bijamʿi al-qiyāmati. Qāla: fa-sallamtu ʿalayhi, fa-radda ʿalayya wa-qāla: man ʾanta? Qultu: ʾanā Ṣāliḥun al-Murriyyu. Qāla: ʾanta al-fatā al-qāriʾu, wa-ʾanta ʾAbū Bishrin? Qultu: naʿam. Qāla: iqraʾ yā Ṣāliḥu, laqad kuntu ʾatamannāka, wa-ʾuḥibbu ʾan ʾasmaʿa qirāʾataka.

Ṣāliḥ al-Murrī said, “I went up to him and heard him telling them, ‘Consider how you will be tomorrow before God, mighty and majestic, at the gathering of the Resurrection.’ I greeted him. He returned my greeting and asked, ‘Who are you?’ I replied, ‘I am Ṣāliḥ al-Murrī.’ He said, ‘You are the young reciter, and you are Abū Bishr?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ He said, ‘Recite, Ṣāliḥ. I have been hoping for you and would love to hear your recitation.’

قَالَ صَالِحٌ: فَحَضَرَنِي وَاللّٰهِ مَا كُنْتُ قَدْ فَقَدْتُهُ، فَابْتَدَأْتُ، فَمَا اسْتَتْمَمْتُ الِاسْتِعَاذَةَ حَتَّى خَرَّ مَغْشِيًّا عَلَيْهِ، ثُمَّ أَفَاقَ وَقَالَ: عُدْ فِي قِرَاءَتِكَ، فَإِنِّي لَمْ تَنْقَطِعْ نَهْمَتِي مِنْهَا. قَالَ صَالِحٌ: فَرَأَيْتُ مِنْهُ عَجَبًا لَمْ أَرَهُ مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِنَ الْمُتَعَبِّدِينَ. كَانَ إِذَا سَمِعَ الْقُرْآنَ فَتَحَ فَاهُ.

Qāla Ṣāliḥun: fa-ḥaḍaranī wa-Allāhi mā kuntu qad faqadtuhu, fa-ibtadaʾtu, fa-mā istatmamtu al-istiʿādhata ḥattā kharra maghshiyyan ʿalayhi, thumma ʾafāqa wa-qāla: ʿud fī qirāʾatika, fa-ʾinnī lam tanqaṭiʿ nahmatī minhā. Qāla Ṣāliḥun: fa-raʾaytu minhu ʿajaban lam ʾarahu min ʾaḥadin mina al-mutaʿabbidīna. Kāna ʾidhā samiʿa al-qurʾāna fataḥa fāhu.

Ṣāliḥ said, “By God, what I had lost returned to me, and I began. Before I had finished seeking refuge in God, he collapsed unconscious. Then he recovered and said, ‘Resume your recitation. My yearning for it has not ended.’” Ṣāliḥ said, “I saw in him a marvel I had never seen in any other worshipper: whenever he heard the Qurʾān, he opened his mouth.”

قَالَ: فَقَرَأْتُ: ﴿وَقَدِمْنَا إِلَى مَا عَمِلُوا مِنْ عَمَلٍ فَجَعَلْنَاهُ هَبَاءً مَنْثُورًا أَصْحَابُ الْجَنَّةِ يَوْمَئِذٍ خَيْرٌ مُسْتَقَرًّا وَأَحْسَنُ مَقِيلًا﴾.

Qāla: fa-qaraʾtu: ﴿wa-qadimnā ʾilā mā ʿamilū min ʿamalin fa-jaʿalnāhu habāʾan manthūran ʾaṣḥābu al-jannati yawmaʾidhin khayrun mustaqarran wa-ʾaḥsanu maqīlan﴾.

He said, “I recited: ‘We turned to whatever deeds they had done and made them scattered dust. The people of the Garden that day will have a better dwelling and a finer resting place.’

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قَالَ: فَصَاحَ صَيْحَةً ثُمَّ انْصَبَّ لِوَجْهِهِ، وَتَكَشَّفَ بَعْضُ فَخِذِهِ، وَجَعَلَ يَخُورُ كَمَا يَخُورُ الثَّوْرُ. ثُمَّ هَدَأَ فَذَهَبْنَا نَنْظُرُ فَإِذَا هُوَ قَدْ خَرَجَتْ رُوحُهُ، كَأَنَّهُ خَشَبَةٌ مُلْقَاةٌ.

Qāla: fa-ṣāḥa ṣayḥatan thumma inṣabba liwajhihi, wa-takashshafa baʿḍu fakhidhihi, wa-jaʿala yakhūru kamā yakhūru al-thawru. Thumma hadaʾa fa-dhahabnā nanẓuru fa-ʾidhā huwa qad kharajat rūḥuhu, kaʾannahu khashabatun mulqātun.

He said, “He cried out, then fell face down. Part of his thigh became uncovered, and he began bellowing like a bull. Then he grew quiet. We went to look and found that his spirit had departed, as though he were a piece of wood cast aside.”