Chapter on Self-Admiration Regarding the World and the Self

I said: What is self-admiration (ʿujb) from the side of the world?

He said: Self-admiration with the self (nafs), self-admiration with beauty, self-admiration with lineage, self-admiration with the abundance of servants, children, clients, kinfolk, and companions.

I said: What is self-admiration with the self?

He said: It is admiration with beauty and the body — its greatness and its completeness — and with strength, intellect, deeds, and the beauty of one's voice. As for beauty and the body, it is finding these pleasing in oneself, and forgetting what is incumbent upon the servant: of gratitude to God Most High for that, and forgetting the divine decree at the outset, and the afflictions through which one passes, and the destiny of beauty and the body toward annihilation and decay — until one grows arrogant and struts and exposes one's beauty to immorality, and boasts of it over others.

I said: What avails against that?

He said: Remembering the blessing and what is obligatory upon him of gratitude, and what he has squandered of it, and what the Bestower of blessings deserves — and that his squandering of gratitude through disobedience to Him changes his beauty to disfigurement through the traces of [remembering] the punishment of God Most High, and that the Fire consumes the beauty of the body and its completeness; and his knowing his origin and his measure — that his beginning was from dust and the seminal drop, and what he passes through of filth and impurities; and that the dust shall efface his form and decompose his body. So when he knows himself, his measure, and his destiny, and what is upon him of gratitude, and what he has squandered of it, and what has become incumbent upon him through his squandering of gratitude in terms of punishment — self-admiration departs from him, and he occupies himself with gratitude and humility before the Bestower of blessings.

I said: What about self-admiration with strength?

He said: It is to magnify it, to forget gratitude, to rely upon it, and to forget trust in God (tawakkul) upon God Most High — as those who said: «Who is mightier than us in strength?» [Fuṣṣilat 41:15] They admired their own strength and relied upon it, thinking that through it they would be delivered from the punishment of God, Mighty and Majestic.

he cut a piece from the mountain to place it upon his neck, and ʿAwj ibn ʿUnq used to eat relying on his strength—Moses saw him, so God, exalted and glorified, split it and it settled around his neck.

The believer may also eat relying on his strength, as was described of the Prophet, peace be upon him, by the saying of Sulayman, upon him be peace: "I will surely go around tonight to a hundred women." And he did not say: "If God wills." So what he intended of offspring did not come to be, and the servant relies upon his strength and forgets tawakkul (trust in God) in his Lord, exalted and glorified.

And from this is the saying of Dawud, upon him be prayer and peace: «If You test me, I will be patient» [cf. 38:24]. And he may also grow bold with the strength he has been given in wars, in acts of disobedience to God, exalted and glorified, and he hastens to strike and kill one who opposes him whom he does not recognize as possessing strength, relying upon it, and he taunts the weakness of his opponent out of deception, and boasts over him with his strength.

He said:

By his knowledge that it is a blessing from God, exalted and glorified, as a favor from Him, let him look at how He employed it in His obedience, and that gratitude is incumbent upon him therein since He favored him with it over others among the weak, and that God, exalted and glorified, is the One who strengthened him with it, and had He willed He could have taken it away through affliction, illness, or weakness. So let him bind himself to the obligation of shukr (gratitude) upon him, and let him fear that if he acts arrogantly with it and employs it in disobedience to God, exalted and glorified, He may break it or take it from him as punishment. When he fixes this in his qalb (heart), self-admiration with it vanishes and he devotes himself to rendering gratitude therein.

I said: What about self-admiration with intellect, acuity, and perceptiveness?

He said: It is deeming that excellent and aggrandizing it, forgetting the blessing by considering it one's own merit, and relying upon it—that through it he attains what he desires and hopes for, whether of knowledge, opinion, the rulings of the religion of God, exalted and glorified, or worldly matters—while abandoning tawakkul (trust in God) upon God, exalted and glorified, in all of that, until this leads him to weak adherence to his intellect out of his self-admiration with it, such that he errs in the religion of God, exalted and glorified, and speaks about it without truth. It also leads him to abandoning understanding from those whose knowledge, command, or deliberation he encounters, until he is deprived of comprehension of the truth and refuses anything but speech that is erroneous and mistaken. And it leads him to contempt for those beneath him who were not given of perceptiveness the like of what he was given.

even if he is more scrupulous than him, and more virtuous in works. And he is more virtuous than him and more scrupulous than him, yet he deems many of them «ignorant fools, like the donkey» that does not «comprehend» [TN: cf. al-Jumu'ah 62:5]. He sees them as such, since he considers himself superior to them in acumen and keenness of mind, and he looks down upon them and belittles whatever good they have done, and he views himself as better than them, even if his work is squandered because of his acumen and his intellect.

I said: What negates that?

He said:

His knowledge of his own ignorance despite what he has been given of acumen, and his heedlessness and forgetfulness, and the scarcity of what he perceives through his intellect — even though he may have been given more acumen than others. For indeed shukr (gratitude) is thereby obligated upon him, since he has been given much. He was only favored with keenness of mind so that the proof against him would be greater and so that obedience would be confirmed upon him by adhering to it. And let him look to God — exalted and majestic — how He employs his intellect in understanding from Him and occupying himself with Him, and that what he was given of intellect is in the hand of God — exalted and majestic — [and] were He to will, He could alter it and remove it through some afflictions, as He has done to those who are like him and those above him in deed. So let him not feel secure from God — exalted and majestic — stripping him of his intellect.

And when he recognizes his weakness, his ignorance, and the scarcity of what he perceives through his intellect, and that what he was favored with is a blessing — a gift from Him — upon him, entailing the greatness of the proof and the obligation of what is due, and that he is one who squanders that — when he knows all of that, he knows that one who was not given the like of what he was given of acumen is in a better state than he, since he does not thank God — exalted and majestic — for what He favored him with, and that the proof against him is greater than against those beneath him — [the proof being] concerning acting upon it.

So when he fixes his heart upon this knowledge, self-admiration (ʿujb) departs from him. And he fears the greatness of the proof and the obligation of what is due, and he devotes himself to gratitude and the fulfillment of what is owed.

Chapter on Self-Admiration Regarding Lineage

I said: And what is self-admiration regarding lineage?

He said: Esteeming one's own worth on account of fathers and ancestors. If they were among the people of honor in this world—those who were honored in worldly matters through religion—he esteems his own worth on account of them, and forgets the grace of the Lord, exalted and glorified, upon him, since He created him from among the noble righteous ones, and lifted from him the disgrace of lowly standing.

Perhaps, had He made him lowly in lineage, he would have been angered by that and affiliated himself with someone other than his fathers, and disdained them. So he forgets what Allah, exalted and glorified, raised from him of tribulation, and what He bestowed upon him of the blessing of making him from the offspring of His saints (awliyā') and the people of obedience to Him. He thus neglects what is due upon him of gratitude (shukr) and what became obligatory upon him of the proof [of God's favor], and that so long as he possesses [this blessing], when he esteems his own worth on account of his fathers, he becomes self-admiring (mu'jab), and neglects gratitude and the obligation of the proof, until it occurs to him—nay, he may become certain—that he is saved without any deed, and that he is forgiven despite the abundance of his sins, even if he does not repent.

So he uses that to dominate others, and becomes arrogant, and boasts over others, and scorns and disdains whoever is beneath him in lineage—whether a relative, a neighbor, or anyone else. He struts in his gait, and sees that other people are like slaves. Indeed, some of them may hold that the community are servants belonging to him, so he contradicts [the way of] his fathers in their deeds, and desires that others should be [regarded] the same as him before Allah, exalted and glorified. That is delusion regarding Allah, exalted and glorified, and ignorance of His command.

I said: What negates that?

He said: By his knowledge of what is obligatory upon him of gratitude to Allah, exalted and glorified, for what He bestowed upon him, since He made him from among

This deviant idea is taken from the ideas of the Shia, who hold that the imāma (leadership) transfers inwardly from one imam to another imam. The deviants among the later Sufis adopted it as well.

that he will be recompensed for his own deeds, not the deeds of his fathers, and that they were saved only through obedience, and through it they were ennobled. Others equal to them in lineage did not believe nor obey, and they were in the sight of Allah, Mighty and Glorious, more evil than swine and dogs. And that if one opposes their path, the ruling upon him is that he will be consigned to a dwelling other than theirs — which is the Fire — and he will never be saved except by his own deeds, or the mercy of Allah, Mighty and Glorious. Among the evidence for that is the saying of Allah, Mighty and Glorious: «Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you» [49:13].

That is because al-Harith ibn Hisham, Suhayl ibn 'Amr, and Khalid ibn Asid objected on the day of the Conquest [of Mecca] when Bilal gave the call to prayer upon the Ka'ba. Al-Harith ibn Hisham said: "Does this black slave give the call to prayer upon the Ka'ba?" So Allah, Mighty and Glorious, revealed: «Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you» [49:13]. This was narrated by Ibn Abi Hatim.

And among the evidence is his ﷺ saying: "Indeed Allah, Mighty and Glorious, has removed from you the disgrace of the Age of Ignorance (jahiliyya). All of you are the children of Adam, and Adam was from dust."

So let one know that his origin and the origin of all the children of Adam is one, and that he was favored over them through lineage and righteousness in [the line of] forefathers, so that he may consider how he gives gratitude (shukr), and that only his own deeds will benefit him, not the deeds of his fathers.

And among the evidence for that is his ﷺ saying: "O assembly of Quraysh! Allah will not meet people on the Day of Resurrection [rewarding them] for their deeds while you carry them upon your necks. You will say: 'O Muhammad! O Muhammad!' and I will say: 'Thus'" — meaning, he turns away. And when Allah, Mighty and Glorious, commanded him to warn his nearest kinsfolk, he called them out clan by clan, until he came to [say]: "O Fatima, daughter of [Muhammad] — " and he said: "O Safiyya, daughter of 'Abd al-Muttalib — "

"Work for yourselves, for I cannot avail you anything against God."

Rather, Abu Hurayra and others narrated it.

So if he does that and commits his heart to it, and he recognized himself, his self-delusion departed from him, and he feared being among those who are impressed with themselves and met [God] with gratitude, and he feared sin, and that one besides him might be saved — woe to you — while he himself was more God-fearing before God, Exalted and Glorified.

So when he recognized himself with this knowledge and placed it at this station, his pride diminished, as did his vanity and his contempt for others. Rather, he should humble himself and emulate his forefathers, for indeed God, Exalted and Glorified, only elevates them through their humility before Him.

I said: Indeed the hadith has come from the Prophet, peace be upon him, that he said — following his statement: "O Fatima! O Safiyya! Work for yourselves, for I cannot avail you anything against God — except that you have a kinship tie which I shall honor with its due connection." And he said: "Shall my progeny hope for my intercession while the sons of Abd al-Muttalib do not hope for it?" So by this statement he has indicated that he will single out his relatives with intercession. Likewise, every righteous person will, by this analogy, intercede for his relatives.

He said: That is indeed fitting for him to hope for. And it is generally known that the Prophet does not intercede, nor any of the righteous, except for one upon whom God is angry, and He intended that His mercy be the cause of the intercession of His Prophet, peace be upon him, and some of His saints [awliyā'] for him. But whoever incurs the anger of God, Exalted and Glorified, upon him — He does not grant me permission, and I find no means to intercede for him.

Do you not see when He mentioned His angels: «And they do not intercede except for one with whom He is pleased» [21:28]? Qatada said: On the Day of Resurrection. Mujahid said: Only for one with whom He is pleased. And whoever is interceded for without [God's prior approval being] made generally known, He has informed that He is angry with him.

Do you not see that the Prophet's statement: "A group from among my companions on the left side shall be brought before me, and I shall say: O Lord!"

He will say: "My companions! You do not know what they innovated after you."

And if he hopes for intercession, he is one who fears that he might disobey God, Mighty and Glorious, and that He would be wrathful with him. It may be that He is wrathful with him, and so He does not grant intercession for him, and He does not permit anyone to intercede for him. And despite what he hopes from the intercession of the Prophet ﷺ, all the Muslims hope for the intercession of the Prophet ﷺ, even if he has been singled out for intercession by his relatives. But do not feel safe from the wrath and loathing of God, Mighty and Glorious.

So when his qalb (heart) holds fast to this, fearing and hoping, he does not become filled with self-admiration, nor does he feel proud, nor does he boast, nor does he act arrogantly. And how could he be filled with self-admiration and act arrogantly when he is not secure from being one upon whom God, Mighty and Glorious, is wrathful — worse than the apes and the swine?

And how could he feel secure from that when those whom he regards as safe — the people of noble lineage in religion and in worldly life, and the best of creation after the Prophet ﷺ — when creation wished at a certain moment, out of fear of the punishment of God, Mighty and Glorious, that they could become like beasts in nature, out of fear of His wrath?

He is only amazed at himself because they feared this very fear — and they possessed precedence, merit, and a prior standing with God that he does not possess. And even if he did possess merit, he would be more deserving of fearing God, Mighty and Glorious, as they were — fearing their Lord, Mighty and Glorious.

I said: What do you say about one who has noble lineage in worldly matters — righteous forefathers more than most people in matters of lineage — yet he has no merit? What is the basis of his self-admiration?

Contempt for people, such that he reproaches them for their lineages and backbites them and finds fault with them, and he regards for himself —

I said: What is in that?

He said: The knowledge that the origin of it, in the beginning, is that all people share the same origin. «His creation is like their creation» and He did not favor him over them in anything in creation, since the creation is one, the father is one, the mother is one, and death and tribulation are upon his neck, and reckoning is upon him, and reward and punishment are before him, and that he has merited punishment through his sins, and that upon him is shukr (gratitude) — since He placed him in a position that does not disgrace him, so that he would not be lowly in the estimation of people.

And regarding that gratitude, it is upon him [to recognize] that his forefathers who preceded in shirk (associating partners with God) — he is not impressed by them, nor does admiration befit them, nor [do they possess] any worth in the sight of God, Mighty and Exalted. Rather, a dog is better in the sight of God, Most High, than them, as the Prophet said:

"Let a people cease boasting of their forefathers who have become fuel in Hell, or they will surely be more contemptible in the sight of God, Mighty and Exalted, than the dung beetles that push filth with their noses."

And the hadith from the Prophet is that he said:

"Two men boasted before Moses, peace be upon him. One of them said: 'I am so-and-so son of so-and-so,' counting up to ten [generations] with him. 'And who are you?' So God, Mighty and Exalted, revealed to Moses, peace be upon him: 'Say to the one who boasted of his forefathers: nine of them are among the people of the Fire, and you are their tenth in the Fire.'"

And even if among his forefathers there was one who possessed righteousness and religion, then it is as I have described to you.

I said: If his forefathers were not a root among the Arabs, nor leaders in obedience and righteousness, but rather they were [people] of nobility in dominion and might of old — what is the wonder in that?

He said: It is aggrandizing one's worth, and forgetting what his forefathers came to of punishment, and that what they were in was a disgrace upon them in the sight of people of intellect, and a blemish in the sight of God, Mighty and Exalted. Yet he sees that he possesses superiority over others, and looks down upon them, and is arrogant toward them, and forgets the consequence of what they were in, and abandons shukr (gratitude) — since God, Mighty and Exalted, brought him out from among them.

except His religion. He favored him and singled him out with Islam and blessing, and exchanged it for him with the honor of Islam, making «his honor among them the honor of Islam» [TN: approximate Quranic allusion]. He despises those beneath him in lineage, and boasts and is arrogant, such that he sees himself as better than those who preceded him in righteousness and prior standing. And perhaps that bequeathed to him deceit against Islam and enmity toward the religion, for they were despicable people whom his forefathers defeated and overcame, and they inherited their lands and their homes through truth and the victory of the religion.

I said: Then what removes that?

He said:

His knowledge of what they were in, of tyranny over the servants of God, Mighty and Majestic, and corruption in His earth, and disbelief and denial thereof, and what they came to of punishment and death, and what is due upon him from God, Mighty and Majestic, for He brought him out from among them and did not make him like them, and exchanged for him the honor of Islam and the adornment of faith — for there is no boasting with the people of the Fire nor with their great numbers.

And even if they possessed, along with that, nobility in the world in opinion and speech, and excellence in diplomatic conduct toward those who sought their counsel — since God, Most High, has removed from him what was upon him of those by whom he would be reproached, such as the Zanj and others, and upon him in that regard is lowliness in the measure of worldly standing — as shukr (gratitude) for his trial [TN: or "for His testing him"], since nothing befell him.

And along with that, the self-admiration (ʿujb) regarding his forefathers is something that passes away, through knowledge of their true measure in the sight of God, Mighty and Majestic, and in the sight of His friends among the believers. None is magnified except one whom God, Mighty and Majestic, magnified, and none is diminished except one who is diminished in the sight of God, Mighty and Majestic.