Chapter on Ghurra Through Worship and Works

lying against God, Mighty and Glorious, and falsehood.

"And I had indeed been saying the statement, then it would become clear to me from what had passed of my life that it was an error, so I would retract it. And this was a state that, in my view, had I persisted in that condition of mine, and likewise I would not be safe from the like of it, then die upon it before recognizing my error, then I would have destroyed myself. Moreover, even if disputation were from the sunna (prophetic practice) and I were not occupied by it from working for my Hereafter, and I were safe from error in my argumentation — there would still be no place in their discourse that would serve as a deterrent for my Hereafter, since I never saw a single one of them retract his statement, nor repent from his innovation. And if that were indeed so, I would have wearied myself to no avail. So how then, when I have been forbidden from disputation while it distracts me from working for my salvation? And moreover, I expose myself to error against God, Mighty and Glorious, and lying against Him in His religion while I am unaware."

So when he returns to himself through that, he perceives his delusion and accuses himself, and realizes that he had been in a state of self-deception and embellishment from his own opinion, and that he had spent [the length of] his life abandoning what was more deserving of him. At that point, then, let him attend to work, and examine his faults, and hasten to repentance from them before meeting his Lord, Mighty and Glorious.

Chapter on Being Deluded by Worship and Deeds

I said: And what about being deluded by worship and deeds — how is that?

He said:

Among them is a group that affects riḍā (contentment), zuhd (renunciation), tawakkul (reliance upon God), and love of God, Mighty and Glorious, without reality and without knowledge of what is more worthy of him. One of them reduces his clothing and food as zuhd (renunciation) of this world. And some of them set out for the Pilgrimage without provisions and abandon earning — on the day of affecting that. And among them are those to whom their own soul makes it appear that they long for Paradise. And among them are those who claim love of God, Mighty and Glorious, babbling about that, sitting with others on the basis of it, and falling unconscious at the mention of Him.

All of these groups are deluded regarding God, Mighty and Glorious, speaking of what God, Most High, detests, while they are unaware.

[damaged] ...you act with what God — Exalted and Glorious — detests, and you are arrogant and filled with self-admiration, and you commit much of what God detests, while you do not perceive it.

And they are the generality of the reciters [of Quran].

I said: This group is more deserving of compassion than the sects I described before them, since they struggled against their desires, and because all those sects were deluded without much cost of effort having been expended by them, and without the introduction of hardship upon themselves. But this group has rejected the worldly life — as you see — and its prohibition has exhausted them, yet it is inclined toward some of the worldly life while it does not perceive it. So it is more deserving of compassion than the others. And I have feared that [this] may be the predominant condition among the people of our time.

So how can it be — that she know her delusions and negate them and avoid them after knowing them? And negation after knowledge is upon her... [damaged] ...since you have known [damaged] ...you have borne of detestable things what is more severe than negation.

He said: Do not do so, for avoiding the caprice (hawā) along with little action is greater and harder upon the nafs (soul) than bearing hardships and detestable things in abundant works when caprice accompanies them.

I said: Then clarify for me her delusion, for she is in a state free of delusion, which is easier upon her.

He said: Indeed, because she is the most generous of souls among the deluded in works, and the most severe of them in bearing what is detestable in the outward aspect of acts of obedience. That by which you recognize her delusion is that she returns to herself by calling herself to resolve upon seeking [God's pleasure], until when you have come to know what she is in secret and in public, she examines herself at every prompting of her promptings — both good and evil in her inward — until you discern: Have the hearts been purified of every detestable thing that God — Exalted and Glorious — detests?

Has she purified her limbs from the disobediences of God, Mighty and Glorious?

And what is the most fitting thing for her to begin with regarding the obligations upon her?

As for the heedless one, let him examine the soundness of his livelihood and his nourishment from the worldly life, being one who takes little from it. If he was of good disposition, let him examine whether he has neglected anything that was obligatory upon him, squandering it along with his taking little. And how is his inner conscience, and the movements of his limbs during his night and day?

If he sees himself as not fulfilling the right of God, Mighty and Glorious, in that matter or in his general affairs, while he had already considered himself among the ascetics, then he is — in the sight of God, Mighty and Glorious — among the wicked. And if he examines himself, he will find that he had been, despite his zuhd (ascetic renunciation), neglectful of taqwā (God-consciousness), and that he had been deceived and deluded.

Then let him examine what he intended by his taking little, and how his heart found ease in the food of his brethren and others, and in their praise when he hears it or it reaches him concerning his taking little. And was his qalb (heart) standing guard over itself in that out of khawf (fear) of God, Mighty and Glorious?

If he sees in his heart that he had been heedless of that, it is a sign that delusion had taken firm hold over him. He had attached his heart to the highest ranks in what he saw, and busied himself from what was more fitting for him, then he did not purify it either. Along with what he busied himself with from what was more fitting for him, the right of God, Mighty and Glorious, was being squandered by him, and his work would inevitably be nullified in the sight of God, Mighty and Glorious, while he had been considering that God had bestowed favor upon him through asceticism or some measure of asceticism. And perhaps the food from which he used to take little was unlawful or of doubtful nature, and it would have been more fitting for him to abandon it entirely out of waraʿ (scrupulous piety). So he is one who takes the little that he ought to have been leaving as an act of scrupulousness, while he considers himself to be taking [only his] sustenance and giving precedence to virtue through asceticism in this world and rejecting both of them.

When this becomes clear to him, by the permission of God, Mighty and Glorious, his delusion is removed from him, and he devotes himself to taqwā (God-consciousness) and ikhlāṣ (sincerity) of works for his Lord, Mighty and Glorious.

And how could his delusion not be removed from him after his self-knowledge, when he had been counting himself — prior to knowing it — as one who had already surpassed the people of scrupulous piety, while he was cut off from them? For not a day of his days would pass upon him except that God —

God — exalted and majestic — is aware of what resides in his breast regarding what his Master detests and has forbidden him from, such as riya' (ostentation) and other things. Likewise his limbs — rarely would a day pass without some of them being what He detests in his station. So if you have learned that his limbs could scarcely be sound, then his heart [could scarcely be sound either]. So no intelligent person should persist in delusion after this knowledge, from his Lord — exalted and majestic.

As for the one deluded by abandoning works and setting out without provisions: if he looked with sound examination, seeking to follow the rightly-guided leaders, and out of caution from the fear of innovations, he would not find a single one among the predecessors who preceded him to that.

Let him reflect upon the traditions, and they urge him to abandon what he had adopted as religion in [abandoning] work, and they encourage [carrying] provisions, and they [establish] that the merit lies in work and the permissibility of provisions based upon yaqin (certainty) that provisions are from God — exalted and majestic — and that there is no provider except God — exalted and majestic — in following the Prophet and the leaders of guidance, and cutting the self's passing thoughts off from coveting created beings, and that the hired worker should himself be the one whom they nourish with what they feed him, to the exclusion of others, and thus that reward which others are rewarded for therein would be his. So when this became clear to him, it became clear that he had been, in his religious practice and his speech, opposing the path of the righteous and the leaders of the worshippers.

And also, even if that were permissible: let him examine — did he perfect what he had established of taqwa (God-consciousness) in his inward being, his limbs, his food, and his clothing?

And how was his ikhlas (sincerity)? And what was manifest from his tawakkul (trust in God)?

So when he knows that he had been in opposition to following [the exemplars], and that along with that he had been squandering many of the rights of God in his inward being and his limbs, his delusion would be removed from him and he would follow what is most worthy of him. If he had been one possessed of taqwa in his inward being and his outward [conduct] from before, it would become clear to him that he had been in a state [in which] he was deluded, practicing religion based on his own saying when he knew no leader who preceded him to his saying, and when the traditions indicate the opposite of his saying.

Likewise all the groups among the ascetics who are upon other than sidq (truthfulness) and not upon taqwa — they are upon something similar to that.

[The remainder of the page is damaged and partially illegible, appearing to reference] self-examination: [damaged]