His words, Exalted is He:

…And give good tidings to those who believe that they have a sure footing with their Lord…

He [Sahl] said:

This refers to the preordained mercy that was deposited in Muḥammad ﷺ.

His words:

…[He is] directing affairs…

He said:

He alone decrees every decree, and chooses for the servant what is best for him. Thus God’s choice is better for him than his own choice for himself.

Sahl was asked on his death bed: ‘What would you like to be shrouded in, where would you like to be buried and who would you like to pray over you after your death?’ He replied:

I [set about] arranging my affairs during my life and for [after my death], but found there was no need for me to attend to them due to the antecedent arrangements (sābiq tadbīr) that God, Exalted is He, made for His servant.

His words, Exalted is He:

If trouble should befall a man, he cries out to Us [in supplication], whether lying on his side…

He said:

Supplication (duʿāʾ) is freeing oneself (tabarrī) of everything save Him, Exalted is He.^{1This is another example of an esoteric interpretation springing from a ‘keynote’. See above, p. 66, n. 14 and IT, p. xxix. In their Qurʾānic context these words are usually understood to refer to the unbeliever who only turns to God and petitions Him in times of trouble and difficulty, but when he is relieved of the misfortune, carries on as if he had never called out to Him.}

His words, Exalted is He:

…Then they pray to God, becoming sincere [in their] faith in Him…

He [Sahl] said:

Sincerity (ikhlāṣ) is witnessing (mushāhada). The life of the heart is in two things: in its root (aṣl) it is faith (īmān), and in its branch (farʿ) it is sincerity. Sincerity is a matter of great importance and the one who possesses it is wary lest his sincerity should not prevail till death, for actions are [judged] on the ones that come last — Worship your Lord, until what is certain comes to you [15:99].^{1What is certain being death.}

His words, Exalted is He:

And God summons to the Abode of Peace, and He guides whomsoever He wills to a straight path.

He [Sahl] said:

The call (daʿwa) is universal (ʿāmma), but guidance (hidāya) is designated (khāṣṣa) [for a certain number], and He refers His guidance back to His will (mashīʾa), this being what God, Exalted is He, has preordained (sābiqat al-qadar).

His words, Exalted is He:

Is it [only then], when it has come to pass, that you will believe therein? Now when [until now] you have been hastening it on?

That is, ‘You hasten to deny Us and remember other than Us, but when you come before Us and behold with your eyes the punishment We had promised you, [only then] do you believe, when it is [no longer] of [any] benefit [to you].’ For [indeed] all people [on that day] will inevitably affirm His oneness in the Hereafter, when the power of [His] essence (ḥukm al-dhāt) is made manifest, and all opposing and rival [deities that have been falsely set up] will be renounced, along with the [false] supplications made to them, due to the cessation of doubt and the fear of punishment.

His words, Exalted is He:

Say: ‘In the bounty of God, and in His mercy, in that let them rejoice…’

That is, in the profession of His oneness and in His Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ, just as He said: We did not send you except as a mercy to all the worlds [21:107].

His words, Exalted is He:

Assuredly God’s friends, no fear shall befall them, neither shall they grieve.

Sahl said:

They are those whom the Messenger of God ﷺ described, saying, ‘When they are seen, God is remembered.’^{1Ibn Ḥanbal, al-Musnad, vol. 6, p. 459; Tirmidhī, Nawādir al-uṣūl, vol. 4, pp. 80, 86.} They are those who strive in God’s cause, who outstrip others in their [journeying] towards Him, and whose actions are constantly in conformity (muwāfaqa).^{2That is, in conformity with God’s will.} Those are the true believers [8:4].

And he [Sahl] said:

All goodness comes together in four things, and through these they [believers] become ‘Substitutes’ (abdāl):^{3According to Sufi tradition, the abdāl or budalāʾ (pl. of badal meaning literally ‘substitute’), constitute one degree or rank in the spiritual hierarchy of saints or mystics after the time of the Prophet. They are said to be unknown to the generality of believers, but have a powerful influence in preserving the order of the universe. Sufi literature varies concerning both the different ranks that make up this hierarchy and the numbers within each of these ranks, but one that is generally agreed upon is as follows: at the apex of the hierarchy there is one ‘Axis’ or ‘Pole’ (quṭb), also known as ‘Succour’ (ghawth), who is the axis mundi or spiritual ‘pole’ of the universe; after the Pole come the two ‘Foremost’ or ‘Assistants’ (imāmān); below them come five ‘Mainstays’ (awtād) or ‘Pillars’ or ‘Props’ (ʿumud); then come the seven ‘Incomparables’ (afrād); then the Substitutes (abdāl); and so on down to ten ranks in total. The Substitutes in particular are mentioned in a number of ḥadīths, for which see: Ibn Ḥanbal, al-Musnad (Cairo, 1895), vol 1, p. 112; and Tirmidhī, Nawādir al-uṣūl, vol. 1, p. 165; vol. 2, p. 103. For a discussion of this hierarchy see, I. Goldziher, ‘Abdāl,’ EI2, vol. i, p. 94, and J. Chabbi, ‘Abdāl’ EIr, vol. iii, pp. 173–4. The Mainstays are also discussed in Tustarī’s commentary on 7:33, above.} an empty stomach, seclusion from people, the night vigil, and observing silence.

He was asked why the Substitutes (abdāl) are called Substitutes. He answered:

It is because they substitute their spiritual states (aḥwāl) [one for another]. They have submitted their bodies to the vigour (ḥīl) in their innermost secrets (asrār).^{4That is, reading akhrajū abdānahum ʿalā’l-ḥīl (MSS Z515, f. 54b, F638, f. 26a and F3488, f. 227b) instead of ʿan al-ḥīl, which is in the printed edition.} Then they move from state (ḥāl) to state, and from knowledge (ʿilm) to knowledge, so that they are constantly increasing in the knowledge of that which is between them and their Lord.

He was asked, ‘Who are more excellent, the Mainstays (awtād) or the Substitutes (abdāl)?’ He answered, ‘The mainstays’. Then he was asked, ‘And how is that?’ He replied:

It is because the Mainstays have already arrived and their principles (arkān) are well established, whereas the Substitutes move from state to state.

[On this subject] Sahl also said:

I have met with one thousand five hundred veracious [servants of God] (ṣiddīq) among whom were forty Substitutes (abdāl) and seven Mainstays (awtād), and I found their way (ṭarīqa) and method (madhhab) to be the same as that which I follow.

Furthermore, he used to say, ‘I am the proof of God (ḥujjat Allāh) against you in particular and against the people in general.’

It was [Sahl’s] way and his conduct to be full of gratitude and remember [God] a great deal. He was also constant in observing silence and reflection. He would dispute little and was of a generous spirit. He led people through his good character, mercy and compassion for them, and by giving them good counsel. He held fast to the principle[s] (aṣl) [of religion] while putting into practice [the rules] that are derived from it (farʿ). Truly God filled his heart with light, and invested his speech with wisdom. He was among the best of Substitutes, and if we include him among the Mainstays he was the Axis (quṭb) around which the millstone [of the world] revolves.^{5On quṭb see n. 5 above.} Furthermore, if it were not for the fact that no one can be valued alongside the Companions because of their companionship and witnessing [of the Prophet ﷺ], then one would say that he was as one of them. He lived a praiseworthy life and died as a stranger in Basra, may God have mercy upon him.

There was a man who used to keep Sahl’s company called ʿAbd al-Raḥmān b. Aḥmad.^{6Böwering identifies this person as ʿAbd al-Raḥmān b. Aḥmad al-Marwazī, who appears to have been one of three intimate disciples of Tustarī. See Mystical Vision, p. 84.} One day he said to Sahl, ‘O Abū Muḥammad! Sometimes I perform the ablutions for the prayer and the water runs between my fingers and becomes rods of gold and silver.’ Then Sahl said:

O my dear fellow, don’t you know that when an infant cries he is given a rattle to distract himself with? So just consider what He is doing.^{7What is probably meant is that the disciple should not be amazed by this phenomenon, but rather he should see it as being analogous to a rattle that is given to a child merely to distract him. Thus the disciple should be concentrating on making the ablution, not being distracted by the appearance of the water. We have assumed the subject of the doing to be God, since this may be a test from Him, an example of the divine ruse (makr). See above p. 20, n. 47 and 3:8.}

And he said that he had within his house a room which he called the room for predatory beasts. The beasts would approach Sahl, and he would admit them into that room, offer them hospitality and feed them some meat, and then let them go free.^{8Regarding Sahl’s relationship with wild animals, see above IT, p. xx. See also Tustarī’s commentary on 45:13, regarding Shaybān’s relationship with a lion and a wolf. Among other Sufis, Abū al-Ḥasan al-Kharaqānī was reputed to have used a lion as a beast of burden and to have tamed snakes. See ʿAṭṭār, Tadhkirat al-awliyāʾ, pp. 667–8, and Christiane Tortel, Paroles d’un Soufie: Abû’l-Ḥasan Kharaqânî (Paris, 1998), pp. 86–7.}

His words:

And [Muḥammad] follow what is revealed to you, and be steadfast until God gives judgement, for He is the Best of Judges.

He [Sahl] said:

God imposed His rules upon people and assisted them in following them by His favour and His omnipotence. Furthermore He directed them to the right guidance (rushd) for them with His words, And follow what is revealed to you, and be steadfast until God gives judgement, for He is the Best of Judges. To be steadfast in following [what is revealed], is to abandon devising and self management (tadbīr), for in this [abandonment] there is now [i.e. in this world] deliverance from the vain caprices (ruʿūnāt) of the lower self, and later [i.e. in the next world] salvation from the shame of transgression.