His words, Exalted is He:

…Surely in My presence the messengers do not fear, except he who has wronged [others]…

He said:

There was never among the prophets and messengers an oppressor. However, this address to them is actually indirectly referring to their people, just as when He said to the Prophet ﷺ: If you associate others [with God], your work shall surely fail [39:65], those who are intended are his nation (umma), for when they hear this admonition being addressed to the Prophet ﷺ, they will be even more cautious [concerning themselves].

His words, Exalted is He:

…[And he said] ‘My Lord, inspire me to be thankful for the blessings You have granted me...’ ^{1These words are spoken by Solomon after he hears one of the ants warn the other ants to enter their homes lest Solomon and his army crush them. The Qurʾān relates that Solomon smiles on hearing these words and then thanks God for the blessings he and his family have been granted — including, presumably, his ability to hear the language of the birds and other creatures.}

He said:

The servant has no right to speak except with the command of his Master, nor strike except with His command, nor walk except with His command, nor eat, sleep or reflect except with His command. This is the best form of gratitude and it is the gratitude of servants to their Master.

His words, Exalted is He:

…and include me, by Your mercy, among Your righteous servants.

He said:

This means, ‘Grant me proximity to Your friends (awliyāʾ) so that I may be among their company, even though I have not reached their station (maqām).’

His words, Exalted is He:

So those, then, are their houses [lying] deserted because of the evil that they did…

He said:

Their houses are an allusion to hearts;^{1Translating the plural, qulūb, on the basis of MS F638, f. 38a.} for there are hearts which are inhabited (ʿāmir) through remembrance (dhikr), and there are those which are ruined (kharib) through heedlessness (ghafla).^{2See above, Tustarī’s commentary on 22:26, for an explanation of how houses that are unoccupied, especially by their owners, go to ruin, the point there being that the only occupant of the heart should be its Owner, namely God, whereas the emphasis here is on remembrance of God, which really comes to the same.} Whomsoever God, Mighty and Majestic is He, inspires with [His] remembrance, He has freed from oppression (ẓulm).^{3That is, the oppression of, or wrongdoing towards, their own selves.}

His words, Exalted is He:

[Say] ‘Praise be to God and peace be on His servants whom He has chosen...’

He said:

Peace from God attaches itself to the people of the Qurʾān in this life according to His saying, peace be on His servants; while peace [for them] in the next life [is indicated by] His saying ‘Peace!’ the word from the Lord [who is] Merciful [36:58].

His words, Exalted is He:

Or [is] He who answers the destitute one when he calls to Him [better]...? ^{1This is one of the (rhetorical) questions that the Prophet is commanded to ask of the unbelievers, e.g. Is God better or the partners they ascribe [to Him]? [27:59].}

[Sahl] was asked, ‘Who is the destitute one (muḍṭarr)?’ He replied:

It is the person who, when he raises his hands [in prayer], does not see himself having any good deeds other than the profession of [God’s] oneness (tawḥīd), and even considers himself in danger [of losing that].^{2A similar saying is cited in Makkī, Qūt al-qulūb, vol. 2, p. 9.}

On another occasion he said:

The destitute person (muḍṭarr) is the one who has washed his hands of all power (ḥawl), strength (quwwa) and reprehensible means (asbāb madhmūma).^{3Since to rely on secondary causes and means is to rely on other than God.} Supplication (daʿwa) from mankind is of two kinds, and is answered, without doubt, whether it be from a believer or unbeliever: the supplication of the destitute (muḍṭarr) and the supplication of the oppressed (maẓlūm);^{4The word order is changed here according to MS Z515, f. 82a, F638, f. 38a and F3488, f. 255b.} for God says, Exalted is He: Or [is] He who answers the destitute one when he calls to Him… [better]?, and He also says, and who provides for you from the heavens and [from] the earth [27:64]. The supplication of the oppressed is raised above the veil, and God, Exalted is He, responds with the words; ‘By My glory and majesty, I will come to your aid though it may be after a while.’^{5On God’s responding to supplications, see also the commentary on 40:60.}

His words:

Say, ‘No one in the heavens or on earth knows the unseen, except God...’

He said:

He [God] has concealed His unseen [mystery] (ghayb) from creatures (makhlūqūn) in His [realm of] dominion (jabarūt), lest any of His servants feel secure from His ruse (makr). Thus, no one knows what has been predestined for him by God, lest their concern be with deluding themselves (īhām)^{1This is according to MS Z515, f. 82a. The published edition has ibhām, which might be translated as ‘obscuring’, and F638, f. 38a, ittihām, which would translate as doubt, suspicion or uncertainty, either of which would be feasible in the context. F3488, f. 255b, however, has ījāb, which would translate as ‘compliance’ or ‘necessity’, which would not really fit the context. We have followed MS Z515 in this instance.} concerning the final outcomes (ʿawāqib) and predestined events (majārī al-sawābiq), and, lest they claim for themselves that of which they are not worthy, such as claims of [having attained the station of] love (maḥabba), gnosis (maʿrifa) and so on.

He said:

There were in Jerusalem (Bayt al-Maqdis) a hundred thousand veracious ones (ṣiddīqūn) publicly known to people, such that the sound of water flowing from the roof gutters could not be heard due to the [noise] of those who were making their spiritual devotions at night [lit. spiritually striving (mujtahidūn)]. But when two things appeared [from them] they asked God, Exalted is He, and He caused them to die. They were: the claim to love (maḥabba) and claim to have trust [in Him] (tawakkul).^{2Presumably their request was that God should cause them to die, because they feared the consequences of their making any claim for themselves.}

He was asked about the saying of al-Ḥārith,^{3The editor of the Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya edition identifies him as al-Ḥārith b. Mālik b. Qays, known as Ibn al-Barṣāʾ al-Laythī, a Companion of the Prophet and transmitter of aḥādīth.} who stated, ‘I stay up at night and thirst during the day.’ He replied:

He means, ‘I have no need for disclosure (kashf) for this is the lot of the disbelievers in this life, and I do not share with them their lot. This is why I said, “I am a believer”’.^{4The editor of the Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyya edition has noted that the following tradition is listed in the Muṣannaf of Ibn Abī Shayba (vol. 6, p. 170), narrated from Zubayr: The Prophet ﷺ asked, ‘How did you start the day, O Ḥārith b. Mālik?’ He replied, ‘I began my day as a true Muslim (musliman ḥaqqan)’. The Prophet then asked him, ‘Verily, every word has a reality (inna li-kulli qawl haqīqa). What is the reality of that (which you claimed)?’ He replied, ‘I began the day turning myself away from the world; I kept a vigil at night and I thirsted during the day. It was as if I were looking at the Throne of my Lord and had been brought forth for the reckoning…’}

He [Sahl] was asked about those who say something similar to that which was said by al-Ḥārith. He replied:

Their claim is false. How can their claim be acceptable when Abū Bakr and ʿUmar رضي الله عنهم did not allow themselves to do such a thing, and a hair on their chests is better than al-Ḥārith. However, al-Ḥārith did not say that by himself, rather God brought that out [of him] as a test (fitna) for all those pretentious people (muddaʿūn) who came after him. So how then is it acceptable for these people to claim such things for themselves?

His words, Exalted is He:

And surely your Lord is bountiful to mankind…

He said:

His withholding (manʿ) is a bounty (faḍl), just as His giving (ʿaṭāʾ) is a bounty, but it is only the elite among the friends [of God] (awliyāʾ) who know the situations in which deprivation is a bounty.

His words, Exalted is He:

And you see the mountains, supposing them to be fixed…He said:

Truly God, Exalted is He, has drawn the attention of His servants to the passing of time and their heedlessness of it. He made the mountains as a representation of the world (dunyā), which appears to the observer to be standing in support of him, when in actual fact it is taking its share from him. When time has run out, nothing will remain except sighs of regret over what is lost to the one who perceived it as standing in support of him, while in reality it was taking [its share from him].^{1MS Z515 f. 81b, ends the commentary on this sūra with the words: ‘God knows best what is right’ (wa’Llāhu aʿlam bi’l-ṣawāb).}