His words, Exalted is He:

…Their homes were destroyed at their own hands and at the hands of the believers…^{1In its outer meaning the verse, and much of this sūra, is said to refer to the Jewish tribe of Banū al-Naḍīr, living in Medina, who had originally agreed with the Prophet that they would remain neutral, but later made an alliance with the Meccans and broke their agreements with the Muslims, even attempting to kill the Prophet. Eventually they were forced to leave Medina, some going to Syria and some to Khaybar.}

He said:

That is, they ruined their hearts and invalidated their works by following innovations and abandoning the path of following the prophets. And the hands of the believers, that is, despite being side by side with the believers, witnessing them and sitting with them, they were deprived of their blessings. So take heed, O you who have eyes, that God leads astray whomever He will [35:8], through abandonment (khidhlān), and guides whomever He will [35:8], through His assistance (maʿūna), and you have no influence in the matter.

His words, Exalted is He:

…And whatever the Messenger gives you, take it, and whatever he forbids you, abstain from it…

He said:

The principles of our school are three: consuming what is legitimate; following the example of the Messenger ﷺ in his character (akhlāq) and actions (afʿāl), and sincerity of intention (ikhlāṣ al-nīya) in all works.^{1Compare with the commentary on Sūra 9:71 above.}

He then said:

Impose upon yourselves three things, for the best of [all] that is in this world and the Hereafter is contained within them: keeping [your self] close to [lit. making it consort with, suḥbatuhā] His commandments and prohibitions by adherence to the Sunna; establishing within it the attestation of God’s oneness, which [brings about] certainty (yaqīn), [and imposing upon it] knowledge (ʿilm), through which the spirit attains union (fīhi ittiṣāl al-rūḥ). The one who possesses these three [traits] is more knowledgeable about what is in the earth’s core than about what is on its surface,^{2i.e. more knowledgeable of the inner world than the outer world.} and he regards the Hereafter more than he regards this world. Furthermore, he is better known to the angels in heaven than he is on earth to his own family and relatives.

He was asked: ‘What is the knowledge through which the spirit attains union?’ [He replied]:

It is the knowledge that God is taking care of it, and being contented [with that].^{3Or alternatively the masculine pronoun might here be referring to an unspecified person rather than to the spirit, which we might translate: ‘knowing that God is taking care of him…’}

His words, Exalted is He:

…They give preference to others over themselves, even if they be in poverty (khaṣāṣa)…^{1This verse describes the situation of those who were already resident in Medina, known as the Anṣāriyyūn (helpers), because they assisted and supported the Muslim Emigrants when they came to the city.}

He said:

That is, in hunger (majāʿa) and poverty (faqr). The Arabs say a person is makhṣūṣ when he is poor (faqīr). Thus they gave preference to the good pleasure of God over their own desires. The act of giving preference to others over yourself (īthār) is the testimony (shāhid) of love.

The saying has been related from Wuhayb b. al-Ward: ‘God, Exalted is He, says, “By My might, greatness and majesty, there is no servant who gives preference to My desire over his own desire, without My decreasing his worries, returning to him what he has lost, removing want from his heart, placing richness before his eyes, and trading in his interest through every trader. And by My might and majesty, there is no servant who gives preference to his own desire over My desire, without My increasing his worries, keeping him at a distance from what he has lost, removing richness from his heart and placing poverty before his eyes, and then I care not in which valley he may perish.”’^{2Tirmidhī, Nawādir al-uṣūl, vol. 4, p. 25–6; Ibn al-Jawzī, Ṣifat al-ṣafwa, p. 220; Iṣfahānī, Ḥilyat al-awliyāʾ, vol. 8, p. 147.}

His words, Exalted is He:

…Whoever is saved from the avarice (shuḥḥ) of his own soul — they are the successful.

He said:

That is, he who is saved from the covetousness (ḥirṣ) of his self and its miserliness (bakhl) in everything except God and His remembrance,^{3Being miserly in relation to God may mean being reluctant to give of one’s time, energy, wealth, etc. to other than God and His remembrance, and this is the only acceptable form of miserliness.} will abide with God, enjoying a good life, a good life.

His words, Exalted is He:

…You [would] suppose them to be together, but their hearts are disunited…

He said:

The people of truth are united and the people of falsehood are forever divided. And even though they be united in body and agree outwardly, God has said: You [would] suppose them to be altogether, but their hearts are disunited.

His words, Exalted is He:

O you who believe, be mindful of God, and let every soul consider what it has sent ahead for tomorrow…

He said:

God, Exalted is He, asks the servant concerning [these three]: that which he owes to his self (ḥaqq nafsihi), that which he owes to the knowledge (ʿilm) that is between him and his Lord, and that which he owes to the intellect (ʿaql). Let whoever has the ability fulfil what he owes to his self and what he owes to the knowledge which is between him and his Lord, by considering well the outcome of his affairs.

It was related of Ḥasan that he said, ‘When a son of Adam [i.e. a human being] dies, the children of Adam [the other human beings] ask, ‘What has he left behind?’ But the angels ask, ‘What has he sent ahead?’^{1That is, they are asking what good or bad deeds he has put in store for himself in the Hereafter.}

His words:

And do not be like those who forget God…

while committing sins, …so that He makes them forget. God [makes them forget] to apologise (iʿtidhār) and seek repentance (tawba).

He said:

Any servant who sins and does not repent, [will find] that sin leading him on to another sin, which will cause him to forget the former sin. On the other hand, any servant who does a good deed [will find] that leading him to another good deed, upon which his intellect will perceive the deficiency of the former good deed, so that he may repent for the deficiency in his past good deeds, even if they were pure and sound.

His words, Exalted is He:

(He is)…Knower of the unseen and the visible…

He said:

The unseen (ghayb) is that which is secret (sirr) and the visible (shahāda) is that which is open [to all] (ʿalāniyya). He also said, Exalted is He: (He is)…Knower of the unseen and the visible [meaning]: He is the One who has full knowledge of this world and the Hereafter.

But God, Glorified and Exalted is He, knows best.