“Do not befriend one who knowingly rebels against God, for one who betrays his first Giver of blessings is not going to be loyal toward you.

“By the amount that you honor God, glory to Him, He will honor you, and by the amount that you magnify His greatness in your esteem and increase your respect for Him, He will magnify your status and the respect you receive.

“I reflected upon the envy that exists among the scholars, and saw that its source is the love of the worldly life, because the scholars of the afterlife engage in love and do not envy others. What separates the two groups is that the scholars of the worldly life seek power and leadership in it, and they love to accumulate wealth and praise, while the scholars of the afterlife live in seclusion from these things, they fear them and have mercy toward those who are being tested by them.

“[The one who follows the Quran and the Sunnah] will not live a life of suffering. This is illustrated by His saying, glory to Him: “Whosoever fears God, God will create for him a way out.” [The Quran, verse 65:2] If you see them suffer, then surely there is for them in recompense that which will turn any bitter drink into honey.

“Never busy yourself completely with worship, abandoning the seeking of knowledge.

“When true fear of God is realized in your heart, all good things will come to you.

“I never tire of reading books. If I see a book I have not seen before, it is as if I have found a treasure.

“The worldly life has been created as a place of testing. The wise person should fully habituate himself to patience.

“We have seen so many who wear coarse clothing, and show off their devotion to God, yet no one turns to them, and others who wear good clothing, and who smile, and the hearts love them.

“No one can claim to know Him except one who fears Him. The one who feels safe from Him does not know Him.

“Contentment is one of the fruits of spiritual knowledge. When you know Him, you will be content with His decrees.

“Perhaps God will cause something to befall someone that will disgrace them in front of the creation as a recompense for sins they have committed in private.

“The closeness of the believers to the Creator [in the afterlife] is by the degree of their heedfulness in the worldly life.

“When Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal decided to never again hope to be supported by people’s charity and gifts, his abilities increased, and his fame spread. While when Ibn al-Madini and others desired people’s charity and gifts, remembrance of them fell from people’s minds.

“Be very wary of the consequences of sins, and be very hasty in seeking to erase them by returning to God, because sins have evil and ugly consequences, whether they come quickly, or whether they accumulate and befall you all at once.

“The sins that are punished most quickly are the ones that are not due to overwhelming desire, but are an act of obstinacy and rebellion [against God].

“It is necessary for us to suffer good and bad. The good necessitates that we show thankfulness, and the bad that we supplicate. If our supplication is not answered, this means that it is intended that the test should finish, and for one to humbly submit to the decree.

This is where true faith shows itself. It is in submission and acceptance that the gems among men become apparent.

“I do not know of anyone who lived more exalted and enjoyable lives than the truly pious scholars.