Al-Ghazzali on repentance m. S. Stern distributed By apt books, inc

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Also, a man said to Hasan:⁴⁹⁸ `Counsel me!' He said: `Honour God's command and He will honour you.'

Lugman⁴⁹⁹ said to his son: `My son, join the throng around the scholars, but do not dispute with them lest they hate you. Take from this world your subsistence, and spend the rest of your acquisitions for your hereafter. Do not reject this world totally lest you be a burden to and dependent upon others. Fast, so as to curb your craving but not so as to damage your prayer. For prayer is superior to fasting. Do not keep the company of the foolish, and do not associate with the two-faced.' He also said: 'My son, do not laugh without amazement; do not proceed without aim; do not ask of what is of no concern to you; do not squander your wealth to promote the property of another. For your stock is that which you prepared [of good deeds] ahead of time, and the stock of others is that which you leave [to others]. My son, one who is compassionate is treated with compassion; one who is silent is safe; he whose word is good gains, he whose word is evil sins, and he who does not master his tongue regrets.'

A man said to Abu H'azim:⁵⁰⁰ `Counsel me!' He said: `Adhere to that which you would consider precious when facing death; [56] avoid that which you would consider a misfortune when facing death.'

Moses said to al-Khadir: `Counsel me!' Al-Khadir said: `Be benign and be not angry; be useful, not harmful; eschew obstinacy; go not without need; and do not laugh without wonderment. 0 son of 'Imran,⁵⁰¹ do not scold sinners for their errors, cry over your own.'

A man said to Muhammad b. Karram:⁵⁰² `Counsel me!' Ibn Karram said: `Strive to please thy Creator in the same measure as you seek your own satisfaction.'

A man said to Hamid al-Lafaf: `Counsel me!' He said: `Make for your religion a cover like the cover on the Koran, lest⁵⁰³ it should get soiled by troubles.' The man asked: `What is the cover of religion?' He said: `Renouncing worldly pursuit except for the minimum; abstention from talking much unless it is necessary; reducing social intercourse to a minimum.

Hasan [al-Basri] wrote to 'Umar b. 'Abd al-'Aziz⁵⁰⁴ saying: `Fear that which God has alarmed you about, be cautious of that which God has cautioned you about, and take from what is in your hands (flyadayka) to what is ahead of you (bayna yadayka). At the time of death the ulti­mate message shall reach you. Farewell!'

'Umar b. 'Abd al-'Aziz wrote to Hasan asking for his admonition. Hasan replied: `The greatest terror and the horrors are ahead of you, and you cannot escape from witnessing them, be it in salvation or perdi­tion. Know, that he who takes his soul to account gains, and he who is negligent of his soul loses. He who contemplates the consequences is saved, but he who follows his mood errs. He who is meek gains; he who fears is safe; he who is safe learns by example; he who learns by example gains insight; he who has insight understands, and he who under­stands knows. If you have slipped, return. If you have regret, uproot [the evil]. If you are ignorant, ask. And, if you are angered, forbear.'

Mitraf b. 'Abdullah⁵⁰⁵ wrote to 'Umar b. 'Abd al-Aziz: `This world is an abode of punishment. For it the senseless are gathering [goods] and, by it one who has no knowledge is deluded. 0 Commander of the Faithful! Be in it like one whose injury is treated, enduring the severity of the remedy for fear of the consequences of the disease.'

'Umar also wrote to 'Adi b. Arta⁵⁰⁶ saying: `This world is an enemy of God's friendsS<sup>07</sup> and of God's enemies. It distresses His friends, and deludes His enemies.' He also wrote to one of his governors: `You have the power to oppress people. If you intend to wrong one, remember God's power over you. Know that if you cause any trouble to the people, the responsibility remains yours. Know, also, that God takes to account the oppressors on account of the oppressed. Farewell!'

This is how the admonition should be - for the masses or when the preacher does not know the specifics of the case. These exhortations are like the nutriments by which all the people can benefit. But, because of the lack of such as these preachers, the gate of learning from admoni­tion is barred, sins predominate, and decay proceeds apace. The people are afflicted with preachers who parade rhymed prose and recite verses, take upon themselves to talk of that which is beyond the range of their knowledge, and imitate others. The masses lost their respect for the preacher. The preacher's words do not emanate from the heart so as to reach the heart. Rather, the speaker is arrogant, the listener burdened, and each of them is slipping and failing.

Seeking a physician, therefore, is the start of the treatment for the sick, and seeking the 'ulama', is the beginning of treatment for sinners. This is one of the pillars and principles of treatment.

The second principle is forebearance (sabr). The point of the need for forebearance is that the patient's illness is prolonged because he takes what is harmful to him. He consumes that, either because he is unaware it is harmful, or because of the intensity of his craving. Such action has

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A young man, for example, when desire overcomes him, becomes incapable of controlling his eye, heart or limbs in the pursuit of his desire. .He must realize the harm of his sin by examining the relevant fearful passages⁵⁰⁹ in the Koran and in the Tradition. When his dread is intensi­fied, he keeps his distance from the factors inciting his drive.

The external stimulant of desire is [57] the presence of the object of desire and gazing at it. The treatment is flight and isolation. The inter­nal stimulant is the consumption of delicious foods. Its treatment lies in hunger and prolonged fasting. All this can be achieved only through forbearance. One shows forbearance, however, only from fear, but one fears only from knowledge, and, one gains knowledge only from insight and reflection or from listening and emulation. The first order of busi­ness, then, is attendance at invocational assemblies (dhikr); then, listen­ing, with a heart devoid of other engagements, devoted to attention; then reflection on it unto perfect understanding. Thereupon fear will certainly be aroused. With fear rising, forbearance will be facilitated, and the requi­sites of seeking treatment will develop. Behind that lie divine assistance toward success and divine facilitation.

One who gives, of his heart, proper attention, perceives the dread [of sin] and fear of God, expects recompense and CONFIRMS THE

REWARD MOST _FAIR ,⁵¹⁰ God eases him to Easing5¹¹ BUT AS FOR

HIM WHO IS A MISER AND SELF-SUFFICIENT AND CRIES LIES TO THE REWARD MOST FAIR,⁵¹² God will ease him TO THE HARDSHIP5¹³ Only the clarification of the paths of guidance falls upon the prophets. Yet, TO GOD BELONGS THE FIRST AND THE

LAST 514, 515

You might assert:

The entire matter reverts then to [a question of] faith, because renun­ciation of sin is impossible without forbearance; forbearance is possible

only through the experience of fear; fear sets in only through knowledge; knowledge is attained solely through confirming [the belief in] the mag­nitude of injury caused by sins, and confirmation of the magnitude of sins' harm is confirmation of the belief in God and His Apostle, which is faith. It appears, then, that one who persists in sin does so only because he is not a believer.

Know, that this persistence is not due to the loss of faith but rather to its weakness, inasmuch as every believer believes firmly that trans­gression is a cause of alienation from God, and is the cause of punish­ment in the hereafter. The reason, however, for his falling into sin is manifold.

Firstly, the promised punishment is concealed and not in [immediate] attendance. The soul is predisposed to being influenced by what is at hand. The effect upon the soul of the promised chastisement is weak compared to the impact of that which is present.

Secondly, the gratification of the cravings leading to sin are consum­mate and they immediately grab the throat. Because of habituation and custom, - habit serving as the fifth element⁵¹⁶ - [this pressure] is vigorous and overpowers the soul. The soul finds it hard to shift from the immediate to the fear of the future. That is why it says: NO INDEED; BUT YOU LOVE THE HASTY WORLD AND LEAVE BE THE HEREAFTER,⁵¹⁷ and, NAY, BUT YOU PREFER THE PRESENT LIFE ⁵¹⁸ The Prophet expressed how difficult this is in his sayings: `Paradise is encircled by adversities, and hellfire by cravings';a `God created hellfire. Then He said to Gabriel: Go and look at it. He looked at it, then said: By Your Glory! No one who hears of it shall enter it. God then encircled it with the desires, then said again: Go look at it. He looked at it and said: By Your Glory! I am afraid that none shall remain who will not enter it. God created Paradise. He said to Gabriel: Go and look at it. He did, and said: By Your might! Everyone who hears will [seek] to enter it. God then surrounded it with adversities and said: Go and look at it. He did, and said: By Your might! I am afraid that none shall enter.'b Thus the immediate oppressiveness of the desires, and the relegation of punishment into the future are two obvious causes in the self abandon despite the presence of the basic faith. Nobody who, while sick and because of his thirst, drinks ice water denies, thereby, the basis of medicine. Nor does he deny the fact that ice water is harm­ful for him. But the craving overcomes him, and the pain of desisting is supreme, so that the anticipated pain seems minimized.

Thirdly, every believing sinner is, generally, determined to repent and

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to atone the evil through pious deeds. Further, it has been promised that such will restore him. Continued hope, however, prevails over the natural dispositions, and man keeps postponing repentance and atonement. Yet, since his hope is for divine help towards success in repentance, he may often proceed despite faith toward sin.

Fourthly, every convinced believer maintains that sins do not neces­sitate chastisement to the extent of precluding forgiveness. [58] He sins, therefore, and anticipates forgiveness trusting in God's generosity.

These are four causes that lead to persistence in sin, despite the sur­vival of the basic faith.

Certainly, the sinner might come up with a fifth reason, that impairs that basic faith. Namely, he may doubt the authenticity of the prophets. This is unbelief. He is like the one whom the physician cautioned about consuming what would, in his ill state, harm him. If the man cautioned does not consider the warner a medical authority, the patient may deny or doubt the physician. He will, therefore, pay no attention to the doctor. But such is unbelief.

You might say:

What, then, is the treatment for the five causes? I say that it is reflec­tion (fikr).

That is that man persuade himself in the first instance, i.e., the rele­gation of punishment, that everything that is to come, is [truly]_. coming; that, for those who watch, the morrow is nigh, and that death is closer to everyone than his shoe lace; what shall make him know, perhaps the Hour is nigh,⁵¹⁹ and when that which has been put off takes place it is merely the consummation of the prophetic message. He should remind himself that, in this world, he is weary forever for fear of something in the future. Thus, a man travels overseas and undergoes hardship of journeys for the sake of gain which he thinks he might need at another time. Yet if he falls ill, and a Christian physician tells him that drinking cold water will harm him and lead to his death, and cold water is, to his mind, the most delicious of things, he abandons drinking it, despite the fact that the pain of death is only of an instant, if he did not fear what follows it, and departure from this world is [anyhow] inescapable. Yet what is the proportion between his existence in this world to his absence for ever and ever! Let him consider how quickly he is going to abandon his pleasures at the instruction of a non-Muslim with no miracle to support his medicine. Then he will say: `How does it befit my intelligence that the word of the prophets, supported by miracles, should be inferior in my eyes to that of a Christian who claims [the

knowledge of] medicine without any [supporting] miracle and without any confirmation except by the common folk? How can the torment of hellfire be less, to me, than the torment of disease, when each day in the hereafter is like fifty thousand years of this world?'

Through this same contemplation he treats the delight which is over­coming him. He will force himself to abandon it by saying: `If I am unable to renounce my delights during the days of my life which are few, how, then, shall I ever be able to do so? If I am not able to endure the pain of forbearance, how, then, could I withstand the pain of hellfire? If I am unable to renounce the vanities of this world despite its vexations, disturbances, and the blend of its delight and grief, how can I forgo the bliss of the hereafter?

As for postponement of repentance, he can treat it by reflection on [the fact] that most of the anguish of the people of hellfire stems from procrastination, as the procrastinator builds on what is not his, namely immortality. Yet perhaps he will not survive, and, if he survives, he may be unable to desist tomorrow, just as he is unable to abstain today. I wish I knew; did he not fail, in the present, only because of the tri­umph of craving, which craving is not going to leave him on the mor­row, but rather is compounded since it is reinforced through habituation. Now, the craving which a man reinforced by habit is not like the one which he did not reinforce. Because of this the procrastinators perish, for they suppose there is a difference between things identical. They do not realize that all days are similar in that forgoing cravings is always painful, on any day.

A fitting analogy is: one who needs to uproot a tree but sees that it is strong and will not be extirpated except with great difficulty. He says: `I will put it off for a year and then come back to it.' But he knows that the longer the tree survives, the more its deeprootedness increases, while the older he gets the more he becomes weak. There is, then, no stupid­ity grosser than his in the world: when he, in his prime, fails to stand up to the weak, and begins to anticipate triumph over the rival while he himself is getting weak and the weak one is getting strong.

As for the fourth idea, i.e., the expectation of God's forgiveness, its treatment is as above. The man is like one who dissipates all his property, leaving himself and his family paupers, expecting that God, in His generosity, will provide for him the discovery of a treasure amidst ruins. The possibility of forgiveness of sins [in such a manner] is like this pos­sibility. He is like one who fears spoliation at the hand of oppressors in his country, and [yet], he leaves his treasures in the courtyard of his

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home. He was able to bury and hide them but did not do so. He said: `I look to God's generosity, it may bring either inadvertence or distress upon the pillaging tyrant so that he will miss my home, or, when he turns to my home he will be struck down at the gate! Both death and inadvertence are possible. Such things occur in fictional stories, and I anticipate the like from divine kindness.' One who anticipates this, antic­ipates the possible. Yet he is extremely silly and ignorant. For it may

not happen and not be _S0.520

[59] As for the fifth cause, i.e., doubt, this is unbelief. It is to be treated with those elements which would make him learn the veracity of the prophets. But this would take long. It is possible, however, to treat it with simple knowledge which would befit the bounds of his intelligence. He should be asked: `Is the truth of what the prophets said, supported as they are by miracles, possible? Or, do you maintain that you know that it is impossible, in the same manner as you know the impossibility of one person being in two places at the same time?' If he says: `I know that it is as impossible as the latter,' then he is stupid and idiotic. It would seem that such creatures do not exist among sensible people. But if he said: `I am in doubt about it,' then let him be asked: `If some unknown person were to tell you, as you were leaving your meal at home for an instant, that a viper had licked it, and put its poison in it, and you could admit his truthfulness, would you then eat the meal or, even be it the most delicious of foods, would you forgo it?' He would answer: `I would most certainly leave it. I would say: if he has lied, I shall merely miss this food. To forgo it may be hard but sensible. If, on the other hand, he was right, I might lose my life. Compared to the discomfort of absten­tion from food and its waste, death is harsher.' Say to him then: 'By Almighty God, how can you defer the truth of all the prophets, despite all their miracles, and the veracity of all the saints, scholars and sages, nay, of all categories of sensible people - I do not mean thereby the ignorant of the masses but rather those possessed of intellect - in favour of the truth of one unknown man who may have some purpose of his own?'

All reasonable men believe in the Last Day and acknowledge reward and punishment, even if they differ as to particulars. If they are right, you are on the brink of a chastisement which is to continue forever. If, on the other hand, they are wrong, you miss nothing save some crav­ings of this passing and vexatious world. There can remain no hesita­tion for him, if he is intelligent, following this reflection, for there is no comparison between a lifetime and eternity Nay, were we to pre­

sume that the world is filled with a speck, and that a bird gathers, every million years, one granule of it, still surely the speck would come to an end, and eternity would not be diminished at all. How could a sensi­ble man's mind waver about forgoing desires for say, a hundred years, for the sake of bliss eternal? That is why Abu 1-^'Ala' Ahmad b. Sulayman at-Tanukhu al-Ma'arri⁵²¹ said:

The astrologer and physician both of them Deny the resurrection of the body. "Oh, get ye gone," said I; if your belief 'Tis upon you perdition falls, not me 522

Therefore, 'Ali said to one whose intelligence fell short of true under­standing and was a doubter: `If what I said is correct, we will all be saved; if not, I am saved and you perish.' That is to say, the sensible man follows the path of safety in all situations.

You might ask:

These matters are evident but they are attained only through reflec­tion. But what about the hearts? They give up reflection about these matters, and consider [them] too burdensome. What is the treatment for the hearts by which to return them to reflection, especially in the case of a man who believes in the basis and ramification of religion?

Know, then, that the impediment to reflection is twofold. Firstly, func­tional reflection is the reflection of the punishment of the hereafter, its terrors and afflictions, the grief of sinners over their exclusion from the everlasting bliss. This reflection is stinging and painful to the heart. The heart, therefore, shuns it, and takes delight in reflecting on worldly matters for comfort and relaxation. Secondly, reflection is an immedi­ate impediment distracting from the worldly delights and the gratifica­tion of cravings. Every man, in every state and with every breath, has a craving which overtakes him and enslaves him. His intellect then becomes subservient to his craving. Therefore, man is busy to set his ruse [to gratify it], and it becomes his delight to pursue the ruse, or to start the gratification of his craving. But reflection holds him back from that.

To treat these two obstructions, he should say to his heart: `How great is your foolishness in being wary of reflecting on death and what fol­lows it, because of the pain caused by the mention of death, despite the disdain for the pain of struggling with death. How will you endure sus­taining it, whenever it happens, seeing that [at the same tune], you are unable to endure the very admission of death and what follows it, and

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are pained thereby? To treat the second impediment, i.e., that reflection makes you miss worldly pleasures is graver and more decisive. For, pleasures of the hereafter are infinite and unmarred, while the worldly pleasure are quickly obliterated and are mixed with vexations. In this life there is no pleasure free of worry. [The more so] as in repenting of transgressions and in concern for obedience lies delight in conferring with God, repose in perceiving and obeying Him [60] and constant close­ness to Him. If the obedient had no other recompense for his deeds than what he feels of the sweetness of obedience and the spirit of intimacy in converse with God, that would surely be sufficient. The more so, when to this is added the bliss of the hereafter. Certainly, this pleasure does not occur at the initial stage of repentance, but after man endures [in penitence] for a long time, the good having become habit as before the evil was. The soul is receptive - as you train it, so it becomes habitu­ated. Good is habit, and evil is [sheer] obstinacy.

It is related in a long tradition that 'Ammar b. Yasir⁵²³ arose and said to 'Ali b. Abi Ta1ib: `0 Commander of the Faithful! Inform us about unbelief. Upon what is it built?' 'Ali answered: `It is built upon four props: on rudeness; blindness; heedlessness; and doubt. One who is rude scorns the truth, proclaims the false and hates the learned ⁵²⁴ One who is blind forgets the invocation [of God's name]. One who is heedless swerves from good sense. One who doubts, the desires mislead him, then, only to be seized by sighing and regret, and what he was not con­sidering [possible] concerning God appears to him now.'

What we have mentioned explains some of the damages wrought by neglect of reflection. So much for [the discussion of] repentance.

If forbearance is one of the pillars of continued repentance, it is imper­ative to explain it. We will, therefore, discuss it, God willing, in a separate treatise.

The quotations from the hadith lore have been checked with the help of (1) the notes of the editor of the Arabic text, and (2) the Concordance et Indices de la Tradition Musulmame, ed. by A. J. Wensinck, J. P. Mensing, J. Brugmav; 7 vols. (Leiden: Brill, 1936-1969).

Ibn Hanbal's Musnad is referred to in the old (recently reprinted) edi­tion; Bukhari, in the Krehl-Juynboll edition; Tirmidhi, in the edition by A. R. M. 'Uthman, Cairo 1965; Ibn Maja, in the edition by M. F. 'Abd al-Baqi, Cairo 1372-3/1952-3; Darimi, in the Damascus edition, 1349 A.H.; Muslim, in the Cairo (1283) edition. The references to Ibn Hanbal are by volume and page; the other references are by numbers of treatise and section. E.G. IM 37:7 = Ibn Maja, Zuhd, section seven. (Refer­ences are noted in the translation by lower case letters.)

n.c. non-canonic. The saying in question does not occur in the canonized collections, though it may appear in later collections.

n.t. = not traceable.

B =.Bukhari. D = Darimi.

H = Ahmad ibn Hanbal. IM = Ibn Maja. M = Muslim. T = Tirmidhi.

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32 a. H. 1376, VI 264; IM 37:30 (N4252). 32 b. IM 5:78 (N 1081).

34 a. IM 37:30 (N 4250); H IV 271, 273, 283.