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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

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The lives of the salaf between words and deeds.

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Wisdom, good conduct, and gentleness of speech.

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Mu'awiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

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"I do not use my sword where my whip suffices me,

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nor do I use my whip where my tongue suffices me.

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Even if there were only a single hair between me and the people, it would never snap."

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He was asked, "How so?"

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He replied, "If they pulled it, I would let it go slack;

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and if they let it go slack, I would pull it."

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An old woman stood before Qays ibn Sa'd, may Allah be pleased with him, and said:

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"I complain to you of the scarcity of mice in my home."

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He said, "How wonderful this metonymy is!"

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Then he commanded, "Fill her house with bread, meat, clarified butter, and dates!"

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Urwah ibn al-Zubayr, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

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"The noble man is not he who, when he falls into a predicament, manages to escape it;

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rather, the noble man is he who guards against matters so that he does not fall into them in the first place."

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Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

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"I intend to introduce a matter of justice for the Muslims,

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but I fear that their hearts will not bear it,

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so I introduce along with it a bit of worldly attraction.

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Thus, if their hearts recoil from the former, they settle upon the latter."

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Abd al-Malik ibn Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz said to his father, Umar, may Allah have mercy on both of them:

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"What prevents you from executing your judgment in this matter?

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By Allah, I would not care if cauldrons boiled with you and me if it meant carrying out this command!"

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Umar replied, "I am training the people as one trains an unbroken horse.

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If Allah grants me life, I shall proceed with my plan;

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and if death comes upon me swiftly, Allah already knows my intention.

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Indeed, I fear that if I confront the people suddenly with what you say,

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they will compel me to resort to the sword;

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and there is no good in a good that comes only by the sword."

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Al-Sha'bi reported:

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"I attended the court of Shurayh, may Allah have mercy on him,

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when a woman came disputing with a man.

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She began to shed tears and weep profusely,

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so I said, 'O Abu Umayyah,

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I do not think this poor woman is anything but wronged!'

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He replied, 'O Sha'bi,

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the brothers of Joseph came to their father in the evening weeping.'"

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Ibrahim ibn Tahman, may Allah have mercy on him, had

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a generous stipend from the public treasury—

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that is, a significant sum of money.

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One day, he was asked a question in the council of the Caliph,

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and he answered, "I do not know."

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They said to him:

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"You receive such-and-such an amount every month,

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yet you cannot answer a single question?"

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He replied:

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"I only receive it for what I know well.

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If I were paid for what I do not know well,

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the public treasury would be exhausted, while my ignorance would never be exhausted."

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The Commander of the Faithful was delighted with his answer,

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ordered a lavish reward for him,

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and increased his monthly stipend.

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Al-Mansur said one day to Shabib ibn Shaybah, may Allah have mercy on him:

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"Admonish me, and be concise."

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He said:

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"O Commander of the Faithful,

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indeed Allah was not pleased with Himself

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to place anyone among His creation above you,

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so do not be pleased with yourself for Him

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that any of His servants should be more grateful to Him than you."

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Al-Mansur replied:

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"By Allah, you have indeed been concise!"

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A man visited a governor

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who was a friend of his,

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but the governor acted preoccupied and ignored him.

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One day, the man made himself seen,

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and the governor said:

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"Pardon me, for I am busy."

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The man replied:

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"Were it not for your preoccupation, I would not have come to you!"

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Abu Simak, may Allah have mercy on him, said to a man:

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"I did not preserve my dignity from asking of you,

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so preserve your dignity from turning me away;

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and place me through your generosity where I have placed myself

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through my hope in you."

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Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

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"Food is eaten for three reasons:

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with brothers, out of joy;

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with the poor, out of selflessness;

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and with worldly people, out of chivalry and dignity."

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The state of the salaf regarding blessings and giving thanks to the Bestower of blessings.

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The state of the salaf regarding the blessings of Allah

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and what has been said concerning that.

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Abu al-Darda', may Allah be pleased with him, said:

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"Whoever does not see Allah's blessing upon him

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except in eating and drinking,

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his understanding is meager and his punishment is present."

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He also said, may Allah be pleased with him:

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"How many a blessing from Allah Almighty

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lies in a tranquil vein!"

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Abd al-Rahman ibn Hatib ibn Abi

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Balta'ah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

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"We went out with Umar, may Allah be pleased with him,

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on a Hajj or Umrah pilgrimage.

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When we reached the mountain pass of Dajnan,

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Umar turned around and said:

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'I remember myself in these mountain passes,

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tending camels for al-Khattab,

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who was harsh and severe.

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I would gather firewood for him at times,

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and beat down leaves for livestock at other times.

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Yet today, I have reached a state where people walk by my side,

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and there is no one above me except Allah!'

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And in all of that, nothing was seen except his cheerful disposition as he recited:

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'The Creator alone remains, while wealth and children perish.'"

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Abu al-Aliyah,

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may Allah have mercy on him, said:

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"Indeed, I hope that no servant perishes between two blessings:

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a blessing for which he praises Allah,

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and a sin for which he seeks Allah's forgiveness."

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Abd al-Malik ibn Abjar,

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may Allah have mercy on him, said:

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"There is no human being except that he is tested with wellbeing,

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to see how his gratitude will be,

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or tested with affliction, to see how his patience will be."

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Sufyan ibn Uyaynah,

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may Allah have mercy on him, said: "Part of gratitude to Allah

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for a blessing is that you praise Him for it

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and use it to aid yourself in obeying Him.

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He has not shown gratitude to Allah who uses

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His blessing to commit disobedience against Him."

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Al-Hasan, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

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"Indeed, Allah grants enjoyment through a blessing for as long as He wills,

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but if He is not thanked,

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He turns it into a punishment upon them."

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He also said, may Allah have mercy on him:

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"Mention this blessing frequently,

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for remembering it is itself a form of gratitude."

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Some of the salaf said:

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"Remembering blessings instills love for Allah, the Mighty and Majestic."

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A man asked one of the salaf:

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"How have you awoken this morning?"

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He replied, "I have awoken between two blessings,

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and I do not know which of them is greater:

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sins that Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, has concealed,

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so that no one can shame me for them;

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and an affection that Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, has cast

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into the hearts of His servants,

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which my own deeds could never have earned."

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It used to be said:

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"Whoever recognizes Allah's blessing, the Mighty and Majestic, in his heart

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and praises Him with his tongue,

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will not finish doing so before he sees an increase,

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because of the saying of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic:

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'If you are grateful, I will surely increase you.'"

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And he said:

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"It used to be said that part of gratitude for a blessing

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is to speak of it."

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Regarding the verse of Allah Almighty:

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"We shall gradually draw them on from where they do not know,"

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Sufyan said, "We lavish upon them

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blessings while withholding from them the ability to give thanks."

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Someone other than Sufyan said:

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"Every time they commit a sin, We grant them a new

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blessing." Ibn Shawdhab,

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may Allah have mercy on him, reported that a group of people gathered

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and discussed which blessing is the greatest.

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A man said, "That which Allah has concealed of our faults

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from one another."

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He added, "And they considered that statement to be the most correct."

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Some of the salaf said:

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"Every blessing from Allah upon you in your religion

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requires more gratitude from you than the blessing of Allah upon you

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in your worldly life."

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Mutarrif ibn Abd Allah, may Allah have mercy on him,

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used to say: "Indeed, among the most beloved servants of Allah

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is the patient and deeply grateful one,

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who, when tested, remains patient,

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and when granted a gift, gives thanks."

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He also said, may Allah have mercy on him: "That I am granted wellbeing and give thanks

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is more beloved to me than to be tested

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and remain patient."

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Al-Junayd ibn Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, was asked

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about the true reality of gratitude,

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and he replied: "It is that one does not use any of His blessings to disobey Him."

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Bishr ibn al-Harith, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

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"I thought about Bishr the Christian,

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Bishr the Jew,

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and Bishr the Zoroastrian,

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while I myself am named Bishr.

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So I said to myself, 'What preceded from you to Him

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that He should single you out?'

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Then I reflected on His grace toward me

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in making me among His chosen servants."

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Ibn Aqil, may Allah have mercy on him, wrote

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in *Al-Funun*: "Blessings are guests,

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and their hospitality is gratitude;

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tribulations are guests, and their hospitality is patience.

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So strive that these guests depart

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grateful for your good hospitality,

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bearing witness to what they heard and saw."

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The state of the salaf toward those among creation who did good to them.

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Sufyan, may Allah have mercy on him, said: "Even if Pharaoh said to me,

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'May Allah bless you,'

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I would reply, 'And you as well.'"

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One of the salaf said: "Indeed, a man

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Some of the salaf said, "Indeed, a man

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may meet me with such good companionship

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that I feel I will die before I can ever repay him."

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And one of the wise said:

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"The most thankful of people to Allah, the Mighty and Sublime,

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are those who are most thankful to His servants."

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And he said, "He who does not express gratitude for a lot

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has failed, for repaying kindness with kindness is an obligation,

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whereas bestowing unrequited favor is a voluntary act of virtue."