Source Text
The means to reflection is emptiness [desirelessness], and the buttress of emptiness is abstinence. The completion of abstinence is precaution, and the door to precaution is fear.
If he drinks a cup of this drink, he will never prefer any other state to this nor any other moment to this. He will prefer this to every act of obedience and devotion, since it contains intimate conversation with the Lord without any intermediary.
Let your inward truth be veiled in awe of God, and let your outward truth be veiled in obedience.
Do not expose anyone’s faults when God has concealed worse things in yourself. Occupy yourself with your own faults, and overlook matters and situations which do not concern you. Beware lest you exhaust your life in other people’s actions and exchange your irreplaceable endowed wealth with someone else, thereby destroying yourself.
himself with obeying God, with recognizing his own faults and leaving alone whatever might devalue faith in God, he is spared ruin and is immersed in the sea of God’s mercy, attaining the gems and the benefits of wisdom and clarity. But as long as he forgets his own wrong actions, is ignorant of his own faults, and falls back on his power and strength, he will never be successful.
Both of these things weigh heavily on the self to keep it from obedience, and they harden the heart from reflection and humility.
Let your obedience to God overpower your wrongdoings and seek help from Him while you sleep, fasting until the morning prayer, since if you are awakened at night, Satan whispers to you, ‘Sleep again, you still have a long night,’ for he wants you to miss the time of intimate contemplation and exposure of your state before your Lord. Do not be distracted in seeking forgiveness at dawn, for at that time there is much yearning for those in devoted supplication.
The Prophet said, ‘The intention of the believer is better than his action,’ and also, ‘Actions are by intentions, and every man will obtain what he had intended.’
There is nothing more harmful to the believer’s heart than having too much food, for it brings about two things; hardness of heart and arousal of desires.
The Messenger of God said, ‘The believer eats to fill one stomach, and the hypocrite seven.’ And elsewhere, ‘Woe to people who are swollen in two places!’ When he was asked what they were, he replied, ‘The stomach and the genitals.’ Jesus said, ‘The heart does not have any worse disease than hardness, and no soul has been more weakened than by lack of hunger. They are two halters of banishment and disappointment.’
AI Summary
The Lantern of the Path by Imam Ja`far Al-Sadiq, Muna H. Bilgrami, and Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri presents key insights from the contemplative tradition. The 10 passages above capture the essential teachings.
Core Themes:
- [To be expanded]
Key Passages: Highlights 1, 3, and 10 are particularly representative.
This entry was generated from Readwise highlights. Expand with additional context as appropriate.