al-Amīr ʿAbd al-Qādir b. Muḥyī al-Dīn al-Jazāʾirī · Kitāb al-Mawāqif fī baʿḍ ishārāt al-Qurʾān ilā al-asrār wa-l-maʿārif
المواقف
The Book of Stations
Mawqif 344 · “O world, whoever serves you, weary him”
In briefAI
Starting from Q 42:20 and 17:18 and the divine saying “O world, whoever serves you, weary him”, the Emir says there is no contradiction between them. “Weary him” means the world turns to the one who serves it and opens out to him, which is a punishment, as in Q 9:55. “Follow him” commands the world to stay behind the servant of God, lest it distract him. The few exceptions are such as Solomon, who held the world in their hands and not their hearts, and took and gave rightfully.
See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 1106, Damascus 1966, p. 1107 (archive.org)
قَالَ تَعَالَى: «وَمَنْ كَانَ يُرِيْدُ حَرْثَ الدُّنْيَا نُؤْتِهِ مِنْهَا».
He, exalted is He, said: “and whoever desires the tillage of this world, We give him of it” (Q 42:20).
وَقَالَ: «مَنْ كَانَ يُرِيْدُ ٱلْعَاجِلَةَ عَجَّلْنَا لَهُ فِيهَا مَا نَشَاءُ لِمَنْ نُرِيدُ».
And He said: “Whoever desires the hasty [world], We hasten for him therein what We will, for whom We intend” (Q 17:18).
وَوَرَدَ فِي بَعْضِ الْأَحَادِيثِ الرَّبَّانِيَّةِ أَنَّهُ تَعَالَى يَقُولُ: «يَا دُنْيَا مَنْ خَدَمَكِ فَاَتْعِبِيهِ وَمَنْ خَدَمَنِي فَاتَّبِعِيهِ»
It has come in some of the divine sayings that He, exalted is He, says: “O world, whoever serves you, weary him; and whoever serves Me, follow him.”
فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ لَا اخْتِلَافَ بَيْنَ الْآيَتَيْنِ وَالْحَدِيثِ الرَّبَّانِيِّ، وَاِنْ تُوُهِّمَ بِاَنَّ الْمُرَادَ بِالْحَدِيثِ الرَّبَّانِيِّ أَمْرُ الدُّنْيَا بِالْاِعْرَاضِ وَعَدَمِ اِقْبَالِهَا عَمَّنْ خَدَمَهَا،
Know, then, that there is no contradiction between the two verses and the divine saying, even if it is imagined that what is meant by the divine saying is the world's being commanded to turn away and not to come towards the one who serves it;
بَلِ الْمُرَادُ مِنْ قَوْلِهِ (فَاَتْعِبِيهِ) اَقْبِلِي عَلَيْهِ بِوَجْهِكِ وَعَانِقِيهِ وَانْبَسِطِي لَهُ وَتَوَسَّعِي حَتَّى يَتْعَبَ وَيَتَعَذَّبَ بِسَبَبِ اِقْبَالِكِ عَلَيْهِ،
rather, what is meant by His words “weary him” is: turn your face towards him, embrace him, open yourself out to him and grow wide for him, so that he is wearied and tormented because of your coming towards him;
اِذِ انْبِسَاطُ الدُّنْيَا وَاِقْبَالُهَا عَلَى مَنْ خَدَمَهَا وَرَغِبَ فِيهَا عُقُوبَةٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ ـ تَعَالَى ـ لِخَادِمِ الدُّنْيَا كَمَا قَالَ لِرَسُولِهِ ـ مُحَمَّدٍ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ـ: «فَلَا تُعْجِبْكَ أَمْوَالُهُمْ وَلَاأَوْلَادُهُمْ إِنَّمَا يُرِيْدُ اللَّهُ لِيُعَذِّبَهُمْ بِهَا فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا».
for the world's opening out and coming towards the one who serves it and desires it is a punishment from God, exalted is He, for the servant of the world, as He said to His Messenger Muḥammad, God bless him and give him peace: “So let not their wealth nor their children impress you; God only intends to punish them by them in the life of this world” (Q 9:55).
وَقَالَ لَهُ: «وَلَاتَمُدَّنَّ عَيْنَيْكَ إِلَى مَا مَتَّعْنَا بِهِ أَزْوَاجاً مِنْهُمْ زَهْرَةَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا لِنَفْتِنَهُمْ فِيهِ».
And He said to him: “And do not stretch your eyes towards what We have given some pairs of them to enjoy, the flower of the life of this world, that We may try them therein” (Q 20:131).
وَقَوْلُهُ: (وَمَنْ خَدَمَنِي فَاتَّبِعِيهِ) هُوَ أَمْرٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ- تَعَالَى- لِلدُّنْيَا بِاَنْ تَكُونَ خَلْفَ مَنْ خَدَمَ اللَّهَ- تَعَالَى- فَلَا تُوَاجِهَهُ وَلَا تُقْبِلَ عَلَيْهِ وَلَا تَتَبَسَّطَ لَهُ لِئَلَّا تَشْغَلَهُ عَنْ خِدْمَتِهِ تَعَالَى.
And His words “and whoever serves Me, follow him” are a command from God, exalted is He, to the world to be behind the one who serves God, exalted is He, so that it does not face him, nor come towards him, nor open itself out to him, lest it distract him from serving Him, exalted is He.
وَقَدْ وَرَدَ فِي بَعْضِ الْأَحَادِيثِ الرَّبَّانِيَّةِ: يَا دُنْيَا تَضَيَّقِي وَتَمَرَّرِي عَلَى اَوْلِيَائِي حَتَّى يَحِنُّوا اِلَى لِقَائِي.
And it has come in some of the divine sayings: “O world, be narrow and be bitter for My friends, so that they yearn for meeting Me.”
فَاِنَّ الدُّنْيَا شَاغِلَةٌ عَنْ خِدْمَةِ اللَّهِ- تَعَالَى- اِلَّا مَنْ رَحِمَ رَبُّكَ وَقَلِيلٌ مَا هُمْ،
For the world distracts from serving God, exalted is He, except for those on whom your Lord has mercy, and how few they are,
كَسُلَيْمَانَ- عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ- وَالْكُمَّلِ مِنْ أَوْلِيَاءِ اللَّهِ- تَعَالَى- الَّذِينَ كَانَتِ الدُّنْيَا فِي أَيْدِيهِمْ لَا فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ، وَفِي ظَاهِرِهِمْ لَا فِي بَاطِنِهِمْ، فَتَصَرَّفُوا فِيهَا تَصَرُّفَ الْمُسْتَخْلَفِ لَا تَصَرُّفَ الْمَالِكِ.
such as Solomon, peace be upon him, and the perfect among the friends of God, exalted is He, in whose hands the world was, not in their hearts, and in their outward, not in their inward; so they disposed of it as one appointed deputy disposes, not as an owner disposes.
وَمَعَ هَذَا فَقَدْ وَرَدَ أَنَّ سُلَيْمَانَ- عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ- يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ بَعْدَ الْاَنْبِيَاءِ بِأَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً،
And despite this it has come that Solomon, peace be upon him, will enter the Garden forty years after the prophets,
وَوَرَدَ أَنَّ عَبْدَ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنَ عَوْفٍ- رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ- يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ حَبْواً.
and it has come that ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAwf, God be pleased with him, will enter the Garden crawling.
وَلَا نَشُكُّ أَنَّهُمْ أَخَذُوا الدُّنْيَا بِحَقٍّ وَأَخْرَجُوهَا بِحَقٍّ.
And we do not doubt that they took the world rightfully and gave it out rightfully.
وَقَالَ تَعَالَى لِسُلَيْمَانَ- عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ-:
And He, exalted is He, said to Solomon, peace be upon him:
«هَٰذَا عَطَآؤُنَا فَامْنُنْ أَوْ أَمْسِكْ بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍ».
"This is Our gift, so bestow or withhold, without reckoning." (Q 38:39)
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