7. SOLITUDE LEADS TO A GOOD LIFE
Solitude from people is a means towards leading a good life. Mingling with people must be measured, so indulge the enemy and win him over as he may scheme against you and ruin you.
Be kind to those who are unkind to you, accomplish your affairs in secrecy and make people your acquaintances and not your friends.
The rarest of things is to have a friend, for a friend should be of equal status. If you befriend the laypeople, you will not benefit from them, due to their general poor manners, lack of knowledge and discipline. If you befriend an equal or one of similar standing, he will envy you.
If you are conscious, you will sense from his words and actions evidence of his envy,
“You will surely know them by the tone of [their] speech.” [Muhammad (47):30]
If you want confirmation of this, then send someone to him and you will realize he will only speak what is in his heart. If you want to live (a long and happy life), keep away from the envier, to witness your blessing and could envy you for it. If you are forced to associate with him, do not reveal your secrets to him, do not consult him and do not be allured by his flattery or religiosity and worship he displays in front of you—because envy overcomes these traits.
You know that envy drove Cane (Kabii) to murder, and Yusuf s brother sold him for a cheap price.
Abu ‘Amir was a monk and a renowned worshipper, and ‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy was a chief among his people, but they were both driven by their envy (hasd) of the Messenger to hypocrisy (nifaq) and deviation from the right path (tark al-saivab).
You should not wish for your envier any punishment more than the state he is in. He is in a continual state of discontent, where nothing satisfies him except the removal of others’ blessing. The more your blessing endures, the longer his agony extends, which is not a way to live real life.
The reason why the life of the residents of Paradise is delightful is the removal of hatred (ighilt) and envy (hasd) from their hearts. Otherwise, they would have envied one another and lived in distress.
(Source: al-Hafiz Abu’l-Faraj ibn al-jawzl [d. 597AH] “CAPTURED THOUGHTS being” a translation of his masterpiece ‘Sayd al-K hatir)
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