The Sixth: The most important reason for self-sufficiency is what Ibn Hajar, the most  reliable  scholar  of  our  school  of  law,  says:  “If  you  are  not  righteous  it  is forbidden to accept something intended for the righteous.”[4]

Out of their greed and ambition, the people of this age sell the smallest gift ver y expensively. They imagine a sinful wretch like myself to be righteous or a saint and they give him a loaf of bread. If, God forbid, I consider myself to be righteous, it is a sign of pride and points to the absence of righteousness. If I do not consider myself to be righteous, it is not permissible to accept those goods. Also, to receive alms and gifts in return for actions that look to the hereafter, means consuming the eternal fruits of the hereafter in transitory form in this world.

The Eternal One, He is the Eternal One!

S a i d  N u r s i


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[4] Ibn Hajar al-Haythami al-Shafi’i, Tuhfat al-Muhtaj li-Sharh al-Minhaj, i, 178.

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