Have you read the story of the Darvanlıs? If you have, why persist in deception? A few individuals, like scorpions’ stingers, plotted to exploit a few impoverished souls. Throughout the night, several men met face-to-face with Amır and Bekir, devising their scheme in secret. They whispered their secrets, may Allah not understand.
They began plastering mud on the mason’s work – can a hidden deed ever be truly concealed? Allah says, “Does He who created you, knowing your thoughts, your words spoken in secret and whispers, not know whether it is truth or deceit?” Those who set out at dawn are observed; how will they find rest the next day, and remain unaware?
How can Allah be unaware of where they turn their faces, their numbers, their paths, their methods, where they descend, and where they ascend? Now cleanse your ear from heedlessness and listen to the sorrowful one’s tale of separation. Have you listened to his suffering, heard his woes? Know that this is a form of zakat given to that afflicted person. Listening to the sorrows of those with troubled hearts, understanding the needs of the noble soul for water and sustenance – this too is a form of zakat.
The afflicted man’s heart is filled with doubt, shrouded in smoke. By listening to his woes, you open a window into that house. Your attentive listening becomes a breath of fresh air for him, lessening the bitter smoke within his soul. Traveler, if you are journeying towards the Exalted Allah, be a stone of solace to our sorrows, and help us find a remedy.
This doubt is a prison, a dungeon. It does not allow your soul to wander freely. This pulls it one way, that pulls it another; each claims to possess the right path. This doubt is a trap, a treacherous place on the path of Allah. Blessed be the one whose bonds are loosened! He proceeds along the true path without hesitation. If you do not know the way, where is the name of that free man? Seek him!
Follow the tracks of the gazelle; set out freed from all things and follow his trail, so that ultimately you may reach the scent (misk). With this manner of walking, even if you were to enter fire outwardly, you would still ascend brightly towards the heights. “Since you have heard the address ‘Fear Not,’ what fear do you have of the sea, of the waves, or the foam? If Allah has given you the fear of truth, consider that ‘Fear Not’ an affirmation of it. He sends a plate; he will also send bread. Fear belongs to one who lacks courage. It is for those who do not circulate here.”