Āfāt al-qulūb (Calamities of the Hearts)

Āfāt al-qulūb (regarding the calamities of the hearts) refers to the practice of avoiding things that deaden the qalb (the heart), such as vain and meaningless matters and an abundance of heedlessness. This is characteristic of the Sufi (ṣūfī). For it has been experienced that such things cause the death of the qalb. The entire effort of the faqīr (the Sufi) is nothing other than keeping his qalb alive against everything that prevents him from remembering Allah (God). For the human qalb is like the hole at the center of a millstone. If the qalb is corrupted (if the hole is damaged, the millstone itself is also ruined). If the stone has two holes, it becomes impossible for the stone to turn (thus, one should not divide the qalb or its attention, for Allah has not created two hearts in a person's breast). (Anwār, 85)