When one attains it, ḥusn-i riḍā (excellence in contentment with God's decree), and when one loses it, ḥusn-i ṣabr (excellence in patient endurance). It is also said: The muttaqī (one who practices taqwa, God-consciousness) is the person who avoids following his own desires. (Gunye, 1, 143)
It is said: There are various forms of taqwa. The taqwa of the common people (ʿawām) is to avoid shirk (associating partners with God) with the Creator; the taqwa of the elect (khawāṣṣ) is to abandon sins and, in all other states, to oppose the nafs (the lower self) by abandoning caprice. The taqwa of the elite of the friends of God (awliyāʾ), that is, the most select, is to abandon will in matters of taqwa/taqwāllāh (God-consciousness), to avoid neglect in supererogatory acts of worship, to refrain from relying on causes other than Allah (not depending on anything besides God), and to avoid clinging to spiritual states (aḥwāl) and stations (maqāmāt); in all these matters, it is to obey the commands of the obligatory rulings. (Gunye, I, 145)
The taqwa of the prophets (anbiyāʾ) is not to transgress the boundary of the unseen within the unseen. It is from Allah (it comes from Him) and to Allah (it returns to Him). Allah commands them, forbids them, grants them success, educates them, heals them, cures them, speaks to them, guides them, bestows upon them (blessings), delights them, makes them privy to divine secrets, and shows them (what ordinary people cannot see). The intellect cannot comprehend these matters. They are distinct from humankind, and even from all the angels. However, in matters that are connected to the apparent rulings, which concern the community and the common believers (muʾminūn), they are bound to a clear command. In this respect (regarding the outward of the sharia), they are with the people. In all other matters, they are entirely distinct. (Gunye, I, 145)
Taqwa is to avoid even what is lawful out of fear that it may lead one away from Allah. The reality (ḥaqīqa) of certainty (yaqīn) is to witness the unseen through the unveiling of the qalb (the heart), and to contemplate the secrets through the address of thoughts.
Taqwa is of three kinds: The taqwa of the common people (ʿawām) with the tongue is to prefer the dhikr (remembrance of God) of the Eternal One, and to persist in this dhikr until perfection is attained. The taqwa of the elect (khawāṣṣ) with the limbs is to prefer service to the Eternal One, and to persist in this service until perfection is attained. The taqwa of the elite of the elect (akhāṣṣ al-khawāṣṣ) with the qalb is to prefer love (maḥabba) for the Eternal One, and to persist in this love until perfection is attained. (Jāmiʿ, 54)
In language, warāʿ and taqwa have the same meaning. (But according to the people of reality, they are different...) (Jāmiʿ, 265)
Taqwa means tuqā; in the lexicon, it signifies ittiqā (to avoid). That is, a person’s extreme protection from what he fears, that is, to place himself under protection and to put something between himself and what he fears. For example, among bodies, a shield and similar things; among actions, truthfulness and friendship are elements that protect a person from what he fears. It is said: Taqwa indicates mutuality (muṭāwaʿat). Therefore, it is said: waqāhu, wa-ttaqā (he protected him, he was protected).
The meaning of taqwa in the sharia is to avoid things that will harm one in this world (dunyā) and the hereafter. Its scope is broad. The lowest level is to avoid shirk, and the highest is to protect the nafs from things that incur punishment, whether by doing or omitting. According to the people of reality, taqwa is to purify the secret (sirr) from anything that keeps it from the Real (al-Ḥaqq), and to devote oneself entirely to the Real (tebattul). This is what is meant by true taqwa here. (Jāmiʿ, 266)
Taqwa has an outward (ẓāhir) and an inward (bāṭin) aspect. The outward is to fear transgressing the limits; the inward is intention and ikhlas (sincerity). Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad Sahlrh says: Whoever wants his taqwa to be sound should abandon all sins! (Nabhānī, I, 406)
(See also: warāʿ)