The Straight Path of the Individual

is a strange person: he is inclined to momentary faith as opposed to the faith received from you.” The Prophet replied, “God bless Ibn Rawaha! He likes sittings of which even angels envy!” In fact, what Ibn Rawaha suggested was an expression of a deeper realization which they failed to understand. 2. Faith to such as Ibn Rawaha means total surrender to God. The apprehension of life away from the path of God is agony to them. On the revelation of the verse, ‘…They who hoard up gold and silver and spend it not in the way of God, unto them give tidings (O Muhammad) of a painful doom,’ (9:34). The Prophet said, “Woe to gold! Woe to silver!” This proved hard on the companions and they said among themselves, “What then should we keep?” Then Omar went to the Prophet and laid this matter before him. The Prophet then said, ‘Let each one of you take a tongue that remembers God, a thankful heart and a wife who helps one to faith!” (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Vol. 2, p. 351). 3. Such people have a perfect capability of acknowledging the worth of others. The following incident illustrates this. A companion of the Prophet, by the name of Jabir Ibn Azraq Ghaziri, once came on his she-camel to join the Prophet on one of his journeys. On the way the Prophet halted at a certain point and went inside his leather tent. A crowd gathered at the tent door. A man tried to push Jabir aside, but the latter said: “If you push me now, I shall beat you.” At this, the other said, “O worst of men!” Jabir replied, “By God, you are worse than I!” The man said, “How can you say such a thing? I have come from Yemen to hear the words of the Prophet and to convey them to my people on my return, and you are barring my way!” At this Jabir’s anger cooled, and he exclaimed, “Yes, you are right. By God, I am worse than you!” (Kanzul Ummal) 4. They are more interested in their duties than in their rights. Imam Ahmad quotes the Prophet’s wife, Umme Salma’s