besides Allah gods so that they might be a source of strength for them. No indeed! Those gods will repudiate their worship and will turn against them. [Maryam 81-82]

These two aspects with regard to created beings parallel worshipping them and seeking their help. Hence, when He said, “It is You alone we worship and You alone we ask for help” (al-Fatiha 5), the servant’s wellbeing lies in worshipping Allah and seeking His aid, whereas worshipping anything else and looking to anything else for assistance brings him harm, ruin, and corruption.

Sixth consideration: Allah—glorified be He—is Self-sufficient, Praiseworthy, Generous, Ever-Providing, and Merciful. He bestows kindness upon His servant although He has no need of him; He wills good for him and removes his affliction, not to gain some benefit from the servant or to ward off harm from Himself, but purely out of mercy and beneficence. Human beings, however, can act only for their own interests. At best they may love and honor someone, bring him some benefit, or repel some harm—and even that is by Allah’s enabling—yet they do so solely for the share they hope to obtain from that person when the deed is not performed for Allah’s sake.

If they love someone, they seek to realize their own goal through that love, whether they love him for his inner or outer beauty. Thus, when they love prophets or saints, they yearn to meet them, taking pleasure in gazing upon them, hearing their speech, and the like.

Likewise, whoever loves a person for his courage, leadership, beauty, or generosity desires to secure his own portion from that love; were it not for the delight he derives from it, he would not have loved him. And even if they bring him some benefit—such as service, wealth, or