whereas there are other things that are pursued only for the sake of something beyond them; these are desired incidentally. The same distinction applies to the sources of aid: among them is that which a servant treats as the ultimate recourse—on it he relies, in it he puts his trust, and by it he seeks reinforcement, seeing no higher object of dependence. Others are merely subordinate to something else, like the limbs in relation to the heart, money in relation to its owner, or tools in relation to the craftsman.

If a person examines his own condition and that of all people, he will find that they never part from these two realities. The soul must have something in which it finds tranquility and toward which its love finally gravitates; that is its deity. And it must have something in which it places confidence and upon which it relies to attain its objectives; that is the one from whom help is sought—whether that be Allah or anything else. When both of these roles are assigned entirely to something other than Allah, the case is general and amounts to disbelief: those who worship anyone besides Allah outright and who supplicate others besides Him without reserve—such as the worshippers of the sun, the moon, and the like—ask them for their needs and flee to them in calamities.

The deviation may also be particular, occurring among Muslims themselves: for instance, when love of wealth, or of a person, or of leadership overwhelms someone until he becomes a slave to it, just as the Prophet ﷺ said: “Wretched is the slave of the dirham! Wretched is the slave of the dinar! Wretched is the slave of the velvet cloak, wretched….”