Risālat Ibn al-Qayyim ilā Ikhwānih - Ibn al-Qayyim - (الكتاب/4)

and for this reason, a certain spiritual master (1) advised (2): “Beware of associating with those whose company squanders time and corrupts the heart, for once time is lost and the heart is spoiled, all of a servant’s affairs unravel. Such a person is among those of whom Allah has said: ‘Do not obey one whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance, who follows his own desire, and whose affairs have become utterly disordered’ (al-Kahf 18:28).

Whoever reflects on the state of people today will find that all of them—save a very small minority—have hearts heedless of the remembrance of Allah, exalted is He; they follow their whims, and their affairs and interests have become “in disarray,” that is, they have neglected what would benefit and reform them and have occupied themselves with what brings them no benefit, indeed with what will harm them (3) both sooner and later (4).

Such people (5) are the very ones whom Allah, glorified be He, commanded His Messenger not to obey; obedience to the Messenger can be perfected only by refusing obedience to them (6). For they (7) call others only to what resembles their own state: the pursuit of desire and heedlessness of Allah’s remembrance (8).

When heedlessness of Allah and the Hereafter is joined to the pursuit of passion, it gives birth to

(1) Manuscripts B and C read: “he instructed.” (2) Manuscript C reads: “some of them.” (3) Manuscript C reads: “that which harms them.” (4) Ibn al-Qayyim discussed the condemnation of excessive social mixing and clarified the beneficial criterion governing it in Madarij al-Salikin, 1:454-456. (5) The base manuscript reads: “and among these”; the adopted reading follows manuscripts B and C. (6) Manuscript C reads: “their obedience.” (7) The base manuscript reads: “that they”; the adopted reading follows manuscripts B and C. (8) Manuscript C reads: “from Allah and the Hereafter.”

وصى (١) بعض الشيوخ (٢) فقال: احذروا مخالطة من تُضيع مخالطته الوقت، وتُفسد القلب، فإنه متى ضاع الوقت وفسد القلب انفرطت على العبد أموره كلها، وكان ممن قال الله فيه: ﴿وَلَا تُطِعْ مَنْ أَغْفَلْنَا قَلْبَهُ عَنْ ذِكْرِنَا وَاتَّبَعَ هَوَاهُ وَكَانَ أَمْرُهُ فُرُطًا (٢٨)﴾ [الكهف: ٢٨]. ومن تأمل حال هذا الخلق، وجدهم كلهم -إلا أقل القليل- ممن غفلت قلوبهم عن ذكر الله -تعالى -، واتَّبعوا أهواءهم، وصارت أمورهم ومصالحهم ﴿فُرُطًا﴾ أي: فرَّطوا فيما ينفعهم ويعود بصلاحهم، واشتغلوا بما لا ينفعهم، بل يعود بضررهم (٣) عاجلًا وآجلًا (٤). [وهؤلاء] (٥) قد أمر الله -سبحانه- رسولَه ألا يطيعهم، فطاعة الرسول لا تتم إلا بعدم طاعة هؤلاء (٦)، [فإنهم] (٧) إنما يدعون إلى ما يشاكلهم من اتباع الهوى، والغفلة عن ذكر الله (٨). والغفلة عن الله والدَّار الآخرة متى تزوجت باتباع الهوى، [تولد

(١) في ب، و ج (أوصى). (٢) في ج (بعضهم). (٣) في ج (بما يضرهم). (٤) تكلم ابن القيم في ذم الخلطة، وبيَّن الضابط النافع فيها، في مدارج السالكين (١/ ٤٥٤ - ٤٥٦). (٥) في الأصل (ومن هؤلاء)، والمثبت من ب، و ج. (٦) في ج (طاعتهم). (٧) في الأصل (بأنهم)، والمثبت من ب، و ج. (٨) في ج: (عن الله والدار الآخرة).