97 – ʿAbd Allah narrated to us; ʿAwn ibn Ibrahim mentioned it; Ahmad ibn Abi al-Hawari transmitted it; Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad related from Ahmad al-Maymuni, a descendant of Maymun ibn Mihran, who said:

“Ahmad al-Mawsili came to us, so I went in to see him. He said to me, ‘O Ahmad, if you busy yourself with work, the workers before you have already done their work; and if you devote yourself to worship, those who devoted themselves long ago have done so—people who brought the Hereafter near and pushed the world away. They are the ones whom Allah has undertaken to keep straight upon the path, never turning right or left. Were you to hear but a single note of the melodies fermenting within their chests, gurgling in their throats, it would embitter your life and banish all idleness from you for as long as you live.’”