749 — Salama ibn Shabīb related to me: Sahl ibn Āsim related to us, on the authority of Salm ibn Maymūn, on the authority of al-Muāfā ibn Imrān, on the authority of Idrīs, who said: I heard Wahb ibn Munabbih say:

“There were among the Children of Israel two men whose worship had brought them to the point that they could walk upon water. While they were walking upon the sea, they suddenly came upon a man walking through the air. They asked him, ‘O servant of Allah, by what did you attain this rank?’

“He replied, ‘By two things in this world: I weaned my soul from its desires and yearned for that to which He called me; and I restrained my tongue from what did not concern me and adhered to silence. Thus, if I adjure Allah, He fulfills my oath, and if I ask Him, He grants my request.’”