152 – ʿAbd al-Rahman ibn Salih ibn al-Muḥāribī narrated to me, from Bakr ibn Khunays, from Dirar ibn ʿAmr, from al-Hasan, who said:
“Qur’an reciters fall into three categories.
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A man who has made it a commodity, transporting it from city to city, seeking thereby whatever people can give him.
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A group who recited the Qur’an, preserved its letters, yet squandered its limits. They use it to ingratiate themselves with the governors and to lord it over the people of their own lands. You will find many of this sort among the bearers of the Qur’an—may Allah not increase their number.
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A man who recited the Qur’an and wept because he recognized the Qur’an’s remedy. He applied it to the disease within his own heart, kept vigil for the sake of Allah, and his eyes overflowed with tears. They cloak themselves in sorrow, don the garment of humility, labor in their prayer-niches, and sigh beneath their cloaks. Through them Allah sends the rain, grants victory, and lifts affliction.
By Allah, this kind among the bearers of the Qur’an is rarer than red sulfur.”