So his words, “upon a light from Allah,” point to the first principle: faith, the source of every action and the motive that drives it. And his words, “while hoping for Allah’s reward,” point to the second principle: iḥtisāb, the ultimate goal for which the deed is performed (1) and toward which it is directed.

There is no doubt that this statement is comprehensive (2) of all the fundamentals and branches of faith, and that birr (righteousness) falls under this very designation.

When, however, the two terms are paired—as in the Exalted One’s saying, “And cooperate in birr and taqwā” (Q 5:2)—the difference between them is that between a means sought for something else and an end desired for its own sake. Birr is sought for its very self, for it is the servant’s perfection and well-being, without which he can have no true rectitude, as noted earlier.

Taqwā, on the other hand, is the path that leads (3) to birr and the means by which it is attained, and the very morphology of the word indicates this. It is on the faʿlā pattern derived from waqā–yaqī; its original form was waqwā, but the first wāw was changed to a tāʾ, just as they say turāth from al-wirātha, tujāh from al-wajh, tukhma from al-wakhm (4), and similar examples (5). Thus the word itself shows that it comes from wiqāya (protection), for the person of taqwā has placed (6) between himself and the Fire a protective barrier; the protection from