• Certainty (yaqīn) is more specific than knowledge in two respects:

– First: it is the firm, deeply rooted knowledge that is not exposed to doubt, misgiving, or any impediment. It takes three forms:
• knowledge of certainty (ʿilm al-yaqīn): when the matter is established through reliable report;
• vision of certainty (ʿayn al-yaqīn): when the eye actually beholds it—hence the saying, “Hearing is not like seeing”;
• reality of certainty (ḥaqq al-yaqīn): when the servant tastes and fully experiences it.

– Second: certainty is the kind of knowledge that moves its possessor to tranquility in Allah’s promises, calmness in remembering Him, endurance in the face of hardships, strength in carrying out His commands, both verbal and practical courage, a sweetness in acts of worship, and an ease with which difficulties and unpleasant things are borne for Allah’s sake. These noble fruits—higher and sweeter than anything else—are among the effects of certainty.

• Patience (ṣabr) is to restrain the soul amid hardships, seeking Allah’s good pleasure, and it is of three kinds:
  • patience in obeying Allah, especially with challenging acts of worship, until one performs them perfectly;
  • patience in refraining from Allah’s disobedience, particularly sins to which the soul is strongly inclined, so that one struggles against himself and abandons them for Allah’s sake;
  • patience with the painful decrees of Allah, especially when the calamity is great, so that one does not resent them—and sometimes even reaches a state of contentment with Allah.

• Gratitude to Allah consists of:
  • acknowledging Allah’s outward and inward favors, both general and specific.