of war for combat, to wearing silk on the battlefield, and even to striking a proud mien while fighting; all of this is commendable when it involves exalting Allah’s word, giving victory to His religion, and vexing His enemy.

The blameworthy kind, by contrast, is whatever is pursued for worldly show, leadership, self-aggrandizement, arrogance, or as a means to base desires—when it becomes the servant’s final end and highest aspiration. Many souls have no ambition beyond that.

As for what is neither praised nor blamed, it is what is free of both intentions and stripped of both descriptions.

The point is that this noble ḥadith embraces two tremendous foundations: its beginning relates to knowledge, and its end to practice. Allah, exalted is He, is to be known through a beauty unmatched by anything, and He is to be worshiped through the beauty He loves of words, deeds, and character. Thus He loves that His servant beautify his tongue with truthfulness, his heart with sincerity, love, repentance, and reliance, his limbs with obedience, and his body by manifesting Allah’s favors in dress and by purifying it from filth, ritual impurities, dirt, undesirable hair, as well as through circumcision and trimming the nails. One comes to know Him by His attributes of beauty and draws near to Him through beautiful actions, words, and morals—knowing Him by the beauty that is His attribute, and worshiping Him by the beauty that is His law and religion. The ḥadith, then, unites two principles: knowledge and conduct.

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Nothing is more beneficial to the servant than being truthful with his Lord in all matters, together with truthful resolve: to be true to Him in intention and in action alike. The Exalted says, “When the matter was resolved, had they been true to Allah, it would have been better for them” (21) [Muhammad: 21]. His happiness therefore lies in truthful resolve and truthful deed. Truthful resolve is to gather one’s determination, make it decisive, and allow no hesitation whatsoever.