for they remain true to the original innate disposition, and he has no authority over them:

‘So remind, if the reminder should benefit. Whoever fears Allah will take heed.’

‘And speak to him gently, so that he may take heed or fear Allah.’

Whoever journeys to Allah finds the distance short: he need only turn back to himself, however slightly, to recognize his need for Him in his coming into being, his continued existence, and his passage through his various states and conditions. He then gains insight through the signs on the horizons and those within himself, and takes Him as evidence for the dominion, rather than the dominion as evidence for Him:

‘Is it not enough that your Lord is a witness over all things?’

I have come to know things through my Lord; I have not come to know my Lord through things. Whoever is immersed in the sea of knowledge of Him no longer aspires to reach a shore, and whoever ascends to the summit of truth does not fear a fall. Thus, proofs and evidence establish that the world is not without a wise, all-knowing, all-powerful Maker—exalted and holy is He.”

He also said at the beginning of his book:

“I have been urged by one whose counsel