‘Aqīl ibn Ma‘qīl ibn Munabbih said: I heard my uncle Wahb ibn Munabbih say: “O my son, perfect your obedience to Allah with a sincere inner intention, and let your public actions reflect it truthfully. Whoever performs a good deed and then conceals it before Allah has reached its proper station, fulfilled its completion, and entrusted it to its Preserver. And whoever hides a righteous act that none witnesses except Allah has in fact been witnessed by One Who is sufficient, preserves it, and safeguards its reward. Therefore, fear not, O my son, that a secretly done good deed will be lost, nor fear its injustice or neglect. Do not suppose that public display is more effective than inner sincerity. The relationship between public display and inner sincerity is like that of a tree’s leaves to its root: the leaves are its outward adornment, the root its foundation. If the root is burned, the entire tree perishes, but if the root thrives, the tree prospers, with both fruit and foliage. The leaves may one day wither and blow away, but the root remains unseen, ever in health and vigor. Similarly, religion, knowledge, and deeds remain sound so long as they have a good inner dimension that validates them before Allah in public. Public deeds benefit when supported by a sound inner sincerity, but public display alone gains nothing without it—just as a tree’s fruitfulness depends on the health of its branches, though life comes from its root. The branches are its beauty; if inner sincerity is the essence (milāk) of religion, public practice embellishes and beautifies it when performed by a believer who seeks only the pleasure of his Lord.” (Reported by Abū Nu‘aym in al-Hilya, 4:69–70.) Al-Haytham ibn Jamīl said: “Ṣāliḥ al-Murrī reported to us, from Abān, from Wahb: I read in al-Ḥikma that unbelief (kufr) has four pillars: anger, desire, greed, and fear.” (al-Hilya, 4:70.) He also said: “Allah revealed to Moses: ‘When you invoke Me, be fearful, reverent, and trembling; abase your cheek in dust, prostrate to Me with the dignity of your face and hands, and when you ask Me, ask with awe in your heart and trembling. Fear Me throughout your life, teach the ignorant of My favors, and tell My servants not to persist in the error they are in, for My punishment is exceedingly severe.’” (Source as above.) Wahb said: “When a ruler intends injustice or commits it, deficiency enters his domain, blessings diminish in trade, agriculture, dairying, and livestock, corruption spreads, and Allah humiliates him in person and in his kingdom. But when he strives for justice and goodness, the opposite occurs through the abundance of good and the growth of blessings.” Wahb also reported that in a muṣḥaf (or in the ṣuḥuf) of Abraham, peace be upon him, was this address: “O tested king, I have not sent you to amass worldly wealth or to erect grand buildings; rather, I have sent you to uplift the supplication of the oppressed before Me. I will not reject it even if it comes from a disbeliever.” (A similar meaning appears in a ḥadīth raised up by Aḥmad in his Musnad, 3:153, from Anas: “Beware the supplication of the oppressed, even if he is a disbeliever, for there is no barrier against it,” though its chain is weak.) Ibn Abī Dunyā narrated from Muḥammad ibn Isḥāq, from Wahb ibn Munabbih, that Dhū’l-Qarnayn said to certain kings: “Why is your creed one and your path straight?” They replied, “Because we do not betray nor backbite one another.” He also related on the same authority: “Three qualities guarantee righteousness: generosity of spirit (sakhā’), patience in the face of harm (ṣabr), and gracious speech (ṭayyib al-kalām).” (Abū Nu‘aym, al-Hilya, 10:47.) Ibn Abī Dunyā adds (in his Kitāb al-Ṣamt, p. 311): Sulaimān ibn Shubayb told me, from Sahl ibn ‘Āsim ibn Salama ibn Maymūn, from al-Mu‘āfa ibn ‘Imrān, from Idrīs, who said: “I heard Wahb say: There were two men among the Children of Israel whose worship was such that they walked on water. As they were crossing the sea, they saw a man walking in midair. He said: …”