“…barley bread, drink pure water, and leave this world sound and secure. By the truth of what I tell you: the sweetness of this world is the bitterness of the Hereafter, and the bitterness of this world is the sweetness of the Hereafter. The servants of God are not people of luxury. By the truth of what I tell you, the worst of you is a scholar who follows his desires instead of his knowledge, wishing that everyone were the same as he.”(1)

A similar wording is reported from Abū Hurayrah.(2)

Abū Muṣʿab transmitted from Mālik that he had heard Jesus say, “O Children of Israel, cleave to clear water, wild greens, and barley bread; but beware of wheat bread, for you will never be able to give thanks enough for it.”(3)

Ibn Wahb, from Sulaymān ibn Bilāl, from Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd, said that Jesus used to say, “Cross this world—do not try to build it up.” He also said, “Love of the world is the root of every sin, and a single glance sows desire in the heart.” Wahb ibn al-Ward related the same and added, “Many a desire has brought its people a grief that lasts long.”(4)

Jesus, peace be upon him, said, “O weak son of Adam, fear God wherever you are; be a guest in this world; make the mosques your home; teach your eyes to weep, your body to endure, and your heart to reflect; and do not worry about the provision of tomorrow, for such worry is a sin.”(5)

He also said, “Just as none of you can build a house upon the rolling waves of the sea, so make no permanent home in this world.”(6)

On this theme Sābiq al-Barbarī wrote:
You build your houses where sword-edges clash—
Can a house of clay be raised upon water?(7)

Sufyān al-Thawrī said: Jesus son of Mary declared, “Love of this world and love of the Hereafter cannot live together in the heart of a believer, just as water and fire cannot coexist in a single vessel.”(8)