An Exposition of the Two Springs from Which the Tree of Faith Is Watered

Now that you have come to know the roots of the Tree of Faith and its branches, understand that the tree draws its life-giving water from two springs of knowledge.

The First Spring: Awareness of This World and the Purpose for Which Man Was Placed in It

Know, O Sultan of the world, that this present life is but a station, not a place of permanence. Man himself is a traveler: his first halt is his mother’s womb and his last is the cavity of his grave, while his true homeland—his abiding, lasting settlement—lies only beyond that. Each passing year is a stage of the journey, each month a rest along the road, each week a village he encounters, each day a small hamlet he must cross, every single breath a step he takes—and with every breath he draws he moves nearer to the Hereafter.

This world is a bridge. Whoever busies himself with building and ornamenting that bridge squanders his lifetime upon it, forgets the abode that awaits him, and proves himself ignorant and lacking in sense. The intelligent one is he who uses this world only to prepare for his return, contenting himself with what suffices. Whatever he amasses beyond his real need is deadly poison; he will one day wish that all his vaults and hidden treasures were mere ashes and dust, not silver or gold. However much he gathers, his genuine share is only what he eats and wears—nothing more. All that he leaves behind will become a source of grief and regret; relinquishing it at the moment of death will be bitter indeed. What is lawfully acquired will bring an exacting reckoning, and what is unlawfully acquired will bring torment: if the wealth was amassed through lawful means he will be questioned about it, but if it was amassed through unlawful means, punishment is inevitable.