because of his intense fear that he might not have fulfilled its obligations. He did not say this about Abū Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him; rather, he consistently testified that Abū Bakr had discharged the duties of the caliphate justly. Thus, it was ʿUmar’s fear that prompted him to say this.

Abū ʿAlī’s statement, however, is not of this kind. Rather, he described the entire group in these terms. It is therefore clear that he did not consider the practice good, even though he engaged in it.

Abū al-Qāsim said that he heard Shaykh Abū ʿAbd al-Rahmān al-Sulamī say that he heard Abū ʿUthmān al-Maghribī say: “Anyone who claims to practise listening, yet does not listen to birdsong, the creaking of a door, and the whistling of the wind, is a liar and a pretender.”

I say: This statement by Abū ʿUthmān is among the criteria they use to distinguish listening that inspires reflection from listening that leads to temptation. Listening that inspires reflection and truly stirs the spiritual emotion of those on the path can occur through hearing these sounds; it is not confined to the listening desired by those given to temptation.

Abū al-Qāsim said that he heard Abū Hātim al-Sijistānī say that he heard Abū Nasr al-Sarrāj al-Tūsī say that he heard Abū al-Tayyib Ahmad ibn Muqātil al-ʿAkkī say: “Jaʿfar said: ‘Ibn Zīrī, one of al-Junayd’s companions, was a shaykh