knowledge.” Another example is the saying of Abū Yazīd: “I devoted thirty years to spiritual striving, yet found nothing harder than knowledge and following it. Were it not for the scholars’ differences, I would have been left at a loss. The scholars’ differences are a mercy, except in keeping tawhīd pure.”

This resembles the saying of Sahl ibn ‘Abd Allāh al-Tustarī: “Every act you perform without following the prophetic example—whether obedience or disobedience—is gratification for the self; every act you perform by following that example is torment for the self.”

Abū Sulaymān al-Dārānī said: “At times, there comes into my heart a subtle insight from among