in accordance with the manners prescribed by Islamic law, is he permitted to receive any of this support or not? If one of them is engaged in studying sacred knowledge, but his worldly means do not cover even part of his needs, does he have a stronger claim than someone who neither observes Islamic manners nor possesses any knowledge? Give us your ruling—may you be rewarded—and explain this fully, with evidence from the Quran and Sunnah. May Allah be pleased with you.

He replied—may Allah have mercy on him:

The administrator is not permitted to introduce these conditions or any others, for his role is merely to implement the founder’s stipulations. He has no authority to introduce conditions that neither the founder nor the Lawgiver has made obligatory. Whoever introduces them incurs sin, for he withholds from those entitled to support their rightful due until they perform deeds that are not obligatory. Nor is it lawful to record an absence against anyone who fails to comply with these conditions. Rather, these conditions must be abolished. Whoever strives to abolish them, seeking thereby the Face of Allah Most High, will be rewarded.

As for a Sufi who qualifies as a beneficiary of an endowment for Sufis, he must meet three conditions.

The first:

He must be upright in his religion, fulfilling the obligatory duties and avoiding what is forbidden.

The second:

He must observe most of the manners prescribed by Islamic law most of the time, even when they are not obligatory, such as the manners of eating, drinking, dressing and sleeping