divine lordship”—and perceives no distinction so long as he remains in this state. For a time, he may lose awareness of what gives rise to distinctions, and so imagine this annihilation to be a praiseworthy spiritual station, regarding it either as the ultimate goal or as something necessary for those following the spiritual path. This is mistaken. An occasional failure to distinguish between what brings pleasure and what brings torment is like failing to distinguish between sleep, forgetfulness, heedlessness, and absorption in one thing to the exclusion of another. It neither removes the distinction that actually exists nor prevents awareness of it when the cause of that awareness is present.

Any one of these people must inevitably become hungry or thirsty. He will not treat bread and drink alike, nor bitterly salty water and sweet, fresh water. Rather, he must distinguish between them and say, “This is wholesome, and this is not.” This is precisely the distinction underlying everything Allah and His Messenger have commanded and forbidden: they have commanded wholesome speech and deeds and forbidden what is foul.

Once it is understood that this distinction means that some things are beneficial and bring pleasure and bliss, while others are harmful and bring pain and torment, some of these things are perceived through the senses, while others people grasp through reason in worldly affairs. Thus, they recognize what brings them benefit in this world and what brings them harm. This belongs to the faculty of reason that distinguishes human beings, for it perceives consequences of actions that the senses cannot perceive. In the Quran, the term “reason” encompasses that by which one secures benefit and wards off harm.