and we say only what pleases the Lord.” Another example is His saying, exalted is He:

“He turned away from them and said, ‘Alas for Joseph!’ His eyes turned white with grief, and he held back his sorrow.”

Sorrow may be accompanied by something for which a person is rewarded and praised. It is then praiseworthy in that respect, not on account of the sorrow itself. For example, someone may grieve over a calamity affecting his religion or over calamities befalling Muslims generally. Such a person is rewarded for the love of good and hatred of evil in his heart, and for what follows from these. However, if sorrow over such matters leads to neglecting something commanded—such as patience, striving, securing a benefit, or warding off harm—it is forbidden. Otherwise, it is enough for the person that he bears no sin on account of the sorrow itself. But if it weakens his heart and so preoccupies it that he fails to do what Allah and His Messenger have commanded, he is blameworthy in that respect, even if he is praiseworthy in another.

As for loving Allah, relying upon Him, being sincere to Him, and the like, these are all pure good. They are virtuous and beloved in the case of everyone: the prophets, the steadfastly truthful, the martyrs, and the righteous. Whoever says that these spiritual stations belong to ordinary believers rather than the elite is mistaken if he means that the elite pass beyond them. No believer ever passes beyond them; only a disbeliever or a hypocrite departs from them. Some have made statements on this subject whose error we have explained at length, showing that they reflect a failure to realize these stations fully. This is not the place for that discussion.