the state of Moses, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, who fell unconscious when his Lord manifested Himself to the mountain. Moses’ state was noble, exalted and virtuous, but Muhammad’s state, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was more complete, higher and better.

The point is that these heightened forms of worship and spiritual experience arose in Basra because of intense fear. Indeed, the accounts of the fear experienced by ‘Utba al-Ghulām, ‘Atā’ al-Sulaymī and others like them describe something tremendous. Undoubtedly, their state was more complete and better than that of anyone whose fear of Allah neither equalled nor surpassed theirs.

Yet someone whose measured fear of Allah moves him to do what Allah loves and abandon what Allah dislikes, without these additional manifestations, is in a more complete and better state than theirs. This was the state of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them.

It is reported that ‘Atā’ al-Sulaymī—may Allah be pleased with him—was seen after his death and asked, “How did Allah deal with you?” He replied, “He said to me, ‘O ‘Atā’, were you not ashamed before Me to fear Me so greatly? Had you not heard that I am All-Forgiving, Most Merciful?’”

Likewise, accounts of the asceticism, scrupulousness, worship and similar spiritual states of such people may describe practices exceeding those of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, and what the Messenger prescribed. Such accounts lead people to fall into two extremes. One group censures and disparages these people, sometimes going too far in doing so.