disbelieve in the Most Merciful. Say, ‘He is my Lord; there is no deity worthy of worship except Him. In Him I put my trust, and to Him I turn.’”

He thus commanded His Prophet to say:

“In the Most Merciful I put my trust, and to Him I turn.”

Likewise, He commanded him to do both in His words:

“So worship Him and put your trust in Him.”

A command addressed to him is also a command to his community. Allah commanded his community to do this in the Mother of the Quran and elsewhere so that their doing so would constitute obedience to Allah and compliance with His command, and so that they would not put themselves ahead of Allah and His Messenger. Thus, our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and the wholly sincere members of his community generally perform their supplications, acts of worship, and other deeds only at Allah’s command. This contrasts with those who do what they have not been commanded to do, even if it is good or carries no blame. This is one reason for his superiority and that of his community over others, and for the superiority of those of his community whose devotion is pure over those who mix what he brought with other things, such as those who deviate from the straight path.

The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, would direct his worship, remembrance, and intimate supplications toward these two principles. For example, when offering the sacrifice, he would say:

“O Allah, this is from You and for You.”

His words “from You” express the meaning of putting one’s trust in Allah and seeking His help, while “for You” expresses the meaning of worship. Another example is what he would say during his night prayers:

“To You I submit, in You I believe, in You I put my trust, and to You I turn. By Your aid I argue, and to You I refer judgment. I seek refuge in Your might—there is no god but You—from Your leading me astray. You are the Ever-Living who never dies, whereas jinn and humankind die.”

There are many other examples of this.