also come from Him, and no one can match His recompense for gratitude and ingratitude. When a person understands that

“Whatever mercy Allah grants to people, none can withhold; and whatever He withholds, none can release thereafter,”

he places his trust and hope in Allah alone. When he recognizes the gratitude He deserves—the gratitude rightfully due to Him—it becomes His … (1)

As for evil, its cause is confined to the self. He thus knows where the harm comes from, repents, and seeks Allah’s help. As one of the early generations said: “Let no servant hope in anyone but his Lord, nor fear anything but his sin.”

The statement of Ibn ‘Abbās and others among the early generations has already been mentioned: everything that befell them on the day of Uhud was because of their sins, without anyone being excepted. This is one benefit of addressing the individual specifically: it prevents the statement from being understood as a general one subject to exceptions.

Ninth: If an evil deed comes from the soul—and evil deeds are impure, as Allah Most High says:

“Impure things are for impure people”—to the end of the verse.

The majority of the early generations explained this as: “Impure words are for impure people.” He also says:

“And the example of an impure word,”

and:

“To Him ascends good speech.”

—then, since words and deeds are attributes of the one who speaks and acts, if the soul is characterized by impurity, its proper abode is a place suited to it. Anyone who sought to make snakes live among people like cats would not succeed. Rather, if there is impurity in the soul, it is purified until