1452 – ʿAbd Allah narrated to us; my father narrated to us; Hasan ibn Musa narrated to us; Yahya ibn Dinar narrated to us; Muʿawiyah ibn Qurrah narrated to us, who said:

We visited al-Hasan and asked him, “Which act of worship is the most demanding?”

One of us replied, “The most demanding worship is jihad in the path of Allah.” Another said, “The most demanding worship is the prayer.” A third said, “Rather, it is paying zakah.” Yet another said, “It is fasting.”

I said to myself, “I must speak to him,” so I said, “O Abu Saʿid, I have found no act of worship more arduous than al-waraʿ (scrupulous self-restraint).”

He responded, “May you lose your father! Is any benefit obtained from these deeds without al-waraʿ?”

Al-Hasan then added, “I have found no act of worship more taxing than performing the prayer in the depths of the night.”