ʿAbd Allah related to us; he said: my father related to me; Hashim related to us; al-Mubarak related to us, from al-Hasan, about Abu al-Dardaʾ, who said: “If you wish, I will most certainly tell you who among Allah’s servants are the dearest to Him: they are those who make Allah beloved to His servants and who work upon the earth with genuine goodwill. And if you wish, I will even swear to you that the servants of Allah who are dearest to Him are the shepherds of the sun and the moon.”