one qirāt; and whoever remains with it until the burial is completed will have two qirāts recorded for him. They asked, “O Messenger of Allah, what are the two qirāts?” He replied, “Like two enormous mountains—the smaller of them is the size of Mount Uhud.”

When Ibn ʿUmar narrated this ḥadith he said, “By Allah, we have neglected many qirāts!” From then on, no funeral took place without his accompanying it, may Allah be pleased with him.

This was the way of the righteous predecessors: whenever they learned of the goodness and reward contained in any act, they rushed to perform it and clung to it. Therefore, a believer should be keen on doing good; whenever some aspect of goodness becomes clear to him, he should hasten to seize it. We ask Allah to make us and you among those who compete in righteous deeds. He is capable of all things.

As for the words “O Abā Baṭn” (Father of the Belly), al-Ṭufayl indeed had a large stomach; the phrase was lighthearted banter, not an insult. He was merely joking with him—just as the Messenger once said to Abū Hurayrah, “O Abā Hir” (Father of a Kitten).