always; he is occupied with the places of prayer and with the prayer itself—whenever he finishes one prayer, he waits for the next, and so on.

Fourth: “Two men who love each other for the sake of Allah, meeting upon that love and parting upon it.” In other words, each of them loves the other for no reason except Allah, Mighty and Majestic. There is between them no blood tie, no financial connection, and no ordinary companionship. Rather, he loves him for Allah alone because he sees him worshipping Allah and adhering uprightly to His law. If, in addition, he happens to be a relative or an old friend, there is no harm in loving him on two counts: the bond of kinship or friendship and the bond of faith. These two love one another for Allah and become like brothers by virtue of the religious tie that unites them, namely the worship of Allah. They “meet upon it” in this world and “part upon it,” meaning that nothing separates them but death; he continues to love him until he dies. These two will be shaded by Allah in His shade on the Day when there is no shade but His. They will stand on the Day of Resurrection upon their mutual love and close friendship, as Allah the Exalted says: “Close friends on that Day will be enemies to one another, except for the righteous.” ⦗Az-Zukhruf 67⦘. Their friendship thus endures in both this world and the Hereafter. O Allah, we ask You of Your bounty.

Fifth: “A man whom a woman of status and beauty invites, yet he says, ‘I fear Allah.’” He is a man capable of intercourse; a woman of rank and beauty—meaning she comes from a prominent family and is not among the lowly, and she is attractive—invites him to commit fornication with her, Allah forbid, in a secluded place where no one can see them. He is full of desire and loves women, but he says, “Indeed, I fear