On the authority of ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿUkaym, in a narration traced back to the Prophet ﷺ: “Whoever attaches himself to something will be left to it.” Recorded by Ahmad and al-Tirmidhi (1).
ʿAbd Allah ibn ʿUkaym—kunyah: Abu Maʿbad al-Juhani of Kufa—lived in the Prophet’s lifetime, yet no direct hearing from him is known.
“Traced back to the Prophet”: i.e., the report is marfūʿ.
“Whoever attaches himself to something”: his heart turns toward an object he believes can bring him benefit or ward off harm.
“Will be left to it”: Allah entrusts him to that object and abandons him.
Overall meaning: In this brief yet weighty hadith, the Prophet ﷺ states that if a person, with his heart, his actions, or both, seeks benefit or protection from harm through anything, Allah will leave him to that thing. Whoever clings to Allah, Allah suffices him and eases every difficulty; but whoever clings to something else, Allah abandons him to it and forsakes him.
Relevance to the chapter: The report forbids and warns against relying on anything other than Allah to procure benefits or repel harms.
Lessons derived:
- The prohibition of attaching oneself to other than Allah.