📘 And We gave Luqmān wisdom. Know that wisdom is correct activity or correct speech. Correct activity is to preserve the balance of interaction with self between fear and hope, with the people between tenderness and cajolery, and with the Real between awe and intimacy. Correct speech is that you do not mix levity with the mention of the Real, you preserve reverence, and you connect the end of every talk with its begin- ning. The wise man is he who puts everything in its own place, does each work as is worthy of that work, and ties each thing to its equal. This wisdom comes forth from someone who renounces this world and perseveres in worship. MuṣṬafā said, “When someone is a renunciant in this world, God will give wisdom a home in his heart and bring his tongue to speech with it.” ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib said, “Vivify the hearts and seek for them the fine qualities of wisdom, for they become weary just as bodies become weary.” Ḥusayn ibn Manṣūr said, “Wisdom is an arrow, and the hearts of the faithful are its targets. The shooter is God, so error is made nonexistent.” It has been said, “Wisdom is God-given knowledge.” It has also been said, “It is the light that distinguishes between inspiration and Satanic dis- quiet.” It was said to one of them, “Whence is born this light in the heart?” He said, “From reflective thought and heedfulness, and these are bequeathed by sorrow and hunger.”

📘 (But if they strive with thee to make thee ascribe unto Me as partner�) [31:15]. This was revealed about Sa�d ibn Abi Waqqas as mentioned before in Surah al-�Ankabut [29:8]. (�and follow the path of him who repenteth unto Me�) [31:15]. This verse was revealed about Abu Bakr, may Allah be well pleased with him. �Ata� reported that Ibn �Abbas said: �This refers to Abu Bakr, may Allah be well pleased with him. When the latter embraced Islam, �Abd al-Rahman ibn �Awf, Sa�d ibn Abi Waqqas, Sa�id ibn Zayd, �Uthman, Talhah and al-Zubayr went to him and said: �Did you believe in Muhammad and adopt his message?� And when he said that he did they all went to the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, and declared their faith in him and believed in his message. And so, Allah, exalted is He, addressing Sa�d, said (�and follow the path of him who repenteth unto Me�), i.e. Abu Bakr, may Allah be well pleased with him�.

📘 (And if all the trees in the earth were pens�) [31:27]. The commentators of the Qur�an said: �The Jews asked the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, about the spirit, and so Allah, exalted is He, revealed (They will ask thee concerning the Spirit. Say: the Spirit is by command of my Lord, and of knowledge ye have been vouchsafed but little) [17:85]. When the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, migrated to Medina, Jewish doctors went to see him and said: �O Muhammad, we have been informed that you said (of knowledge ye have been vouchsafed but little). Are you referring, by this, to us or to your people?� The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: �The knowledge that you have is very little in comparison to the knowledge of Allah, glorified is He. Allah, exalted is He, has given you something which will benefit you if only you practise it�. They said: �O Muhammad, how can you say this when it is you who says (� and he unto whom wisdom is given, he truly hath received abundant good�) [2:269]? How can little knowledge and abundant good be combined together?� As a response, Allah, exalted is He, revealed (And if all the trees in the earth were pens�)�.

📘 Surely God-He has knowledge of the Hour. It is a sound report that a nomad came before MuṣṬafā and said, “O Messenger of God, when is the Hour?” At that moment the nomad was burning in love for the Real and the ocean of passion was boiling in his inwardness. He knew that knowledge of the time of the resurrection was not with MuṣṬafā, for this verse had come-“Surely God-He has knowledge of the Hour.” But in wishing to see the Real he wanted to talk, because of his passion's pain and burning. He said, “O Messen- ger of God. There is a drink that I placed in the hand of my need several years ago, and the promise has been given that it will be drunk at the resurrection. When will the time come when I will drink it down and take my ease in contemplating the perfect beauty without end and beginning?” MuṣṬafā knew where his pain was coming from and what its remedy would be. He said, “What have you done that you ask about that way station? How is it that you hope for it?” The nomad said, “I have not done much prayer and fasting, but I love God and the Messenger.” MuṣṬafā said, “A man will be with the one he loves.” Tomorrow, everyone will be with the one he loves today. The Pir of the Tariqah said, “The evidence of having found friendship is throwing the two worlds into the ocean. The mark of realizing friendship is turning away from other than the Real. The beginning of friendship is a wound, and its end a lamp. The beginning of friendship is distress, its middle waiting, and its end vision.” What harm if you suffer for a hundred years so long as you see the Friend in vision some day? A poet said, Perhaps the distress with which I awoke will be followed by quick relief. * I said to my heart, “Give it no thought for our work will be opened by the Opener of work.”

📘 (And of mankind is he who payeth for mere pastime of discourse�) [31:6]. Al-Kalbi and Muqatil said: �This verse was revealed about al-Nadr ibn al-Harith. He used to travel to Persia for trade. He bought the events of non-Arabs and related them to the Quraysh, saying: �Muhammad relates to you the events of �Ad and Thamud, and I relate to you the events of Rustum and Isfindiyar and the Chosroes�. They found his tales more entertaining and they shunned listening to the Qur�an, and so this verse was revealed�. Mujahid said: �This verse was revealed about the buying of slave-girls and songstresses�. Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Muqri� informed us> Muhammad ibn al-Fadl ibn Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Khuzaymah> his grandfather> �Ali ibn Hujr> Mishma�ill ibn Milhan al-Ta�i> Muttarih ibn Yazid> �Ubayd Allah ibn Zahr> �Ali ibn Yazid> al-Qasim> Abu Umamah who reported that the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: �It is forbidden to teach songstresses [to sing] or to sell songstresses, and the price gotten from selling them is unlawful. It is about the like of this that this verse was revealed (And of mankind is he who payeth for mere pastime of discourse, that he may mislead from Allah�s way without knowledge�) up to the end of the verse. No man raises his voice to sing except that Allah, exalted is He, sends him two devils, one on each side, who will keep banging with their feet until it is him who keeps quiet�. Thuwayr ibn Abi Fakhitah reported from his father that Ibn �Abbas said: �This verse was revealed about a man who bought a slave-girl who sang to him day and night�.