| 1 | O you who believe! Let it be said: Al-Nafs; |
| 2 | The Self, the One, the Being; |
| 3 | And the fortieth name of Allah, the One, the Absolute, the Almighty. |
| 4 | The separation of the I from the family and community; |
| 5 | The perspective of the world from being aware of one’s own existence; |
| 6 | The awareness of the I to its own existence; |
| 7 | Self is therefore nothing more than a unique perspective, |
| 8 | And part of the greater self of Allah as it observes the dream of creation. |
| 9 | The most excellent Jihad is that for the conquest of self. |
| 10 | He who knows his own self, knows the Divine Creator. |
| 11 | Devotion of religious duty will not atone for the fault of an abusive tongue. |
| 12 | A man cannot be a Muslim till his heart and tongue are so. |
| 13 | Whoever has been given gentleness, |
| 14 | Has been given a good portion in this world and the next. |
| 15 | Whoever suppresses his anger, when he has in his power to show it, |
| 16 | Allah will give him great reward. |
| 17 | That man or woman is wise and sensible who subdues his carnal desires and hopes for rewards from Allah; |
| 18 | and he is an ignorant man who follows his lustful appetites, and with all this asks for Allah 's forgiveness. |
| 19 | Do not mistake wisdom for holiness, or holiness for virtue. |
| 20 | Allah gives great and wondrous gifts to those he pleases. |
| 21 | Thus a wise man may be no better than the worst moneylender. |
| 22 | Wisdom is no measure of virtue. |
| 23 | A man blessed by Allah as a messenger may be no better in virtue, |
| 24 | Than the a woman who sells herself without honor. |
| 25 | Divine commission does not make a man better than the poorest farmer. |
| 26 | Thus the greatest respect is unto those who never give up. |
| 27 | May Allah fill the heart of that person who suppresses his anger with safety and faith. |
| 28 | He is not strong and powerful who throws people down; |
| 29 | But he is strong who withholds himself from anger. |
| 30 | If any scholar or preacher speaks of Jihad being an external battle against a non-believer, |
| 31 | Expel them immediately as an imposter. |
| 32 | For a true Muslim knows that Jihad is a battle within, |
| 33 | That we might be virtuous and self-restrained, |
| 34 | That we might be victorious against the urges within. |
| 35 | Verily, it is not the victory over self, |
| 36 | as even the most holy man is at times defeated by himself; |
| 37 | It is that a man never surrenders, |
| 38 | That no action is taken without an earnest test of character. |
| 39 | In the end a man who does not yield to his urges, is a man indeed. |
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Sufa 45 - The Self (Al-Nafs)