Aslam

small to the people, even he is worse to them than a pig.
Eusof-b-Asbat said: God-fear is sufficient for more divine services. A little modesty is sufficient for great labour. Ibnul Mobarak said: To treat with modesty with a person who is inferior to you in wealth is the root of modesty. The latter will then understand that superiority is insignificant to you. Treat with superiority with one who is superior to you in worldly riches, he will then understand that worldly superiority is insignificant to you. God revealed to Jesus Christ: When I give you wealth, I will give you in full if you accept it humbly. Ka'ab said: If God gives a man worldly wealth and if he expresses gratefulness for it to please God and becomes humble. He will give him its benefit in the world and will increase his rank in the Hereafter. Hazrat Abdul Malek was asked; Who is good? He said: that person who is modest inspite of his power, who gives up his low desires and who pardons inspite of his strength. The sage Ibnus Samak went to Caliph Harunur Rashid and said: O Commander of the Faithful, the modesty which you show inspite of your unsullied power is more honourable than the honour of your lordship, He said: What a good word you have uttered?
Ibnus Samak said: O Commander of the Faithful: If one who has been given by God the beauty of physique, the quality of modesty and wealth and prosperity acquires the quality of God fear, removes the wants of others by his wealth and earns the attributes of modesty, his name is enrolled along with the friends of God in the special record of God. Then the Caliph kept these instructions written with his own hand. It was the habit of Hazrat Solaiman that at dawn he received the rich and the honourable persons and then he took seats with the poor and said to them: He who is poor sits with the poor.

A certain sage said: The more one is humble to himself, the more he is raised up to God. The more one is great to himself, the more he is mean to God. Jayad Noman said: A worldly renunciated man without humility is like a tree without fruits.
The sage Fazil said: He who loves power will never be successful.
The sage Shibli said: My humility has made the humility of the Jews void. A certain sage said: He who considers himself an asset has got nothing of humility in him. The saint Abu Yezid said: So long as there is this thought in one;s mind that others are worse than him, he canhe called a proud man. He was asked: When will he be modest? He said: When he will not find,for himself any

254 The Book of Destructive evils Vol-III

rank or honour. Hazrat Urwah said: Modesty is a means of

earning pedigree. For every gift, there is a person of envy except

for modesty. A certain sage said: It is good for every man to take

to modesty but it is better for a rich man. To take pride is bad for

everyone but it is worse for a poor man. A certain sage said: He