ভূমিকা

“(As) man becomes old, two attributes in him turn young - greed and lofty aspirations.”[^2] Short Expalantion If man is greedy in acquiring things, he shall not possess the proximity of Allah, since he has abandoned the attribute of tawakkul (trust in Allah), is not content with what Allah has appointed for him and has adopted hastiness, which is an attribute of Satan. Allah has created the world similar to a shadow; following the shadow yields nothing except for exhaustion and fatigue.

If one seeks the world in excess of what is necessary, not only does he not acquire it but also suffers troubles and hardships. The Noble Prophet (S) has said: “A greedy person (always) remains excluded.” And an excluded person is hated and reproached.

A greedy person’s thoughts are disturbed and his troubles numerous - constantly involved in seeking and computing riches, neither at peace in this world nor inclined towards the Hereafter.[^3] The Mud from a Grave is a Greedy Person’s Medicine Sa’di relates: “I had heard that a trader who owned forty slaves and one hundred and fifty camel-loads of goods used to travel from city to city for the purpose of trade. One night, on the island of Kish, he invited me into his room.

I went to his room but throughout that night, he was restless. He kept rambling on ceaselessly and would say: “Such and such storeroom of mine is in Turkistan, a certain cargo of mine is in India, this is the deed of sale of a particular land, another cargo is held up due to some merchandise, such and such person is the guarantor for a loan… I am contemplating travelling to Alexandria, but the Mediterranean Sea is stormy at the moment… O’ Sa’di!

I have another journey before me, which if I were to accomplish, I would spend the rest of my life in solitude and never embark upon any more journeys, ever.” “Which is that journey after which you will never undertake any other journey?” I asked him.