1856.] Notes on tie oldest work on Sufism. 143 



On obscurity. 



Al-Haytham b. Jamyl says, I asked Fizary his advice regarding 

 the choice of a residence, and he said, Choose the most retired and 

 obscure place where your voice cannot be heard. 



On duties and what is in excess of duty, also on good actions 

 and had actions. 



You must be just before you can be generous, you must perform 

 your duties before you attempt to perform meritorious actions which 

 are not enjoined by law, and you must avoid sin before you do good 

 works. To abstain from sin is the foundation, and meritorious ac- 

 tions are the superstructure. If the basis is firm th£ superstructure 

 may fall and the basis may remain, but it is impossible that the 

 basis should fall and the superstructure should remain. It is self- 

 deception if you feel a desire for good, without a desire to avoid 

 evil. The necessity to avoid bad is much greater than that of doing 

 good, for it is our duty to avoid every evil action, but not to do 

 every good one. 



Here follow fifteen short chapters which do not appear to contain 

 many new ideas, and after them a few pages seem to be wanting. 

 After the lacuna are six pages of traditions without heading and 

 then follow the Shubhat (scruples) which fill the main body of the 

 volume, viz. 184 pp. whereas what precedes them fills only 38 pages. 

 There is no doubt that the whole is by the same author, but the 

 scope of the shubohat is so different from that of the preceding 

 pages, that it is not unlikely that they form a separate work, of which 

 the commencement is lost. 



In the Shubhat doubtful questions on law and ethics are illus- 

 trated by quotations from the sayings of the prophet, and his most 

 distinguished pupils, and by the example of the primitive age of the 

 Islam. The author says that many persons if there is a doubt 

 whether an action is wrong or right, think it safest to declare that 

 it is wrong, but he adds such a proceeding is as sinful as to declare 

 that a wrong action is right. He therefore takes great pains to 

 distinguish between both, and to found such distinctions on the 

 safe basis of revelation and prophetic ordinance. He recommends 

 however wherever he is unable to decide whether any given action 

 is lawful or not, to go the safest way and to abstain from it. 



