مكاتبة رمز إلى الشيخ أبي المعالي
The letter of the pure and upright shaykh reached me: a man of tranquil soul, a bright and lofty intellect. I considered the contents of its sections, the premises of its arguments, and what it proposed concerning the branches and their roots. By God, its words were like cold water upon the heart of a thirsting man overcome by fullness, or like recovery from an old and lingering disease. I praised the Possessor of might, bounty, grace and favor for the good and sufficient aid He has given me in this shaykh and in the community of cultivators.
I thanked God for what the shaykh related of kindness, gentleness and patient forbearance in his dealings with the cultivators, and of careful management and commendable speech. Continue to meet them with your own excellent qualities. Instruct the community to do likewise, so that the people may be known by truthful words and upright actions.
As for the incidents, disorders and troubles in some places that you have described, and the negligence, disagreement or hesitation of certain cultivators concerning their cultivation, do not burden your own heart or those of your brethren and cousins with grief over the matter.
For these allotted holdings have been dedicated by their owner to the repair of watering places for travelers and to the maintenance of mosques. Whoever betrays his trust in them does so to his own harm, and whoever fulfills the trust does so before God, the One, the Most High.
As for the harmful influence of the agent who has gone away, this and similar conditions have passed and come to an end. That was only a temporary triumph of the devils. After a little while, the person who persevered in tending the fields will rejoice; the sower who spread seed will rejoice; and the cultivator who bore the cold of winter will find the spring's greenness. Whoever seized the property of others along the way of God has no intercessor awaiting him.
Concerning the treacherous agent, who ordered the account registers torn apart: we shall pass over this for the present and reserve it for the Day of Recompense and Return. It does not injure the Owner. God Most High replaces whatever is lost. The bearer delivered all the marked communications. I say that patience in all affairs is a mount that never stumbles beneath the people of religion.
You mentioned the interruption of letters. It could hardly be otherwise, given the severity of these times. Whoever fails to provide food and clothing for his dependents will soon expose them to the pain of hunger and the cold of winter. A person who understands the movements of time does not permit failure or sluggishness to overcome him in the pursuit of what is necessary.
Shaykh Abū al-Ḥasan ʿAlī ought to have explained to the community what he himself witnessed of the false claimant's opposition, what he saw of him directly, and the defects and duplicity in all his actions. Let the good shaykh not be negligent in looking after his brethren and his cousins, the cultivators. Let him devote himself to the sound management and correction of all the neighboring people. Let the excellent shaykh inform me of the affairs of the House of ʿAbd Allāh and their shaykhs, and of the strength of their certainty. Send my warmest greetings to yourself, who are dear to me, and to all your family and cousins.
As for al-Jarmaqī—may God disgrace him—we have no knowledge or news of him other than an isolated report. Should he come among you, drive him away. May God curse whoever joined him to this business and brought him near.
From this point onward, correspondence should be kept brief and restricted to what is necessary, after the previous discussion of distribution and accounting.
Praise belongs to God as befits Him. His prayers and blessings be upon His Messenger and his family, and may He grant peace abundantly. God is sufficient for us and the best Trustee.