Whoever Is Given Wisdom

Hamza Yusuf, Purification of the Heart

“Muslim scholars have identified four essential qualities in human beings, which have been identified in earlier traditions as well. Imam al-Ghazālī and Fakhruddīn al-Rāzī adopted them, as did Imam Rāghib al-Isfahānī in his book on ethics. According to Imam al-Ghazālī, the first of them is quwwat al-ʿilm, known in Western tradition as the rational soul, which is human capacity to learn. The next one, quwwat al-ghaḍab, which may be called the irascible soul, is the capacity that relates to human emotion and anger. The third element, quwwat alshahwah, known as the concupiscent soul, is related to appetite and desire. The fourth power, quwwat al-ʿadl, harmonizes the previous three powers and keeps them in balance so that no one capacity overtakes and suppresses the others. In Western tradition, these capacities correspond to what is known as cardinal virtues. Muslims call them ummahāt al-faḍā’il. They are wisdom, courage, temperance, and justice (ḥikmah, shajāʿah, ʿiffah, and ʿadl). When the rational soul is balanced, the result is wisdom. Whoever is given wisdom has been given much good (Qur’an, 2:269). Wisdom, according to Imam al-Ghazālī, is found in one who is balanced, who is neither a simpleton nor a shrewd, tricky person. If there is a deficit in the rational soul, the result is foolishness. When the rational soul becomes excessive and inordinately dominant, the result is trickery and the employment of the intellect toward the exploitation of others.”

― Hamza Yusuf [Purification of the Heart: Signs, Symptoms and Cures of the Spiritual Diseases of the Heart (Translation and Commentary of Imam al-Mawlud’s Matharat al-Qulub)].

Imam Abu Hamid Al-Ghazzali–(d. AH 505, Tus)

Imam al-Ghazzali (Muhammad b. Muhammad b. Muhammad b. Ahmad, Abu Hamid) traveled far and wide in search of knowledge. He was appointed professor in the prestigious Nizamiyah college in Baghdad, capital of Abbasid caliphate. He then left his teaching position for a life of asceticism. Al-Ghazzali was a Shafi‘i jurist and perhaps the Islamic world’s most famous Sufi author, popular until today for his very readable and clear works on Islam.

–Zaytuna College website [Perennial Inspiration–Imam Abu Hamid Al-Ghazzali].

Additional Hamza Yusuf Quotes

“None of you has achieved faith until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.”

― Hamza Yusuf [Purification of the Heart: Signs, Symptoms and Cures of the Spiritual Diseases of the Heart].

“When the Prophet says “brother,” we should interpret this as universal brotherhood, which includes Muslims and non-Muslims.”

― Hamza Yusuf [Purification of the Heart: Signs, Symptoms and Cures of the Spiritual Diseases of the Heart].