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Contentment with Preordained Sustenance and Steadfastness in Servitude in Jami's Baharestan (Counsel of Ibrahim Khawwas)
In Section 28 of Jami's Baharestan, the Sufi master Ibrahim Khawwas gives a two-fold counsel that reorients human effort from anxiety toward devotion. First, he warns against wearing oneself out in the pursuit of sustenance (rizq), since one's portion has already been fixed in the eternal allotment and is therefore guaranteed. Second, he warns against squandering what is genuinely demanded of the servant: submission to the divine commands and prohibitions, that is, obedience and servitude (bandegi). The accompanying quatrain frames servitude as the very purpose and benefit of life, urging the seeker not to withdraw from the rule of servitude. The teaching thus distinguishes what is already secured (material provision) from what truly requires human striving (obedience to God).
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Humanities
Literature
Persian Literature Prerequisite Course