Now this world is like an audience-hall of the Most Merciful One. The surface of the globe is like a banqueting spread laid out by His mercy. The differing degrees of sustenance and grades of bounty correspond to the seating positions in the audience-hall.

Furthermore, even in the minutest of affairs everyone can experience the evil effects of greed. For example, everyone knows in his heart that when two beggars request something, he will be offended by the one who greedily importunes him, and refuse his request; whereas he will take pity on the peaceable one and give him what he asks.

Or to give another example, if you are unable to fall asleep at night and wish to do so, you may succeed if you remain detached. But if you desire sleep greedily, and say:"Let me sleep, let me sleep, " then sleep will quit you entirely.

Yet another example is this, that if you greedily await the arrival of someone for some important purpose and continually say:"He still hasn’t come, " ultimately you will lose patience and get up and leave. But one minute later the person will come, and your purpose will be frustrated.

The reason for all this is as follows. The production of a loaf of bread requires a field to be cultivated and harvested, the grain to be taken to a mill, and the loaf to be baked in an oven. So too in the arrangement of all things there is a certain slow deliberation decreed by God’s wisdom. If on account of greed one fails to act with slow deliberation, one will fail to notice the steps one must mount in the arrangement of all things; he will either fall or be unable to traverse the steps, and in either event will not reach his goal.