grow taller through arrogance; and if it is lower than his stature, he will bow down through modesty so to see and be seen at that level. The measure of greatness in man is smallness, that is, modesty. The scale of smallness is bigness; that is, arrogance.

94. The dignity of the weak before the strong becomes arrogance in the strong; while the modesty of the strong before the weak becomes abasement in the weak. The seriousness of someone in authority in their office is dignity, and his humility is abasement. While his seriousness in his house is haughtiness, and his humility, modesty. If an individual is on his own, then his tolerance and selfsacrifice are good acts. But if he is more than one, they are treachery and inauspicious. Someone should swallow his pride in his own name and not be boastful, but he may boast in the name of the nation and should not swallow his pride.

95. To ‘leave it to others’ in planning the preliminaries of a matter is laziness, while in awaiting the outcome it is reliance on God. Resignation with the fruits of one’s labour and with fate is contentment, and strengthens the wish to strive. Whereas making do with what exists is to lack enterprise.

96. Just as there is obedience and rebellion in the face of the commands of the Shari‘a, so too there is obedience and rebellion in the face of the creative commands in the universe. With regard to the first, the reward and punishment are mostly in the hereafter, while with the second, they are mostly in this world. For example, the reward of patience is victory; the punishment for idleness is poverty; the reward of