True Certainty
It is reported that ʿAbdullāh b. Masʿūd – Allāh be pleased with him – said:
It is part of sure belief (yaqīn) [in Allāh] that you do not please the people by angering Allāh, and do not praise anyone [else] for what Allāh has provided you, and do not blame anyone for what Allāh has not given you. For verily, the provision of Allāh is not gained by the keenness of those who are keen [for you to have it], nor is it prevented by the hatred of those who hate [for you to have it]. And verily Allāh, in His justice, made happiness and joy in being certain and content [with Allāh], and made worry and sadness in doubt and anger.
Hannād b. Al-Sarī, Al-Zuhd, article 535.
Also read
Related sayings.
An example of the dislike of the Salaf for claiming to be a believer in a presumptuous or self praising manner.
ʿAbdullāh b. Masʿūd – Allāh be pleased with him – said: A believer might harbour any [bad] quality, except treachery and lying. Ibn Abī Shaybah, Kitāb Al-Īmān article 80, where Al-Albānī grades its chain of narration ṣaḥīḥ; and others. Saʿd b. Abī Waqqās – Allāh be pleased with him – said: A believer might be […]