The Whispered Prayer of the Abstainers


In the Name of God, the All-merciful,
the All-compassionate

1

My God,
          Thou hast settled us in an abode
                              which has dug for us pits of deception,
                    and Thou hast fastened us by the hands of death
                              in the snares of that abode's treachery!
          In Thee we seek asylum
                              from the tricks of its guile,
                    and to Thee we hold fast, lest we be deluded
                              by the glitter of its ornaments!
          It destroys its pursuers
                              and ruins its settlers,
                    it is stuffed with blights
                              and loaded with calamities.

2

My God,
          induce us to renounce it
          and keep us safe from it
                    by Thy giving success and Thy preservation from sin.
          Strip from us
                    the robes of opposing Thee,
          attend to our affairs
                    through Thy good sufficiency,
          amplify our increase
                    from the boundless plenty of Thy mercy,
          be liberal in our gifts
                    from the overflow of Thy grants,
          plant in our hearts
                    the trees of Thy love,
          complete for us
                    the lights of Thy knowledge,
          give us to taste
                    the sweetness of Thy pardon
                    and the pleasure of Thy forgiveness,
          gladden our eyes
                    on the day of meeting Thee
                    with the vision of Thee,
          dislodge the love of this world
                    from our spirits,
                    just as Thou hast done for the righteous,
                                        Thy selected friends,
                              and for the pious,
                                        those whom Thou hast singled out!
          O Most Merciful of the merciful,
                    O Most Generous of the most generous!