And when the seeker of the straight path was a seeker of a matter from which most people turn away,
seeking to follow a path whose companion in it is in the utmost scarcity and honor,
And the souls are naturally disposed to the loneliness of being unique.
And to comfort with the companion,
God, Glorified is He, alerted to the companion on this path.
And that they are those on whom Allah has bestowed favor: the Prophets, the truthful, the martyrs, and the righteous. Those are excellent companions.
He then added the path to the companion who traverses it,
And they are those upon whom Allah has bestowed favor,
So that the seeker of guidance and follower of the path may be freed from the fear of being singled out from his contemporaries and peers.
And let him know that his companions on this path are those whom God has favored.
So he does not care about the opposition of those who turn away from him to him.
For indeed they are the least in worth.
Even if they are the majority in number,
As some of the early predecessors said, adhere to the path of truth.
And do not be discouraged by the small number of those who follow the path.
And beware of the path of falsehood.
Do not be deceived by the great number of those who are perishing.
Whenever you feel lonely in your solitude, then look to the preceding companion.
And strive to catch up with them.
And lower your gaze from anyone except them.
For they will never avail you of anything from Allah.
And if they call out to you in the road of your walking, then do not turn to them.
For whenever you turn to them, they seize you and hold you back.
I have already given two examples for that, so keep them in mind:
The first example: a man went out of his house to pray.
He wants nothing else.
A devil from among the devils of humankind appeared to him on his way.
Then he cast words at him that would harm him.
Then he stopped and replied to him.
And they held on to each other, for perhaps the human devil was stronger than him.
Then he overpowered him and prevented him from reaching the mosque.
Until he missed the prayer.
And perhaps the man was stronger than the human devil.
But he was so occupied with his bickering that he was kept from the first row.
And the group's complete awareness,
If he turned to it, it made him covet his self.
And sometimes his resolve slackened,
If he has familiarity and knowledge, he increases his effort and steadfastness in proportion to how often he turns to him, or even more.
If, however, he turns away from it and becomes occupied with what occupies him,
He feared missing the prayer or its appointed time, and his enemy did not attain from him what he wanted.
The second example: the gazelle exerts itself more than the dog.
But when he senses him, he turns toward him, and his running weakens.
Then the dog catches up with it and seizes it.
And the point is that mentioning this companion removes the feeling of being alone.
And he urges setting out and tucking up one's sleeves to catch up with them.
And this is one of the benefits in the standing supplication: O Allah, guide me among those You have guided, that is, admit me into this group.
Make me a companion to them and let me be with them.
