From His Tongue — Bāyazīd al-Bisṭāmīمِنْ كَلَامِهِ

I want not to want, except what He wants.

All that I have done I reckon but as dust. Whatever Thou hast seen of me not pleasing to Thy Presence, do Thou draw a line of pardon through it. And wash the dust of disobedience from me; for I have myself washed away the dust of the presumption that I have obeyed Thee.

I stood with the pious but I did not progress with them. I stood with the warriors in the cause but I did not progress a single step with them. I stood with those who pray excessively and those who fast excessively, but I did not progress a footstep. Then I said, "O God, what is the way to You?" and God said, "Leave yourself and come".

God has granted His servants favours for the purpose of bringing them closer to Him. Instead, they are fascinated with the favours and are drifting further from Him.

A man asked Bāyazīd, "Show me a deed by which I will approach my Lord". He said: "Love the Friends of God in order that they will love you. Love His saints until they love you. Because God looks at the hearts of His saints, and He will see your name engraved in the heart of His saints, and He will forgive you."

O Lord, You have created this creation without its knowledge. You have placed on it a trust without its will. If You do not help it, who will?

O God! It is not strange that I love You because I am a weak servant, but it is strange that You love me because you are the King of Kings.

Tasawwuf is to give up rest and to accept suffering.

He who does not have a shaykh, his shaykh is Satan.

Hunger is a rain cloud: If a servant becomes hungry, God will shower his heart with wisdom.

If God gave me permission for intercession, first I would intercede for those who harmed me and those who denied me.

They said to him, "They key to Paradise is bearing witness that there is no god but God." He said, "It is true, but a key is to open a lock. The key of such witnessing can only operate with the following conditions: a tongue that does not lie or backbite; a heart without betrayal; a stomach without unlawful or doubtful provision; and deeds without desire or innovation."

The ego or self always looks at the world, and the spirit always looks at the next life. Spiritual knowledge always looks at God, Almighty and Exalted. He whose self defeats him is from those who are destroyed. He whose spirit is victorious over his "self" is of the pious, and he whose spiritual knowledge enlightens his spirit is of the God-conscious.

They asked him, "when does a man become a man?" He said: "When he knows the mistakes of his self and he busies himself in correcting them."

When asked, 'When does a person become truly humble?' he replied: 'When he sees no rank or spiritual state for himself, and when he does not see anyone among creation as more sinful than himself.'