so far in our sacred service will in part be lost and will not persist; and we shall be held responsible; we shall manifest the severe threat contained in the divine prohibition,
Nor sell my signs for a small price.(2:41, etc.)
We shall otherwise destroy sincerity, thus harming eternal happiness for the sake of meaningless, unnecessary, harmful, sad, self-centred, tedious, hypocritical base feelings and insignificant benefits. And if we were to do that, we would violate all our brothers’ rights, transgress against the duty of service to the Qur’an, and be disrespectful towards the sacredness of the truths of belief.
My brothers! There are many obstacles before significant good works. Satans put up a powerful struggle against those who assist in them. In the face of those obstacles and satans you have to rely on the strength of sincerity. You should avoid things that harm sincerity as you avoid snakes and scorpions. In accordance with the words of Joseph (Upon whom be peace),
Nor do I absolve my own self [of blame]; the [human] soul is certainly prone to evil, unless my Sustainer do bestow His mercy,(12:53)
the evil-commanding soul cannot be relied upon. Do not let egotism and the soul deceive you! To gain sincerity and preserve it you should take as your guide the following rules:
YOUR FIRST RULE
You should seek divine pleasure in your actions. If Almighty God is pleased, it is of no importance if the whole world even is displeased. If He accepts an action and everyone else rejects it, their rejection has no effect. Once His pleasure has been gained and He has accepted an action, even if you do not ask it of Him, should He wish it and His wisdom requires it, He will make others accept it. He will make them consent to it too. For this reason, to seek divine pleasure should be the sole aim in this service.
YOUR SECOND RULE
This is not to criticize your brothers who are employed in this service of the Qur’an, and not to excite their envy by displaying superior virtues. For just as one hand cannot compete with the other, so one eye cannot criticize the other, nor the tongue object to the ear, nor the heart see the spirit’s faults. Each of a person’s members completes the deficiencies of the others, veils their faults, assists their needs, and helps them out in their duties. Otherwise his life would be extinguished, his spirit flee, and his body fall apart.