al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Allah li Abd al-Ghani al-Maqdisi

al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Allah (Reliance upon God and Supplicating Him) is a concise hadith tract (juzʾ) compiled by the Hanbali traditionist Abd al-Ghani al-Maqdisi (d. 600 AH / 1203 CE), focusing on trust in God, reliance upon Him alone, and the ethics of supplication and detachment from created beings al-Laalii al-Makkiyya min…+1.

Content and Structure

The work comprises fifty-three transmitted texts arranged consecutively without formal subheadings, bringing together prophetic traditions, reports of earlier prophets, sayings of the Companions and early ascetics, and verses of devotional poetry al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Alla…+1.

Among the central prophetic traditions recorded is the well-known counsel given to Ibn Abbas: احفظ الله يحفظك، احفظ الله تجده أمامك، تعرف إلى الله في الرخاء يعرفك في الشدة، إذا سألت فسل الله، وإذا استعنت فاستعن بالله "Safeguard [the commandments of] God and He will safeguard you; safeguard [the commandments of] God and you will find Him before you; acknowledge God in times of ease and He will acknowledge you in times of hardship; when you ask, ask of God; and when you seek help, seek help from God" al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Alla…+1.

The collection also incorporates narratives illustrating complete trust in God during severe trials, including accounts of Abraham when cast into the fire, Moses communing with God at Mount Sinai, and the prophet Daniel in the lions' den al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Alla…+1. In addition, the text features sayings and anecdotes from early Muslim luminaries on the reality of reliance and contentment, including Aisha, al-Hasan al-Basri, al-Shafi'i, al-Fudayl ibn Iyad, Yahya ibn Mu'adh, and Hatim al-Asamm al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Alla…+1.

Method and Transmission

Al-Maqdisi compiles the material using full chains of transmission (asānīd) connecting himself to his direct teachers across Islamic scholarly centers, including Alexandria, Isfahan, Hamadhan, Baghdad, Fustat, and Damascus al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Alla…+1. Among the prominent authorities through whom he transmits are Abu Tahir al-Silafi, Abu Musa al-Madini, and Muhammad ibn Abd al-Baqi al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Alla…+1. He records occasional editorial notes evaluating specific transmissions, such as grading a narration reported through al-Hasan al-Basri from Imran ibn Husayn as an uncommon but good (gharīb ḥasan) chain al-Tawakkul wa Su'al Alla….

Manuscript Preservation

A primary manuscript copy of the treatise is preserved in the Zahiriyya Library in Damascus, with photographic copies held at the Islamic University of Madinah (no. 2315) and the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies in Riyadh (no. 1254-4 / F 24225) Khizanat al-Turath - Fihr…+1.