Page:A Moslem seeker after God - showing Islam at its best in the life and teaching of al-Ghazali, mystic and theologian of the eleventh century (IA moslemseekeraft00zwem).pdf/191



cently it appeared in English under the title " The Confessions of Al-Ghazali." It is one of his shortest but most famous books and can be com pared with the " Confessions " of St. Augustine, or John Bunyan’s " Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners." Several of Al-Ghazali’s numerous works are very brief, in the shape of epistles or tractates.

Among his shorter works the following may be mentioned: Al-Addb fi Din, a short treatise on the ethics of politeness, prepared for the use of his pupils. It speaks of the ideal pupil, the ideal teacher, of the ethics of eating, drinking, marriage and the religious life. A smaller work already mentioned is the Risala Ayyuh Al-Walad (" O Child!"). In it he defines faith and works and distinguishes between them. A curious passage occurs in the introduction which reflects on Al Ghazali’s accuracy of statement, or at least raises the question as to which " Gospel " he refers to. He says: " O my child, live as you please for you are already dead; love whom you wish, for you are bound to be separated; and do what you will, for you are sure to be judged for it. Verily I saw in the Gospel of Jesus (upon Him be prayers and peace) that He said, * From the hour in which the dead is put upon the bier until the time when he rests on the edge of the grave God will ask him forty questions, the first of which is, O my serv ant, you have purified yourself to a