Say: ‘O People of the Scripture! Come to a word agreed upon (kalimatin sawāʾin) between us and you: that we worship none but God…’That is, ‘[Let us] seek a just [agreement] (ṭamʿin ʿadlin) between us and you.’ This is because they affirmed that their Creator and the Creator of the heavens and the earth was God, Exalted is He, and [agreed]: ‘Let us declare His oneness and not worship anyone except Him.’The basis of worship is the profession of God’s oneness (tawḥīd) along with living according to what is lawful, while avoiding the harm [of others] (kaff al-adhā). Furthermore, a person cannotaccomplish living by what is lawful without abandoning the harm of others, and likewise he does not abandon causing harm save through living by what is lawful. If you know how to abide by what is lawful, how to abandon causing harm, and the [correct] intention (nīya) behind actions, as well as you know the Fātiḥa [Sūrat al-Fātiḥa], then your faith will become pure, as will your hearts and bodily members. Indeed, these are the fundamentals.He continued:Muḥammad b. Sawwār related from al-Thawrī that he said, ‘The degree of importance within the servant of [the reality] of “There is no god save God” is as water to the world. God has said, And We produced from water every living thing [21:30].’ Thus, whoever is not benefited by his belief that ‘There is no god save God’ and his adherence to the Sunna of the Messenger of God , is as a dead person.Sahl added:Truly I know a man among the friends of God, Exalted is He, who passed by a man who had been crucified (maṣlūb) with his head fixed in a direction away from the qibla. He said to him, ‘Where is that tongue with which you used to pronounce with all honesty: “There is no god save God?”’ Then he added, ‘Oh God grant me his sins!’Through God’s Power [his head] was then turned towards the qibla.His words:
, is as a dead person.Sahl added:Truly I know a man among the friends of God, Exalted is He, who passed by a man who had been crucified (maṣlūb) with his head fixed in a direction away from the qibla. He said to him, ‘Where is that tongue with which you used to pronounce with all honesty: “There is no god save God?”’ Then he added, ‘Oh God grant me his sins!’Through God’s Power [his head] was then turned towards the qibla.His words: