the seeking of increase, for the Real lacks nothing.
God is described as the Thankful and the Most Thankful. He seeks an increase in our works through being Most Thankful. We are therefore charged—indeed obliged—to give divine gratitude its due: increasing what He has thanked in us. The increase consists of acts of worship, whether abstention or action.
Leaving gratitude through seeing work as from the human being is a genuine leaving in relation to the duty of gratitude owed to Him. This is the station of the generality, so the ordinary people of God can truly leave gratitude.
(Thanking the Benefactor and Thanking the Cause)
Whoever says gratitude for the blessing veils the Benefactor lacks knowledge of realities. This is not sound: everyone thanking a blessing necessarily thanks its Benefactor. Some people see the benefactor only as the cause; others see God, glorified is He, as the Benefactor. The perfect see God and the cause: they thank God truly and thank the cause by God's command to His servants, insofar as He commands them to thank it. He says, “Give thanks to Me and to your parents” [31:14], and, “One who does not thank people does not thank God.”
This is the station of leaving gratitude: leaving exclusive gratitude to the original Benefactor, since in gratitude one associates the original Benefactor with the cause, by God's command. It is a difficult, obscure station—I mean leaving gratitude,
Notes
Translator’s note TN4127-1: The phrase li-ḥaqq al-shukr can be causal, “in view of the duty of gratitude,” or describe leaving gratitude's due. The preceding obligation to increase works in response to divine gratitude supports the former; seeing work as from the human being permits the latter. The translation leaves this relation open. Leaving gratitude also includes leaving the pursuit of increase and leaving exclusive thanks to the original Benefactor in order to thank the cause as God commands; these distinct uses should not be collapsed.
