CHAPTER EIGHT

O soul: Indeed, whoever has a beloved and loses him, but finds in that loss a compensation and a substitute, is likely to find solace and forget him—especially if the newcomer is more suitable and more laudable than the one who passed. But whoever loses a beloved and finds no compensation for him, his grief is likely to endure and his regret to grow immense.

It is part of wise conduct (Siyasa), O soul, that if you have a companion whose loss and parting you are certain of, you should seek out a substitute and a compensation for him, and search for another friend and associate. It is necessary that the new one be more laudable and suitable than the past one; for whoever loses something and then finds what is better than it, his misfortune is transformed into a blessing, and his grief into joy and delight.

O soul: Before your departure from the world of generation and corruption, establish your connection to the world of the Intellect. And before parting from your treacherous, base, and vanishing companion, envision his parting and his representation; detach yourself from him little by little, and welcome the connection with your coming companion. Find intimacy in him and join yourself to him, little by little.