Following Desires

4. A number of our people have narrated from Sahl ibn Ziyad from Muhammad ibn al-Hassan ibn Shammun from ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Asamm from ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn al-Hajjaj who has said the following: “Abu al-Hassan عليه السلام once said to me, ‘Beware of an easy climb up that has a very deep and steep climb down.’ “The narrator has said that Abu ‘Abd Allah عليه السلام would say, ‘Do not leave the soul with its desires unguarded; its desires are to destroy it. Leaving the soul with its desires unguarded is hurting the soul, however, guarding the soul against its desires is medicine for its illness.’”