The seeker faces no greater temptation, in Ibn 'Abbad's estimation, than that of harboring the suspicion - even the outright conviction - that there are times, places, and situations too trying, too small, or too miserable for God to work with. It is one of the subtlest forms of "hidden" shirk, for the individual can become so fascinated with human weakness, mortality, and alienation as to be riveted on the self's most negative characteristics and thus unable to turn toward the Lord of the Universe. Ibn 'Abbad's consistent approach to this problem can be summed up in the simple directive "Be a son of the moment."
-Ibn 'Abbad of Ronda: Letters on the Sufi Path (Classics of Western Spirituality)
, pg. 18
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