Mutarrif ibn 'Abd Allah

Mutarrif ibn Abdallah, a secretary who wrote a sermon-like letter to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, which al-Mas'udi includes. The data give nothing else about him; a second source is needed. ²

He wrote to the caliph that this world is a house of punishment, in which whoever has no reason gathers wealth, and whoever has no knowledge is deceived. He advised him to be in it like one who treats a wound, and bears the harshness of the medicine out of fear of the consequence of the disease. ²