Section wherein we have included selections from wonderful saying of Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, which require explanation1. A tradition related from Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, says: When the situation is like this, then the head of the religion will rise and people will gather around him as pieces of rainless cloud collect during autumn. as-Sayyid ar-Radi says: "ya'sub" (1) is the great chief who is in charge of the people's affairs, and "quza`" means the pieces of cloud which have no rain.
(1). "ya'sub" is the name given to the queen bee, and the
saying of Amir al-mu'minin is: "fa idha kana dhalika daraba ya'sub u'd-din bi
dhanabihi". The word "daraba" means to beat, strike, hit, etc.; "ya'sub
u'd-din" means "the head of religion and the shari'ah", and "dhanab"means tail,
end, adherent or flower. In this sentence "ya'subu'd-u 'd-din" stands for the
present Imam (al-Imam al-Mahdi). Although this title was given by the Holy
Prophet to Amir al-mu'minin specially, as he said:
O' `Ali, you are the ya'sub (bead) of the believers while wealth is the ya'sub
of the hypocrites. (al-Isti`ab, vol. 4, p. 1744; Usd al-ghabah, vol.5, p.287;
al-Isabah, vol.4, p.17l; ar-Riyad an-nadirah, vol.2, p.155; Majma' az-zawa'id,
vol.9, p.102; Ibn Abi'l-Hadid, vol.1, p. 12; vol.19, p.224).
Also the Holy Prophet said to 'Ali:
You are the ya'sub of the religion. (ar-Riyad an-nadirah, vol.2, p. 177; Taj
al-'arus, vol.1, p.381; Ibn Abi'l-Hadid, vol.1, p. 12; vol.19, p.224)
Also the Holy Prophet said to 'Ali:
You are the ya'sub of the Muslims (Yanabi' al-mawaddah, al-Qunduzi, p.62)
Again the Holy Prophet said:
You are the ya'sub of the Quraysh (al-Maqasid al-hasanah, as-Sakhawi, p.94).
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2. A tradition of Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, says: He is a versatile speaker. (6) as-Sayyid ar-Radi says: "shahshah" means one expert and free in speech, and every one who is free in speech or walking is called "shahshah", while in another sense this word means a miserly and niggardly person. 3. A tradition from Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, says: Quarrels bring about ruin. as-Sayyid ar-Radi says: "quhm" means ruin because quarrels often drive men into ruin and grief. In the same way, it is said Therefore, the reason for giving the Imam this name is that just as the queen bee is pure alone and in the society of other bees, and she collects her nectar from the blossoms and flowers keeping away from pollution, in the same way the present Imam is free from all pollutions and is perfectly clean and pure. This saying has been interpreted in several ways: Firstly, it means that "when the present Imam settles at his seat after his tour and rotation round the world people will gather around him." Secondly, it means that "when the Imam moves about on the earth along with his friends and associates..." In this case the word "daraba" would mean moving about and the word "dhanab "would mean helpers and associates. Thirdly, it means that "when the Imam rises with a sword in hand ." In this case the word "dhanab" would mean stinging by the bee. Fourthly, it means that "when the Imam rises for the propagation of true faith with full fervour. . ." In this case the sentence is suggestive of the state of anger and the posture for attack. (6). The reference by the versatile speaker is to Sa'sa'ah ibn Suhan al-'Abdi who was among the chief companions of Amir al-mu'minin. This saying throws light on the greatness of his speaking quality and the force of his utterances. In this connection, Ibn Abi'l-Hadid has written: It is enough for Sa'sa'ah's greatness that a personality like 'Ali, peace be upon him, has praised him for versatility and eloquence of speech. (Sharh Nahj al-balaghah, vol.19, p.106) |
قُحْمَةُ الأَعراب و هو أن تصيبهم السَّنةُ فتتعرّق أموالهم (4751) فذلك تقحّمها فيهم. و قيل فيه وجهٌ آخر: وهو أنها تُقْحِمُهُمْ بلادَ الريف، أي تحوجهم إلى دخول الحضر عند مُحول البَدْوِ. 4. وفي حديثه عليه السلام: إِذَا بَلَغَ النِّسَاءُ نَصَّ الْحِقَاقِ فَالْعَصَبَةُ أَوْلَى. والنص: منتهى الأَشياء ومبلغ أقصاها كالنص في السير، لأَنه أقصى ما تقدر عليه الدابة، وتقول: نصصت الرجل عن الأَمر، إذا استقصيت مسألته عنه لتستخرج ما عنده فيه، فنص الحقائق يريد به الإِدراك، لأَنه منتهى الصغر، والوقت الذي يخرج منه الصغير إلى حد الكبير، وهو من أفصح الكنايات عن هذا الأَمر وأغربها. يقول: فاذا بلغ النساء ذلك فالعَصَبَةُ أولى بالمرأة من أمها، إذا كانوا مَحْرَماً، مثل الإِخوة والأَعمام،بتزويجها إن أَرادوا ذلك. والحِقاق: مُحاقّةُ الأَم للعصبةِ في المرأة، وهو الجدال والخصومة، وقول كلّ واحدٍ منهما للآخر: أنا أحق منك بهذا، ويقال منه: حاققته حقاقاً، مثل جادلته جدالاً. و قد قيل: إن نصّ الحقاق بلوغ العقل، وهو الإِدراك، لاَنه عليه السلام إنما أراد منتهى الأَمر الذي تجب فيه الحقوق والأَحكام، ومَن رواه: «نص الحقائق» فإنما أراد جَمْعَ حَقيقةٍ. * * * * * |
هذا معنى ما ذكره أبو عُبيد القاسم بن سلام. والذي عندي: أن المراد بنص الحِقاق ها هنا بلوغ المرأة إلى الحد الذي يجوز فيه تزويجها وتصرّفها في حقوقها، تشبيهاً بالِحقاق من الإِبل، وهي جمع حِقّةٍ وحِقّ، وهو الذي استكمل ثلاث سنين ودخل في الرابعة، وعند ذلك يبلغ إلى الحد الذي يُتمكّن فيه من ركوب ظهره، وَنَصِّهِ في السير، والحقائقُ أيضاً: جمع حِقّةٍ. فالروايتان جميعاً ترجعان إلى معنىً واحدٍ، وهذا أشبه بطريقة العرب من المعنى المذكور أولاً. 5. وفي حديثه عليه السلام: إنَّ الْإِِيمَانَ يَبْدُو لُمْظَةً فِي الْقَلْبِ، كُلَّمَا ازْدَادَ الْإِِيمَانُ ازْدَادَتِ الُّلمْظَةُ. الُّلمْظَةُ مثل النكتة أو نحوها من البياض، ومنه قيل فرس ألمظ: إذا كان بجحفلته (4752) شيء من البياض. 6. وفي حديثه عليه السلام: إِنَّ الرَّجُلَ إِذَا كَانَ لَهُ الدَّيْنُ الظَّنُونُ يَجِبُ عَلَيْهِ أَنْ يُزَكِّيَهُ لِمَا مَضَى إِذَا قَبَضَهُ. فالظَّنُونُ: الذي لايَعْلَمُ صاحبُهُ أيقبضُه من الذي هو عليه أم لا، فكأنّه الذي يُظَنُّ به، فمرة يرجوه و مرة لا يرجوه. وهذا من أفصح الكلام، وكذلك كلّ أمرٍ تطلبه ولا تدري على أي شيء أنت منه فهو ظَنون، وعلى ذلك قول الأَعشى: * * * * * |
مَا يُجْعَلُ الْجُدُّ الظَّنُونُ الَّذِي جُنِّبَ صَوْبَ اللَّجِبِ الْمَاطِرِ مِثْلَ الْفُرَاتِيِّ إِذَا مَا طَمَا يَقْذِفُ بِالْبُوصِيِّ وَالْمَاهِرِ والجُدّ: البئر، العاديه في الصحراء والظنون: التي لا يُدرى هل فيها ماء أم لا. 7. وفي حديثه عليه السلام: أَنه شيّع جيشاً يغْزِيهِ فقال: اعْذِبُوا (4753) عَن النِّسَاءِ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ. و معناه: اصدِفوا عن ذكر النساء وشُغُلِ القلب بهن، وامتنعُوا من المقاربة لهنّ، لاَن ذلك يَفُتُّ (4754) في عضُد الحميّة، ويقدح في معاقد العزيمة (4755) ويكسِر عن (4756) العَدْوِ (4757) ، وَيلفِتُ عن الإِبعاد في الغزو، وكلُّ من امتنع من شيء فقد أعْذَبَ عنه، والعاذبُ والعَذُوب: الممتنع من الأَكل والشرب. 8. وفي حديثه عليه السلام: كَالْيَاسِرِ الْفَالِجِ يَنْتَظِرُ أَوَّلَ فَوْزةٍ مِنْ قِدَاحِهِ. الياسرون (4758) : هم الذين يتضاربون (4759) بالقِداح على الجَزُورِ (4760) والفالجُ: القاهرُ الغالبُ، يقال: قد فلج (4761) عليهم وفَلَجَهُم، وقال الراجز: لمّا رأيتُ فالجاً قد فَلَجَا. * * * * * |
9. وفي حديثه عليه السلام: كُنَّا إِذَا احْمَرَّ الْبَأْسُ اتَّقَيْنَا بِرَسُولِ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَلَمْ يَكُنْ أَحَدٌ مِنَّا أَقْرَبَ إِلَى الْعَدُوِّ مِنْهُ. ومعنى ذلك: أنه إذا عَظُم الخوفُ من العدو واشتد عِضَاضُ الحربِ (4762) فَزِعَ المسلمون (4763) إلى قتال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم بنفسه، فينزل الله عليهم، النصر به ويأمنون ما كانوا يخافونه بمكانه. و قوله: «إذَا احمّر البأس» كناية عن اشتداد الأَمر، وقد قيل في ذلك أقوال أحسَنُها: أنه شبّه حَمْيَ (4764) الحرب بالنار التي تجمع الحرارة والحمرة بفعلِها ولونها، وممّا يقوي ذلك قول الرسول صلى الله عليه وآله ، وقد رأى مُجْتَلَدَ (4765) الناس يوم حُنين وهي حرب هوازنَ: «الآن حَمِيَ الوَطِيسُ» فالوطيسُ: مستوقَدُ النار، فشبه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله ما استحرّ (4766) من جلاد القوم باحتدامِ النار وشدةِ التهابها. انقضى هذا الفصل، ورجعنا إلى سنن الغرض الأَول في هذا الباب. * * * * * |
261. When the news of the attack of Mu'awiyah's men on al-Anbar reached Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, he himself came out walking till he reached an-Nukhaylah, where people overtook him and said: "O' Amir al-mu'minin, we are enough for them," then he said: You cannot be enough for me against yourselves, so how can you be enough for me against others? Before me the people used to complain of the oppression of their rulers but now I have to complain of the wrongful actions of my people; as though I am led by them and they are the leaders or that I am the subject and they are the rulers. The narrator says: When Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, uttered this during his long speech which we have included in the collection of sermons (No.27), two men from his companions advanced towards him and one of them said: I rule no one except myself and my brother (Qur'an, 5:25). So, order us with your command, O' Amir al-mu'minin and we will accomplish it. Thereupon, Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: How can you two accomplish what I aim at? 262- It is said that al-Harith ibn Hawt came to Amir al-mu'minin, and said: Do you believe I can ever imagine that the people of Jamal were in the wrong? Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: O' al-Harith! You have seen below yourself but not above yourself, and so you have been confused. Certainly, you have not known right, so that you can recognize the righteous. And you have not known wrong, so that you can recognize the people of wrong! Then al-Harith said: In that case, I shall withdraw along with Sa'd ibn Malik and 'Abdullah: ibn 'Umar; whereupon Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Verily, Sa'd and 'Umar have neither sided with Right nor forsaken Wrong. (1)
(1). Sa'd ibn Malik (i.e. Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, the father
of 'Umar ibn Sa'd who killed Imam Husayn) and 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar were among
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261. وقال عليه السلام لما بلغه إغارةُ أصحاب معاويةَ على الأَنبار، فخرج بنفسه ماشياً حتى أتى النُّخَيْلَةَ (4767) فأدركه الناسُ وقالوا: يا أميرالمؤمنين نحن نكفيكَهُمْ. فقال: وَاللهِ مَا تَكْفُونَنِي أَنْفُسَكُمْ، فَكَيْفَ تَكْفُونَنِي غَيْرَكُمْ؟ إِنْ كَانَتِ الرَّعَايَا قَبْلِي لَتَشْكُوا حَيْفَ رُعَاتِهَا، وَإِنَّنِي الْيَوْمَ لاَََشْكُو حَيْفَ رَعِيَّتِي، كَأَنَّنِيَ الْمَقُودُ (4768) وَهُمُ الْقَادَةُ، أَوِ ألْمَوْزُوعُ وَهُمُ الْوَزَعَةُ (4769) . فلما قال عليه السلام هذا القول، في كلامٍ طويلٍ قد ذكرنا مختارَه في جملةِ الخُطَب، تقدّم إليه رجلان من أصحابه فقال أحدهما: إنّي لا أملك إلاّ نفسي وأخي، فَمُرْ بأمرك يا أميرالمؤمنين نُنْفِد له. فقال عليه السلام: وأَيْنَ تَقَعَانِ مِمَّا أُريدُ (4770) . 262. وقيل: إنّ الحارث بن حَوْطٍ أتاه فقال: أتُراني (4771) أظنّ أصحابَ الجمل كانوا على ضلالة؟ فقال عليه السلام: يَا حَارِثُ، إِنَّكَ نَظَرْتَ تَحْتَكَ وَلَمْ تَنْظُرْ فَوْقَكَ فَحِرْتَ (4772) إِنَّكَ لَمْ تَعْرِفِ الْحَقَّ فَتَعْرِفَ مَنْ أَتَاهُ (4773) , وَلَمْ تَعْرِفِ الْبَاطِلَ فَتَعْرِفَ مَنْ أَتَاهُ. فقال الحارث: فإنّي أَعتزل مع سعيد بن مالك وعبد الله بن عمر. فقال عليه السلام: إِنَّ سَعِيداً وَعَبْدَ اللهِ بْنَ عُمَرَ لَمْ يَنْصُرَا الْحَقَّ، وَلَمْ يَخْذُلاَ الْبَاطِلَ. * * * * * |
263- Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The holder of authority is like the rider on a lion - he is envied for his position but he well knows his position. (1) those who were keeping themselves away from Amir al-mu'minin's help and support. As for Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas, after the killing of 'Uthman he retired to some wilderness and passed his life there, but did not agree to swear allegiance to Amir al-mu'minin (as Caliph). But after the death of Amir al-mu'minin he used to express his repentance, saying, "I held an opinion but it was a wrong opinion." (al-Mustadrak, al-Hakim, vol.3, p. 116). And when Mu`awiyah blamed him for not supporting him in his fight with Amir al-mu'minin, Sa'd said: I only repent for not having fought against the rebellious group (i.e. Mu'awiyah and his people). (Ahkam al-Qur'an, al-Jassas al-Hanafi, vol.2, pp.224,225; al-Furu', Ibn Muflih al-Hanbali, vol.3, p.542) As for `Abdullah ibn 'Umar, although he had sworn allegiance, he refused to help Amir al-mu'minin in the battles putting forth the excuse: "I have sought seclusion to devote myself to worship and do not therefore want to involve myself in war and fighting." A Persian couplet says: Intelligence regards such excuses worse than the offence itself. Abdullah ibn 'Umar also frequently used to express his repentance, even up to the last moments of his life, saying: I do not find anything in myself to be distressed about in this world, except my not having fought alongside Ali ibn Abi Talib against the rebellious group as Allah, to Whom belongs Might and Majesty, had commanded me. (al-Mustadrak, vol.3, pp.115 - 116; as-Sunan al-kubra, al-Bayhaqi, vol.8, p.172; at-Tabaqat, Ibn Sa'd, vol.4, part l, pp.136, 137; aljst1.'ab, vol.3, p.953; Usd al-ghabah, vol.3, p.229; vol.4, p.33; Majma' az-zawa'id, vol.3, p.182; vol.7, p.242; al-Furu', vol.3, p.543; Ruh al-ma'ani; al-Alusi, vol.26, p.151). (1). The intention is that if a person holds high position in the royal court people look at his rank and position and honour and prestige with envy, but he himself has always the fear lest the royal pleasure turns against him and he falls in the pit of disgrace and dishonour or death and destruction, like the rider on a lion with by whom people are awed, but he himself is ever facing the danger lest the lion devours him, or throws him in some fatal pit. |
263. وقال عليه السلام: صَاحِبُ السُّلْطَانِ كَرَاكِبِ الْأَسَدِ: يُغْبَطُ (4774) بِمَوْقِعِهِ، وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَوْضِعِهِ. * * * * * |
264- Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Do good with the bereaved ones of others so that good is done to your bereaved ones also. 265- Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: When the utterance of the wise is to the point it serves as a cure, but if it is wrong it proves like an illness. (1) 266 - Someone asked Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, to define religion for him, so he said: Come to me tomorrow so that I enlighten you in the presence of all the people, so that if you forget what I say others might retain it, because an utterance is like a fluttering prey which may be grappled with by someone but missed by others. as- Sayyid ar- Radi says: We have already stated in the earlier chapter what Amir al-mu'minin replied to this man, namely his saying (no.31). "Faith stands on four supports." 267- Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: O' son of Adam, do not inflict the worry of the day that has not yet come on the day which has already come, because if that day be in your life Allah will bestow its livelihood also. 268 - Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Have love for your friend up to a limit, for it is possible that he may turn into your enemy some day; and hate your enemy up to a limit for it is possible that he may turn into your friend some day.
(1). The group of the learned and reformers is
responsible for improvement as well as deterioration because the common people
are under their influence, and regard their words and action as correct and
standard, rely on them and act upon them. In this way, If their teaching caters
for improvement then thousands of individuals will acquire improvement and
betterment thereby; but if there be evil in it then thousands of individuals
will get involved in misguidance and get astrayed. That is why it is said: "When
a scholar gets into evil the whole world gets into evil."
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264. وقال عليه السلام: أَحْسِنُوا فِي عَقِبِ غَيْرِكُمْ تُحْفَظُوا فِي عَقِبِكُمْ (4775) . 265. وقال عليه السلام: إِنَّ كَلاَمَ الْحُكَمَاءِ إذَا كَانَ صَوَاباً كَانَ دَوَاءً، وَإِذَا كَانَ خَطَأً كَانَ دَاءً. 266. وسأَله عليه السلام رجل أَن يعرّفه ما الْإِيمان. فقال: إِذَا كَانَ غَدٌ فَأْتِنِي حَتَّى أُخْبِرَكَ عَلَى أَسْمَاعِ النَّاسِ، فإِنْ نَسِيتَ مَقَالَتِي حَفِظَهَا عَلَيْكَ غَيْرُكَ، فَإِنَّ الْكَلاَمَ كَالشَّارِدَةِ، يَنْقُفُهَا (4776) هذَا وَيُخِْئُهَا هذَا. وقد ذكرنا ما أجابه به فيما تقدم من هذا الباب، وهو قوله: الاِيمان على أربع شعب. 267. وقال عليه السلام: يَابْنَ آدَمَ، لاَ تَحْمِلْ هَمَّ يَوْمِكَ الَّذِي لَمْ يَأْتِكَ عَلَى يَوْمِكَ الَّذِي قَدْ أَتَاكَ، فَإِنَّهُ إِنْ يَكُ مِنْ عُمُرِكَ يَأْتِ اللهُ فِيهِ بِرِزْقِكَ. 268. وقال عليه السلام: أَحْبِبْ حَبِيبَكَ هَوْناً (4777) مَا عَسَى أَنْ يَكُونَ بَغِيضَكَ يَوْماً مَا، وَأَبْغِضْ بَغِيضَكَ هَوْناً مَا عَسَى أَنْ يَكُونَ حَبِيبَكَ يَوْماً مَا. * * * * * |
269- Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: There are two kinds of workers in the world. One is a person who works in this world for this world and his work of this world keeps him unmindful of the next world. He is afraid of destitution for those he will leave behind but feels himself safe about it. So, he spends his life after the good of others. The other is one who works in this world for what is to come hereafter, and he secures his share of this world without effort. Thus, he gets both the benefits together and becomes the owner of both the houses together. In this way, he is prestigious before Allah. If he asks Allah anything He does not deny him. 270- It is related that during the days of (Caliph) 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, the question of the excess of the ornaments of the Ka'bah was mentioned to him and some people suggested: If you prepare with it an army of Muslims that will be a matter of great reward; and what would the Ka'bah do with the ornaments? 'Umar thought of doing so but asked Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, when he said: When the Qur'an was descended on the Prophet, peace be upon him and his descendants, there were four kinds of property. One, the property of Muslim individuals which he distributed among the successors according to fixed shares. Second, the tax (fay') which he distributed to those for whom it was meant. Third, the One-fifth (khums) levy for: which Allah had fixed the ways of disposal. Fourth, amounts of charity (sadaqat) whose disposal was also fixed by Allah. The ornaments of Ka'bah did exist in those days but Allah left them as they were, but did not leave them by omission, nor were they unknown to Him. Therefore, you retain them where Allah and His Prophet placed them. Thereupon, 'Umar ibn al-Khattab said: If you had not been here we would have been humiliated; and he left the ornaments as they were. (1)
(10). Among the first three Caliphs, 'Umar ibn
al-Khattab often used
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269. وقال عليه السلام: النَّاسُ فِي الدُّنْيَا عَامِلاَنِ: عَامِلٌ عَمِلَ فِي الدُّنْيَا لِلدُّنْيَا، قَدْ شَغَلَتْهُ دُنْيَاهُ عَنْ آخِرَتِهِ، يَخْشَى عَلَى مَنْ يَخْلُفُهُ الْفَقْرَ، وَيأْمَنُهُ عَلَى نَفْسِهِ، فَيُفْنِي عُمُرَهُ فِي مَنْفَعَةِ غَيْرِهِ. وَعَامِلٌ عَمِلَ فِي الدُّنْيَا لِمَا بَعْدَهَا، فَجَاءَهُ الَّذِي لَهُ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا بِغَيْرِ عَمَلٍ، فَأَحْرَزَ الْحَظَّيْنِ مَعاً، وَمَلَكَ الدَّارَيْنِ جَمِيعاً، فَأَصْبَحَ وَجِيهاً (4778) عِنْدَاللهِ، لاَ يَسْأَلُ اللهَ حَاجَةً فَيَمْنَعَهُ. 270. وروي أنه ذكر عند عمر بن الخطاب في أيامه حَلْي الكعبةِ وكثرتُهُ، فقال قوم: لو أخذته فجهزتَ به جيوش المسلمين كان أَعظم للاَجر، وما تصنع الكعبةُ بالْحَلْي؟ فهمّ عمر بذلك، وسأل عنه أميرالمؤمنين عليه السلام. فقال: إِنَّ القُرْآنَ أُنْزِلَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَآلِهِ وَ سَلَّمَ. وَ الْأَمْوَالُ أَرْبَعَةٌ: أَمْوَالُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ فَقَسَّمَهَا بَيْنَ الْوَرَثَةِ فِي الْفَرَائِضِ، وَالْفَيْءُ فَقَسَّمَهُ عَلَى مُسْتَحِقِّيهِ، وَالْخُمُسُ فَوَضَعَهُ اللهُ حَيْثُ وَضَعَهُ، وَالصَّدَقَاتُ فَجَعَلَهَا اللهُ حَيْثُ جَعَلَهَا. وَكَانَ حَلْيُ الْكَعْبَةِ فِيهَا يَوْمَئِذٍ، فَتَرَكَهُ اللهُ عَلَى حَالِهِ، وَلَمْ يَتْرُكْهُ نِسْيَاناً، وَلَمْ يَخْفَ عَلَيْهِ (4779) مَكَاناً، فَأَقِرَّهُ حَيْثُ أَقَرَّهُ اللهُ وَرَسُولُهُ. فقال له عمر: لولاك لافتضحنا. وترك الحَلْي بحاله. * * * * * |
271. وروي أنه عليه السلام رُفع إليه رجلان سرقا من مال الله، أحدهما عبد من مال الله، والآخر من عُرُوضِ (4780) الناس. فقال عليه السلام: أَمَّا هذَا فَهُوَ مِنْ مَالِ اللهِ وَلاَ حَدَّ عَلَيْهِ، مَالُ اللهِ أَكَلَ بَعْضُهُ بَعْضاً، وَأَمَّا الْآخَرُ فَعَلَيْهِ الْحَدُّ، فقطع يده. * * * * * |
272. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: If my steps acquire firmness out of these slippery places, I will alter several things. (1)
(1). It cannot be denied that after the Prophet of Islam
changes came into existence in the religion when some people acting upon their
imagination, amended or altered the commands of the shari'ah, although no one
has the right to make alteration in the shari'ah, namely to ignore the clear
commands of the Qur'an and the sunnah and enforce commands produced by his own
imagination and thinking. Thus, the Qur'an contains this clear method of divorce
that "(Revokable) Divorce (i.e. divorce in which resumption of conjugal
relations is permissible without a marriage to another man taking place) may be
twice" (Qur'an, 2:229). But in view of certain supposed advantages the
Caliph 'Umar ordered three divorces to be pronounced on a single occasion.
Similarly, he introduced the system of 'awl in inheritance and introduced
four takbir in the funeral prayer. In the same way the Caliph 'Uthman added an
adhan to the Friday prayer, ordered the offering of full prayers in place of
qasr (shortened) ones, and allowed the sermon to precede the 'id prayer. In
fact, hundreds of commands of this type were fabricated, as a result of which
even correct commands got mixed with the wrong ones and lost their authenticity.
(For changes made see: al-Ghadir, al-Amini [by Abu Bakr], vol.7, pp.74-236; [by
'Umar], vol.6, pp.83- 325; [by 'Uthman], vol.8, pp.98-387; an-Nass wa'l-ijtihad,
Sharafu'd-Din [by Abu Bakr], pp.76-154; [by 'Umar], pp.155-276. [by 'Uth
man], pp.284-289. See also Muqaddamah mir'atu 'l-'uqul, al-'Askari,vol.1 &
2).
Amir al-mu'minin, who was the greatest scholar of the shari'ah, used to protest
against these commands and had his own views as against the Companions. In this
connection, Ibn Abi'l-Hadid writes:
There is no possibility for us to deny that Amir al-mu'minin had views on the
commands of the shari'ah and opinions at variance with those of the Companions.
(Sharh Nahj al-balaghah, vol.19, p.161)
When Amir al-mu'minin assumed charge of the formal caliphate, revolts soon
cropped up on all sides and he did not get rid of these troubles up to the last
moment. Consequently, the altered commands could not be fully corrected and many
wrong or doubtful commands gained currency in areas far removed from the centre.
Nevertheless, the group of people who were associated with Amir al-mu'minin used
to enquire about the commands of the shad 'ah from him and recorded them, as a
result of which the correct commands did not disappear and the wrong ones did
not become unanimously accepted.
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272. وقال عليه السلام: لَوْ قَدِ اسْتَوَتْ قَدَمَايَ مِنْ هذِهِ الْمَدَاحِضِ (4781) لَغَيَّرْتُ أَشْيَاءَ. * * * * * |
273. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Know with full conviction that Allah has not fixed for any person more livelihood than what has been ordained in the Book of Destiny, even though his means (of seeking it) may be great, his craving for it intense and his efforts for it acute; nor does the weakness of a person or the paucity of his means stand in the way between what is ordained in the Book of Destiny and himself. He who realizes it and acts upon it is the best of them all in point of comfort and benefit; while he who disregards it arid doubts it exceeds all men in disadvantages. Very often a favoured person is being slowly driven (towards punishment) through those favours; and very often an afflicted person is being done good through his affliction. Therefore, O' listener, increase your gratefulness, lessen your haste and stay within the bounds of your livelihood. 274. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Do not turn your knowledge into ignorance or your conviction into doubt. When you gain knowledge act (upon it) and when you acquire conviction proceed (on its basis) .(1) 275; Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Greed takes a person to the watering place but gets him back without letting him drink. It undertakes responsibility but does not fulfil it. Often the drinker gets choked before the quenching of his thirst.
(1). Knowledge and conviction require that they should
be acted upon. If they are not acted upon they cannot be called knowledge and
conviction. Consequently, if a man says he knows the dangers that exist on
particular path but he adopts that very path for his journey instead of the path
that has no dangers, then who can say that this man had full certainty about the
dangers of that path, because the consequence of such certainty should have been
that he would have avoided going on that path. Similarly, the person who has
belief in the resurrection and revival of life or in chastisement and reward
cannot be overpowered by those things of this world that make a man neglectful
to the extent of disregarding the next life, nor can he fall short in good
actions for fear of chastisement and evil consequences.
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273. وقال عليه السلام: اعْلَمُوا عِلْماً يَقِيناً أَنَّ اللهَ لَمْ يَجْعَلْ لِلْعَبْدِ ـ وَإِنْ عَظُمَتْ حِيلَتُهُ، وَاشْتَدَّتْ طِلْبَتُهُ، وَقَوِيَتْ مَكِيْدَتُهُ ـ أَكْثَرَ مِمَّا سُمِّيَ لَهُ فِي الذِّكْرِ الْحَكِيمِ (4782) ، وَلَمْ يَحُلْ بَيْنَ الْعَبْدِ فِي ضَعْفِهِ وَقِلَّةِ حِيلَتِهِ وَبَيْنَ أَنْ يَبْلُغَ مَا سُّمِّيَ لَهُ فِي الذِّكْرِ الْحَكِيمِ، وَالْعَارِفُ لِهذَا الْعَامِلُ بِهِ أَعْظَمُ النَّاسِ رَاحَةً فِي مَنْفَعَةٍ، وَالتَّارِكُ لَهُ الشَّاكُّ فِيهِ أَعْظَمُ النَّاسِ شُغُلاً فِي مَضَرَّةٍ. وَرُبَّ مُنْعَمٍ عَلَيْهِ مُسْتَدْرَجٌ (4783) بِالنُّعْمَى، وَرُبَّ مُبْتَلىً (4784) مَصْنُوعٌ لَهُ بِالْبَلْوَى! فَزِدْ أَيُّهَا الْمُسْتَمِعُ فِي شُكْرِكَ، وَقَصِّرْ مِنْ عَجَلَتِكَ، وَقِفْ عِنْدَ مُنتَهَى رِزْقِكَ. 274. وقال عليه السلام: لاَ تَجْعَلُوا عِلْمَكُمْ جَهْلاً، وَيَقِينَكُمْ شَكّاً، إِذَا عَلِمْتُمْ فَاعْمَلُوا، وَإِذَا تَيَقَّنْتُمْ فَأَقْدِمُوا. 275. وقال عليه السلام: إِنَّ الطَّمَعَ مُورِدٌ غَيْرُ مُصْدِرٍ (4785) وَضَامِنٌ غَيْرُ وَفِيٍّ. وَرُبَّمَا شَرِقَ (4786) شَارِبُ الْمَاءِ قَبْلَ رِيِّهِ، كُلَّمَا * * * * * |
The greater the worth of a thing yearned for the greater is the grief for its loss. Desires blind the eyes of understanding. The destined share will reach him who does not approach it. 276. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: O' my Allah, I seek Your protection from this that I may appear to be good in the eyes of the people whilst my inward self may be sinful before You, and that I may guard myself (from sins) only for show before the people although You are aware of all about me. Thus, I appear before the people in good shape although my evil deeds are placed before You. This means achieving nearness to Your creatures but remoteness from Your pleasure. 277. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: I swear by Him Who let us pass the dark night after which there was a bright day that such and such (1) did not happen. 278. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: A small action which is continued with regularity is more beneficial than a long one performed with disgust. 279. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: When optional issues stand in the way of obligatories, abandon them. 280. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Whoever keeps in view the distance of the journey remains prepared. 281. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Perception by the eyes is not real observation because the eyes sometimes deceive people; but wisdom does not deceive whomsoever it counsels.
(1). as-Sayyid ar-Radi has not written what it was that
did not happen, leaving us only with the first part of the sentence.
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عَظُمَ قَدْرُ الشَّيْءِ الْمُتَنَافَسِ فِيهِ عَظُمَتِ الرَّزِيَّةُ لِفَقْدِهِ، وَالْأََمَانِيُّ تُعْمِي أَعْيُنَ الْبَصَائِرِ، وَالْحَظُّ يَأتِي مَنْ لاَ يَأْتِيهِ. 276. وقال عليه السلام: اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنْ تَحْسُنَ فِي لاَمِعَةِ الْعُيُونِ عَلاَنِيَتِي، وَتَقْبُحَ فِيَما أُبْطِنُ لَكَ سَرِيرَتيِ، مُحَافِظاً عَلَى رِيَاءِ النَّاسِ مِنْ نَفْسِي بِجَمِيعِ مَا أَنْتَ مُطَّلِعٌ عَلَيْهِ مِنِّي، فَأُبْدِيَ لِلنَّاسِ حُسْنَ ظَاهِرِي، وَأُفْضِيَ إِلَيْكَ بِسُوءِ عَمَلِي، تَقَرُّباً إلَى عِبَادِكَ، وَتَبَاعُداً مِنْ مَرْضَاتِكَ. 277. وقال عليه السلام: لاَ وَالَّذِي أَمْسَيْنَا مِنْهُ فِي غُبْرِ (4787) لَيْلَةٍ دَهْمَاءَ (4788) تَكْشِرُ (4789) عَنْ يَوْمٍ أَغَرَّ (4790) مَا كَان كَذَاكَذا. 278. وقال عليه السلام: قَلِيلٌ تَدُومُ عَلَيْهِ أَرْجَى مِنْ كَثِيرٍ مَمْلُولٍ مِنْهُ (4791) . 279. وقال عليه السلام: إذَا أَضَرَّتِ النَّوَافِلُ بالْفَرَائِضِ فَارْفُضُوهَا . 280. وقال عليه السلام: مَنْ تَذَكَّرَ بُعْدَ السَّفَرِ اسْتَعَدَّ. 281. وقال عليه السلام: لَيْسَتِ الرَّوِيَّةُ (4792) كَالْمُعَايَنَةِ مَعَ الْإِبْصَارِ، فَقَدْ تَكْذِبُ الْعُيُونُ أَهْلَهَا، وَلاَ يَغُشُّ الْعَقْلُ مَنِ اسْتَنْصَحَهُ. * * * * * |
282. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Between you and the preaching there is a curtain of deception. 283. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The ignorant among you get too much while the learned are just put off. 284. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Knowledge dispels the excuse of those who advance excuses. 285. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: He whom death overtakes early seeks time while he whose death is deferred puts forth excuses for postponement (of doing good actions). 286. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: For every thing to which people say "how good!" there is an evil hidden in this world. 287. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, was asked about Destiny, when he said: It is a dark path -- do not tread upon it, it is a deep ocean - do not dive in it, and it is the secret of Allah -- do not take trouble about (knowing) it. 288. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: When Allah intends to humiliate a person He denies him knowledge. 289. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: In the past I had a brother-in-faith ,(1) and he was prestigious in my view because the world was humble in his eyes, the needs of the stomach did not have sway over him, he did not long for what he did not get; if he got a thing he would not ask for more; most of his time he
(1). The man whom Amir al-mu'minin has referred to as
his brother and whose qualities he has stated, has been taken by some
commentators to be Abu Dharr al-Ghifari by some 'Uthman ibn Maz'un al-Jumahi and
by some al-Miqdad ibn al-Aswad al-Kindi; but it is not unlikely that no
particular individual is referred to at all, because it is customary with Arabs
for them to speak of a brother or a comrade although. they have no particular
individual in mind.
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282. وقال عليه السلام: بَيْنَكُمْ وَبَيْنَ الْمَوْعِظَةِ حِجَابٌ مِنَ الْغِرَّةِ (4793) . 283. وقال عليه السلام: جَاهِلُكُمْ مُزْدَادٌ (4794) وَعَالِمُكُمْ مُسَوِّفٌ (4795) . 284. وقال عليه السلام: قَطَعَ الْعِلْمُ عُذْرَ الْمُتَعَلِّلِينَ. 285. وقال عليه السلام: كُلُّ مُعَاجَلٍ يَسْأَلُ الْإِنْظَارَ (4796) وَكُلُّ مُؤَجَّلٍ (4797) يَتَعَلَّلُ بالتَّسْويفِ (4798) . 286. وقال عليه السلام: مَا قَالَ النَّاسُ لِشَيْءٍ: طُوبَى لَهُ، إِلاَّ وَقَدْ خَبَأَ لَهُ الدَّهْرُ يَوْمَ سَوْءٍ. 287. وسئل عن القدر، فقال: طَرِيقٌ مُظْلِمٌ فَلاَ تَسْلُكُوهُ، وَبَحْرٌ عَمِيقٌ فَلاَ تَلِجُوهُ، وَسِرُّ اللهِ فَلاَ تَتَكَلَّفُوهُ. 288. وقال عليه السلام: إِذَا أَرْذَلَ (4799) اللهُ عَبْداً حَظَرَ (4800) عَلَيْهِ الْعِلْمَ. 289. وقال عليه السلام: كَانَ لِي فيَِما مَضَى أَخٌ فِي اللهِ، وَكَانَ يُعْظِمُهُ فِي عَيْنِي صِغَرُ الدُّنْيَا فِي عَيْنِهِ، وَكَانَ خَارِجاً مِنْ سُلْطَانِ بَطْنِهِ فَلاَ يَشْتَهِي مَا لاَ يَجِدُ وَلاَ يُكْثِرُ إِذَا وَجَدَ. وَكَانَ أَكْثَرَ دَهْرِهِ صَامِتاً، * * * * * |
فإِنْ قَالَ بَذَّ (4801) الْقَائِلِينَ وَنَقَعَ غَلِيلَ (4802) السَّائِلِينَ، وَكَانَ ضَعِيفاً مُسْتَضْعَفاً! فَإِنْ جَاءَ الْجِدُّ فَهُوَ لَيْثُ غَابٍ (4803) وَصِلُّ (4804) وَادٍ لاَ يُدْلِي (4805) بِحُجَّةٍ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَ قَاضِياً، وَكَانَ لاَ يَلُومُ أَحَداً عَلَى مَا يَجِدُ الْعُذْرَ فِي مِثْلِهِ حَتَّى يَسْمَعَ اعْتِذَارَهُ، وَكَانَ لاَ يَشْكُو وَجَعاً إِلاَّ عِنْدَ بُرْئِهِ، وَكَانَ يقُولُ مَا يَفْعَلُ وَلاَ يَقُولُ مَا لاَ يَفْعَلُ، وَكَانَ إذَا غُلِبَ عَلَى الْكَلاَمِ لَمْ يُغْلَبْ عَلَى السُّكُوتِ، وَكَانَ عَلَى مَا يَسْمَعُ أَحْرَصَ مِنْهُ عَلَى أَنْ يَتَكَلَّمَ، وَكَان إذَا بَدَهَهُ (4806) أَمْرَانِ نَظَرَ أَيُّهُمَا أَقْرَبُ إِلَى الْهَوَى فيَُخَالَفَهُ. فَعَلَيْكُمْ بِهذِهِ الْخَلاَئِقِ فَالْزَمُوهَا وَتَنَافَسُوا فِيهَا، فَإِنْ لَمْ تَسْتَطِيعُوهَا فَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ أَخْذَ الْقلِيلِ خَيْرٌ مِنْ تَرْكِ الْكَثِيرِ. 290. وقال عليه السلام: لَوْ لَمْ يَتَوَعَّدِ (4807) اللهُ عَلَى مَعْصِيَةٍ لَكَانَ يَجِبُ أَنْ لاَ يُعْصَى شُكْراً لِنِعَمِهِ. 291. وقال عليه السلام ، وقد عزّى الاَشعثَ بن قيسٍ عن ابن له: يَا أَشْعَثُ، إِنْ تَحْزَنْ عَلَى ابْنِكَ فَقَدِ اسْتَحَقَّتْ ذلِكَ مِنْكَ الرَّحِمُ، وَإِنْ تَصْبِرْ فَفِي اللهِ مِنْ كُلِّ مُصِيبَةٍ خَلَفٌ. يَا أَشْعَثُ، إِنْ صَبَرْتَ جَرَى عَلَيْكَ الْقَدَرُ وَأَنْتَ مَأْجُورٌ، وَإِنْ جَزِعْتَ جَرَى عَلَيْكَ الْقَدَرُ وَأَنْتَ مَأْزُورٌ (4808) يَا أَشْعَثُ، ابْنُكَ سَرَّكَ وَهُوَ بَلاَءٌ وَفِتْنَةٌ، وَحَزَنَكَ (4809) وَهُوَ ثَوَابٌ وَرَحْمَةٌ. * * * * * |
292. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said on the grave of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his descendants, at the time of burial: Certainly, endurance is good except about you; fretting is bad except over you; and the affliction about you is great while every other affliction before or after it is small. 293. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Do not associate with a fool because he will beautify his actions before you and long that you too be like him. (1) 294. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, was asked about the distance between East and West when he replied: One day's travelling for the sun. 295. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Your friends are three and your enemies arc (also) three. Your friends are: your friend, your friend's friend and your enemy 's enemy. And your enemies are: your enemy, your friend's enemy and your enemy's friend. 296. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, saw a man busy against his enemy with what was harmful to himself too, so he said: You are like one who pierces a spear through himself in order to kill the person sitting behind him.
(1). A fool considers his ways of action appropriate,
and wants his friend also to adopt the same ways, so that he should become as he
himself is. This does not mean that he desires that his friend should become as
foolish as he is. He cannot be thinking like this, because he does not consider
himself foolish. If he in fact considered himself foolish, then he would not
have been foolish. Instead, he considers his ways of action as correct, and
desires his friend to be equally "wise". That is why he presents his view before
him in an embellished form and desires him to act upon it. It is possible his
friend may be influenced by his advice and tread on the. same path. Therefore,
it is better to keep away from him.
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292. وقال عليه السلام على قبر رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله ساعة دفنه: إِنَّ الصَّبْرَ لَجَمِيلٌ إِلاَّ عَنْكَ، وَإِنَّ الْجَزَعَ لَقَبِيحٌ إِلاَّ عَلَيْكَ، وَإِنَّ الْمُصَابَ بِكَ لَجَلِيلٌ، وَإِنَّهُ قَبْلَكَ وَبَعْدَكَ لَجَلَلٌ (4810) . 293. وقال عليه السلام: لاَ تَصْحَبِ الْمَائِقَ (4811) فَإِنَّهُ يُزَيِّنُ لَكَ فِعْلَهُ، وَيَوَدُّ أَنْ تَكُونَ مِثْلَهُ. 294. وقد سئل عن مسافة ما بين المشرق والمغرب فقال عليه السلام: مَسِيرَةُ يَوْمٍ لِلشَّمْسِ. 295. وقال عليه السلام: أَصْدِقَاؤُكَ ثَلاَثَةٌ، وَأَعْدَاؤُكَ ثَلاَثَةٌ: فَأَصْدِقَاؤُكَ: صَدِيقُكَ، وَصَدِيقُ صَدِيقِكَ، وَعَدُوُّ عَدُوِّكَ. وَأَعْدَاؤكَ: عَدُوُّكَ، وَعَدُوُّ صَدِيقِكَ، وَصَدِيقُ عَدُوِّكَ. 296. وقال عليه السلام لرجل رآه يسعى على عدوٍّ له بما فيه إِضرار بنفسه: إنَّمَا أَنْتَ كَالطَّاعِنِ نَفْسَهُ لِيَقْتُلَ رِدْفَهُ (4812) . * * * * * |
297. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: How many are the objects of lessons, but how few the taking of lessons. (1) 298. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: He who goes too far in quarrelling is a sinner, but if one falls short in it, one is oppressed and it is difficult for a quarreller to fear Allah. 299. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: I am not worried by a fault after which I get time to offer prayer in two units (rak 'ah) and beg safety from Allah. 300. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, was asked: How Allah would conduct the accounting of all persons despite their large number. He replied: just as He provides them livelihood despite their large number. Then it was said to him: How will He conduct their accounting without their seeing Him. He replied: just as He provides them livelihood although they do not see Him. 301. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Your messenger is the interpreter of your intelligence while your letter is more eloquent in expressing your true self.
(1). If the vicissitudes and changes of this world are
observed, the circumstances and condition of the people attended to and their
histories noted, then from every comer edifying stories can be heard which are
fully capable of arousing the mind out of its forgetful slumber, of providing
instruction and of imparting teaching and clear mindedness. Thus, the creation
and dissolution of every thing in this world, the blossoming of flowers and
their withering, the thriving of vegetation and its withering away and the
subjugation of every atom to change are such instructive lessons that they are
enough to curb any hope of attaining eternity in this deceitful life as long as
the eyes and ears are not closed to these instructive events.
A Persian couplet says:
The world is full of stories of folk gone by, but unless one lends an ear to it,
its call is weak.
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302. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The person who is afflicted with hardship is not in greater need of praying than the one who has been spared affliction but is not immune from it. 303. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: People are the progeny of the world and no one can be blamed for loving the mother. 304. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The destitute is the Messenger of Allah. Whoever denies him denies Allah and whoever gives him gives Allah. 305. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: A self- respecting man never commits adultery. 306. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The fixed limit of life is enough to remain watchful.(1) 307. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: A man can sleep on the death of his child, but cannot sleep at loss of property. as-Sayyid ar-Radi says: It means that a man keeps patience on the death of his children but does not do so on the loss of property.
(1). The idea here is that lighting may flash a hundred
thousand times, tempests may rise, the earth may quake and mountains may collide
with each other, but as long as the fixed period of life has yet to run its
course no occurrence can cause any harm, nor the typhoon of death put out the
flame of life; for there is a fixed hour for death, and nothing can cut it short
before that time. In this way, obviously death itself is the watchman and
guardian of life.
The hemistich of a verse says:
What is known as death is the watchman of life.
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302. وقال عليه السلام: مَا الْمُبْتَلَى الَّذِي قَدِ اشْتَدَّ بِهِ الْبَلاَءُ، بِأَحْوَجَ إِلَى الدُّعَاءِ الَّذِي لاَ يَأْمَنُ البَلاَءَ! 303. وقال عليه السلام: النَّاسُ أَبْنَاءُ الدُّنْيَا، وَلاَ يُلْاَمُ الرَّجُلُ عَلَى حُبِّ أُمِّهِ. 304. وقال عليه السلام: إِنَّ الْمِسْكِينَ رَسُولُ اللهِ، فَمَنْ مَنَعَهُ فَقَدْ مَنَعَ اللهَ، وَمَنْ أَعْطَاهُ فَقَدْ أَعْطَى اللهَ. 305. وقال عليه السلام: مَا زَنَى غَيُورٌ قَطُّ. 306. وقال عليه السلام: كَفَى بِالْأَجَلِ حَارِساً! 307. وقال عليه السلام: يَنَامُ الرَّجُلُ عَلَى الثُّكْلِ (4813) وَلاَ يَنَامُ عَلَى الْحَرَبِ (4814) . قال الرضي: ومعنى ذلك: أنه يصبر على قتل الأَولاد، ولا يصبر على سلب الأَموال. * * * * * |
308. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Mutual affection between fathers creates a relationship between the sons. Relationship is more in need of affection than affection is of relationship. 309. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Be afraid of the ideas of believers, because Allah, the Sublime, has put truth on their tongues. 310. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The belief of a person cannot be regarded as true unless his trust in what is with Allah is more than his trust in what he himself has. 311. When Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, came to Basrah he sent Anas ibn Malik to Talhah and az-Zubayr to make them recall what he (Anas) himself had heard the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his descendants, say concerning them both, but he avoided doing so and when he -came back to Amir al-mu'minin, he said that he had forgotten that matter. Thereupon, Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: If you are speaking a lie Allah may afflict you with white spots (leucoderma) which even the turban may not cover. as-Sayyid ar-Radi says: White spot means leucoderma. After sometime this disease did occur to Anas's face so much so that he was never seen without a veil. (2)
(2). The occasion and circumstances surrounding this
saying as related by as-Sayyid ar-Radi were that when at the time of the
Battle of Jamal Amir al-mu'minin sent Anas ibn Malik to Talhah and az-Zubayr
with the purpose that he should recall them the Prophet's saying to the
effect that: "You two will fight 'Ali and will commit excess over him", he
came back and stated that he had forgotten to mention it. Then, Amir
al-mu'minin uttered these words about him. However, it is said that Amir
al-mu'minin said the sentence on the occasion when he wanted Anas to confirm
the Prophet's saying. "Whosoever master I am, 'Ali is his master. O' my
Allah,
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312. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Sometimes the hearts move forward and sometimes they move backward. When they move forward get them to perform the optionals (as well), but when they move backward keep them confined to obligatories only. 313. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The Qur'an contains news about the past, foretellings about the future and commandments for the present. 314. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Throw a stone in return from where one comes to you because evil can be met only with evil. 315. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said to his secretary 'Ubaydullah ibn Abi Rafi': Put cotton flake in the inkpot, keep the nib of your pen long, leave space between lines and close up the letters because this is good for the beauty of the writing. 316. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: I am the ya'sub (leader) of the believers, while wealth is the leader of the wicked. as-Sayyid ar-Radi says: It means that the believers follow me while the wicked follow wealth just as the bees follow their "ya'sub" who is their leader. (1)
(1). We have already explained the meaning of the word
"ya'sub" in the foot-note of saying No.262-I, and pointed out that this
title was given to Amir al-mu'minin by the Holy Prophet himself and we
quoted some of his different utterances on this subject.
Here we quote one of the traditons in which this title appears. It is
narrated by Abu Layla al-Ghifari, Abu Dharr, Salman, Ibn 'Abbas and
Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman that the Holy Prophet used to say:
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312. وقال عليه السلام: إِنَّ لِلْقُلُوبِ إقْبَالاً وَإِدْبَاراً (4815) فَإِذَا أَقْبَلَتْ فَاحْمِلُوهَا عَلَى النَّوَافِلِ، وَإذَا أَدْبَرَتْ فَاقْتَصِرُوا بِهَا عَلَى الْفَرَائِضِ. 313. وقال عليه السلام: (وَفِي الْقُرْآنِ نَبَأُ مَا قَبْلَكُمْ، وَخَبَرُ مَا بَعْدَكُمْ، وَحُكْمُ مَا بَيْنَكُمْ ) (4816) . 314. وقال عليه السلام: رُدُّوا الْحَجَرَ (4817) مِنْ حَيْثُ جَاءَ، فَإِنَّ الشَّرَّ لاَ يَدْفَعُهُ إِلاَّالشَّرُّ. 315. وقال عليه السلام لكاتبه عبيدالله بن أَبي رافع: أَلِقْ (4818) دَوَاتَكَ، وَأَطِلْ جِلْفَةَ قَلَمِكَ (4819) ، وَفَرِّجْ بَيْنَ السُّطُورِ، وقَرْمِطْ (4820) بَيْنَ الْحُرُوفِ، فَإِنَّ ذلِكَ أَجْدَرُ بِصَباحَةِ الْخَطِّ. 316. وقال عليه السلام: أَنا يَعْسُوبُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ، وَالْمَالُ يَعْسُوبُ الْفُجَّارِ. قال الرضي: ومعنى ذلك أن المؤمنين يتبعونني، والفجار يتبعون المال، كما تتبع النحل يعسوبها، وهو رئيسها. * * * * * |
317. Some Jews said to Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him; You had not buried your Prophet when you picked up differences about him, when Amir al-mu'minin replied: We did not differ about him but we differed after him (i.e. about his succession); whereas you had not dried up your feet after coming out of the river (Nile) when you began asking your Prophet: Make you for us a god as they have gods of their own. Said he; 'Verily you are a people behaving ignorantly. ' (4) (Qur'an, 7:138)
Soon after my death there will be discord. When it occurs, adhere to 'Ali ibn
Abi Talib since he will be the first person to see me and the first person to
shake hands with me on the Day of Judgement. He is the greatest man of truth
(as-siddiq al-akbar), and he is the discriminator (faruq) from among this ummah
who discriminates between right and wrong, and he is the ya'sub (leader) of the
believers while wealth is the ya'sub of the hypocrites. (In addition to the
references given in the above-mentioned foot-note, see also Fayd al-qadir,
vol.4, p.358; Kanz al-'ummal, vol.12, p.214; Muntakhab al-kanz, vol.5, p.33; Ibn
Abi'l-Hadid, vol.13, p.228; Tarikh ash-Sham, Ibn 'Asakir, (on the biography of
Amir al-mu'minin), vol.1, pp. 74 - 78; as-Sirah al-halabiyyah, vol.1, p.380;
Dhakha'ir al-'uqba, p.56; Yanabi' al-mawaddah, p. 62, 82, 201 and 251).
(4). The purpose behind this criticism by the Jews was
to show that the prophethood of the Prophet Muhammad was a controversial matter,
but Amir al-mu'minin clarified the exact focus of controversy by using the word
"after him" as against "about him", namely that the controversy was not about
his prophethood but about his succession and vicegerency. Then, commenting on
the position of the Jews he pointed out that those who were today criticising
the mutual differences among Muslims after the Prophet were of the same kind as
those who had begun to waver about belief in the Unity of Allah even in the
lifetime of Moses. Thus, when, on becoming free of the slavery of the Egyptians
they reached the other side of the river and saw the figure of a calf in a
temple in Sina', they asked Moses to get a similar figure for them, whereupon
Moses rebuked them for being still as stubborn as they were in Egypt. This meant
that a people who were so immersed in desire for idol-worship that even after
being initiated into the belief in the Unity of Allah they became restless on
seeing an idol and made the request for a similar idol to be made for themselves
had no right to criticise any difference among Muslims.
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318. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, was asked: With what did you overpower your adversaries? He answered: Whenever I confronted a person he helped me against himself. as-Sayyid ar-Radi says: Amir al-mu'minin is pointing out his striking of awe in the hearts. (1) 319. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said to his son Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah: O' my son, I fear lest destitution overtakes you. So, you should seek Allah's protection from it, because destitution is deficiency of religious belief, perplexity of intelligence, and it is conducive to hatred of obstinate people. 320. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, replied to a man who had asked him a difficult question: Ask me for understanding but do not ask me for confusion, because the ignorant person who tries to learn is like the learned man, but the learned man who tries to create confusion is like the ignorant. 321. 'Abdullah ibn al-'Abbas once advised Amir al-mu'minin peace be upon him, against his views, so he said: You have only to advise me but then I have to see (what to do); and if I act against your advice you have to follow me. (2)
(1). The man who is over-awed by his adversary is sure to
be defeated because in facing a foe physical prowess is not enough but
steadfastness of heart and strength of courage is also necessary. When the
adversary loses courage and feels sure that he will he defeated then he will
certainly be defeated. This is what happened to the adversary of Amir
al-mu'minin; he was so affected by his acknowledged reputation that he was sure
of death, in consequence of which hi. spiritual power and self confidence came
to an end and eventually this mental state dragged him to his death.
(2). 'Abdullah ibn al-'Abbas had advised Amir
al-mu'minin to issue a letter of appointment to Talhah and az-Zubayr as the
Governors of Kufah and to retain Mu'awiyah as the Governor of Syria till such
time as his position became stabilized and the government gained strength. In
reply to which Amir al-mu'minin said that he could not expose his own religion
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318. وقيل له: بِأيِّ شيءٍ غَلَبْتَ الْأَقْرَان ؟ فقال عليه السلام: مَا لَقِيتُ رَجُلاً إِلاَّ أَعَانَنِي عَلَى نَفْسِهِ. قال الرضي: يومىء بذلك إلى تمكّن هيبته في القلوب. 319. وقال عليه السلام لابنه محمد بن الحنفية: يَا بُنَيَّ، إِنِّي أَخَافُ عَلَيْكَ الْفَقْرَ، فَاسْتَعِذْ بِاللهِ مِنْه، فَإِنَّ الْفَقْرَ مَنْقَصَةٌ (4821) لِلدَّينِ، مَدْهَشَةٌ لِلْعَقْلِ، دَاعِيَةٌ لِلْمَقْت! 320. وقال عليه السلام لِسائل سأَله عن معضلة (4822) سَل تَفَقُّهاً وَلاَ تَسْأَلْ تَعَنُّتاً، فَإِنَّ الْجَاهِلَ الْمُتَعَلِّمَ شَبِيهٌ بِالْعَالِمِ، وَإِنَّ الْعَالِمَ الْمُتَعَسِّفَ شَبِيهٌ بِالْجَاهِلِ الْمُتَعَنِّتِ. 321. وقال عليه السلام لعبدالله بن العباس، وقد أشار عليه في شيء لم يوافق رأيه: لَكَ أَنْ تُشِيرَ عَلَيَّ وَأَرَى، فَإِنْ عَصَيْتُكَ فَأَطِعْنِي. * * * * * |
322. When Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, returned to Kufah from Siffin he passed by the residences of the Shibamites (who belonged to the tribe of Shibam) and heard the women weeping over those killed in Siffin. At that time a Shibamite, Harb ibn Shurahbil ash-Shibami, who was one of the nobles of those people, came to him, and Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said to him: Do your women have control over you as regards the weeping that I hear? Do you not refrain them from this crying? Harb began to walk with him while Amir al-mu'minin was on horseback, so Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said to him: Get back because the walking of a man like you with one like me is mischief for the ruler and disgrace for the believer. 323. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, passed by the dead bodies of the Kharijites on the day of the battle of Nahrawan and said : Woe unto you! You have been harmed by him who deceived you. He was asked: O' Amir al-mu'minin, who deceived them? Then, he replied: Satan, the deceiver, and the inner spirit that leads one to evil deceived them through passions, made it easy for them to get into sins, promised them victory and eventually threw them into the Fire. 324. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Beware of disobeying Allah in solitude, because the witness (of that situation) is also the judge. 325. When the news of killing of Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr (1) reached Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, he said: Our grief over him is as great as their (i.e. the enemy's) joy for it, except that they have lost an enemy and we have lost a friend. to danger for the sake of the worldly benefit of others, adding that "therefore instead of insisting on your own point you should listen to me and obey me. (1). In the year 38 A.H. Mu'awiyah sent 'Amr ibn al-'As to Egypt with a large force. 'Amr ibn al-'As called Mu'awiyah ibn Hudayj for assistance. |
322. وروي أنه عليه السلام لما ورد الكوفة قادماً من صفين مرّ بالشّباميين (4823) فسمع بكاء النساء على قتلى صفين، وخرج إليه حرب بن شُرَحْبِيل الشّبامي، وكان من وجوه قومه. فقال عليه السلام له: أَتَغْلِبُكُمْ نِسَاؤُكُمْ عَلَى مَا أسْمَعُ؟ أَلاَ تَنْهَوْنَهُنَّ عَنْ هذَا الرَّنِينِ (4824) ؟ و أقبل حرب يمشي معه، وهو عليه السلام راكب. فقال عليه السلام: ارْجِعْ، فَإِنَّ مَشْيَ مِثْلِكَ مَعَ مِثْلِي فِتْنَةٌ لِلْوَالِي، وَمَذَلَّةٌ (4825) لِلْمُؤْمِنِ. 323. وقال عليه السلام وقد مرّ بقتلى الخوارج يوم النَّهْرَوَان: بُؤْساً لَكُمْ، لَقَدْ ضَرَّكُمْ مَنْ غَرَّكُمْ. فقيل له: مَن غرّهم يا أميرالمؤمنين؟ فقال: الشَّيْطَانُ الْمُضِلُّ، وَ الْأَنْفُسُ الْأَمَّارَةُ بِالسُّوءِ، غَرَّتْهُمْ بَالْأَََمَانِيِّ، وَفَسَحَتْ لَهُمْ فِي المَعَاصِيِ، وَوَعَدَتْهُمُ الْإِظْهَارَ، فَاقْتَحَمَتْ بِهِمُ النَّارَ. 324. وقال عليه السلام: اتَّقُوا مَعَاصِيَ اللهِ فِي الْخَلَوَاتِ، فَإِنَّ الشَّاهِدَ هُوَ الْحَاكِمُ. 325. وقال عليه السلام ، لمّا بلغه قتل محمد بن أبي بكر: إِنَّ حُزْنَنَا عَلَيْهِ عَلَى قَدْرِ سُرُورِهِمْ بِهِ، إِلاَّ أَنَّهُمْ نَقَصُوا بَغِيضاً، وَنَقَصْنَا حَبِيباً. * * * * * |
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326. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The age up to which Allah accepts any excuse for a human being is sixty years. 327. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: He whom sin overpowers is not victorious, and he who secures victory by evil is (in fact) vanquished. 328. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Allah, the Glorified, has fixed the livelihood of the destitute in the wealth of the rich. Consequently, whenever a destitute remains hungry it is because some rich person has denied (him his share). Allah, the Sublime, will question them about it. 329. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Not to be in need of putting forth an excuse is better than putting forth a true excuse. (1) 330. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The least right of Allah on you is that you should not make use of His favours in committing His sins. (2)
(1). The meaning is that obligations should be so
discharged that there is no occasion for putting forth excuses, because
after all in making excuse there is a hint of shortcoming and humbleness,
even though it may be true and correct.
(2). There are a few grades of denial of favours and
ingratitude. The first is that a person may not be able to appreciate (the
real significance of) a favour; for example, the sight of the eyes, the
speech of the tongue, the hearing of the ears and the movements of the hands
and feet. These are all favours bestowed by Allah but many people do not
realize them to be favours, and do not entertain feelings of gratitude. The
second. grade is that a person may see a favour and appreciate it but may
not feel grateful for it. The third grade is that a person may oppose the
Bestower of the favours. The fourth grade is that instead of using the
favours granted by Him a person may use them in committing sins against
Allah. This is the highest grade of denial of favours.
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331. وقال عليه السلام: إِنَّ اللهَ سُبْحَانَهُ جَعَلَ الطَّاعَةَ غَنِيمَةَ الْْأَكْيَاسِ (4826) عِنْدَ تَفْرِيطِ الْعَجَزَةِ (4827) . 332. وقال عليه السلام: السُّلْطَانُ وَزَعَةُ (4828) اللهِ فِي أَرْضِهِ. 333. وقال عليه السلام في صفة المؤمن: الْمُؤْمِنُ بِشْرُهُ (4829) فِي وَجْهِهِ، َحُزْنُهُ فِي قَلْبِهِ، أَوْسَعُ شَيْءٍ صَدْراً، وَأَذَلُّ شَيْءٍ نَفْساً، يَكْرَهُ الرِّفْعَةَ، وَيَشْنَأُ السُّمْعَةَ، طَوِيلٌ غَمُّهُ، بَعِيدٌ هَمُّهُ، كَثِيرٌ صَمْتُهُ، مشْغولٌ وَقْتُهُ، شَكُورٌ صَبُورٌ، مغْمُورٌ (4830) بِفِكْرَتِهِ، ضَنِينٌ (4831) بِخَلَّتِهِ (4832) سَهْلُ الْخَلِيقَةِ (4833) لَيِّنُ الْعَرِيكَةِ (4834) نَفْسُهُ أَصْلَبُ مِنَ الصَّلْدِ (4835) ، وَهُوَ أَذَلُّ مِنَ الْعَبْدِ. 334. وقال عليه السلام: لَوْ رَأَى الْعَبْدُ الْأَجَلَ وَمَسِيرَهُ لَأَبْغَضَ الْأَمَلَ وَغُرُورَهُ. 335. وقال عليه السلام: لِكُلِّ امْرِىءٍ فِي مَالِهِ شَريِكَانِ: الْوَارِثُ، وَالْحَوَادِثُ. 336. وقال عليه السلام: الْمَسْؤُولُ حُرُّ حَتَّى يَعِدَ. 337. وقال عليه السلام: الدَّاعِي بِلاَ عَمَلٍ كَالرَّامِي بِلاَ وَتَرٍ. 338. وقال عليه السلام: الْعِلْمُ عِلْمَانِ: مَطْبُوعٌ وَمَسْمُوعٌ (4836) وَلاَ يَنْفَعُ الْمَسْمُوعُ إِذَا لَمْ يَكُنِ الْمَطْبُوعُ. * * * * * |
339. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Correctness of decision goes together with power. The one emerges with the other's emergence and disappears when the other disappears. (1) 340. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The beauty of destitution is chastity and the beauty of riches is gratefulness. 341. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The day of justice will be severer on the oppressor than the day of oppression on the oppressed. 342. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The biggest wealth is that one should not have an eye on what others possess. 343. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Utterances are preserved and actions are to be tried. Every soul, for what it earned, is held in pledge! (Qur'an, 74:38). People are to be made deficient (as regards their bodies) and meddled with (as regards their minds) except those whom Allah protects. The questioner among them aims at confusing and the answerer creates hardship. It is possible that the man who has the best views among them will be deviated from the soundness of his thinking by pleasure or displeasure, and it is possible that a single glance may affect even the man with the 'best wisdom among them or a single expression may transform him.
(1). When anyone's star is auspicious and his luck is
good, he steps automatically towards the goal in view, and his mind
confronts no perplexity in determining the correct way of approach; but the
person whose luck is about to ebb stumbles even in the light and his mental
faculties become paralysed. Consequently, when the downfall of the Barmakids
began, ten persons from among them assembled for consultation about a matter
but were not able to take a decision even after long discussion. Seeing this
Yahya said, "By Allah, it is a forerunner of our decline and a sign of our
downfall that even ten of us have not been able to settle a matter, although
while when we were in ascendancy one of us used to solve ten problems
easily.
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339. وقال عليه السلام: صَوَابُ الرَّأْيِ بِالدُّوَلِ: يُقْبِلُ بِإِقْبَالِهَا (4837) وَيَذْهَبُ بِذَهَابِهَا. 340. وقال عليه السلام: الْعَفَافُ زِينَةُ الْفَقْرِ، وَالشُّكْرُ زِينَةُ الْغِنَى. 341. وقال عليه السلام: يَوْمُ الْعَدْلِ عَلَى الظَّالِمِ أَشَدُّ مِنْ يَومِ الْجَوْرِ عَلَى الْمَظْلُومِ! 342. وقال عليه السلام: الْغِنَى الْأَكْبَرُ الْيَأْسُ عَمَّا فِي أَيْدِى النَّاسِ. 343. وقال عليه السلام: الْأَقَاوِيلُ مَحْفُوظَةٌ، وَالْسَّرَائِرُ مَبْلُوَّةٌ (4838) وَ(كُلُّ نَفْسٍ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ رَهِينَةٌ)، وَالنَّاسُ مَنْقوُصُونَ (4839) مَدْخُولُونَ (4840) إِلاَّ مَنْ عَصَمَ الله، سَائِلُهُمْ مُتَعَنِّتٌ، وَمُجِيبُهُمْ مُتَكَلِّفٌ، يَكَادُ أَفْضَلُهُمْ رَأْياً يَرُدُّهُ عَنْ فَضْلِ رَأْيِهِ الرِّضَى وَالسُّخْطُ، وَيَكَادُ أَصْلَبُهُمْ عُوداً (4841) تَنْكَؤُهُ (4842) اللَّحْظَةُ (4843) وَتَسْتَحِيلُهُ (4844) الْكَلِمَةُ الْوَاحِدَةُ. * * * * * |
344. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: O' groups of people, fear Allah, for there is many a man who aspires for what he does not get, many a builder of a house who does not live in it, and many a collector of that which he shall just leave behind. Possibly he may have collected it wrongfully or by denying a right. He acquired it unlawfully and had to bear the weight of sins on account of it. Consequently, he returned (from this world) with that weight and came before Allah with sorrow and grief. Loses he both this world and (also) the hereafter; that is a loss (which is) manifest. (Qur'an, 22:11) 345. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: Lack of access to sins is also a kind of chastity. 346. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The dignity of your face is solid but begging dissolves it away: therefore, look carefully before whom you dissolve it. 347. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: To praise more than what is due is sycophancy; to do it less is either because of inability to speak or of envy. 348. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The most serious sin is that which the doer considers light. (1) 349. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: He who sees his own shortcomings abstains from looking into other's shortcomings. He who feels happy with the livelihood with which Allah provides him does not grieve over what he misses. He who draws out the sword of revolt gets killed with it. He who strives without means perishes. He who enters the depths gets drowned.
(1). The result of lack of restraint and care in respect
of small sins is that a man becomes rather careless in the matter of sins, and,
by and by, this habit produces boldness for larger sins. Then, he begins to
commit them without hesitation. Therefore, one should regard small sins as
a harbinger of bigger sins, and avoid them, so that the stage for committing big
sins does not come.
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344. مَعَاشِرَ النَّاسِ، اتَّقُوا اللهَ، فَكَمْ مِنْ مُؤَمِّلٍ مَا لاَ يَبْلُغُهُ، وَبَانٍ مَا لاَ يَسْكُنُهُ، وَجَامِعٍ مَا سَوْفَ يَتْرُكُهُ، وَلَعَلَّهُ مِنْ بَاطِلٍ جَمَعهُ، وَمِنْ حَقٍّ مَنَعَهُ، أَصَابَهُ حَرَاماً، وَاحْتَمَلَ بِهِ آثَاماً، فَبَاءَ بِوِزْرهِ، وَقَدِمَ عَلَى رَبِّهِ، آسِفاً لاَهِفاً، قَدْ (خَسِرَ الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةَ ذلِكَ هُوَ الْخُسْرَانُ الْمُبِينُ). 345. وقال عليه السلام: مِنَ الْعِصْمَةِ تَعَذُّرُ الْمَعَاصِي. 346. وقال عليه السلام: مَاءُ وَجْهِكَ جَامِدٌ يُقْطِرُهُ السُّؤَالُ، فَانْظُرْ عِنْدَ مَنْ تُقْطِرُهُ. 347. وقال عليه السلام: الثَّنَاءُ بِأَكْثَرَ مِنَ الْإِسْتِحْقَاقِ مَلَقٌ (4845) وَالتَّقْصِيرُ عَنِ الْإِسْتِحْقَاقِ عِيٌّ أَوْ حَسَدٌ. 348. وقال عليه السلام: أَشدُّ الذُّنُوبِ مَا اسْتَهَانَ بِهِ صَاحِبُهُ. 349. وقال عليه السلام: مَنْ نَظَرَ فِي عَيْبِ نَفْسِهِ اشْتَغَلَ عَنْ عَيْبِ غَيْرهِ، وَمَنْ رَضِيَ برِزْقِ اللهِ لَمْ يَحْزَنْ عَلَى مَا فَاتَهُ، وَمَنْ سَلَّ سَيْفَ الْبَغْيِ قُتِلَ بِهِ، وَمَنْ كَابَدَ الْأُمُورَ (4846) عَطِبَ (4847) وَمَنِ اقْتَحَمَ اللُّجَجَ * * * * * |
He who visits places of ill-repute receives blame. He who speaks more commits more errors. He who commits more errors becomes shameless. He who is shameless will have less fear of Allah. He whose fear of Allah is less, his heart dies. He whose heart dies enters the Fire. He who observes the shortcomings of others and disapproves of them and then accepts them for himself is definitely a fool. Contentment is a capital that does not dwindle. He who remembers death much is satisfied with small favours in this world. He who knows that his speech is also a part of his action speaks less except where he has some purpose. 350. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The oppressor among the people has three signs: he oppresses his superior by disobeying him, and his junior by imposing his authority and he supports other oppressors. 351. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: At the extremity of hardship comes relief, and at the tightening of the chains of tribulation comes ease. 352. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said to one of his companions: Do not devote much of your activity to your wife and your children, because if your wife and children are lovers of Allah then He will not leave His lovers uncared for, and if they be enemies of Allah then why should you worry and keep yourself busy about the enemies of Allah. 353. Amir al-mu'minin, peace be upon him, said: The greatest defect is to regard that defect (in others) which is present in yourself. (1)
(1). What worse defect can there be than that a man
should criticise those defects in others which exist in himself. The requirement
of justice is that before casting one's eye on the defects of others one should
look at his own defects and realize that a defect is a defect whether it be in
others or in oneself.
A Persian couplet Bays:
Looking at other's defects is neither property nor manliness. Better look at
your own self since you are full of defects.
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غَرِقَ، وَمَنْ دَخَلَ مَدَاخِلَ السُّوءِ اتُّهِمَ، وَمَنْ كَثُرَ كَلاَمُهُ كَثُرَ خَطَؤُهُ، وَمَنْ كَثُرَ خَطَؤُهُ قَلَّ حَيَاؤُهُ، وَمَنْ قَلَّ حَيَاؤُهُ قَلَّ وَرَعُهُ، مَنْ قَلَّ وَرَعُهُ مَاتَ قَلْبُهُ، وَمَنْ مَاتَ قَلْبُهُ دَخَلَ النَّارَ، وَمَنْ نَظَرَ فِي عُيُوبِ النَّاسِ فَأَنْكَرَهَا ثُمَّ رَضِيَهَا لِنَفْسِهِ فذَاك الْأَحْمَقُ بِعَيْنِهِ. وَالْقَنَاعَةُ مَالٌ لاَ يَنْفَدُ، وَمَنْ أَكْثَرَ مِنْ ذِكْرِ الْمَوْتِ رَضِيَ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا بِالْيَسيرِ، مَنْ عَلِمَ أَنَّ كَلاَمَهُ مِنْ عَمَلِهِ قَلَّ كَلاَمُهُ إِلاَّ فِيَما يَعْنيِهِ. 350. وقال عليه السلام: لِلظَّالِمِ مِنَ الرِّجَالِ ثَلاَثُ عَلاَمَاتٍ: يَظْلِمُ مَنْ فَوْقَهُ بِالْمَعْصِيَةِ، َ مَنْ دُونَهُ بِالْغَلَبَةِ (4848) وَ يُظَاهِرُ (4849) الْقَوْمَ الظَّلَمَةَ (4850) . 351. وقال عليه السلام: عِنْدَ تَنَاهِي الشِّدَّةِ تَكُونُ الْفَرْجَةُ، وَعِنْدَ تَضَايُقِ حَلَقِ الْبَلاَءِ يَكُونُ الرَّخَاءُ. 352. وقال عليه السلام لبعض أصحابه: لاَ تَجْعَلَنَّ أَكْثَرَ شُغُلِكَ بِأَهْلِكَ وَوَلَدِكَ: فَإِنْ يَكُنْ أَهْلُكَ وَوَلَدُكَ أَوْلِيَاءَ اللهِ، فَإِنَّ اللهَ لاَ يُضِيعُ أَوْلِيَاءَهُ، وَإِنْ يَكُونُوا أَعْدَاءَ اللهِ، فَمَا هَمُّكَ وَشُغُلُكَ بأَعْدَاءِ اللهِ؟! 353. وقال عليه السلام: أَكْبَرُ الْعَيْبِ أَنْ تَعِيبَ مَا فِيكَ مِثْلُهُ. * * * * * |