Nahj al-Balāgha

٢٢٧. وَسُئِلَ عَنِ الْإِيمَانِ فَقَالَ الْإِيمَانُ مَعْرِفَةٌ بِالْقَلْبِ، وَإِقْرَارٌ بِاللِّسَانِ، وَعَمَلٌ بِالْأَرْكَانِ.

227. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, was asked about belief (īmān) when he said: Belief means appreciation with the heart, acknowledgement with the tongue, and action with the limbs.

٢٣٠. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): شَارِكُوا الَّذِي قَدْ أَقْبَلَ عَلَيْهِ الرِّزْقُ، فَإِنَّهُ أَخْلَقُ لِلْغِنَى، وَأَجْدَرُ بِإِقْبَالِ الْحَظِّ عَلَيْهِ.

230. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, said: Be a sharer with him who has an abundant livelihood because he is more probable to get more riches and likely to secure an increase of the share therein.

٢٣٣. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام) لِابْنِهِ الْحَسَنِ (عليه السلام): لَا تَدْعُوَنَّ إِلَى مُبَارَزَةٍ وَإِنْ دُعِيتَ إِلَيْهَا فَأَجِبْ فَإِنَّ الدَّاعِيَ إِلَيْهَا بَاغٍ وَالْبَاغِيَ مَصْرُوعٌ.

233. Amīr al-mu’minīn said to his son al-Ḥasan, peace be upon them both: Do not call out for fighting, but if you are called to it do respond, because the caller to fighting is a rebel and the rebel deserves destruction. [1]

٢٣٦. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): وَاللهِ لَدُنْيَاكُمْ هذِهِ أَهْوَنُ فِي عَيْنِي مِنْ عِرَاقِ خِنْزِيرٍ فِي يَدِ مَجْذُومٍ.

236. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, said: By Allāh, this world of yours is more lowly in my view than the (left over) bone of a pig in the hand of a leper.

٢٣٨. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): الْمَرْأَةُ شَرٌّ كُلُّهَا، وَشَرُّ مَا فِيهَا أَنَّهُ لَا بُدَّ مِنْهَا.

238. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, said: Woman is evil, all in all; and the worst of it is that one cannot do without her.

٢٤١. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): يَوْمُ الْمَظْلُومِ عَلَى الظَّالِمِ أَشدُّ مِنْ يَوْمِ الظَّالِمِ عَلَى الْمَظْلُومِ.

241. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, said: The day of the oppressed over the oppressor will be severer than the day of the oppressor over the oppressed. [1]

٢٤٤. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): إِنَّ لله فِي كُلِّ نِعْمَةٍ حَقّاً، فَمَنْ أَدَّاهُ زَادَهُ مِنْهَا، وَمَنْ قَصَّرَ مِنْهُ خَاطَرَ بِزَوَالِ نِعْمَتِهِ.

244. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, said: Surely in every blessing there is a right of Allāh. If one discharges that right Allāh increases the blessing, and if one falls short of doing so one stands in danger of losing the blessing.

٢٤٨. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): مَنْ ظَنَّ بِكَ خَيْراً فَصَدِّقْ ظَنَّهُ.

248. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, said: If a person has a good idea about you make his idea be true.

٢٥١. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): مَرَارَةُ الدُّنْيَا حَلاَوَةُ الْآخِرَةِ، وَحَلاَوَةُ الدُّنْيَا مَرَارَةُ الْآخِرَةِ.

251. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, said: The sourness of this world is the sweetness of the next world while the sweetness of this world is the sourness of the next one.

٢٥٣. وَكَانَ (عليه السلام) يَقُولُ: أَحْلِفُوا الظَّالِمَ إِذَا أَرَدْتُمْ يَمِينَهُ بِأَنَّهُ بَرِي‏ءٌ مِنْ حَوْلِ اللَّهِ وَقُوَّتِهِ فَإِنَّهُ إِذَا حَلَفَ بِهَا كَاذِباً عُوجِلَ الْعُقُوبَةَ وَإِذَا حَلَفَ بِاللَّهِ الَّذِى لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ لَمْ يُعَاجَلْ لِأَنَّهُ قَدْ وَحَّدَ اللَّهَ تَعَالَى.

253. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, used to say: If you want an oppressor to take an oath ask him to swear like this that he is out of Allāh’s might and His power, because if he swears falsely in this way he will be quickly punished, while if he swears by Allāh Who is such that there is no god but He, he will not be quickly punished since he is expressing the Unity of Allāh, the Sublime. [1]