Nahj al-Balāgha

فَكَيْفَ تَصِلُ إلَى صِفَةِ هذَا عَمَائِقُ الْفِطَنِ، أَوْ تَبْلُغُهُ قَرَائِحُ الْعُقُولِ، أَوْ تَسْتَنْظِمُ وَصْفَهُ أَقْوَالُ الْوَاصِفِينَ؟! وَأَقَلُّ أَجْزَائِهِ قَدْ أَعْجَزَ الاْوهَامَ أَنْ تُدْرِكَهُ، وَالاْلْسِنَةَ أَنْ تَصِفَهُ!

How can sharpness of intellect describe such a creation, or faculty of mind, or the utterances of describers manage to tell of it. Even its smallest parts have made it impossible for the imagination to pick them out or for tongues to describe them.

فَسُبْحَانَ الَّذِي بَهَرَ الْعُقُولَ عَنْ وَصْفِ خَلْق جَلاَّهُ لِلْعُيُونِ، فَأَدْرَكَتْهُ مَحْدُوداً مُكَوَّناً، وَمُؤَلَّفاً مُلَوَّناً، وَأَعْجَزَ الاَْلْسُنَ عَنْ تَلْخِيصِ صِفَتِهِ، وَقَعَدَ بِهَا عَنْ تَأْدِيَةِ نَعْتِهِ!

Glorified is Allāh who has disabled intellects from describing the creation which He placed openly before the eyes and which they see bounded, shaped, arranged and coloured. He also disabled tongues from briefly describing its qualities and also from expanding in its praise.

[صغار المخلوقات :] فَسُبْحَانَ مَنْ أَدْمَجَ قَوَائِمَ الذَّرَّةِ وَالْهَمَجَةِ إلَى مَا فَوْقَهُمَا مِنْ خَلْقِ الْحِيتَانِ وَالاْفْيِلَةِ! وَوَأَى عَلَى نَفْسِهِ أَلاَّ يَضْطَرِبَ شَبَحٌ مِمَّا أَوْلَجَ فِيهِ الرُّوحَ، إِلاَّ وَجَعَلَ الْحِمَامَ مَوْعِدَهُ، وَالْفَنَاءَ غَايَتَهُ.

[The magnificence of the Creator in great and small creation :] Glorified is Allāh who has assigned feet to small ants and gnats and also to those above them, the serpents and the elephants. He has made it obligatory upon Himself that no skeleton in which He infuses the spirit would move, but that death is its promised place and destruction its final end.

[منها في صفة الجنة :] فَلَوْ رَمَيْتَ بِبَصَرِ قَلْبِكَ نَحْوَ مَا يُوصَفُ لَكَ مِنْهَا لَعَزَفَتْ نَفْسُكَ عَنْ بَدَائِعِ مَا أُخْرِجَ إِلَى الدُّنْيَا مِنْ شَهَوَاتِهَا وَلَذَّاتِهَا، وَزَخَارِفِ مَنَاظِرِهَا، وَلَذَهِلَتْ بِالْفِكْرِ فِي اصْطِفَاقِ أَشْجَار غُيِّبَتْ عُرُوقُهَا فِي كُثْبَانِ الْمِسْكِ عَلَى سَوَاحِلِ أَنْهَارِهَا، وَفِي تَعْلِيقِ كَبَائِسِ اللُّؤْلُؤِ الرَّطْبِ فِي عَسَالِيجِهَا وَأَفْنَانِهَا، وَطُلُوعِ تِلْكَ الِّثمارِ مُخْتَلِفَةً فِي غُلُفِ أَكْمَامِهَا، تُجْنَى مِنْ غَيْرِ تَكَلُّف فَتأْتي عَلَى مُنْيَةِ مُجْتَنِيهَا، وَيُطَافُ عَلَى نُزَّالِهَا فِي أَفْنِيَةِ قُصُورِهَا بِالاْعْسَالِ الْمُصَفَّقَةِ، وَالْخُمُورِ الْمُرَوَّقَةِ.

[A part of the same sermon Describing Paradise :] If you cast your mind’s eye at what is described to you about Paradise, your heart would begin to hate the delicacies of this world that have been displayed here, namely its desires and its pleasures, and the beauties of its scenes, and you would be lost in the rustling of the trees whose roots lie hidden in the mounds of musk on the banks of the rivers in Paradise and in the attraction of the bunches of fresh pearls in the twigs and branches of those trees, and in the appearance of different fruits from under the cover of their leaves. These fruits can be picked without difficulty as they come down at the desire of their pickers. Pure honey and fermented wine will be handed round to those who settle down in the courtyards of its palaces.

قَوْمٌ لَمْ تَزَلِ الْكَرَامَةُ تَتَمادَى بهِمْ حَتَّى حَلُّوا دَارَ الْقَرَارِ، وَأَمِنُوا نُقْلَةَ الاْسْفَارِ. فَلَوْ شَغَلْتَ قَلْبَكَ أَيُّهَا الْمُسْتَمِعُ بِالْوُصُولِ إلَى مَا يَهْجُمُ عَلَيكَ مِنْ تِلْكَ الْمَنَاظِرِ الْمُونِقَةِ، لَزَهِقَتْ نَفْسُكَ شَوْقاً إِلَيْهَا، وَلَتَحَمَّلْتَ مِنْ مَجْلِسِي هذَا إِلَى مُجَاوَرَةِ أَهْلِ الْقُبُورِ اسْتِعْجَالاً بِهَا.

They are a people whom honour has always followed till they were made to settle in the house of eternal abode, and they obtained rest from the movement of journeying. O listerner! If you busy yourself in advancing towards these wonderful scenes which will rush towards you, then your heart will certainly die due to eagerness for them, and you will be prepared to seek the company of those in the graves straight away from my audience here and hasten towards them.

جَعَلَنَا اللهُ وَإِيَّاكُمْ مِمَّنْ يَسْعَى بِقَلْبِهِ إِلى مَنَازِلِ الاْبْرَارِ بِرَحْمَتِهِ.

Allāh may, by His mercy, include us and you too among those who strive with their hearts for the abodes of the virtuous.

[تفسير بعض ما في هذه الخطبة من الغريب :] قال السيد الشريف: قَوْلُهُ (عليه السلام): «ويَؤُرُّ بِمَلاقِحِهِ» الاْرُّ: كِنَايَةٌ عَنِ النّكَاح، يُقَالُ: أرّ المَرْأةَ يَؤُرّهَا، إذَا نَكَحَهَا. وَقَوْلُهُ (عليه السلام): «كَأنّهُ قلْعُ دَارِيّ عَنَجَهُ نُوتيّهُ» الْقلْعُ: شِرَاعُ السّفِينَةِ، وَدَارِيّ: مَنْسُوبٌ إلى دَارِينَ، وَهِيَ بَلْدَةٌ عَلَى الْبَحْرِ يُجْلَبُ مِنْهَا الطّيبُ. وَعَنَجَهُ: أَيْ عطفه. يُقَالُ: عَنَجْتُ النّاقَةَ أَعْنُجُهَا عَنْجاً إذَا عَطَفْتُهَا. وَالنّوتي: الْمَلاّحُ. وَقَوْلُهُ: «ضَفّتَيْ جُفُونِهِ» أَرَادَ جَانِبَيْ جُفُونِهِ. وَالضّفّتَانِ: الجانِبَانِ. وَقَوْلُهُ: «وَفِلَذَ الزّبَرْجَدِ» الْفِلَذُ: جَمْعُ فِلْذَة، وَهِيَ القِطْعَةُ. وَقَوْلُهُ: «كَبَائِسِ اللّؤْلُؤِ الرّطْبِ» الْكِبَاسَة: الْعِذْقُ. وَالْعَسَالِيجُ: الْغُصُونُ، وَاحِدُهَا عُسْلُوجٌ.

[Note explaining some of the wonderful and obscure portions of this sermon :] as-Sayyid ar-Raḍī says: In Amīr al-mu’minīn’s words “ya’urru bimalāqiḥihi”, “al-arr” implies “copulation”, e.g. When it is said “arra’r-rajulu al-mar’ata ya’urruhā”, it means “he copulated with the woman.” In his words “ka’annahu qal‘u dāriyyin ‘anajahu nūtiyyuhu”, “alqal‘” means the sail of a boat. “dārī” means belonging to Dārīn which is a small town on the coast from where scents are bought. And “‘anajahu” means “turned it”. It is said “‘anajtun’n-nāqata — like naṣartu — a ‘najuhā ‘anjan”. “When you turn the she-camel.” And “an-nūtī” means sailor. His words “daffatay jufūnihi” means edges of the eyelids, since “aḍ-ḍaffatān” means the two edges. His words “wa filadhu’z-zabarjadi”: “al-filadh” is the plural of “al-fildhah ’’ it means piece. His words “ka bā’isi’llu’lu’i’r-raṭibi”. “al-kibāsah” means bunch of dates. “al-‘asālīj”. means twigs. Its singular is “‘uslūj”.

ومن خطبة له (عليه السلام)

Advice for observing courtesy and kindness and keeping in and out of the same

[الحثّ على التآلف :] لِيَتَأَسَّ صَغِيرُكُمْ بِكَبِيرِكُمْ، وَلْيَرأَفْ كَبِيرُكُمْ بِصَغيرِكُمْ، وَلاَ تَكُونُوا كَجُفَاةِ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ: لاَ في الدِّينِ يَتَفَقَّهُونَ، وَلاَ عَنِ اللهِ يَعْقِلُونَ، كَقَيْضِ بَيْض في أَدَاح يَكُونُ كَسْرُهَا وِزْراً، وَيُخْرِجُ حِضَانُهَا شَرّاً.

The young among you should follow the elders while the elders should be kind to the young. Do not be like those rude people of the pre-Islamic (al-jāhiliyyah) period who did not exert themselves in religion nor use their intellects in the matter of Allāh. They [1] are like the breaking of eggs in the nest of a dangerous bird, because their breaking looks bad, but keeping them intact would mean the production of dangerous young ones.

[منها في بني أمية :] افْتَرَقُوا بَعْدَ أُلْفَتِهِمْ، وَتَشَتَّتُوا عَنْ أَصْلِهِمْ، فَمِنْهُمْ آخِذٌ بِغُصْن أَيْنَما مَالَ مَالَ مَعَهُ، عَلَى أَنَّ اللهَ تَعَالَى سَيَجْمَعُهُمْ لِشَرِّ يَوْم لِبَنِي أُمَيَّةَ، كَمَا تَجْتَمِعُ قَزَعُ الْخَرِيفِ يُؤَلِّفُ اللهُ بَيْنَهُمْ، ثُمَّ يَجْعَلُهُمْ رُكَاماً كَرُكَامِ السَّحَابِ، ثُمَّ يَفْتَحُ لَهُمْ أَبْوَاباً، يَسِيلُونَ مِنْ مُسْتَثَارِهِمْ كَسَيْلِ الْجَنَّتَيْنِ، حَيْثُ لَمْ تَسْلَمْ عَلَيْهِ قَارَةٌ وَلَمْ تَثْبُتْ عَلَيْهِ أَكَمَةٌ، وَلَمْ يَرُدَّ سَنَنَهُ رَصُّ طَوْد، وَلاَ حِدَابُ أَرْض، يُذعْذِعُهُمُ اللهُ فِي بُطُونِ أَوْدِيَتِهِ، ثُمَّ يَسْلُكُهُمْ يَنَابِيعَ فِي الاْرْضِ، يَأَخُذُ بِهِمْ مِنْ قَوْم حُقُوقَ قَوْم، وَيُمَكِّنُ لِقَوْم فِي دِيَارِ قَوْم. وَايْمُ اللهِ، لَيَذُوبَنَّ مَا فِي أَيْدِيهمْ بَعْدَ الْعُلُوِّ وَالتَّـمْكِينِ، كَمَا تَذُوبُ الاْلْيَةُ عَلَى النَّارِ.

[A part of the same sermon About the autocracy and oppression of the Umayyads and their fate :] They will divide after their unity and scatter away from their centre. Some of them will stick to the branches, and bending down as the branches bend, until Allāh, the Sublime, will collect them together for the day that will be worst for the Umayyads just as the scattered bits of clouds collect together in the autumn. Allāh will create affection among them. Then He will make them into a strong mass like the mass of clouds. Then he will open doors for them to flow out from their starting place like the flood of the two gardens (of Saba’) from which neither high rocks remained safe nor small hillocks, and its flow could be repulsed neither by strong mountains nor by high lands. Allāh will scatter them in the low lands of valleys and then He will make them flow like streams throughout the earth, and through them He will arrange the taking of rights of one people by another people and make one people to stay in the houses of another people. By Allāh, all their position and esteem will dissolve as fat dissolves on the fire.