Nahj al-Balāgha

ومن خطبة له (عليه السلام) في الوصية بأمور

Allāh’s favours

[التقوى :] أُوصِيكُمْ، أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ، بِتَقْوَى اللهِ، وَكَثْرَةِ حَمْدِهِ عَلَى آلاَئِهِ إِلَيْكُمْ، وَنَعْمَائِهِ عَلَيْكُمْ، وَبَلاَئِهِ لَدَيْكُمْ. فَكَمْ خَصَّكُمْ بِنِعْمَة، وَتَدَارَكَكُمْ بِرَحْمَة! أَعْوَرْتُمْ لَهُ فَسَتَرَكُمْ، وَتَعَرَّضْتُمْ لاِخْذِهِ فَأَمْهَلَكُمْ!

I advise you, O people, to fear Allāh and to praise Him profusely for His favours to you and His reward for you and His obligations on you. See how He chose you for favours and dealt with you with mercy. You sinned openly; He kept you covered. You behaved in a way to incur His punishment, but He gave you more time.

[الموت :] وَأُوصِيكُمْ بِذِكْرِ الْمَوْتِ، وَإِقْلاَلِ الْغَفْلَةِ عَنْهُ، وَكَيْفَ غَفْلَتُكُمْ عَمَّا لَيْسَ يُغْفِلُكُمْ، وَطَمَعُكُمْ فِيمَنْ لَيْسَ يُمْهِلُكُمْ؟! فَكَفَى وَاعِظاً بِمَوْتَى عَايَنْتُمُوهُمْ، حُمِلُوا إلَى قُبُورِهِمْ غَيْرَ رَاكِبِينَ، وَأُنْزِلُوا فِيهَا غَيْرَ نَازِلِينَ، كَأَنَّهُمْ لَمْ يَكُونُوا لِلدُّنْيَا عُمَّاراً، وَكَأَنَّ الاخِرَةَ لَمْ تَزَلْ لَهُمْ دَاراً،

[Condition of persons facing death :] I also advise you to remember death and to lessen your heedlessness towards it. Why should you be heedless of Him Who is not heedless of you? Why expect from him (i.e., the angel of death) who will not give you time? The dead whom you have been watching suffice as preachers. They were carried to their graves, not riding themselves, and were placed in them but not of their own accord. It seems as if they never lived in this world and as if the next world had always been their abode.

أَوْحَشوُا مَا كَانُوا يُوطِنُونَ، وَأَوْطَنُوا مَا كَانُوا يُوحِشُونَ، وَاشْتَغَلُوا بِمَا فَارَقُوا، وَأَضَاعُوا مَا إِلَيْهِ انْتَقَلُوا، لاَ عَنْ قَبِيح يَسْتَطِيعُونَ انْتِقَالاً، وَلاَ فِي حَسَن يَسْتَطِيعُونَ ازْدِيَاداً، أَنِسُوا بِالدُّنْيَا فَغرَّتْهُمْ، وَوَثِقُوا بِهَا فَصَرَعَتْهُمْ.

They have made lonely the place where they were living, and are now living where they used to feel lonely. They remained busy about what they had to leave, and did not care for where they were to go. Now, they cannot remove themselves from evil, nor add to their virtues. They were attached to the world and it deceived them. They trusted it and it overturned them.

[سرعة النفاد :] فَسَابِقُوا ـ رَحِمَكُمُ اللهُ ـ إِلَى مَنَازِلِكُمْ الَّتِي أُمِرْتُمْ أَنْ تَعْمُرُوهَا، وَالَّتِي رُغِّبْتُمْ فِيهَا، وَدُعِيتُمْ إِلَيْهَا. وَاسْتَتِمُّوا نِعَمَ اللهِ عَلَيْكُمْ بِالصَّبْرِ عَلَى طَاعَتِهِ، وَالْـمُجَانَبَةِ لِمَعْصِيَتِهِ، فَإِنَّ غَداً مِنَ الْيَوْمِ قَرِيبٌ. مَا أَسْرَعَ السَّاعَاتِ فِي الْيَوْمِ، وَأَسْرَعَ الاْيَّامَ فِي الشَّهْرِ، وَأَسْرَعَ الشُّهُورَ فِي السَّنَةِ، وَأَسْرَعَ السِّنِينَ فِي الْعُمُرِ!

[Transience of this world :] May Allāh have pity on you. You should therefore hasten towards (the preparation of) houses which you have been commanded to populate, and towards which you have been called and invited. Seek the completion of Allāh’s favours on you by exercising endurance in His obedience and abstention from His disobedience, because tomorrow is close to today. How fast are the hours of the day, how fast are the days in the month, how fast are the months in the year, and how fast the years in a life.

ومن كلام له (عليه السلام) في الإيمان و وجوب الهجرة وصعوبة الإيمان وعلم الوصي

Steadfast and transient belief and the obligation of migration (hijrah)

[أقسام الإيمان :] فَمِنَ الاْيمَانِ مَا يَكُونُ ثَابِتاً مُسْتَقِرّاً فِي الْقُلُوبِ، وَمِنْهُ مَا يَكُونُ عَوَارِىَ بَيْنَ الْقُلُوبِ وَالصُّدورِ، إِلَى أَجَل مَعْلُوم، فَإِذَا كَانَتْ لَكُمْ بَرَاءَةٌ مِنْ أَحَد فَقِفُوهُ حَتّى يَحْضُرَهُ الْمَوْتُ، فَعِنْدَ ذَلِكَ يَقَعُ حدُّ الْبَرَاءَةِ.

One belief is that which is firm and steadfast in hearts, and one is that which remains temporarily in the heart and the breast up to a certain time. If you were to acquit (yourself) before any person, you should wait till death approaches him, for that is the time limit for being acquitted.

[وجوب الهجرة :] وَالْهِجْرَةُ قَائِمَةٌ عَلَى حَدِّهَا الاْوَّلِ، مَا كَانَ لله تعالى فِي أَهْلِ الاْرْضِ حَاجَةٌ مِنْ مُسْتَسِرِّ الاْمَّةِ وَمُعْلِنِهَا، لاَ يَقَعُ اسْمُ الْهِجْرَةِ عَلَى أَحَد إلاَّ بِمَعْرِفَةِ الْحُجَّةِ في الاْرْضِ، فَمَنْ عَرَفَهَا وَأَقَرَّ بِهَا فَهُوَ مُهَاجِرٌ، وَلاَ يَقَعُ اسْمُ الاسْتِضْعَافِ عَلَى مَنْ بَلَغَتْهُ الْحُجَّةُ فَسَمِعَتْهَا أُذُنُهُ وَوَعَاهَا قَلْبُهُ.

[The obligation of migration :] And immigration stands as its original position. Allāh has no need towards him who secretly accepts belief or him who openly does so. Immigration will not apply to any one unless he recognizes the proof (of Allāh) on the earth. Whoever reco nizes him and acknowledges him would be a muhājir (immigrant). istiḍ‘āf (i.e. freedom from the obligation of immigration) does not apply to him whom the proof (of Allāh) reaches and he hears it and his heart preserves it. [1]

[صعوبة الإيمان :] إِنَّ أَمْرَنا صَعْبٌ مُسْتَصْعَبٌ، لاَ يَحْتَمِلُهُ إِلاَّ عَبْدٌ مُؤْمِنٌ امْتَحَنَ اللهُ قَلْبَهُ لِلاِيمَانِ، وَلاَ يَعِي حَدِيثَنَا إِلاَّ صُدُورٌ أَمِينَةٌ، وَأَحْلاَمٌ رَزِينَةٌ.

[Arduousness of belief :] Certainly, our case is difficult and complicated. No one can bear it except a believer whose heart Allāh has tried with belief. Our traditions will not be preserved except by trustworthy hearts and (men of) solid understanding.

[علم الوصي :] أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ، سَلُوني قَبْلَ أَنْ تَفْقِدُوني، فَلاَنَا بِطُرُقِ السَّماءِ أَعْلَمُ مِنِّي بِطُرُقِ الاْرْضِ، قَبْلَ أَنْ تَشْغَرَ بِرِجْلِهَا فِتْنَةٌ تَطَأُ فِي خِطَامِهَا وَتَذْهَبُ بِأَحْلاَمِ قَوْمِهَا.

[The knowledge of the successor (wasi), his challenge “Ask me before you miss me” and prophecy about the Umayyads :] O people! ask me before you miss me, because certainly I am acquainted with the passages of the sky more than the passages of the earth, [2] and before that mischief springs upon its feet which would trample even the nosestring and destroy the wits of the people.