Translator’s Introduction

On silence Except when Speaking what is Good, Abandonment of what does not concern one, and Slander

On Etiquette and Encouraging Others to do Good

On Good Character, Kindness and Anger

Virtue and Vice

Kindness to Parents, Relatives, Kinsfolk and Severance of Ties

The Rights of Neighbors

What has come in Reference to Slaves

What has come in Reference to this World and One who Seeks it

The Two Angels and what they Record

Humility and Arrogance

Showing off, Hypocrisy, Self-Admiration, and Conceit

Repentance, Seeking Forgiveness, Regret, and Admission (of Guilt)

Crying out of Fear of Allah

Remembering Death and the Grave

What the Believer and Disbeliever will See (Before Dying)

Questioning in the Grave, Chastisement in the Grave, and Barzakh

Resurrection, Reckoning, Standing Before Allah, the Exalted, and al-Ṣirāṭ

Intercession and Those who will come out of the Fire (of Hell)

Traditions About Paradise and Hell

Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil

حدثنا الحسين بن سعيد قال: حدثنا محمد بن سنان عن طلحة بن زيد عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال: سمعته يقول: إن مثل الدنيا مثل الحية، مسها لين وفى جوفها السم القاتل يحذرها الرجل العاقل ويهوى إليها الصبيان بأيديهم.

1.Al-Ḥusayn ibn Saʿīd narrated to us, “Muḥammad ibn Sinān narrated to us from Ṭalḥah ibn Zayd, from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) whom he heard saying, ‘The example of this world is like a snake, it is soft to the touch yet within it lies a lethal poison. The wise person is cautious of it, yet children are inclined to touch it with their hands.’”

فضالة بن أيوب عن عبد الله بن فرقد عن أبي كهمش عن عبد المؤمن الأنصاري عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله: استحيوا من الله حق الحياء فقيل يا رسول الله: ومن يستحيى من الله حق الحياء؟ فقال: من استحيى من الله حق الحياء فليكتب اجله بين عينيه وليزهد في الدنيا وزينتها ويحفظ الرأس وما حوى والبطن وما طوى ولا ينسى المقابر والبلى.

2.Faḍālah ibn Ayyūb narrated from ʿAbdullāh ibn Farqad, from Abū Kahmash, from ʿAbd al-Muʾmin al-Anṣārī, from Abū Jaʿfar (a) who said,“The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, ‘Be ashamed in front of Allah with true shame.’ Someone asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah, who is [considered to be] ashamed in front of Allah with true shame [and how can this be achieved]?’ He (ṣ) said, ‘Whoever wants to be ashamed in front of Allah with true shame, let him always keep his death before his eyes, be abstemious in this world and [uninterested in] its embellishments, protect the head and all that it perceives [of sight, sound, taste, and thought] as well as the stomach and all that it digests [from that which is forbidden], and [let him] never forget the graves and the decrepit ruins [which show that this world is evanescent].’”

فضالة عن داود بن فرقد قال: قلت لأبي عبد الله عليه السلام ما يسرني بحقكم الدنيا وما فيها فقال: أف للدنيا وما فيها وما هي يا داود هل هي الا ثوبان وملاء بطنك؟

3.Faḍālah narrated from Dāwūd ibn Farqad who said, “I told Abū ʿAbdillāh (a), ‘By your right,[1] this world and what it contains does not please me.’ He said, ‘Fie upon this world and what it contains! And what is it O Dāwūd? Is it anything other than two pieces of cloth and that which fills your belly?’”

عثمان بن عيسى عن سماعة قال: سمعت أبا عبد الله عليه السلام يقول: اصبروا على طاعة الله واصبروا من معاصي الله فإنما الدنيا ساعة فما مضى منها فلست تعرفه فاصبر على تلك الساعة التي أنت فيها وكانت قد أعطيت.

4.ʿUthmān ibn ʿĪsā narrated from Samāʿah who said, “I heard Abā ʿAbdillāh (a) say, ‘Remain patient in obeying Allah, and remain patient in keeping away from disobeying Allah, for indeed this world is short lived; that which has passed from it is [such that you find neither joy nor sorrow for it now, while that which has not yet come is] [1] unknown to you, so remain patient in the present moment that you are in, and it will be as though you have been granted [its reward].’”

النضر عن درست عن إسحاق بن عمار عن ميسر عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال: لما نزلت هذه الآية: (ولا تمدن عينيك إلى ما متعنا به أزواجا منهم زهرة الحياة الدنيا) استوى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله جالسا ثم قال: من لم يتعز بعزاء الله تقطعت نفسه حسرات على الدنيا ومن أتبع بصره ما في أيدي الناس طال همه ولم يشف غيظه ومن لم يعرف الله عليه نعمه الا في مطعم أو مشرب قصر عمله ودنى عذابه.

5.Al-Naḍr narrated from Durust, from Isḥāq ibn ʿAmmār, from Muyassir, from Abū Jaʿfar (a) who said, “When the following verse was revealed: Do not gaze longingly at what We have given some of them to enjoy, the [fleeting] finery of this worldly life… (Q20:131), the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) sat up straight and then said, ‘Whoever does not take solace with the consolation of Allah will overwhelm himself with [sorrow and] regret for [what he has lost of] this world; and whoever follows with his gaze that which is in the possession of others, his sadness will be prolonged and his anger will never subside; and whoever does not recognize the blessing of Allah upon him except in his food or drink, his action will fall short and his chastisement will be near.’”

النضر بن سويد عن إبراهيم بن عبد الحميد عن إسحاق بن غالب قال: قال لي أبو عبد الله عليه السلام: يا إسحاق كم تر أصحاب هذه الآية؟ ان أعطوا منها رضوا وان لم يعطوا منها إذا هم يسخطون، ثم قال لي: هم أكثر من ثلثي الناس.

6.Al-Naḍr ibn Suwayd narrated from Ibrāhīm ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd, from Isḥāq ibn Ghālib who said, “Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) said to me, ‘O Isḥāq, how many [people] do you think the following verse refers to: If they are given some of it they are pleased, but if they are not given from it they get enraged (Q9:58)?’ Then he said to me, ‘They are more than two-thirds of the people.’”

النضر عن إبراهيم بن عبد الحميد عن إسحاق بن غالب قال: سمعت أبا عبد الله عليه السلام يقول: في هذه الآية ج ولولا أن يكون الناس أمة واحدة لجعلنا لمن يكفر بالرحمن لبيوتهم سقفا من فضة ومعارج عليها يظهرون، قال: لو فعل لكفر الناس جميعا

7.Al-Naḍr narrated from Ibrāhīm ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd, from Isḥāq ibn Ghālib who said, “I heard Abā ʿAbdillāh (a) speaking about the following verse: Were it not that people might have become a single nation [of disbelievers], We would have given all those who disbelieve in the Compassionate [Lord] houses with roofs of silver, and sweeping stairways to ascend (Q43:33). He (a) said, ‘If He did so all the people would be disbelievers.’”

الحسين بن علوان عن سعد بن طريف عن الأصبغ بن نباته قال: كنت جالسا عند أمير المؤمنين صلوات الله وسلامه عليه فجاء إليه رجل فشكا إليه الدنيا وذمها فقال له أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام: ان الدنيا منزل صدق لمن صدقها ودار غنى لمن تزود منها ودار عاقبة لمن فهم عنها مسجد أحباء الله ومهبط وحى الله ومصلى ملائكته ومتجر أوليائه اكتسبوا فيها الجنة وربحوا فيها الرحمة فلما ذا تذمها؟ وقد آذنت ببينها ونادت بانقطاعها ونعت نفسها وأهلها فمثلت ببلائها إلى البلاء وشوقت بسرورها إلى السرور، راحت بفجيعة وابتكرت بعافية تحذيرا وترغيبا وتخويفا فذمها رجال غداة الندامة وحمدها آخرون ذكرتهم فذكروا وحدثتهم فصدقوا فيا أيها الذام للدنيا المعتل بتغرير هامتي استذمت إليك الدنيا وغرتك؟ أبمنازل آبائك من الثرى؟ أم بمضاجع أمهاتك من البلى؟ كم مرضت بكفيك؟ وكم عللت بيديك تبتغى له الشفاء وتستوصف له الأطباء لم ينفعه اشفاقك ولم تعفر طلبتك مثلت لك به الدنيا نفسك وبمصرعه مصرعك فجدير بك أن لا يفنى به بكائك وقد علمت أنه لا ينفعك أحبائك.

8.Al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿUlwān narrated from Saʿd ibn Ṭarīf, from Aṣbagh ibn Nubātah who said, “I was seated with Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a) when a man came to him and complained about the world and spoke ill of it. So Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a) told him, ‘Verily this world is an abode of truth for the one who is veracious with it, an abode of riches for the one who takes provisions from it [for the Hereafter], and an abode of consequence for those who comprehend it. It is the place of prostration by those who love Allah, the place where the revelation of Allah descended, where His angels pray [and send salutations], where His friends conduct trade [for the Hereafter] in which they earn Paradise and profit from [Divine] mercy. So why do you criticise it when parting from it has been announced and the call to separate from it has been made, and it has informed [everyone] of its own death and the death of its inhabitants? Through its trial it exemplifies the trial [of the Hereafter] and through its delight it exemplifies the delight [of Paradise]. It departs with tragedy and arrives with wellbeing, as a warning, an enticement, and a frightening alarm. Hence, some people criticised it after their regret and others praised it. It reminded them, so they remembered and it spoke to them, so they accepted [its speech]. So O you who are criticising this world while being beset by its delusions, when did the world elicit your disdain and [how did it] deceive you? Was it by the abodes of your forefathers within the earth or the tombs of your mothers in the decrepit ruins? How many sick people did you tend to yourself and care for by your own hands? You would seek out a cure for him and consult physicians, yet neither did your concern benefit you, nor did you achieve what you sought. Through him, the world demonstrated to you your own reality, and by his demise, your own [eventual] demise. So it behoves you that your tears should never end, as you have realised that your loved ones cannot benefit you.’”

عبد الله بن المغيرة عن طلحة بن زيد عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال: تمثلت الدنيا لعيسى عليه السلام في صورة امرأة زرقاء فقال لها: كم تزوجت؟ قالت: كثيرا قال: فكل طلقك؟ قالت: بلى كلا قتلت قال: فويح أزواجك الباقين كيف لا يعتبرون بالماضين قال: وقال أبو عبد الله عليه السلام: مثل الدنيا كمثل البحر المالح كلما شرب العطشان منه ازداد عطشا حتى يقتله

9.ʿAbdullāh ibn al-Mughīrah narrated from Ṭalḥah ibn Zayd, from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) who said, “This world appeared to ʿĪsā (a) in the for of a blue-eyed woman. He asked her, ‘How many have you married?’ She said, ‘Many.’ He asked, ‘Did you divorce them all?’ She said, ‘Rather, I killed them all!’ He said, ‘Then woe to your remaining spouses! How can they not take lesson from those who have passed?’” Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) [then] said, “The example of this world is like the salty sea – every time a thirsty person drinks from it, it increases his thirst, until it kills him.”

عبد الله بن المغيرة عن إسماعيل أبى زيادة يرفع الحديث إلى أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام قال: قيل له: ما الزهد في الدنيا؟ قال: حرامها فتكتبه.

10.ʿAbdullāh ibn Mughīrah narrated from Ismāʿīl ibn Abī Zayd who attributed the statement to Amīr al-Muʾminīn (a) that when he was asked, “What is detachment (al-zuhd) from the world?” He said, “[It pertains to] what is forbidden thereof – so restrain yourself from it and shun it.”[1]

فضالة عن أبان بن عثمان عن سلمة بن أبي حفص عن أبي عبد الله عن أبيه عليهما السلام عن جابر قال: مر رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله بالسوق واقبل يريد الغالية والناس يكتنفه فمر بجدي أسك على مزبلة ملقى وهو ميت فاخذ بأذنه فقال أيكم يحب أن يكون هذا له بدرهم؟ قالوا: ما نحب أنه لنا بشئ وما يصنع (نصنع) به؟ فقال: أفتحبون انه لكم؟ قالوا: لا حتى: قال ذلك ثلاث مرات فقالوا: والله لو كان حيا كان عيبا فكيف وهو ميت فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله: ان الدنيا على الله أهون من هذا عليكم.

11.Faḍālah narrated from Abān ibn ʿUthmān, from Salamah ibn Abī Ḥafṣ, from Abū ʿAbdillāh, from his father (a), from Jābir who said, “The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) passed by the market and approached [one of the shops] seeking to buy some perfume, while the people had surrounded him. Then he passed by a dead goat with its ears cut, lying in a rubbish heap, so he took hold of it by its [severed] ear and asked, ‘Who among you would want to buy this for a dirham?’ They said, ‘We would not like to buy this for any amount – what would we do with it?’ He said, ‘Would you not like to possess it?’ They said, ‘No!’ He (ṣ) repeated that [question] thrice, so they said, ‘By Allah, even if it were alive it would be flawed, so how about now when it is dead!’ The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, ‘Verily the [material] world is less valuable to Allah than this [dead goat] is to you.’”

فضالة عن أبان عن زياد بن أبي رجاء عن أبي هاشم عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال: من أصبح والدنيا أكبر همه شتت (الله) عليه أمره وكان فقره بين عينيه ولم يأته من الدنيا الا ما قدر له ومن كانت الآخرة أكبر همه كشف الله عنه ضيقه وجمع له أمره واتته الدنيا وهي راغمة.

12.Faḍālah narrates from Abān, from Ziyād ibn Abī Rajāʾ, from Abū Hishām, from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) who said, “Whoever starts his day with the world as his greatest concern [and objective], Allah will scatter his affair and his poverty will be [seen] in front of him, and nothing of this world will come to him except that which has been destined for him. But whoever’s greatest concern is the Hereafter, Allah will remove his constraints for him and gather his affair, and this world will come to him in [complete] submission.”

حماد بن عيسى عن الحسين بن المختار عن إسماعيل بن أبي حمزة قال: حدثني جابر قال: قال لي أبو جعفر عليه السلام يا جابر انزل الدنيا منك كمنزل نزلته ثم أردت التحرك منه من يومك ذلك أو كمال اكتسبته في منامك واستيقظت فليس في يدك منه شئ وإذا كنت في جنازة فكن كأنك أنت المحمول وكأنك سألت ربك الرجعة إلى الدنيا لتعمل عمل من عاش فان الدنيا عند العلماء مثل الظل.

13.Ḥammād ibn ʿĪsā narrated from al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Mukhtār, from Ismāʾīl ibn Abī Ḥamzah who said, “Jābir narrated to me saying, ‘Abū Jaʿfar (a) said to me, ‘O Jābir, take this world as you would a place where you have arrived and then wish to depart from on the very same day, or as wealth that you have earned in your dream and when you awake there is nothing of it in your hand. And when you are at a funeral, then be as though it is you who is being carried [to your grave] and as though you are the one who is asking his Lord to send him back to the world so that you may work [and perform the deeds] like those who are living, for indeed to the learned, this world is like the shadow [that soon passes].”

النضر بن سويد عن عبد الله بن سنان قال سمعت أبا عبد الله عليه السلام يقول: دخل على النبي صلى الله وآله رجل وهو على حصير قد اثر في جسمه ووسادة ليف قد اثرت في خده فجعل يمسح ويقول: ما رضي بهذا كسرى ولا قيصر انهم ينامون على الحرير والديباج وأنت على هذا الحصير؟ قال فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله: لأنا خير منهما والله لأنا أكرم منهما نون والله ما أنا والدنيا، إنما مثل الدنيا كمثل رجل راكب مر على شجرة ولها فئ فاستظل تحتها فلما ان مال الظل عنها ارتحل فذهب وتركه.

14.Al-Naḍr ibn Suwayd narrated from ʿAbdullāh ibn Sinān who said, “I hear Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) saying, ‘A man came to visit the Prophet (ṣ) while he was sitting on a mat which had left marks on his body, and a pillow made of palm fibers which had left a mark on his cheek. So he began wiping [his blessed face] saying, “Chosroes and Caesar would never be pleased with such [for themselves]. They sleep on silk and brocade while you are on this mat!” So the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, “I am surely better than both of them by Allah, I am surely more noble than them both by Allah! What do I have to do with this world? Indeed the example of this world is but like a man who rides past a tree that has a shadow, so he takes shade under it. When the shadow recedes, he departs and leaves it.”’”

النضر بن سويد عن أبي سيار عن مروان عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال قال لي علي بن الحسين عليهما السلام: ما عرض لي قط أمران: أحدهما للدنيا والاخر للآخرة فآثرت الدنيا الا رأيت ما أكره قبل ان أمسى ثم قال أبو عبد الله عليه السلام لبنى أمية انهم يؤثرون الدنيا على الآخرة منذ ثمانين سنة وليس يرون شيئا يكرهونه.

15.Al-Naḍr ibn Suwayd narrated from Abū Sayyār, from Marwān, from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) who said, “ʿAlī ibn al-Ḥusayn (a) said to me, ‘It has never happened that two matters, one for this world and the other for the Hereafter, were presented before me and I prioritized the [matter of] this world but that I saw what I disliked before the end of the day.’” Then Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) said regarding the Banī Umayyah, “They have been preferring [and prioritizing] this world over the Hereafter for the past eighty years, yet they do not see anything that they dislike.”[1]

محمد بن أبي عمير عن علي الأحمص عمن أخبره عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام انه كان يقول: نعم العون الدنيا على الآخرة.

16.Muḥammad ibn Abī ʿUmayr narrated from ʿAlī al-Aḥmaṣ, from the one who informed him of it, from Abū Jaʿfar (a) who used to say, “How good a helper this world is for the Hereafter [if it is approached correctly].”

الحسن بن علي قال: سمعت أبا الحسن عليه السلام يقول ما قال عيسى للحواريين: يا بني آدم لا تأسوا على ما فاتكم (من دنياكم) كما لا يأسى أهل الدنيا على ما فاتهم من آخرتهم إذا أصابوا دنياهم

17.Al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī said, “I heard Abā al-Ḥasan (a) say, ‘[One of the things] that ʿĪsā (a) said to the disciples was, “Do not grieve over what you have missed of this world of yours, just as the people of this world do not grieve over what they have missed from their Hereafter when they acquire their worldly objectives.”’”

محمد بن أبي عمير عن هشام بن سالم عن أبي يعقوب قال: سمعت أبا عبد الله عليه السلام يقول: انا لنحب الدنيا وانا لا نعطاها خير لنا وما اعطى أحد منها شيئا الأنقص من حظه في الآخرة.

18.Muḥammad ibn Abī ʿUmayr narrated from Hishām ibn Sālim, from Abū Yaʿqūb who said, “I heard Abā ʿAbdillāh (a) say, ‘Verily we love this world yet it is actually better for it not to be granted to us, and nothing from it is granted to anyone but that his share is thereby reduced in the Hereafter.’”

النضر بن سويد عن عاصم عن أبي بصير عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله: جائني ملك فقال: يا محمد ربك يقرئك السلام ويقول لك: ان شئت جعلت لك بطحاء مكة رضراض ذهب؟ قال: فرفع النبي صلى الله عليه وآله رأسه إلى السماء فقال: يا رب أشبع يوما فاحمدك وأجوع يوما فأسئلك.

19.Al-Naḍr ibn Suwayd narrated from ʿĀṣim, from Abū Baṣīr, from Abū Jaʿfar (a) who said, “The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, ‘An angel came and told me, “O Muḥammad, your Lord sends you greetings and says to you: If you wish, I will turn the plains of Makkah into nuggets of gold [for you].”’ So the Prophet (ṣ) raised his head to the sky and said, ‘O Lord, I am sated one day so I praise You, and I am hungry another day so I implore You [and that is enough for me].’”

ابن أبي عمير عن هشام بن سالم عن اليماني قال: سمعت علي بن الحسين عليهما السلام يقول: عجبا كل العجب لمن عمل لدار الفناء وترك دار الآخرة.

20.Ibn Abī ʿUmayr narrated from Hishām ibn Sālim, from al-Yamānī who said, “I heard ʿAlī ibn al-Ḥusayn (a) say, ‘How truly amazing it is that one works for the perishing abode yet abandons the [permanent] abode of the Hereafter.’”

Kitāb al-Zuhd

Book 2, Chapter 8