ومن كلام له (عليه السلام) قاله لاصحابه في ساعة الحرب بصفين

Amīr al-mu’minīn’s address to his followers on the battlefield of Ṣiffīn About supporting the weak and the low-spirited during the fighting

وَأَيُّ امْرِىء مِنْكُمْ أَحَسَّ مِنْ نَفْسِهِ رَبَاطَةَ جَأْش عِنْدَ اللِّقَاءِ، وَرَأَى مِنْ أَحَد مِنْ إِخْوَانِهِ فَشَلاً، فَلْيَذُبَّ عَنْ أَخِيهِ بِفَضْلِ نَجْدَتِهِ الَّتي فُضِّلَ بِهَا عَلَيْهِ كَمَا يَذُبُّ عَنْ نَفْسِهِ، فَلَوْ شَاءَ اللهُ لَجَعَلَهُ مِثْلَهُ. إِنَّ الْمَوْتَ طَالِبٌ حَثِيثٌ لاَيَفُوتُهُ الْمُقِيمُ، وَلاَ يُعْجِزُهُ الْهَارِبُ. إِنَّ أَكْرَمَ الْمَوْتِ الْقَتْلُ! وَالَّذِي نَفْسُ ابْنِ أَبِي طَالِب بِيَدِهِ، لاَلْفُ ضَرْبَة بِالسَّيْفِ أَهْوَنُ مِنْ مِيتَة عَلَى الْفِرَاشِ فِي غَيْرِ طَاعَةِ اللهِ!.

Whoever among you feels spiritedness of heart during the action and finds any of his comrades feeling disheartened should ward off (the enemies) from him just as he would do from himself, because of the superiority he enjoys over the other, for if Allāh had willed He would have made the former also like him. Certainly death is a quick seeker. Neither does the steadfast escape it nor can the runner-away defy it. The best death is to be killed. By Allāh in Whose hand (power) lies the life of the son of Abū Ṭālib, certainly a thousand strikings of the sword on me are easier to me than a death in bed which is not in obedience to Allāh.

وَكَأَنِّي أَنْظُرُ إِلَيْكُمْ تَكِشُّونَ كَشِيشَ الضِّبَابِ: لاَ تَأْخُذُونَ حَقّاً، وَلاَ تَمْنَعُونَ ضَيْماً. قَدْ خُلِّيتُمْ وَالطَّرِيقَ، فَالنَّجَاةُ لَلْمُقْتَحِمِ، وَالْهَلَكَةُ لَلْمُتَلَوِّمِ

[A part of the same sermon :] It is as if I see you uttering voices like the rustling sound of lizards! You do not seek your own claims nor do you defend against oppression. You have been let free on the path. He who rushes (into the battle) achieves salvation, while he who lags behind, hesitating, gets destruction.

Extrait de ses paroles proférées devant ses amis au cours de la bataille de Saffîne

Quiconque parmi vous ressent dans le combat du courage qui manque chez son compagnon, qu’il le défend et soutient. Si Dieu l’avait voulu. Il aurait créé ce compagnon courageux comme vous. La mort, qui réclame toujours des victimes, ne distingue pas entre celui qui résiste et celui qui prend la fuite. Être tué [dans un combat pour défendre la cause de Dieu] constitue la mort la plus digne! Par Celui qui tient entre Ses mains l’âme de Ibn Abi Taleb, être criblé par mille coups d’épée m’est plus facile que de mourir dans mon lit en état de désobéissance à Dieu!

C’est comme si je vous voyais comme des lézards qui se frottent la peau: vous ne défendez pas un droit, ni n’empêchez une injustice. Le chemin est ouvert devant vous: celui qui s’abat sur l’ennemi se sauve et celui qui s’arrête et agit avec lenteur se perd.

Nahj al-Balāgha

Chapter #123