ومن كلام له (عليه السلام) وفيه يبيّن سبب طلبه الحكم ويصف الامام الحقّ

Grounds for accepting the Caliphate and the qualities of a ruler and governor

أَيَّتُهَا النُّفُوسُ الْمُخْتَلِفَة، وَالْقُلُوبُ الْمُتَشَتِّتَةُ، الشَّاهِدَةُ أَبْدَانُهُمْ، وَالْغَائِبَةُ عَنْهُمْ عُقُولُهُمْ، أَظْأَرُكُمْ عَلَى الْحَقِّ وَأَنْتُمْ تَنْفِرُونَ عَنْهُ نُفُورَ الْمِعْزَى مِنْ وَعْوَعَةِ الاْسَدِ! هَيْهَاتَ أَنْ أَطْلَعَ بِكُمْ سَرَارَ الْعَدْلِ، أَوْ أُقِيمَ اعْوِجَاجِ الْحَقِّ.

O (people of) differing minds and divided hearts, whose bodies are present but wits are absent. I am leading you (amicably) towards truthfulness, but you run away from it like goats and sheep running away from the howling of a lion. How hard it is for me to uncover for you the secrets of justice, or to straighten the curve of truthfulness.

اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّهُ لَمْ يَكُنِ الَّذِي كَانَ مِنَّا مُنَافَسَةً فِي سُلْطَان، وَلاَ الْتمَاسَ شِيء مِنْ فُضُولِ الْحُطَامِ، وَلكِنْ لِنَرِدَ الْمَعَالِمَ مِنْ دِينِكَ، وَنُظْهِرَ الاْصْلاَحَ فِي بِلاَدِكَ، فَيَأْمَنَ الْمَظْلُومُونَ مِنْ عِبَادِكَ، وَتُقَامَ الْمُعَطَّلَةُ مِنْ حُدُودِكَ.

O my Allāh! Thou knowest that what we did was not to seek power nor to acquire anything from the vanities of the world, We rather wanted to restore the signs of Thy religion and to usher prosperity into Thy cities so that the oppressed among Thy creatures might be safe and Thy forsaken commands might be established.

اللَّهُمْ إِنّي أَوَّلُ مَنْ أَنابَ، وَسَمِعَ وَأَجَابَ، لَمْ يَسْبِقْنِي إِلاَّ رَسُولُ اللهِ (صلى الله عليه وآله) بِالصَّلاَةِ.

O my Allāh! I am the first who leaned (towards Thee) and who heard and responded (to the call of Islam). No one preceded me in prayer (ṣalāt) except the Prophet.

وقَدْ عَلِمْتُمْ أَنَّهُ لاَ يَنْبَغِي أَنْ يَكُونَ عَلَى الْفُرُوجِ وَالدِّمَاءِ وَالمَغَانِمِ وَالاَحْكَامِ وَإِمَامَةِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ الْبَخِيلُ، فَتَكُونَ فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ نَهْمَتُهُ، وَلاَ الْجَاهِلُ فَيُضِلَّهُمْ بِجَهْلِهِ، وَلاَ الْجَافِي فَيَقْطَعَهُمْ بِجَفَائِهِ، وَلاَ الجَائِفُ لِلدُّوَلِ فَيَتَّخِذَ قَوْماً دُونَ قَوْم، وَلاَ الْمُرْتَشِي فِي الْحُكْمِ فَيَذْهَبَ بِالْحُقُوقِ وَيَقِفَ بِهَا دُونَ المَقَاطِعِ، وَلاَ الْمَعطِّلُ لِلسُّنَّةِ فَيُهْلِكَ الاُمَّةَ.

You certainly know that he who is in charge of honour, life, booty (enforcement of), legal commandments and the leardership of the Muslims should not be a miser as his greed would aim at their wealth, nor be ignorant as he would then mislead there with his ignorance, nor be of rude behaviour who would estrange them with his rudeness, nor should he deal unjustly with wealth thus preferring one group over another, nor should he accept. a bribe while taking decisions, as he would forfeit (others) rights and hold them up without finality, nor should he ignore sunnah as he would ruin the people.

où il expose pourquoi il demande à gouverner et décrit le vrai imam

O âmes en désaccord, ô coeurs dispersés, ô gens présents par leurs corps mais absents par leurs intelligences! Je vous fais incliner vers la vérité et vous s’en éloignez comme les chèvres fuient le hurlement du lion! Qu’il est loin de moi de vous faire monter sur un piédestal pour que vous voyez les ténèbres qui cachent la justice, et la tortuosité qui affecte la vérité.

Seigneur! Tu sais que notre attitude [politique] n’était pas guidée par un désir ardent du pouvoir, ni par la sollicitation des vanités de ce inonde, mais par le devoir de vivifier votre religion et de réformer votre pays. Alors, les opprimés parmi vos serviteurs seront assurés et tes commandements abandonnés seront établis.

Seigneur! Je suis le premier converti à l’Islam, le premier qui a entendu le Prophète, répondu à son message et entamé la prière.

Vous avez appris qu’il ne faut pas que celui qui est préposé à protéger les honneurs des femmes et le sang des hommes, à administrer les butins et les jugements, bref, à être l’imam des musulmans soit un avare avide de leurs biens, ni un trésorier qui distribue injustement l’argent public, ni un juge qui se laisse soudoyer et prononce des jugements inéquitables et contraires aux commandements de Dieu, ni finalement un imam qui détruit la Sounna et abolit ia nation.

Nahj al-Balāgha

Chapter #131