Nahj al-Balāgha

ومن كلام له (عليه السلام) رَوَى ذِعْلَبٌ الْيَمَامِيُّ عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ قُتَيْبَةَ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ يَزِيدَ عَنْ مَالِكِ بْنِ دِحْيَةَ قَالَ : كُنَّا عِنْدَ أَمِيرِ الْمُؤْمنِيِنَ عليه السلام وَقَدْ ذُكِرَ عِنْدَهُ اخْتِلَافُ النَّاسِ فَقَالَ:

Dhi‘lib al-Yamāmī has related from Aḥmad ibn Qutaybah, and he from ‘Abdullāh ibn Yazīd and he from from Mālik ibn Diḥyah who said, “We were with Amīr al-mu’minīn when discussion arose about the differences of men (in features and conduct) and then Amīr al-mu’minīn said”:

إِنَّمَا فَرَّقَ بَيْنَهُمْ مَبَادِىءُ طِينِهِمْ، وَذلِكَ أَنَّهُمْ كَانُوا فِلْقَةً مِنْ سَبَخِ أَرْض وَعَذْبِهَا، وَحَزْنِ تُرْبَة وَسَهْلِهَا، فَهُمْ عَلَى حَسَبِ قُرْبِ أَرْضِهِمْ يَتَقَارَبُونَ، وَعَلَى قَدْرِ اخْتِلاَفِهَا يَتَفَاوَتُونَ، فَتَامُّ الرُّوَاءِ نَاقِصُ الْعَقْلِ، وَمَادُّ الْقَامَةِ قَصِيرُ الْهِمَّةِ، وَزَاكِي الْعَمَلِ قَبِيحُ المَنْظَرِ، وَقَرِيبُ الْقَعْرِ بَعِيدُ السَّبْرِ،مَعْرُوفُ الضَّرِيبَةِ مُنْكَرُ الْجَلِيبَةِ، وَتَائِهُ الْقَلْبِ مُتَفَرِّقُ اللُّبِّ، وَطَلِيقُ اللِّسَانِ حدِيدُ الْجَنَانِ.

They differ among themselves because of the sources [1] of their clay (from which they have been created). This is because they are either from saltish soil or sweet soil or from rugged earth or soft earth. They, resemble each other on the basis of the affinity of their soil and differ according to its difference. Therefore, sometimes a person of handsome features is weak in intelligence, a tall statured person is of low courage, a virtuous person is ugly in appearance, a short statured person is far-sighted, a good-natured person has an evil trait, a person of perplexed heart has bewildering mind and a sharp-tongued person has a wakeful heart.