١٩١. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): إِنَّمَا الْمَرْءُ فِى الدُّنْيَا غَرَضٌ تَنْتَضِلُ فِيهِ الْمَنَايَا وَنَهْبٌ تُبَادِرُهُ الْمَصَائِبُ وَمَعَ كُلِّ جُرْعَةٍ شَرَقٌ وَفِى كُلِّ أَكْلَةٍ غَصَصٌ وَلَا يَنَالُ الْعَبْدُ نِعْمَةً إِلَّا بِفِرَاقِ أُخْرَى وَلَا يَسْتَقْبِلُ يَوْماً مِنْ عُمُرِهِ إِلَّا بِفِرَاقِ آخَرَ مِنْ أَجَلِهِ فَنَحْنُ أَعْوَانُ الْمَنُونِ وَأَنْفُسُنَا نَصْبُ الْحُتُوفِ فَمِنْ أَيْنَ نَرْجُو الْبَقَاءَ وَهَذَا اللَّيْلُ وَالنَّهَارُ لَمْ يَرْفَعَا مِنْ شَيْ‏ءٍ شَرَفاً إِلَّا أَسْرَعَا الْكَرَّةَ فِى هَدْمِ مَا بَنَيَا وَ تَفْرِيقِ مَا جَمَعَا.

191. Amīr al-mu’minīn, peace be upon him, said: In this world man is the target towards which the arrows of death fly, and is like that wealth whose destruction is quickened by hard ships. (In this world) with every drink there is suffocation and with every morsel there is choking. Here no one gets anything unless he loses something else, and not a day of his age advances till a day passes out from his life. Thus, we are helpers of death and our lives are the targets of mortality. How then can we expect everlasting life since the night and day do not raise anything high without quickly arranging for the destruction of whatever they have built and for the splitting asunder of whatever they have joined together.

191. L’homme est une cible visée par la mort et une proie rapinée par les malheurs. A chacun de ses plaisirs s’associe une douleur et à chaque gorgée correspond une suffocation. Le serviteur ne reçoit un bien qu’en se séparant d’un autre. Il ne vit un jour de son âge qu’en éliminant un jour de son espérance de vie. Nous sommes les collaborateurs de la mort. Nos âmes envisagent la perdition. D’où espérons-nous une longue vie si le jour et la nuit ne laissent ériger un monument que pour le détruire aussitôt?!

Nahj al-Balāgha

Chapter #191