Leadership of believers versus wealth for the wicked

Nahj al-Balāgha|Volume 1|Book 3|Chapter 316

Nahj al-Balāgha

Book 3, Chapter 316

Leadership of believers versus wealth for the wicked
2 Aḥadīth
Ḥadīth 389

٣١٦. وَقَالَ (عليه ‏السلام): أَنا يَعْسُوبُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ، وَالْمَالُ يَعْسُوبُ الْفُجَّارِ.

316. Amīr al-mu’minim, peace be upon him, said: I am the ya‘sūb (leader) of the believers, while wealth is the leader of the wicked.

Ḥadīth 390

قال السيد الرضي: ومعنى ذلك أن المؤمنين يتبعونني، والفجار يتبعون المال، كما تتبع النحل يعسوبها، وهو رئيسها.

as-Sayyid ar-Raḍī says: It means that the believers follow me while the wicked follow wealth just as the bees follow their “ya‘sūb” who is their leader. [1]