Muhammad b. al-Qasim al-Astarabadi narrated to us. He said: Ja`far b. Ahmad narrated to us. He said: Abu Yahya Muhammad b. `Abdullah b. Yazid al-Muqri narrated to us. He said: Sufyan b. `Uyayna narrated to us from al-Zuhri. He said: I was with `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام, and a man from his companions had come to him. So, `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام said to him: What news do you bring, man? So, the man said: My news – O son of the Messenger of Allah – is that I have incurred a debt of four hundred gold coins, and I do not have the means to pay it off. I have weighty dependants, and I do not have that which I owe them. He said: So, `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام wept intensely. So, I said to him: What makes you weep, O son of the Messenger of Allah? So, he said: Doesn’t one weep after afflictions and great hardships? They said: Yes, O son of the Messenger of Allah. He said: So, what hardship or affliction is greater for the sanctity of the believer than to see his believing brother in a difficulty that he cannot stop and witness a poverty that he cannot uplift himself from?! He said: So, they left their gathering upon that. He said: So, one of the opponents (mukhalifin) who would insult `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام said: It is astonishing that these, who, in one instance, claim that the heavens and the Earth and all things obey them, and that Allah does not reject their requests, then in another instance, admit to being unable to rectify the situations of the choicest of their brothers. [News of] that came to the man related to the story. So, he went to `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام and said to him: O son of the Messenger of Allah! I was informed that so-and-so said such-and-such, and that was harder on me than my difficult situation. So, `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام said [to his maidservant]: May Allah relieve you, so-and-so, hold up my pre-fasting meal (suhur) and my breakfast (futur). So, she held up two morsels. Then, `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام said to the man: Take this, for we have nothing else but this. Allah will relieve you through this, and He will give you expansive goodness through this. So, the man took them (the two morsels) and went to the market not knowing what to do with them. He was thinking about the weight of his debt and the condition of his dependants. Satan whispered to him: What is the status of these two [meals] in comparison to your need? So, he passed by a fish seller who had a fish with an odour. So, he said to him: This fish of yours is no good for you, and this morsel is no good for me, so would you trade your no-good fish for my no-good morsel? So, he said: Yes. So, he took the fish and had one morsel remaining. Then, he passed by a man who had a small amount of salt. So, he said to him: Would you trade this small amount of salt for this small morsel? He said: Yes. So, the man had fish and salt, and said: I will rectify this [fish] with this [salt]. When he cut the stomach of the fish, he found two luxurious pearls in it. He praised Allah for them. He went back to his house, and there was a knock on his door. He went out to see who was at the door. He found that the fish seller and the salt seller had come, each of whom said: O servant of Allah! We and our dependants tried eating this morsel, but our teeth could not handle it. We know that you are in a bad condition and that you are forbearing misery. So, we return this bread to you, and we want you to keep what you have taken from us. So, he took the two morsels from them. After they left, there was a knock on his door. He found the messenger of `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام, who entered and said: He says to you: “Surely, Allah has given you relief, so return our food to us, for none but us can eat it.” So, the man sold the pearls for great wealth and paid off his debt. After that, his condition improved. So, one of the opponents said: How severe is this disparity! We thought that `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام was unable to rectify his poverty, but he enriched him with great wealth. How can this be? How can he be unable to rectify poverty when he can enrich this person with great wealth? So, `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام said: This is what Quraysh said to the Prophet صلى الله عليه وعلى آله وسلم: How can he go from Mecca to Bayt al-Maqdis and witness what is in it of the relics of the prophets; and return to it in one night? It took him twelve days to go from Mecca to Medina. [He said:] That was [said] after he had emigrated from it. Then, `Ali b. al-Husayn عليه السلام said: They are ignorant of the order of Allah and the order of His friends with Him. Surely, the exalted ranks cannot be reached except by submitting to Allah, abandoning proposals [that are contrary] to Him, and being content with what He plans for you. Surely, the friends of Allah are patient with adversity and misfortunes in a way that others are not, so because of that, Allah grants them success in all their requests. However, with that, they only want from Him what He wants for them.
