Lessons from Nahjul Balagha [Electronic resources] نسخه متنی

Sermons
Sermon
120

SERMON 120

A man from among the companions
of Amir al-mu'minin stood up and said, "O' Amir al-mu'minin,
you first stopped us from Arbitration and thereafter gave order
for it. We do not know which of these two was more
appropriate." Amir al-mu'minin struck one hand over the other
and said:

This is the reward of
one who breaks pledge. By Allah, when I gave you my orders
(namely) to abide by arbitration I had led you to an undesirable
thing (namely war) in which Allah had ordained good. If you had
been steadfast I would have guided you, if you had been bent I
would have straightened you and if you had refused I would have
rectified you. This was the surest way. But with whom and to whom.
I wanted my treatment from you but you proved to be my disease,
like the extractor of thorn with the thorn when he knows that the
thorn bends towards itself.

My Allah, the
physicians have despaired of this fatal ailment and water-drawers
have become tired with the rope of this well. Where (1)
are those who were invited to Islam and they accepted it? They
read the Qur'an and decided according to it. They were exhorted to
fight and they leapt (towards it) as she-camels leap towards their
young. They took their swords out of the sheaths and went out into
the world in groups and rows. Some of them perished and some
survived. The good news of survival does not please them nor do
they get condoled about the dead. Their eyes have turned white
with weeping. Their bellies are emaciated because of fasting.
Their lips are dry because of (constant) praying. Their colour is
pale because of wakefulness. Their faces bear the dust of
God-fearing. These are my comrades who have departed. We should be
justified if we feel eager for them and bite our hands in their
separation.

Certainly, Satan has
made his ways easy for you and wants to unfasten the knots of
religion one by one and to cause division among you in place of
unity. Keep away from his evil ideas and enchantments and accept
good advice of one who offers it to you and preserve it in your
minds.

(1)
Although all those who
fought under the banner of Amir al-mu'minin were called Shiahs of
Ali, yet only those who had tears in their eyes, paleness on
their faces, the Qur'anic verses on their tongues, zeal of
religion in their hearts, steadfastness in their feet,
determination and courage in their spirits, and patience and
endurance in their minds could in true sense he called Shiahs of
AIi. These were the people in whose separation Amir al-mu'minin's
feelings were coming out in the shape of sighs through the breath,
while the flames of the fire of separation were consuming his
heart and spirit. These were the people who leapt towards death
like mad men and did not feel happy if they survived. Rather,
their heart's slogan was as the Persian hemistich says:

We are ashamed why we
have remained alive.

He who has even a
slight brilliance of these qualities can alone be called the
follower of the Descendants of the Prophet or the Shiah of Ali,
otherwise it would be a word which has lost its meaning and been
bereft of its dignity through misuse. Thus tradition has it that
Amir al-mu'minin saw a group of men at his door and enquired from
Qanbar who they were and he answered they were his Shiahs. On
hearing this Amir al-mu'minin had a frown on his forehead and
said. "Why are they called Shiahs? They have no sign of
Shiahs." Thereupon Qanbar enquired what were the signs of
Shiahs and Amir al-mu'minin replied:
Their bellies are thin
through hunger, their lips dry through thirst and their eyes
bleared through weeping.