Lessons from Nahjul Balagha [Electronic resources] نسخه متنی

Sermons
Sermon
122

SERMON 122

Amir al-mu'minin's address to
his followers on the battlefield of Siffin

About supporting the weak and
the low-spirited during the fighting

Whoever among you
feels spiritedness of heart during the action and finds any of his
comrades feeling disheartened should ward off (the enemies) from
him just as he would do from himself, because of the superiority
he enjoys over the other, for if Allah had willed He would have
made the former also like him. Certainly death is a quick seeker.
Neither does the steadfast escape it nor can the runner-away defy
it. The best death is to be killed. By Allah in Whose hand (power)
lies the life of the son of Abu Talib, certainly a thousand
strikings of the sword on me are easier to me than a death in bed
which is not in obedience to Allah.

A part of the same sermon

It is as if I see you
uttering voices like the rustling sound of lizards! You do not
seek your own claims nor do you defend against oppression. You
have been let free on the path. He who rushes (into the battle)
achieves salvation, while he who lags behind, hesitating, gets
destruction.