Chapter 22
Twenty Second Assembly
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Meeting of Saturday, 22nd of the month of Ramadhan, in the year 407 Hijrah, heard by Abul Fawaris. The grand Sheikh al-Mufid Abu Abdillah Muhammad b. Muhammad b. al-No'man - may Allah bless him with eternal providence, narrated:
1. Seek provision from halaal
He said: Abu Bakr Muhammad b. Umar b. Salim b. al-Baraa, popularly known as Ibn al-Je'abi, may Allah bless him with mercy, reported to me from Abul Abbas Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Saeed al-Hamdani, popularly known as Ibn Uqdah, who reported from Yahya b. Zakariyya b. Shayban, who reported from Muhammad b. Marwan al-Dhuhali, from Amru b. Saif al-Azdi who said:
Abu Abdillah Ja'far b. Muhammad (peace be upon him) told me: "Do not abandon seeking your subsistence from its legitimate sources, for that helps you remain on your faith. And fasten your camel (first), and then entrust (it to) Allah."
2. When prayers are not blessed
He said: Abu Bakr Muhammad b. Umar al-Je'abi reported to me from Abul Abbas Ahmad b. Muhammad, who reported from Muhammad b. Abdillah b. Ghalib, who reported from al-Husain b. Ali b. Rabah, from Saif b. Umairah, who reported from Muhammad b. Marwan, who reported from Abdullah b. Abi Ya'foor that:
Abu Abdillah Ja'far b. Muhammad, peace be upon him, said: "Allah does not bless the prayers with acceptance from three persons: From a slave who has escaped from his masters, till he returns and places his hand in their hands; from an Imam who leads people (in prayers) while they hate him; from a wife who passes a night while her husband is displeased with her."
3. Ali in the night of Prophet's Me'raj
He said: Abul Hasan Ahmad b. Muhammad b.al-Hasan b. al-Walid reported to me from his father, from Sa'd b. Abdillah, from Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Isa, from Bakr b. Swaleh, from al-Hasan b. Ali, from Abdullah b. Ibrahim, who reported from al-Husain b. Zaid, from Ja'far b. Muhammad, reporting from his father and his grandfather, peace be upon them, that:
The Prophet, peace be upon him and his progeny, said: The night I was taken to the heavens, I ended up at Sidratul Muntaha, I heard: "O Muhammad, counsel (your people) good about Ali, for he is the master of the Muslims, Imam of the people of Taqwa (those who guard themselves from all sins), and leader of the hopping horses with white spots on their foreheads (leading to the Paradise), on the Day of Judgement."
4. Ten traits of Ali (AS)
He said: Abul Hasan Ali b. Muhammad al-Katib reported to me from al-Hasan b. Ali al-Za'farani, who reported from Ibrahim b. Muhammad al-Thaqafi, who reported from Uthman b. Abi Shaibah from Amru b. Maymoon, from Ja'far b. Muhammad from his father, from his grandfather, peace be upon them, that:
Amirul Mo'mineen Ali b. Abi Talib, peace be upon him, once said from the pulpit of Kufa: "O people, the messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, has awarded me ten traits; and they are dearer to me than anything upon which the sun shines."
He said to me:
Ali, you are my brother in this world and in the next;
And on the Day of Judgement, when we stand before the Almighty, you will be nearest of all to me;
Your abode in Paradise will be facing mine, the way brothers in faith live, with their houses facing each other;
You are my heir;
You are my executor after me, to fulfil my promises and my affairs;
And in my absence, you are the guardian of my family, on my behalf;
You are the Imam of my Ummah;
You are the one to uphold justice among my subjects;
You are my beloved one; and Allah loves who I love;
Your foe is my foe and my foe is the foe of Allah.
5. Weeping for the sufferings of Ahlul Bait
He said: Abu Bakr Muhammad b. Umar al-Je'abi reported to me from Abul Abbas Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Saeed al-Hamdani, who reported from Ahmad b. Abdul Hamid b. Khalid, who reported from Muhammad b. Amru b. Utbah, from al-Husain al-Ashqar, from Muhammad b. Abi Amarah al-Kufi who said:
I heard Ja'far b. Muhammad, peace be upon him, say: "Whoever sheds a tear over our spilled blood, or over our usurped rights, or over the dishonour we have suffered, or any of our followers has suffered, such a person shall be blessed by Allah, Most High, in paradise for a long period of time."
6. ALI (AS) refuses to grant undue preference
He said: Abul Hasan Ali b. Bilal al-Mahlabi reported to me from Ali b. Abdillah b. Asad al-Isfehani, who reported from Ibrahim b. Muhammad al-Thaqafi, who reported from Muhammad b. Abdillah b. Uthman, who reported form Ali b. Abi Saif, from Abu Habab, from Rabee'ah, from Amarah and others who said:
When people deserted Ali b. Abi Talib, peace be upon him, and fled to Mo'awiyah seeking worldly gains from him, a group from the companions of Amirul Mo'mineen, peace be upon him, called upon him and told him: "O Amirul Mo'mineen, spend the wealth and give preference to the noble clans of Arabs and Quraish over the client tribes and the non-Arabs; and appease those who you fear may turn against you or run away to Mo'awiyah."
Amirul Mo'mineen, peace be upon him, told them: "Do you counsel me to enlist help by unfairness? No, by Allah, I shall never do it, for as long as the sun shines and the stars in the sky twinkle! By Allah, if their wealth had belonged to me, I would have distributed equally to them, so how can I discriminate when the wealth belongs to all of them?"
He said: Then Amirul Mo'mineen, peace be upon him, remained silent for some time and then said: "Whoever has wealth, he should be wary of being spoiled. Surely, when wealth is given to an undeserving person, then it is a squander and extravagance. And though it makes the giver popular in this world, it is wasted in the eyes of Allah. And a person who squanders his wealth wastefully giving to those who do not deserve, Allah deprives him from their gratitude and causes them to have affinity towards others! And if at all there are some who are inclined and grateful to him, it is nothing but flattery and sham. They wish to ingratiate themselves to him so that they may continue to receive what they have been receiving before. And if that rich man is hit by adversity, needing their help or support, you will find them the worst, taunting friends.
And whoever wishes to do good with what Allah has given to him, he should use it to mend with his blood relatives; be a generous host, release the oppressed prisoners, help those who are in debt, and the wayfarers, the poor and those who fight in the way of Allah. And he should be patient against adversities and misfortunes. With such accomplishment, he will attain the high honour in this world and the virtues in the next."
7. Never humiliate . . .
He said: Abu Bakr Muhammad b. Umar al-Je'abi reported to me from Abul Abbas Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Saeed, who reported from Ali b. al-Hasan, who reported from al-Abbas b. Amir, from Ahmed b. Rizq, from Ishaq b. Ammar, who said:
Abu Abdillah, peace be upon him, asked me: "O Ishaq, how do you dispose of the zakat or your wealth, when ready?" I said: "People come to my house and I give them." He said: "I find that you are humiliating the believers. Be cautious! For Allah says: Whoever humiliates my righteous servants, he has indeed prepared himself to confront me."
8. Al-Sadiq (AS) explains momin's experience after death
He said: Abul Qasim Ja'far b. Muhammad b. Qawlawayh - may Allah bless him with mercy, who reported from his father, from Sa'd b. Abdillah, from Ahmed b. Muhammad b. Isa, from al-Hasan b. Mehboob, from Hannan b. Sudair, from his father, who said:
I was with Abu Abdillah, peace be upon him, when discussion about a Mo'min and his rights took place. Abu Abdillah, peace be upon him, turned to me and said: "O Abu al-Fadhl, may I not tell you about the status of a Mo'min in the estimation of Allah?" I said: "Yes, do enlighten me, may I be your ransom!"
He said: "When a Mo'min dies, his soul is taken up to the heaven by its angels, who say: O Sustainer, here is Your servant and what a good servant!" Allah Almighty says: "Descend to the earth near his grave and continue to laud and magnify My name, confirming My Oneness and My Greatness and write the reward for My servant till I resurrect him from his grave."
Then he said: "May I tell you more?" I said: "Yes." He said: "When Allah will resurrect a believer from his grave, together with him will be an image who will lead him. Whenever the believer will see anything frightful from the frightful aspects of the Day of Judgement, the image will solace him by saying: 'Do not be anxious, nor distressed. Have good tidings and honour from Allah, Most High.' And it continues to give tidings of delight and honour, till he stands before Allah to account for his deeds; and he shall have a lenient reckoning. Then He orders him to enter the Paradise, with the image in front of him. Then the believer shall say to the image: 'May Allah bless you with mercy, you have been a good company emanating from my grave, giving me good tidings of delight and honour from Allah, Most High; till it transpired to be that way. So, who are you?' The image will say: 'I am the delight and joy, which you caused to your believing brother on earth. Allah has created me thus from that gesture, so that I may give you good tidings.'"
9. Prayers to soothe pains
Abul Qasim Ja'far b. Muhammad, may Allah bless him with mercy, reported to me from his father, from Sa'd b. Abdillah, from Ahmed b. Muhammad b. Isa, from al-Husain b. Saeed, from Muhammad b. Abi Umayr, from Muhammad al-Ja'fi, from his father who said:
I always complained about my eyes. Once I complained about it to Abu Abdillah, peace be upon him, he said: "May I teach you a prayer, beneficial for your life here and hereafter? And which will also treat the pain in your eye?" I said: "Yes."
He said: Say after morning and maghrib prayers: "O Allah, I beseech You in the name of Muhammad and his progeny, to bless Muhammad and his progeny, and to bestow light upon my eyes and insight upon my faith, certitude upon my heart, sincerity upon my acts, security upon my self, abundance upon my subsistence; and grant me to be ever thankful to You as long as You keep me."
And may Allah bless our master Muhammad and his progeny.