Islam Guidance

The commander of the faithful, Imam Ali (A.S) is the first perfect example of the education and training of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P).
Ali (A.S) was educated by the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P) from the period of his infancy. Ali (A.S) was always with the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P) like a shadow until the last moment of the Prophet's life. Like a butterfly which sacrifices its life for the candle, Ali (A.S) also was with the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P). Ali (A.S) parted with the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P) when he took the sacred body of the Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P) in his arms and buried him.
According to history, from among all rulers who have come to power since the demise of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P) until the present time, Ali (A.S) is the only person who fully complied with the sirah (Tradition) of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P) and who never deviated from the policies of the Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P) in the period of his rule over the Islamic society. Ali (A.S) implemented the laws and religious precepts of Islam without any misinterpretation or distortion just as they were executed in the lifetime of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P).
Upon first entrance into the social environment, Ali (A.S) had a very simple life. During the lifetime of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P), after the Prophet's demise, and even during his own glorious caliph period, he lived like the poor and in the most humble condition. He had no superiority over the needy insofar as food, clothing, and housing were concerned and used to: "The ruler of a society should live in such a way so as to be the source of consolation for the needy and the distressed and not the cause of their regret and disappointment." Although the ruler of the entire Islamic State, he had only seven hundred dirhams on the day of his martyrdom with which he wanted to hire a servant for his house.
Ali (A.S) used to work to meet the needs of life. Particularly he was interested in agriculture and spent his time in planting trees and digging water canals. Whatever he earned in this manner or through the war-booty, he distributed among the needy. He endowed the properties which he had cultivated for the needy or distributed among them the money received as sale proceeds of such properties. Once, during the period of his own caliph, Ali (A.S) ordered to those concerned to bring the revenues of his endowments to him and then spend them. When these revenues were collected, the amount reached 24000 gold dinars.
In the period of his caliph, Ali (A.S) welcomed everyone without having chamberlains and doorkeepers, walked on foot. All alone, and walked in the alleys and the bazaars. He ordered the people to fear Allah and guard against evil and protected them against injustice of one another. Ali (A.S) helped the poverty-stricken people and widows kindly and humbly and kept the shelter less orphans in his own house, personally providing their requirements and educating them.
Ali (A.S) had a special regard for knowledge and learning and gave particular attention towards promotion of knowledge and education and used to say: "There is no suffering like ignorance." While Ali (A.S) was arraying his troops in the bloody Battle of Jamal, an Arab went forward and asked him the meaning of Tawhid. The people rushed toward the Arab from every direction and confronted him by saying that such a moment is not an appropriate time for asking such questions and for discussion. Ali (A.S) asked them to disperse away from the Arab and said: "We are fighting the people in order to revive such truths." Then, while arraying the troops, Ali (A.S) called forth the Arab and clarified the matter for him with an eloquent statement.
In short, the prominent personality of Ali (A.S) is beyond description and his infinite virtues are countless. History has never witnessed a personality attracting as much the attention and the views of the scholars and philosophers of the world as he has.

Derived from: Shia.es

Once on the eve of Ramadan, towards the end of a memorable sermon on the blessings of the month of fasting, the Prophet burst into tears. Asked by his dear cousin and son-in-law, the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (A.S), the reason for his weeping, the Almighty’s Last Messenger to mankind, replied:
"O Ali, I weep for that which will befall you in this month. (Imagining myself) to be in your place when you will be praying to your Lord, and the most wicked person of all times, like the one who chopped off the feet of the camel of Thamoud (that was the divine proof of Prophet Saleh's mission), will strike you on your head and your beard will be dyed by it (blood)."
"O Ali whoever kills you has (in fact) killed me, whoever annoys you has annoyed me and whoever slanders you has slandered me, because you are to me like my soul. Your spirit is my spirit and your nature is my nature. Surely, Allah the Praised and the Glorious created me then you, chose me then you. Selected me for Prophet Hood and selected you for Imamate. And whoever denies your Imamate has (in fact) denied my Prophet Hood. O Ali, you are my legatee and father of my (grand) children, and husband of my daughter, and my Caliph (vicegerent) over my ummah both in my lifetime and after my death. Your bidding is my bidding, and your forbidding is my forbidding. I swear by the Power that granted me Prophet Hood and made me the most excellent of creation, you are the Hujjat-Allah (Proof of Allah) over His creatures, and His Trustee over mysteries and His Caliph over His creatures.”
What the Prophet had predicted occurred over three decades later on the 21st of Ramadan in Iraq. The Imam of the Pious, on being struck the fatal blow in the Grand Mosque of Kufa while engrossed in the morning prayer of 19th Ramadan in the year 40 AH expressed that immortal phrase: By the Lord of the Ka’ba I have succeeded.”
And what a grand success did the Icon of Justice achieve! Till this day, Imam Ali (A.S), whose ideal administration of justice has yet to be emulated, is remembered as the Martyr for the Cause of Freedom and Liberties. As the most nearest and dearest person to the Prophet, he had stood beside his cousin through every thick and thin, frustrating the bloodcurdling plots of the hypocrites in order to free human societies from the fetters of ignorance, superstition and polytheism.
In short, Imam Ali (A.S) was the supreme example of social justice the world has ever seen. Even non-Muslim scholars have praised his dynamic personality. The Christian scholar George Jordaq has written a series of excellent books titled: Imam Ali (A.S) and Socrates; Imam Ali and Aristotle; Imam Ali and the French Revolution; and Imam Ali the Voice of Human Justice. Jordaq has shown that Imam Ali (A.S) excels all comparisons, and the freedom and liberties that he enshrined are still beyond the reach of human societies despite the bragging of democracy and human rights by western governments, whose practice is nothing but outright hypocrisy.
We thus pay our sincere tribute to this Icon of Justice, whose model government has been the source of inspiration in every age and era for those striving for justice in society. We pray to God to hasten the reappearance of the Lord of the Age, Imam Mahdi (A.S) to cleanse the world of all vestiges of corruption and oppression by establishing the global government of peace, prosperity and justice.

Derived From: Shia.es