Islam Guidance

The following sayings, maxims, and words of wisdom are related to the pious grandson of the Prophet (P.B.U.H&H.P) Abu Muhammed Al-Hassan bin Ali(A.S).
The following are his answers about questions that were put by his father, Imam Ali (A.S.) or others- regarding various subjects.
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent the Merciful
- What is asceticism?
- Asceticism is the desire for God-fearing and the abstinence from the worldly pleasures.
- What is clemency?
- Clemency is the suppression of ones anger and self-possession.
- What is appositeness?
- Appositeness is to shove evil by means of goodness.
- What is honor?
- Honor is to regard the clan and assume a part of their misdeeds.
- What is relief?
- Relief is to protect the refugee, to be firm in misfortunes, and to be courageous in crisis.
- What is glory?
- Glory is to give in loss and forgive the sin.
- What is chivalry?
- Chivalry is to keep the religion, promote the personality, be lenient, sustain in doing favors, fulfill the rights, and behave amicably with people.
- What is generosity?
- Generosity is to begin with providing the gift before it is asked from you
and serve food in times of famine.
- What is vice?
- Vice is to take care in worthless things and refrain from giving the few.
-What is meanness?
- Meanness is the fewness of giving and the speech of obscene language.
- What is indulgence?
- Indulgence is to give in sorrow and in joy.
- What is avarice?
- Avarice is to consider what you have in hand as an honor and what you have spent as waste.
- What is fraternity?
- Fraternity is to keep fraternity in misfortune and luxury.
- What is cowardice?
- Cowardice is to dare the friend and fear the enemy.
- What is opulence?
- Opulence is to satisfy with the fated regardless of its quantity.
- What is poverty?
- Poverty is to be greedy to everything.
- What is liberality?
- Liberality is to do the best.
- What is generosity?
- Generosity is to preserve in good and bad situations.
- What is intrepidity?
- Intrepidity is to challenge the opponents.
- What is might?
- Might is the intensity of power and the contest against the strong men.
- What is humility?
- Humility is to feel fearful in situations of frankness.
- What is clumsiness?
- Clumsiness is to confront the ruler and that who is more powerful than you.
- What is sublimity?
- Sublimity is to do the good and avoid the evil.
- What is determination?
- Determination is to be long-suffering, behave leniently with the rulers, and be cautious against all people.
- What is honor?
- Honor is to accede to the friends and regard the neighbors.
- What is deprivation?
- Deprivation is to shun the opportunity when you are able to seize it.
- What is foolishness?
- Foolishness is to pursue the mean and associate the seducers.
- What is faltering?
- Faltering is to play with your beard and to hem excessively before you speak.
- What is courage?
- Courage is to challenge the opponents and to be steadfast during fighting.
- What is overacting?
- Overacting is to intrude in unconcerned matters.
- What is stupidity?
- Stupidity is to behave foolishly with the wealth and to disregard the honor.
- What is lowliness?
- Lowliness is to will to have everything for oneself and to dissociate with the companion.

Reference: Almujtaba Islamic Network

Lady Umm-ul-Banin took care of Hassan (A.S) and Hussein (A.S) so remarkably well that she had asked her husband not to call her with her name Fatima, so that this name would not remind these two boys of their mother. They, however, felt the extreme kindness and sympathy of this lady who could fill a part of the great loss of their own mother whose demise had left a deep sadness in their minds.

Emotionally, Umm-ul-Banin had great love for Hassan (A.S) and Hussein (A.S) because of their perfection and unique morality. She in fact loved them more than her own children. She also preferred them to her sons in taking care and responsibility.

Except for this great lady, history has never seen a fellow wife act so sincerely with her stepsons. This is because this perfect lady believed that it was her religious duty to take care of the two Imams the love for who is imposed by God and revealed in the Qur’an:
Say, ‘I do not ask you for any payment for my preaching to you except (your) love of (my near) relatives’.

[Holy Qur’an, Surah of ash-Shura (42), Verse 23]

Taken from: Al-Abbas
Written by: Badr Shahin
Ansariyan Publications - Qom