‮بسم الله الرحمٰن الرحيم‬‎

‮‭‭0‬.‭1‬ ‬أمّا بعد حمد الله الذي جعل الحمد ثمنًا لنعمائه ومعاذًا من بلائه ووسيلًا إلى جنانه وسببًا لزيادة إحسانه. والصلاة على رسوله نبيّ الرحمة وإمام الأئمّة وسراج الأمّة المنتخب‭¹‬ من طينة الكرم وسلالة المجد الأقدم ومغرس الفخار المعرق وفرع العلاء المثمر المورق. وعلى أهل بيته مصابيح الظلم وعصم الأمم ومنار الدين الواضحة ومثاقيل الفضل الراجحة. صلّى الله عليهم أجمعين صلاة تكون إزاء لفضلهم ومكافاة لعملهم وكفاء لطيب فرعهم وأصلهم ما أنار فجر ساطع وخوى نجم طالع.‬‎

‮‭‭0‬.‭2‬ ‬فإنّي كنت في عنفوان السنّ وغضاضة الغصن ٱبتدأت بتأليف كتاب في خصائص الأئمة عليهم السلام يشتمل على محاسن أخبارهم وجواهر كلامهم حداني عليه غرض ذكرته في صدر الكتاب وجعلته أمام الكلام. وفرغت من الخصائص الّتي تخصّ أمير المؤمنين عليًّا عليه السلام وعاقت عن إتمام بقيّة الكتاب محاجزات الأيّام ومماطلات الزمان. وكنت قد بوّبت ما خرج من ذلك أبوابًا وفصّلته فصولًا فجاء في آخرها فصل يتضمّن محاسن ما نقل عنه عليه السلام من الكلام القصير في المواعظ والحكم والأمثال والأدب دون الخطب الطويلة والكتب المبسوطة.‬‎

‮‭‭0‬.‭3‬ ‬فٱستحسن جماعة من الأصدقاء ما ٱشتمل عليه الفصل المقدّم ذكره معجبين ببدائعه ومتعجّبين من نواصعه وسألوني عند ذلك أن أبدأ بتأليف كتاب يحتوي على مختار كلام أمير المؤمنين‭²‬ عليه السلام في جميع فنونه ومتشعّبات غصونه من خطب وكتب ومواعظ وأدب علمًا أنّ ذلك يتضمّن من عجائب البلاغة وغرائب الفصاحة وجواهر العربيّة وثواقب الكلم الدينيّة والدنيويّة ما لا يوجد مجتمعًا في كلام ولا مجموع‬‎

Raḍī’s Introduction

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

‭0.1 ‬I praise God, who made praise the return for his favors, the refuge from his trials, the way to his garden, and the means to obtain yet more of his beneficence. May God shower blessings on his Messenger—the Prophet of mercy, the Imam of all Imams, lantern for the community, the one fashioned from the clay of honor, the scion of ancient nobility, the deep-rooted tree of glory, and the leafy, fruit-bearing bough of grandeur. May God shower blessings on the people of his house. They are lamps in the darkness, protectors of the nations, brilliant beacons of faith, and weighted scales of virtue. May God shower them with blessings that equal their virtue, requite their endeavors, and match the bouquet of their fragrant bough and root, for as long as the morning gleams bright and the stars rise and set.

‭0.2 ‬In the days of my eager youth, motivated by a goal that I described in its introduction,¹ I began compiling a book about the qualities of the Imams that included their beautiful sayings and bejeweled maxims. I finished transcribing the qualities of the Commander of the Faithful, ʿAlī, but fate put obstructions in my path and destiny cast delays, such that I was prevented from finishing the rest. I had divided the part I had already written into chapters and sections, and, at its end, I had placed a section on short sayings narrated from ʿAlī, including words of counsel, aphorisms, maxims, and directions for refined behavior; I had excluded the longer orations and more expansive letters.²

‭0.3 ‬A group of my friends were especially enthralled with this section. Astonished by the marvels of the Commander of the Faithful’s words and amazed by their limpid clarity, they asked me to compile a book that would offer a selection in all its manifold categories and branches, including orations, letters, statements of counsel, and directions for refined behavior. They knew full well that these pieces offered wonderful eloquence and rare expressions, jewels of Arabic, and gems of earthly wisdom and spiritual sayings, which are assembled

‮الأطراف في كتاب. إذ كان مولانا أميرالمؤمنين عليه السلام مشرع الفصاحة وموردها ومنشأ البلاغة ومولدها ومنه عليه السلام ظهر مكنونها وعنه أخذت قوانينها وعلى أمثلته حذا كلّ قائل خطيب وبكلامه ٱستعان كلّ واعظ بليغ. ومع ذلك فقد سبق وقصّروا وتقدّم وتأخّروا لأنّ كلامه عليه السلام الكلام الذي عليه مَسحة من العلم الإلهيّ وفيه عَبقة من الكلام النبويّ.‬‎

‮‭‭0‬.‭4‬ ‬فأجبتهم إلى الابتداء بذلك عالمًا بما فيه من عظيم النفع ومنشور الذكر ومذخور الأجر. وٱعتمدت به أن أبيّن عن عظيم قدر أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام في هذه الفضيلة مضافة إلى المحاسن الدثرة والفضائل الجمّة وأنّه عليه السلام ٱنفرد ببلوغ غايتها من جميع السلف الأوّلين الذين إنّما يؤثر عنهم منها القليل النادر والشاذّ الشارد فأمّا كلامه عليه السلام فهو البحر الذي لا يساجل والجمّ الذي لا يحافل. وأردت أن يسوغ لي التمثّل في الإفتخار به صلّى الله عليه بقول الفرزدق رحمة الله عليه‭¹‬‬‎

‮‭‭0‬.‭5‬ ‬ورأيت كلامه صلّى الله عليه يدور على أقطاب ثلاثة أوّلها الخطب والأوامر وثانيها الكتب والرسائل وثالثها الحكم والمواعظ. فأجمعت بتوفيق الله على الابتداء بٱختيار محاسن الخطب ثم محاسن الكتب ثم محاسن الحكم والأدب مفردًا لكلّ صنف من ذلك بابًا ومفضّلًا فيه أوراقًا لتكون مقدّمة لٱستدراك ما عساه يشذّ عنّي عاجلًا ويقع إليّ آجلًا. وإذا جاء شيء من كلامه عليه السلام الخارج في أثناء حوار أو جواب سؤال أو غرض آخر من الأغراض في غير الأنحاء التي ذكرتها وقرّرت القاعدة عليها نسبته إلى أليق الأبواب به وأشدّها ملاحمة‭²‬ لغرضه. وربّما جاء فيما أختاره من ذلك فصول غير متّسقة ومحاسن كلم غير منتظمة لأنّني أورد النكت واللمع ولا أقصد التتالي والنسق.‬‎

nowhere else, neither in spoken words nor in written books. Indeed, the Commander of the Faithful is the fountainhead of elocution and its wellspring, the cradle of eloquence and its birthplace. It is from him that its secrets became known, and its rules were learned. He is the model for every articulate orator, his the words used by every persuasive preacher. Moreover, he was the first, while they came trailing, he forged ahead, while they lagged behind. His words were anointed with divine knowledge and perfumed by prophetic discourse.

‭0.4 ‬I answered my friends’ appeal and began the book, knowing it would bring me great benefit, redolent fame, and lasting reward. My purpose was to demonstrate the Commander of the Faithful’s lofty station in this particular virtue, in addition to his numerous other qualities and abundant merits, and to highlight his singular attainment among the earliest Muslims. Of their words, we find a few sporadic pieces and occasional lines, while his are a bottomless ocean, an overwhelming torrent. With great pride in my own descent from him, I beg your leave to cite here a testimonial verse by Farazdaq:¹

‭0.5 ‬ʿAlī’s verbal heritage, I have found, revolves around three poles: orations and directives; letters and epistles; and sayings and counsels. I have, with God’s guidance, selected and transcribed his most beautiful orations, then his most beautiful letters, then his most beautiful sayings and directions for refined behavior. For each of these categories, I have dedicated its own separate chapter. In each chapter, I have left several pages blank, in case I have missed something that I might discover later. Whenever I have come across material from his oeuvre that was spoken in a conversation, or in answer to a question, or that belongs to a genre different than the ones around which I have structured my compilation, I have placed it in the chapter to which it is most suited, the one closest to it in form. Some sections therefore may not be fully harmonious in their coordination and some sayings may not be systematically arranged. My goal is to transcribe pithy sayings and dazzling expressions; consistent and methodical recording is not my intention.

‮‭‭0‬.‭6‬ ‬ومن عجائبه عليه السلام التي ٱنفرد بها وأمن المشاركة فيها أنّ كلامه الوارد في الزهد والمواعظ والتذكير والزواجر إذا تأمّله المتأمّل وفكّر فيه المفكّر وخلع من قلبه أنّه كلام مثله ممّن عظم قدره ونفذ أمره وأحاط بالرقاب ملكه لم يعترضه الشكّ في أنّه من كلام من لا حظّ له في غير الزهادة ولا شغل له بغير العبادة قد قبع في كِسر بيت أو ٱنقطع في سفح جبل لا يسمع إلّا حسّه ولا يرى إلّا نفسه. ولا يكاد يوقن بأنّه كلام من ينغمس في الحرب مصلتًا سيفه فيقُطّ الرقاب ويجدّل الأبطال ويعود به ينطف دمًا ويقطر مُهَجًا وهو مع تلك الحال زاهد الزهّاد وبدل الأبدال‭¹‬ وهذه من فضائله العجيبة وخصائصه اللطيفة التي جمع بها بين الأضداد وألّف بين الأشتات وكثيرًا ما أذاكر الإخوان بها وأستخرج عجبهم منها وهي موضع للعبرة بها والفكرة فيها.‬‎

‮‭‭0‬.‭7‬ ‬وربّما جاء في أثناء هذا الاختيار اللفظ المردّد والمعنى المكرّر والعذر في ذلك أنّ روايات كلامه عليه السلام تختلف ٱختلافًا شديدًا فربّما ٱتّفق الكلام المختار في رواية فنقل على وجهه ثمّ وجد بعد ذلك في رواية أخرى موضوعًا غير وضعه الأوّل إمّا بزيادة مختارة أو لفظ أحسن عبارة فتقتضي الحال أن يعاد ٱستظهارًا للاختيار وغيرة على عقائل الكلام وربّما بعد العهد أيضًا بما ٱختير أوّلًا فأعيد بعضه سهوًا ونسيانًا لا قصدًا وٱعتمادًا. ولا أدّعي مع ذلك أنّني أحيط بأقطار جميع كلامه عليه السلام حتّى لا يشذّ عنّي منه شاذّ ولا يندّ نادّ بل لا أبعّد أن يكون القاصر عنّي فوق الواقع إليّ والحاصل في ربقتي دون الخارج من يديّ وما عليّ إلّا بذل الجهد وبلاغ الوسع وعلى الله سبحانه نهج السبيل ورشاد الدليل إن شاء الله تعالى.‬‎

‭0.6 ‬Among the marvels unique to ʿAlī that no one else shares with him is the following: if a person were to ponder his words of renunciation, counsel, remembrance, or admonition, if he were to parse them thoroughly—while putting aside the knowledge that they were spoken by a man of lofty stature whose commands people followed and who ruled over a multitude—he would have no doubt that these are the words of one who knows nothing but renunciation, whose sole occupation is worship, who has withdrawn to a lonely corner or leads a solitary life at the foot of a mountain, hearing no other voice and seeing no other person. He would never imagine that they could have been spoken by a man who rushed into the fray of battle brandishing his sword, striking off men’s heads and cutting down warriors, then returning with it dripping blood and gore. Yet, ʿAlī was also the most pious of renunciants and the greatest of God’s deputies.¹ This—his combination of opposites and conjunction of contraries—is one of his most marvelous virtues and sublime characteristics. I often remind my companions of this quality and they are moved to wonder, for it offers lessons and provokes contemplation.

‭0.7 ‬In my selection of material, it is possible that some words repeat and certain themes recur; the redundancy is occasioned by the strong variation in different narrations of ʿAlī’s words. It could be that I have transcribed a piece as I found it in one narrative, then I came across it in another, somewhat different from the first, either in having a choice supplement, or a more eloquent turn of phrase, which led me to repeat it, to shore up my compilation and preserve these wondrously wise novelties. Or it could be that some time had gone by since my first selection and I repeated a text, not deliberately and intentionally, but in error or forgetfulness. Even so, I do not claim that I have gathered all the prominent pieces of ʿAlī’s words such that no stray escaped my lasso and no breakaway absconded. Indeed, it is likely that the pieces I have missed are more numerous than the ones I found, and the examples I have tracked down are fewer than the ones that slipped from my grasp. The most I can do is to endeavor to the best of my ability. It is God—if he wills—who shows the path and guides aright.

‮‭‭0‬.‭8‬ ‬ورأيت من بعدُ تسمية هذا الكتاب بنهج البلاغة إذ كان يفتح للناظر فيه أبوابها ويقرّب عليه طِلابها وفيه حاجة العالم والمتعلّم وبغية البليغ والزاهد ويمضي في أثنائه من عجيب الكلام في التوحيد والعدل وتنزيه الله سبحانه عن شبه الخلق ما هو بلال كلّ غلّة وشفاء كلّ علّة وجلاء كلّ شبهة.‬‎

‮‭‭0‬.‭9‬ ‬ومن الله سبحانه أستمدّ التوفيق والعصمة وأتنجّز التسديد والمعونة وأستعيذه من خطأ الجنان قبل خطأ اللسان ومن زلّة الكلم قبل زلّة القدم وهو حسبي ونعم الوكيل.‬‎

‭0.8 ‬I have decided to name this book Nahj al-Balāghah (The Way of Eloquence), for it opens doors of eloquence for its readers and helps them acquire its tools. In it, both scholar and student can find something that speaks to them, and through it, both orator and renunciant can fulfill their desires. Within its pages, you will see marvelous expositions on God’s unity and justice, on stripping God of attributes that would render him like his creatures,¹ and expositions that assuage thirst, cure sickness, and dispel doubt.

‭0.9 ‬I ask God for guidance and protection. I appeal to him for direction and aid. I ask him to protect my heart before my tongue errs, and my tongue before my foot slips. God is my sufficiency and the best guardian.

‮باب المختار من خطب أمير المؤمنين صلّى الله عليه وأوامره ويدخل في ذلك المختار من كلامه الجاري مجرى الخطب في المقامات المحضورة والمواقف المذكورة والخطوب الواردة‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬ ‬فمن خطبة له عليه السلام يذکر فيها ٱبتداء خلق السماوات والأرض وخلق آدم عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬.‭1‬ ‬الحمد لله الذي لا يبلغ مدحته القائلون ولا يحصي نعمه‭¹‬ العادّون ولا يؤدّي حقّه المجتهدون الذي لا يدرکه بعد الهمم ولا يناله غوص الفطن الذي ليس لصفته حدّ محدود ولا نعت موجود ولا وقت معدود ولا أجل ممدود فطر الخلائق بقدرته ونشر الرياح برحمته ووتّد بالصخور ميَدان أرضه. أوّل الدين معرفته وکمال معرفته التصديق به وکمال التصديق به توحيده وکمال توحيده الإخلاص له وکمال الإخلاص له نفي الصفات عنه لشهادة کلّ صفة أنّها غير الموصوف وشهادة کلّ موصوف أنّه غير الصفة. فمن وصف الله سبحانه فقد قرنه ومن قرنه فقد ثنّاه ومن ثنّاه فقد جزّأه ومن جزّأه فقد جهله ومن جهله فقد أشار إليه ومن أشار إليه فقد حدّه ومن حدّه فقد عدّه ومن قال فيمَ فقد ضمّنه ومن قال عَلامَ فقد أخلی منه. کائن لا عن حدث موجود لا عن عدم مع کلّ شيء لا بمقارنة وغير کلّ شيء لا بمزايلة فاعل لا بمعنی الحرکات والآلة بصير إذ لا منظور إليه من خلقه متوحّد إذ لا سکن يستأنس به ولا يستوحش لفقده.‬‎

1. Orations

Chapter containing selections from the Commander of the Faithful’s orations and directives, including selections from his addresses that may be likened to orations, spoken in charged gatherings, famous battles, and times of danger

‭1.1 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī, in which he spoke of the creation of sky and earth, and the creation of Adam:¹

‭1.1.1 ‬I praise God. Yet no speaker can articulate his praise, no reckoner can count his favors, and the most diligent cannot give him his due. Soaring thoughts cannot reach him and deep minds cannot fathom him. He cannot be described, for he is beyond the limits of demarcated boundaries, existing depictions, tallied times, and protracted lifespans. His power created the universe and his mercy sent forth rain-bearing winds. Then, to curb its oscillation, he pegged the earth with massive rocks. The first part of religion is knowledge of God. Knowledge of him is perfected by belief in him. Belief in him is perfected by the declaration of his oneness. Declaration of his oneness is perfected by sincere allegiance to him. Sincere allegiance to him is achieved by negating all attributes ascribed to him, by the testimony of every attribute that it is separate from the thing described, and by the testimony of each thing described that it is separate from the attribute.² To describe God is to ascribe associates to him. To ascribe associates to him is to ascribe duality to him. To ascribe duality to him is to divide him. To divide him is to undervalue him. To undervalue him is to depict him. To depict him is to circumscribe him. To circumscribe him is to quantify him. To ask, “In what?” is to confine him. To ask, “On what?” is to make another space empty of him. God is a being but not by coming into being. He is existent but not after non-existence. He is with all things but not by association. He is other than all things but not by detachment. He is an agent but not by movement or instrument. He was all-seeing when there was no creature to be seen. He existed in solitude when there was no friend in whose familiarity he could take comfort, or by whose absence he would be distraught.

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬.‭2‬ ‬أنشأ الخلق إنشاء وٱبتدأه ٱبتداء بلا رويّة أجالها ولا تجربة ٱستفادها ولا حرکة أحدثها ولا هَمامة نفس ٱضطرب فيها أحال الأشياء لأوقاتها ولأم بين مختلفاتها وغرّز غرائزها وألزمها أشباحها عالمًا بها قبل ٱبتدائها محيطًا بحدودها وٱنتهائها عارفًا بقرائنها وأحنائها. ثمّ أنشأ سبحانه فتق الأجواء وشقّ الأرجاء وسکائک الهواء فأجری فيها ماء متلاطمًا تيّاره متراکمًا زخّاره حمله علی متن الريح العاصفة والزعزع القاصفة فأمرها بردّه وسلّطها علی شدّه وقرنها إلی حدّه الهواء من تحتها فتيق والماء من فوقها دفيق ثمّ أنشأ سبحانه ريحًا ٱعتقم مهبّها وأدام مربّها وأعصف مجراها وأبعد منشاها فأمرها بتصفيق الماء الزخّار وإثارة موج البحار فمخضته مخض السِّقاء وعصفت به عصفها بالفضاء تردّ أوّله إلی آخره وساجيه الی مائره حتّی عبّ عبابه ورمی بالزبد رکامه فرفعه في هواء منفتق وجوّ منفهق فسوّی منه سبع سموات جعل سفلاهنّ موجًا مکفوفًا وعلياهنّ سقفًا محفوظًا وسمکًا مرفوعًا بغير عمد يدعمها ولا دِسار ينتظمها ثّم زيّنها بزينة الکواکب وضياء الثواقب وأجری فيها سراجًا مستطيرًا وقمرًا منيرًا في فلک دائر وسقف سائر ورقيم مائر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬.‭3‬ ‬ثمّ فتق ما بين السموات العلى فملأهنّ أطوارًا من ملائکته منهم سجود لا يرکعون ورکوع لا ينتصبون وصافّون لا يتزايلون ومسبّحون لا يسأمون لا يغشاهم نوم العيون ولا سهو العقول ولا فترة الأبدان ولا غفلة النسيان ومنهم أمناء علی وحيه وألسنة الی رسله ومختلفون بقضائه وأمره ومنهم الحفظة لعباده والسدنة لأبواب جنانه ومنهم الثابتة في الأرضين السفلی أقدامهم والمارقة من السماء العليا أعناقهم والخارجة من الأقطار أرکانهم والمناسبة لقوائم العرش أکتافهم ناکسة دونه أبصارهم متلفّعون تحته بأجنحتهم مضروبة بينهم وبين من دونهم حجب العزّة وأستار القدرة لا يتوهّمون ربّهم بالتصوير ولا يجرون عليه صفات المصنوعين ولا يحدّونه بالأماکن ولا يشيرون إليه بالنظائر.‬‎

‭1.1.2 ‬God created the world and gave it a beginning. He did this without long mulling, prior experience, generated movement, or stirring aspiration. He made all things in their proper time and combined their parts. He accorded them a particular nature and gave them a specific form. He knew them before he gave them a beginning, cognizant of their limits and consequences, and aware of their connections and complexities. Then he rent the ether, tore up the sky and air, and unleashed a torrent roiling with crashing waves. He placed the torrent on the back of a stormy wind, a raging tempest. He ordered the wind to hold the torrent in check, dispatched it to fetter the flood, and compelled it to restrict the advancing surf. Below, the air was vast and empty. The water gushed above. Then, he created a barren wind, its control permanent, its current tempestuous, and its perfume wafting. He commanded it to whip up the rolling waters and bring forth mighty waves. The wind churned up the water like cream in a churning skin and tossed it about in the sky, flipping it end over end and mixing the still and the shifting, until it frothed and bubbled and threw up a mountain of foam. Raising the frothy mixture in the expansive layers of air, in the vast ether, God molded seven skies—the lowest of them a frozen wave, and the loftiest a well-preserved canopy, an elevated firmament—with no pillar for support, and no nails or ropes to bind. Then he ornamented the sky with beautiful stars and bright lights. He set therein a radiant sun and a glowing moon, gliding in that spinning sphere, that moving sky, that flowing, studded expanse.

‭1.1.3 ‬Then God rent the lofty skies and filled them with ranks of his angels: some continually prostrate, never bowing, others bow, never standing straight, yet others stand in rows, never quitting that position, and yet more chant litanies of his praise, never tiring. Drowsy eyes do not impede them, nor wandering minds, exhausted bodies, or forgetfulness occasioned by lack of heed. Among them, too, are angels God has entrusted with his revelation. Constituting God’s tongues to his apostles, they come and go with his decrees and commands. Some are charged with protecting his servants, others are gatekeepers at the doors of his Garden. Yet others have feet firmly fixed in the nethermost regions of the earth, while their necks extend beyond the highest heaven, their flanks stretch beyond the land mass, and their shoulders reach the posts of God’s throne. They lower their gaze before him and spread interlocked wings underneath, separated from those below by veils of might and cloaks of power. They do not attempt to picture their Lord through imagination, or apply to him the attributes of created beings, or demarcate him within a location, or depict him with comparisons.

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬.‭4‬ ‬منها في صفة خلق آدم عليه السلام‬‎

‮ثمّ جمع سبحانه من حزن الأرض وسهلها وعذبها وسبخها تربة سنّها بالماء حتّی خلصت ولاطها بالبلّة حتّی لزبت فجبل منها صورة ذات أحناء ووصول وأعضاء وفصول أجمدها حتّی ٱستمسکت وأصلدها حتّی صلصلت لوقت معدود وأجل معلوم ثمّ نفخ فيها من روحه فمثلت إنسانًا ذا أذهان يجيلها وفکر يتصرّف بها وجوارح يختدمها وأدوات يقلّبها‭¹‬ ومعرفة يفرّق بها بين الحقّ والباطل‭²‬ والأذواق والمشامّ والألوان والأجناس معجونًا بطينة الأكوان‭³‬ المختلفة والأشباه المؤتلفة والأضداد المتعادية والأخلاط المتباينة من الحرّ والبرد والبلّة والجمود والمَساءة والسرور.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬.‭5‬ ‬وٱستأدی الله سبحانه الملائکة وديعته لديهم وعهد وصيّته إليهم في الإذعان بالسجود له والخنوع لتکرمته فقال ﴿ٱسْجُدُواْ لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوْا إِلَّا إِبْلِيْسَ﴾ وقبيله ٱعترتهم الحميّة وغلبت عليهم الشقوة وتعزّزوا بخلقة النار وٱستوهنوا خلق الصلصال فأعطاه الله النظرة ٱستحقاقًا للسخطة وٱستتمامًا للبليّة وإنجازًا للعدة فقال ﴿إِنَّكَ مِنَ المُنْظَرِين إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ ٱلْوَقْتِ ٱلْمَعْلُومِ﴾. ثمّ أسکن سبحانه آدم دارًا أرغد فيها عيشه وآمن فيها محلّته وحذّره إبليس وعداوته فٱغترّه إبليس نفاسة عليه بدار المقام ومرافقة الأبرار فباع اليقين بشکّه والعزيمة بوهنه وٱستبدل بالجذل وجلًا وبالاغترار ندمًا ثمّ بسط الله سبحانه له في توبته ولقّاه کلمة رحمته ووعده المردّ إلی جنّته فأهبطه إلی دار البليّة وتناسل الذرّيّة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬.‭6‬ ‬وٱصطفى سبحانه من ولده أنبياء أخذ علی الوحي ميثاقهم وعلی تبليغ الرسالة أمانتهم لمّا بدّل أکثرُ خلقه عهد الله إليهم فجهلوا حقّه وٱتّخذوا الأنداد معه وٱجتالتهم الشياطين عن معرفته وٱقتطعتهم عن عبادته فبعث فيهم رسله وواتر إليهم أنبياءه ليستأدوهم ميثاق فطرته ويذکّروهم منسيّ نعمته ويحتجّوا عليهم بالتبليغ ويثيروا لهم‬‎

‭1.1.4 ‬From the same oration, describing the creation of Adam:

God gathered soil by sifting coarse earth and fine, sweet earth and salty. He rinsed it with water until it became pure and clean, and moistened and kneaded it until it was smooth and malleable. With this mixture, he molded a form with curves, joints, limbs, and nodes. He let it dry until it hardened, setting it aside for a fixed period of time, until it became firm. Then he breathed into it of his spirit, and it stood before him as a human being. This being had faculties it could harness, a mind it could engage, limbs it could yoke to its service, parts it could use as instruments, and perception with which it could differentiate between right and wrong, tastes and smells, colors, and species. Its clay was a blend of disparate entities, assembled forms, warring opposites, and dissimilar mixtures: hot and cold, wet and dry, painful and joyous.

‭1.1.5 ‬Then God commanded his angels to fulfill the trust with which he had charged them and discharge the covenant he had enjoined—to prostrate humbly, deferentially, before Adam, in recognition of the honor he had received from God. God said, «Prostrate before Adam, and they all prostrated except Iblīs»¹ and Iblīs’s tribe. Pride held them back and wretchedness took over when they boasted of their creation from fire and scorned the creation of clay. God gave Iblīs a respite so that he could earn yet more of God’s wrath, to complete the trial and fulfill the pledge. He said, «You have been placed among those who have been granted respite until the day of destiny.»² As for Adam, God gave him a home, with a good life therein and a safe dwelling. He warned him of Iblīs and of Iblīs’s enmity. Iblīs misled Adam, for he was jealous of Adam’s heavenly abode and pious companions. Adam was deceived—he exchanged certainty for doubt and resolve for weakness, his bliss was replaced by fear, his deception was followed by regret. Afterward, God accepted his plea for forgiveness, spoke words of mercy, and promised him a return to paradise, but he nevertheless cast Adam into the abode of tribulation, where his descendants would multiply for generations.

‭1.1.6 ‬From Adam’s descendants, God selected prophets, exacting a pledge from them to convey his revelation, and entrusting them with delivering his message. As time passed, most people altered God’s covenant, denied what they owed him, and ascribed partners to him. The devils had driven them away from their earlier recognition of him, stopping them from his worship altogether. God dispatched messengers and a succession of prophets to restore people to their

‮دفائن العقول ويُروهم آيات المقدرة من سقف فوقهم مرفوع ومهاد تحتهم موضوع ومعايش تحييهم وآجال تفنيهم وأوصاب تُهرمهم وأحداث تتابع عليهم. ولم يُخل الله سبحانه خلقه من نبيّ مرسل أو کتاب منزل أو حجّة لازمة أو محجّة قائمة. رسل لا تقصر بهم قلّة عددهم ولا کثرة المکذّبين لهم. من سابق سمّي له من بعده أو غابر عرّفه من قبله. علی ذلک نسلت القرون ومضت الدهور وسلفت الآباء وخلفت الأبناء.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬.‭7‬ ‬إلی أن بعث الله سبحانه محمّدًا صلّی الله عليه لإنجاز عدته وتمام نبوّته مأخوذًا علی النبيّين ميثاقه مشهورة سماته کريمًا ميلاده وأهل الأرض يومئذ ملل متفرّقة وأهواء منتشرة وطرائق متشتّتة بين مشبّه لله بخلقه أو ملحد في ٱسمه أو مشير إلی غيره فهداهم به من الضلالة وأنقذهم به‭¹‬ من الجهالة. ثمّ ٱختار الله سبحانه لمحمّد صلّی الله عليه وآله لقاءه ورضي له ما عنده وأکرمه عن دار الدنيا ورغب به عن مقام البلوی فقبضه إليه کريمًا صلّی الله عليه وعلى آله وخلّف فيکم ما خلّفت الأنبياء لأممها إذ لم يترکوهم هَمَلًا بغير طريق واضح ولا عَلَم قائم كتاب ربّکم مبيّنًا حلاله وحرامه وفضائله وفرائضه وناسخه ومنسوخه ورخصه وعزائمه وخاصّه وعامّه وعبره وأمثاله ومرسله ومحدوده ومحکمه ومتشابهه مفسّرًا جمله مبيّنًا غوامضه بين مأخوذ ميثاق علمه وموسّع علی العباد في جهله وبين مثبت في الکتاب فرضه معلوم في السنّة نسخه وواجب في السنّة أخذه مرخّص في الکتاب ترکه وبين واجب بوقته وزائل في مستقبله ومباين بين محارمه من کبير أوعد عليه نيرانه أو صغير أرصد له غفرانه وبين مقبول في أدناه وموسّع في أقصاه.‬‎

original pledge. He directed his prophets to remind people of the divine favors they had forgotten, establish the truth by conveying his message, and revive their numbed intellects. He instructed his prophets to show people the signs of his power: the sky raised above, and the earth spread below, livelihoods that sustained life, and lifespans that ended in death, suffering that made people age, and relentless calamities. Never in all this time did God allow his creation to be left without a prophet, a revealed scripture, a sure proof, or a clear path. The scanty number who answered did not stop God’s messengers, nor the multitudes of their repudiators. Each messenger had his successor named for him, each successor was identified by his predecessor. In this manner, generations went by, and ages passed. Fathers died, and sons took their place.

‭1.1.7 ‬So it was, until God sent Muḥammad to fulfill his promise and complete the line of prophecy. All earlier prophets had been made to affirm Muḥammad, whose qualities had been made known to them, with a binding oath. His birth, when it came, brought auspicious blessings. At that time, the earth’s inhabitants were divided into numerous faiths with different notions and divergent views. One group likened God to his creatures, another rejected his name, and a third looked to a separate deity. Through Muḥammad, God saved the people from their errant ways. Because of his eminence, he delivered them from ignorance. Then God summoned Muḥammad to meet with him and desired for him the blessings to be enjoyed at his side. Raising him from the vileness of this worldly abode and lifting him from this place of tribulation, God brought him into his presence, honored and esteemed. For you, he left you what earlier prophets left their communities, they did not abandon their followers without guidance, without a clear path or a signpost. Muḥammad, too, left you your Lord’s Book, and he fully elucidated its contents: the licit versus the illicit, recommended virtues versus required mandates, abrogating verses versus abrogated ones, licenses versus decrees, specifics versus generalities, lessons versus parables, free verses versus restricted ones, and clear verses versus ambiguous ones. He explained the Book’s subtleties and clarified what was obscure, including things whose knowledge is required for all God’s servants, versus others, ignorance of which is excused; things whose mandate is established in the Book while their abrogation is shown in the Sunnah, versus others whose practice is commanded in the Sunnah while vacating them is permitted in the Book; and things that were compulsory in their time, versus others whose directive subsequently ceased. He differentiated among the Book’s prohibitions of grave sins which incur the punishment of the Fire, versus smaller transgressions which hold the prospect of God’s forgiveness; of acts acceptable in minimal form, versus those that earn maximum reward.

‮‭‭1‬.‭1‬.‭8‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮وفرض عليکم حجّ بيته الذي جعله قبلة للأنام يردونه ورود الأنعام ويألهون إليه ولوه الحمام جعله سبحانه علامة لتواضعهم لعظمته وإذعانهم لعزّته وٱختار من خلقه سُمّاعًا أجابوا إليه دعوته وصدّقوا کلمته ووقفوا مواقف أنبيائه وتشبّهوا بملائکته المطيفين بعرشه يحرزون الأرباح في متجر عبادته ويتبادرون عنده موعد مغفرته. جعله سبحانه للإسلام علمًا وللعائذين حرمًا فرض حجّه وأوجب حقّه وکتب عليکم وفادته فقال سبحانه ﴿وَلِلّٰهِ عَلَى ٱلنَّاسِ حِجُّ ٱلْبَيْتِ مَنِ ٱسْتَطَاعَ إِلَيْهِ سَبِيلًا وَمَنْ كَفَرَ فَإِنَّ ٱللهَ غَنِيٌّ عَنِ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ﴾.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭2‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام بعد ٱنصرافه من صفّين‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭2‬.‭1‬ ‬أحمده ٱستتمامًا لنعمته وٱستسلامًا لعزّته وٱستعصامًا من معصيته وأستعينه فاقة إلی کفايته إنّه لا يضلّ من هداه ولا يئل من عاداه ولا يفتقر من کفاه فإنّه أرجح ما وُزن وأفضل ما خُزن. وأشهد أن لا إلٰه إلّا الله‭¹‬ شهادة ممتحَنًا إخلاصها معتقدًا مُصاصها نتمسّک بها أبدًا ما أبقانا وندّخرها لأهاويل ما يلقانا فإنّها عزيمة الإيمان وفاتحة الإحسان ومرضاة الرحمان ومَدحرة الشيطان. وأشهد أنّ محمّدًا عبده ورسوله أرسله بالدين المشهور والعلم المأثور والکتاب المسطور والنور الساطع والضياء اللامع والأمر الصادع إزاحة للشبهات وٱحتجاجًا بالبيّنات وتحذيرًا بالآيات وتخويفًا للمَثُلات. والناس في فتن ٱنجذم‬‎

‭1.1.8 ‬From the same oration:

God mandated the rite of pilgrimage to his House, which he commanded you to face in prayer. He directed you to race to the House like cattle to water, like doves to seed, demonstrating your prostration before his greatness and your submission to his power. He selected true listeners to answer his call, believe in his word, stand in the stations of the prophets, and follow the example of angels who circumambulate his throne. These pilgrims obtain abundant profit through their worship of him, and they speedily secure his forgiveness. God characterized his House as Islam’s lofty banner and made it a sanctuary for all who seek shelter. Mandating pilgrimage to it, he commanded you to submit its due and come to it, and he decreed, «Pilgrimage to the House is compulsory for all who are able to find a path. As for those who disbelieve, they should know that God has need of no one from all the worlds.»¹

‭1.2 ‬From an oration given by ʿAlī during his return from Ṣiffīn:²

‭1.2.1 ‬I praise God, seeking the completion of his favor, submitting to his might, and entreating his protection against sin. I beseech him, needing only his all-sufficing aid. Whomsoever God guides never goes astray, whomsoever he abhors never endures, and whomsoever he suffices never wants. His praise is the weightiest commodity placed on the celestial scales, and the best treasure one can hoard. I testify that there is no god but God—I render this testimony with firm sincerity and true belief. We, all of us, shall cling to it for as long as God gives us life, relying on it to dispel the terrors we must face, for it is the requirement of our faith and the key to God’s gifts, it pleases the Merciful and banishes Satan. I testify that Muḥammad is God’s servant and messenger and acknowledge that God sent Muḥammad with a celebrated religion, a legacy of knowledge,³ a transcribed scripture, brilliant light, gleaming radiance, and clear command. All this, in order to remove doubts, establish proofs, caution with portentous signs, and warn against God’s punishments. When Muḥam-

‮فيها حبل الدين وتزعزعت‭¹‬ سواري اليقين وٱختلف النجر وتشتّت الأمر وضاق المخرج وعمي المصدر فالهدی خامل والعمی شامل عُصي الرحمان ونصر الشيطان وخذل الإيمان فٱنهارت دعائمه وتنکّرت معالمه ودرست سبله وعفت شُرُکه. أطاعوا الشيطان فسلکوا مسالکه ووردوا مناهله بهم سارت أعلامه وقام لواؤه‭²‬ في فتن داستهم بأخفافها ووطئتهم بأظلافها وقامت علی سنابکها‭³‬ فهم فيها تائهون حائرون جاهلون مفتونون في خير دار وشرّ جيران نومهم سهود وکحلهم دموع بأرض عالمها ملجم وجاهلها مکرم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭2‬.‭2‬ ‬ومنها يعني آل النبيّ صلّى الله عليه وعلى آله‬‎

‮هم موضع سرّه ولَ‍جَأُ أمره وعيبة علمه وموئل حکمه وکهوف کتبه وجبال دينه بهم أقام ٱنحناء ظهره وأذهب ٱرتعاد فرائصه.‬‎

‮منها في المنافقين‬‎

‮زرعوا الفجور وسقوه الغرور وحصدوا الثبور.‬‎

‮لا يقاس بآل محمّد صلّى الله عليه وسلّم من هذه الأمّة أحد ولا يسوّى بهم من جرت نعمتهم عليه أبدًا هم أساس الدين وعماد اليقين إليهم يفيء الغالي وبهم يلحق التالي ولهم خصائص حقّ الولاية وفيهم الوصيّة والوراثة الآن إذ رجع الحقّ إلی أهله ونُقل إلی منتقله.‬‎

mad arrived,¹ people were embroiled in seditions. Religion’s rope was severed, conviction’s foundations were shaken, principles were scattered, the community was shattered, the egress had narrowed, and a way out could not be seen. Right guidance was not recognized, and the blindness was total. The Merciful Lord was disobeyed, Satan was abetted, and faith had no support. Its pillars had come crashing down, its features were distorted, its paths had fallen into disrepair, and its trails had worn away. In obedience to Satan, people had followed his ways and alighted at his watering hole. With their support, his banners were raised high, and his pennants were unfurled. This was a time when sedition was ascendant, when people were crushed by its steeds and trampled under its hooves. Enmeshed in its throes, they were in a state of convulsion, lost, confused, and ignorant. They lived in the best of abodes but with the worst of neighbors. They lived in a land where the learned were demeaned and the ignorant esteemed. Here, slumber had turned into insomnia and kohl had been replaced by tears.

‭1.2.2 ‬From the same oration, referring to the Prophet’s family:

They are the embodiments of God’s mystery, the foundations of his creed, the vessels of his knowledge, the harbors for his wisdom, the havens for his scriptures, and the peaks of his religion. Through them, he straightens religion’s back when it becomes crooked, and calms its limbs when it trembles.

From the same oration, referring to the hypocrites:

They sowed immorality, watered it with arrogance, and reaped perdition.

No one from this community may be compared to Muḥammad’s family, and no one blessed by God’s favors may be equated with them in this regard. They are the pillar of religion and the column of certainty. The exaggerator must return to their position, and the laggard must join up with it. Theirs is the right of allegiance, theirs the Prophet’s testament and inheritance. Now, in this moment, truth has been restored to its owners and returned to its home.

‮‭‭1‬.‭3‬ ‬ومن خطبته المعروفة بالشِّقْشِقيّة‭¹‬‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭3‬.‭1‬ ‬أما والله لقد تقمّصها ٱبن أبي فلان‭²‬ وإنّه ليعلم أنّ محلّي منها محلّ القطب من الرحا ينحدر عنّي السيل ولا يرقی إليّ الطير. فسدلت دونها ثوبًا وطويت عنها کشحًا وطفقت أرتإي بين أن أصول بيد جذّاء أو أصبر علی طخية عمياء يهرم فيها الکبير ويشبّ‭³‬ فيها الصغير ويکدح فيها مؤمن حتّی يلقی فيها ربّه. فرأيت أنّ الصبر علی هاتا أحجی فصبرت وفي العين قذی وفي الحلق شجى أری تراثي نهبًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭3‬.‭2‬ ‬حتّی مضی الأوّل لسبيله فأدلی بها إلی فلان بعده.‬‎

‮ثمّ تمثّل عليه السلام‭⁴‬‬‎

‮فيا عجبًا بينا هو يستقيلها في حياته إذ عقدها لآخر بعد وفاته. لشدّ ما تشطّرا ضرعيها. فصيّرها في حوزة خشناء يغلظ کَلْمها ويخشن مسّها ويکثر العثار والاعتذار منها.‬‎

‭1.3 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī known as Shiqshiqiyyah—“The Roar of the Camel Stallion”:¹

‭1.3.1 ‬By God, that man donned its cloak knowing that I am the pivot to its grinding stone—its stream flows from my summit and no soaring bird can reach my heights. I draped a curtain across it and turned my face away. I weighed two options: strike with an amputated hand or endure a blind darkness that renders adults infirm and children old, in which believers continue to brave toil and turmoil until they meet their Lord. I saw that forbearance was the judicious choice. So I endured—but my eyes filled with dust and my throat choked as I saw my inheritance looted.

‭1.3.2 ‬Thus it was, until the first went on his way, tossing it to another after him.

How strange that he should wish to give it up during his lifetime yet secure it for another after his death! The two divided the milk from its udders between them! This next one corralled it to a stony field, where any who ventured sustained deep wounds and experienced rough passage. How often did people stumble in this terrain, and how often did they make excuses for stumbling!

‮فصاحبها کراکب الصعبة إن أشنق لها خرم وإن أسلس لها تقحّم فمُني الناس لعمر الله بخبط وشِماس وتلوّن وٱعتراض. فصبرت علی طول المدّة وشدّة المحنة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭3‬.‭3‬ ‬حتّی إذا مضی لسبيله جعلها في جماعة زعم أنّي أحدهم فيا لله وللشوری متی ٱعترض الريب فيّ مع الأوّل منهم حتّی صرت أقرن إلی هذه النظائر لکنّي أسففت إذ أسفّوا وطرت إذ طاروا فصغى رجل منهم لضغنه ومال الآخر لصهره مع هَنٍ وهَنٍ إلی أن قام ثالث القوم نافجًا حضنيه بين نثيله ومعتلفه وقام معه بنو أبيه يخضمون مال الله تعالى خضم الإبل نبتة الربيع.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭3‬.‭4‬ ‬إلی أن ٱنتکث عليه فتله وأجهز عليه عمله وکبت به بطنته. فما راعني إلّا والناس إليّ کعُرف الضبع ينثالون عليّ من کل جانب‭¹‬ حتّی لقد وُطیء الحسنان وشقّ عطافي مجتمعين حولي کربيضة الغنم. فلمّا نهضت بالأمر نکثت طائفة ومرقت أخری وفسق آخرون کأنهّم لم يسمعوا الله سبحانه يقول ﴿تِلْكَ ٱلدَّارُ ٱلآخِرَةُ نَجْعَلُهَا لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُرِيدُونَ عُلُوًّا فِي ٱلأَرْضِ وَلَا فَسَادًا وَٱلْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ﴾. بلی والله لقد سمعوها ووعوها ولٰکنّهم حليت الدنيا في أعينهم وراقهم زبرجها. أما والذي فلق الحبّة وبرأ النمسة لولا حضور الحاضر وقيام الحجّة بوجود الناصر وما أخذ الله علی العلماء ألّا يقارّوا علی کِظّة ظالم ولا سغب مظلوم لألقيت حبلها علی غاربها ولسقيت آخرها بکأس أوّلها ولألفيتم دنياکم هذه أزهد عندي من عفطة عنز.‬‎

Any who traversed it rode a bucking camel—tighten its rein and slit its nose or loosen the ropes and be thrown. By God, the community was struck by kicking feet and rearing hooves and tormented with caprice and obstruction. I endured—but it was a long time and a harsh affliction.

‭1.3.3 ‬Thus it was, until, when he went on his way, he handed it over to a group of people he supposed I belonged with. Dear God, what a Council! Was there doubt regarding my stature, even in comparison with the first of them, that I was now being equated with these laggards! But I moved with them, falling when they fell and flying when they flew. Even so, one of them turned away from me because of an old grudge,¹ another inclined toward someone else because he was related to him by marriage,² along with this one and that one, until the third stood up, bosom swelling with pride, amid his dung and fodder. His clan stood up with him, munching on God’s property like a herd of camels munching on spring grass.

‭1.3.4 ‬Thus it was, until its strands came apart in his hands and his own actions delivered the death blow. It was greed that brought him to the ground. Then suddenly, people were flocking to me, thick as a hyena’s mane, trampling Ḥasan and Ḥusayn and rending my own shirt, pressing in on me from every side like a surging herd of camels.³ But when I rose to undertake its charge, one group of rebels broke their pledge, another deserted the faith, and a third went astray. Had they never heard God’s words, «We shall reserve the hereafter for those who do not seek to exalt themselves on the earth or spread corruption. The good end is for the godfearing»?⁴ Yes, by God, they heard and understood it, but the world appeared bejeweled to their eyes and her ornaments dazzled them. I swear by him who split open the seed, the one who created living beings—were it not for those who appealed to me in that time, if the presence of supporters had not made it my binding duty, if God had not taken a pledge from the learned that they would not permit tyrants to ravage or the subjugated to starve, I would have flung the caliphate’s reins onto its shoulders and offered the same cup to its latest emissary that I had offered to its earliest one. If not for this, you would have seen that your world means less to me than the sneeze of a goat.

‮‭‭1‬.‭3‬.‭5‬ ‬قالوا وقام اليه رجل من أهل السواد عند بلوغه إلی هذا الموضع من خطبته فناوله کتابًا فأقبل ينظر فيه. فلمّا فرغ من قراءته قال له ٱبن عبّاس رحمة الله عليه يا أمير المؤمنين لو ٱطّردت مقالتک من حيث أفضيت فقال هيهات يٱبن عبّاس تلک شقشقة هدرت ثمّ قرّت قال ٱبن عبّاس فوالله ما أسفت علی کلام قطّ کأسفي علی ذلك الکلام ألّا يکون أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام بلغ منه حيث أراد.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭3‬.‭6‬ ‬قوله عليه السلام في هذه الخطبة ⟨کراکب الصعبة إن أشنق لها خرم وإن أسلس لها تقحّم⟩ يريد أنّه إذا شدّد عليها في جذب الزمام وهي تنازعه رأسها خرم أنفها وإن أرخی لها شيئًا مع صعوبتها تقحّمت به فلم يملکها. يقال ⟨أشنق الناقة⟩ إذا جذب رأسها بالزمام فرفعه و⟨شنقها⟩ أيضًا. ذکر ذلک ٱبن السکّيت في إصلاح المنطق. وإنّما قال ⟨أشنق لها⟩ ولم يقل ⟨أشنقها⟩ لأنّه جعلها في مقابلة قوله ⟨أسلس لها⟩ فکأنّه عليه السلام قال ⟨إن رفع لها رأسها بالزمام⟩ بمعنی أمسکه عليها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭4‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮بنا ٱهتديتم في الظلماء وتسنّمتم العلياء وبنا ٱنفجرتم عن السِّرار. وُقِر سمع لم يفقه الواعية کيف يراعي النبأة من أصمّته الصيحة رُبط جنان لم يفارقه الخفقان. ما زلت أنتظر بکم عواقب الغدر وأتوسّمکم بحلية المغترّين سترني عنکم جلباب الدين وبصّرنيکم صدق النيّة أقمت لکم علی سنن الحقّ في جوادّ المضلّة حيث تلتقون ولا دليل وتحتفرون ولا تُميهون. اليوم أُنطق لکم العجماء ذات البيان عزب رأي ٱمرئ تخلّف عنّي ما شککت في الحقّ‬‎

‭1.3.5 ‬When ʿAlī reached this point in his oration, a visitor from the countryside handed him a petition, and he paused to look at it. When he had finished reading, Ibn ʿAbbās asked, “Commander of the Faithful, will you not continue your speech where you left off?” “No, Ibn ʿAbbās,” ʿAlī replied, “that was the roar of a camel stallion that burst out then subsided.” Ibn ʿAbbās remarked, “By God, I have never regretted the loss of any words as much as I regret the loss of these—if only the Commander of the Faithful had completed what he began!”

‭1.3.6 ‬Raḍī: ʿAlī’s words in this oration: “Any who traversed it rode a bucking camel—tighten its rein and slit its nose, or loosen it and be thrown,” mean that if the rider were to pull strongly on the reins of a bucking came while it pulled the other way, he would slit its nose, but if he were to slacken them a little, then that, coupled with the camel’s recalcitrance, would mean that the camel would throw him off, for he would be unable to control it. It is said, “He tightened the reins of the camel mare” (ashnaqa l-nāqata), when someone pulls back the camel’s muzzle with the nose-rein and lifts it up; the basic form of the verb (shanaqa) is also used—Ibn al-Sikkīt mentions this in Iṣlāḥ al-manṭiq (Correcting Speech). ʿAlī said, “He tightened for it its reins (ashnaqa lahā)” (using the preposition li-),¹ rather than “He tightened its reins (ashnaqahā)” (with the camel as direct object), because he wanted to preserve the parallelism with “if he loosened them (aslasa lahā),” where he also used the preposition li-. It is as though ʿAlī said, “if he raised the camel’s head upward with the nose-rein,” meaning that he held the camel tightly by means of it.

‭1.4 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

Through us you received guidance in the dark night, mounted the camel’s lofty hump, and emerged from a moonless night into the light of dawn. How deaf are the ears that don’t hear the mourners’ wails! Can people whom a clap of thunder fails to awaken be expected to heed a gentle voice? How calm is the heart that shudders in fear of God! I knew you would be treacherous, for I saw you donning seduction’s garb. But I wear the robe of religion, and it has prevented me from harming you, though my righteous spirit showed me clearly what you were. I stood up to guide you back to the trodden path of truth, from all those trails where you had wandered without a guide, where you had dug for water but found none. Today I have made mute signs, eloquent ones, speak to you. Those who held back from me have strayed. I never doubted the truth since it

‮مذ أريته لم يوجس موسی خيفة علی نفسه أشفق من غلبة الجهّال ودول الضلّال اليوم تواقفنا علی سبيل الحقّ والباطل من وثق بماء لم يظمأ.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭5‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمّا قبض رسول الله صلّی الله عليه وآله وخاطبه العبّاس وأبو سفيان ٱبن حرب في أن يبايعاه بالخلافة‬‎

‮أيّها الناس شقّوا أمواج الفتن بسفن النجاة وعرّجوا عن طريق المنافرة وضعوا تيجان المفاخرة. أفلح من نهض بجناح أو ٱستلسم فأراح. ماء آجن ولقمة يغصّ بها آکلها ومجتني الثمرة لغير وقت إيناعها کالزارع بغير أرضه فإن أقل يقولوا حرص علی الملک وإن أسکت يقولوا جزع من الموت هيهات <بعد اللتيا والتي> والله لٱبن أبي طالب آنس بالموت من الطفل بثدي أمّه بل ٱندمجت علی مکنون علم لو بُحْتُ به لٱضطربتم ٱضطراب الأرشية في الطويّ البعيدة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭6‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام لمّا أشير عليه بألّا يتّبع طلحة والزبير ولا يرصد لهما القتال‬‎

‮والله لا أکون کالضَّبُع تنام علی طول اللَّدْم حتّی يصل إليها طالبها ويختلّها راصدها‬‎

was shown to me. Moses was not fearful for his life—what he feared was the dominance of the ignorant and the control of the errant.¹ Today, we faced off on the battlefield, one on the side of right, the other on the side of wrong. A man who knows he will find water does not feel thirst.

‭1.5 ‬An address ʿAlī delivered when God’s Messenger passed away, and ʿAbbās and Abū Sufyān came to him offering the pledge of caliphal allegiance:²

People! Cut through the waves of rebellion by boarding the ark of salvation. Leave the path of dissension and cast off the crown of pride. Success comes to those who rise when they have support, or yield and let people be. This affair resembles murky water, or a morsel that chokes those who swallow it. One who plucks before his time gains as little as one who plants in another’s field. If I say something now, they will respond, “He covets power.” If I remain silent, they will cry, “He is afraid of being killed!” No, indeed, ⟨not after the small calamity and the large one⟩!³ By God, Abū Ṭālib’s son is more comfortable with death than an infant at his mother’s breast! But I hold knowledge of mysteries. Were I to reveal them to you, you would tremble like ropes hanging down deep wells.

‭1.6 ‬From an address ʿAlī delivered when advised not to pursue Ṭalḥah and Zubayr or make preparations to fight them:⁴

By God, I shall not behave like the hyena that, sleeping through a prolonged barrage of pebbles, is captured by the stealthy hunter.⁵ I call on men who have

‮ولکنّي أضرب بالمقبل إلی الحقّ المدبر عنه وبالسامع المطيع العاصي المريب أبدًا حتّی يأتي عليّ يومي. فوالله ما زلت مدفوعًا عن حقّي مستأثرًا عليّ منذ قبض الله نبيّه صلّى الله عليه حتّی يوم الناس هذا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭7‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮اتّخذوا الشيطان لأمرهم مِلاکًا‭¹‬ وٱتّخذهم له أشراکًا فباض وفرّخ في صدورهم ودبّ ودرج في حجورهم فنظر بأعينهم ونطق بألسنتهم فرکب بهم الزلل وزيّن لهم الخطل فعل من قد شرکه الشيطان في سلطانه ونطق بالباطل علی لسانه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭8‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام يعني به الزبير‬‎

‮يزعم أنّه قد بايع بيده ولم يبايع بقلبه فقد أقرّ بالبيعة وٱدّعی الوليجة فليأت عليها بأمر يعرف وإلّا فليدخل فيما خرج منه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭9‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮وقد أرعدوا وأبرقوا ومع هٰذين الأمرين الفشل ولسنا نرعد حتی نوقع ولا نسيل حتّی نمطر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭10‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮ألا وإنّ الشيطان قد جمع حزبه وٱستجلب خيله ورجله وإنّ بصيرتي لمعي‭²‬ ما لبّست علی نفسي ولا لبّس عليّ وٱيم الله لأفرطنّ لهم حوضًا أنا ماتحه لا يصدرون عنه ولا يعودون إليه.‬‎

accepted the truth to attack those who have turned away. I call on those who hear and obey to fight those doubters who have disobeyed. I shall continue to call on you until my appointed time arrives. By God! From the day God took his Messenger unto him until this day, I have been continually driven away from this thing that is mine by right and passed over for another.

‭1.7 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

They made Satan master of their affairs and he made them his partners. He laid eggs in their breasts and hatched chicks. He frolicked in their laps and romped. He watched with their eyes and spoke with their tongues. He incited them to error and lured them to treachery. Their actions are the actions of people whose rule Satan shares and on whose tongues he utters his falsehoods.

‭1.8 ‬From an address ʿAlī delivered about Zubayr:²

He declares that he pledged allegiance with his hand but not his heart. So he admits his pledge, although he claims he withheld intent. Let him bring tangible proof of that, or else return to the pledge he has forsaken.

‭1.9 ‬From an address ʿAlī delivered:³

They thundered and blazed but that is the way of cowards. My thunder always strikes, and my torrent is always propelled by rain.

‭1.10 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:⁴

Hark! Satan has mustered his host and armed his cavalry and infantry. But my conviction has not deserted me, I have never deceived nor been deceived. By God, I shall fill the waterhole for them as only I can—they shall not leave sated or return.⁵

‮‭‭1‬.‭11‬ ‬ومن کلامه عليه السلام لٱبنه محمّد بن الحنفيّة لمّا أعطاه الراية يوم الجمل‬‎

‮تزول الجبال ولا تزل عضّ علی ناجذک أعر الله جمجمتک تِدْ في الأرض قدمک ٱرم ببصرک أقصی القوم وغضّ بصرک وٱعلم أنّ النصر من عند الله سبحانه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭12‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام لمّا ظفر بأصحاب الجمل وقد قال له بعض أصحابه وددت أنّ أخي‭¹‬ کان شاهدًا ليری ما نصرک الله به علی أعدائک فقال أَهَوی أخيک معنا فقال نعم قال‬‎

‮فقد شهدنا. ولقد شهدنا فی عسکرنا هذا قوم في أصلاب الرجال وأرحام النساء سيرعف بهم الزمان ويقوی بهم الإيمان.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭13‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام في ذمّ البصرة وأهلها‬‎

‮کنتم جند المرأة وأتباع البهيمة رغا فأجبتم وعُقر فهربتم أخلاقکم دقاق وعهدکم شقاق ودينکم نفاق وماؤکم زُعاق المقيم بين أظهرکم مرتهن بذنبه والشاخص عنکم متدارک برحمة من ربّه. کأنّي بمسجدکم کجؤجؤ سفينة قد بعث الله عليها العذاب من فوقها ومن تحتها وغرّق من في ضمنها.‬‎

‮وفي رواية أخرى‬‎

‮وٱيم الله لتغرقنّ بلدتکم حتّی کأنّي أنظر إلی مسجدها کجؤجؤ سفينة أو نَعامة جاثمة.‬‎

‮ويروى‬‎

‮کجؤجؤ طير في لُجّة بحر.‬‎

‭1.11 ‬From an address ʿAlī delivered to his son Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥanafiyyah, while entrusting him with the banner at the Battle of the Camel:¹

Mountains may move, but you should not. Clench your teeth. Lend God your skull.² Dig your feet into the earth. Keep an eye on your farthest foes but focus on those who are close. Above all, know this: Victory comes from Almighty God.

‭1.12 ‬From an address by ʿAlī, after his victory at the Battle of the Camel. One of his supporters said to him, “I wish my brother were present to witness the victory God has granted you over your enemies.” ʿAlī asked, “Does your brother’s loyalty lie with us?” The man replied, “Yes,” and ʿAlī declared:³

Then he has witnessed us. Indeed, our fight has been witnessed by a mighty host in the loins of men and the wombs of women. Time will bring them forth and faith will gain strength.

‭1.13 ‬An address ʿAlī delivered criticizing Basra and rebuking its people:⁴

You fought for the woman and followed the camel—when it bellowed, you answered, when it was killed, you fled. Your character is base, your custom is dissent, your faith is hypocrisy, and your water is bitter. Whoever resides with you is ensnared in sin, whoever leaves you is saved by God’s mercy. I can see your mosque now, the prow of a ship enveloped by God’s punishment from above and below. All on board will drown.

A variant narrative:

I swear by God, your city will drown! I see your mosque like a ship’s prow, or a squatting ostrich.

It is also narrated as:

Like a bird’s breast rising above the swells of the sea.

‮‭‭1‬.‭14‬ ‬ومن کلام له في مثل ذلك‬‎

‮أرضکم قريبة من الماء بعيدة من السماء. خفّت عقولکم وسفهت حلومکم فأنتم غرض لنابل وأکلة لآکل وفريسة لصائل.‭¹‬‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭15‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام فيما ردّه على المسلمين من قطائع عثمان‬‎

‮والله لو وجدته قد تُزُوّج به النساء ومُلك به الإماء لرددته فإنّ في العدل سعة ومن ضاق عليه العدل فالجور عليه أضيق.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭16‬ ‬من كلام له عليه السلام لمّا بويع بالمدينة‬‎

‮ذمّتي بما أقول رهينة وأنا به زعيم إنّ من صرّحت له العبر عمّا بين يديه من المثلات حجزه التقوى عن تقحّم الشبهات ألا وإنّ بليّتكم قد عادت كهيئتها يوم بعث الله نبيّه والذي بعثه بالحقّ لتبلبلنّ بلبلة ولتغربلنّ غربلة ولتساطنّ سوط القدر حتّى يعود أسفلكم أعلاكم وأعلاكم أسفلكم وليسبقنّ سابقون كانوا قصّروا وليقصّرنّ سبّاقون كانوا سبقوا. والله ما كتمت وشمة ولا كذبت كذبة ولقد نبّئت بهذا المقام وهذا اليوم. ألا وإنّ الخطايا خيل شمس حمل عليها أهلها وخلعت لجمها فتقحّمت بهم في النار ألا وإنّ التقوى مطايا ذلل حمل عليها أهلها وأعطوا أزمّتها فأوردهم الجنّة. حقّ وباطل ولكلّ أهل فلئن أَمِر الباطل لقديمًا فعل ولئن قلّ الحقّ لربّما ولعلّ ولقلّما أدبر شيء فأقبل. شغل من الجنّة والنار أمامه. ساعٍ سريع نجا وطالب بطيء رجا ومقصّر في النار. اليمين والشمال مضلّة‬‎

‭1.14 ‬From a similar address delivered by ʿAlī:¹

Your land is close to the sea and far from the sky. Your wits are feeble and your minds are weak. You are targets for the archer, morsels for the greedy, and easy prey for all who would attack.

‭1.15 ‬ʿAlī’s address defending his restoration of ʿUthmān’s land grants to the public treasury:²

By God, even if the money had been spent to wed women or buy slave-girls, I would still have required its return. Justice has a wide scope—whoever finds it narrow should know that oppression is even more limiting.

‭1.16 ‬From an address ʿAlī delivered when the pledge of allegiance was sworn to him in Medina:³

I guarantee the truth of what I say and stand as surety for my pledge. To be cautioned by history’s lessons is to be protected by piety from galloping headlong into the abyss of doubt. Hark my words! You are being tested today, just as you were on the day God sent his Prophet. I swear by the one who sent him with the truth that you will be tossed hither and thither, sifted as in a sieve, and mixed and mingled as if in a boiling cauldron. Lowly folk will rise, and others in high positions will fall. Stragglers will race to the front, and others who are ahead will fall behind. By God, I have never held back a true word or spoken a single lie, and I was told of the arrival of this place and day. Hark my words! Sins are recalcitrant steeds, charging unreined with their riders into the Fire. Hear me! Piety is a docile mount that carries its riders, reins firm in their hands, steadily to paradise. There is truth and there is falsehood, and each has its people—what is new if falsehood prevails? Truth has few followers, and those who turn away rarely return. Those who see paradise or hellfire ahead have enough to occupy them. The swift runner is saved, the man who is tardy has hope, but the delinquent will end in the Fire. The right and the left lead to error, the middle

‮والطريق الوسطى هي الجادّة عليها باقي الكتاب وآثار النبوّة ومنها منفذ السنّة وإليها مصير العاقبة. هلك من ٱدّعى و﴿خَابَ مَنِ ٱفْتَرَىٰ﴾ من أبدى صفحته للحقّ هلك عند جهلة الناس. وكفى بالمرء جهلًا ألّا يعرف قدره. لا يهلك على التقوى سنخ أصل ولا يظمأ عليه زرع قوم. فٱستتروا ببيوتكم وأصلحوا ذات بينكم والتوبة من ورائكم. ولا يحمد حامد إلّا ربّه ولا يلم لائم إلّا نفسه.‬‎

‮وأقول إنّ في هذا الكلام من مواقع الإحسان ما لا تبلغه مواقع الاستحسان وإنّ حظّ العَجَب منه أكثر من حظّ العُجب به وفيه مع الحال التي وصفنا زوائد من الفصاحة لا يقوم بها لسان ولا يطّلع فجّها إنسان ولا يعرف ما أقوله إلّا من ضرب في هذه الصناعة بحقّ وجرى فيها على عرق وما يعقلها إلّا العالمون.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭17‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في صفة من يتصدّى للحكم بين الأمّة وليس لذلك بأهل‬‎

‮إنّ أبغض الخلائق إلى الله رجلان. رجل وكّله الله إلى نفسه فهو جائر عن قصد السبيل مشغوف بكلام بدعة ودعاء ضلالة فهو فتنة لمن ٱفتتن به ضالّ عن هدى من كان قبله مضلّ لمن ٱقتدى به في حياته وبعد وفاته حمّال خطايا غيره رهن بخطيئته. ورجل قَمَشَ جهلًا مُوضِعٌ في جهّال الأمّة غارٌّ في أغباش الفتنة عمٍ بما في عقد الهدنة قد سمّاه أشباه الناس عالمًا وليس به بكّر فٱستكثر من جمع ما قلّ منه خير ممّا كثر حتّى إذا ٱرتوى من آجن وأكثر من غير طائل جلس بين الناس قاضيًا ضامنًا لتخليص ما ٱلتبس على غيره فإن نزلت به إحدى المبهمات هيّأ لها حشوًا رثًّا من رأيه ثمّ قطع به. فهو من لبس الشبهات في مثل نسج العنكبوت لايدري أصاب أم أخطأ إن أصاب خاف أن يكون‬‎

way is the straight road, upon it you will find the remnants of scripture and the traces of prophecy, from it emerged the Sunnah, to it the people shall return. False claimants will perish and «those who lie will fail.»¹ Those who side with the truth will suffer at the hands of the ignorant. It is manifest ignorance for a man not to know his own worth! But fields sown by the pious will not wither. Roots planted by them will not shrivel. People, maintain the privacy of your homes and resolve your differences, and you will be forgiven. Praise only your Lord and blame only yourselves.

Raḍī: No admiration can encompass the beauty in these words; the awe they inspire exceeds any expression of appreciation. They have so much linguistic brilliance that no tongue can do them justice and no human can plumb their deep ravine. Only expert knowledge of this craft and an innate disposition for it can comprehend what I allude to. Only the learned can grasp the full meaning of this oration.

‭1.17 ‬From an address ʿAlī delivered describing men who set themselves up as judges for the community when they are far from qualified:²

The most hateful creatures in God’s eyes are of two kinds: The first is a man whom God has given up on and left to his own devices. Straying from the straight path, enamored of heretical innovation and errant agitation, he ensnares many. Having lost his predecessors’ path of right guidance, he leads people astray in his lifetime and continues his misguidance after his death. Surely, he will bear the burden of their sins, while remaining hostage to his own. The second collects scraps of ignorance and engages with the community’s dolts. Heedless of the black beasts of mutiny, he is blind to the benefits of peace. His comrades call him a scholar, but he is not. He is hasty to amass things of which less is better than more. When he has drunk his fill of stagnant water and increased his store without profit, he sits down to dispense judgment, to elucidate what has perplexed others. When faced with an impenetrable case, he stitches together a jumble of rags concocted from his own capricious opinions, then passes judgment. Yet, he remains entangled in a web of doubt,³ not

‮قد أخطأ وإن أخطأ رجا أن يكون قد أصاب. جاهل خبّاط جهالات عاشٍ ركّاب عشوات لم يعضّ على العلم بضرس قاطع يذري الروايات إذراء الريح الهشيم لا مليء والله بإصدار ما ورد عليه لا يحسب العلم في شيء ممّا أنكره ولا يرى أنّ من وراء ما بلغ منه مذهبًا لغيره وإن أظلم عليه أمر ٱكتتم به لما يعلم من جهل نفسه. تصرخ من جور قضائه الدماء وتعجّ منه المواريث. إلى الله أشكو من معشر يعيشون جهّالًا ويموتون ضلّالًا ليس فيهم سلعة أبور من الكتاب إذا تلي حقّ تلاوته ولاسلعة أنفق بيعًا ولا أغلى ثمنًا من الكتاب إذا حرّف عن مواضعه ولا عندهم أنكر من المعروف ولا أعرف من المنكر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭18‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في ذمّ ٱختلاف العلماء في الفتيا‬‎

‮ترد على أحدهم القضيّة في حكم من الأحكام فيحكم فيها برأيه ثمّ ترد تلك القضيّة بعينها على غيره فيحكم فيها بخلاف قوله ثمّ تجتمع القضاة بذلك عند إمامهم الذي ٱستقضاهم فيصوّب آرائهم جميعًا. وإلٰههم واحد وكتابهم واحد ونبيّهم واحد. أفأمرهم الله تعالى بالاختلاف فأطاعوه أم نهاهم عنه فعصوه أم أنزل الله دينًا ناقصًا فٱستعان بهم على إتمامه أم كانوا شركاء له فلهم‭¹‬ أن يقولوا وعليه أن يرضى أم أنزل الله سبحانه دينًا تامًّا فقصّر الرسول صلّى الله عليه وآله عن تبليغه وأدائه والله سبحانه يقول ﴿مَا فَرَّطْنَا فِي ٱلكِتَابِ مِن شَيْءٍ﴾ وفيه تبيان كلّ شيء. وذكر أنّ الكتاب يصدّق بعضه بعضًا وأنّه لا ٱختلاف فيه فقال سبحانه ﴿وَلَوْ كَانَ مِنْ عِندِ غَيْرِ ٱللّٰهِ لَوَجَدُوْا فِيهِ ٱخْتِلاَفًا كَثِيرًا﴾ وإنّ القرآن ظاهره أنيق وباطنه عميق لا تفنى عجائبه ولا تنقضي غرائبه ولا تكشف الظلمات إلّا به.‬‎

knowing whether he has judged correctly or erred. When correct, he is afraid he may have erred. When errant, he hopes he judged correctly. A total ignoramus, he stumbles about in his ignorance like the night-blind riding the steeds of darkness. Never biting into knowledge with strong teeth, he flings around hadith reports as the wind scatters dry leaves.¹ By God, he is not qualified to judge the cases that come to his waterhole. He dismisses whatever is beyond his understanding, not realizing that others have found a path. When a case is too obscure for him to grasp, he hides the fact, for he knows he lacks knowledge. The blood of the executed screams from his oppression, and inheritances cry out from his injustice. God, I complain to you of men who live in ignorance and die in error! No commodity is less profitable to them than the Qurʾan when explained correctly, no commodity more profitable or more valuable than that same Qurʾan with its meanings corrupted. Nothing for them is worse than good, nothing better than evil.

‭1.18 ‬From an address ʿAlī delivered censuring disagreement among jurists:²

When a case comes to one of them, he passes judgment based on his capricious opinion. Then the same case is brought before someone else, who gives a different judgment. Then all the judges congregate before the leader who appointed them, and he confirms all their judgments. This, when their God is one, their Book is one, and their Prophet is one! Did God command them to disagree such that they are simply obeying him? Rather, did he not forbid it and they disobeyed? Did God send down an imperfect religion and seek their help to complete it? Or did he make them his partners such that he must accept their whims? Or, yet again, did he actually send a perfect religion, and it was the Messenger who fell short in conveying and delivering it? God says, «We have omitted nothing from the Book.»³ It contains clarification of all things. He declares that one part of the Book supports the other without contradiction, saying, «If it had come from someone other than God, they would have found it to have many inconsistencies.»⁴ The Qurʾan’s form is elegant, and its content is deep. Its marvels never fade, and its wonders never run out. Only through the Qurʾan can darkness be dispelled.

‮‭‭1‬.‭19‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام قاله للأشعث بن قيس وهو على منبر الكوفة يخطب فمضى في بعض كلامه شيء ٱعترضه الأشعث فقال يا أمير المؤمنين هذه عليك لا لك. فخفض عليه السلام إليه بصره ثمّ قال‬‎

‮وما يدريك ما عليّ ممّا لي عليك لعنة الله ولعنة اللاعنين حائك ٱبن حائك منافق ٱبن كافر والله لقد أسرك الكفر مرّة والإسلام أخرى فما فداك من واحدة منهما مالك ولا حسبك وإنّ ٱمرأً دلّ على قومه السيف وساق إليهم الحتف لحريّ أن يمقته الأقرب ولا يأمنه الأبعد.‬‎

‮يريد أنّه أسر في الكفر مرّة وفي الإسلام مرّة. وأمّا قوله ⟨دلّ على قومه السيف⟩ فأراد به حديثًا كان للأشعث مع خالد بن الوليد باليمامة غرّ فيه قومه ومكر بهم حتّى أوقع خالد بهم وكان قومه بعد ذلك يسمّونه عُرف النار وهو ٱسم للغادر عندهم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭20‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮فإنّكم لو عاينتم ما قد عاين من مات منكم لجزعتم ووهلتم وسمعتم وأطعتم ولكن محجوب عنكم ما عاينوا وقريب ما يُطرح الحجاب ولقد بُصّرتم إن أبصرتم وأسمعتم إن سمعتم وهديتم إن ٱهتديتم. بحقّ أقول لكم لقد جاهرتكم العبر وزجرتم بما فيه مزدجر وما يبلّغ عن الله بعد رسل السماء إلّا البشر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭21‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮فإنّ الغاية أمامكم وإنّ وراءكم الساعة تحدوكم تخفّفوا تلحقوا فإنّما يُنتظر بأوّلكم آخرُكم.‬‎

‭1.19 ‬From words ʿAlī spoke to al-Ashʿath ibn Qays while orating on the pulpit of Kufa. Ashʿath objected to something in ʿAlī’s speech, interjecting, “Commander of the Faithful, this point goes against you, it doesn’t count in your favor,” and ʿAlī looked at him and exclaimed:¹

What do you know about what goes against me or counts in my favor? God’s curse upon you—weaver, son of a weaver,² hypocrite, son of an infidel—and the curse of all who curse! By God, unbelief captured you once, and Islam another time, and on neither occasion did your wealth or ancestry serve as ransom! If a man lifts the sword against his own tribe and brings death to them, he deserves to be hated by kin and feared by strangers.

Raḍī: ʿAlī means that Ashʿath was taken captive once as an unbeliever and once as a Muslim. Regarding his words, “lifts the sword against his own tribe,” he is alluding to a conversation between Ashʿath and Khālid ibn al-Walīd in Yamāmah, in which Ashʿath deceived his tribe and plotted against them, leading to Khālid’s attack and defeat of them. After this incident, Ashʿath’s kinsfolk named him “Cockscomb-of-the-Fire,” a name they used for traitors.

‭1.20 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

If you saw what the dead see, you would be stricken with grief and fear, and would listen and obey. What they see is veiled from you, but soon the veil will be cast aside. The fact is, you have been given the capacity to see if you would but look, to hear if you would but listen, to be guided if you would but follow! I say this to you in truth: the world’s deathly lessons have called out to you and given you harsh warning. After God’s messengers who descend from the sky, who else but humans convey his message?

‭1.21 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:³

The end is before you and the dreaded hour drives your caravan to the waterhole. Lighten your burden and catch up, for those who have gone ahead await those who remain behind.

‮وأقول إنّ هذا الكلام لو وزن بعد كلام الله سبحانه وكلام رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله بكلّ كلام لمال به راجحًا وبرّز عليه سابقًا. فأمّا قوله عليه السلام ⟨تخففّوا تلحقوا⟩ فما سمع كلام أقلّ منه مسموعًا ولا أكثر محصولًا وما أبعد غورها من كلمة وأنقع نطفتها من حكمة. وقد نبّهنا في كتاب الخصائص على عظم قدرها وشرف جوهرها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭22‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮ألا وإنّ الشيطان قد ذمر حزبه وٱستجلب جلبه ليعود الجور إلى أوطانه ويرجع الباطل إلى نصابه. والله ما أنكروا عليّ منكرًا ولا جعلوا بيني وبينهم نصفًا وإنّهم ليطلبون حقًّا تركوه ودمًا هم سفكوه. فإن كنت شريكهم فيه فإنّ لهم لنصيبهم منه ولئن كانوا ولوه دوني فما التبعة إلّا عندهم وإنّ أعظم حجّتهم لعلى أنفسهم. يرتضعون أُمًّا قد فطمت ويحيون بدعة قد أميتت يا خيبة الداعي من دعا وإلى ما أجيب وإنّي لراضٍ بحجّة الله عليهم وعلمه فيهم فإن أبوا أعطيتهم حدّ السيف وكفى به شافيًا من الباطل وناصرًا للحقّ. ومن العجب بعثتهم إليّ أن أبرز للطعان وأن أصبر للجلاد هبلتهم الهبول لقد كنت وما أهدّد بالحرب ولا أرهّب بالضرب وإنّي لعلى يقين من ربّي وغير شبهة من ديني.‭¹‬‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭23‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

Raḍī: If these words were weighed against any other, barring the words of God and the words of his Messenger, they would outweigh and outstrip them all. Regarding ʿAlī’s statement, “Lighten your burden and catch up,” no pithier or weightier words have ever been heard. How deep the meaning of this maxim, how pure its font of wisdom! I have further discussed its tremendous value and noble essence in The Book of Special Attributes (Kitāb al-Khaṣāʾiṣ).¹

‭1.22 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

Hear me! Satan has roared to his followers and herded his camels in order to return oppression to its homeland and restore evil to its roost. By God, they have no cause to fault me or seek redress. Rather, they demand from me a right they abandoned and vengeance for blood they spilt. If I had been their partner in this affair, they would still have their share of culpability. But if they have undertaken it on their own—which they have, without me—then they keep all the blame and their main allegation rebounds to them. In truth, they suckle at the breast of a woman who has weaned her young,³ and resurrect a heresy that has been put to death. Losers, every one of them, the issuers of this call! Who is it, pray, who calls, and to what purpose do they expect me to answer? I am satisfied with God’s proof against them and his knowledge of their deeds! If they persist, I will consign them to my blade—that will cure wrong and instate right! Is it not strange that they challenge me to face their spears and threaten me with sharpened swords? May their mothers mourn! I have never been intimidated by threats of battle or panicked by an impending attack. I have ever trusted my Lord and never doubted my faith.

‭1.23 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:⁴

‮أمّا بعد. فإنّ الأمر ينزل من السماء إلى الأرض كقطر المطر إلى كلّ نفس بما قسّم لها من زيادة أو نقصان. فإذا رأى أحدكم لأخيه غفيرة في أهل أو مال أو نفس فلا تكوننّ له فتنة. فإنّ المرء المسلم ما لم يغش دناءة تظهر فيخشع لها إذا ذكرت وتغرى بها لئام الناس كان كالفالج الياسر الذي ينتظر أوّل فوزة من قداحه توجب له المغنم ويرفع عنه بها المغرم. وكذلك المرء المسلم البريء من الخيانة ينتظر من الله إحدى الحسنيين إمّا داعي الله فما عند الله خير له وإمّا رزق الله فإذا هو ذو أهل ومال ومعه دينه وحسبه. إنّ المال والبنين حرث الدنيا والعمل الصالح حرث الآخرة وقد يجمعهما الله لأقوام. فٱحذروا من الله ما حذّركم من نفسه وٱخشوه خشية ليست بتعذير وٱعملوا في غير رياء ولا سمعة فإنّه من يعمل لغير الله يكله الله إلى من عمل له. نسأل الله منازل الشهداء ومعايشة السعداء ومرافقة الأنبياء. أيّها الناس إنّه لا يستغني الرجل وإن كان ذا مال عن عشيرته ودفاعهم عنه بأيديهم وألسنتهم وهم أعظم الناس حيطة من ورائه وألمّهم لشعثه وأعطفهم عليه عند نازلة إذا نزلت به ولسان الصدق يجعله الله للمرء في الناس خير له من المال يورّثه غيره.‬‎

‮منها‬‎

‮ألا لا يعدلنّ أحدكم عن القرابة يرى بها الخصاصة أن يسدّها بالذي لا يزيده إن أمسكه ولا ينقصه إن أهلكه ومن يقبض يده عن عشيرته فإنّما تقبض منه عنهم يد واحدة وتقبض منهم عنه أيدٍ كثيرة. ومن تلن حاشيته يستدم من قومه المودّة.‬‎

God’s command descends from the sky to the earth like raindrops, bringing to each soul what is decreed for it, be it plenty or dearth. Don’t be envious if you see your brother in possession of family, health, and wealth. As long as a Muslim does not commit an outrage that would shame him if disclosed and embolden the rabble, he is like the adventurer whose first drawn arrow wins him the prize and pays off his debts.¹ Similarly, a Muslim who is innocent of treachery awaits one of two beautiful outcomes:² either he will receive God’s call—and reward in God’s presence is the best blessing anyone can obtain—or God’s sustenance will come to him in this world, so he will have family and wealth, while also keeping his faith and character. Wealth and children are the harvest of this world, while good deeds are the harvest of the hereafter,³ and God may certainly bless a man with both. Beware the punishment that God has warned you of and do not fall short in fearing him. Perform deeds with sincerity, not to show off or gather praise, for whoever performs deeds for any reason other than to please God will be handed over to the person he performed them for. We beseech God to grant us the station of the martyrs, the companionship of the blissful, and the fellowship of the prophets. People! Even the wealthy man needs his kin, and he needs them to defend him with hand and tongue. Their backing is his best protection, and their support gives strength to his shaky affairs. When a calamity hits him, they show him the most compassion. A true tongue granted by God to a man among his people brings him more benefit than the wealth he leaves for another.⁴

From the same oration:

Harken to my words! Let none of you turn away from an impoverished relative. Your wealth will not increase if you withhold your largesse or decrease if you provide. The man who is close-fisted with kin will find that his closed fist will be countered with many closed fists. The man who possesses gentleness will keep his people’s affection.⁵

‮وما أحسن المعنى الذي أراده عليه السلام بقوله ⟨ومن يقبض يده عن عشيرته⟩ إلى تمام الكلام فإنّ الممسك خيره عن عشيرته إنّما يمسك نفع يد واحدة فإذا ٱحتاج إلى نصرتهم وٱضطرّ إلى مرافدتهم قعدوا عن نصره وتثاقلوا عن صوته فمنع ترافد الأيدي الكثيرة وتناهض الأقدام الجمّة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭24‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮ولعمري ما عليّ من قتال من خالف الحقّ وخابط الغيّ من إدهان ولا إيهان. فٱتّقوا الله عباد الله وفرّوا إلى لله من الله وٱمضوا في الذي نهجه لكم وقوموا بما عصبه بكم فعَلِيٌّ ضامن لفُلْجكم آجلًا وإن لم تمنحوه عاجلًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭25‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام وقد تواترت عليه الأخبار بٱستيلاء أصحاب معاوية على البلاد وقدم عليه عاملاه على اليمن وهما عبيد الله بن العباس وسعيد بن نمران لمّا غلب عليها بُسْر بن أبي أَرطأة فقام عليه السلام إلى المنبر ضجرًا بتثاقل أصحابه عن الجهاد ومخالفتهم له في الرأي وقال عليه السلام‬‎

‮ما هي إلّا الكوفة أقبضها وأبسطها إن لم تكوني إلّا أنت تهبّ أعاصيرك فقبّحك الله.‬‎

‮وتمثّل‭¹‬‬‎

‮ثمّ قال عليه السلام‬‎

‮أنبئت بسرًا قد ٱطّلع اليمن وإنّي والله لأظنّ هؤلاء القوم سيُدالون منكم بٱجتماعهم على باطلهم وتفرّقكم عن حقّكم وبمعصيتكم إمامكم في الحقّ وطاعتهم إمامهم في الباطل وبأدائهم الأمانة إلى صاحبهم وخيانتكم وبصلاحهم في بلادهم وإفسادكم. فلو ٱئتمنت أحدكم على قعب لخشيت أن يذهب بعلاقته. الّلهمّ إنّي قد مللتهم وملّوني وسئمتهم‬‎

Raḍī: What a beautiful motif ʿAlī expounded when he said, “The man who is close-fisted with kin,” and so on, till the end of the piece. For the man who withholds generosity from kin withholds the benefit he can bestow with one hand, whereas when he needs their aid and craves their support, they will hesitate to help him and be slow to answer his call, denying him the support of many hands and a host of marching feet.

‭1.24 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

By my life, no softness or weakness shall hold me back from fighting those who challenge the truth and follow the way of error. Servants of God, fear God, and flee to God’s reward from God’s wrath.¹ Walk the path that he paved for you, fulfill the duties to which he bound you, and ʿAlī guarantees your success in the hereafter, even if victory is not granted you in the here and now.

‭1.25 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī. Widespread reports reached ʿAlī that Muʿāwiyah’s commanders had occupied his territories. When Busr ibn Abī Arṭāt seized Yemen, ʿAlī’s governors, ʿUbaydallāh ibn al-ʿAbbās and Saʿīd ibn Nimrān, fled and returned to Kufa. Angered by his followers’ apathy in rising to fight and their opposition to his commands, ʿAlī ascended the pulpit and exclaimed:²

I have only you, Kufa, to hold or relinquish; only you, with your dry winds that raise pillars of dust! May God render you foul!

He then recited a testimonial verse:

He continued:

I am informed that Busr has ascended the Yemeni highlands. By God, I fear this group will vanquish you, for they are united in their false claim, while you, despite your truth, are divided. You disobey your leader in his call to the truth, while they obey theirs in his call to falsehood. They are loyal to their master, while you are treacherous. Their lands adhere to a proper state of affairs, while you are corrupt and dishonest—if I entrusted one of you with a wooden cup, he would make off with its palm-fronded handle! God, I am tired of these

‮وسئموني فأبدلني بهم خيرًا منهم وأبدلهم بي شرًّا منّي. الّلهمّ مِثْ قلوبهم كما يماث الملح في الماء. أما والله لوددت أنّ لي بكم ألف فارس من بني فراس بن غَنَم‭¹‬‬‎

‮ثمّ نزل من المنبر عليه السلام.‬‎

‮قلت أنا و⟨الأرمية⟩ جمع ⟨رميّ⟩ وهو السحاب. و⟨الحميم⟩ في هذا الموضع وقت الصيف. وإنّما خصّ الشاعر سحاب الصيف بالذكر لأنّه أشدّ جفولًا وأسرع خفوفًا لأنّه لا ماء فيه. وإنّما يكون السحاب ثقيل السير لٱمتلائه بالماء وذلك لا يكون في الأكثر إلّا في أزمان الشتاء. وإنّما أراد الشاعر وصفهم بالسرعة إذا دعوا والإغاثة إذا ٱستغيثوا. والدليل على ذلك قوله ⟨هنالك لو دعوت أتاك منهم⟩.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭26‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭26‬.‭1‬ ‬إنّ الله بعث محمّدًا صلّى الله عليه وآله نذيرًا للعالمين وأمينًا على التنزيل وأنتم معشر العرب على شرّ دين وفي شرّ دار مُنيخون بين حجارة خشن وحيّات صمّ تشربون الكدر وتأكلون الجشب وتسفكون دماءكم وتقطعون أرحامكم الأصنام فيكم منصوبة والآثام بكم معصوبة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭26‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮فنظرت فإذا ليس لي معين إلّا أهل بيتي فضننت بهم عن الموت وأغضيت على القذى وشربت على الشجى وصبرت على أخذ الكظم وعلى أمرّ من طعم العلقم .‬‎

people, and they are tired of me. I am weary of them, and they are weary of me. So give me better and give them worse. Crush their hearts like salt dissolving in water. By God, would that I had a thousand tribesmen from Firās ibn Ghanam instead of the lot of you!

Then he descended from the pulpit.

Raḍī: Armiyah, pl. ramī, is a cloud. Ḥamīm here means the heat of summer. The poet singles out summer clouds because they are blown along more swiftly and are light and fast moving. Clouds move heavily when they are full of water, and this is true mostly in winter. The poet wished to describe the warriors as swift to answer the call and as assisting as soon as they are asked. My interpretation is endorsed by his line, ⟨When you call out / Their men rush to you.⟩

‭1.26 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

‭1.26.1 ‬God sent Muḥammad as a warner to all peoples and a trustee of his revelation at a time when you Arabs followed a foul religion and lived in a foul abode: You unloaded your camels between rough boulders and deadly adders, drank muddy water, ate coarse food, randomly spilt blood, and recklessly severed ties of kinship. Idols were ensconced in your lands, and sins were bound to your necks.

‭1.26.2 ‬From the same oration:³

I looked around me, and when I saw that my family was my only support, I chose to save them from certain death. But I blinked down dust, choked when I drank, suffered harsh throttling, and endured a state more bitter than colocynth.

‮‭‭1‬.‭26‬.‭3‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮ولم يبايع حتّى شرط أن يؤتيه على البيعة ثمنًا فلا ظفرت يد المبايع وخزيت أمانة المبتاع. فخذوا للحرب أهبتها وأعدّوا لها عدّتها فقد شبّ لظاها وعلا سناها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭27‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أمّا بعد. فإنّ الجهاد باب من أبواب الجنّة فتحه الله لخاصّة أوليائه وهو لباس التقوى ودرع الله الحصينة وجُنّته الوثيقة فمن تركه ألبسه الله ثوب الذلّ وشمله البلاء ودُيّث بالصغار والقماء وضرب على قلبه بالإسهاب‭¹‬ وأديل الحقّ منه بتضييع الجهاد وسِيم الخسف ومُنع النصف. ألا وإنّي قد دعوتكم إلى حرب هؤلاء القوم ليلًا ونهارًا وسرًّا وإعلانًا وقلت لكم ٱغزوهم قبل أن يغزوْكم فوالله ما غزي قوم قطّ في عقر دارهم إلّا ذلّوا فتواكلتم وتخاذلتم حتّى شُنّت عليكم الغارات ومُلكت عليكم الأوطان. هذا أخو غامد قد وردت خيله الأنبار وقد قتل حسّان بن حسّان البكريّ وأزال خيلكم عن مسالحها. ولقد بلغني أنّ الرجل منهم كان يدخل على المرأة المسلمة والأخرى المعاهدة فينتزع حِجْلها وقُلْبها وقلائدها ورِعاثها ما تمتنع منه إلّا بالاسترجاع والاسترحام ثمّ ٱنصرفوا وافرين ما نال رجلًا منهم كَلْم ولا أريق لهم دم. فلو أنّ ٱمرأً مسلمًا مات من بعد هذا أسفًا ما كان به ملومًا بل كان به عندي جديرًا. فيا عجبًا عجبًا والله يميت القلب ويجلب الهمّ من ٱجتماع هؤلاء القوم على باطلهم وتفرّقكم عن حقّكم فقبحًا لكم وترحًا حين قد صرتم غرضًا يرمى يغار عليكم ولا تغيرون وتُغزَون ولا تغزُون ويعصى الله‬‎

‭1.26.3 ‬From the same oration:¹

ʿAmr pledged allegiance to Muʿāwiyah only after he had stipulated a price—may the pledger’s hand stay empty, and the pledgee’s charge be betrayed! Men, prepare for battle and ready your weapons! The fires of war have been stoked and their blaze has flared high.

‭1.27 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

Jihad is a door to heaven that God has opened for his special devotees. It is piety’s robe,³ God’s own protective armor, and his trusty shield. Those who spurn it will be clothed in dishonor, engulfed by calamities, and whipped into compliance. Chaos will destroy their minds. If they forsake jihad, righteousness will cease, shame will consume, and justice will be denied. Listen to me! Day and night, in private and in public, I urged you to fight this group. I exhorted you to attack them before they attacked you, for, by God, a group attacked in its heartland is sure to be routed! But you looked at one another and abandoned your fellows until you were raided, time and again, and your homelands were overrun. So now the Ghāmidī man’s horses have raided Anbar. He has killed Ḥassān ibn Ḥassān al-Bakrī and driven your cavalry from their fortifications. I have heard that their men forced their way into homes and ripped anklets, bracelets, necklaces, and earrings from our women, Muslim and non-Muslim,⁴ who had no way to save themselves except to beg for mercy, and to cry out that all must return to God.⁵ The horsemen then left unscathed, not a single individual injured, not a drop of their blood spilt. Who would blame a Muslim if, after this, he were to die in shame? I would say that his death is fully justified! O how incomprehensible your behavior! I am baffled at how that group unites behind their false claim, while you squabble among yourselves and refuse to fight for your right. It stabs my heart and gives me deep anguish. May you feel squalor and grief! You sit as a target for enemy arrows, you are

‮وترضون. فإذا أمرتكم بالسير إليهم في أيّام الحرّ قلتم هذه حَمارّة القَيظ أمهلنا يسبّخ عنّا الحَرّ وإذا أمرتكم بالسير إليهم في الشتاء قلتم هذه صَبارّة القُرّ أمهلنا ينسلخ‭¹‬ عنّا البرد كلّ هذا فرارًا من الحرّ والقرّ فإذا كنتم من الحرّ والقرّ تفرّون فأنتم والله من السيف أفرّ. يا أشباه الرجال ولا رجال حلوم الأطفال وعقول ربّات الحِجال. لوددت أنّي لم أركم ولم أعرفكم معرفة والله جرّت ندمًا وأعقبت ذمًّا.‭²‬ قاتلكم الله لقد ملأتم قلبي قيحًا وشحنتم صدري غيظًا وجرّعتموني نُغَب التَّهْمام أنفاسًا وأفسدتم عليّ رأيي بالعصيان والخذلان حتّى قالت قريش إنّ ٱبن أبي طالب رجل شجاع ولكن لا علم له بالحرب لله أبوهم وهل أحد منهم أشدّ لها مِراسًا وأقدم فيها مقامًا منّي. لقد نهضت فيها وما بلغت العشرين وها أنا ذا قد ذرّفت على الستّين. ولكنّه لا رأي لمن لا يطاع.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭28‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أمّا بعد. فإنّ الدنيا قد أدبرت وآذنت بوداع وإنّ الآخرة قد أقبلت وأشرفت بٱطّلاع ألا وإنّ اليوم المِضمار وغدًا السِّباق والسُّبْقة الجنّة والغاية النار. أفلا تائب من خطيئته قبل منيّته ألا عامل لنفسه قبل يوم بؤسه. ألا وإنّكم في أيّام أمل من ورائه أجل فمن عمل في أيّام أمله قبل حضور أجله نفعه عمله ولم يضرره أجله ومن قصّر في أيّام أمله قبل حضور أجله فقد خسر عمله وضرّه أجله ألا فٱعملوا في الرغبة كما تعملون في الرهبة ألا وإنّي لم أر كالجنّة نام طالبها ولا كالنار نام هاربها ألا وإنّه من لا ينفعه الحقّ يضرره الباطل ومن لا يستقم به الهدى يجرّ به الضلال إلى الردى ألا وإنّكم قد أُمرتم بالظعن‬‎

raided but do not raid, you are attacked but do not attack, God is disobeyed and you are content. Earlier, when I commanded you to mobilize in the days of heat, you replied, “It is the swelter of midsummer—spare us until the heat lessens.” When I commanded you to mobilize in wintertime, you replied, “It is the freeze of midwinter—spare us until the cold departs.” All this, just to avoid heat and cold! By God, if you flee thus from heat and cold, you will flee in greater panic from the sword! Semblances of men, not men, with minds of children and wits of cloistered women! I wish I had never seen you! I wish I had never known you! By God, knowing you has brought me only regret, only defamation! May God attack you! You have filled my heart with pus and weighted my breast with ire. With every breath I take, you have poured me draughts of sorrow. You have ruined my strategy with your disobedience and opposition, such that the Quraysh tribesmen say, “Abū Ṭālib’s son may be a brave man, but he has no knowledge of war.” Good God!¹ Is there anyone more familiar with its harshness, or who experienced it at a younger age? I knew war intimately before I turned twenty, and now I am past sixty! But there can be no strategy without obedience.

‭1.28 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

The world has shown its back and proclaimed its farewell. The hereafter has approached and announced its arrival. Hark my words! Today is the day of training and tomorrow the race: its goal is paradise, or its end hellfire. Will you not repent of your sins before your death? Will you not perform deeds for your soul before your day of adversity? Hark my words! These are your days of hope and coming up right behind them is death. Those who perform deeds during their days of hope, before the arrival of death, will benefit from their days of hope, and death will cause no harm. Those who fall short in performing deeds during their days of hope, before the arrival of death, will have squandered their days of hope, and death will cause them harm. Hark my words! Perform deeds from hope, just as you perform them from fear. Hark my words! I have never seen any who seek paradise or flee hellfire in heedless slumber. Hark my words! Those not helped by right are harmed by wrong. Those not placed on the path

‮ودُللتم على الزاد وإنّ أخوف ما أخاف عليكم ٱتّباع الهوى وطول الأمل تزوّدوا في الدنيا من الدنيا ما تحوزون به أنفسكم غدًا.‬‎

‮وأقول إنّه لو كان كلام يأخذ بالأعناق إلى الزهد في الدنيا ويضطرّ إلى عمل الآخرة لكان هذا الكلام وكفى به قاطعًا لعلائق الآمال وقادحًا زناد الاتّعاظ والازدجار. ومن أعجبه قوله عليه السلام ⟨ألا وإنّ المضمار اليوم وغدًا السباق والسبقة الجنّة والغاية النار⟩ فإنّ فيه مع فخامة اللفظ وعظم قدر المعنى وصادق التمثيل وواقع التشبيه سرًّا عجيبًا ومعنى لطيفًا وهو قوله عليه السلام ⟨والسبقة الجنّة والغاية النار⟩ فخالف بين اللفظين لٱختلاف المعنيين ولم يقل ⟨والسبقة النار⟩ كما قال ⟨والسبقة الجنّة⟩ لأنّ الاستباق إنّما يكون إلى أمر محبوب وغرض مطلوب وهذه صفة الجنّة وليس هذا المعنى موجودًا في النار نعوذ بالله منها فلم يجز أن يقول ⟨والسبقة النار⟩ بل قال ⟨والغاية النار⟩ لأنّ الغاية قد ينتهي إليها من لا يسرّه الانتهاء ومن يسرّه ذلك فصلح أن يعبّر بها عن الأمرين معًا فهي في هذا الموضع كالمصير والمآل قال الله عزّ وجلّ ﴿قُلْ تَمَتَّعُواْ فَإِنَّ مَصِيرَكُمْ إِلَى ٱلنَّارِ﴾ ولا يجوز في هذا الموضع أن يقال ⟨فإنّ سبقتكم إلى النار⟩. فتأمّل ذلك فباطنه عجيب وغوره بعيد وكذلك أكثر كلامه عليه السلام.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭29‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أيّها الناس المجتمعة أبدانهم المختلفة أهواؤهم كلامكم يوهي الصمّ الصلاب وفعلكم يطمع فيكم الأعداء تقولون في المجالس كَيْتَ وكَيْتَ فإذا جاء القتال قلتم حِيدِي حَيادِ. ما عزّت دعوة من دعاكم ولا ٱستراح قلب من قاساكم أعاليل بأضاليل دفاع ذي الدَّين المطول. لا يمنع الضيم الذليل ولا يدرك الحقّ إلّا بالجِدّ أيّ دار بعد داركم تمنعون ومع أيّ إمام بعدي تقاتلون المغرور والله من غررتموه ومن فاز بكم فاز بالسهم الأخيب ومن رمى بكم فقد رمى بأَفْوَقِ ناصل أصبحت والله لا أصدّق قولكم ولا‬‎

by guidance are dragged by error to perdition. Hark my words! You have been commanded to journey and directed to provision. What I fear most for you is the pursuit of desire and lengthy yearnings. Take provisions in this world, from this world, to nourish your souls tomorrow.

Raḍī: If ever words grabbed you by the neck and compelled you to renounce the world and perform deeds for the hereafter, it would be these words, which cut the cords of false hope and ignite the flint of counsel and warning. Among their most wondrous lines are, “Today is the day of training and tomorrow the race: its goal is paradise, or its end hellfire.” For in addition to majestic vocabulary, exalted themes, clear analogies, and effective metaphors, they enfold a wondrous secret and sublime significance in the line, “its goal (subqah) is paradise, or its end (ghāyah) hellfire.” Here, ʿAlī differentiates between the two words because they have different significations. He does not say “its goal is hellfire” as he says “its goal is paradise” because one races towards something one wants, to a prize one hopes to win, and that is the description of paradise. But this significance does not apply to hellfire—may God protect us from it!—so it would be impermissible to say, “its goal is hellfire.” Rather, ʿAlī says, “its end is hellfire,” because an end is reached by those who are not pleased to reach it as well as by those who are pleased to reach it; it conveys both situations. In the context of this sermon, the word “end” indicates the last stop, the place of final return, as in God’s words, «Say: Take pleasure if you wish! Your last stop is hellfire.»¹ It would be impermissible to say here, “your goal is hellfire.” Reflect on ʿAlī’s words, for the signification of this saying is wondrous, its well deep. And this is true for the entirety of ʿAlī’s speech.

‭1.29 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

People! You are together in body but divided in aspiration. Your words would shatter mighty rocks, but your actions embolden the enemy. In your gatherings you say this and that, but when battle approaches, you yell, “Be gone! Get away!” A mission that depends on you never succeeds. A heart that is subjected to you is never at ease. Excuses and falsehoods! You keep asking for a delay, like debtors who put off and refuse to pay! Men without honor cannot fight injustice. Rights cannot be won except through earnest effort. Tell me—which home will you defend when this one is taken? Under which leader will you fight when I am gone? By God, whoever believes in you is deluded! Whoever wins you as his share wins the losing arrow! Whoever has you in his bow shoots a broken-

‮أطمع في نصركم ولا أوعد العدوّ بكم ما بالكم ما دواؤكم ما طبّكم القوم رجال أمثالكم أقَوْلًا بغير علم وغفلة من غير ورع وطمعًا في غير حقّ.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭30‬ ‬من كلام له عليه السلام في معنى قتل عثمان‬‎

‮لو أمرت به لكنت قاتلًا أو نهيت عنه لكنت ناصرًا غير أنّ من نصره لا يستطيع أن يقول خذله من أنا خير منه ومن خذله لا يستطيع أن يقول نصره من هو خير منّي. وأنا جامع لكم أمره ٱستأثر فأساء الأثرة وجزعتم فأسأتم الجزع ولله حكم واقع في المستأثر والجازع.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭31‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمّا أنفذ عبد الله بن العبّاس رحمه الله إلى الزبير قبل وقوع الحرب يوم الجمل يستفيئه إلى طاعته. قال له عليه السلام‬‎

‮لا تلقينّ طلحة فإنّك إن تلقه تجده كالثور عاقصًا قرنه يركب الصعب ويقول هو الذلول ولكن ٱلق الزبير فإنّه ألين عريكة فقل له يقول لك ٱبن خالك عرفتني بالحجاز وأنكرتني بالعراق فما عدا ممّا بدا.‬‎

‮وهو عليه السلام أوّل من سمعت منه هذه الكلمة أعني ⟨فما عدا ممّا بدا⟩.‬‎

nocked arrow with a dull point!¹ By God, I woke this morning not trusting anything you say, not expecting your support, not threatening the enemy with your strength. What is wrong with you? What is your cure? What is your remedy? They are but men like you! So much talk and no comprehension, so much rashness and no piety, so much greed for things that don’t belong to you!

‭1.30 ‬From words ʿAlī spoke about ʿUthmān’s assassination:²

If I had commanded it, I would be a killer. If I had forbidden it, I would be a supporter. In truth, the supporter cannot claim that he is more righteous than the detractor, while the detractor would not be correct in saying that the supporter is more righteous than he is.³ Let me summarize the situation for you: ʿUthmān misappropriated, and that was wrong. You responded with violence, and that was also wrong. Both the one who misappropriated and the one who responded with violence will face God’s judgment.

‭1.31 ‬From words ʿAlī spoke just before the fighting began at the Battle of the Camel, when he sent ʿAbdallāh ibn al-ʿAbbās to urge Zubayr to return to the fold of obedience. ʿAlī said:⁴

Don’t speak with Ṭalḥah, for you will find him a bull with twisted horns, a man who rides a refractory beast and swears it is docile. Speak instead with Zubayr, whose hump is softer, and say to him: Your cousin ʿAlī says to you: You acknowledged me in Medina and rejected me in Iraq—what turned you from what you deemed good?

Raḍī: ʿAlī was the first to use the expression, “What turned you from what you deemed good?” (mā ʿadā mimmā badā).

‮‭‭1‬.‭32‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‭¹‬‬‎

‮أيّها الناس إنّا قد أصبحنا في دهر عنود وزمن شديد‭²‬ يعدّ فيه المحسن مسيئًا ويزداد الظالم فيه عتوًّا لا ننتفع بما علمنا ولا نسأل عمّا جهلنا ولا نتخوّف قارعة حتّى تحلّ بنا. فالناس على أربعة أصناف. منهم من لا يمنعه الفسادَ في الأرض إلّا مهانةُ نفسه وكلالة حدّه ونضيض وفره. ومنهم المصلت بسيفه والمعلن بسرّه‭³‬ والمجلب بخيله ورَجْله قد أشرط نفسه وأوبق دينه لحطام ينتهزه أو مِقنب يقوده أو منبر يفرعه. ولبئس المتجر أن ترى الدنيا لنفسك ثمنًا وممّا لك عند الله عوضًا. ومنهم من يطلب الدنيا بعمل الآخرة ولا يطلب الآخرة بعمل الدنيا قد طامن من شخصه وقارب من خطوه وشمّر من ثوبه وزخرف من نفسه للأمانة واتّخذ ستر الله ذريعة إلى المعصية. ومنهم من أقعده عن طلب الملك ضؤولة نفسه وٱنقطاع سببه فقصرته الحال على حاله فتحلّى بٱسم القناعة وتزيّن بلباس أهل الزهادة وليس من ذلك في مراح ولا مغدى. وبقي رجال غضّ أبصارهم ذكر المرجع وأراق دموعهم خوف المحشر. فهم بين شريد نادٍّ وخائف مقموع وساكت مكعوم وداعٍ مخلص وثكلان موجَع قد أخملتهم التقيّة وشملتهم الذلّة فهم في بحر أجاج أفواههم ضامزة وقلوبهم قرحة قد وعظوا حتّى ملّوا وقُهروا حتّى ذلّوا وقُتلوا حتّى قلّوا. فلتكن الدنيا أصغر في أعينكم من حُثالة القَرَظ وقُراضة الجَلَم وٱتّعظوا بمن كان قبلكم قبل أن يتّعظ بكم من بعدكم وٱرفضوها ذميمة فإنّها قد رفضت من كان أشغف بها منكم.‬‎

‮وهذه الخطبة ربّما نسبها من لا علم له إلى معاوية وهي من كلام أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام الذي لا شكّ فيه وأين الذهب من الرغام والعذب من الأجاج وقد دلّ على ذلك الدليل‬‎

‭1.32 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

People! We live in a challenging age and a difficult time, when the good are deemed evil, and oppressors grow ever more brutal. We neither benefit from what we have learnt, nor ask about what we don’t know—we ignore calamities until they set up camp in our homes. Men today fall into one of four categories: One is prevented from spreading corruption on earth by the weakness of his person, the dullness of his blade, and the sparseness of his wealth. Another unsheathes his sword, announces his intention, and assembles foot soldiers and cavalry, selling his soul and forfeiting his religion to amass baubles, lead an army, or ascend a pulpit—what a terrible transaction, when you deem the world an equitable price for your soul, a fair exchange for heavenly reward! A third seeks worldly gain by performing the deeds of the hereafter, rather than seeking the hereafter by performing good deeds in this world; he appears calm in his person, walks with slow steps, tucks up his garments, and presents himself as a trustworthy man, taking advantage of the concealment offered by God’s veil to sin. A fourth is only prevented from seeking power by his own servility and lack of support—these are what keeps him in his place. He wears the mark of contentment and dons the garment of renunciants, but neither his haunts in the daytime nor his retreats in the night are anything like theirs. Only a few men remain—their eyes are wet with remembrance of the return to God, and their tears flow from fear of the resurrection. One is a solitary fugitive, another is curbed by fear, a third is shushed and muzzled, a fourth, sincere, prays, and a fifth is bereaved and grieving. They are weakened by terror and humiliated on all sides; they drink from a bitter sea, tongues silenced, hearts wounded. They gave counsel until exhausted, now they are beaten down; almost all have been killed off, only a few remain. People, let this world be smaller in your eyes than fibers of a spiny acacia pod, or fluffs of wool floating off a pair of shears. Learn from the fate of those who came before, let not those who come later have occasion to learn from yours. Reject this world and censure her, for she has rejected many who were far more enamored of her than you.

Raḍī: Some individuals who lack any knowledge attribute this oration to Muʿāwiyah, when it is unquestionably the speech of the Commander of the Faithful. Can one compare dirt to gold, or the bitter to the sweet? Indeed, an experienced guide has shown

‮الخِرّيت ونقده الناقد البصير عمرو بن بحر الجاحظ فإنّه ذكر هذه الخطبة في كتابه البيان والتبيُّن‭¹‬ وذكر من نسبها إلى معاوية ثمّ تكلّم من بعدها بكلام في معناها جملته أنّه قال وهذا الكلام بكلام عليّ عليه السلام أشبه وبمذهبه في تصنيف الناس وفي الإخبار عمّا هم عليه من القهر والإذلال ومن التقيّة والخوف أليق. ومتى وجدنا معاوية في حال من الأحوال يسلك في كلامه مسلك الزهّاد ومذاهب العبّاد.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭33‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام عند مسيره لقتال أهل البصرة. قال عبد الله بن العبّاس رضي الله عنه دخلت على أمير المؤمنين صلوات الله عليه بذي قار وهو يخصف نعله فقال لي ما قيمة هذه النعل فقلت لا قيمة لها قال والله لهي أحبّ إليّ من إمرتكم إلّا أن أقيم حقًّا أو أدفع باطلًا ثمّ خرج عليه السلام فخطب الناس فقال‬‎

‮إنّ الله سبحانه بعث محمّدًا صلّى الله عليه وآله وليس أحد من العرب يقرأ كتابًا ولا يدّعي نبوّة فساق الناس حتّى بوّأهم محلّتهم وبلّغهم منجاتهم فٱستقامت قناتهم وٱطمأنّت صَفاتهم. أما والله إن كنت لفي ساقتها حتّى تولّت بحذافيرها ما عجزت ولا جبنت وإنّ مسيري هذا لمثلها فلأنقبنّ الباطل حتّى يخرج الحقّ من جنبه. مالي ولقريش والله لقد قاتلتهم كافرين ولأقاتلنّهم مفتونين وإنّي لصاحبهم بالأمس كما أنا صاحبهم اليوم.‬‎

us the way, a discerning assayer has scrutinized it and pronounced judgment: ʿAmr ibn Baḥr al-Jāḥiẓ, in his book, Eloquence and Exposition (al-Bayān wa-l-tabyīn), mentions that certain people attribute this oration to Muʿāwiyah, then he discusses the issue at some length. This is the gist of Jāḥiẓ’s comments: “These words resemble the words of ʿAlī. They are closer to his style in categorizing people and providing information about their state, describing them as beaten, humiliated, fearful, and terrified. In contrast, when did we ever see Muʿāwiyah’s speech follow the path of the renunciants and the way of the worshippers!”¹

‭1.33 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī, when he marched on the people of Basra. ʿAbdallāh ibn al-ʿAbbās narrated: I entered the Commander of the Faithful’s tent at Dhū Qār and found him mending his sandal. He asked me, “What’s the value of this sandal?” and, when I replied, “It’s worth nothing,” he responded, “By God, it’s worth more to me than command over you! That I undertake only to establish truth and fight falsehood!” Then he went out and addressed the people in the following oration:²

God sent Muḥammad when no Arab read scripture or claimed prophecy. He shepherded them until he had brought them to a safe encampment, a place of refuge, where their lances were straightened and the ground under them made firm. By God, I always fought in the front, always battled until the enemy’s battalions were repulsed and defeated, never holding back from weakness or cowardice. This march is the same. I shall impale the demon of falsehood until truth breaks out from its side. Heavens, why do the Quraysh hate me so? By God, I fought them when they were unbelievers, and I shall fight them now in this revolt. I brought them to their knees then and shall do so again.

‮‭‭1‬.‭34‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام في ٱستنفار الناس إلى الشام‬‎

‮أُفٍ لكم قد سئمت عتابكم أرضيتم بالحياة الدنيا من الآخرة عوضًا وبالذلّ من العزّ خلفًا إذا دعوتكم إلى جهاد عدوّكم دارت أعينكم كأنّكم من الموت في غمرة ومن الذهول في سكرة يُرتَجُ عليكم حواري فتعمهون فكأنّ قلوبكم مألوسة فأنتم لا تعقلون. ما أنتم لي بثقة سَجِيسَ الليالي وما أنتم بركن يمال بكم ولا زوافر عزّ يفتقر إليكم ما أنتم إلّا كإبل ضلّ رعاتها فكلّما جمعت من جانب ٱنتشرت من آخر لبئس لعمر الله سُعُر نار الحرب أنتم تُكادون ولا تكيدون وتنتقص أطرافكم فلا تمتعضون لا يُنام عنكم وأنتم في غفلة ساهون غُلب والله المتخاذلون وٱيم الله إنّي لأظنّ بكم أن لو حَمِس الوغى وٱستحرّ الموت قد ٱنفرجتم عن ٱبن أبي طالب ٱنفراج الرأس عن البدن. والله إنّ ٱمرأً يمكّن عدوّه من نفسه يعرق لحمه ويهشم عظمه ويفري جلده لعظيمٌ عجزُه ضعيفٌ ما ضمّت عليه جوانحُ صدره. أنت فكن ذاك إن شئت فأمّا أنا فوالله دون أن أعطي ذاك ضربٌ بالمشرفيّة تطير منه فراش الهام وتطيح السواعد والأقدام ويفعل الله بعد ذلك ما يشاء. أيّها الناس إنّ لي عليكم حقًّا ولكم عليّ حقّ. فأمّا حقّكم عليّ فالنصيحة لكم وتوفير فيئكم عليكم وتعليمكم كيلا تجهلوا وتأديبكم كيما تعلموا. وأمّا حقّي عليكم فالوفاء بالبيعة والنصيحة في المشهد والمغيب والإجابة حين أدعوكم والطاعة حين آمركم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭35‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام بعد التحکيم‬‎

‭1.34 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī, as he mobilized his followers to fight the Syrians:¹

Shame! I am tired of rebuking you! Is it that you are satisfied with this world in exchange for the hereafter? Is it that you are happy with humiliation after having known strength and might? When I call you to fight your enemy, you roll your eyes as though in the throes of death, as if numb with strong drink. You struggle to find words and appear mystified by what I say, pretending that your minds are addled and that you grasped nothing. To the end of the long nights, never will you be supporters in whom I can trust, or a column on which I can lean, or allies on whom I can depend! You are like camels whose herder is at his wits end—each time he gathers them from one side, they scatter from another. God’s life! What cowards you are when faced with the flames of war! Your enemies conspire but you do not respond, your boundaries contract but you feel no anger, your enemies never sleep but you remain merrily oblivious. By God, the slothful will be crushed! By God, I know that when battle blazes and death burns, you will split from Abū Ṭālib’s son as cleanly as a head sliced off a body. By God, how powerless the man who lets his enemy eat his flesh, pound his bones, and flay his skin! His ribs conceal a feeble heart! You be that person if you wish. I, by God, shall strike a blow with my Mashrafī sword that will crush skulls and sever limbs. Then God may do with me as he wills! People! You have rights over me, and I have rights over you. I owe you sincere counsel, generous stipends, teaching that dispels ignorance, and lessons that make you better. You owe me fulfilment of your pledge and sincere support in my presence and my absence. You must answer when I call and obey when I command.

‭1.35 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī after the arbitration:²

‮الحمد لله وإن أتی الدهر بالخطب الفادح والحدث الجليل وأشهد أن لا إلٰه إلّا الله ليس معه إلٰه غيره وأنّ محمدًا عبده ورسوله صلّی الله عليه وآله. أمّا بعد.‬‎

‮فإنّ معصية الناصح الشفيق العالم المجرّب تورث الحسرة وتعقب الندامة وقد کنت أمرتکم في هذه الحکومة أمري ونخلت لکم مخزون رأيي ⟨لو کان يطاع لقُصيرٍ أمرٌ⟩ فأبيتم عليّ إباء المخالفين الجفاة والمنابذين العصاة حتی ٱرتاب الناصح بنصحه وضنّ الزند بقدحه فکنت أنا وإيّاکم کما قال أخو هوازن‭¹‬‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭36‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام في تخويف أهل النهروان‬‎

‮فأنا نذير لکم أن تصبحوا صرعی بأثناء هذا النهر وبأهضام هذا الغائط علی غير بيّنة من ربّکم ولا سلطان مبين معکم قد طوّحت بکم الدار وٱحتبلکم المقدار وقد کنت نهيتکم عن هذه الحکومة فأبيتم عليّ إباء المخالفين الجفاة والمنابذين العصاة‭²‬ حتّی صرفتُ رأيي إلی هواکم وأنتم معاشر أخفّاء الهام سفهاء الأحلام ولم آت لا أبا لکم بُجْرًا ولا أردت بکم ضرًّا.‬‎

I praise God even though this age has brought a great calamity and dealt a mighty blow. I testify that there is no god but God—there is no god other than he. I testify that Muḥammad is his servant and messenger—may God bless him and his descendants. And now to the matter at hand:¹

Disobeying a kind, learned, and experienced counselor yields only regret and remorse. I gave you my considered opinion regarding this arbitration, ⟨O if only Qaṣīr’s command had been obeyed!⟩² With rebellious defiance you rejected my warnings, enough to make a counsellor doubt his own counsel and a flint hold back its spark! In this, you and I may be likened to the Hawāzin poet’s lines:³

‭1.36 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī warning the people of Nahrawān:⁴

I warn you! Take heed or you will soon be corpses strewn at the bend of this river in the hollows of this plain, holding no mandate from your Lord or proof of righteousness, cast out by your lands, and enmeshed in fate’s deadly snare. I forbade you from engaging in arbitration, but you challenged me with defiance and insolence until I gave in to your reckless dictates. Lightheaded fools, the lot of you! May you be deprived of fathers! I’m not the one who has brought calamity on you, nor have I ever intended you harm.

‮‭‭1‬.‭37‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام يجري مجری الخطبة‬‎

‮فقمت بالأمر حين فشلوا وتطلّعت حين تعتعوا ومضيت بنور الله حين وقفوا وکنت أخفضهم صوتًا وأعلاهم فوتًا فطرت بعنانها وٱستبددت برِهانها کالجبل لا تحرّکه القواصف ولا تزيله العواصف لم يکن لأحد فيّ مهمز ولا لقائل فيّ مغمز الذليل عندي عزيز حتّی آخذ الحقّ له والقويّ عندي ضعيف حتّی آخذ الحقّ منه رضينا عن الله قضاه وسلّمنا لله أمره. أتُراني أکذب علی رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله والله لأنا أوّل من صدّقه فلا أکون أوّل من کذب عليه فنظرت في أمري فإذا طاعتي قد سبقت بيعتي وإذا الميثاق في عنقي لغيري.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭38‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭38‬.‭1‬ ‬وإنّما سمّيت الشبهة شبهة لأنّها تشبه الحقّ.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭38‬.‭2‬ ‬فأمّا أولياء الله فضياؤهم فيها اليقين ودليلهم سمت الهدی وأمّا أعداء الله فدعاؤهم الضلال ودليلهم العمی فما ينجو من الموت من خافه ولا يعطی البقاء من أحبّه.‬‎

‭1.37 ‬From an address by ʿAlī that resembles an oration:¹

I answered Muḥammad’s call when others held back, sped forward when others dragged their feet, and welcomed God’s light when others hesitated. The humblest in speech, I outpaced all in action. With the reins of religion firmly in my hands, I flew like the wind, staking everything I possessed, like a mountain that no gales could shake, no storms could budge. No one can find fault or speak ill of me in any of this. In my eyes, the weak were mighty as I strove to restore their rights, the mighty were weak as I wrested from them the rights of the weak. I accepted God’s decree and bowed to his command. Do you think I would lie regarding God’s Messenger when I was the first to support him? I shall not be the first to lie about him! But when I paused to reflect on my situation, I found that my obedience had preceded my oath of allegiance, and my pledge was a shackle around my neck.²

‭1.38 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

‭1.38.1 ‬Doubt is called doubt because it resembles truth.³

‭1.38.2 ‬Certainty illumines the way for those who place their faith in God, and the path of right guidance carries them forward, while the call of God’s enemies is the embodiment of error, and their guide is blindness itself. You will not escape death just because you fear it. You will not remain in this world just because you want to.⁴

‮‭‭1‬.‭39‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮مُنيتُ بمن لا يطيع إذا أمرت ولا يجيب إذا دعوت لا أبا لکم ما تنتظرون بنصرکم ربّکم. أما دين يجمعکم ولا حميّة تحمشکم. أقوم فيکم مستصرخًا وأناديکم متغوّثًا فلا تسمعون لي قولًا ولا تطيعون لي أمرًا حتّی تَکشّف الأمور عن عواقب المساءة فما يدرک بکم ثأر ولا يبلغ بکم مرام. دعوتکم إلی نصر إخوانکم فجرجرتم جرجرة الجمل الأَسَرّ وتثاقلتم تثاقل النِّضْو الأدبر ثمّ خرج إليّ منکم جنيد متذائب ضعيف ﴿كَأَنَّمَا يُسَاقُونَ إِلَى ٱلْمَوْتِ وَهُمْ يَنظُرُونَ﴾.‬‎

‮قوله عليه السلام ⟨متذائب⟩ أي مضطرب من قولهم ⟨تذاءبت الريح⟩ اي ٱضطرب هبوبها ومنه سمّي الذئب لٱضطراب مشيته.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭40‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام في معنى الخوارج لمّا سمع قولهم ⟨لا حکم إلّا لله⟩. قال‬‎

‮کلمة حقّ يراد بها باطل. نعم إنّه لا حکم إلّا لله ولکن هؤلاء يقولون لا إمرة وإنّه لا بدّ للناس من أمير برّ أو فاجر يعمل فی إمرته المؤمن ويستمتع فيها الکافر ويبلّغ الله فيها الأجل ويجمع به الفيء ويقاتل به العدوّ وتأمن به السبل ويؤخذ به للضعيف من القويّ حتّی يستريح برّ ويستراح من فاجر.‬‎

‭1.39 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

I am tested with followers who do not obey my command or answer my call. May you be deprived of fathers! What are you waiting for? Why do you not fight and serve your Lord? Does no religion unite you, no outraged honor goad you to action? I stand among you shouting till I’m hoarse, appealing to you for succor, but you hear not a word, not a single command. These events are the result of your despicable behavior. No requital can be sought with you at my side, no purpose achieved. When I summoned you to come to your brothers’ aid, you growled like a sullen camel with sores on its chest, you plodded like a scraggy beast with lesions on its rump. The few who came forward came limp and dithering, «as though driven to a death they could see in front of their eyes.»²

Raḍī: By “dithering (mutadhāʾib),” ʿAlī means: “jerkily,” from the commonly used phrase, “the wind dithered (tadhāʾabat al-rīḥ),” meaning, “it blew jerkily.” It is from this meaning—the jerkiness of its walk—that the wolf (dhiʾb) is named.

‭1.40 ‬From an address by ʿAlī when he heard the Kharijites shout, ⟨No rule save God’s!⟩:³

The statement is true, but the intent is false. Yes, there is no authority save God’s, but these people are claiming that there should be no other ruler. In truth, the community must have a ruler, whether pious or wicked, under whose jurisdiction believers do good and disbelievers make merry, till God brings each period to its destined conclusion. Taxes need to be collected, enemies repudiated, highways protected, and rights wrested from the mighty for the weak—all this, until the pious ruler goes to his rest, or the wicked ruler’s death allows the community to rest.

‮وفي رواية أخرى أنّه عليه السلام لمّا سمع تحکيمهم قال‬‎

‮حکم الله أنتظر فيکم.‬‎

‮وقال‬‎

‮أمّا الإمرة البرّة فيعمل فيها التقيّ وأمّا الإمرة الفاجرة فيتمتّع فيها الشقيّ إلی أن تنقطع مدّته وتدرکه منيّته.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭41‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮إنّ الوفاء توأم الصدق ولا أعلم جُنّة أوقی منه وما يغدر من علم کيف المرجع ولقد أصبحنا في زمان قد ٱتّخذ أکثر أهله الغدر کَيْسًا ونسبهم أهل الجهل فيه إلی حسن الحيلة. ما لهم قاتلهم الله قد يَری الحُوَّلُ القُلَّبُ وجهَ الحيلة ودونها مانع من أمر الله ونهيه فيدعها رأي عين بعد القدرة عليها وينتهز فرصتها من لا حريجة له في الدين.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭42‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أيّها الناس إنّ أخوف ما أخاف عليکم ٱثنتان ٱتّباع الهوی وطول الأمل فأمّا ٱتّباع الهوی فيصدّ عن الحقّ وأمّا طول الأمل فينسي الآخرة ألا وإنّ الدنيا قد ولّت حذّاء فلم يبق منها إلّا صُبابة کصبابة الإناء ٱصطبّها صابّها ألا وإنّ الآخرة قد أقبلت ولکلّ منهما بنون فکونوا من أبناء الآخرة ولا تکونوا من أبناء الدنيا فإنّ کلّ ولد سيلحق بأمّه يوم القيامة وإنّ اليوم عمل ولا حساب وغدًا حساب ولا عمل.‬‎

In another version of the report, ʿAlī said the following when he heard their declaration about authority:

It’s the manifestation of God’s authority in you that I’m waiting for!

In a third version, he said:

Under the rule of the pious, the virtuous perform good deeds. Under the rule of the wicked, the wretched make merry till their time runs out and death overtakes them.

‭1.41 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

Loyalty is honesty’s twin. I know of no better shield from hellfire, and those who believe they will return to God never betray. We have entered an age when the public equates betrayal with intelligence and the ignorant view duplicitous liars as clever strategists. What is wrong with them? May God punish them! The man of discernment also knows how to practice cunning, but he is checked by God’s commands and prohibitions. Although he sees the option and has the capability, he chooses to refrain. It is the man who has no religion or scruple who exploits the opportunity to deceive.

‭1.42 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

People! I fear most for you two things: pursuit of desire and lengthy yearnings. Pursuit of desire stops you from seeing the truth, while lengthy yearnings make you forget the hereafter. Take heed! The world is retreating in haste! Only a small residue remains, like dregs in an emptied vessel. Take heed! The hereafter is at hand! And each of the two has children. Be children of the hereafter, be not children of the world, for children will be returned to their mothers on the day of resurrection. Today is the day for deeds, not reckoning. Tomorrow is the day of reckoning, not deeds.

‮‭‭1‬.‭43‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام وقد أشار عليه أصحابه بالاستعداد للحرب بعد إرساله جرير بن عبد الله إلی معاوية‬‎

‮إنّ ٱستعدادي لحرب أهل الشام وجرير عندهم إغلاق للشام وصرف لأهله عن خير إن أرادوه ولکن قد وقَّتُّ لجرير وقتًا لا يقيم بعده إلّا مخدوعًا أو عاصيًا والرأي مع الأناة فأرْوِدوا ولا أکره لکم الإعداد. ولقد ضربت أنف هذا الأمر وعينه وقلّبت ظهره وبطنه فلم أر لي إلّا القتال أو الکفر إنّه قد کان علی الأمّة والٍ أحدث أحداثًا وأوجد الناس مقالًا فقالوا ثمّ نقموا فغيّروا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭44‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام لمّا هرب مصقلة بن هبيرة الشيبانيّ إلی معاوية وکان قد ٱبتاع سبي بني ناجية من عامل أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام وأعتقهم فلمّا طالبه بالمال خاسَ به وهرب إلی الشام. فقال‬‎

‮قبّح الله مصقلة فَعَل فِعْل السادة وفرّ فرار العبيد فما أنطق مادحه حتّی أسکته ولا صدّق واصفه حتّی بکّته ولو أقام لأخذنا ميسوره وٱنتظرنا بماله وفوره.‬‎

‭1.43 ‬From ʿAlī’s reply to his associates who, soon after he had sent Jarīr ibn ʿAbdallāh as envoy to Muʿāwiyah, were urging him to make preparations for battle:¹

If I prepared to battle the Syrians while Jarīr is still with them, I would close the door to reconciliation and eliminate the chance, were they to wish it, of a peaceful outcome. I have given Jarīr a limit for his return, which he should adhere to unless he is deceived or disobedient. I think we must wait, so go slowly, although I too am not against preparing. I’ve examined the eyes and nose of this affair, and flipped it over, back to belly, and the only alternative I see to fighting is to forsake Islam. Our community had a leader who instituted unwarranted practices, and he gave people the opportunity to rebuke him.² They rebuked him, then turned hostile, and took it upon themselves to effect change.

‭1.44 ‬From an address by ʿAlī after Maṣqalah ibn Hubayrah al-Shaybānī defected to Muʿāwiyah. Maṣqalah had purchased captive slaves of the Banū Nājiyah from ʿAlī’s commander in order to free them. When the commander asked for payment, he reneged and fled to Syria.³

May God strike Maṣqalah with shame! He behaved like a chieftain then fled like a slave! No sooner had he prompted his admirers to utter his praises before he shut their mouths, no sooner had he confirmed his extollers’ commendations before he turned round and rebuked them. Had he remained in Iraq, I would have shown leniency and allowed him to postpone payment until his fortunes improved.

‮‭‭1‬.‭45‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮الحمد لله غير مقنوط من رحمته ولا مخلوّ من نعمته ولا مأيوس من مغفرته ولا مستنکف عن عبادته الذي لا تبرح منه رحمة ولا تفقد له نعمة.‬‎

‮والدنيا دار مُني لها الفناء ولأهلها منها الجلاء وهي حلوة خضرة قد عُجّلت للطالب وٱلتبست بقلب الناظر فٱرتحلوا منها بأحسن ما بحضرتکم من الزاد ولا تسألوا فيها فوق الکفاف ولا تطلبوا منها أکثر من البلاغ.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭46‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام عند عزمه علی المسير إلی الشام‬‎

‮الّٰلهمّ إنّي أعوذ بک من وعثاء السفر وکآبة المنقلب وسوء المنظر في الأهل والمال والولد.‭¹‬ الّٰلهمّ أنت الصاحب في السفر وأنت الخليفة في الأهل ولا يجمعهما غيرک لأنّ المستخلف لا يکون مستصحبًا والمستصحب لا يکون مستخلفًا.‬‎

‮وٱبتداء هذا الکلام مرويّ عن رسول الله صلّی الله عليه وآله وقد قفّاه عليه السلام بأبلغ کلام وتمّمه بأحسن تمام من قوله ⟨ولا يجمعهما غيرک⟩ إلی آخر الفصل.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭47‬ ‬ومن کلام له عليه السلام في ذکر الکوفة‬‎

‮کأنّي بک يا کوفة تُمَدّينَ مدّ الأديم العکاظيّ وتُعرَکين بالنوازل وتُرکبين بالزلازل وإنّي لأعلم أنّه ما أراد بک جبّار سوءًا إلّا ٱبتلاه الله بشاغل ورماه بقاتل.‬‎

‭1.45 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

I praise God, never uncertain of his mercy, never empty of his favors, never doubtful of his forgiveness, never grudging in his worship. His mercy never ends, his favors never cease.

The world is an abode whose edifice awaits destruction and whose people await eviction. Sweet and green, she appears to the seeker as a gift and ensnares the viewer’s heart. People! Leave her with the best provisions you can find. In life, do not ask of her more than you need, or seek from her more than you require.

‭1.46 ‬From ʿAlī’s supplication when he began the march to Syria:²

God, protect me from the hardships of travel, a sorrowful end, and the grief of seeing my family, children, and property in ruin. God, you are my companion in this journey and the guardian I leave behind with my family. Only you can do both, for a man who is left behind cannot travel as a companion, and a man who travels as a companion cannot be left behind.

Raḍī: The opening lines of this supplication have also been narrated from God’s Messenger.³ Beautifully completing the Prophet’s, ʿAlī added his own eloquent lines: “Only you can do both,” to the end of the piece.

‭1.47 ‬From an address by ʿAlī about Kufa:⁴

I see you, Kufa, stretched like raw leather on display at the Market of ʿUkāẓ, beset by calamities and plagued with tremors. But I also know that should a tyrant intend you harm, God will engulf him in misfortune, then send a man to kill him.

‮‭‭1‬.‭48‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام عند المسير إلی الشام‬‎

‮الحمد لله کلّما وقب ليل وغسق والحمد لله کلّما لاح نجم وخفق والحمد لله غير مفقود الإنعام ولا مکافأ الإفضال. أمّا بعد.‬‎

‮فقد بعثت مقدمتي وأمرتهم بلزوم هذا المِلْطاط حتّی يأتيهم أمري وقد رأيت أن أقطع هذه النطفة إلی شرذمة منکم موطّنين أکناف دجلة فأنهضهم معکم إلی عدوّکم وأجعلهم من أمداد القوّة لکم.‬‎

‮يعني عليه السلام بــ⟨الملطاط⟩ هاهنا السمت الذي أمرهم بلزومه وهو شاطئ الفرات ويقال ذلک أيضًا لشاطئ البحر وأصله ما ٱستوی من الأرض. ويعني بــ⟨النطفة⟩ ماء الفرات وهو من غريب العبارات وعجيبها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭49‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮الحمد لله الذي بطن خفيّاتِ الأمور ودلّت عليه أعلام الظهور وٱمتنع علی عين البصير فلا عينُ مَن لم يره تُنکره ولا قلب من أثبته يبصره. سبق في العلوّ فلا شيء أعلی منه وقرب في الدنوّ فلا شيء أقرب منه فلا ٱستعلاؤه باعده عن شيء من خلقه ولا قربه ساواهم في المکان به. لم يطلع العقول علی تحديد صفته ولم يحجبها عن واجب معرفته فهو الذي تشهد له أعلام الوجود علی إقرار قلب ذي الجحود تعالی الله عمّا يقول المشبّهون به والجاحدون له علوًّا کبيرًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭50‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮إنّما بدء وقوع الفتن أهواء تُتّبع وأحکام تُبتدع يخالف فيها کتاب الله ويتولّی عليها رجال رجالًا علی غير دين الله فلو أنّ الباطل خلص من مزاج الحقّ لم يخفَ علی المرتادين ولو أنّ الحقّ خلص من لبس الباطل ٱنقطعت عنه ألسن المعاندين ولکن يؤخذ من هذا ضِغث ومن هذا ضغث فيمزجان فهنالک يستولي الشيطان علی أوليائه وينجو ﴿ٱلَّذِينَ سَبَقَتْ لَهُمْ﴾ من الله ﴿ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ﴾.‬‎

‭1.48 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī when he marched on Syria:¹

I praise God whenever night spreads and darkens. I praise God whenever stars rise and set. I praise God whose favors are never deficient and whose gifts can never be repaid. And now to the matter at hand:

I have dispatched my vanguard and commanded them to stay close to the high bank until I send further orders. I intend to cross this clear water and make contact with the tribesmen who live in the lee of the Tigris. I will recruit them to fight your enemy and increase your strength and numbers.

Raḍī: By “high bank (milṭāṭ),” ʿAlī means the path he has commanded them to follow along the banks of the Euphrates. The word is also used for the seashore, and its original meaning is level ground. By “clear water (nuṭfah)” he means the water of the Euphrates, and it is a strange and marvelous expression.

‭1.49 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

Praise God, who is concealed in unseen mysteries but confirmed by clear signs. He is hidden from the keenest observer, yet the eye that does not see him cannot deny his existence, while the heart that acknowledges him cannot comprehend him. He is lofty and nothing is loftier than he, he is near and nothing is nearer than he, yet his loftiness does not distance him from his creatures, while his nearness does not place him with them. He has not revealed to intellects his true description, but neither has he veiled them from recognizing him, which they must do. Creation bears witness to the creator and compels the denier to acknowledge him in his heart, but his reality is exalted above whatever is said about him by those who liken him to his creation, or those who deny his existence.

‭1.50 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

Revolt begins with the indulgence of whims and the prescription of heresies, whereby God’s Book is disobeyed, and men follow men in defiance of God’s religion. If falsehood had no trace of truth, its evil would not be concealed from observers, and if truth had no shadow of falsehood, its enemies’ tongues would be silenced. But a bit is taken from here, a bit is taken from there, they are mixed together, and lo and behold, Satan gains mastery over his followers! Only «those for whom» God’s «blessings have been decreed» are saved.³

‮‭‭1‬.‭51‬ ‬ومن كلامه عليه السلام لمّا غلب أصحاب معاوية أصحابه علی شريعة الفرات بصفّين ومنعوهم من الماء‬‎

‮قد ٱستطعموکم القتال فأقرّوا علی مذلّة وتأخير محلّة أو روّوا السيوف من الدماء تَرْوَوا من الماء فالموت فی حياتکم مقهورين والحياة فی موتکم قاهرين ألا وإنّ معاوية قاد لُمةً من الغواة وعمّس عليهم الخبر حتّی جعلوا نحورهم أغراض المنيّة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭52‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام. قد تقدّم مختارها برواية ونذكرها ههنا برواية أخرى لتغاير الروايتين‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭52‬.‭1‬ ‬ألا وإنّ الدنيا قد تصرّمت وآذنت بٱنقضاء وتنکّر معروفها وأدبرت حذّاء فهي تحفز بالفناء سکّانها وتحدو بالموت جيرانها وقد أمرّ فيها ما کان حلوًا وکدر منها ما کان صفوًا فلم يبق منها إلّا سَمَلة کسملة الإداوة أو جرعة کجرعة المَقْلة لو تمزّزها الصديان لم ينقع.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭52‬.‭2‬ ‬فأزمعوا عباد الله الرحيل عن هذه الدار المقدور علی أهلها الزوال ولا يغلبنّکم فيها الأمل ولا يطولنّ عليکم الأمد فوالله لو حننتم حنين الوُلّه العِجال ودعوتم بهَديل الحمام وجأرتم جُؤار متبتّلي الرهبان وخرجتم إلی الله من الأموال والأولاد ٱلتماس القربة إليه في ٱرتفاع درجة عنده أو غفران سيّئة أحصتها کتبه وحفظها رسله لکان قليلًا فيما‬‎

‭1.51 ‬From ʿAlī’s address when Muʿāwiyah’s army prevailed over his by the Euphrates, and blocked their access to water:¹

By this act, they beg to be fed the victuals of war. You can either accept defeat and retreat, or quench your swords’ thirst for blood and your thirst for water. Death to a life that accepts defeat! Life, in reality, is in a fighter’s death! Hark my words! Muʿāwiyah leads a band of fools and imbeciles. By muddying reports of what happened,² he has deceived them into exposing their throats to fate’s arrows.

‭1.52 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī, parts of which were cited earlier in a different transmission. We record it again in this transmission because of the variance between the two:³

‭1.52.1 ‬Harken! The world has severed its rope and announced its end, its favors have become strangers and it turns away in speed, it spurs its residents to annihilation and drives its neighbors toward death, its sweetness has turned bitter and its clarity has become turbid, all that remains of it is the last few drops in the jug, the last mouthfuls apportioned with a pebble.⁴ The thirsty man sucks on it in desperation, but it does not even wet his throat.

‭1.52.2 ‬Servants of God, make ready to quit this abode, for its residents are fated to die. Let not hopes of its permanence take hold, nor suppose your time in it to be long. By God, if you were to moan like bereaved camel mares, supplicate like cooing doves, and intone like praying hermits, or if you forsook property and children to attain nearness to God, to achieve a high station near him, or forgiveness for the sins that are recorded in his accounts and noted by his

‮أرجو لکم من ثوابه وأخاف عليکم من عقابه. وتالله لو ٱنماثت قلوبکم ٱنمياثا وسالت عيونکم من رغبة إليه ورهبة منه دمًا ثمّ عمّرتم في الدنيا ما الدنيا باقية ما جزت أعمالکم ولو لم تبقوا شيئًا من جهدکم أنعمه عليکم العظام وهداه إيّاکم للإيمان.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭52‬.‭3‬ ‬ومنها في ذکر يوم النحر وصفة الأضحيّة‬‎

‮ومن تمام الأضحيّة ٱستشراف أذنها وسلامة عينها فإذا سلمت الأذن والعين سلمت الأضحيّة وتمّت ولو کانت عضباء القرن تجرّ رجلها إلی المنسک.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭53‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮فتداكَّوا عليّ تداكّ الإبل الهيم يوم ورودها قد أرسلها راعيها وخُلعت مثانيها حتّى ظننت أنّهم قاتليّ أو بعضهم قاتل بعض لديّ.‬‎

‮وقد قلّبت هذا الأمر بطنه وظهره حتّى منعني النوم فما وجدتُني يسعني إلّا قتالهم أو الجحود بما جاء به محمّد صلّى الله عليه وآله. فكانت معالجة القتال أهون عليّ من معالجة العقاب وموتات الدنيا أهون عليّ من موتات الآخرة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭54‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام وقد ٱستبطأ أصحابُه إذنَه لهم في القتال بصفّين‬‎

angels—all this would be little compared with the reward I hope for you and the punishment I fear. By God, if your hearts were to dissolve like salt, if your eyes shed blood in fear and hope, and if you were permitted to live in this world for as long as it continues to exist, your deeds—even with supreme toil and labor—would not repay God’s immense favors, or his guidance of you to faith.

‭1.52.3 ‬From the same oration, referring to the Eid of Sacrifice, and describing the requirements of a sacrificial animal:

The sacrificial animal is considered intact if its ears are whole and its eyes are sound.¹ If the ears and eyes are sound, then the sacrificial animal is considered sound and intact. This is true even if a horn is broken and the animal drags its foot to the slaughterhouse.

‭1.53 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:²

They crowded me like parched camels jostling at the waterhole when the herder unfastens their hobbling ropes and sets them loose. I feared they would crush me or each other to death.³

I have turned over this matter in my mind through many sleepless nights and concluded that I can either fight the rebels or repudiate Muḥammad’s religion, and braving war with men sits lighter on me than braving God’s punishment, facing death in this world sits lighter on me than facing death in eternity.

‭1.54 ‬From ʿAlī’s address to his troops at Ṣiffīn when they expressed impatience at his reluctance to commence battle:⁴

‮أمّا قولكم أكلّ ذلك كراهية الموت فوالله ما أبالي دخلت إلى الموت أو خرج الموت إليّ وأمّا قولكم شكًّا في أهل الشام فوالله ما دفعت الحرب يومًا إلّا وأنا أطمع أن تلحق بي طائفة فتهتدي بي وتعشو إلى ضوئي أحبّ إليّ من أن أقتلها على ضلالها وإن كانت تبوء بآثامها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭55‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮ولقد كنّا مع رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله نقتل آباءنا وأبناءنا وإخواننا وأعمامنا ما يزيدنا ذلك إلّا إيمانًا وتسليمًا ومضيًّا على اللَّقَم وصبرًا على مَضَض الألم وجدًّا على جهاد العدوّ ولقد كان الرجل منّا والآخر من عدوّنا يتصاولان تصاول الفحلين يتخالسان أنفسهما أيّهما يسقي صاحبه كأس المنون فمرّة لنا من عدوّنا ومرّة لعدوّنا منّا فلمّا رأى الله صدقنا أنزل بعدوّنا الكبت وأنزل علينا النصر حتّى ٱستقرّ الإسلام ملقيًا جرانه ومتبوّئًا أوطانه. ولعمري لو كنّا نأتي ما أتيتم ما قام للدين عمود ولا ٱخضرّ للإيمان عود وٱيم الله لتحتلبُنّها دمًا ولتتبعُنّها ندمًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭56‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لأصحابه‬‎

You taunt, “All these excuses to avoid death!” By God, I care not whether I confront death or death confronts me! You mock, “Or perhaps you hesitate to fight the Syrians?” By God, I would not delay battle even by a day, were it not for the hope that a few may yet return, to be guided by me, and—although their sight is weak!—to discern my light. This would please me more than killing them for their errant ways, notwithstanding they would die yoked to their sins.

‭1.55 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:¹

We fought in support of God’s Messenger and killed our fathers, our sons, our brothers, and our uncles,² all the while increasing in faith and acceptance, commitment to the true path, endurance in the face of stinging pain, and intensity in fighting the enemy. A warrior from our side and another from the enemy would clash like two stallions to the death, each attempting to steal the other’s life, each offering the other fate’s cup.³ Ours would win in one combat, theirs would prevail in another. When God saw our true courage, he crushed our enemy in defeat and sent us triumphant victory. So was Islam founded. Thus did it rest its withers and settle into its stall. I swear on my life! If we had behaved like you, religion would never have been established, belief would never have blossomed. I swear God’s oath! You shall squeeze calamity’s udders and find blood in your pail.⁴ You shall be dogged forever by regret.

‭1.56 ‬From ʿAlī’s address to his followers:⁵

‮أما إنّه سيظهر عليكم بعدي رجل رحب البُلعوم مندحق البطن يأكل ما يجد ويطلب ما لا يجد فٱقتلوه ولن تقتلوه ألا وإنّه سيأمركم بسبّي والبراءة منّي فأمّا السبّ فسُبّوني فإنّه لي زكاة ولكم نجاة وأمّا البراءة فلا تتبرّأوا منّي فإنّي ولدت على الفطرة وسبقت إلى الإيمان والهجرة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭57‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام كلّم به الخوارج‬‎

‮أصابكم حاصب ولا بقي منكم آبر أبعد إيماني بالله وجهادي مع رسول الله أشهد على نفسي بالكفر لـ﴿قَدْ ضَلَلْتُ إِذًا وَمَآ أَنَا مِنَ ٱلْمُهْتَدِينَ﴾ فأوبوا شرّ مآب وٱرجعوا على أثر الأعقاب أما إنّكم ستلقون بعدي ذلًّا شاملًا وسيفًا قاطعًا وأثرة يتّخذها الظالمون فيكم سنّة.‬‎

‮قوله ⟨ولا بقي منكم آبر⟩ يروى بالراء من قولهم ⟨آبر⟩ للذي يأبر النخل أي يصلحه. ويروى ⟨آثر⟩ وهو الذي يأثر الحديث أي يحكيه ويرويه وهو أصحّ الوجوه عندي كأنّه قال ⟨لا بقي منكم مخبر⟩. ويروى ⟨آبز⟩ بالزاي معجمة وهو الواثب والهالك أيضًا يقال له آبز.‬‎

After me, you will be ruled by a man with a large maw and a massive belly who swallows all that is in front of him and demands everything else besides. Kill him! But no, you won’t. Listen to me! He will command you to curse me with vile names and disassociate from me.¹ Call me names if you must—it will be a purge for me and save your life. But never disassociate from me, for I was born in a pure state of nature,² and was the first to believe and migrate.³

‭1.57 ‬From ʿAlī’s address to the Kharijites:⁴

May you be wiped out by sandstorms! May your date palms wither untended! Are you saying I should testify against myself and confess unbelief? This, after believing in God and fighting alongside his messenger! «I should stray from the path if so, no longer among the guided.»⁵ Return to the hole that you came from! Turn on your heels and retreat! After me, you face complete humiliation and a cutting sword. Indeed, despots will make it their custom to attack you and plunder.⁶

Raḍī: In his line, “May your date palms wither untended (wa-lā baqiya minkum ābir),” the word ābir, when transmitted with an R, refers to a person who tends (yaʾburu) date palms, i.e., cultivates them. Another transmission is “one who narrates a tale (āthir),” i.e., recounts and transmits it. The latter, in my opinion, is the most viable option. Accordingly, ʿAlī is saying, “May not one of you remain to carry forward your report.” Yet another transmission is “one who jumps (ābiz)” with a Z,⁷ meaning someone who leaps. A dying man is also called ābiz.

‮‭‭1‬.‭58‬ ‬‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭58‬.‭1‬ ‬وقال عليه السلام لمّا عزم على حرب الخوارج وقيل له إنّ القوم قد عبروا جسر النهروان‬‎

‮مصارعهم دون النطفة والله لا يفلت منهم عشرة ولا يهلك منكم عشرة.‬‎

‮يعني بالنطفة ماء النهر وهي أفصح كناية عن الماء وإن كان كثيرًا جمًّا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭58‬.‭2‬ ‬وقال لمّا قتلهم فقيل هلك القوم بأجمعهم‬‎

‮كلّا والله إنّهم نطف في أصلاب الرجال وقرارات النساء كلّما نجم منهم قرن قطع حتّى يكون آخرهم لصوصًا سلّابين.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭58‬.‭3‬ ‬وقال عليه السلام فيهم‬‎

‮لا تقتلوا الخوارج بعدي فليس من طلب الحقّ فأخطأه كمن طلب الباطل فأدركه.‬‎

‮يعني معاوية وأصحابه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭59‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمّا خُوّف من الغيلة‬‎

‮وإنّ عليَّ من الله جُنّة حصينة فإذا جاء يومي ٱنفرجت عنّي وأسلمتني فحينئذ لا يطيش السهم ولا يبرأ الكَلْم.‬‎

‭1.58 ‬

‭1.58.1 ‬When ʿAlī expressed his resolve to fight the Kharijites, he was told, “They have already crossed the river at Jisr al-Nahrawān,” and he declared:¹

Their deaths are written on this side of the clear water. By God, not ten of them will survive, and not ten of you will be killed.

Raḍī: By “clear water (nuṭfah),” he means the water of the river, an eloquent metaphor for water, even in large quantities.

‭1.58.2 ‬Following the battle with the Kharijites, ʿAlī was told, “Every man among them has been killed,” and he declared:

No, by God! They hide in the loins of men and the wombs of women. But whenever a horn protrudes from their head, it will be cut off,² and the last of them will be thieves and brigands.

‭1.58.3 ‬ʿAlī also said about them:³

Do not fight the Kharijites after me, for those who seek right but miss it are not like those who seek wrong and find it.

Raḍī: He means Muʿāwiyah and his associates.

‭1.59 ‬From ʿAlī’s address, when warned of assassination:⁴

I am protected by God’s shield. When my day comes, it will leave and hand me over. Then, the arrow will not miss, and the wound will not heal.

‮‭‭1‬.‭60‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮ألا وإنّ الدنيا دار لا يُسلَم منها إلّا فيها ولا يُنجا بشيء كان لها ٱبتلي الناس بها فتنة فما أخذوه منها لها أُخرجوا منه وحوسبوا عليه وما أخذوه منها لغيرها قَدِموا عليه وأقاموا فيه وإنّها عند ذوي العقول كفيء الظلّ بَـيْنا تراه سابغًا حتّى قلص وزائدًا حتّى نقص.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭61‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭61‬.‭1‬ ‬وٱتّقوا الله عباد الله وبادروا آجالكم بأعمالكم وٱبتاعوا ما يبقى لكم بما يزول عنكم وترحّلوا فقد جُدَّ بكم وٱستعدّوا للموت فقد أظلّكم وكونوا قومًا صيح بهم فٱنتبهوا وعلموا أنّ الدنيا ليست لهم بدار فٱستبدلوا فإنّ الله لم يخلقكم عبثًا ولم يترككم سدى. وما بين أحدكم وبين الجنّة أو النار إلّا الموت أن ينزل به وإنّ غاية تنقصها اللحظة وتهدمها الساعة لجديرة بقصر المدّة وإنّ غائبًا يحدوه الجديدان الليل والنهار لحريّ بسرعة الأوبة وإنّ قادمًا يقدم بالفوز أو الشقوة لمستحقّ بأفضل العدّة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭61‬.‭2‬ ‬فتزوّدوا في الدنيا من الدنيا ما تحرزون به نفوسكم غدًا.‭¹‬ فٱتّقى عبد ربّه نصح نفسه قدّم توبته غلب شهوته فإنّ أجله مستور عنه وأمله خادع له والشيطان موكّل به يزيّن له المعصية ليركبها ويمنّيه التوبة ليسوّفها حتّى تهجم منيّته عليه أغفل ما يكون عنها. فيا لها حسرة على كلّ ذي غفلة أن يكون عمره عليه حجّة وأن تؤدّيه أيّامه إلى الشقوة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭61‬.‭3‬ ‬نسأل الله سبحانه أن يجعلنا وإيّاكم ممّن لا تبطره نعمة ولا تقصر به عن طاعة ربّه غاية ولا تحلّ به بعد الموت ندامة ولا كآبة.‬‎

‭1.60 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

Hear me! The world is an abode from which you cannot be saved except within it, yet no tribute you offer it will grant you passage beyond its rim. The world tests people with gifts: Whatever they take from it for worldly benefit they must leave behind and account for. Whatever they take from it for the next abode will stay with them forever. To the intelligent, the world is a shifting shadow—one moment you see it spreading and the next it has narrowed to a shard, one moment you see it growing and the next it has disappeared.

‭1.61 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.61.1 ‬Be conscious of God, O servants of God, and outrace your imminent end with good deeds. Trade transient benefits for everlasting gain, prepare to depart, for the call has been given, and brace for death, for it hovers overhead. Be those who wake when shaken, who, knowing that the world is not their home, seek a better abode. God has not created you in vain, nor left you without direction.² Nothing stands between you and paradise or hellfire but the arrival of death. Diminished by each passing moment, demolished by each pressing hour, your time to the goalpost is short. That traveler, death, whose camels are steered by Night after Day and by Day after Night will soon be here. Prepare well for this visitor who will bring you immortal triumph or unending misery.

‭1.61.2 ‬Gather provisions in this world from this world to sustain your souls tomorrow. A servant should fear his Master and be true to his soul, he should hasten to repent and conquer his passions, for his lifespan is veiled from him, his long hopes are false, and he is turned over to Satan, who adorns and encourages him to ride the steed of sin, while coaxing him to delay repentance. When he least expects it, fate will attack. O what agony for the heedless man! His life will testify against him, and his days will hand him over to unending misery.

‭1.61.3 ‬We beseech Almighty God to include us among those who are not made insolent by his bounty, fall short in his obedience, or are seized in death by grief and regret.

‮‭‭1‬.‭62‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭62‬.‭1‬ ‬الذي لم تسبق له حال حالًا فيكون أوّلًا قبل أن يكون آخرًا ويكون ظاهرًا قبل أن يكون باطنًا. كلّ مسمّى بالوحدة غيره قليل وكلّ عزيز غيره ذليل وكلّ قويّ غيره ضعيف وكلّ مالك غيره مملوك وكلّ عالم غيره متعلّم وكلّ قادر غيره يقدر ويعجز وكلّ سميع غيره يَصَمّ عن لطيف الأصوات ويُصِمّه كبيرها ويذهب عنه ما بَعُدَ منها وكلّ بصير غيره يعمى عن خفيّ الألوان ولطيف الأجسام وكلّ ظاهر غيره غير باطن وكلّ باطن غيره غير ظاهر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭62‬.‭2‬ ‬لم يخلق ما خلقه لتشديد سلطان ولا تخوّف من عواقب زمان ولا ٱستعانة على نِدّ مثاور ولا شريك مكاثر ولا ضدّ منافر ولكن خلائق مربوبون وعباد داخرون لم يحلل في الأشياء فيقال هو فيها كائن ولم يَنْأَ عنها فيقال هو منها بائن لم يَؤُدْه خلق ما ٱبتدأ ولا تدبير ما ذرأ ولا وقف به عجز عمّا خلق ولا ولجت عليه شبهة فيما قضى وقدّر بل قضاء متقن وعلم محكم وأمر مبرم المأمول مع النقم المرهوب مع النعم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭63‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام يقوله لأصحابه في بعض أيّام صفّين‬‎

‮معاشر المسلمين ٱستشعروا الخشية وتجلببوا السكينة وعضّوا على النواجذ فإنّه أنْبا للسيوف عن الهام وأكملوا اللامة وقلقلوا السيوف في أغمادها قبل سلّها وٱلحظوا الخزر وٱطعنوا الشزر ونافحوا بالظبى وصلوا السيوف بالخطى. وٱعلموا أنّكم بعين الله ومع ٱبن عمّ‬‎

‭1.62 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.62.1 ‬No state for God precedes another state: he is neither first before he is last nor visible before he is hidden. Other than him, nothing can be described as one.² Other than him, the mighty are humble, the strong are weak, masters are slaves, the learned are students, and the powerful can fail. Other than him, all observers are blind to subtle colors and ethereal bodies, and all listeners strain to hear faint sounds, are deafened by loud noises, and miss distant echoes. Other than him, nothing that is visible is hidden, and nothing that is hidden is visible.

‭1.62.2 ‬God did not create us to strengthen his authority or prevent time’s blows, nor for help against an equal’s attack, a partner’s multitudes, or a malicious adversary. Far from it! We are but subservient mortals and humble servants. He does not enter into things, so we cannot say that he exists therein, nor is he distant from them, so we cannot say that he lives apart. Creating did not tire him, nor directing the universe. Weakness did not delay his design, nor doubt enter into his decree. His judgment is perfect, his knowledge exact, his command irrevocable. He is entreated in times of distress and venerated in times of bounty.

‭1.63 ‬From ʿAlī’s address to his followers on one of the battle days of Ṣiffīn:³

Muslims! Sheathe yourselves in God’s awe and envelop your bodies with calm. Bite down hard on your back teeth, for that will deflect the blades that strike at your heads. Wear full armor and rattle your swords inside their sheaths before you draw them out. Stare down the enemy and launch your spears from the right and the left. Fight with your swords and leap into the thrust so that they

‮رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله فعاودوا الكرّ وٱستحيوا من الفرّ فإنّه عار في الأعقاب ونار يوم الحساب. وطيبوا عن أنفسكم نفسًا وٱمشوا إلى الموت مشيًا سُجُحًا. وعليكم بهذا السواد الأعظم والرِّواق المطنّب فٱضربوا ثَبَجه فإنّ الشيطان كامن في كِسره قد قدّم للوَثْبة يدًا وأخّر للنكوص رِجلًا. فصمدًا صمدًا حتّى ينجلي لكم عمود الحقّ ﴿وَأَنتُمُ ٱلأَعْلَوْنَ وَٱللّٰهُ مَعَكُمْ وَلَن يَتِرَكُمْ أَعْمَالَكُمْ﴾.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭64‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في معنى الأنصار. قالوا لمّا ٱنتهت إلى أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام أنباء السقيفة بعد وفاة رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله قال عليه السلام‬‎

‮ما قالت الأنصار؟‬‎

‮قالوا‬‎

‮قالت منّا أمير ومنكم أمير.‬‎

‮قال عليه السلام‬‎

‮فهلّا ٱحتجتم عليهم بأنّ رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله وصّى بأن يُحسَن إلى محسنهم ويتجاوز عن مسيئهم.‬‎

‮قالوا‬‎

‮وما في هذا من الحجّة عليهم؟‬‎

‮فقال عليه السلام‬‎

‮لو كانت الإمارة فيهم لم تكن الوصيّة بهم .‬‎

‮ثمّ قال‬‎

‮فما ذا قالت قريش؟‬‎

pierce your foe. Know this: you fight under God’s watch, and alongside his Messenger’s cousin. Charge forward in attack. Do not flee the battlefield, for that would dishonor your line for generations and repay you with hellfire on judgment day. Be generous with your lives and approach death with gentle courage. Aim for the black mass and the pitched tent. Cut down its center pole, for Satan is hiding in its flap. He has one hand in front, ready to attack, and one foot at the back, ready to flee. Charge! Charge! Fight till the pillar of truth shines bright. «You shall overcome. God is with you, and he will not let your deeds go to waste.»¹

‭1.64 ‬From observations by ʿAlī regarding the Allies. After the death of God’s Messenger, when reports of the Assembly at the Banū Sāʿidah Portico reached the Commander of the Faithful, he asked:²

What did the Allies say?

Those who had brought the report replied:

The Allies proposed: A commander from our side and another from yours.

ʿAlī responded:

Did you not remind them of the Messenger’s directive to recompense those who do good among them and pardon those who transgress?

Those reporting asked:

How is that evidence against their claim?

ʿAlī replied:

The instruction would not be about them if they had the right to command.

Then he asked:

How did the Quraysh respond?

‮قالوا‬‎

‮ٱحتجّت بأنّها شجرة الرسول صلّى الله عليه وآله.‬‎

‮فقال عليه السلام‬‎

‮ٱحتجّوا بالشجرة وأضاعوا الثمرة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭65‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمّا قَلّد محمّد بن أبي بكر مصر فملكت عليه وقُتل‬‎

‮وقد أردت تولية مصر هاشم بن عتبة ولو ولّيته إيّاها لما خلّى لهم العَرصة ولا أنهزهم الفرصة بلا ذمّ لمحمّد فقد كان إليّ حبيبًا وكان لي ربيبًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭66‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في ذمّ أصحابه‬‎

‮كم أداريكم كما تدارى البِكار العَمِدة والثِّياب المتداعية كلّما حيصت من جانب تهتّكت من آخر أكلّما أطلّ‭¹‬ عليكم مَنسِر من مناسر أهل الشام أغلق كلّ رجل منكم بابه وٱنجحر ٱنجحار الضبّة في جحرها والضبع في وجارها الذليل والله من نصرتموه ومن رمى بكم فقد رمى بأَفْوَق ناصل وإنّكم والله لكثير في الباحات قليل تحت الرايات وإنّي لعالم بما يصلحكم ويقيم أَوَدَكم ولكنّي والله لا أرى إصلاحكم بإفساد نفسي أضرع الله خدودكم وأتعس جدودكم لا تعرفون الحقّ كمعرفتكم الباطل ولا تبطلون الباطل كإبطالكم الحقّ.‬‎

The reporters answered:

They argued that they are the Messenger’s tree.

ʿAlī exclaimed:

They argue for the tree but forget about its fruit!

‭1.65 ‬From an address by ʿAlī when his recently appointed governor, Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr, was killed, and Egypt was lost to the Umayyads:¹

My own choice for governor of Egypt was Hāshim ibn ʿUtbah. Hāshim would not have left a gap for them to enter or an opportunity to attack. I say this without criticizing Muḥammad, whom I loved and reared.²

‭1.66 ‬From an address by ʿAlī admonishing his supporters:³

How long should I coax you and blandish you? How long must I handle you gingerly as a young camel whose hump a heavy load would crush, or as a worn garment, patched in one place, and falling apart in another? How is it that each man among you locks your door when a Syrian squadron approaches, and holes up in his home like a lizard in its burrow or a hyena in its den? By God, to gain you as supporters is to lose! To shoot with you in my longbow is to shoot an arrow with a broken nock and no arrowhead! By God, you throng the square, but only a few stand firm under war’s banners. I know well what would lick you into shape and straighten your crookedness—but, by God, I shall not do this at the cost of demeaning my soul. May God begrime your faces and destroy your fortunes! You embrace not truth but falsehood! You reject not falsehood but truth!

‮‭‭1‬.‭67‬ ‬وقال عليه السلام في سحرة اليوم الذي ضُرب فيه‬‎

‮ملكتني عيني وأنا جالس فسنح لي رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله فقلت يا رسول الله ماذا لقيت من أمّتك من الأود واللدد فقال ٱدع عليهم فقلت أبدلني الله بهم خيرًا لي منهم وأبدلهم بي شرًّا لهم منّي.‬‎

‮يعني عليه السلام بـ⟨الأود⟩ الاعوجاج وبـ⟨اللدد⟩ الخصام وهذا من أفصح الكلام.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭68‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في ذمّ أهل العراق‬‎

‮أمّا بعد. يا أهل العراق فإنّما أنتم كالمرأة الحامل حملت فلمّا أتمّت أملصت ومات قيّمها وطال تأيّمها وورثها أبعدها. أما والله ما أتيتكم ٱختيارًا ولكنّي جئت إليكم سوقًا ولقد بلغني أنّكم تقولون يَكذب قاتَلَكم الله فعلى مَن أكذب أعلى الله فأنا أوّل من آمن به أم على نبيّه فأنا أوّل من صدّقه كلّا والله ولكنّها لهجة غبتم عنها ولم تكونوا من أهلها ويلُ ٱمِّه كَيلًا بغير ثمن لو كان له وعاء ﴿وَلَتَعْلَمُنَّ نَبَأَهُ بَعْدَ حِينٍ﴾.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭69‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام علّم فيها الناس الصلاة على النبيّ صلّى الله عليه وآله‬‎

‭1.67 ‬ʿAlī spoke these words in the predawn hour of the day in which he was struck his deathblow:¹

Sleep overtook me as I sat, and the Messenger appeared before my eyes. “Messenger of God,” I exclaimed, “what treachery I have encountered from your community, what hate!” He replied, “Invoke maledictions on them!” so I prayed, “God, give me better associates than they, and give them a worse leader than I!”

Raḍī: By “treachery (awad)” he means deceit and by “hate (ladad)” he means enmity. These are some of the most expressive words ever spoken.

‭1.68 ‬From an address by ʿAlī censuring the Iraqis:²

Iraqis! You are like a pregnant woman who, at full term, delivers a stillborn child, then her husband dies, and she lives for a long time as a widow—she dies alone, with only distant relatives as her inheritors. By God, I did not choose to come to you! I was forced come to you! I am told that you mutter behind my back, “He lies!” May God fight you! Who do you accuse me of lying about? God? I was the first to believe in him! The Prophet? I was the first to accept his message! Never would I lie about them! But my words are beyond your comprehension, and you are not worthy to hear them.³ Woe to your mothers! I gave you a full measure, free of charge. If only there were vessels to hold it! «You shall surely learn the truth of its report, but only after a while.»⁴

‭1.69 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī in which he taught his companions how to invoke blessings on the Prophet:⁵

‮اللّٰهمّ داحي المدحوّات وداعم المسموكات وجابل القلوب على فطرتها شقيّها وسعيدها. اجعل شرائف صلواتك ونوامي بركاتك على محمّد عبدك ورسولك الخاتم لما سبق والفاتح لما ٱنغلق والمعلن الحقّ بالحقّ والدافع جيشات الأباطيل والدامغ صولات الأضاليل كما حُمّل فٱضطلع قائمًا بأمرك مستوفزًا في مرضاتك غير ناكل عن قُدم ولا واهٍ في عزم واعيًا لوحيك حافظًا لعهدك ماضيًا على نفاذ أمرك حتّى أورى قبس القابس وأضاء الطريق للخابط وهديت به القلوب بعد خوضات الفتن‭¹‬ وأقام موضحات الأعلام ونيّرات الأحكام فهو أمينك المأمون وخازن علمك المخزون وشهيدك يوم الدين وبعيثك بالحقّ ورسولك إلى الخلق. اللّٰهمّ ٱفسح له مفسحًا في ظلّك وٱجزه مضاعفات الخير من فضلك. اللّٰهمّ أعل على بناء البانين بناءه وأكرم لديك منزله وأتمم له نوره وٱجزه من ٱبتعاثك له مقبول الشهادة مرضيّ المقالة ذا منطق عدل وخطّة فصل. اللّٰهمّ ٱجمع بيننا وبينه في برد العيش وقرار النعمة ومنى الشهوات وأهواء اللذّات ورخاء الدعة ومنتهى الطمأنينة وتحف الكرامة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭70‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمروان بن الحكم بالبصرة. قالوا أُخذ مروان بن الحَكَم أسيرًا يوم الجمل فٱستشفع الحسن والحسين عليهما السلام إلى أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام فكلّماه فيه فخلّى سبيله فقالا له يبايعك يا أمير المؤمنين فقال عليه السلام‬‎

God, unfolder of lands unfolded, creator of skies elevated, infuser of hearts with their dispositions, blissful or wretched—Shower your noblest blessings, your manifold graces, on Muḥammad, your servant and messenger, the seal on what had come before, opener of all things locked, announcer of the truth in truth, repeller of the forces of evil, and crusher of the onslaught of error, doing all this as he was charged to do. He undertook your command and rose to serve your pleasure, with unfettered boldness and unfaltering resolve. He comprehended your revelation, safeguarded your compact, and executed your command, until he had ignited the flame of truth for those who sought its fire, and illuminated the road for those who stumbled. Through Muḥammad, hearts were guided after having been enmeshed in mutiny. He erected clear waymarks and luminous rules. He is the trustee whom you entrusted with your message, the custodian of your treasure of knowledge, your witness on judgment day, your emissary dispatched with the truth, and your messenger to the world. God, grant him a spacious home in your shade and a good reward multiplied by your generosity. God, let his palace soar above all others, give honor to his station at your side, and perfect his light.¹ Reward him for being an exemplary messenger, one whose testimonial was accepted and whose words convinced, who spoke justly and took decisive action. God, unite us with him in a peaceful afterlife in a blessed abode, every desire satisfied, every pleasure granted, in ease, gentleness, and serenity, welcomed with your gifts of honor.

‭1.70 ‬From ʿAlī’s address to Marwān ibn al-Ḥakam in Basra. It is reported that when Marwān was taken prisoner at the Battle of the Camel, he begged Ḥasan and Ḥusayn to intercede for his release with the Commander of the Faithful. They spoke with their father, who answered that he could go free. They then added, “Commander of the Faithful, he wishes to pledge allegiance to you,” and he replied:²

‮أفلم يبايعني بعد قتل عثمان لا حاجة لي في بيعته إنّها كفّ يهوديّة لو بايعني بيده لغدر بسَبّته أما إنّ له إمرة كلَعْقة الكلب أَنْفَه وهو أبو الأَكبُش الأربعة وستلقى الأمّة منه ومن ولده يومًا أحمر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭71‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمّا عزموا على بيعة عثمان‬‎

‮لقد علمتم أنّي أحقّ الناس بها من غيري والله لأُسلمنّ ما سلمت أمور المسلمين ولم يكن فيها جور إلّا عليّ خاصّة ٱلتماسًا لأجر ذلك وفضله وزهدًا فيما تنافستموه من زخرفه وزبرجه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭72‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمّا بلغه ٱتّهام بني أميّة له بالمشاركة في دم عثمان‬‎

Did he not pledge allegiance to me right after ʿUthmān was killed? I have no need of his pledge now. His is a Jewish hand!¹ If he were to pledge allegiance to me with his hand, he would break it the next moment with wind from his arse.² One day, he will rule, but his rule will only last for as long as it takes a dog to lick its snout.³ He will also father four rams.⁴ At his hand and theirs, Muslims will encounter bloody death!

‭1.71 ‬From ʿAlī’s address to the Shūrā Council when they resolved to pledge allegiance to ʿUthmān as the next caliph:⁵

You know full well that I have more right to the caliphate than anyone else. I will concede—but, by God, I will continue to do so only for as long as the concerns of the Muslims remain unharmed, as long as the injustice is directed solely at me. I do so in the hope of God’s reward and recompense and in distaste for the adornments and splendors for which you vie.

‭1.72 ‬From ʿAlī’s address when he heard reports that the Umayyads were accusing him of complicity in ʿUthmān’s killing:

‮أولم ينه بني أميّة علمها بي عن قَرَفي أوَما وَزَع الجهّالَ سابقتي عن تهمتي ولَما وعظهم الله به أبلغ من لساني أنا حجيج المارقين وخصيم المرتابين. على كتاب الله تُعرض الأمثال وبما في الصدور تجازى العباد.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭73‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮رحم الله عبدًا سمع حُكمًا فوعى ودُعي إلى رشاد فدنا وأخذ بحُجزة هادٍ فنجا راقب ربّه وخاف ذنبه قدّم خالصًا وعمل صالحًا ٱكتسب مذخورًا وٱجتنب محذورًا رمى غرضًا وأحرز عوضًا كابر هواه وكذّب مناه جعل الصبر مطيّة نجاته والتقوى عدّة وفاته ركب الطريقة الغرّاء ولزم المحجّة البيضاء ٱغتنم المهل وبادر الأجل وتزوّد من العمل.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭74‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮إنّ بني أميّة ليفوِّقونني تراث محمّد تفويقًا والله لئن بقيت لهم لأنفضنّهم نفض اللحّام الوِذام الترِبة.‬‎

‮ويروى ⟨التراب الوَذِمة⟩ وهو على القلب. قوله عليه السلام ⟨ليفوّقونني⟩ أي يعطونني من المال قليلًا قليلًا كفواق الناقة وهو الحلبة الواحدة من لبنها. و⟨الوذام⟩ جمع وَذَمة وهي الحُزّة من الكَرِش أو الكبد تقع في التراب فتنفض.‬‎

Is the Umayyads’ own knowledge of my character not enough to stop them from injuring me? Is my precedence in Islam not enough to curb those imbeciles from accusing me? In truth, God’s admonitions are more stirring that any my tongue can produce!¹ I shall confront those who desert the faith and challenge those who doubt. The Book of God resolves disputes, and the contents of hearts determine recompense.

‭1.73 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

May God have mercy on the man who listens to wisdom and retains, who is called to guidance and follows, who clutches the hem of a guide and is saved, who is mindful of his Lord and fears sin, who carries out acts of purity and performs good, who earns something to put by and avoids hazardous terrain, who aims at a target and guards his treasure, who overcomes his passions and gives the lie to his desires, who makes forbearance the steed of his salvation and piety the provision for his passing, who rides on the illuminated path and keeps to the brightened road, who takes advantage of the respite and hastens to assemble provisions of good deeds before his life ends.

‭1.74 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:²

The Umayyads stingily throw at me my share of Muḥammad’s inheritance, piece by piece, like those who allow a camel calf to suckle its mother only lightly, at intervals. By God, if I live to show them, I will shake them up like a butcher shaking dirt off an animal’s innards.

Raḍī: The phrase (al-widhām al-taribah), lit. “dirt-coated innards” is also narrated—in an instance of grammatical inversion—as “innards-coated dirt (al-turāb al-wadhimah).” By saying, “they treat me in the manner of a camel calf allowed to suckle its mother only lightly at intervals (la-yufawwiqūnanī)” ʿAlī means: “they give me the money bit by bit like the fuwāq of a she-camel, which is the quantity from a single milking.” “Widhām (innards),” the plural of wadhamah, is a piece of the ruminant’s stomach or liver; if it falls in the dirt, it must be shaken clean.

‮‭‭1‬.‭75‬ ‬ومن كلمات كان عليه السلام يدعو بها‬‎

‮اللّٰهمّ ٱغفر لي ما أنت أعلم به منّي فإن عدت فعد لي بالمغفرة. اللّٰهمّ ٱغفر لي ما وأيت من نفسي ولم تجد له وفاء عندي. اللّٰهمّ ٱغفر لي ما تقرّبت به إليك ثمّ خالفه قلبي. اللّٰهمّ ٱغفر لي رمزات الألحاظ وسقطات الألفاظ وشهوات الجنان وهفوات اللسان.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭76‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام قاله لبعض أصحابه لمّا عزم على المسير إلى الخوارج فقال له يا أمير المؤمنين إن سرت في هذا الوقت خشيت ألّا تظفر بمرادك من طريق علم النجوم. فقال عليه السلام‬‎

‮أتزعم أنّك تهدي إلى الساعة التي من سار فيها صرف عنه السوء وتخوّف الساعة التي من سار فيها حاق به الضرّ فمن صدّقك بهذا فقد كذّب القرآن وٱستغنى عن الاستعانة بالله في نيل المحبوب ودفع المكروه وينبغي في قولك للعامل بأمرك أن يوليك الحمد دون ربّه لأنّك بزعمك أنت هديته إلى الساعة التي نال فيها النفع وأمن الضرّ.‬‎

‮ثم أقبل عليه السلام على الناس فقال‬‎

‮أيّها الناس إيّاكم وتعلّم النجوم إلّا ما يهتدى به في برّ أو بحر فإنّها تدعو إلى الكهانة. المنجّم كالكاهن والكاهن كالساحر والساحر كالكافر والكافر في النار. سيروا على ٱسم الله.‬‎

‭1.75 ‬An excerpt from lines ʿAlī used to intone in supplication:¹

God, forgive my sins—you know more about them than I do—and if I turn back to them, turn to me with forgiveness. God, forgive the promises I made to myself that you know I have broken. God, forgive the deeds by which I sought closeness to you that my passions then stopped me from doing. God, forgive the lapses of my eyes, the blunders in my words, the errors of my heart, and the slips of my tongue.

‭1.76 ‬An address by ʿAlī in response to one of his associates who, when ʿAlī had resolved to march on the Kharijites, said to him: Commander of the Faithful, I fear you will not realize your goal if you march at this time—I know this through my knowledge of the stars.²

Do you presume to guide me to the hour in which those who advance are shielded from injury? Do you presume to warn me of the hour in which those who advance are attacked by harm? He who believes you challenges the Qurʾan, he relies on your help to achieve his wishes and repel his fears, instead of God’s. You may as well instruct him to glorify you and not his Lord, for in your belief, you are the one who guides him to the hour in which he will gain benefit and avert harm.

ʿAlī then turned to the people and spoke:

People! Beware of studying the stars except to navigate on land and sea, for it leads to soothsaying. An astrologer is like a soothsayer, a soothsayer is like a magician, a magician is like an unbeliever, and an unbeliever will be cast into the Fire. March forward in God’s name!

‮‭‭1‬.‭77‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام بعد فراغه من حرب الجمل في ذمّ النساء‬‎

‮معاشر الناس إنّ النساء نواقص الإيمان نواقص الحظوظ نواقص العقول فأمّا نقصان إيمانهنّ فقعودهنّ عن الصلاة والصيام في أيّام حيضهنّ وأمّا نقصان عقولهنّ فشهادة ٱمرأتين منهنّ كشهادة الرجل الواحد وأمّا نقصان حظوظهنّ فمواريثهنّ على الأنصاف من مواريث الرجال فٱتّقوا شرار النساء وكونوا من خيارهنّ على حذر ولا تطيعوهنّ في المعروف حتّى لا يطمعن في المنكر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭78‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أيّها الناس الزهادة قصر الأمل والشكر عند النعم والورع عن المحارم فإن عزب ذلك عليكم فلا يغلب الحرام صبركم ولا تنسوا عند النعم شكركم فقد أعذر الله إليكم بحجج مسفرة ظاهرة وكتب بارزة العذر واضحة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭79‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في صفة الدنيا‬‎

‮ما أصف من دار أوّلها عناء وآخرها فناء في حلالها حساب وفي حرامها عقاب‭¹‬ من ٱستغنى فيها فتن ومن ٱفتقر فيها حزن ومن ساعاها فاتته ومن قعد عنها وَاتَتْه‭²‬ ومن أبصر بها بصّرته ومن أبصر إليها أعمته.‬‎

‭1.77 ‬From an address by ʿAlī following the Battle of the Camel, in censure of women:¹

People! Women are deficient in faith, deficient in fortune, and deficient in mind. Their faith is deficient because they must abstain during menstruation from the rites of prayer and fasting. Their mind is deficient because the testimony of two women counts as the testimony of one man. Their fortune is deficient because their inheritance is half that of men. Beware of evil women and be cautious when dealing with those who are good. Don’t obey them even when they propose a righteous action, so that they don’t presume to influence you to do wrong.

‭1.78 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:

People! To reject worldliness is to desire little, render thanks for favors, and restrain oneself from what is forbidden. If that is too much for you, then at least make sure that illicit temptations do not overwhelm your resistance or forget to render thanks when you receive favors. God has given you reason enough to obey him, with bright and clear proofs, and books with plainly defined arguments.

‭1.79 ‬From an address by ʿAlī describing the world:²

How do I describe a world that begins in weariness and ends in death, where you are held accountable for approaching what is lawful and punished for consuming what is unlawful, where the wealthy are seduced and the poor grieve? The world eludes those who try to catch her while she comes willingly to those who pay her no heed. She instructs those who view her with discernment and blinds those who look at her with longing.

‮وإذا تأمل المتأمّل قوله عليه السلام ⟨من أبصر بها بصّرته⟩ وجد تحته من المعنى العجيب والغرض البعيد ما لا تبلغ غايته ولا يدرك غوره ولا سيّما إذا قرن إليه قوله ⟨ومن أبصر إليها أعمته⟩ فإنّه يجد الفرق بين ⟨أبصر بها⟩ و⟨أبصر إليها⟩ واضحًا نيّرًا وعجيبًا باهرًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام وهي من الخطب العجيبة تسمّى الغرّاء‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭1‬ ‬الحمد لله الذي علا بحوله ودنا بطوله مانح كلّ غنيمة وفضل وكاشف كلّ عظيمة وأزل أحمده على عواطف كرمه وسوابغ نعمه وأومن به أوّلًا باديًا وأستهديه قريبًا هاديًا وأستعينه قاهرًا قادرًا وأتوكّل عليه كافيًا ناصرًا. وأشهد أنّ محمدًا صلّى الله عليه وآله عبده ورسوله أرسله لإنفاذ أمره وإنهاء عذره وتقديم نذره.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭2‬ ‬أوصيكم عباد الله بتقوى الله الذي‭¹‬ ضرب لكم الأمثال ووقّت لكم الآجال وألبسكم الرياش وأرفغ لكم المعاش وأحاط بكم الإحصاء وأرصد لكم الجزاء وآثركم بالنعم السوابغ والرفد الروافغ وأنذركم بالحجج البوالغ فأحصاكم عددًا ووظّف لكم مددًا في قرار خبرة ودار عبرة أنتم مختبرون فيها ومحاسبون عليها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭3‬ ‬فإنّ الدنيا رنق مشربها ردغ مشرعها يونق منظرها ويوبق مخبرها غرور حائل وضوء آفل وظلّ زائل وسناد مائل حتّى إذا أنس نافرها وٱطمأنّ ناكرها قمصت بأرجلها وقنصت بأحبلها وأقصدت بأسهمها وأعلقت المرء أوهاق المنيّة قائدة له إلى ضنك المضجع ووحشة المرجع ومعاينة المحلّ وثواب العمل وكذلك الخلف بعقب السلف لا‬‎

Raḍī: If a person were to ponder ʿAlī’s words, “She instructs those who view her with discernment (man abṣara bihā baṣṣarathu),” he would find therein a wondrous meaning and a far-reaching aim whose end he can never attain and whose depths he can never plumb, especially if he reads them alongside ʿAlī’s next words, “She blinds those who look at her with longing (abṣara ilayhā aʿmathu).” He will find the difference between “view her with discernment” and “look at her with longing” (with the same verb, abṣara, but a different prepositional phrase in each, bihā vs ilayhā) splendid and luminous, wondrous and dazzling.

‭1.80 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī that is among his most marvelous, known as Gharrāʾ—“The Radiant Oration”:¹

‭1.80.1 ‬Praise God, exalted in his might and near through his grace, bestower of gifts and favors and dispeller of calamities and hardships. I praise him for his compassionate bounty and perfect blessings. I believe in him—he is the first and the manifest. I seek his guidance—he is close to me, and he is my guide. I ask him for aid—he is the vanquisher, the all-powerful lord. I place my trust in him—he suffices and sustains. I bear witness that Muḥammad is his servant and messenger, whom he sent to execute his command, vindicate his claim, and deliver his warning.

‭1.80.2 ‬Servants of God, I counsel you to be conscious of God, who has taught you parables and decreed your lifespans, clothed you in finery and given you a good life, encompassed you in his reckoning and ordained recompense for your deeds, graced you with perfect favors and marvelous gifts, and warned you with convincing arguments. He has reckoned your numbers and appointed your time in this house of trial and abode of instruction—here you are tested and held accountable for what you do.

‭1.80.3 ‬The world’s water is murky and the path to her waterhole thick with mud. Her beauty dazzles but her reality kills. She is a fleeting deception, a fading light, an ephemeral shadow, and an unsteady support. When the man who shies away from her becomes familiar, when he who is wary relaxes, she gallops away at full stretch, traps him in her snares, targets him with her arrows, and entangles him in the noose of death. She leads him to a narrow bed and a place filled with terror, to live in his new home and be paid back for his deeds. In this

‮تقلع المنيّةٱخترامًا ولا يرعوي الباقون ٱجترامًا يحتذون مثالًا ويمضون أرسالًا إلى غاية الانتهاء وصيّور الفناء.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭4‬ ‬حتّى إذا تصرّمت الأمور وتقضّت الدهور وأَزِفَ النشور أخرجهم من ضرائح القبور وأوكار الطيور وأوجرة السباع ومطارح المهالك سراعًا إلى أمره مهطعين إلى معاده رعيلًا صموتًا قيامًا صفوفًا ينفذهم البصر ويسمعهم الداعي عليهم لبوس الاستكانة وضرع الاستسلام والذلّة قد ضلّت الحيل وٱنقطع الأمل وهوت الأفئدة كاظمة وخشعت الأصوات مهينمة وألجم العرق وعظم الشفق وأرعدت الأسماع لزَبْرة الداعي إلى فصل الخطاب ومقايضة الجزاء ونكال العقاب ونوال الثواب.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭5‬ ‬عباد مخلوقون ٱقتدارًا ومربوبون ٱقتسارًا ومقبوضون ٱحتضارًا ومضمّنون أجداثًا وكائنون رفاتًا ومبعوثون أفرادًا ومدينون جزاء ومميّزون حسابًا قد أمهلوا في طلب المخرج وهدوا سبيل المنهج وعمّروا مهل المستعتب وكشفت عنهم سدف الريب وخلّوا لمضمار الجياد ورويّة الارتياد وأناة المقتبس المرتاد في مدّة الأجل ومضطرب المهل.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭6‬ ‬فيالها أمثالًا صائبة ومواعظ شافية لو صادفت قلوبًا زاكية وأسماعًا واعية وآراء عازمة وألبابًا حازمة. فٱتّقوا الله تقيّة من سمع فخشع وٱقترف فٱعترف ووجل فعمل وحاذر فبادر وأيقن فأحسن وعُبّر فٱعتبر وحُذّر فٱزدجر وأجاب فأناب وراجع فتاب وٱقتدى فٱحتذى وأُري فرآى فأسرع طالبًا ونجا هاربًا فأفاد ذخيرة وأطاب سريرة وعمر معادًا وٱستظهر زادًا ليوم رحيله ووجه سبيله وحال حاجته وموطن فاقته وقدّم أمامه لدار مقامه. فٱتّقوا الله عباد الله جهة ما خلقكم له وٱحذروا منه كُنْه ما حذّركم من نفسه وٱستحِقّوا منه ما أعدّ لكم بالتنجّز لصدق ميعاده والحذر من هول معاده.‬‎

way, sons follow fathers. Death keeps cutting off lives, and people keep sinning. They follow the example of those who went before and advance, one herd after another, to the final end—the threshold of annihilation.

‭1.80.4 ‬Then, when affairs conclude, eons run their course, and the resurrection draws near, God plucks people from the recesses of graves, from the nests of birds and the dens of beasts, and from every pit death has cast them into, and they hasten to answer his command. They rush to him in silent troops, standing upright in straight rows, the eye pierces them and the caller forces them to heed his call, clad in garments of submission, suckling the unholy milk of humiliation and shame. Ruses have vanished, hope is lost, hearts are gripped by terror, voices are hushed and mute, throats choke on sweat like a camel chokes on its bridle-straps, dread pervades, and ears are deafened by the thunderous call to judgment, to the payment for past deeds, be it punishment or reward.

‭1.80.5 ‬All are God’s servants, created by his power and ruled by his might. They will be seized by death, thrown into graves, transformed into dry bones, and resurrected alone, they will be held accountable for their deeds and singled out for the reckoning. They were given time to seek a way out and were guided to the beaten path, they had a lifetime to take warning and were led out from the shadows of doubt, they were left free to train for the race and contemplate their purpose, to seek a lighted torch and the promised goal. All this they could have done in their allotted time, in the respite granted for action.

‭1.80.6 ‬What striking parables, what healing counsels! If only they fell on attentive ears, pure hearts, resolute minds, and mature intellects! People, be conscious of God in the manner of one who, when he hears the call, prostrates; if he sins, he confesses; because he fears, he does good; because he dreads, he hastens; attaining certainty, he is virtuous; given lessons, he takes heed; when warned, he recoils; in answering, he returns; if he regresses, he repents; when he emulates, he perseveres; and when shown the way, he perceives. In doing so, he races when he seeks and is saved when he flees. Thus, he amasses a treasure, purifies his heart, prepares for the return, and gathers provisions for his day of departure, his time on the road, his moment of need, and his state of want. He readies stocks for his final abode. Servants of God! Be conscious of him and attend to the purpose he created you for. Be afraid of him with regard to the thing he warned you to fear him for. Deserve the fulfilment of his promise. Beware the terror of the return.

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭7‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮جعل لكم أسماعًا لتعي ما عناها وأبصارًا لتجلو عن عشاها وأشلاء جامعة لأعضائها ملائمة لأحنائها في تركيب صورها ومُدُد عُمُرها بأبدان قائمة بأرفاقها وقلوب رائدة لأرزاقها في مجلّلات نعمه وموجبات مننه وحواجز عافيته.‭¹‬ وقدّر لكم أعمارًا سترها عنكم وخلّف لكم عبرًا من آثار الماضين قبلكم من مستمتع خلاقهم ومستفسح خناقهم أرهقتهم المنايا دون الآمال وشذّبهم عنها تخرّم الآجال لم يمهدوا في سلامة الأبدان ولم يعتبروا في أُنُف الأوان. فهل ينتظر أهل بَضاضة الشباب إلّا حَواني الهرم وأهل غضارة الصحّة إلّا نوازل السقم وأهل مدّة البقاء إلّا آونة الفناء مع قرب الزِّيال وأزوف الانتقال وعَلَز القلق وألم المضض وغصص الجرض وتلفّت الاستغاثة بنصرة الحفدة والأقرباء والأعزّة والقرناء.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭8‬ ‬فهل دفعت الأقارب أو نفعت النواحب وقد غودر في محلّة الأموات رهينًا وفي ضيق المضجع وحيدًا قد هتكت الهوامّ جلدته وأبلت النواهك جدّته وعفت العواصف آثاره ومحا الحدثان معالمه وصارت الأجساد شحِبة بعد بَضّتها والعظام نخِرة بعد قوّتها والأرواح مرتهنة بثقل أعبائها موقنة بغيب أنبائها لا تستزاد من صالح عملها ولا تستعتب من سيّء زللها. أولستم أبناء القوم والآباء وإخوانهم والأقرباء تحتذون أمثلتهم وتركبون قِدّتهم‭²‬ وتطؤون جادّتهم فالقلوب قاسية عن حظّها لاهية عن رشدها سالكة في غير مضمارها كأنّ المعنيّ سواها وكأنّ الرشد في إحراز دنياها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭9‬ ‬وٱعلموا أنّ مجازكم على الصراط ومزالق دحضه وأهاويل زللـه وتارات أهواله فٱتّقوا الله تقيّة ذي لبّ شغل التفكّر قلبه وأنصب الخوف بدنه وأسهر التهجّد غِرار نومه وأظمأ الرجاء هواجر يومه وظلف الزهد شهواته وأوجف الذكر بلسانه وقدّم الخوف‬‎

‭1.80.7 ‬From the same oration:

God has given you ears to hear what they should, eyes to dispel blindness, and a torso that encloses organs and is molded onto ribs; he has divided your forms—for use through a long life—into bodies that can attend to their needs, and hearts that can seek out their sustenance; he has given you these and many more splendid blessings, binding favors, and shelters of health and well-being; he has fixed your lifespans and concealed their duration. All the while, he has presented you with lessons in the tales of the people who went before you, who enjoyed good fortune and roamed with loosened halters, until fate overtook them and cut off their false hopes, and the termination of their lifespan drove them from their desires, who neglected to provide for themselves when their bodies were sound, nor heed life’s lessons while there was time to choose. Think: Can the youth with rosy skin expect anything but the bowed back of old age? The man of fresh health anything but the hard blows of sickness? The living anything but the moment of perdition, the imminence of separation, the approach of dislocation, the insomnia of anxiety, the pain of burning grief, the throttle of the death rattle, and the futile appeal for help to grandchildren and relatives, friends and colleagues?

‭1.80.8 ‬Can relatives ward off the ordeal, or wailing women avail, when the deceased are pledged to the dead man’s quarter, when they lie alone in the grave? Maggots tear into their skin and the elements corrode their freshness. Storms erase their traces and routines obliterate their signs. Bodies once rosy of skin decay, and bones once strong desiccate. Souls, mortgaged to their burdens, now see the reality of the unseen. But the time to stock deeds is past, or to atone for transgressions. Are you not the children of the dead, their fathers, their brothers, their relatives? Do you not follow in their footsteps? Do you not walk their road and tread their path? But your hardened hearts cannot absorb a share of belief. You run in the wrong race, too preoccupied to discern. You behave as though someone else is the next target, as though wisdom lies in amassing wealth.

‭1.80.9 ‬But know this: You too must cross the bridge of death, with its slippery surface, horrifying stumbles, and repeated terrors. So be conscious of God in the manner of a sage whose heart is deep in thought and whose body is emaciated by fear; whose snatches of sleep in the watches of night are interrupted by prayer, and whose hope for reward makes him choose thirst in the scorching hours of the day; whose passions renunciation dampens, whose tongue remembrance spurs on, and who fears God as he should, in order to obtain God’s shelter; who shuns deviation from the straight path, and traverses the middle

‮لأمانه وتنكّب المخالج عن وَضَح السبيل وسلك أقصد المسالك إلى النهج المطلوب ولم تَفْتِله فاتلات الغرور ولم تَعْمَ عليه مشتبهات الأمور ظافرًا بفرحة البشرى وراحة النعمى في أنعم نومه وآمن يومه قد عبر معبر العاجلة حميدًا وقدّم زاد الآجلة سعيدًا وبادر من وجل وأكمش في مهل ورغب في طلب وذهب عن هرب وراقب في يومه غده ونظر قُدْمًا أمامه. فكفى بالجنّة ثوابًا ونوالًا وكفى بالنار عقابًا ووبالًا وكفى بالله منتقمًا ونصيرًا وكفى بالكتاب حجيجًا وخصيمًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭10‬ ‬أوصيكم بتقوى الله الذي أعذر بما أنذر وٱحتجّ بما نهج وحذّركم عدوًّا نفذ في الصدور خفيًّا ونفث في الآذان نجيًّا فأضلّ وأردى ووعد فمنّى وزيّن سيّئات الجرائم وهوّن موبقات العظائم حتّى إذا ٱستدرج قرينته وٱستغلق رهينته أنكر ما زيّن وٱستعظم ما هوّن وحذّر ما آمن.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭11‬ ‬منها في صفة خلق الإنسان‬‎

‮أم هذا الذي أنشأه في ظلمات الأرحام وشغف الأستار نطفة دِهاقًا‭¹‬ وعلقة مُحاقًا وجنينًا وراضعًا ووليدًا ويافعًا ثمّ منحه قلبًا حافظًا ولسانًا لافظًا وبصرًا لاحظًا ليفهم معتبرًا ويقصر مزدجرًا حتّى إذا قام ٱعتداله وٱستوى مثاله نفر مستكبرًا وخبط سادرًا ماتحًا في غرب هواه كادحًا سعيًا لدنياه في لذّات طربه وبدوات أربه لا يحتسب رزيّة ولا يخشع تقيّة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭12‬ ‬فمات في فتنته غريرًا وعاش في هفوته يسيرًا لم يفد عوضًا ولم يقض مفترضًا دهمته فجعات المنيّة في غُبَّر جماحه وسَنن مَراحه فظلّ سادرًا وبات ساهرًا في غمرات الآلام وطوارق الأوجاع والأسقام بين أخ شقيق ووالد شفيق وداعية بالويل جزعًا ولادمة للصدر قلقًا. والمرء في سكرة ملهية وغمرة كارثة وأنّة موجعة وجذبة مكربة وسوقة‬‎

road to reach his goal; whom delusion’s snares do not entangle and dubious affairs do not blind. Such a man wins promised delights and blessed repose, a tranquil sleep, and a day of safety. He has crossed the bridge exemplarily, and arriving at the provisions he had sent on, he exults. Because he feared, he hastened; when given a chance, he labored; seeking, he hoped; fleeing, he dodged; in his present, he was mindful of the morrow; with courage, he looked ahead. O people, take heed: paradise suffices as reward and recompense, hellfire as punishment and penalty. God suffices as avenger and bestower of victory, his Book as interlocutor and adversary.

‭1.80.10 ‬I counsel you to be conscious of God, who alerted when he cautioned, and justified his claim when he showed you the way. He warned you against the enemy who steals into breasts with stealth, and whispers into ears in secret; who misguides and leads into hell, and promises with vows that are false; who makes the evilest of crimes look attractive, and trivializes terrible sins—then, when he has deceived your soul and secured your collateral, he pronounces repulsive what he had bedecked and grave what he had dismissed, and he threatens you with the very things from which he had promised safety.

‭1.80.11 ‬From the same oration, describing the creation of humans:

Look at this human, whom God created in the darkness of the womb, in layers of coverings, whom he transformed from a drop of gushing semen to a formless blood-clot, then to a fetus, a suckling babe, a child, and a youth. God bestowed on the human a heart that can remember, a tongue that can speak, and eyes that can see, so that he may learn when taught and refrain when admonished. But then, when he attained a balanced figure and his body stood up straight, he turned away in arrogance and bucked like a sun-struck camel, toiling only for worldly gain, and drawing up huge buckets from the deep wells of his passions. Seeking only ecstatic pleasures and wishful fancies, he neither heeded the approaching menace nor humbled himself before God.

‭1.80.12 ‬And so he died pursuing pleasure, having lived for a moment, jolly in his sins, then leaving without fulfilling obligations or earning reward. Sudden fate attacked him as he galloped headstrong in his merry path. That day, he collapsed like a sun-struck camel, that night, he lay tortured by agonies of pain and convulsions of illness. Onlookers—a blood brother, a doting father, one woman crying woe, another beating her chest—stood by. Then he was seized by consuming paroxysms, intense distress, and painful groans, in an excruciating extraction and a most severe end. Then he was wrapped in the cloths of a shroud and moved hither and thither, passive at all times and submissive. Then

‮متعبة ثم أدرج في أكفانه مُبلَسًا وجُذب منقادًا سلسًا ثمّ ألقي على الأعواد رجيع وَصَب ونِضْو سقم تحمله حفدة الولدان وحشدة الإخوان إلى دار غربته ومنقطع زورته حتّى إذا ٱنصرف المشيّع ورجع المتفجّع أقعد في حفرته نجيًّا لبَهْتَة السؤال وعثرة الامتحان. وأعظم ما هنالك بليّة نزل الحميم وتصلية الجحيم وفورات السعير لا فترة مريحة ولا دعة مزيحة ولا قوّة حاجزة ولا موتة ناجزة ولا سِنة مسلية بين أطوار الموتات وعذاب الساعات ﴿إِنَّا لِلّٰهِ وَإِنَّـآ إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُون﴾‭¹‬ إنّا بالله عائذون.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭13‬ ‬عباد الله الذين عُمّروا فنعِموا وعُلّموا ففهموا وأُنظروا فلَهُوا وسلموا فنسوا أُمهلوا طويلًا ومنحوا جميلًا وحذّروا أليمًا ووعدوا جسيمًا. احذروا الذنوب المورّطة والعيوب المسخطة أولي الأبصار والأسماع والعافية والمتاع هل من مَناص أو خلاص أو معاذ أو ملاذ أو فرار‭²‬ أو مَحارٍ أم لا. ﴿فأَنَّىٰ تُؤْفَكُونَ﴾ أم أين تصرفون أم بماذا تغترّون وإنّما حظّ أحدكم من الأرض ذات الطول والعرض قِيْدُ قَدِّه منعفرًا على خدّه. الآن عباد الله والخناق مهمل والروح مرسل في فَيْنة الإرشاد وراحة الأجساد ومَهَل البقيّة وأُنُف المشيّة وإنظار التوبة وٱنفساح الحوبة قبل الضنك والمضيق والروع والزهوق وقبل قدوم الغائب المنتظر وأخذة العزيز المقتدر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭80‬.‭14‬ ‬وفي الخبر أنّه عليه السلام لمّا خطب بهذه الخطبة ٱقشعرّت لها الجلود وبكت العيون ورجفت القلوب. ومن الناس من يسمّي هذه الخطبة الغرّاء.‬‎

his body, emaciated by disease and destroyed by illness, was tossed on a plank, and carried by his sons’ children and his brothers’ attendants to the house of exile and the state of separation. Finally, when those who had come to bury him had turned back and the grieving mourners had gone away, he was made to sit up alone in his tomb to face a frightening interrogation and a terrible ordeal. People, know that the afterworld’s greatest torment is the Pit-of-Boiling-Liquid, the Blaze-of-Hellfire, the Conflagration-of-the Inferno.¹ It allows no period of rest, no alleviating respite, no shielding force, no soothing sleep, and no relief in a final death. This is all there is: death after death and hour after hour of torture. «Indeed, we belong to God, and to him we shall return.»² Truly, in God we seek refuge.

‭1.80.13 ‬Servants of God! You were given long lives that you enjoyed, knowledge that helped you understand, respite that you squandered in play, and security that made you careless. You were given a long reprieve and beautiful gifts, warned of punishments, and promised rewards. Bearers of eyes and ears, health and wealth, beware of sins that hurl into the abyss, and transgressions that incur God’s wrath! Do you see escape, deliverance, refuge, shelter, retreat, or return? No? Well, then, «how are you deluded,»³ where are you directed, and what is deceiving you? Your share of the world, in all its length and breadth, is but the measure of your body as it lies with cheek in the dust! Servants of God! Take heed now, this very moment, while halters remain loosened and spirits untethered, while you have time to seek guidance and a body that is sound, with a remainder in your respite, the freedom to choose, a chance to repent, and room to move. Take heed before the calamity descends and straits narrow, before fear prevails and destruction sets in, before the arrival of that visitor who will surely arrive, and before you are seized by the Powerful, Almighty Lord.

‭1.80.14 ‬Raḍī: The report goes on to state that when ʿAlī delivered this oration, bodies shuddered, eyes wept, and hearts trembled. Some people name this Gharrāʾ, “The Radiant Oration.”

‮‭‭1‬.‭81‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في ذكر عمرو بن العاص‬‎

‮عجبًا لٱبن النابغة يزعم لأهل الشام أنّ فيّ دُعابة وأنّي ٱمرؤ تِلْعابة أعافس وأمارس لقد قال باطلًا ونطق آثمًا أما وشرّ القول الكذب إنّه ليقول فيكذب ويعد فيخلف ويَسأل فيُلحف ويُسأل فيبخل ويخون العهد ويقطع الإلّ فإذا كان عند الحرب فأيّ زاجر وآمر هو ما لم تأخذ السيوف مآخذها فإذا كان ذلك كان أكبر‭¹‬ مكيدته أن يمنح القوم سَبّته. أما والله إنّي ليمنعني من اللعب ذكر الموت وإنّه ليمنعه من قول الحقّ نسيان الآخرة إنّه لم يبايع معاوية حتّى شرط له أن يؤتيه أتيّة ويرضخ له على ترك الدين رضيخة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭82‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭82‬.‭1‬ ‬وأشهد أن لا إلٰه إلّا الله وحده لا شريك له الأوّل لا شيء قبله والآخر لا غاية له لا تقع الأوهام له على صفة ولا تعقد القلوب منه على كيفيّة ولا تناله التجزئة والتبعيض ولا تحيط به الأبصار والقلوب.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭82‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮فٱتّعظوا عباد الله بالعبر النوافع وٱعتبروا بالآي السواطع وٱزدجروا بالنذر البوالغ وٱنتفعوا بالذكر والمواعظ فكأن قد علقتكم مخالب المنيّة وٱنقطعت منكم علائق الأمنيّة‬‎

‭1.81 ‬From ʿAlī’s address about ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ:¹

How strange! The Harlot’s son tells the Syrians that I have a streak of foolishness, that I am a joker interested only in frolics and flirtation! He speaks untruth and gives voice to sin, for lies are the evilest of words. When he speaks, he lies, when he promises, he breaks his promise, when he solicits, he badgers—but when he himself is solicited, he is stingy, he betrays his pledge and disowns his kin. When battle approaches, how boldly he chides and commands!—but only before swords reap their harvest, then, his best strategy is to show people his arse!² By God, the thought of death stops me from indulging in frivolities, while disregard for the hereafter stops him from speaking the truth. In fact, he pledged allegiance to Muʿāwiyah only after he had elicited from him a promise of payment—a paltry bribe of baubles in exchange for abandoning the faith.

‭1.82 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:³

‭1.82.1 ‬I bear witness that there is no god but God, who has no partner. He is the first, for there was nothing before him, and the last, for he has no end. Minds cannot find a way to describe him, hearts cannot comprehend his nature, dissecting or deconstructing cannot grasp him, and eyes and hearts cannot take him in.

‭1.82.2 ‬From the same oration:

Servants of God! Take counsel from valuable lessons, warning from blazing signs, caution from powerful warnings, and benefit from reminders and counsels! Imagine that death’s talons have pierced you and hope’s threads are severed, that calamitous events have crushed you, and fate has driven you to the waterhole that is common to all. «Each soul is accompanied by its driver and

‮ودهمتكم مفظعات الأمور والسياقة إلى الورد المورود و﴿كُلُّ نَفْسٍ مَّعَهَا سَآئِقٌ وَشَهِيدٌ﴾ سائق يسوقها إلى محشرها وشاهد يشهد عليها بعملها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭82‬.‭3‬ ‬منها في صفة الجنّة‬‎

‮درجات متفاضلات ومنازل متفاوتات لا ينقطع نعيمها ولا يظعن مقيمها ولا يهرم خالدها ولا يبأس ساكنها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭83‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭83‬.‭1‬ ‬قد علم السرائر وخبر الضمائر له الاحاطة بكلّ شيء والغلبة لكلّ شيء والقوّة على كلّ شيء.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭83‬.‭2‬ ‬فليعمل العامل منكم في أيّام مهله قبل إرهاق أجله وفي فراغه قبل أوان شغله وفي متنفّسه قبل أن يؤخذ بكظمه وليمهّد لنفسه وقدمه وليتزوّد من دار ظعنه لدار إقامته.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭83‬.‭3‬ ‬فاللهَ اللهَ أيّها الناس فيما ٱستحفظكم من كتابه وٱستودعكم من حقوقه فإنّ الله سبحانه لم يخلقكم عبثًا ولم يترككم سدى ولم يدعكم في جهالة ولا عمى قد سمّى آثاركم وعلم أعمالكم وكتب آجالكم وأنزل عليكم الكتاب تبيانًا وعمّر فيكم نبيّه أزمانًا حتّى أكمل له ولكم فيما أنزل من كتابه الذي رضي لنفسه وأنهى إليكم على لسانه محابّه من الأعمال ومكارهه ونواهيه وأوامره فألقى إليكم المعذرة وٱتّخذ عليكم الحجّة وقدّم إليكم بالوعيد وأنذركم بين يدي عذاب شديد. فٱستدركوا بقيّة أيّامكم وٱصبروا لها أنفسكم فإنّها قليل في كثير الأيّام التي تكون منكم فيها الغفلة والتشاغل عن الموعظة ولا ترخّصوا لأنفسكم فتذهب بكم الرخص مذاهب الظلمة ولا تداهنوا فيهجم بكم الإدهان على المعصية.‬‎

its witness»¹—a driver who steers it to the place of accounting, and a witness who testifies to its deeds.

‭1.82.3 ‬From the same oration describing paradise:

It has distinct ranks and diverse stations. Its blessings never end, its residents never leave, its occupants never age, and its inhabitants never want.

‭1.83 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

‭1.83.1 ‬God knows your thoughts and discerns your feelings, he encompasses all things, subjugates all things, and controls all things.

‭1.83.2 ‬Do good in your time of respite before the end of your lifespan, in your time of leisure before other things preoccupy you, in the time you draw breath before your throat chokes. Provide for your soul and secure it a high rank. Take provisions from the home you will leave for the home you will reside in forever.

‭1.83.3 ‬People! Fear God in this: guard his Book, which he has asked you to preserve, and uphold his rights, which he has asked you to hold in trust. He has not created you in vain, nor left you without direction,³ nor ignorant and blind. He records your acts and knows what you do, and he has decreed what your lifespan will be. Sending you the Book with its clear exposition,⁴ God let his Prophet live among you through numerous seasons, until, by what he revealed in his Book, he perfected for him and for you the faith he was pleased to call his own.⁵ Expressing approvals and disapprovals on his Prophet’s tongue, as well as prohibitions and commands, God justified his claim to you, placed his proof before you, advanced his warning to you, and cautioned you of imminent and harsh chastisement. People, use your remaining days to rectify your wrongs and devote yourselves to that task, for your remaining days are few compared to the many you have squandered carelessly and in total neglect of admonition. Don’t give yourselves undue license for that will lead you down the path of tyrants, don’t be duplicitous for that will steer you into sin.

‮‭‭1‬.‭83‬.‭4‬ ‬عباد الله إنّ أنصح الناس لنفسه أطوعهم لربّه وإنّ أغشّهم لنفسه أعصاهم لربّه والمغبون من غبن نفسه والمغبوط من سلم له دينه والسعيد من وُعظ بغيره والشقيّ من ٱنخدع لهواه وغروره. وٱعلموا أنّ يسير الرياء شرك ومجالسة أهل الهوى منساة للإيمان ومحضرة للشيطان. جانبوا الكذب فإنّه مجانب للإيمان الصادق على شفا منجاة وكرامة والكاذب على شرف مهواة ومهانة لا تحاسدوا فإنّ الحسد يأكل الإيمان كما تأكل النار الحطب ولا تباغضوا فإنّها الحالقة. وٱعلموا أنّ الأمل يسهي العقل وينسي الذكر فأكذبوا الأمل فإنّه غرور وصاحبه مغرور.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭84‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭84‬.‭1‬ ‬عباد الله إنّ من أحبّ عباد الله إليه عبدًا أعانه الله على نفسه فٱستشعر الحزن وتجلبب الخوف فزهر مصباح الهدى في قلبه وأعدّ القِرى ليومه النازل به فقرّب على نفسه البعيد وهوّن الشديد نظر فأبصر وذكر فٱستكثر وٱرتوى من عذب فرات سهلت له موارده فشرب نهلًا وسلك سبيلًا جددًا قد خلع سرابيل الشهوات وتخلّى من الهموم إلّا همًّا واحدًا ٱنفرد به فخرج من صفة العمى ومشاركة أهل الهوى وصار من مفاتيح أبواب الهدى ومغاليق أبواب الردى. قد أبصر طريقه وسلك سبيله وعرف مناره وقطع غماره وٱستمسك من العرى بأوثقها ومن الحبال بأمتنها فهو من اليقين على مثل ضوء‬‎

‭1.83.4 ‬Servants of God! He who counsels himself best, best obeys his Lord, while he who deceives himself most, most disobeys his Lord. He who cheats himself is truly cheated, he whose faith is safe is truly joyful, he who learns from the example of others is truly fortunate, and he who is misled by desire and conceit is truly wretched. Know this: If you do good to show off even a little, you assign partners to God, and when you keep company with the dissolute, you forget your faith and summon Satan. Stay away from lies for they weaken faith. The truthful stand on the threshold of salvation and honor, while liars stand at the rim of the abyss and the edge of abasement. Don’t envy one another, for envy consumes faith just as fire consumes kindling. Don’t hate one another, for hate destroys.¹ Know this: false hope diverts the mind and causes you to forget God.² Don’t place your faith in it for it is nothing but deception and its friend is wholly deceived.

‭1.84 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:³

‭1.84.1 ‬Servants of God! The most beloved of his servants in God’s eyes is the man who, with his help, keeps his passions under control.⁴ By wearing the shirt of grief and donning the robe of fear, this man illumines his heart with the lamp of guidance. Putting by stores for the day that will come, for that guest who will soon be here, he brings the future close and dismisses the present’s tribulations. He looks and discerns, he learns and gains, and he slakes his thirst with sweet water. His track to the waterhole has become smooth, so he walks its beaten path and drinks his fill. Discarding desire’s mantle and divesting from all aspirations, he holds on to just one. He escapes in this way from blindness and from the passion-driven rabble, and becomes a key to the door of guidance, a lock on the door of perdition. He sees his way, walks his path, recognizes his beacon, and crosses the deep seas. He grasps the firmest handle and the strongest rope, and so attains the certainty of one who sees the light of the

‮الشمس قد نصب نفسه لله سبحانه في أرفع الأمور من إصدار كلّ وارد عليه وتصيير كلّ فرع إلى أصله مصباح ظلمات كشّاف غشوات مفتاح مبهمات دفّاع معضلات دليل فلوات يقول فيُفهم ويسكت فيسلم قد أخلص لله فٱستخلصه فهو من معادن دينه وأوتاد أرضه قد ألزم نفسه العدل فكان أوّل عدله نفي الهوى عن نفسه. يصف الحقّ ويعمل به لا يدع للخير غاية إلّا أمّها ولا مظنّة إلّا قصدها قد أمكن الكتاب من زمامه فهو قائده وإمامه يحلّ حيث حلّ ثقله وينزل حيث كان منزله.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭84‬.‭2‬ ‬وآخر قد تسمّى عالمًا وليس به فٱقتبس جهائل من جهّال وأضاليل من ضلّال ونصب للناس أشراكًا من حبال غرور وقول زور قد حمل الكتاب على آرائه وعطف الحقّ على أهوائه يؤمن من العظائم ويهوّن كبير الجرائم يقول أقف عند الشبهات وفيها وقع ويقول أعتزل البدع وبينها ٱضطجع فالصورة صورة إنسان والقلب قلب حيوان لا يعرف باب الهدى فيتبعه ولا باب العمى فيصدّ عنه فذلك ميّت الأحياء.‬‎

‮﴿فَأيْنَ تَذْهَبُون﴾ و﴿أَنَّىٰ تُؤْفَكُون﴾ والأعلام قائمة والآيات واضحة والمنائر منصوبة فأين يتاه بكم بل كيف تعمهون وبينكم عترة نبيّكم وهم أزمّة الحقّ وألسنة الصدق فأنزلوهم بأحسن منازل القرآن ورِدُوهم ورود الهيم العطاش. أيّها الناس خذوها عن خاتم النبيّين صلّى الله عليه وآله ⟨إنّه يموت من مات منّا وليس بميّت ويبلى من بلي منّا وليس ببالٍ⟩. فلا تقولوا بما لا تعرفون فإنّ أكثر الحقّ فيما تنكرون وٱعذروا من لا حجّة لكم عليه وأنا هو. ألم أعمل فيكم بالثَّقَل الأكبر وأترك فيكم الثقل الأصغر‬‎

sun. He deputes for God in the loftiest matters, providing all comers with water, tracing each branch to its root. He is a lamp in the darkness, a dispeller of obscurities, a key to elucidation, a defender against calamities, and a guide in the wilderness. When he speaks, people can understand, and when silent, he protects himself from erring. He is sincere in his devotion to God, so God singles him out for himself. He is thus a repository of God’s faith, a mountain that pegs God’s earth. He enjoins his soul to justice, and his first act of justice is to banish all passions from his soul. He preaches the truth and practices it. He strives continually for good, with no avenue unexplored, no location untracked. He entrusts his reins to God’s Book, which becomes his driver and leader. He settles where it unloads its wares and encamps where it sets up camp.

‭1.84.2 ‬Then there is another kind: this man calls himself learned when he is not. He collects scraps of ignorance from the ignorant and bits of error from the errant, and traps people with deceptive snares and false reports. He interprets the Book to his fancies and bends the truth to his passions, he promises protection from punishment and trivializes major sins. He crows, “I pause if I have doubt,” when he has fallen into its pit. He boasts, “I stay away from heresy,” when he has made it his bedfellow. His form is human, but his heart is the heart of a beast. He does not recognize let alone follow guidance, he cannot identify let alone repel blindness. He is the living dead.

«So where do you go,»¹ «and how are you deluded,»² when banners are raised, waymarks are clear, and beacons are lit? Indeed, whereto do you stray, and how is it you are lost, when you have among you the Prophet’s descendants, who are guide ropes of right and tongues of truth? Accord them the high regard you accord the Qurʾan,³ and race like parched camels to drink at their waterhole. People! Take this from the Seal of the Prophets, who said, ⟨When one of us dies, he is not dead. When his body disintegrates in the ground, it has not disintegrated.⟩⁴ Don’t speak of what you don’t know, for what you deny is the truth. Absolve the man against whom you have no claim, and that is I! Have I not led you in accordance with the Greater Treasure and given you the Smaller

‮وركزت فيكم راية الإيمان ووقفتكم على حدود الحلال والحرام وألبستكم العافية من عدلي وفرشتكم المعروف من قولي وفعلي وأريتكم كرائم الأخلاق من نفسي فلا تستعملوا الرأي فيما لا يدرك قعره البصر ولا يتغلغل إليه الفكر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭84‬.‭3‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮حتّى يظنّ الظانّ أنّ الدنيا معقولة على بني أميّة تمنحهم درّها وتوردهم صفوها ولا يُرفع عن هذه الأمّة سوطها ولا سيفها وكذب الظانّ لذلك بل هي مجّة من لذيذ العيش يتطعّمونها برهة ثم يلفظونها جملة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭85‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أمّا بعد. فإنّ الله لم يقصم جبّاري دهر قطّ إلّا بعد تمهيل ورخاء ولم يجبر عظم أحد من الأمم إلّا بعد أَزْل وبلاء وفي دون ما ٱستقبلتم من خطب وٱستدبرتم من خطب معتبر وما كلّ ذي قلب بلبيب ولا كلّ ذي سمع بسميع ولا كلّ ذي ناظر ببصير. فيا عجبًا ومالي لا أعجب من خطأ هذه الفرق على ٱختلاف حججها في دينها لا يقتصّون أثر نبيّ ولا يقتدون بعمل وصيّ ولا يؤمنون بغيب ولا يعفّون عن عيب يعملون في الشبهات ويسيرون في الشهوات المعروف فيهم ما عرفوا والمنكر عندهم ما أنكروا مفزعهم في المعضلات إلى أنفسهم وتعويلهم في المبهمات على آرائهم كأنّ كلّ ٱمرئ منهم إمام نفسه قد أخذ منها فيما يرى بعرى ثقات وأسباب محكمات.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭86‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

One?¹ Have I not raised for you the banner of faith, shown you the boundaries between licit and illicit, clothed you through my justice in the garment of security, unfurled for you with my words and deeds the carpet of good, and exemplified for you with my behavior a virtuous character? So do not exercise your fancy in areas whose depths your eyes cannot plumb, or your minds penetrate!

‭1.84.3 ‬From the same oration:

A man may well believe that the world is a camel tied up in the Umayyads’ pen, giving them sweet milk and leading them to pure water, and that their whip and sword will never be lifted from the community’s neck—but he would be wrong. This is but a delicious drink they will sip for a short while and then spit out all at once.

‭1.85 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

God has not crushed tyrants of any era except after a long respite and an abundant share of fortune, nor has he mended the bones of any community except after a period of anguish and trial. Lessons can be gleaned from lesser things than the calamities you have experienced, yet not every heart discerns, not every ear listens, and not every eye perceives. I am amazed—and how could I not be!—at the errors committed by these groups who produce such dissenting claims in faith. They neither follow the footsteps of a prophet nor emulate the actions of a legatee, they do not believe in the mystery or refrain from debauchery, rather, they base their actions on doubts and tread the path of passions. Good to them is what they find pleasing, and evil is what they find foul. When faced with obscurities, they rely on their own judgment, and when faced with ambiguities, they rely on their own caprice. Each of them is his own leader who—misguidedly, in his own view—has a firm grip on sturdy handles and strong ropes.

‭1.86 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:³

‮أرسله على حين فترة من الرسل وطول هجعة من الأمم وٱعترام‭¹‬ من الفتن وٱنتشار من الأمور وتلظٍّ من الحروب والدنيا كاسفة النور ظاهرة الغرور على حين ٱصفرار من ورقها وإياس من ثمرها وٱغورار من مائها قد درست أعلام الهدى وظهرت أعلام الردى فهي متجهّمة لأهلها عابسة في وجه طالبها ثمرها الفتنة وطعامها الجيفة وشعارها الخوف ودثارها السيف. فٱعتبروا عباد الله وٱذكروا تِيكَ التي آباؤكم وإخوانكم بها مرتهنون وعليها محاسبون ولعمري ما تقادمت بكم ولا بهم العهود ولا خلت فيما بينكم وبينهم الأحقاب والقرون‭²‬ وما أنتم اليوم من يوم كنتم في أصلابهم ببعيد. والله ما أسمعهم الرسول شيئًا إلّا وها أنا ذا اليوم مسمعكموه وما أسماعكم اليوم بدون أسماعهم‭³‬ بالأمس ولا شقّت لهم الأبصار وجعلت لهم الأفئدة في ذلك الأوان إلّا وقد أعطيتم مثلها في هذا الزمان ووالله ما بصّرتم بعدهم شيئًا جهلوه ولا أُصفِيتم به وحُرموه ولقد نزلت بكم البليّة جائلًا خِطامها رِخْوًا بطانها فلا يغرّنّكم ما أصبح فيه أهل الغرور فإنّما هو ظلّ ممدود إلى أجل معدود.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭87‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮المعروف من غير رؤية الخالق من غير رويّة الذي لم يزل قائمًا دائمًا إذ لا سماء ذات أبراج ولا حجب ذات أرتاج ولا ليل داجٍ ولا بحر ساجٍ ولا جبل ذو فجاج ولا فجّ ذو ٱعوجاج ولا أرض ذات مهاد ولا خلق ذو ٱعتماد ذلك مبتدع الخلق ووارثه وإلٰه الخلق ورازقه والشمس والقمر دائبان في مرضاته يُبليان كلّ جديد ويقرّبان كلّ بعيد. قسم أرزاقهم وأحصى آثارهم وأعمالهم وعدّد أنفاسهم وخائنة أعينهم وما تخفي صدورهم من الضمير ومستقرّهم ومستودعهم من الأرحام والظهور إلى أن تتناهى بهم الغايات. هو الذي ٱشتدّت نقمته على أعدائه في سعة رحمته وٱتّسعت رحمته لأوليائه في شدّة نقمته قاهر مَن عازّه ومدمّر من شاقّه ومذلّ من ناواه وغالب من عاداه من توكّل عليه كفاه ومن‬‎

God sent Muḥammad when an age had gone by without prophets, when people had long been in slumber, when steeds of revolt were bucking, affairs were in disarray, and battles were aflame. The world was devoid of light, her deceit was shining bright, her leaves had yellowed and browned, her fruits could not be found, and her water had sunk underground. The waymarks of guidance had crumbled, the waymarks of hell were erected. The world glared at her tenants and scowled in the face of her seekers. Mutiny was her harvest, cadavers her preferred food, fear was her garment, and the sword her daily robe. Servants of God, take heed! Remember the deeds to which your fathers and brothers remain pledged, and for which they must account. I swear on my life and say this: No great time has passed between their years and yours, no eons separate their seasons and yours, you are not so far today from the day you were in their loins. By God! Everything God’s Messenger told them, I reiterate to you today, for your hearing is no less keen today than theirs was yesterday. Just as they were given eyes to see, just as they were given hearts to comprehend, so too have you, in your generation, been given. And neither, by God, are you shown something they were ignorant of, or privileged with knowledge they were not. The calamity that has attacked you has a slackened nose-rein and a loosened belly-strap,¹ so do not be deceived by the ascendance of these men of deceit. Their spreading shade is fleeting.

‭1.87 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

God is recognized without being seen, a creator who did not need to deliberate. He was existent and present from eternity, when there were no mansion-filled skies,² no inaccessible veils,³ no dark nights, no tranquil seas, no craggy gorges, no twisting ravines, no outspread earth, and no legged creatures. God is the originator of all creation and its inheritor, the maker of all creation and its sustainer. The sun and the moon strive for his pleasure as they wear out the old and bring near the far. He apportions our sustenance and reckons our traces and deeds. He enumerates our breaths and our glances, the secrets our bosoms hide, and our places of rest and passage in wombs and loins until our final end. His punishment crushes his enemies, despite the vastness of his mercy, while his mercy enfolds his devotees, despite the harshness of his punishment. He subjugates his challengers, destroys those who defy him, humbles his opponents, and overthrows his foes. He suffices those who trust him, he gives to those who beseech him, he repays with favors those who extend him a loan of

‮سأله أعطاه ومن أقرضه قضاه ومن شكره جزاه. عباد الله زِنوا أنفسكم من قبل أن توزنوا وحاسبوها من قبل أن تحاسبوا وتنفّسوا قبل ضيق الخناق وٱنقادوا قبل عنف السياق وٱعلموا أنّه من لم يُعَن على نفسه حتّى يكون له منها واعظ وزاجر لم يكن له من غيرها زاجر ولا واعظ.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام تعرف بخطبة الأشباح وهي من جلائل الخطب. روى مَسعدة بن صدقة عن الصادق جعفر بن محمّد عليهما السلام أنّه قال خطب أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام والصلاة بهذه الخطبة على منبر الكوفة وذلك أنّ رجلًا أتاه فقال له يا أمير المؤمنين صف لنا ربّنا لنزداد له حبًّا وبه معرفة فغضب عليه السلام ونادى ⟨الصلاة جامعة⟩ فٱجتمع الناس حتّى غضّ المسجد بأهله فصعد المنبر وهو مغضب متغيّر اللون. فحمد الله سبحانه وصلّى على النبيّ صلّى الله عليه وآله ثمّ قال‭¹‬‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭1‬ ‬الحمد لله الذي لا يَفِرُه المنع ولا يُكديه الإعطاء والجود إذ كلّ معطٍ منتقص سواه وكلّ مانع مذموم ما خلاه وهو المنّان بفوائد النعم وعوائد المزيد والقِسَم. عياله الخلائق ضمن أرزاقهم وقدّر أقواتهم ونهج سبيل الراغبين إليه والطالبين ما لديه وليس بما سئل بأجود منه بما لم يسأل. الأوّل الذي لم يكن له قبل فيكون شيء قبله والآخر الذي ليس له بعد فيكون شيء بعده والرادع أناسيّ الأبصار عن أن تناله أو تدركه ما ٱختلف عليه دهر فتختلف منه الحال ولا كان في مكان فيجوز عليه الانتقال. ولو وهب ما تنفّست عنه معادن الجبال وضحكت عنه أصداف البحار من فِلِزّ‭²‬ اللُّجَين والعِقيان‬‎

their deeds, and rewards those who thank him. Servants of God! Weigh yourselves before you are weighed, judge yourselves before you are judged, breathe before your throats constrict, go meekly before you are shoved. Finally, know this: if a man is not guided to combat his own passions, if he cannot counsel and admonish himself, no other counselor, no other admonisher, will avail.

‭1.88 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī known as Ashbāḥ, “Ethereal Forms,” one of the most marvelous of orations. Masʿadah ibn Ṣadaqah narrated the following from Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Ṣādiq, who said: The Commander of the Faithful delivered this oration on the pulpit of Kufa, when a man approached him and asked, Commander of the Faithful, describe for us what our Lord looks like exactly so that our love and knowledge may increase. ʿAlī, outraged at the blasphemy, called loudly, ⟨Gather for the ritual prayer!⟩ and when the people crammed into the mosque, ʿAlī ascended the pulpit, pale with anger. He praised God, pronounced benedictions on the Prophet, then said:¹

‭1.88.1 ‬Praise God, whom withholding does not make richer nor munificence and generosity impoverish, for giving depletes every giver’s store except God’s, and every withholder is blameworthy except him. He is the Munificent Giver who bestows increasing favors and manifold gifts, and all creatures are his children—he guarantees the sustenance they receive, ordains the food they eat, and paves the way for people to petition him and seek his bounty. In fact, he is as generous in granting what they do not ask for as he is in granting what they do. He is the first, with no before, so nothing could exist before him, he is the last, with no after, so nothing will exist after him. He prevents the pupils of our eyes from capturing or grasping his image. Time never changes for him, so his condition will never change, nor is he in a place, so his location will never change. If he distributed all that mountain depths yield and smiling seashells emit, from nuggets of silver and native gold to forests of coral and fistfuls of

‮ونُثارة الدرّ وحصيد المرجان ما أثّر ذلك في جوده ولا أنفد سعة ما عنده ولكان عنده من ذخائر الإنعام ما لا تنفده مطالب الأنام لأنّه الجواد الذي لا يغيضه سؤال السائلين ولا يبخّله إلحاح الملحّين.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭2‬ ‬فٱنظر أيّها السائل فما دلّك القرآن عليه من صفته فٱئتمّ به وٱستضئ بنور هدايته وما كلّفك الشيطان علمه ممّا ليس في الكتاب عليك فرضه ولا في سنّة النبيّ صلّى الله عليه وآله وأئمّة الهدى أثره فكِلْ علمه إلى الله سبحانه فإنّ ذلك منتهى حقّ الله عليك. وٱعلم أنّ الراسخين في العلم هم الذين أغناهم عن ٱقتحام السُّدد المضروبة دون الغيوب الإقرارُ بجملة ما جهلوا تفسيرَه من الغيب المحجوب. فمدح الله ٱعترافهم بالعجز عن تناول ما لم يحيطوا به علمًا وسمّى تركهم التعمّق فيما لم يكلّفهم البحث عن كنهه رسوخًا. فٱقتصر على ذلك ولا تقدّر عظمة الله سبحانه على قدر عقلك فتكون من الهالكين. هو القادر الذي إذا ٱرتمت الأوهام لتدرك منقطع قدرته وحاول الفكر المبرّأ من خطر الوساوس أن يقع عليه في عميقات غيوب ملكوته وتولّهت القلوب إليه لتجري في كيفيّة صفاته وغمضت مداخل العقول في حيث لا تبلغه الصفات لتنال علم ذاته ردعها وهي تجوب مهاوي سُدَف الغيوب متخلّصة إليه سبحانه فرجعت إذ جُبهت معترفة بأنّه لا يُنال بجور الاعتساف كنهُ معرفته ولا تخطر ببال أولي الرويّات خاطرة من تقدير جلال عزّته. الذي ٱبتدع الخلق على غير مثال ٱمتثله ولا مقدار ٱحتذى عليه من خالق معبود كان قبله. وأرانا من ملكوت قدرته وعجائب ما نطقت به آثار حكمته وٱعتراف الحاجة من الخلق إلى أن يقيمها بمَساك‭¹‬ قوّته ما دلّنا بٱضطرار قيام الحجّة له على معرفته وظهرت في البدائع التي أحدثها آثار صنعته وأعلام حكمته فصار كلّ ما خلق حجّة له ودليلًا عليه وإن كان خلقًا صامتًا فحجّته بالتدبير ناطقة ودلالته على المبدع قائمة.‬‎

pearl, this would not affect his generosity or deplete his vast possessions. The appeals of all the people in the world do not exhaust his treasure. He is the Generous Giver. Supplications do not empty his wellsprings and persistence does not make him withhold.

‭1.88.2 ‬See it this way, O seeker: Accept what the Qurʾan tells you about God and seek light from its radiant guidance. As for the questions that Satan burdens you with, questions not mandated for you by the Book or reported in the Prophet’s Sunnah and the Imams’ guidance, consign their knowledge to God. That is God’s ultimate right over you. Know this: Men rooted in knowledge do not attempt to force themselves through fortified barricades but accept the veiled mysteries whose details they lack as they are presented to them. They admit their inability to grasp things beyond their compass, which God praises them for, and he calls their abstention—the abstention from delving into things whose essence he has not burdened them with investigating—deep knowledge.¹ You, too, limit yourself to this boundary, and do not measure God’s greatness by the measure of your intellect—if you venture there, you will perish. He is the All-Powerful Being. If the imagination sends scouts to survey the extent of his power, if minds free of Satan’s whisperings attempt to penetrate the deep mysteries of his kingdom, if bewildered, yearning hearts walk in the way of his attributes, and if sharp intellects whose descriptions fail to capture him attempt to open the door to his essence, he repels them, one and all. They wander the deep and dark ravines of his mysteries to find a way to him, but, knocked hard on their foreheads, they are made to turn back, admitting that no aggression will plumb his core,² and no reflection will glimpse the magnitude of his might. He created the world with no model, no plan measured by a creator worshipped prior to him. He showed us his powerful kingdom, the wonders articulated in the traces of his wisdom, and the world’s frank admission that it needs his strong grip to remain standing—thereby he provided the proof that compels us to acknowledge him. Traces of his artisanship and signs of his wisdom can be seen in the marvels he made. Everything he created offers proof of his existence and guides us to him, even silent objects, for their design speaks of that proof, and it guides us toward their creator.

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭3‬ ‬فأشهد أنّ من شبّهك بتباين أعضاء خلقك وتلاحم حِقاق مفاصلهم المحتجبة لتدبير حكمتك لم يعقد غيب ضميره على معرفتك ولم يباشر قلبه اليقين بأنّه لا نِدّ لك فكأنّه لم يسمع تبرّي التابعين من المتبوعين إذ يقولون ﴿تَٱللّٰهِ إِن كُنَّا لَفِي ضَلَالٍ مُّبِين إِذْ نُسَوِّيكُمْ بِرَبِّ ٱلْعَالَمِينَ﴾. كذب العادلون بك إذ شبّهوك بأصنامهم ونحلوك حلية المخلوقين بأوهامهم وجزّؤوك تجزئة المجسّمات بخواطرهم وقدّروك على الخلقة المختلفة القوى بقرائح عقولهم. فأشهد أنّ من ساواك بشيء من خلقك فقد عدل بك والعادل كافر بما تنزّلت به محكمات آياتك ونطقت عنه شواهد حجج بيّناتك فإنّك أنت الله الذي لم تتناه في العقول فتكون في مهبّ فكرها مكيّفًا ولا في رويّات خواطرها فتكون محدودًا مصرّفًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭4‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮قدّر ما خلق فأحكم تقديره ودبّره فألطف تدبيره ووجّهه لوجهته فلم يتعدّ حدود منزلته ولم يقصر دون الانتهاء إلى غايته ولم يستصعب إذ أمر بالمضيّ على إرادته وكيف وإنّما صدرت الأمور عن مشيئته. المنشئ أصناف الأشياء بلا رويّة فكر آلَ إليها ولا قريحة غريزة أضمر عليها ولا تجربة أفادها من حوادث الدهور ولا شريك أعانه على ٱبتداع عجائب الأمور. فتمّ خلقه وأذعن لطاعته وأجاب إلى دعوته لم يعترض دونه ريث المبطئ ولا أناة المتلكّئ فأقام من الأشياء أوَدها ونهج حدودها ولاءم بقدرته بين متضادّها ووصل أسباب قرائنها وفرّقها أجناسًا مختلفات في الحدود والأقدار‭¹‬ والغرائز والهيئات. بدايا خلائق أحكم صنعها وفطرها على ما أراد وٱبتدعها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭5‬ ‬ومنها في صفة السماء‬‎

‮ونظم بلا تعليق رهوات فُرَجها ولاحَمَ صدوع ٱنفراجها ووشّج بينها وبين أزواجها وذلّل للهابطين بأمره والصاعدين بأعمال خلقه حُزونة معراجها وناداها بعد إذ هي دخان‭²‬‬‎

‭1.88.3 ‬I bear witness that anyone who likens you to the disparate limbs of your creatures, or to their bonded joints that your clever design has concealed, has erred. His inner self has not recognized you, and his heart is not certain that you have no peer. He does not appear to have heard of followers disowning those they followed, saying, «By God, we were clearly misguided when we equated you with the Lord of the worlds!»¹ They lie who compare you! They lie when they liken you to their idols, when their imagination adorns you with the ornaments of your creatures, their notions divide you into physical parts, and their intellects measure you against the multiplicity of your creatures’ faculties. I bear witness that to equate you with any of your creatures is to compare you, and to compare you is to profess unbelief in the clear verses you have revealed, in the witness provided by your eloquent signs. For you are God. Intellects with their penetrating thoughts cannot analyze your totality, nor hearts with their reflections limit or position you.

‭1.88.4 ‬From this oration:

He planned the things he created with precision, arranged them with elegance, and led them in a certain direction, where they do not transgress the limits of their station, fall short of their goal, or pull back when commanded to proceed. How could they, pray, when all affairs transpire according to his will? He generated categories of things without relying on cogitation, engaging an inner disposition, drawing on experience obtained from the rise and fall of eons, or using a partner’s help to originate his wondrous affairs. His creation was thus completed, and it bowed to him in obedience, and answered his call, unhindered by sluggish delay or laggardly indolence. He straightened out what was crooked, laid out its boundaries, harmonized its contrasting parts, bound the cords of linked entities, and distributed all into various species with distinct parameters, values, dispositions, and forms. Such was the beginning of God’s creatures, each crafted with exquisite precision, produced and originated by his will.

‭1.88.5 ‬From the same oration, describing the sky:

When God created the sky, he hung its spaces together without ropes, soldered the gaps in its parts, and connected them closely, each with the other.² He smoothed its knobby ladder for beings who descend with his command, and ascend with his creatures’ deeds.³ He called out to it while it was entirely

‮فٱلتحمت عرى أشراجها وفتق بعد الارتتاق صوامت أبوابها وأقام رصدًا من الشهب الثواقب على نقابها وأمسكها من أن تمور في خرق الهواء بأَيْدِه وأمرها أن تقف مستسلمة لأمره وجعل شمسها آية مبصرة لنهارها وقمرها آية ممحوّة من ليلها وأجراهما في مناقل مجراهما وقدّر مسيرهما في مدارج درجهما ليميز بين الليل والنهار بهما وليعلم ﴿عَدَدَ السِّنِينَ وَالْحِسَابَ﴾ بمقاديرهما ثمّ علّق في جوّها فلكها وناط بها زينتها من خفيّات دراريها ومصابيح كواكبها ورمى مسترقي السمع بثواقب شهبها وأجراها على أذلال تسخيرها من ثبات ثابتها ومسير سائرها وهبوطها وصعودها ونحوسها وسعودها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭6‬ ‬ومنها في صفة الملائكة‬‎

‮ثمّ خلق سبحانه لإسكان سماواته وعمارة الصفيح الأعلى من ملكوته خلقًا بديعًا من ملائكته ملأ بهم فروج فجاجها وحشا بهم فتوق أجوائها. وبين فجوات تلك الفروج زجل المسبّحين منهم في حظائر القدس وسترات الحجب وسرادقات المجد ووراء ذلك الرجيج الذي تستكّ منه الأسماع سبحات نور تردع الأبصار عن بلوغها فتقف خاسئة على حدودها. أنشأهم على صور مختلفات وأقدار متفاوتات ﴿أُولِي أَجْنِحَةٍ﴾‭¹‬ تسبّح جلال عزّته لا ينتحلون ما ظهر في الخلق من صنعه ولا يدّعون أنّهم يخلقون شيئًا معه ممّا ٱنفرد به ﴿بَلْ عِبَادٌ مُّكْرَمُون لَا يَسْبِقُونَهُ بِالْقَوْلِ وَهُم بِأَمْرِهِ يَعْمَلُونَ﴾. جعلهم فيما هنالك أهل الأمانة على وحيه وحمّلهم إلى المرسلين ودائع أمره ونهيه وعصمهم من ريب الشبهات فما منهم زائغ عن سبيل مرضاته وأمدّهم بفوائد المعونة وأشعر قلوبهم تواضع إخبات السكينة وفتح لهم أبوابًا ذللًا إلى تماجيده ونصب لهم منارًا واضحة على أعلام توحيده لم تثقلهم موصرات الآثام ولم ترتحلهم عُقَب الليالي والأيّام ولم ترم الشكوك بنوازعها عزيمة إيمانهم ولم تعترك الظنون على معاقد يقينهم‬‎

smoke,¹ and its crevices became sealed. He cracked its locked doors open and set blazing sentinels in the gaps, restraining them with his own hands from falling through breaks in the firmament and commanding them to remain where they were. He made the sun a sign that brightens the day and the moon a sign that wanes through the nights.² He set the two in motion within their orbits and ordained their passage within their tracks. By their movements, he distinguished night from day, and by their measure, he showed the «reckoning and calculation of years.»³ Then he suspended the sky’s sphere in the ether, hung ornaments of starry clusters and bright lamps,⁴ used blazing meteors to strike down spying demons,⁵ and launched the stars according to their stations: fixed versus moving, falling versus rising, and ominous versus lucky.

‭1.88.6 ‬From the same oration, describing the angels:

Then God created wondrous angels to populate his skies and inhabit his kingdom’s highest planes. With them he filled the gaps in its rifts and the fissures in its ether, and in those gaps, in that sacred enclosure, in veils of concealment and canopies of glory, their thunderous chanting of his praise rings out. Behind the roar that deafens the ear shines the majesty of light that dazzles the eye, and the eye is driven back at this boundary. He fashioned them in different forms, in diverse ranks, each «with sets of wings».⁶ They chant litanies of praise for his glorious power, never claiming that they helped shape his creatures, nor professing to have created, alongside him, a single, solitary thing. In this, he has no peer. «Rather, they are his honored servants, they speak when he has spoken, and act on his command.»⁷ He entrusts them with his revelation and sends them to his messengers bearing his commands and prohibitions. He shields them from doubt and uncertainty, so not one strays from the path of his pleasure. He equips them with aid and assistance, and infuses their hearts with deference, with humility, peace, and calm. He eases their path to glorifying him and erects beacons to illumine for them the signs of his unity. They are never weighed down by sins, or loaded, like camels, by the calamities brought by nights and days. Suspicion’s arrows don’t penetrate the robust frame of their belief, presumptions’ rasps don’t fray the strong cords of their convictions, the

‮ولا قدحت قادحة الإحَن فيما بينهم ولا سلبتهم الحيرة ما لاقَ من معرفته بضمائرهم وسكن من عظمته وهيبة جلاله في أثناء صدورهم ولم تطمع فيهم الوساوس فتقترع‭¹‬ بريبها على فكرهم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭7‬ ‬منهم من هو في خلق الغمام الدلّح وفي عظم الجبال الشمّخ وفي قترة الظلام الأَيْهم ومنهم من خرقت أقدامهم تُخوم الأرض السفلى فهي كرايات بيض قد نفذت في مخارق الهواء وتحتها ريح هفّافة تحبسها على حيث ٱنتهت من الحدود المتناهية. قد ٱستفرغتهم أشغال عبادته ووسّلت حقائق الإيمان بينهم وبين معرفته وقطعهم الإيقان به إلى الوله إليه ولم تجاوز رغباتهم ما عنده إلى ما عند غيره. قد ذاقوا حلاوة معرفته وشربوا بالكأس الرويّة من محبّته وتمكّنت من سويداء قلوبهم وشيجة خيفته فحنَوا بطول الطاعة ٱعتدال ظهورهم ولم ينفد طول الرغبة إليه مادّة تضرّعهم ولا أطلق عنهم عظيم الزلفة ربق خشوعهم ولم يتولّهم الإعجاب فيستكثروا ما سلف منهم ولا تركت لهم ٱستكانة الإجلال نصيبًا في تعظيم حسناتهم ولم تجر الفترات فيهم على طول دؤوبهم ولم تَغِض‭²‬ رغباتهم فيخالفوا عن رجاء ربّهم ولم تجفّ لطول المناجاة أسَلات ألسنتهم ولا ملكتهم الأشغال فتنقطع بهمس الخبر إليه أصواتهم ولم تختلف في مقاوم الطاعة مناكبهم ولم يثنوا إلى راحة التقصير في أمره رقابهم ولا تعدو على عزيمة جدّهم بلادة الغفلات ولا تنتضل في هممهم خدائع‭³‬ الشهوات. قد ٱتّخذوا ذا العرش ذخيرة ليوم فاقتهم ويمّموه عند ٱنقطاع الخلق إلى المخلوقين برغبتهم لا يقطعون أمد غاية عبادته ولا يرجع بهم الاستهتار بلزوم طاعته إلّا إلى موادّ من قلوبهم غير منقطعة من رجائه ومخافته لم تنقطع أسباب الشفقة منهم فيَنُوا في جدّهم ولم تأسرهم الأطماع فيؤثروا وشيك السعي على ٱجتهادهم ولم يستعظموا ما مضى من أعمالهم ولو ٱستعظموا‬‎

fever of malice doesn’t burn their bonds, perplexity doesn’t pillage recognition of God from their hearts or plunder veneration of God and awe for his grandeur from their breasts, and the devils with their whisperings don’t dare to sow doubts or cast lots for controlling their thoughts.

‭1.88.7 ‬Among them are angels created as heavy clouds, or with the massive dimensions of lofty mountains, or as dark as the starless night, angels whose feet pierce the nethermost regions of the earth and look like white banners protruding in the air. A gentle breeze below confines them inside the farthest limits they can reach. God’s worship is their sole occupation, faith’s realities provide them with the means to recognize him, and certainty in his existence severs them from all else save yearning for him. Their desires seek what he bestows, never crossing to seek another’s favors. They taste the sweetness of his recognition and drink from the full cup of his love. His fear is rooted deep in their hearts, so they bend their backs in protracted worship. Lengthy petitions do not exhaust the store of their entreaties, and closeness to him does not loosen the cord of their submissiveness. No vanity aggrandizes for them their prior acts, while the humility generated in them by glorifying God leaves them no room to glorify their own deeds. No intervals of languor interrupt their protracted efforts, and no diminishing expectations make them question the hopes they have placed in their Lord. Long prayers do not parch their tongues, nor preoccupations weaken their raised voices. Their shoulders do not sag as they worship, standing in ranks, nor do they relax their necks and so fall short in carrying out his command. No dullness or disregard vanquishes their resolve, no deceiving passions vie to shoot down their high aspirations. They choose the Lord of the Throne to be the treasure they put by for their day of need, and they go to him with petitions when others go to his creatures. Their journey to perfect his worship never ends, and their passion for embracing his obedience stems from their hearts’ inner substance, which is ever infused by hope in him and fear. No severance of the cord of dread makes them lessen their labors, no ensnaring greed makes them favor flighty acts over serious effort. They do not aggrandize their past deeds, else complacent hope would have expelled their palpitating trepidations. No Satanic dominion puts them at variance among themselves concerning their Lord: no evil sundering of ties divides them, no rancor caused by mutual envy takes hold, no calamitous doubts separate them, and no contrary aspirations—like a horse with one blue eye and one

‮ذلك لنسخ الرجاء منهم شفقات وجلهم ولم يختلفوا في ربّهم بٱستحواذ الشيطان عليهم ولم يفرّقهم سوء التقاطع ولا تولّاهم غلّ التحاسد ولا تشعّبتهم مصارف الريب ولا ٱقتسمتهم أخياف‭¹‬ الهمم فهم أسراء إيمان لم يفكّهم من ربقته زيغ ولا عدول ولا ونًى ولا فتور وليس في أطباق السماوات موضع إهاب إلّا وعليه ملك ساجد أو ساعٍ حافد يزدادون على طول الطاعة بربّهم علمًا وتزداد عزّة ربّهم في قلوبهم عظمًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭8‬ ‬ومنها في صفة الأرض ودَحْوها على الماء‬‎

‮كَبَسَ الأرض على مَور أمواج مستفحلة ولجج بحار زاخرة تلتطم أَواذيّ أمواجها وتصطفق متقاذفات أثباجها وترغو زبدًا كالفحول عند هياجها. فخضع جماح الماء المتلاطم لثقل حملها وسكن هيج ٱرتمائه إذ وطئته بكلكلها وذلّ مستخذيًا إذ تمعّكت عليه بكواهلها. فأصبح بعد ٱصطخاب أمواجه ساجيًا مقهورًا وفي حَكَمة الذلّ منقادًا أسيرًا وسكنت الأرض مدحوّة في لجّة تيّاره وردّت من نخوة بَأْوِه وٱعتلائه وشموخ أنفه وسموّ غُلَوائه وكَعَمَته على كِظّة جِريته فهمد بعد نزقاته وبعد زَيَفان وثباته. فلمّا سكن هَيج الماء من تحت أكنافها وحمل شواهق الجبال البُذّخ على أكتافها فجّر ينابيع العيون من عرانين أنوفها وفرّقها في سُهوب بِيدها وأخاديدها وعدّل حركاتها بالراسيات من جلاميدها وذوات الشناخيب الشمّ من صياخيدها فسكنت من الميدان برسوب الجبال في قِطَع أديمها وتغلغلها متسرّبة في جَوبات خياشيمها وركوبها أعناق سهول الأرضين وجراثيمها وفسح بين الجوّ وبينها وأعدّ الهواء متنسّمًا لساكنها وأخرج إليها أهلها على تمام مرافقها. ثمّ لم يدع جُرُز الأرض التي تقصر مياه العيون عن رَوابيها ولا تجد جداول الأنهار‭²‬ ذريعة إلى بلوغها حتّى أنشأ لها ناشئة سحاب تحيي مواتها وتستخرج نباتها ألّف غمامها بعد ٱفتراق لُمَعه وتباين قَزَعه حتّى إذا تمخّضت لجّة المزن فيه وٱلتمع برقه في كِفَفه ولم يَنَمْ وميضه في كَنَهْوَر رَبابه ومتراكم سحابه أرسله سحًّا متداركًا قد أسَفّ هَيدَبه‬‎

black—fragment them.¹ Captives of faith, no deviation, deflection, exhaustion, or lassitude frees them from its lasso. In all the skies’ layers, there exists no place, not even the width of a strip of rawhide, that does not contain a prostrating angel or a swift messenger. Their long worship continually increases their knowledge of their Lord, and the grandeur of their Lord’s might ever increases in their hearts.

‭1.88.8 ‬From the same oration, describing the earth and how he laid it out over water:

God poured earth into the mighty, heaving waves and the deep, swollen seas, where waves towered and clashed, and waters raced and crashed, as they grunted and frothed like a camel stallion in arousal. Weighed down by the earth’s mass their recalcitrant gallop became tractable, crushed by the earth’s torso their tumultuous tossing subsided, and dragged along by the earth’s withers they submitted with docility. After their earlier clamor, the waves grew still and were conquered. Tamed with the curb of servility, they were herded in defeat and captivity. The earth ensconced itself then, spreading in the depths of the flowing current, repelling its pride, haughtiness, disdain, and excess of energy, and muzzling its overabundant flow. After much vaulting and supercilious assault, the waters abated. When the water’s tumult had grown still under the earth’s wings, under the weight of the soaring, lofty mountains placed on its shoulders, God made springs of pure water gush from the towering massifs and channeled them into outstretched wastelands and undulating furrows. He anchored the earth’s movements with massive rocks and high-topped, stony crags. Sunk deep beneath its surface, rupturing the smooth hollows of its crust, and straddling the backs of its plains and compacted soils, the mountains caused the earth’s heaving to still. He opened wide the space between the earth and the ether, and made the air fit for the earth’s residents to breathe. Then, with all preparations complete, he extracted from it and introduced to it its living inhabitants. In all of this, he did not neglect those barren tracts too high for springs and beyond the reach of rivers. He created swollen clouds to bring life to those bare stretches and coax out their vegetation. Piecing together wispy swirls and scattered puffs, he shaped a thick, enveloping cloud. Then—when its deep waters roiled, when lightning flickered from its hands, when flashes in the massed white-and-black cloudbanks and the heaped rainclouds awoke from their slumber—he let it loose in one continuous downpour. The cloud

‮تَمْريه الجَنوب دِرَر أهاضيبه ودُفَع شآبيبه. فلمّا ألقت السحاب بَرْكَ بَوانيها وبَعاع ما ٱستقلّت به من العِبْء المحمول عليها أخرج به من هوامد الأرض النبات ومن زُعْر الجبال الأعشاب فهي تبهج بزينة رياضها وتزدهي بما ألبسته من رَيط أزاهيرها وحِلية ما سُمّطت‭¹‬ به من ناضر أنوارها وجعل ذلك بلاغًا للأنام ورزقًا للأنعام وخرق الفجاج في آفاقها وأقام المنار للسالكين على جوادّ طرقها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭9‬ ‬فلمّا مهّد أرضه وأنفذ أمره ٱختار آدم عليه السلام خِيَرةً من خلقه وجعله أوّل جبلّته وأسكنه جنّته وأرغد فيها أكله وأوعز إليه فيما نهاه عنه وأعلمه أنّ في الإقدام عليه التعرّض لمعصيته والمخاطرة بمنزلته فأقدم على ما نهاه عنه موافاة لسابق علمه فأهبطه بعد التوبة ليعمر أرضه بنسله وليقيم الحجّة به على عباده. ولم يخلهم بعد أن قبضه ممّا يؤكّد عليهم حجّة ربوبيّته ويصل بينهم وبين معرفته بل تعاهدهم بالحجج على ألسن الخِيَرة من أنبيائه ومتحمّلي ودائع رسالاته قرنًا فقرنًا حتّى تمّت بنبيّنا محمّد صلّى الله عليه وآله حجّته وبلغ المقطع عذره ونذره. وقدّر الأرزاق فكثّرها وقلّلها وقسّمها على الضيق والسعة فعدل فيها ليبتلي من أراد بميسورها ومعسورها وليختبر بذلك الشكر والصبر من غنيّها وفقيرها ثمّ قرن بسعتها عَقابيل فاقتها وبسلامتها طوارق آفاتها وبفُرَج أفراحها غُصَص أتراحها. وخلق الآجال فأطالها وقصّرها وقدّمها وأخّرها ووصل بالموت أسبابها وجعله خالجًا لأشطانها وقاطعًا لمرائر أقرانها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭10‬ ‬عالم السرّ من ضمائر المضمرين ونجوى المتخافتين وخواطر رَجْم الظنون وعُقَد عزيمات اليقين ومسارق إيماض الجفون وما ضمنته أكنان القلوب وغيابات‬‎

hung low and hugged the earth, and the South Wind milked its teats to yield torrents and spills. When the cloud had settled its limbs on the ground, when it had dropped all the water it had drawn and carried, he brought forth plants from the barren ground and herbage from the bare mountains. The earth now rejoiced in the beauty of its meadows, it flaunted its garments of delicate blossoms and its necklaces of fresh flowers. All this he created to sustain humans and nourish cattle. He then hewed passes in remote regions and erected beacons for those who would walk the open roads.

‭1.88.9 ‬When God had primed the earth and executed his will, he singled out Adam from among his creatures and made him the first human.¹ He lodged him in paradise and offered him all manner of delectable foods but warned him to keep away from the forbidden tree.² He cautioned him that if he came near it, he would be committing a sin and jeopardizing his rank. Adam—as God had known he would—approached the tree God had forbidden to him. After he repented, however, God sent him down to populate the earth with his descendants and serve as God’s proof for his servants. Then, when God took him back, he did not void them of the clear proof of his majesty or the means to his recognition. He sent them his proof on the tongues of his chosen prophets, who carried his entrusted messages to them, generation after generation, until he completed his message to his creatures through our own Prophet Muḥammad, and his advocacy and warnings reached their climax. God decreed sustenance, giving some people much and others little, distributing constricted shares to some and ample ones to others. In all this, he was just. He tested those he wished with prosperity and those he wished with poverty to assess the gratitude of the rich and the patience of the poor. He also paired abundance with sores of destitution, wellbeing with calamities that creep up in the night, and joys that gladden with sorrows that choke. He ordained lifespans to be long or short, swift or tardy, and he handed their reins to death. Death pulls in their long ropes and cuts through the tight plait of their fastenings.

‭1.88.10 ‬God knows all secrets. He knows the thoughts of those who conceal what they are thinking, the clandestine conversations of those who whisper, stray notions generated by wild conjectures, secured resolutions arising from certainty, stolen glances flashed by drooping eyelids, veiled matters of the

‮الغيوب وما أصغت لٱستراقه مصائخ الأسماع ومصائف الذَّرّ ومَشاتي الهوامّ ورجع الحنين من المولّهات وهمس الأقدام ومنفسح الثمرة من ولائج غلف الأكمام ومنقمع الوحوش من غِيران الجبال وأوديتها ومختبأ البَعوض بين سُوق الأشجار وأَلحيتها ومَغرِز الأوراق من الأفنان ومحطّ الأمشاج من مسارب الأصلاب وناشئة الغيوم ومتلاحمها ودرور قطر السحاب في متراكمها وما تَسفي الأعاصير بذيولها وتعفو الأمطار بسيولها وعَوم‭¹‬ نبات‭²‬ الأرض في كثبان الرمال ومستقرّ ذوات الأجنحة بذُرى شناخيب الجبال وتغريد ذوات المنطق في دياجير الأوكار وما أوعته‭³‬ الأصداف وحضنت عليه أمواج البحار وما غشيته سُدفة ليل أو ذرّ عليه شارق نهار وما ٱعتقبت عليه أطباق الدياجير وسُبُحات النور وأثر كلّ خطوة وحسّ كلّ حركة ورجع كلّ كلمة وتحريك كلّ شَفة ومستقرّ كلّ نسمة ومثقال كلّ ذرّة وهَماهم كلّ نفس هامّة وما عليها من ثمر شجرة أو ساقط ورقة أو قرارة نطفة أو نُقاعة دم ومضغة أو ناشئة خَلْق وسلالة. لم تلحقه في ذلك كلفة ولا ٱعترضته في حفظ ما ٱبتدع من خلقه عارضة ولا ٱعتورته في تنفيذ الأمور وتدابير المخلوقين ملالة ولا فترة بل نفذهم علمه وأحصاهم عدده‭⁴‬ ووسعهم عدله وغمرهم فضله مع تقصيرهم عن كنه ما هو أهله.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭88‬.‭11‬ ‬اللّٰهمّ أنت أهل الوصف الجميل والتَّعداد الكثير إن تؤمَّل فخير مأمول وإن تُرْجَ فخير مرجوّ. اللّٰهمّ وقد بسطت لي فيما لا أمدح به غيرك ولا أثني به على أحد سواك ولا أوجّهه إلى معادن الخيبة ومواضع الريبة وعدلتَ بلساني عن مدائح الآدميّين والثناء على المربوبين المخلوقين. اللّٰهمّ ولكلّ مُثنٍ على من أثنى عليه مثوبة من جزاء أو عارفة من عطاء وقد رجوتك دليلًا على ذخائر الرحمة وكنوز المغفرة. اللّٰهمّ وهذا مقام من أفردك‬‎

heart, deep-welled mysteries, the sounds to which ears stealthily hearken, the summer nests of tiny ants, the winter habitats of mites, the repeated wails of mourning women, the sound of faint footsteps, the place hidden within the innermost sepal where fruit begins to grow, the concealed spaces in mountain hollows and riverbeds where wild beasts hole up, the cracks between the boles and bark of trees in which gnats hide away, the node on a branch from which a leaf sprouts, the basin where semen is deposited after flowing through the waterways of men’s loins, the forming of the new clouds and their thick amassing, the abundant flow of raindrops from towering cloudbanks, what the whirlwinds stir up with their kicking gusts, what the rains erase with their flood water, how tumbleweeds are swept by the wind over dunes of sand, the resting places of birds atop the high mountain peaks, the warbling of birds in the dimness of their nests, what seashells store and waves on the deep water envelop, what a black night conceals and bright daybreak reveals, what is prevailed on in alternation by layers of darkness and splendors of radiance, the trace of every footstep, the sensation of every movement, the echo of every word, the motion of every lip, the resting place of every creature that breathes, the weight of every tiny particle, the sobbing of every grieving heart, and whatever is on the earth,¹ including the fruit growing on a tree, a falling leaf, the resting place of a drop of semen, the place where blood gathers in pools and where an embryonic clump of flesh congeals, and the emergence of creatures and offspring. In all this, God suffers no toil, no obstacle obstructs him from guarding his creation, and no stupor or apathy impedes him from executing his affairs or governing his creatures. Far from it! His knowledge penetrates them, his reckoning comprehends, his justice encompasses, and his favors engulf. All this, despite how short they fall in offering his due.

‭1.88.11 ‬God, to you belong the loveliest epithets and the largest armies. When solicited, you are the best repository of hope, and when petitioned, you are the best receptacle of trust. God, you stretch out your hand to me with such favors that I can praise none but you, extol none but you, I do not direct my praise toward those who are founts of disappointment or sites of suspicion, for you have diverted my tongue from praising the children of Adam, from extolling your creatures and subjects. God, every extoller deserves a reward that compensates, a gift freely bestowed by the one he extolls: I beseech you to guide me to the treasures of your mercy and the riches of your forgiveness. God, here I stand before you. I have singled you out with the proclamation of unity that

‮بالتوحيد الذي هو لك ولم ير مستحقًّا لهذه المحامد والممادح غيرك وبي فاقة إليك لا يجبر مسكنتها إلّا فضلك ولا ينعش من خلّتها إلّا منّك وجودك فهب لنا في هذا المقام رضاك وأغننا عن مدّ الأيدي إلى من سواك إنّك على ما تشاء قدير.‭¹‬‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭89‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمّا أراده الناس على البيعة بعد قتل عثمان‬‎

‮دعوني وٱلتمسوا غيري فإنّا مستقبلون أمرًا له وجوه وألوان لا تقوم له القلوب ولا تثبت عليه العقول وإنّ الآفاق قد أغامت والمحجّة قد تنكّرت. وٱعلموا أنّي إن أجبتكم ركبت بكم ما أعلم ولم أُصِغ إلى قول القائل وعَتْب العاتب وإن تركتموني فأنا كأحدكم ولعلّي أسمعكم وأطوعكم لمن ولّيتموه أمركم وأنا لكم وزيرًا خير لكم منّي أميرًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭90‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭90‬.‭1‬ ‬أمّا بعد. أيّها الناس فأنا فقأتُ عين الفتنة ولم يكن ليجترئ عليها أحد غيري بعد أن ماجَ غَيهَبها وٱشتدّ كَلَبها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭90‬.‭2‬ ‬فٱسألوني قبل أن تفقدوني فوالذي نفسي بيده لا تسألوني عن شيء فيما بينكم وبين الساعة ولا عن فئة تهدي مائة وتضلّ مائة إلّا نبّأتكم بناعقها وقائدها وسائقها ومُناخ ركابها ومحطّ رحالها ومن يُقتل من أهلها قتلًا ومن يموت منهم موتًا.‬‎

is your due, and I see no one worthy of these tributes and praises but you. My need of you is urgent. Nothing but your kindness can heal my destitution’s broken bones, nothing but your beneficence and generosity can raise me from my lowly state of privation. So grant us your acceptance now as we stand before you, and free us from spreading our hands before any but you. You are powerful over all that you will.¹

‭1.89 ‬From an address by ʿAlī, when, after ʿUthmān’s killing, the people rushed to him to pledge allegiance:²

Leave me and seek another! We are looking at a thing with many faces and shades, in which hearts will not remain steady or minds stable, for the skies are overcast and the road is obscure. Know this: If I accept your pledge, I shall drive you on the path I know to be right, without caring about your chiding or rebuke. If you leave me be, however, I will be as one of you—in fact, I will be the most attentive and obedient among you toward the man you entrust with your rule. You will find me a better counselor than commander.

‭1.90 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:³

‭1.90.1 ‬People! I have gouged out the eyes of revolt. None other would have dared to challenge it when its darkness had spread so far, when its madness had become so rabid.

‭1.90.2 ‬Ask me before I am lost to you! By the one who holds my life in his hand, I swear this: If you ask me about what will happen between now and the last hour, about any group who will guide a hundred aright or lead a hundred astray, I shall inform you of who will call out and direct that herd, who will lead in the front and who will drive from the rear, where their camels will kneel and where they will set down their gear, who will be killed in battle and who will die a natural death.

‮‭‭1‬.‭90‬.‭3‬ ‬ولو قد فقدتموني ونزلت كرائه الأمور وحوازب الخطوب لأطرق كثير من السائلين وفشل كثير من المسؤولين وذلك إذا قلّصت حربكم وشمّرت‭¹‬ عن ساق وضاقت الدنيا عليكم ضيقًا تستطيلون أيّام البلاء عليكم حتّى يفتح الله لبقيّة الأبرار منكم إنّ الفتن إذا أقبلت شبّهت وإذا أدبرت نبّهت يُنكَرن مقبلات ويعرفن مدبرات يَحُمْنَ حَوم الرياح يصبن بلدًا ويخطئن بلدًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭90‬.‭4‬ ‬ألا إنّ أخوف الفتن عندي عليكم فتنة بني أميّة فإنّها فتنة عمياء مظلمة عمّت خطّتها وخصّت بليّتها وأصاب البلاء من أبصر فيها وأخطأ البلاء من عمي عنها وٱيم الله لتجدُنّ بني أميّة لكم أرباب سوء بعدي كالناب الضروس تَعذِم بفيها وتخبط بيدها وتَزْبِن برِجلها وتمنع دَرّها لا يزالون بكم حتّى لا يتركوا منكم إلّا نافعًا لهم أو غير ضائر ولا يزال بلاؤهم حتّى لا يكون ٱنتصار أحدكم منهم إلّا مثل ٱنتصار العبد من ربّه والصاحب من مستصحبه ترد عليكم فتنتهم شوهاء مخشيّة وقِطَعًا جاهليّة ليس فيها منار هدى ولا عَلَم يُرى نحن أهلَ البيت منها بنجاة ولسنا فيها بدعاة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭90‬.‭5‬ ‬ثمّ يفرّجها الله عنكم كتفريج الأديم بمن يسومهم خسفًا ويسوقهم عنفًا ويسقيهم بكأس مصبّرة لا يعطيهم إلّا السيف ولا يحلسهم‭²‬ إلّا الخوف فعند ذلك تودّ قريش بالدنيا وما فيها لو يرونني مقامًا واحدًا ولو قدر جَزر جَزور لأقبل منهم ما أطلب اليوم بعضه فلا يعطوننيه.‬‎

‭1.90.3 ‬After you lose me, when calamities strike you and devastation decimates, many who want to ask will cast down their eyes and many who are asked will fail to answer. When war tucks up its garments and girds its loincloth, when the world presses down on you and you have nowhere to turn, you will find the days of trial long, until, at last, God grants victory to the heirs of the righteous. When mutinies advance, they confuse, and as they turn away, they warn. Unrecognized in approach, they are identified only when they leave. They twist and turn like gusts of wind, striking one town and passing by another.

‭1.90.4 ‬Hark! Of all seditions, the one I fear most for you is the Umayyads’. A blind and dark insurrection, its tyranny will range wide, yet its blows will target individuals, striking those who know it for what it is, but passing over those who choose to be blind. God’s oath! You will find the Umayyads harsh overlords after I am gone, like a timeworn, quick-to-bite camel cow, that, jaws snapping, forelegs stamping, and hind feet kicking, refuses to be milked. They will oppress you all, until only those who bring them benefit remain standing, or those don’t do them harm. Their tyranny will be so fierce that if you dare to seek retribution, you will be as ineffective as a slave seeking retribution against his master, or a minion against his ruler.¹ Ugly, frightening, a battalion from the Age of Ignorance,² their insurrection will leave you with no beacon that guides, no signpost to follow. In all this, we, the people of the Prophet’s house, will remain quietly on the side. We will never take part in their mission.

‭1.90.5 ‬Then God will strip their tyranny from you, as a hide is stripped from a carcass, at the hands of a man who will inflict them with humiliation, drive them with brute force, pour them bitter aloes, strike them with the sword, and shroud them in fear.³ When that happens, the Quraysh will ache to see me—they would trade the world and all that it contains to have me beside them for one last stand, even if only for the swift instant it takes to butcher a camel, to accept from them in full what I ask for a scrap of today, and which they refuse to give.

‮‭‭1‬.‭91‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭91‬.‭1‬ ‬فتبارك الله الذي لا يبلغه بعد الهمم ولا يناله حَدس‭¹‬ الفطن الأوّل الذي لا غاية له فينتهي ولا آخر له فينقضي.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭91‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮فٱستودعهم في أفضل مستودع وأقرّهم في خير مستقرّ تناسختهم كرائم الأصلاب إلى مطهّرات الأرحام كلّما مضى سلف قام منهم بدين الله خلف حتّى أفضت كرامة الله سبحانه إلى محمّد صلّى الله عليه وآله فأخرجه من أفضل المعادن مَنْبِتًا‭²‬ وأعزّ الأرومات مغرسًا من الشجرة التي صدع منها أنبياءه وٱنتجب منها أمناءه عترته خير العتر وأسرته خير الأسر وشجرته خير الشجر نبتت في حرم وبسقت في كرم لها فروع طوال وثمر لا يُنال فهو إمام من ٱتّقى وبصيرة من ٱهتدى سراج لمع ضوءه وشهاب سطع نوره وزَنْد برق لمعه سيرته القصد وسنّته الرشد وكلامه الفصل وحكمه العدل أرسله على حين فترة من الرسل وهفوة عن العمل وغَباوة من الأمم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭91‬.‭3‬ ‬اعملوا رحمكم الله على أعلام بيّنة فالطريق نهجٌ يدعو إلى دار السلام وأنتم في دارِ مستعتَب على مَهَل وفراغ والصحف منشورة والأقلام جارية والأبدان صحيحة والألسن مطلقة والتوبة مسموعة والأعمال مقبولة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭92‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮بعثه والناس ضلّال في حيرة وحابطون‭³‬ في فتنة قد ٱستهوتهم الأهواء وٱستزلّتهم الكبرياء وٱستخفّتهم الجاهليّة الجهلاء حيارى في زلزال من الأمر وبلاء من الجهل فبالغ صلّى الله عليه وآله في النصيحة ومضى على الطريقة ودعا إلى ﴿ٱلْحِكْمَةِ وَٱلْمَوْعِظَةِ﴾.‬‎

‭1.91 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.91.1 ‬Blessed is God! Vaunting aspirations cannot attain him, swift intellects cannot find him, he has no limit and will not expire, he has no boundary and will not cease to be.

‭1.91.2 ‬From the same oration:

God placed them in the finest depository and the choicest repository. Patrician loins conveyed them to chaste wombs. Each time a forebear passed, his successor stood up to establish God’s religion, until this divine honor came to Muḥammad. God extracted him from the most precious of mines to be quarried, the most venerated of roots from which to grow, from the very same tree from which God brought forth his prophets and chose his trustees. Muḥammad’s line is the best line, his family is the best family, his tree is the best tree. Rooted in the sacred enclave, it rises high in its fertile soil, with tall branches and matchless fruits. Muḥammad is the leader of the pious and a source of sight for those who follow the path, a shining lamp, a blazing star, and a sparking flint. His way is the middle way, his practice gives direction, his words are final, and his judgment is the embodiment of justice. God sent Muḥammad after a period had passed without prophets, when people had stopped doing good, and nations’ minds had dulled.

‭1.91.3 ‬Do good—May God have mercy on you!—and follow its clear waymarks, for its road is wide and leads to the Abode of Safety. Beware, for you live in the abode of those who have been warned, where you have been given a brief respite and a little time. Registers are still open, pens still run with ink, bodies are still healthy, tongues are still unfettered, repentance is still received, and deeds are still accepted.

‭1.92 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

At the time when God sent Muḥammad as a prophet, people wandered in confusion and attempted to gather their firewood in the darkness of sedition. Passions had seduced them, arrogance had caused them to slip, gross ignorance had rendered them witless, and they stood confounded in the face of tumultuous affairs and painful folly. Muḥammad did his utmost to offer them sincere advice. He trod the true path and called to «wisdom and counsel.»²

‮‭‭1‬.‭93‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮الحمد لله الأوّل فلا شيء قبله والآخر فلا شيء بعده والظاهر فلا شيء فوقه والباطن فلا شيء دونه.‬‎

‮منها في ذكر رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله‬‎

‮مستقرّه خير مستقرّ ومنبته أشرف منبت‭¹‬ في معادن الكرامة ومَماهد السلامة قد صُرفت نحوه أفئدة الأبرار وثُنيت إليه أزمّة الأبصار. دَفن به الضغائن وأطفأ به النوائر ألّف به إخوانًا وفرّق به أقرانًا أعزّ به الذلّة وأذلّ به العزّة كلامه بيان وصمتُه لسانٌ.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭94‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭94‬.‭1‬ ‬ولئن أمهل الله الظالم‭²‬ فلن يفوت أخذه وهو له بالمرصاد على مجاز طريقه وبموضع الشجا من مساغ ريقه. أما والذي نفسي بيده ليظهرنّ هؤلاء القوم عليكم ليس لأنّهم أولى بالحقّ منكم ولكن لإسراعهم إلى باطل صاحبهم‭³‬ وإبطائكم عن حقّي. ولقد أصبحت الأمم تخاف ظلم رعاتها وأصبحت أخاف ظلم رعيّتي ٱستنفرتكم للجهاد فلم تنفروا وأسمعتكم فلم تسمعوا ودعوتكم سرًّا وجهرًا فلم تستجيبوا ونصحت لكم فلم تقبلوا. شهود‭⁴‬ كغيّاب وعبيد كأرباب أتلو عليكم الحِكم فتنفرون منها وأعظكم بالموعظة البالغة فتتفرّقون عنها وأحثّكم على جهاد أهل البغي فما آتي على آخر قولي حتّى أراكم ⟨متفرّقين‬‎

‭1.93 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

Praise God! He is the first—there was nothing before him. He is the last—there is nothing after him. He is the manifest—there is nothing above him. He is the hidden—there is nothing below him.

From the same oration describing God’s Messenger:

Muḥammad came from the worthiest repository and the noblest roots, from the mine of honor and the cradle of soundness. Virtuous hearts inclined to him, and discerning eyes were drawn. Rancorous intentions were buried because of him, and burning flames were doused. Brothers were reconciled and peers were separated, servility was converted to might and might was rendered servile. His words were the epitome of elucidation, his very silence was eloquent.

‭1.94 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.94.1 ‬God may have granted the tyrant a reprieve, but he will surely apprehend him. He lies in wait on the road along which the tyrant must pass, in the place where his saliva, dripping into his throat, will choke him. By the one who holds my life in his hand, I swear that this faction will overpower you—not because they have a greater right, but because they hasten to support their leader’s unrighteous claim,² while you hold back from supporting my right! Other communities fear tyranny from their rulers, while I have come to fear tyranny from my subjects! I urge you to fight, but you don’t respond, I speak to you, but you don’t listen, I call on you in private and in public, but you don’t answer, I counsel you, but you don’t accept my counsel. Those present among you are like those absent, and servants behave like masters. I recite litanies of wisdom to you but you bolt from them, I counsel you with profound advice but you scatter in its wake, I urge you to fight these treacherous people, but before I reach the end of my speech you ⟨disperse like the hands of Sabā⟩³—you

‮أياديَ سَبا⟩ ترجعون إلى مجالسكم وتتخادعون عن مواعظكم أقوّمكم غدوة وترجعون إليّ عشيّة كظهر الحنيّة. عجز المقوِّم وأعضل المقوَّم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭94‬.‭2‬ ‬أيّها الشاهدة أبدانهم الغائبة عنهم عقولهم المختلفة أهواؤهم المبتلى بهم أمراؤهم صاحبكم يطيع الله وأنتم تعصونه وصاحب أهل الشام يعصي الله وهم يطيعونه لوددت والله أنّ معاوية صارفني بكم صرف الدينار بالدرهم فأخذ منّي عشرة منكم وأعطاني رجلًا منهم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭94‬.‭3‬ ‬يا أهل الكوفة مُنيت منكم بثلاث وٱثنتين صمّ ذو أسماع وبكم ذو كلام وعمي ذو أبصار لا أحرار صدق عند اللقاء ولا إخوان ثقة عند البلاء تَرِبَت أيديكم. يا أشباه الإبل غاب عنها رعاتها كلّما جمعت من جانب تفرّقت من آخر‭¹‬ والله لكأنّي بكم فيما إخالُ لو حمس الوغى وحمي الضراب قد ٱنفرجتم عن ٱبن أبي طالب ٱنفراج المرأة عن قُبُلها إنّي لعلى بيّنة من ربّي ومنهاج من نبيّي وإنّي لعلى الطريق الواضح أَلْقُطُه لَقْطًا. انظروا أهل بيت نبيّكم فٱلزموا سمتهم وٱتّبعوا أثرهم فلن يخرجوكم من هدى ولن يعيدوكم في ردى فإن لَبَدُوا فَٱلْبُدُوا وإن نهضوا فٱنهضوا ولا تسبقوهم فتضلّوا ولا تـتأخّروا عنهم فتهلكوا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭94‬.‭4‬ ‬لقد رأيت أصحاب محمّد صلّى الله عليه وآله فما أرى أحدًا منكم يشبههم لقد كانوا يصبحون شُعْثًا غُبْرًا قد باتوا سجّدًا وقيامًا يراوحون بين جباههم وخدودهم ويقفون على مثل الجَمْر من ذكر معادهم كأنّ بين أعينهم رُكَبُ المِعزى من طول سجودهم إذا ذكر الله هملت أعينهم حتّى تَبُلّ جيوبهم ومادُوا كما يميد الشجر يوم الريح العاصف خوفًا من العقاب ورجاء للثواب.‬‎

return to your assemblies and incite one another not to heed the counsel you have heard. I straighten you out in the morning, but you come to me in the evening, crooked as a bow. The one who would straighten has given up, for the one who needs straightening cannot be cured!

‭1.94.2 ‬You people! Your bodies are present, but your minds are gone, your ambitions are divided so your commanders suffer,¹ your ruler obeys God, yet you disobey him, and the Syrians’ ruler disobeys God, yet they obey him. By God, how I wish Muʿāwiyah would trade me dirham for dinar, taking ten of you and giving me one of them!

‭1.94.3 ‬Kufans! I have been tested by three things in you, and two more: you have ears but are deaf, you have speech but are dumb, you have eyes but are blind, you are not courageous in battle as free men ought to be, nor trustworthy brothers in times of trial. May your hands be filled with dirt! You people, you resemble camels whose herdsmen have disappeared—gathered together on one side, you scatter from the other. I see you, by God, when war clamors and fighting heats up, running away from Abū Ṭālib’s son and leaving the way to him open like a woman with her legs spread wide, her front part exposed.² I stake my claim on a clear proof from my Lord,³ and follow a path laid out by my Prophet. I walk with purpose on the clear road.⁴ Look to your Prophet’s family, stay on their course, and follow their trace, for they will never steer you from the path of guidance or return you to the path of destruction. Sit if they sit and stand if they stand, don’t get ahead of them or you will stray, don’t hold back from them or you will perish.

‭1.94.4 ‬I have seen Muḥammad’s Companions and none of you resembles them! The morning would find them disheveled and covered in dust, having spent the night in prostration and prayer, pressing foreheads and cheeks to the ground, yearning for the return as though walking on live coals, the skin of their brows gnarly from long prostrations like the knees of a goat. Their eyes would stream at the mention of God’s name until their bosoms were soaked. They would shudder from fear of punishment and hope of reward like trees in a gale.

‮‭‭1‬.‭95‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮والله لا يزالون حتّى لا يَدَعُوا لله مَحْرَمًا إلّا ٱستحلّوه ولا عَقْدًا إلّا حلّوه وحتّى لا يبقى بيت مدر ولا وبر إلّا دخله ظلمهم ونَبا به سوء رَعْيِهم وحتّى يقوم الباكيان يبكيان باكٍ يبكي لدينه وباكٍ يبكي لدنياه وحتّى تكون نصرة أحدكم من أحدهم كنصرة العبد من سيّده إذا شهد أطاعه وإذا غاب ٱغتابه وحتّى يكون أعظمكم فيها غناء أحسنكم بالله ظنًّا فإن أتاكم الله بعافية فٱقبلوا وإن ٱبتليتم فٱصبروا فــ﴿إِنَّ ٱلْعَاقِبَةَ لِلْمُتَّقِين﴾.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭96‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮نحمده على ما كان ونستعينه من أمرنا على ما يكون ونسأله المعافاة في الأديان كما نسأله المعافاة في الأبدان. أوصيكم بالرفض لهذه الدنيا التاركة لكم وإن لم تحبّوا تركها والمبلية لأجسامكم وإن كنتم تحبّون تجديدها. فإنّما مثلكم ومثلها كسَفْرٍ سلكوا سبيلًا فكأنّهم قد قطعوه وأمّوا عَلمًا فكأنّهم قد بلغوه وكم عسى المُجري إلى الغاية أن يجري إليها حتّى يبلغها وما عسى أن يكون بقاءُ من له يوم لا يَعدوه وطالبٌ حثيثٌ يحدوه في الدنيا حتّى يفارقها. فلا تنافسوا في عزّ الدنيا وفخرها ولا تَعجبوا بزينتها ونعيمها ولا تجزعوا من ضرّائها وبؤسها فإنّ عزّها وفخرها إلى ٱنقطاع وزينتها ونعيمها إلى زوال وضرّاءها وبؤسها إلى نفاد وكلّ مدّة فيها إلى ٱنتهاء وكلّ حيّ فيها إلى فناء. أوليس لكم في آثار الأوّلين وفي آبائكم الماضين تبصرة ومعتبر إن كنتم تعقلون. أَوَلم تروا إلى الماضين منكم لا‬‎

‭1.95 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:¹

By God, they will continue thus until they commit every forbidden act and untie every knot, until not one brick house and not one goat-hair tent remains unpenetrated by their tyranny or uprooted by their corrupt herding, until two weepers stand up to weep, one weeping over his religion, another weeping over his possessions, and until, if one of you seeks vengeance on one of them, he will be a slave seeking vengeance upon his master,² obeying if present and slandering if absent. The richest of you will be the person who places his trust entirely in God. Remember this: If God grants you his protection accept it, and if he tests you be patient, for «the best outcome is reserved for the pious.»³

‭1.96 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:⁴

We praise him for favors past and seek his help for what is to come. We ask him to grant us vigor in our faith, just as we ask him to grant us vigor in our bodies. I counsel you to reject the world, for she will reject you despite your dislike of leaving her and cause your bodies to decay despite your wish for renewal. You and she are like a band of travelers who seem already to have crossed the path they traverse, who seem already to have reached the mountain they are headed for. How likely it is that if you race your steed toward a goal, you will soon attain it! How likely it is that your life today will not continue into tomorrow! For you are driven on by a pursuer who will not relent until he makes you leave the world. Don’t compete for the world’s might and glories, don’t be captivated by her beauty and delights or shaken by her injuries and sorrows, for her might and glories will be cut off, her beauty and delights will cease, and her injuries and sorrows will end. Each period of her time will end, and every being living in her will perish. Doesn’t the evidence of earlier peoples and the example of your own ancestors alarm and enlighten you? If you would only reflect!

‮يرجعون وإلى الخلف الباقي لا يبقون أوَلستم ترون أهل الدنيا يمسون ويصبحون على أحوال شتّى فميّت يُبكى وآخر يُعزّى وصريع مبتلى وعائد يعود وآخر بنفسه يجود وطالب للدنيا والموت يطلبه وغافل وليس بمغفول عنه وعلى أثر الماضي ما يمضي الباقي. ألا فٱذكروا هادم اللذات ومنغّص الشهوات وقاطع الأمنيّات عند المساورة للأعمال القبيحة وٱستعينوا الله على أداء واجب حقّه وما لا يحصى من أعداد نعمه وإحسانه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭97‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮الحمد لله الناشر في الخلق فضله والباسط فيهم بالجود يده. نحمده في جميع أموره ونستعينه على رعاية حقوقه. ونشهد أن لا إلٰه غيره‭¹‬ وأنّ محمّدًا عبده ورسوله أرسله بأمره صادعًا وبذكره ناطقًا فأدّى أمينًا ومضى رشيدًا وخلّف فينا راية الحقّ من تقدّمها مَرَقَ ومن تخلّف عنها زَهَقَ ومن لزمها لَحِقَ دليلها مكيث الكلام بطيء القيام سريع إذا قام فإذا أنتم أَلَنْتُم له رقابكم وأشرتم إليه بأصابعكم جاءه الموت فذهب به فلبثتم بعده ما شاء الله حتّى يطلع الله لكم من يجمعكم ويضمّ نشركم. فلا تطمعوا في غير مقبل ولا تيأسوا من مدبر فإنّ المدبر عسى أن تزلّ إحدى قائمتيه وتثبت الأخرى فترجعا حتّى تثبتا جميعًا. ألا إنّ مثل آل محمّد صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم كمثل نجوم السماء إذا خوى نجم طلع نجم. فكأنّكم قد تكاملت من الله فيكم الصنائع وأراكم ما كنتم تأملون.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭98‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام وهي من خطبه التي تشتمل على ذكر الملاحم‬‎

Haven’t you seen that those who pass away don’t return, and that you, their heirs, will not remain forever? Don’t you see the people of this world, at dusk and at dawn, in disparate states? One dead and lamented, another bereaved, one struck and afflicted, another giving up the ghost, one who seeks this world when death seeks him, another heedless who goes not unheeded? In truth, those who remain walk in the traces of those who have passed. Hark! Before you rush to do evil, remember the destroyer of pleasures, the slasher of passions, and the slayer of hopes. Seek God’s help in offering him what you owe for his incalculable blessings and abundant favors.

‭1.97 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

Praise God who extended his grace to all creatures and stretched out his hand to them with generous gifts. We praise him in all his affairs and seek his help in guarding his rights. We bear witness that there is no god other than he, and that Muḥammad is his servant and messenger, whom he sent to transmit his command and express his remembrance. He discharged the trust with honor, and died having guided us, having bequeathed to us the banner of truth; whoever gets ahead of it strays, whoever holds back from it perishes, and whoever remains beneath it catches up with those who have gone ahead. The guide who carries it is deliberate when speaking, measured when rising, and swift once risen,² but when you have bent your necks to him fully and pointed toward him with your fingers,³ death will come to him, and he will be taken away. You will remain after him in this manner for as long as God wills, until he brings to you one who will unite you again and gather your scattered fragments. So do not keep hoping for a man to step up who is not going to, but do not despair of one who has turned away. Though he may have turned away because one foot slipped, the other could be stable, and both feet could once again stand firm. Hark! Muḥammad’s descendants are like stars in the firmament: if one sets, another rises. The time is near and has almost arrived—the time when God’s blessings will reach perfection, and when he will show you what you hope to see.

‭1.98 ‬From one of ʿAlī’s orations containing narratives of epic fighting:⁴

‮‭‭1‬.‭98‬.‭1‬ ‬الأوّل قبل كلّ أوّل والآخر بعد كلّ آخر. بأوّليته وجب أن لا أوّل له وبآخريّته وجب أن لا آخر له وأشهد أن لا إلٰه إلّا الله شهادة يوافق فيها السرّ الإعلان والقلب اللسان.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭98‬.‭2‬ ‬أيّها الناس ﴿لَا يَجْرِمَنَّكُمْ شِقَاقِي﴾ ولا يستهوينّكم عصياني ولا تتراموا بالأبصار عندما تسمعونه منّي فوالذي فلق الحبّة وبرأ النسمة إنّ الذي أنبّئكم به عن النبيّ صلّى الله عليه وآله. ما كذب المبلّغ ولا جهل السامع.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭98‬.‭3‬ ‬لكأنّي أنظر إلى ضِلّيل قد نَعَقَ بالشام وفحص براياته في ضواحي كوفان فإذا فَغَرَتْ فاغرته وٱشتدّت شكيمته وثقلت في الأرض وطأته عضّت الفتنة أبناءها بأنيابها وماجت الحرب بأمواجها وبدا من الأيّام كُلوحُها ومن الليالي كُدوحُها فإذا يَنَعَ زرعه وقام على يَنْعِه وهدرت شقاشقه وبرقت بوارقه عُقدت رايات الفتن المعضلة وأقبلن كالليل المظلم والبحر الملتطم. هذا وكم يخرق الكوفة من قاصف ويمرّ عليها من عاصف وعن قليل تَلتفّ القرون بالقرون ويُحصَد القائم ويُحطَم المحصود.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭99‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام تجري هذا المجرى‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭99‬.‭1‬ ‬وذلك يوم يجمع الله فيه الأوّلين والآخرين لنِقاش الحساب وجزاء الأعمال خضوعًا قيامًا قد أَلْجَمَهم العرق ورجفت بهم الأرض فأحسنهم حالًا من وجد لقدميه موضعًا ولنفسه متّسعًا.‬‎

‭1.98.1 ‬He is the first before every first and the last after every last, his firstness dictates that he has no beginning, and his lastness dictates that he has no end. I bear witness that there is no god but God; my thoughts match my declaration, my heart matches my tongue.

‭1.98.2 ‬People! «Let not your enmity of me drive you to accuse me of lies»¹ or seduce you into disobeying me—and do not look at one another so when you hear me speak these words! I swear by him who split open the seed and created the living being that what I say to you comes from the Prophet—that speaker did not lie, and this listener did not forget.

‭1.98.3 ‬A wicked man will call out to his flock in Syria and scrapes the ground for his banners to roost in the hinterlands of Kufa—I can almost see him!² When his maw has opened wide, his defiance has become strong, and he stamps his feet with violence, sedition will sink its fangs into the city’s children, waves of war will swell, the days will scowl, and the nights will maim. Then, with sedition’s fruit fully ripened, its thunderclaps booming and its lightning flashing, its obdurate banners will become ranged in tight ranks and march like the dark night, like the surging sea. All this will happen. How many winds will sweep into Kufa! How many storms will lash into her! Soon, very soon, horn will lock with horn. All who stand will be harvested, and all that is harvested will be crushed.

‭1.99 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī with similar content:³

‭1.99.1 ‬On that day, God will assemble all who went before and all who came after, standing, necks bowed, to be interrogated for the judgment and receive payback for their deeds. Sweat will streak their cheeks like straps of a bridle, and the ground beneath them will tremble. The best any man can hope for is space for his feet and room for his frame.⁴

‮‭‭1‬.‭99‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮فتن كقطع الليل المظلم لا تقوم لها قائمة ولا تُردّ لها راية تأتيكم مزمومة مرحولة يحفزها قائدها ويجهدها راكبها أهلها قوم شديد كَلَبُهم قليل سَلَبُهم يجاهدهم في الله قوم أذلّة عند المتكبّرين في الأرض مجهولون وفي السماء معروفون فويلٌ لك يا بصرة عند ذلك من جيش من نقم الله لا رَهَ‍جَ له ولا حسّ وسيبتلى أهلك بالموت الأحمر والجوع الأغبر.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭100‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭100‬.‭1‬ ‬انظروا إلى الدنيا نظر الزاهدين فيها الصادفين عنها فإنّها والله عمّا قليل تزيل الثاوي الساكن وتفجع المترف الآمن لا يرجع ما تولّى منها فأدبر ولا يُدرى ما هو آتٍ منها فيُنتظر سرورها مشوب بالحزن وجَلَد الرجال فيها إلى الضعف والوهن فلا تغرّنّكم كثرة ما يعجبكم فيها لقلّة ما يصحبكم منها. رحم الله ٱمرأً تفكّر فٱعتبر وٱعتبر فأبصر فكأنّ ما هو كائن من الدنيا عن قليل لم يكن وكأنّ ما هو كائن من الآخرة عمّا قليل لم يزل وكلّ معدود منقَضٍ وكلّ متوقّع آتٍ وكلّ آتٍ قريب دانٍ.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭100‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮العالم من عرف قدره وكفى بالمرء جهلًا ألّا يعرف قدره وإنّ من أبغض الرجال إلى الله لعبد وكّله الله إلى نفسه جائر عن قصد السبيل سائر بغير دليل إن دعي إلى حرث الدنيا عمل أو إلى حرث الآخرة كسل كأنّ ما عمل له واجب عليه وكأنّ ما وَنى فيه ساقط عنه.‬‎

‭1.99.2 ‬From the same oration:¹

Seditions will approach like hosts of darkness—no horse will be able to withstand them, and no banner of theirs will be repelled. Advancing like bridled and saddled warhorses, they will be urged on by their drivers, and pushed hard by their riders, a rabid group with little appetite for stopping at plunder. Those who fight them for God will be a force deemed lowly by the arrogant, unrecognized on earth but eminent in the hereafter. Basra, you will be afflicted at that time with an army that brings God’s chastisement, an army that neither raises dust nor makes any sound. Your inhabitants will be stricken with red death and black hunger.

‭1.100 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:²

‭1.100.1 ‬Look at the world with the eyes of those who have little interest in her and who turn away from her. By God, she will soon evict her tenants and afflict the complacent and secure. That part which turns away and leaves never returns, while that part which you think is approaching is not guaranteed to arrive. Her happiness is blemished with grief, and men’s strength, as they continue to live in her bosom, deteriorates into weakness and incapacity. Do not be beguiled by her many beauties, for her companionship is short-lived. May God have mercy on the man who reflects and takes heed, and who, taking heed, discerns! In a short while, it will be as though this world never was, as if the hereafter has already come. All that is tallied will run out, all that is expected will be, and all that will be is at hand.

‭1.100.2 ‬From the same oration:

The learned man knows his worth—suffice it as a mark of ignorance when a man does not know his worth. Among the most hateful of men in God’s eyes is a person whom God has given up on, a person he has left to his own devices, who strays from the straight path, and wanders without a guide. If called on to cultivate the fields of this world, he works hard, but if called on to cultivate the fields of the hereafter, he is lazy. He behaves as though the things he works for are mandatory, but the things in which he is remiss are an unpleasant burden that he is not required to carry.

‮‭‭1‬.‭100‬.‭3‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮وذلك زمان لا ينجو فيه إلّا كلّ مؤمن نُومَة إن شهد لم يُعرَف وإن غاب لم يُفتقَد أولئك مصابيح الهدى وأعلام السُّرى ليسوا بالمَساييح ولا المَذاييع البُذُر أولئك يفتح الله لهم أبواب رحمته ويكشف عنهم ضرّاء نقمته. أيّها الناس سيأتي عليكم زمان يُكفَأ فيه الإسلام كما يُكفَأ الإناء بما فيه. أيّها الناس إنّ الله قد أعاذكم من أن يجور عليكم ولم يعذكم من أن يبتليكم وقد قال جلّ من قائل ﴿إِنَّ فِي ذٰلِكَ لآيَاتٍ وَإِن كُنَّا لَمُبْتَلِين﴾.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭100‬.‭4‬ ‬أمّا قوله عليه السلام ⟨كلّ مؤمن نومة⟩ فإنّما أراد به الخامل الذكر القليل الشرّ. و⟨المساييح⟩ جمع مِسْياح وهو الذي يسيح بين الناس بالفساد والنمائم. و⟨المذاييع⟩ جمع مِذْياع وهو الذي إذا سمع لغيره بفاحشة أذاعها ونَوَّهَ بها. و⟨البُذُر⟩ جمع بَذُور وهو الذي يكثر سَفَهُه ويَلْغُو منطقه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭101‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام وقد تقدّم مختارها بخلاف هذه الرواية‬‎

‮أمّا بعد. فإنّ الله سبحانه بعث محمّدًا صلّى الله عليه وآله وليس أحد من العرب يقرأ كتابًا ولا يدّعي نبوّة ولا وحيًا فقاتل بمن أطاعه من عصاه يسوقهم إلى منجاتهم ويبادر بهم الساعة أن تنزل بهم يَحْسَر الحسير ويقف الكسير فيقيم عليه حتّى يلحقه غايته إلّا هالكًا لا خير فيه حتّى أراهم منجاتهم وبوّأهم محلّتهم فٱستدارت رحاهم وٱستقامت قناتهم. وٱيم الله لقد كنت من ساقَتِها حتّى تولّت بحذافيرها وٱستوسقتُ في قيادها ما ضعفتُ ولا جبنت ولا خنت ولا وهنت. وٱيم الله لَأَبْقُرَنّ الباطل حتّى أُخرج الحقّ من خاصرته.‬‎

‭1.100.3 ‬From the same oration:

A time will come when only humble believers are safe,¹ not recognized if present and not missed when absent. They are lamps of guidance and waymarks for travelers, never gossipmongers or blabbering slanderers. God will open the gates of his mercy for them and offer protection from the blows of his punishment. People! A time will come upon you when Islam is overturned, just as a vessel is overturned, with its water poured away. People! God has promised to protect you against his injustice, but he has not promised to protect you against his trials. He, the most glorious of speakers, has said: «Truly there are signs in that, truly we shall put you to the test.»²

‭1.100.4 ‬Raḍī: By the words, “every humble believer (kullu muʾminin nūmah),” ʿAlī meant a person whom no one mentions and who does no one harm. “Masāyīḥ (gossipmongers)” is the plural of misyāḥ, one who goes around spreading discord and defamation. “Madhāyīʿ (slanderers)” is the plural of midhyāʿ, one who, whenever he hears of a person having committed an immoral act, circulates and disseminates it. “Budhur (blabberers)” is the plural of badhūr, one whose levity is excessive and whose speech is nonsensical.

‭1.101 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī of which some parts have previously been cited in a variant form:³

God sent Muḥammad as a prophet when no Arab read scripture or claimed revelation and prophecy. Mustering those who obeyed him, he fought those who disobeyed, herding all to their place of refuge and hastening to set them on the right path before the final hour arrived. He raised the weary and nurtured the broken, until, except for those bereft of any good who perished, he had guided them all to their goal, shown them their refuge, and brought them into a safe enclosure, where their handmills spun and their lances straightened. By God, I was one of those who fought the Age of Ignorance until its battalions fled and Islam’s forces were corralled,⁴ never holding back out of weakness, cowardice, disloyalty, or impotence. By God, I shall impale falsehood’s torso until truth emerges from its flank.

‮‭‭1‬.‭102‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭102‬.‭1‬ ‬حتّى بعث الله محمّدًا صلّى الله عليه وآله وسلّم شهيدًا وبشيرًا ونذيرًا خير البريّة طفلًا وأنجبها كهلًا أطهر المطهّرين شيمة وأجود المستمطرين ديمة. فما ٱحلولت لكم الدنيا في لذّتها ولا تمكّنتم من رَضاع أخلافها إلّا من بعده.‭¹‬ صادفتموها جائلًا خطامها قلقًا وضينها قد صار حرامها عند أقوام بمنزلة السدر المخضود وحلالها بعيدًا غير موجود وصادفتموها والله ظلًّا ممدودًا إلى أجل معدود فالأرض لكم شاغرة وأيديكم فيها مبسوطة وأيدي القادة عنكم مكفوفة وسيوفكم عليهم مسلّطة وسيوفهم عنكم مقبوضة. ألا إنّ لكلّ دم ثائرًا ولكلّ حقّ طالبًا وإنّ الثائر في دمائنا كالحاكم في حقّ نفسه وهو الله الذي لا يعجزه مَن طلب ولا يفوته من هرب. فأُقسم بالله يا بني أميّة عمّا قليل لتعرفُنّها في أيدي غيركم وفي دار عدوّكم ألا وإنّ أبصر الأبصار ما نفذ في الخير طرفه ألا إنّ أسمع الأسماع ما وَعى التذكير وقَبِلَه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭102‬.‭2‬ ‬أيّها الناس ٱستصبحوا من شعلة مصباح واعظ متّعظ وٱمتاحوا من صفو عين قد رُوّقت من الكدر. عباد الله لا تركنوا إلى جهالتكم ولا تنقادوا لأهوائكم فإنّ النازل بهذا المنزل نازل بـ«شَفَا جُرُفٍ هَارٍ» ينقل الردى على ظهره من موضع إلى موضع لرأي يحدثه بعد رأي يريد أن يلصق ما لا يلتصق ويقرّب ما لا يتقارب. فاللهَ اللهَ أن تشكوا إلى من لا يبكي‭²‬ شَجْوَكم ولا ينقض برأيه ما قد أبرم لكم. إنّه ليس على الإمام إلّا ما حمّل من أمر ربّه الإبلاغ في الموعظة والاجتهاد في النصيحة والإحياء‬‎

‭1.102 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.102.1 ‬God sent Muḥammad as a witness, a herald, and a warner.² As a child, he was the best of the entire world, as a man, the most noble, purest of the pure in character, the most generous of all rainclouds. Until he came,³ you had neither tasted the world’s sweetness nor succeeded in milking its teats. But afterward, when its halter was loose and its girth slack,⁴ some of you turned what he had forbidden into a «laden lote tree»,⁵ and what he had made lawful into a distant fancy. You found the world to be a cool, spreading shade: the earth defenseless before your aggression, your hands reaching out to grab it and the hands of just leaders restrained, your swords on their necks, their swords forcibly sheathed. Be warned! For every life taken vengeance will be sought, for every right abused redress will be pursued. Our avenger is none other than God, who will be both petitioner and judge. No one he seeks eludes him, no one who flees escapes. By God, Umayyads! Soon you will see rule in the hands of another, in the house of your enemy. Listen now! For the keenest eye kens good and the sharpest ear heeds counsel.

‭1.102.2 ‬People! Light your lamp from the flame of one who gives counsel and heeds it, draw your water from a spring that is unmuddied and pure.⁶ Servants of God! Do not rest on your ignorance or follow your caprice for that camper encamps at «the lip of a crumbling cliff».⁷ As he moves from place to place, as he innovates one heresy then another, as he tries to glue two things that cannot bond, as he works to join two things that are far apart, he carries his doom on his back. Fear God, and do not take your complaints to one who does not feel your pain, who cannot undo with his makeshift ruling a mandated rule. A leader’s duties are those with which God has charged him: he must counsel the people

‮للسنّة وإقامة الحدود على مستحقّيها وإصدار السُّهْمان على أهلها. فبادروا العلم من قبل تصويح نبته ومن قبل أن تشغلوا بأنفسكم عن مستثار العلم من عند أهله وٱنهوا عن المنكر وتناهوا عنه فإنّما أمرتم بالنهي بعد التناهي.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭103‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭103‬.‭1‬ ‬الحمد لله الذي شرع الإسلام فسهّل شرائعه لمن ورده وأعزّ أركانه على من غالبه فجعله أمنًا لمن عَلِقَه وسِلْمًا لمن دخله وبرهانًا لمن تكلّم به وشاهدًا لمن خاصم به ونورًا لمن ٱستضاء به وفهمًا لمن عقل ولُبًّا لمن تدبّر وآية لمن توسّم وتبصرة لمن عزم وعبرة لمن ٱتّعظ ونجاة لمن صدّق وثقة لمن توكّل وراحة لمن فوّض وجُنّة لمن صبر. فهو أبلج المناهج واضح الولائج مشرف المنار مشرق الجوادّ مضيء المصابيح كريم المضمار رفيع الغاية جامع الحَلْبة متنافس السَّبْقة شريف الفرسان. التصديق منهاجه والصالحات مناره والموت غايته والدنيا مضماره والقيامة حَلَبَته والجَنّة سَبْقته.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭103‬.‭2‬ ‬منها في ذكر النبيّ صلّى الله عليه وآله‬‎

to good purpose, exert effort in giving advice, keep alive the Sunnah, punish those who commit crimes, and distribute treasury stipends fairly. People, hasten to pluck knowledge before its plant withers, seek to acquire knowledge from its keepers before preoccupations distract, forbid evil and desist from it, for you have been commanded to desist before forbidding others.

‭1.103 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.103.1 ‬Praise God who paved the path of Islam, made it smooth for those who come to its waterholes, and protected its ramparts from attackers. He made it a source of security for those who cling to it, a place of safety for those who enter it, a proof for those who argue by it, a witness for those who litigate with it, a light for those who seek illumination by it, comprehension for those who understand, reason for those who ponder, a sign for those who search for pasture,² perception for those who resolve to advance, a lesson for those who take heed, salvation for those who believe, support for those who trust, comfort for those who submit, and a shield for those who endure. Islam’s paths are lit, its trails marked,³ its beacons high, its highway bright, its lamps aglow, its arena honorable, its goal elevated, its racehorses numerous, its prize sought, and its champions noble. Its path is faith, its road good deeds, its end death, its racecourse the world, its track the day of resurrection, and its prize paradise.

‭1.103.2 ‬From the same oration in praise of the Prophet:⁴

‮حتّى أَوْرى قبسًا لقابس وأنار عَلَمًا لحابس فهو أمينك المأمون وشهيدك يوم الدين وبعيثك نعمة ورسولك بالحقّ رحمة. اللّٰهمّ ٱقسم له مقسمًا من عدلك وٱجزه مضعّفات الخير من فضلك. اللّٰهمّ أَعْلِ على بناء البانين بناءه وأكرم لديك نُزُله وشرّف عندك منزله وآته الوسيلة وأعطه السناء والفضيلة وٱحشرنا في زمرته غير خزايا ولا نادمين ولا ناكبين ولا ناكثين ولا ضالّين ولا مفتونين.‬‎

‮وقد مضى هذا الكلام فيما تقدّم إلّا أنّنا كرّرناه هٰهنا لما في الروايتين من الاختلاف.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭103‬.‭3‬ ‬منها في خطاب أصحابه‬‎

‮وقد بلغتم من كرامة الله لكم منزلة تكرم بها إماؤكم وتوصل بها جيرانكم ويعظّمكم من لا فضل لكم عليه ولا يَدَ لكم عنده ويهابكم من لا يخاف لكم سطوة ولا لكم عليه إمرة. وقد ترون عهود الله منقوضة فلا تغضبون وأنتم لنقض ذمم آبائكم تأنفون. وكانت أمور الله عليكم ترد وعنكم تصدر وإليكم ترجع فمكّنتم الظَّلَمة من منزلتكم وألقيتم إليهم أزمّتكم وأسلمتم أمور الله في أيديهم يعملون بالشبهات ويسيرون‭¹‬ في الشهوات. وٱيم الله لو فرّقوكم تحت كلّ كوكب لجمعكم الله لشرّ يوم لهم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭104‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام في بعض أيّام صفّين‬‎

‮وقد رأيت جولتكم وٱنحيازكم عن صفوفكم تحوزكم الجفاة الطغام وأعراب أهل الشام وأنتم لَهاميم العرب ويآفيخ الشرف والأنف المقدّم والسنام الأعظم. ولقد شفى‬‎

He ignited the flame of truth for any who sought a burning brand and lit torches on the road to paradise for those who had tied up their camels not knowing where to go. He is the trustee whom you, God, entrusted with your message, your witness on judgment day, your emissary sent as a blessing, and your messenger dispatched with the truth as the embodiment of mercy. God, bestow on him a bounteous share of your justice, and reward him with a munificent recompense, multiplied manifold by your generosity. God, let his palace tower high above all others, provide him a noble place near you, honor his station at your side, bestow him the right of intercession, grant him radiance and excellence, and resurrect us in his company—let us not be people of dishonor, remorse, deviation, violation, or error, or those who succumb to sedition.

Raḍī: This passage was narrated earlier.¹ I have repeated it here because the two reports vary in some of their language.

‭1.103.3 ‬From the same oration addressing his associates:

It is through God’s bounty that you have attained this high standing, in which your slave girls are honored, and your neighbors receive gifts, where you are revered by people to whom you have given no special favors or grants, while others stand in your awe who have no reason to fear your attack and over whom you have no command. Yet here you see God’s compacts broken and are not roused to anger, while when your ancestors’ traditions are rent, you profess outrage. God’s affairs used to frequent your waterhole, but you have relinquished your station to tyrants, and entrusted your guide ropes to them. You have surrendered God’s affairs into their hands, as they implement their dubious actions and walk in the path of their passions. But, by God, even if they strew you beneath every distant star, God will reunite you, on an evil day for them.

‭1.104 ‬From an oration ʿAlī delivered during one of the battle-days of Ṣiffīn:²

I saw you turn away from your battle lines and fall back, pushed away by the rough rabble and common Bedouins of Syria, you, the aristocracy of the Arabs, the summit of nobility, the bridge of its nose, and its lofty hump! But my racing heart was calmed when later I saw you push them back as they had pushed

‮وَحاوِحَ صدري أن رأيتكم بِأَخَرة تحوزونهم كما حازوكم وتزيلونهم عن مواقفهم كما أزالوكم حَسًّا بالنصال وشَجْرًا بالرماح تَركَب أُولاهم أخراهم كالإبل الهيم المطرودة ترمى عن حياضها وتذاد عن مواردها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭105‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام وهي من خطب الملاحم‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭105‬.‭1‬ ‬الحمد لله المتجلّي لخلقه بخلقه والظاهر لقلوبهم بحجّته خلق الخلق من غير رويّة إذ كانت الرويّات لا تليق إلّا بذوي الضمائر وليس بذي ضمير في نفسه خرق علمه باطن غيب السترات وأحاط بغموض عقائد السريرات.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭105‬.‭2‬ ‬منها في ذكر النبيّ صلّى الله عليه وآله‬‎

‮اختاره من شجرة الأنبياء ومشكاة الضياء وذُؤابة العلياء وسُرّة البطحاء ومصابيح الظلمة وينابيع الحكمة.‬‎

‮منها‬‎

‮طبيبٌ دوّار بطبّه قد أحكم مراهمه وأحمى‭¹‬ مواسمه يضع ذلك حيث الحاجة إليه من قلوب عمي وآذان صمّ وألسنة بُكْم متتبّع بدوائه مواضع الغفلة ومواطن الحيرة لم يستضيئوا بأضواء الحكمة ولم يقدحوا بزناد العلوم الثاقبة فهم في ذلك كالأنعام السائمة والصخور القاسية قد ٱنجابت السرائر لأهل البصائر ووضحت محجّة الحقّ لخابطها‭²‬ وأسفرت الساعة عن وجهها وظهرت العلامة لمتوسّمها. مالي أراكم أشباحًا بلا أرواح وأرواحًا بلا أشباح ونسّاكًا بلا صلاح وتجّارًا بلا أرباح وأيقاظًا نُوَّمًا وشهودًا غُيَّبًا وناظرة عميًا وسامعة صمًّا وناطقة بُكْمًا. رأية ضلالة قد قامت على قطبها وتفرّقت بشعبها.‬‎

you earlier, forcing them from their positions as they had forced you earlier, striking them with arrows and thrusting at them with spears, shoving the men in their front rows bodily onto the heads and chests of the men in the rows behind them, like parched camels driven from the waterhole and pushed away from drink.

‭1.105 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī with prophecies of future calamities:

‭1.105.1 ‬Praise God, who appears to his creation through his creation and manifests himself to their hearts through his proof. He created without cogitation or thought, for cogitation and thought only come from those who have an inner disposition—and God does not possess an inner disposition in his self. His knowledge rends the hidden veils of mystery and encompasses beliefs stored in the innermost recesses of peoples’ hearts.

‭1.105.2 ‬From the same oration in praise of the Prophet:

God selected him from the tree of prophets, the lamp-niche of illumination, the forelock of majesty, and the navel of Baṭḥāʾ,¹ from the lamps in the darkness, and the wellsprings of wisdom.

From the same oration:

He was a physician who carried his medicine from place to place.² He had prepared ointments and heated his cauteries, and he used them to heal the hearts of the blind, the ears of the deaf, and the tongues of the dumb, as called for by their needs. He sought out for his medicine places of heedlessness and locales of perplexity never illumined by the light of wisdom or sparked by the flints of glinting erudition. They had been like untended cattle and hard rocks, but then secret purposes became plain for the perceptive, the road of truth became clear for those who had been stumbling in the dark, the imminent hour unveiled its face, and fluttering banners came into sight for those looking for signs. Why is it that I see you as bodies without souls and souls without bodies, ascetics without piety and merchants without profit, awake yet asleep and present yet absent, seeing yet blind, hearing yet deaf, and speaking yet dumb? There will rise a banner of error, entrenched in its socket, spreading its streamers, measuring you with its yardstick, and striking you with outstretched hand, and its leader will be a man who has forsaken the faith to establish his errant claim.

‮تَكِيلُكم بصاعها وتخبطكم بباعها. قائدها‭¹‬ خارج من الملّة قائم على الضِّلّة. فلا يبقى يومئذ منكم إلّا ثُفالة كثفالة القِدْر أو نُفاضة كنفاضة العِكْم تَعْرُككم عَرْك الأديم وتدوسكم دَوْس الحصيد وتستخلص المؤمنَ من بينكم ٱستخلاص الطير الحبّة البطينة من بين هَزيل الحبّ. أين تذهب بكم المذاهب وتتيه بكم الغياهب وتخدعكم الكواذب ومن أين تؤتَون و﴿أَنَّىٰ تُؤْفَكُونَ﴾. و﴿لِكُلِّ أَجَلٍ كِتَابٌ﴾ ولكلّ غيبة إياب.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭105‬.‭3‬ ‬فٱستمعوا من ربّانيّكم وأحضروه قلوبكم وٱستيقظوا إن هتف بكم وليصدق رائد أهله وليجمع شمله وليحضر ذهنه فلقد فلق لكم الأمر فَلْقَ الخَرَزة وقرفه قرف الصَّمْغة فعند ذلك أخذ الباطل مآخذه وركب الجهل مراكبه وعظمت الطاغية وقلّت الداعية وصال الدهر صِيال السَبُع العقور وهدر فَنيق الباطل بعد كُظوم وتواخى الناس على الفجور وتهاجروا على الدين وتحابّوا على الكذب وتباغضوا على الصدق فإذا كان ذلك كان الولد غَيظًا والمطر قَيظًا وتفيض اللئام فيضًا وتغيض الكرام غيضًا وكان‭²‬ أهل ذلك الزمان ذئابًا وسلاطينه سباعًا وأوساطه أُكّالًا وفقراؤه أمواتًا وغار‭³‬ الصدق وفاض الكذب وٱستُعملت المودّة باللسان وتشاجر الناس بالقلوب وصار الفسوق نسبًا والعفاف عجبًا ولبس الإسلام لُبْس الفَرْو مقلوبًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭106‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭106‬.‭1‬ ‬كلّ شيء خاشع له وكلّ شيء قائم به غنى كلّ فقير وعزّ كلّ ذليل وقوّة كلّ ضعيف ومفزع كلّ ملهوف من تكلّم سمع نطقه ومن سكت علم سرّه ومن عاش فعليه رزقه ومن مات فإليه منقلبه. لم تَرَك العيونُ فتُخبرَ عنك بل كنت قبل الواصفين من‬‎

On that day, those of you who remain standing will be as sediments in a cooking pot, or fluffs of wool after bales are packed. The sedition will scrape you like tanned leather, stamp you like harvested grain, picking out the believers among you as a bird picks out plump kernels from a dried-up heap of grain. So tell me, where are these paths taking you, these shadows leading you, these lies tempting you? How is it you have been deceived, «how is it you have been duped?»¹ But «each term is written»² and every absence is followed by a return.

‭1.105.3 ‬Listen to your godly leader, listen to him with your hearts, and pay attention when he speaks! A scout must tell his people the truth, gather them together, and remain alert.³ But this one has indeed exposed the affair for you and split it open like a cowrie shell,⁴ he has peeled it clear like gum from tree bark. The time will come when evil ensconces itself in its cradle, ignorance mounts its steeds, tyranny grows strong, callers to truth dwindle, time attacks like a rapacious carnivore, and evil’s camel stallion, gagged for a time, roars. People will become brothers in debauchery, deserters from religion, best friends in their mutual lying, and fierce enemies in the face of truth. When this happens, the son will bring his parents utter despair, the rain will bring scorching heat, the wicked will brim like a flood, and the noble will be depleted like an exhausted wellspring. The people of that time will be wolves, its rulers will be predators, its commoners will be gluttons, and its poor will be dead. Truth will collapse and falsehood spread, tongues will profess affection while hearts will conceal malice, adultery will be the source of kinship while chastity will be a thing of wonder, and Islam will be worn as a fur turned inside out.

‭1.106 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:⁵

‭1.106.1 ‬Everything bows to him, and everything exists through him. He is the wealth of the poor, the might of the humble, the strength of the weak, and the refuge of the desperate. If someone speaks, he hears, if someone stays silent, he knows their secret, while someone lives, he provides them sustenance, and when someone dies, it is to him they return. God, eyes cannot see you, so they

‮خلقك لم تخلق الخلق لوحشة ولا ٱستعملتهم لمنفعة ولا يسبقك من طلبت ولا يفلتك من أخذت ولا ينقص سلطانك من عصاك ولا يزيد في ملكك من أطاعك ولا يردّ أمرك من سخط قضاءك ولا يستغني عنك من تولّى عن أمرك كلّ سرّ عندك علانية وكلّ غيب عندك شهادة. أنت الأبد‭¹‬ لا أمد لك وأنت المنتهى لا محيص عنك وأنت الموعد لا منجا منك‭²‬ بيدك ناصية كلّ دابّة وإليك مصير كلّ نسمة. سبحانك ما أعظم ما نرى من خلقك وما أصغر عظيمه في جنب قدرتك وما أهول ما نرى من ملكوتك وما أحقر ذلك فيما غاب عنّا من سلطانك وما أسبغ نعمك في الدنيا وما أصغرها في نعم الآخرة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭106‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮من ملائكة أسكنتهم سمواتك ورفعتهم عن أرضك هم أعلم خلقك بك وأخوفهم لك وأقربهم منك لم يسكنوا الأصلاب ولم يضمّنوا الأرحام ولم يخلقوا من ماء مهين ولم يشعّبهم ريب المنون وإنّهم على مكانهم منك ومنزلتهم عندك وٱستجماع أهوائهم فيك وكثرة طاعتهم لك وقلّة غفلتهم عن أمرك لو عاينوا كنه ما خفي عليهم منك لحقّروا أعمالهم ولَزَرَوا على أنفسهم ولعرفوا أنّهم لم يعبدوك حقّ عبادتك ولم يطيعوك حقّ طاعتك.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭106‬.‭3‬ ‬سبحانك خالقًا ومعبودًا بحسن بلائك عند خلقك خلقت دارًا وجعلت فيها مأدُبة مشربًا ومطعمًا وأزواجًا وخدمًا وقصورًا وأنهارًا وزروعًا وثمارًا. ثمّ أرسلت داعيًا يدعو إليها فلا الداعي أجابوا ولا فيما رغّبت فيه رغبوا ولا إلى ما شوّقت إليه ٱشتاقوا أقبلوا على جيفة قد ٱفتضحوا بأكلها وٱصطلحوا على حبّها. ومن عشق شيئًا أعشى بصره وأمرض قلبه فهو ينظر بعين غير صحيحة ويسمع بأذن غير سميعة قد خرقت الشهوات عقله وأماتت الدنيا قلبه وولهت عليها نفسه فهو عبد لها ولمن‬‎

cannot inform about you. Indeed, you existed before any of your creatures who could describe you. You did not create them because you felt lonely or because they would bring you benefit. Those you pursue cannot outrun you, those you seize cannot escape. Those who disobey you do not lessen your authority, those who obey you do not bolster your kingdom, those who are unhappy with your decree cannot deflect your command, and those who turn away from your command still need you. For you, all secrets are open, all mysteries evident. You are eternal without end, the terminus from where there is nowhere to flee. Yours is the promised meeting from which there is no escape, your hand holds the forelock of every four-footed beast, to you returns every living being. Glory to you! How wondrous the marvels we see of your creation, yet how small its greatness alongside your power! How grand what we see of your kingdom, yet how humble in comparison with what is hidden from us of your might! How perfect your blessings for us in this world, yet how small against the blessings of the hereafter!

‭1.106.2 ‬From the same oration:

You created angels, whom you lodged in your skies and raised above your earth. Of all your creatures, they know you best, fear you most, and are closest to you. They were never housed inside loins, enveloped in wombs, created from a lowly drop of sperm, or dispersed by fate’s calamity. But despite their station near you and their position by your side, despite the absorption of their desires in you, the scale of their obedience for you, and their absence of inattention to your command—if they were to plumb your hidden depths, they would deem their deeds trivial and reprimand themselves. They would know that they have not worshipped you as they ought or obeyed you as you deserve.

‭1.106.3 ‬Glory to you, revered creator whom we worship! Bestowing a great favor on your creatures, you created a dwelling and placed therein a banquet of food and drink, spouses, servants, palaces, streams, grain, and fruit. Then you sent someone to invite people in—but they did not answer the call, show interest in what you encouraged them to do, or evince passion for what you enthused about. Instead, they fell upon a rotten carcass, and, to their deepest shame, they devoured it and fell in love with it.¹ Love blinds the eye and makes the heart ill—the lover sees with blurry eyes and listens with deaf ears, passions ravage his mind, and the world, his beloved, kills his heart and con-

‮في يده شيء منها حيثما زالت زال إليها وحيثما أقبلت أقبل عليها لا ينزجر من الله بزاجر ولا يتّعظ منه بواعظ وهو يرى المأخوذين على الغِرّة حيث لا إقالة ولا رجعة كيف نزل بهم ما كانوا يجهلون وجاءهم من فراق الدنيا ما كانوا يأمنون وقدموا من الآخرة على ما كانوا يوعدون.‬‎

‮فغير موصوف ما نزل بهم ٱجتمعت عليهم سكرة الموت وحسرة الفوت ففترت لها أطرافهم وتغيّرت لها ألوانهم. ثمّ ٱزداد الموت فيهم ولوجًا فحيل بين أحدهم وبين منطقه وإنّه لبين أهله ينظر ببصره ويسمع بأذنه على صحّة من عقله وبقاء من لبّه يفكّر فِيمَ أفنى عمره وفيم أذهب دهره ويتذّكر أموالًا جمعها أغمض في مطالبها وأخذها من مصرّحاتها ومشتبهاتها قد لزمته تبعات جمعها وأشرف على فراقها تبقى لمن وراءه ينعمون فيها ويتمتّعون بها فيكون المَهْنأ لغيره والعِبْء على ظهره. والمرء قد غلقت رهونه بها فهو يَعَضُّ يده ندامة على ما أصحر له عند الموت من أمره ويزهد فيما كان يرغب فيه أيّام عمره ويتمنّى أنّ الذي كان يغبطه بها ويحسده عليها قد حازها دونه. فلم يزل الموت يبالغ في جسده حتّى خالط سمعه فصار بين أهله لا ينطق بلسانه ولا يسمع بسمعه يردّد طرفه بالنظر في وجوههم يرى حركات ألسنتهم ولا يسمع‭¹‬ رجع كلامهم. ثمّ ٱزداد الموت ٱلتياطًا به فقبض بصره كما قبض سمعه وخرجت الروح من جسده فصار جيفة بين أهله قد أوحشوا من جانبه وتباعدوا من قربه لا يُسعد باكيًا ولا يجيب داعيًا. ثمّ حملوه إلى مَخَطّ في الأرض فأسلموه فيه إلى عمله وٱنقطعوا عن زَورته.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭106‬.‭4‬ ‬حتّى إذا بلغ الكتاب أجله والأمر مقاديره وألحق آخر الخلق بأوّله وجاء من أمر الله ما يريده من تجديد خلقه أماد السماء وفطرها وأرجّ الأرض وأرجفها وقلع جبالها ونسفها ودكّ بعضُها بعضًا من هيبة جلالته ومخوف سطوته وأخرج من فيها فجدّدهم بعد إخلاقهم وجمعهم بعد تفريقهم ثم ميّزهم لما يريد من مُسائلتهم عن الأعمال‬‎

sumes his soul. He thus becomes a slave to the world and to all who possess anything of her, wherever she goes he follows, and wherever she turns he turns. He pays no heed to God’s warning and takes no counsel from God’s lessons. All the while, he sees the heedless abruptly taken from her to a place from which there is no return, and he sees the terror they had denied descend upon them. He sees them leave the world in which they had taken comfort, and move to the afterlife as they had been warned.

The horror that descends upon the dying person is beyond words. As the anguished convulsions of death and the remorseful pangs of loss together bear down upon him, his extremities begin to lose feeling, and his color changes. Then, death penetrates further and prevents him from speech. He lies among his family, seeing them with his eyes, hearing them with his ears, still able to discern, still able to understand. He can think only about his wasted life and squandered time. He remembers the wealth he has amassed, both licit and illicit, from honest and dubious sources. The sins he has gathered now weigh him down, now, when he is about to leave everything behind. The people who survive him will enjoy his wealth. Its gratification will belong to another, while the burden will weigh down his back. His debt has come due for payment. He bites on his knuckles, regretting the misdeeds that are now clear to him, caring little for the things he craved all the days of his life. He wishes that the person who envied him his wealth and coveted his property had taken it all! Meanwhile, death continues to penetrate his body and it pierces his hearing. Now he lies among his family, his tongue unable to speak, his ears unable to hear. His eyes go from face to face, he sees their tongues moving but cannot hear their words. Then death tightens its grip. His sight is taken away, just as his hearing had been earlier, and his soul leaves his body. He becomes a corpse lying amid his family, and they recoil from him in fear and back away—he cannot console those who weep or answer those who call out. Then they carry him to a grave marked with lines in the earth. They give him over to his deeds and cease to visit.

‭1.106.4 ‬Until destiny reaches its term and the affair approaches its ordained hour, when the last of creation has caught up with the first and God’s command arrives to renew his creation, he shakes the sky and splits it, convulses the earth and agitates it, plucks out each mountain and uproots it, and, terrified by his majesty and cowed by his power, each crushes the other. He extracts all who are on earth, renewing them after their decay, gathering them after their separation. Then he stands them, each in his place, to be interrogated about deeds and secret acts. He divides them into two groups, blessing the one and punishing the other. He rewards the obedient with nearness to his divine self and with

‮وخبايا الأفعال وجعلهم فريقين أنعم على هؤلاء وٱنتقم من أُولاء‭¹‬ فأمّا أهل الطاعة فأثابهم بجواره وخلّدهم في داره حيث لا يظعن النُّزّال ولا يتغيّر بهم الحال ولا تنوبهم الأفزاع ولا تنالهم الأسقام ولا تعرض لهم الأخطار ولا تشخصهم الأسفار وأمّا أهل المعصية فأنزلهم شرّ دار وغَلَّ الأيدي إلى الأعناق وقرن النواصي بالأقدام وألبسهم سرابيل القَطِران ومقطّعات النيران في عذاب قد ٱشتدّ حرّه وباب قد أُطبق على أهله في نار لها كَلَب ولَجَب ولَهَب ساطع وقصيف هائل لا يظعن مقيمها ولا يفادى أسيرها ولا تقصم‭²‬ كُبولها لا مدّة للدار فتفنى ولا أجل للقوم فيُقضى.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭106‬.‭5‬ ‬منها في ذكر النبيّ صلّى الله عليه وآله‬‎

‮قد حقّر الدنيا وصغّرها وأهون بها وهوّنها وعلم أنّ الله زواها عنه ٱختيارًا وبسطها لغيره ٱحتقارًا فأعرض عن الدنيا بقلبه وأمات ذكرها من نفسه وأحبّ أن تغيب زينتها عن عينه لكيلا يتّخذ منها رياشًا أو يرجو فيها مقامًا. بلّغ عن ربّه معذرًا ونصح لأمّته منذرًا ودعا إلى الجنّة مبشّرًا.‬‎

‮نحن شجرة النبوّة ومحطّ الرسالة ومختلَف الملائكة ومعادن العلم وينابيع الحكم. ناصرنا ومحبّنا ينتظر الرحمة وعدوّنا ومبغضنا ينتظر السطوة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭107‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮إنّ أفضل ما توسّل به المتوسّلون إلى الله سبحانه الإيمان به وبرسوله والجهاد في سبيله فإنّه ذروة الإسلام وكلمة الإخلاص فإنّها الفطرة وإقام الصلاة فإنّها الملّة وإيتاء الزكاة فإنّها فريضة واجبة وصوم شهر رمضان فإنّه جنّة من العقاب وحجّ البيت وٱعتماره‬‎

eternal life in his abode, which its inhabitants never leave, where their condition never changes, misfortunes never befall, illness never takes hold, dangers never approach, and journeys never displace. He locks up the disobedient in the abode of horrors. He shackles their hands to their necks, binds their forelocks to their feet, clothes them in garments of pitch, and dresses them in robes of fire. He throws them into the chamber of torture, whose heat endlessly sears, whose door remains bolted, and whose blaze rages with rabid hunger, clamorous tumult, sheets of flame, and terrifying thunder. Its resident never leaves, its captive is never ransomed, its shackles are never broken. This abode has no limit, so it never ceases to be. Its people have no lifespan, so the terror never ends.

‭1.106.5 ‬From the same oration in praise of the Prophet:

He viewed the world with contempt, demeaned it, disparaged it, and deemed it lowly. He recognized that God had deliberately turned the world away from him while allowing it ungrudgingly to many, so he turned his heart away from it and drove all thoughts of it from his mind. He preferred that its ornaments be absent from his eyes, so he would not be tempted to don its splendid garments or long for it to be his permanent residence. He conveyed his Lord’s message and proved his claim, instructed his community and gave them warning, and called them to paradise with glad tidings of its bliss.

We are the tree of prophecy, the station of God’s message, and the place where angels alight. We are mines of knowledge and springs of wisdom. Whoever supports and loves us should expect God’s mercy. Whoever bears us enmity or malice should expect God’s assault.

‭1.107 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

The deeds that bring you closest to God are the following: belief in him and his messenger; jihad in his path, for it is Islam’s summit; the testament of sincerity—⟨There is no god but God⟩—for it is the natural state; performing the ritual prayer, for it is the way of truth; offering the alms levy, for it is a man-

‮فإنّهما ينفيان الفقر ويرحضان الذنب وصلة الرحم فإنّها مَثْراة في المال ومنساة في الأجل وصدقة السرّ فإنّها تكفّر الخطيئة وصدقة العلانية فإنّها تدفع ميتة السوء وصنائع المعروف فإنّها تقي مصارع الهوان.‬‎

‮أفيضوا في ذكر الله فإنّه أحسن الذكر وٱرغبوا فيما وعد المتّقين فإنّ وعده أصدق الوعد وٱقتدوا بهدي نبيكّم فإنّه أفضل الهدي وٱستنّوا بسنّته فإنّها أهدى السنن وتعلّموا القرآن فإنّه ربيع القلوب وٱستشفوا بنوره فإنّه شفاء الصدور وأحسنوا تلاوته فإنّه أنفع القصص. وإنّ العالم العامل بغير علمه كالجاهل الحائر الذي لا يستفيق من جهله بل الحجّة عليه أعظم والحسرة له ألزم وهو عند الله أَلْوَم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭108‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭108‬.‭1‬ ‬أمّا بعد. فإنّي أحذّركم الدنيا فإنّها حلوة خضرة حُفّت بالشهوات وتحبّبت بالعاجلة وراقت بالقليل وتحلّت بالآمال وتزيّنت بالغرور لا تدوم حَبرتها ولا تؤمن فجعتها غرّارة ضرّارة حائلة زائلة نافدة بائدة أكّالة غوّالة لا تعدو إذا تناهت إلى أمنيّة أهل الرغبة فيها والرضى بها أن تكون كما قال الله سبحانه ﴿كَمَآءٍ أَنْزَلْنَاهُ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَاءِ فَٱخْتَلَطَ بِهِ نَبَاتُ ٱلأَرْضِ فَأَصْبَحَ هَشِيماً تَذْرُوهُ ٱلرِّياحُ وَكَانَ ٱللّٰهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ مُّقْتَدِراً﴾. لم يكن ٱمرؤ منها في حبرة إلّا أعقبته بعدها عبرة ولم يَلْقَ من سرّائها بطنًا إلّا منحته من ضرّائها ظهرًا ولم تَطُلَّه فيها ديمة رخاء إلّا هتنت عليه مزنة بلاء وحريّ إذا أصبحت له منتصرة أن تمسي له متنكّرة وإن جانب منها ٱعذوذب وٱحلولى أمرّ منها جانب فأوبى لا ينال ٱمرؤ من غضارتها رَغَبًا إلّا أرهقته من نوائبها تعبًا ولا يمسي منها في جناح أمن إلّا أصبح على قوادم خوف. غرّارة غرور ما فيها فانية فانٍ من عليها لا خير في شيء من أزوادها إلّا التقوى من أقلّ منها ٱستكثر ممّا يؤمنه ومن ٱستكثر منها ٱستكثر ممّا يوبقه وزال عمّا قليل عنه كم من واثق بها فجعته وذي طمأنينة إليها‬‎

dated obligation; fasting in the month of Ramadan, for it is a shield from God’s punishment; performing the hajj and the ʿumrah pilgrimage to Mecca, for they dispel poverty and wash away sins; fostering close ties with kin, for it increases wealth and prolongs life; giving alms in secret, for it expiates transgressions; disbursing alms in public, for it wards off horrible forms of death; and acts of charity, for they protect you from dishonor and shame.

Fill yourself with God’s remembrance for it is the best remembrance. Wish for everything he promised the pious, for his promise is the truest of promises. Follow the guidance of your Prophet, for it is the best guidance. Follow his Sunnah, for it is the most righteous of practices. Learn the Qurʾan, for it is the heart’s springtime. Heal yourselves by its light, for it is a cure for souls. And recite it beautifully, for it is the most beneficial exhortation. A learned man who acts contrary to his learning is as bad as the ignorant and perplexed man who never wakes from his stupor. In fact, the case against him is stronger, his anguish more binding, and his culpability greater before God.

‭1.108 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.108.1 ‬I warn you against this world, for it is sweet and lush and surrounded by temptations. It breeds love for the here and now and excites wonder with its trifles, it is adorned with false hopes and embellished with deceptions, its joy does not last and its trauma is relentless. A ghoulish devourer, it deceives, harms, changes, ceases, wanes, perishes, and consumes. At the very moment that it fulfills your dearest hopes, it becomes—as God Most High has said—«like water that we sent down from the sky: the earth’s vegetation drew from it, then became dry straw, and was scattered by the winds. God has power over all things.»² The world never gives a man joy without following it with tears, it never bestows happiness without following it with harm, it never sprinkles soft ease without following it with a cloudburst of calamity. If it braces him in the morning it rejects him in the evening, if one of its aspects is sweet and sugary the other is bitter and pestilential, if it bestows fresh bounties it oppresses later with oppressive misfortunes; a man does not pass the night sheltered under its wing without waking up under its pinion of fear. The world deceives and all in it is deception. The world will perish and all upon it will perish. There is no good in any of its provisions save piety. Those who take little from the world gather stores of protection, while those who amass its wares hoard that which will destroy, whose benefit will soon cease.

‮قد صرعته وذي أُبَّهَة قد جعلته حقيرًا وذي نَخوة قد ردّته ذليلًا سلطانها دُوَل وعيشها رَنِق وعذبها أجاج وحلوها صَبِر وغذاؤها سِمام وأسبابها رِمام حيّها بعَرَض موت وصحيحها بعرض سقم ملكها مسلوب وعزيزها مغلوب وموفورها منكوب وجارها محروب.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭108‬.‭2‬ ‬ألستم في مساكن من كان قبلكم أطول أعمارًا وأبقى آثارًا وأبعد آمالًا وأعدّ عديدًا وأكثف جنودًا تعبّدوا للدنيا أيَّ تعبّد وآثروها أيّ إيثار ثمّ ظعنوا عنها بغير زاد مبلّغ ولا ظهر قاطع. فهل بلغكم أنّ الدنيا سخت لهم نفسًا بفدية أو أعانتهم بمعونة أو أحسنت لهم صحبة بل أرهقتهم بالفوادح وأوهنتهم بالقوارع وضعضعتهم بالنوائب وعفّرتهم للمناخر ووطئتهم بالمناسم وأعانت عليهم ريب المنون. فقد رأيتم تنكّرها لمن دان لها وآثرها وأخلد إليها حتّى ظعنوا عنها لفراق الأبد هل زوّدتهم إلّا السَّغَب أو أحلّتهم إلّا الضَّنْك أو نوّرت لهم إلّا الظلمة أو أعقبتهم إلّا الندامة أفهذه تؤثرون أم إليها تطمئنّون أم عليها تحرصون فبئست الدار لمن لم يتّهمها ولم يكن فيها على وجل منها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭108‬.‭3‬ ‬فٱعلموا وأنتم تعلمون بأنكّم تاركوها وظاعنون عنها وٱتّعظوا فيها بالذين ﴿قَالُواْ مَنْ أَشَدُّ مِنَّا قُوَّةً﴾ حُملوا إلى قبورهم فلا يُدعَون ركبانًا وأُنزلوا فلا يدعون ضِيفانًا وجعل لهم من الصفيح أجنان ومن التراب أكفان ومن الرُّفات جيران فهم جِيرة لا يجيبون داعيًا ولا يمنعون ضَيمًا ولا يبالون مَنْدَبة إن جيدوا لم يفرحوا وإن قُحطوا لم يقنطوا جميع وهم آحاد وجيرة وهم أبعاد متدانُون لا يتزاورون وقريبون لا يتقاربون حلماء قد ذهبت أضغانهم وجهلاء قد ماتت أحقادهم لا يخشى فَجْعهم ولا يرجى دفعهم‬‎

The world strikes those who trust it and fells those who place in it their faith. How many grandees has it humbled! How many arrogant men has it debased! Its power goes around in turns, its life is turbid, its water is brackish, its sweets are filled with bitter juice, its nourishment is poison, its ropes are decayed, its living are targets for death, its healthy are targets for illness, its kingdom will be pillaged, its mighty will be vanquished, its wealthy will be afflicted, and its neighbors will be plundered.

‭1.108.2 ‬Do you not dwell in the abodes of those who came before you and enjoyed longer lives, who left behind more lasting monuments, had lengthier aspirations, were more profuse in number, and led vaster armies? They worshipped the world abjectly, they gave it preference, fully and truly, but they left it without sufficient provisions for the journey, or even a mount to carry them on its back. Have you ever heard that the world in its generosity let a single soul escape in lieu of ransom, or that it gave them any form of help, or offered to accompany them? No. It crushed them with catastrophes, weakened them with calamities, shook them with misfortunes, ground their noses in the dust, trampled them under its hooves, and equipped fate to bring them down. You have seen how it rejected those who bowed before it, gave it preference, and offered it loyalty. Their departure is an eternal separation. Did the world supply them with anything other than thirst, house them in anything other than narrow graves, give them anything other than dark gloom, or requite them with anything other than regret? Is this the same world that you too favor above all else, put your faith in, covet? What a wretched abode for those who do not view it with suspicion, who are not on their guard!

‭1.108.3 ‬Know this—and you do—that you too will leave the world, you too will depart. Take lessons from the fate of those who «said: is anyone mightier than we are?»¹ They have been carried to their graves but cannot be called wayfarers, they have been laid there to rest but cannot be called guests, they have been covered in dirt and shrouded by earth. Decaying bones are their neighbors—neighbors who cannot answer those who call out to them, offer protection from attackers, or care about their mourners’ wails. If they get rain they do not rejoice, if they encounter drought they do not despair. They are together yet each is alone, neighbors yet so far distant from one another, so close yet they do not visit, so near yet they cannot meet, senior commanders whose hostilities are a thing of the past, rash youths whose hate and rancor

‮ٱستبدلوا بظهر الأرض بطنًا وبالسعة ضيقًا وبالأهل غربة وبالنور ظلمة فجاءوها كما فارقوها حفاة عراة قد ظعنوا عنها بأعمالهم إلى الحياة الدائمة والدار الباقية كما قال سبحانه ﴿كَمَا بَدَأْنَآ أَوَّلَ خَلْقٍ نُّعِيدُهُ وَعْداً عَلَيْنَآ إِنَّا كُنَّا فَاعِلِينَ﴾.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭109‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام ذكر فيها ملك الموت وتوفّيه الأنفس‬‎

‮هل تحسّ به إذا دخل منزلًا أم هل تراه إذا توفّى أحدًا بل كيف يتوفّى الجنين في بطن أمّه أيلج عليه من بعض جوارحها أم الروح أجابته بإذن ربّها أم هو ساكن معه في أحشائها. كيف يصف إلٰهَه من يعجز عن صفة مخلوق مثله.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭110‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮وأحذّركم الدنيا فإنّها منزل قُلعة وليست بدار نُجعة قد تزينّت بغرورها وغرّت بزينتها دار هانت على ربّها فخلط حلالها بحرامها وخيرها بشرّها وحياتها بموتها وحلوها بمرّها. لم يُصَفِّها الله لأوليائه ولم يضنّ بها على أعدائه خيرها زهيد وشرّها عتيد وجمعها ينفد وملكها يسلب وعامرها يخرب فما خير دار تنقض نقض البناء وعمر يفنى فناء الزاد ومدّة تنقطع ٱنقطاع السير. ٱجعلوا ما ٱفترض الله عليكم من طلبتكم وٱسألوه من أداء حقّه ما سألكم وأسمعوا دعوة الموت آذانكم قبل أن يدعى بكم. إنّ الزاهدين في الدنيا تبكي قلوبهم وإن ضحكوا ويشتدّ حزنهم وإن فرحوا ويكثر مقتهم أنفسهم وإن ٱغتبطوا بما رزقوا قد غاب عن قلوبكم ذكر الآجال وحضرتكم كواذب الآمال فصارت الدنيا أملك بكم من الآخرة والعاجلة أذهب بكم من الآجلة. وإنّما أنتم إخوان على دين الله ما فرّق‬‎

have been swept away, their blows no longer feared, their protection no longer sought. They surrendered the back of the earth for its belly, a vast space for narrow straits, family for exile, and light for darkness. They left the world as they had come, barefoot and naked, departing with their deeds to eternal life and the everlasting abode. For, as God says, «as I brought the first creation into being, so I shall bring it forth anew—this is my pledge, and I shall bring it to pass.»¹

‭1.109 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī in which he spoke of the Angel of Death and the manner in which he takes souls:²

Do you sense his presence when he enters a home, or see him when he takes someone away? In fact, do you know how he takes the life of a fetus from inside its mother’s womb? Does he enter through one of her limbs, or does its spirit answer the angel with God’s permission, or is he residing with it already inside the mother? How can we who are incapable of describing a creature like us aspire to describe our creator?

‭1.110 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

I warn you of this world: it is a home from which you will be uprooted, not an abode where you own the right to pasture, a dwelling adorned in deception, deceiving with its adornments. It is worth nothing in the eyes of its Lord, which is why he has intertwined the lawful in it with the unlawful, the good with the bad, life with death, and sweet with bitter. God has not made the world pure for his friends to enjoy, nor begrudged it to his enemies, for its good is meager, its evil ever present, its goods are temporary, its realm awaits pillage, and its habitations anticipate ruin. What good is a house that will crumble as a timeworn edifice, a life that will be exhausted like provisions, and a timespan that will be completed like a journey? When you supplicate God, include a prayer for his help in undertaking his mandates and ask him to aid you in giving him his due. Bend your ears to death’s summons before your name is called. True renunciants live thus: their hearts weep even when they laugh, their grief is intense even when they are joyful, and their self-condemnation is great even though they are delighted with what they have been given. But your hearts have lost awareness of your imminent end and are filled with false hopes; the world controls you to the detriment of the hereafter; the here-and-now has distanced you from the afterlife. You are brethren in God’s religion, but foul intentions and evil

‮بينكم إلّا خبث السرائر وسوء الضمائر فلا توازرون ولا تناصحون ولا تباذلون ولا توادّون ما لكم‭¹‬ تفرحون باليسير من الدنيا تدركونه ولا يحزنكم الكثير من الآخرة تُحرَمونه ويقلقكم اليسير من الدنيا يفوتكم حتّى يتبيّن ذلك في وجوهكم وقلّة صبركم عمّا زوي منها عنكم كأنّها دار مقامكم وكأنّ متاعها باقٍ عليكم. وما يمنع أحدكم أن يستقبل أخاه بما يخاف من عيبه إلّا مخافة أن يستقبله بمثله قد تصافيتم على رفض الآجل وحبّ العاجل وصار دين أحدكم لُعْقَة على لسانه صنيع من قد فرغ من عمله وأحرز رضى سيّده.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭111‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭111‬.‭1‬ ‬الحمد لله الواصل الحمد بالنعم والنعم بالشكر. نحمده على آلائه كما نحمده على بلائه. ونستعينه على هذه النفوس البِطاء عمّا أمرت به السراع إلى ما نهيت عنه. ونستغفره ممّا أحاط به علمه وأحصاه كتابه علم غير قاصر وكتاب غير مغادر. ونؤمن به إيمان من عاين الغيوب ووقف على الموعود إيمانًا نفى إخلاصه الشرك ويقينه الشكّ. ونشهد أن لا إلٰه إلّا الله وحده لا شريك له وأنّ محمّدًا عبده ورسوله شهادتين تصعدان القول وترفعان العمل لا يخفّ ميزان توضعان فيه ولا يثقل ميزان ترفعان عنه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭111‬.‭2‬ ‬أوصيكم عباد الله بتقوى الله التي هي الزاد وبها المعاد زاد مبلّغ ومعاد منجح دعا إليها أسمعُ داعٍ ووعاها خير واعٍ فأسمع داعيها وفاز واعيها. عباد الله إنّ تقوى الله حمت أولياء الله محارمه وألزمت قلوبهم مخافته حتّى أسهرت لياليهم وأظمأت هواجرهم‬‎

purposes have divided you—you have stopped supporting one another, counseling one another, giving to one another, or bearing one another affection. Why are you so overjoyed when you win the world’s baubles, yet not grieved when deprived of the hereafter’s bounty? How are you so exasperated by the loss of these trifles that your anger, your frustration, is plain on your face? You act as though you will always live here, as though this wealth will always remain yours! The only thing that stops you from confronting your brother or disclosing his failings is your fear that he will do the same. You have both rejected the afterlife and devoted yourselves to the present. Religion to you has become a dollop for your tongue to lick up, as though you had already completed your work and satisfied your master.

‭1.111 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.111.1 ‬Praise God who has linked praise with favors and favors with thanks. We praise him for his blessings, as we praise him for his trials. We ask him to rally our hearts, which are slow to undertake his command and quick to rush into what he has forbidden. We ask his forgiveness for everything we have done that his knowledge encompasses and his inventory includes—that knowledge never falls short, and that inventory never omits. We believe in him, as though we have already seen the deep mysteries and attained the promised reward—our sincerity refuses to assign partners to him, and our certainty rejects all doubt. We bear witness that there is no god but God, he has no partner, and Muḥammad is his servant and messenger, a testimony that assures our prayers’ and our deeds’ ascent to God—no scale on which it is placed is light, no scale from which it is absent has weight.

‭1.111.2 ‬Servants of God, I counsel you to be conscious of him, to be pious. Piety is the best provision for the journey and the best means of return, for it is the provision that will get you to your destination and the return it promises is assured. A perfect caller has called toward it and a perfect listener has taken it to heart—that caller was effective, and that listener will win entry to paradise. Servants of God, his consciousness has protected his chosen ones from trans-

‮فأخذوا الراحة بالنصب والرِّيّ بالظمأ وٱستقربوا الأجل فبادروا العمل وكذّبوا الأمل فلاحظوا الأجل. ثمّ إنّ الدنيا دار فناء وعناء وغِيَر وعبر فمن الفناء أنّ الدهر مُوتِر قوسه لا تخطئ سهامه ولا توسى جراحه يرمي الحيّ بالموت والصحيح بالسقم والناجي بالعطب آكل لا يشبع وشارب لا ينقع ومن العناء أنّ المرء يجمع ما لا يأكل ويبني ما لا يسكن ثمّ يخرج إلى الله لا مالًا حمل ولا بناء نقل ومن غيرها أنّك ترى المرحوم مغبوطًا والمغبوط مرحومًا ليس ذلك إلّا نعيمًا زلّ وبؤسًا نزل ومن عبرها أنّ المرء يشرف على أمله فيقطعه حضور أجله فلا أمل يُدرَك ولا مؤمّل يترك. فسبحان الله ما أغرّ سرورها وأظمأ ريّها وأضحى فَيْئَها لا جاءٍ يردّ ولا ماضٍ يرتدّ. فسبحان الله ما أقرب الحيّ من الميّت للحاقه به وأبعد الميّت من الحيّ لٱنقطاعه عنه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭111‬.‭3‬ ‬إنّه ليس شيء بشرّ من الشرّ إلّا عقابه وليس شيء بخير من الخير إلّا ثوابه. وكلّ شيء من الدنيا سماعه أعظم من عيانه وكلّ شيء من الآخرة عيانه أعظم من سماعه فليكفكم من العيان السماع ومن الغيب الخبر. وٱعلموا أنّ ما نقص من الدنيا وزاد في الآخرة خير ممّا نقص من الآخرة وزاد في الدنيا فكم من منقوص رابح ومزيد خاسر إنّ الذي أمرتم به أوسع من الذي نهيتم عنه وما أحلّ لكم أكثر ممّا حرّم عليكم فذَروا ما قلّ لما كثر وما ضاق لما ٱتّسع. قد تُكُفِّل لكم بالرزق وأمرتم بالعمل فلا يكوننّ المضمون لكم طلبه أولى بكم من المفروض عليكم عمله مع أنّه والله لقد ٱعترض الشكّ ودُخِل اليقين حتّى كأنّ الذي ضمن لكم قد فرض عليكم وكأنّ الذي فرض عليكم قد وضع عنكم. فبادروا العمل وخافوا بغتة الأجل فإنّه لا يرجى من رجعة العمر ما يرجى من‬‎

gressing, and infused their hearts with fear, it has made their nights wakeful and filled their days with thirst, so that they find comfort in toil and satiety in thirst. Aware of approaching death, they hasten to do good. Denying false hopes, they keep death in front of their eyes. Next, know that the world is a place of perishing, weariness, vicissitudes, and instruction. Perishing is this: fate stands stretching his bow, his arrows do not miss, their wounds do not heal; he strikes the living with death, the healthy with illness, and the one who flees with destruction; an eater whose appetite is never satiated, a drinker whose thirst is never quenched. Weariness is this: a man gathers food he will not eat and builds edifices he will not inhabit; he leaves the world and returns to God with no property to carry, no edifice to transport. Vicissitudes are these: you see the pitied become the object of envy, and the envied become the object of pity, simply because of a blessing that has disappeared or a misfortune that has arrived. Lessons are these: a man is about to see his aspirations fulfilled when they are severed by the ending of his life; no aspiration is attained, no aspirer is left alive. Praise God! How deceptive are the world’s pleasures! How parching its drink! How scorching its shade! No one who arrives is turned back, while no one who leaves can return. Praise God! How close are the living to the dead, for they will soon be with them, but how far the dead from the living, for they have been cut off from them forever!

‭1.111.3 ‬There is nothing worse than evil except its punishment, and nothing better than good except its reward. Everything in the world that you hear about is greater than what you see, while everything in the hereafter that you will see is greater than what you hear. Hearing should suffice you, there is no need to see. Reports should suffice you, even without direct witness. Know that a thing that decreases your share of the world but increases your share of the hereafter is better than a thing that decreases your share of the hereafter while increasing your share of the world. Many a person with a decreased share of the world earns good profit, while many a person with an increased share of the world loses everything. What you are commanded to do is more capacious than what you are prohibited from, and the things that are lawful for you are more numerous than the things that are unlawful, so abandon the little for the large, the narrow for the wide. God has guaranteed your sustenance and commanded you to do good, so let not the thing that is guaranteed deserve more effort from you than what is mandated upon you. But, by God, doubt has appeared in your midst, your conviction has become tainted; you act as though seeking the sustenance guaranteed for you is a mandatory act of worship, while the worship that is actually mandated is no longer required! Hasten to do good and fear the sudden arrival of death. There is no hope for return of life, while there is always

‮رجعة الرزق ما فات اليوم من الرزق رُجي غدًا زيادته وما فات أمس من العمر لم يُرْجَ اليوم رجعته الرجاء مع الجائي واليأس مع الماضي فـ﴿ـاتَّقُوا اللّٰهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنتُم مُّسْلِمُونَ﴾.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭112‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عيله السلام في الاستسقاء‬‎

‮اللّٰهمّ قد ٱنصاحت جبالنا وٱغبرّت أرضنا وهامت دوابّنا وتحيّرت في مرابضها وعجّت عجيج الثَّكالى على أولادها وملّت التردّد في مراتعها والحنين إلى مواردها.‭¹‬ اللّٰهمّ فٱرحم حيرتها في مذاهبها وأنينها في موالجها. اللّٰهمّ خرجنا إليك حين ٱعتكرت علينا حدابير السنين وأخلفتنا مخايل الجَوْد فكنت الرجاء للمبتئس والبلاغ للملتمس ندعوك حين قنط الأنام ومنع الغمام وهلك السوام أن لا تؤاخذنا بأعمالنا ولا تأخذنا بذنوبنا وٱنشر علينا رحمتك بالسحاب المنبعق والربيع المغدق والنبات المونق سحًّا وابلًا تحيي به ما قد مات وتردّ به ما قد فات. اللّٰهمّ سُقْيَا منك محيية مروية تامّة عامّة طيّبة مباركة هنيئة مريعة‭²‬ زاكيًا نبتُها ثامرًا فرعها ناضرًا ورقها‭³‬ تنعش بها الضعيف من عبادك وتحيي بها الميّت من بلادك. اللّٰهمّ سُقْيَا منك تُعشب بها نِجادُنا وتَجري بها وِهادنا ويخصب بها جنابنا وتزكو‭⁴‬ بها ثمارنا وتعيش بها مواشينا وتندى بها أقاصينا وتستعين بها ضواحينا من بركاتك الواسعة وعطاياك الجزيلة على بريتّك المُرمِلة ووحشك المُهمَلة. وأنزل علينا سماء مُخضَلّة مِدْرارًا هاطلة يدافع الوَدْقُ منها الودق ويحفز القطر منها القطر غير خُلَّب برقها ولا جَهام عارضها ولا قَزَع رَبابها ولا شَفّان ذِهابها حتّى يخصب لإمراعها المجدبون ويحيى ببركتها المُسنِتون فإنّك تنزل الغيث من بعد ما قنطوا وتنشر رحمتك وأنت الوليّ الحميد.‬‎

hope for return of sustenance; what is lost today of your sustenance may come back increased tomorrow, but what was lost yesterday of your time will never, ever return. Hope lies in the future, despair inhabits the past, so «be conscious of God as you should, and make sure you die submitting to him.»¹

‭1.112 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī beseeching God for rain:

God, our mountains are parched, and our plains have filled with dust. Our sheep have gone mad with thirst and stand dazed in their pens.² They moan like bereaved mothers, too exhausted to look for pasture or search out waterholes. God, have mercy on their panic when they head out, and their sad cries when they return! God, we have come to you in this open space because lean years of drought, like emaciated camels, have hemmed us in, and clouds that promised rain approached but turned away. You alone are the sufferer’s hope and the petitioner’s provider. We call out to you in this time when people have lost heart, when rainclouds have withheld their bounty, and grazing animals have perished. Do not hold us hostage to our deeds or punish us for our sins. Unfold your mercy for us with torrential clouds, abundant herbage, and wondrous vegetation. Send us rain in a heavy downpour that revives what had died and restores what was lost. God, we beseech you for water that is reviving, quenching, perfect, universal, fragrant, blessed, wholesome, and fertile. Let it bring forth plants that flourish, trees full of fruit, and leaves fresh and green. Let it revive your weak servants and renew your barren lands. God, we beseech you for water that makes our highlands verdant, our lowlands lush, our countryside fertile, our fruits grow, and our sheep thrive. Let it irrigate our farthest lands and soak our nearby areas. Shower your vast grace and rich blessings on us, your destitute human creatures, and your forsaken beasts. Send us a soaking, gushing, drenching sky in which one deluge drives away another and raindrops jostle for space—a sky whose lightning does not deceive, whose clouds do not disappoint, whose puffs do not dissipate, and whose drizzle does not usher in cold, barren winds. Let its fertility irrigate the lands struck by famine, let its felicity revive the people hit by drought. You are the one who sends rain after all hope is gone, you are the one who pours down your mercy, you are the protector, the one worthy of all praise!³

‮تفسير ما في هذه الخطبة من الغريب قوله عليه السلام ⟨ٱنصاحت جبالنا⟩ أي تشقّقت من المحول. يقال ⟨ٱنصاح الثوب⟩ إذا ٱنشقّ ويقال أيضًا ⟨ٱنصاح النبت⟩ وصاح وصوّح إذ جفّ ويبس. وقوله ⟨هامت دوابّنا⟩ أي عطشت والهُيام العطش. وقوله ⟨حدابير السنين⟩ جمع حِدْبار وهي الناقة التي أنضاها السير فشبّه بها السنة التي فشا فيها الجدب. قال ذو الرمّة‭¹‬‬‎

‮وقوله ⟨ولا قزع ربابها⟩ القزع القِطَع الصغار المتفرّقة من السحاب. وقوله ⟨ولا شفّان ذهابها⟩ فإنّ تقديره ⟨ولا ذات شفّان ذهابها⟩. والشَّفّان الريح الباردة والذِّهاب الأمطار الليّنة فحذف ذات لعلم السامع به.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭113‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭113‬.‭1‬ ‬أرسله داعيًا إلى الحقّ وشاهدًا على الخلق فبلّغ رسالات ربّه غير وانٍ ولا مقصّر وجاهد في الله أعداءه غير واهن ولا معذّر إمام من ٱتّقى وبصر من ٱهتدى.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭113‬.‭2‬ ‬ولو تعلمون ما أعلم ممّا طُوي عنكم غيبه إذًا لخرجتم إلى الصُّعُدات تبكون على أعمالكم وتلتدمون على أنفسكم ولتركتم أموالكم لا حارس لها ولا خالف عليها ولهمّت كلّ ٱمرئ منكم نفسه لا يلتفت إلى غيرها ولكنّكم نسيتم ما ذُكّرتم وأمنتم ما حُذّرتم فَتَاهَ عنكم رأيكم وتشتّت عليكم أمركم. لوددت أنّ الله فرّق بيني وبينكم وألحقني بمن هو أحقّ بي منكم قوم والله ميامين الرأي مراجيح الحلم مَقاويل بالحقّ مَتاريكُ للبغي مضوا قُدُمًا على الطريقة وأوجفوا على المحجّة فظفروا بالعقبى الدائمة والكرامة‬‎

Raḍī: An explanation of the rare words in the oration: ʿAlī’s saying “our mountain meadows are parched (inṣāḥat)” means they have cracked from the effects of the drought; the Arabs use the same verb for a garment if it is torn, and a plant if it dries up and withers. ʿAlī’s saying “our sheep have gone mad with thirst (hāmat)” means they are thirsty; huyām means thirst. ʿAlī’s saying “emaciated camels of drought (ḥadābīr)” uses the plural of ḥidbār, a female camel made gaunt by hard travel, to which he compared a drought-stricken year. Dhū al-Rummah said:

In the phrase “whose puffs (qazaʿ) do not dissipate,” qazaʿ are small and scattered wisps of cloud. The phrase “whose drizzle does not usher in barren, cold winds (shaffānin dhihābuhā)” actually means “whose drizzle is not a bearer of cold, barren winds”; shaffān is a cold, barren wind, and dhihāb are light showers of rain; the word “bearer (dhāt)” is elided because the hearer would know it is implied.

‭1.113 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:¹

‭1.113.1 ‬God sent Muḥammad to call toward truth and bear witness to people. He conveyed his Lord’s messages, untiring and unstinting. He battled God’s enemies, unflagging and unfaltering. He is the leader of the pious and the eyes of the righteous.

‭1.113.2 ‬If you knew what I know of the mysteries hidden from you, you would run out into the wilderness, weeping over your deeds, and striking your breasts, leaving your property without guard or protector. Every man would be absorbed in his own apprehensions and not spare a single thought for anyone else. But no! You have forgotten what you were told and become complacent about what you were warned. You have gone astray and fallen into total chaos. O, how I wish that God would deliver me from you and unite me with those who deserve my companionship! They, by God, were people of felicitous vision, grave maturity, and truthful speech, people who shunned treachery, advanced on the path, and raced on the road, who won everlasting life and gracious bounty. By God,

‮الباردة. أما والله ليسلّطنّ عليكم غلام ثقيف الذيّال الميّال يأكل خضرتكم ويذيب شَحمتكم. إيهٍ أبا وَذَحة.‬‎

‮و⟨الوذحة⟩ الخُنفساء. وهذا القول يومئ به إلى الحجّاج وله مع الوذحة حديث ليس هذا موضع ذكره.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭114‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮فلا أموالَ بذلتموها للذي رَزقها ولا أنفُسَ خاطَرتُم بها للذي خلقها تَكرُمون بالله على عباده ولا تُكرِمون اللهَ في عباده فٱعتبروا بنزولكم منازل من كان قبلكم وٱنقطاعكم عن أصل إخوانكم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭115‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أنتم الأنصار على الحقّ والإخوان في الدين والجُنَن يوم البأس والبِطانة دون الناس بكم أضرب المدبر وأرجو طاعة المقبل فأعينوني بمناصحة جليّة‭¹‬ من الغِشّ سليمة من الريب فوالله إنّي لأولى الناس بالناس.‬‎

a swaggering, despotic youth from Thaqīf will take control over you. He will devour your green grass and melt down your fat-tail. Come on, then, you piece of dung on a sheep’s butt!¹

Raḍī: The phrase “you piece of dung on a sheep’s butt” refers to the black beetle, and by this ʿAlī means Ḥajjāj: there is a long story about him and a beetle, but; this is not the place to tell it.²

‭1.114 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:

You don’t spend your wealth for the one who has provided it or risk your lives as you should for the one who has created you. You claim honor in God’s name from his servants, yet you don’t honor God in your treatment of his servants. Be warned! You reside in the homes of those who went before you. Your rope is severed from them, the source that connected you with your brethren.

‭1.115 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:³

You are my supporters in the cause of truth and my brothers in faith, my shields on the day of combat and my closest associates. Through you, I strike those who turn away, and hope for the obedience of those who come forward. Give me sincere counsel, then, which is pure of deceit, and free of doubt, for, by God, I am the worthiest of the people to lead them.

‮‭‭1‬.‭116‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام وقد جمع الناس وحضّهم على الجهاد فسكتوا مليًّا فقال ما بالكم أمُخرَسون أنتم فقال قوم منهم يا أمير المؤمنين إن سرت سرنا معك فقال عليه السلام‬‎

‮ما لكم لا سُدّدتم لرشد ولا هديتم لقصد أفي مثل هذا ينبغي لي أن أخرج إنّما يخرج في مثل هذا رجل ممّن أرضاه من شجعائكم وذوي بأسكم ولا ينبغي لي أن أدع الجند والمصر وبيت المال وجباية الأرض والقضاء بين المسلمين والنظر في حقوق المطالبين ثمّ أخرج في كتيبة أتبع أخرى أتقلقل تقلقل القدح في الجفير الفارغ وإنّما أنا قطب الرحى تدور عليّ وأنا بمكاني فإذا فارقته ٱستحار مدارها وٱضطرب ثِفالها. هذا لعمر الله الرأي السوء. والله لولا رجائي الشهادة عند لقاء العدوّ لو قد حُمَّ لي لقاؤه لقرّبت ركابي ثمّ شخصت عنكم فلا أطلبكم ما ٱختلفت جَنوب وشَمال.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭117‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮تالله لقد عُلّمت تبليغ الرسالات وإتمام العِدات وتمام الكلمات وعندنا أهل البيت أبواب الحكم وضياء الأمر ألا وإنّ شرائع الدين واحدة وسبله قاصدة من أخذ بها لَحِقَ وغَنِم ومن وقف عنها ضلّ ونَدِم. اعملوا ليوم تُذخر له الذخائر وتبلى فيه السرائر ومن لا ينفعه‬‎

‭1.116 ‬From an address by ʿAlī. ʿAlī instructed the people to assemble and urged them to fight, and they all fell silent. “What is wrong with you? Have you been struck dumb?” he exclaimed angrily. Some people answered, “Commander of the Faithful, if you march, we will march with you,” whereupon ʿAlī thundered:¹

What is wrong with you? What you propose is not the right course or the proper way! Is it fitting in this situation for me to take to the field? The one who should set out is a warrior I choose from your bravest and strongest. I should not abandon the main army, the capital city, the public treasury, collection of revenues, dispensation of justice, or oversight of petitioners’ rights! I should not ride in one battalion to chase another, shaken about like an arrow shaft in an empty quiver! I am the pivot in the grinding stone. It rotates around me while I remain in my place. If I were to abandon it, it would spin out of control and its base would shudder and break. God’s life! This is a terrible proposition! By God, again! Were it not for my hope of earning a martyr’s death when I encounter the enemy—an encounter that is preordained!—I would fetch my camel and ride away. I would not seek you out then for as long as the north and the south winds blow.

‭1.117 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:

By God! I have been taught the transmission of God’s messages, the fulfillment of his pledges, and the full meaning of his words.² We—the people of his Prophet’s house—possess the keys to wisdom and the light of command. Hark! All trodden paths of religion are as one, its roads lead to the same destination. Whoever traverses them catches up with those who went before and wins God’s favors, and whoever stays back strays from the path and earns regret. Set aside deeds for the day for which all provisions are hoarded, in which all hearts will be tested. If your intelligence does not benefit you now, that which is farther from you is even more out of your reach, and that which is absent is even less accessible.³ Protect yourself from a fire whose heat is intense, whose pit is deep, and

‮حاضر لُبّه فعازبه عنه أعجز وغائبه أعوز وٱتّقوا نارًا حرّها شديد وقعرها بعيد وحِليتها حديد ألا وإنّ اللسان الصالح يجعله الله للمرء في الناس خير له من المال يورثه من لا يحمده.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭118‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام وقد قام رجل من أصحابه فقال نهيتنا عن الحكومة ثم أمرتنا بها فما ندري أيّ الأمرين أرشد فصفق عليه السلام إحدى يديه على الأخرى ثمّ قال‬‎

‮هذا جزاء من ترك العقدة أما والله لو أنّي حين أمرتكم بما أمرتكم به حملتكم على المكروه الذي يجعل الله فيه خيرًا فإن ٱستقمتم هديتكم وإن ٱعوججتم قوّمتكم وإن أبيتم تداركتكم لكانت الوثقى ولكن بِمَنْ وإلى مَنْ. أريد أن أداوي بكم وأنتم دائي كــ⟨ناقش الشوكة بالشوكة وهو يعلم أنّ ضَلْعها معها⟩. اللّٰهمّ قد ملّت أطبّاء هذا الداء الدويّ وكلّت النزعة بأشطان الرَّكيّ. أين القوم الذين دُعوا إلى الإسلام فقبلوه وقرأوا القرآن فأحكموه وهِيْجوا إلى الجهاد فوَلَّهوا اللِّقاحَ أولادها وسلبوا السيوف أغمادها وأخذوا بأطراف الأرض زحفًا زحفًا وصفًّا صفًّا. بعضٌ هلك وبعض نجا لا يبشرّون بالأحياء ولا يعزّون عن القتلى‭¹‬ مُرْهُ العيون من البكاء خُمْص البطون من الصيام ذُبْل الشِّفاه من الدعاء صُفْر الألوان من السهر على وجوههم غبرة الخاشعين أولئك إخواني الذاهبون فحقّ لنا أن نظمأ إليهم ونعضّ الأيدي على فراقهم. إنّ الشيطان يُسَنّي لكم طرقه ويريد أن يحلّ دينكم عقدة عقدة ويعطيكم بالجماعة الفرقة‭²‬ فٱصدفوا عن نزغاته ونفثاته وٱقبلوا النصيحة ممّن أهداها إليكم وٱعقلوها على أنفسكم.‬‎

whose ornaments are chains of iron. Listen to me! A pious reputation, one that God sustains through people’s tongues, is better for a person than any wealth he may leave behind for his ungrateful heirs.

‭1.118 ‬From an address by ʿAlī, when one of his associates stood up and confronted him, saying, “You forbade us to enter into arbitration then commanded us to enter it, and we don’t really know which of the two was the more reasonable course.” ʿAlī clapped one hand over the other in frustration and anger, then spoke:¹

This is how one who relinquishes a sound position is rewarded! By God! Had I forced you—when I commanded you what I did—to follow the hard course in which God has ordained good, that sound position would have been established. Then, if you had stayed resolute, I would have guided you, if you had deviated, I would have straightened you, and if you had balked, I would have set you right. But with whom, and through whom! I apply you as the cure when you are my disease, like ⟨a person who extracts a thorn with a thorn, knowing that the one inclines toward the other!⟩² O God! How weary the physician treating this vicious disease! How tired the water-drawer hauling up these well ropes! O where are the people who were called to Islam and accepted it, who recited the Qurʾan and acted on it, who were urged to fight and raced to it? They tore camels from nurslings, snatched swords from their sheaths, and set out to the far regions of the earth, marching steadily, row by row. Some perished, and some survived, neither gladdened by their living nor saddened by their dead, their eyes raw from weeping, their stomachs lean from fasting, their lips withered from praying, their color pale from wakeful nights, and their faces dusty from long prostration. Those were my departed brothers! It is only right that I should thirst for them, that I should wring my hands at their separation! Satan has smoothed his paths for you. He wants to undo your religion, knot by knot, and replace your unity with dissent. Reject his incitements and whisperings! Accept your benefactor’s counsel and guard it with care!

‮‭‭1‬.‭119‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام قاله للخوارج وقد خرج إلى معسكرهم وهم مقيمون على إنكار الحكومة فقال عليه السلام أكلّكم شهد معنا صفّين فقالوا منّا من شهد ومنّا من لم يشهد قال فٱمتازوا فرقتين فليكن من شهد صفّين فرقة ومن لم يشهدها فرقة حتّى أكلّم كلًّا بكلامه. ونادى الناس فقال أمسكوا عن الكلام وأنصتوا لقولي وأقبلوا بأفئدتكم إليّ فمن نشدناه شهادة فليقل بعلمه فيها ثمّ كلّمهم عليه السلام بكلام طويل من جملته أن قال‬‎

‮ألم تقولوا عند رفعهم المصاحف حيلةً وغيلةً ومكرًا وخديعةً إخوانُنا وأهلُ دعوتنا ٱستقالونا وٱستراحوا إلى كتاب الله سبحانه فالرأي القبول منهم والتنفيس عنهم فقلت لكم هذا أمر ظاهره إيمان وباطنه عدوان وأوّله رحمة وآخره ندامة فأقيموا على شأنكم وٱلزموا طريقتكم وعضّوا على الجهاد بنواجذكم ولا تلتفتوا إلى ناعق نعق إن أجيب أضلّ وإن تُرك ذلّ. فلقد كنّا مع رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله وإنّ القتل ليدور بين الآباء والأبناء والإخوان والقرابات فما نزداد على كلّ مصيبة وشدّة إلّا إيمانًا ومُضِيًّا على الحقّ وتسليمًا للأمر وصبرًا على مضض الجراح. ولكنّا إنمّا أصبحنا نقاتل إخواننا في الإسلام على ما دخل فيه من الزيغ والاعوجاج والشبهة والتأويل فإذا طمعنا في خصلة يَلُمّ الله بها شَعَثَنا ونتدانى بها إلى البقيّة فيما بيننا رغبنا فيها وأمسكنا عمّا سواها.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭120‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام قاله لأصحابه في وقت الحرب‬‎

‮وأيّ ٱمرئ منكم أحسّ من نفسه رباطة جأش عند اللقاء ورأى من أحد من إخوانه فشلًا فليذبّ عن أخيه بفضل نجدته التي فُضِّل بها عليه كما يذبّ عن نفسه فلو شاء الله لجعله مثله إنّ الموت طالب حثيث لا يفوته المقيم ولا يُعجزه الهارب إنّ أكرم الموت القتل والذي نفس ٱبن أبي طالب بيده لَأَلْف ضربة بالسيف أهون من مِيتة على الفراش.‭¹‬‬‎

‭1.119 ‬This is from ʿAlī’s address to the Kharijites—who condemned his acceptance of the arbitration—after he had marched to their encampment.¹ He first asked, “Were all of you present with me at Ṣiffīn?” “Some among us were, and others were not,” they replied. He then instructed, “Separate into two groups, those present at Ṣiffīn and those not, so I can address each group according to their position.” He then called out in a raised voice, “Stop your talk, listen to my words, and attend with your hearts, and if I ask a person to testify about a point, let him say what he knows about it.” After this, he spoke with them at length, and this is some of what he said:

When the Syrians raised leaves from the Qurʾan on spears—using trickery, deception, cunning, and lies—wasn’t it you who said, “These are our brothers and people of our faith who beg us to cease fighting and take refuge in the Book of God—we should accept what they offer and deliver them from calamity”? I said to you then, “This is an affair whose facade is faith but whose reality is pure malice, its beginning is mercy, but its end is regret. So keep to your positions and stay steady on your path, bite down with your back teeth and fight, and do not heed this errant bleater. If you accept his call, he will lead you astray, if you don’t, we will defeat him.” When we were with God’s Messenger, we stood by him when fighting raged between fathers, sons, brothers, and kin. Calamities and hardships only increased our faith, our steadfastness in truth, our acceptance of God’s command, and our fortitude in the face of painful wounds. But here, today, we have had to fight our brothers in Islam over their deviations, deviances, doubts, and false interpretations. When I thought there could be a way in which God may yet bring order to our scattered nation, and by which we may yet draw closer and conciliate, I was hopeful, and so I desisted from the other course.

‭1.120 ‬From an address by ʿAlī to his supporters before the start of a battle:²

If any of you finds composure in his heart when meeting the enemy, and if he senses fear in one of his brothers, he should use his courage to defend him just as he defends himself. Had God wished it, he would have created them both the same. Death is an assiduous seeker. No one who stays home escapes it, and no one who flees battle eludes it. The most honorable death is on the battlefield. By the one who holds the soul of Abū Ṭālib’s son in his hand, a thousand sword strikes are easier to bear than dying on your bed!

‮‭‭1‬.‭121‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮وكأنّي أنظر إليكم تَكِشّون كشيش الضِّباب لا تأخذون حقًّا ولا تمنعون ضَيمًا قد خُلّيتم والطريقَ فالنجاة للمقتحم والهلكة للمتلوّم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭122‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في حضّ أصحابه على القتال‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭122‬.‭1‬ ‬فقدّموا الدارع وأخّروا الحاسر وعضّوا على الأضراس فإنّه أَنْبٰى للسيوف عن الهام وٱلْتَوُوا في أطراف الرماح فإنّه أَمْوَر للأسنّة وغُضّوا الأبصار فإنّه أربط للجأش وأسكن للقلوب وأميتوا الأصوات فإنّه أطرد للفشل. ورايتَكم فلا تُميلوها ولا تخلّوها ولا تجعلوها إلّا بأيدي شجعانكم‭¹‬ والمانعين الذِّمار منكم فإنّ الصابرين على نزول الحقائق هم الذين يَحُفّون براياتهم ويكتنفونها حِفافَيْها ووراءها وأمامها لا يتأخّرون عنها فيُسلموها ولا يتقدّمون عليها فيفردوها. أَجزَأَ ٱمرؤٌ قِرْنَه وآسى أخاه بنفسه ولم يَكِلْ قرنه إلى أخيه فيجتمع عليه قرنه وقرن أخيه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭122‬.‭2‬ ‬وٱيم الله لئن فررتم من سيف العاجلة لا تسلموا من سيف الآخرة. وأنتم لَهاميم العرب والسنام الأعظم إنّ في الفرار مَوجِدةَ الله والذلّ اللازم والعار الباقي وإنّ الفارّ غير مزيد في عمره ولا محجوز بينه وبين يومه مَن رائحٌ إلى الله كالظمآن يرد الماء الجنّة تحت أطراف العوالي اليوم تُبلى الأخبار.‭²‬ اللّٰهمّ فإن رَدّوا الحقّ فٱفضض جماعتهم وشتّت كلمتهم وأَبْسِلْهم بخطاياهم إنّهم لن يزولوا عن مواقفهم دون طعنٍ دِراكٍ يخرج منه النسيم وضرب يفلق الهام ويطيح العظام ويُندر السواعد والأقدام وحتّى‬‎

‭1.121 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:¹

I see you now, scuttling away like a group of thorn-tailed lizards, neither demanding your rights, nor defending against attackers. But you are free to choose your path! Those who brave danger will be saved, those who hold back will perish.

‭1.122 ‬From an address by ʿAlī urging his followers to fight:²

‭1.122.1 ‬Place the armor-clad in front and the unprotected behind. Bite down on your back teeth, for that will blunt the blades that strike at your heads. Twist when facing lances, for that will make spearheads glance off your body. Focus your eyes low, for that will calm your hearts. Kill idle talk, for that will boost your courage. Don’t let your banner list, or leave it unprotected, or give it to any but your bravest warriors who are staunch in defending honor. Indeed, those who are valiant in the face of death will guard it and surround it from both sides and from front and back, neither falling back and surrendering it, nor rushing ahead and leaving it unguarded. Each man should tackle his own opponent and also come to his brother’s aid. He should never leave his own opponent for his brother to face, such that both his and his brother’s opponents join forces against his brother.

‭1.122.2 ‬By God, if you are successful in fleeing the sword of this world you will still not be safe from the sword of the hereafter. This, when you are chieftains of the Arabs and the lofty crest of the camel’s hump! Fleeing from the battlefield earns God’s wrath, eternal dishonor, and lasting shame, and anyway, the absconder cannot increase his lifespan—nothing will protect him when his day arrives. Who among you will return to God in the evening like a thirsty man coming to a waterhole? Paradise lies beneath the points of tall spears! This is the day when resolutions will be tested—O God, scatter the enemy if they challenge the truth, divide their views, and destroy them for their sins! They will be dislodged from their positions only when sharp spears leave gaping wounds on their torsos, and cutting swords split skulls, slice bones, and sever arms and legs,

‮يُرمَوا بالمناسر تتبعها المناسر ويُرجَموا بالكتائب تقفوها الجلائب‭¹‬ حتّى يُجَرَّ ببلادهم الخميس يتلوه الخميس وحتّى تَدعَق الخيول في نواحر أرضهم وبأعنان مساربهم‭²‬ ومسارحهم.‬‎

‮⟨الدَّعْق⟩ الدَّقّ أي تدقّ الخيول بحوافرها أرضهم. ⟨نواحر أرضهم⟩ متقابلاتها. يقال ⟨منازل بني فلان تتناحر⟩ أي تتقابل.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭123‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في معنى الخوارج لمّا أنكروا تحكيم الرجال ويذمّ فيه أصحابه قال عليه السلام‬‎

‮إنّا لم نحكمّ الرجال وإنّما حكّمنا القرآن وهذا القرآن إنمّا هو خطّ مسطور بين الدفّتين لا ينطق بلسان ولا بدّ له من ترجمان وإنّما ينطق عنه الرجال. ولمّا دعانا القوم إلى أن نحكمّ بيننا القرآن لم نكن الفريق المتولّي عن كتاب الله وقال الله سبحانه ﴿فَإِن تَنَازَعْتُمْ فِي شَيْءٍ فَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى اللّٰهِ وَالرَّسُول﴾ فردّه إلى الله أن نحكم بكتابه وردّه إلى الرسول أن نأخذ بسنّته فإذا حُكم بالصدق في كتاب الله فنحن أحقّ الناس به وإن حكم بسنّة رسول الله فنحن أولاهم به. وأمّا قولكم لِمَ جعلت بينك وبينهم أجلًا في التحكيم فإنّما فعلت ذلك ليتبيّن الجاهل ويتثبّت العالم ولعلّ الله أن يصلح في هذه الهدنة أمر هذه الأمّة ولا يؤخذ بأكظامها فتعجّل عن تبيّن الحقّ وتنقاد لأوّل الغيّ. إنّ أفضل الناس عند الله من كان العمل بالحقّ أحبّ إليه وإن نقصه وكَرَثَه من الباطل وإن جرّ إليه فائدة وزاده فأين يُتاهُ بكم ومن أين أُتيتم. استعدّوا للمسير إلى قوم حَيارى عن الحقّ لا يبصرونه ومُوزَعين بالجور لا يعدلون به جفاة عن الكتاب نُكْب عن الطريق ما أنتم بوثيقة يُعلق بها ولا زوافر يعتصم إليها لبئس حُشّاش نار الحرب أنتم أُفٍّ لكم لقد لقيت منكم بَرَحًا يومًا أناديكم ويومًا أناجيكم فلا أحرارٌ عند النداء ولا إخوان ثقة عند النِّجاء.‬‎

when they are attacked by column after column and battered by battalions and cavalry, when their lands are attacked by army upon army, when the interlocking arteries of their terrain and the open vistas of their trails and pastures are trampled by squadrons of cavalry.

Raḍī: “Trample (daʿq)” means pounding, i.e., squadrons of cavalry pounding the terrain with their horses’ hooves. “Interlocked arteries of their terrain (nawāḥir arḍihim)” are separate sections that face one another. It is said “the campsites of such-and-such tribe are as interlocked necks (manāzilu banī fulānin tatanāḥaru),” meaning they face one another.

‭1.123 ‬From ʿAlī’s address censuring the Kharijites when they condemned his appointment of men to arbitrate:¹

I did not appoint men to arbitrate—I sought arbitration from the Qurʾan. But yes, this Qurʾan is a set of written lines enclosed by two covers; it does not speak with a tongue and thus has need of an interpreter, and those who speak on its behalf are men. When the Syrians proposed to have the Qurʾan arbitrate between us, I did not turn away from God’s Book, for he has said «If you disagree about something, refer it to God and his Messenger.»² To refer it to God is to rule by his Book, and to refer it to the Messenger is to follow the Messenger’s Sunnah. Had the arbitration been executed by the Book of God, I would have been found to be the person most worthy of the caliphate. If it had been executed according to the Sunnah of God’s Messenger, I would have been established as the most deserving. You object, “Why did you allow them an interval to decide the arbitration?” I did so in order that the ignorant might see the light and the informed might gain strength. I hoped that in the interim of truce God would stabilize the community, so it would not be grabbed by the throat and rushed back into error before the truth was became clear. The best man in God’s eyes holds right dearer than wrong, no matter how hard or painful it is to act on, and no matter how much gain or benefit it brings. Pray, then, whereto do you stray, what corrupted you? Prepare to march against that confounded group of men who cannot see the truth! Seduced by tyranny, they cling to it; uneasy with the Book, they stray from its path. But you are also not a sturdy rope to cling to, or mighty lions who defend! What courage have the likes of you to ignite the blaze of combat? Shame! All you give me is pain! One day I rally you in public, the next I urge you in private, but your response to a call to muster is not that of the free and brave, or, when approached in confidence, of brothers I can trust.

‮‭‭1‬.‭124‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام لمّا عوتب على تصييره الناس أسوة في العطاء من غير تفضيل أولي السابقات والشرف قال‬‎

‮أتأمرونّي أن أطلب النصر بالجور فيمن وليت عليه والله ما أَطُورُ به ما سَمَر سمير وما أَمَّ نجم في السماء نجمًا لو كان المال لي لسوّيت بينهم فكيف وإنّما المال لهم.‭¹‬‬‎

‮ثمّ قال عليه السلام‬‎

‮ألا وإنّ إعطاء المال في غير حقّه تبذير وإسراف وهو يرفع صاحبه في الدنيا ويضعه في الآخرة ويكرمه في الناس ويهينه عند الله ولم يضع ٱمرؤ ماله في غير حقّه وعند غير أهله إلّا حرمه الله شكرهم وكان لغيره ودّهم فإن زلّت به النعل يومًا فٱحتاج إلى معونتهم فشرُّ خدين وأَلْأَمُ خليل.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭125‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام للخوارج أيضًا‬‎

‮فإن أبيتم إلّا أن تزعموا أنّي أخطأت وضللت فَلِمَ تُضلّلون عامّة أمّة محمّد صلّى الله عليه وآله بضلالي وتأخذونهم بخطأي وتكفّرونهم بذنوبي. سيوفكم على عواتقكم تضعونها مواضع البراءة والسقم وتخلطون من أذنب بمن لم يذنب. وقد علمتم أنّ رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله رجم الزاني ثمّ صلّى عليه ثمّ ورّثه أهله وقتل القاتل وورّث ميراثه أهله وقطع السارق وجلد الزاني غير المحصَن ثمّ قسم عليهما من الفَيء ونكحا المسلمات. فأخذهم رسول الله بذنوبهم وأقام حقّ الله فيهم ولم يمنعهم سهمهم من الإسلام ولم يُخرج أسماءهم من بين أهله ثمّ أنتم شِرار الناس ومن رمى به الشيطان مراميه وضرب به تِيهَه. وسيهلك فيّ صنفان محبّ مفرط يذهب به الحبّ إلى غير الحقّ ومبغض‬‎

‭1.124 ‬From an address by ʿAlī responding to the outpouring of complaints when he standardized treasury stipends with no privilege for precedence or nobility:¹

Do you urge me to seek victory by oppressing the people I rule? By God, no, I will never do so, not as long as the night-watch is kept or while one star follows another in the heavens! If the funds had been mine, I would still have distributed them equally. How, then, when they belong to the people?

Then he said:

Listen to me! Awarding funds from the treasury to those who have no right to them counts as waste and squandering. It elevates the provider on earth but lowers his worth in the hereafter, it ennobles him among people but belittles him in the eyes of God. When a man gives money for unrighteous ends to undeserving recipients, God deprives him of their gratitude and veers their loyalty toward another. Then, if one day his foot slips and he needs their help, his previous act will reveal itself to be his worst bedfellow and most sordid friend.

‭1.125 ‬From another address by ʿAlī to the Kharijites:²

Even if you insist—and you do so wrongly—on believing that I have sinned and erred, then why do you hold the whole of Muḥammad’s community errant because of my supposed error?³ Why do you hold them responsible for my sin and label them unbelievers because of my transgression? You strap swords to your shoulders and use them equally against the sound and the sick, placing the sinner with those who have not sinned. You know that the Messenger stoned the fornicator then prayed over him and allowed his family to inherit. He executed the murderer then distributed his property to his family. He cut the hand of the thief and flogged the unmarried fornicator yet continued to give them a share of the war booty and allowed them to marry Muslim women. The Messenger punished these sinners for their sins and carried out God’s mandated penalties, yet he did not deprive them of their share of Islam’s benefits, nor did he remove their names from the roster of Muslims. But you! You are the worst of people! In you, Satan has struck his target. Through you, he has accomplished his mission of obfusca-

‮مفرط يذهب به البغض إلى غير الحقّ وخير الناس فيّ حالًا النمط الأوسط فٱلزموه وٱلزموا السواد الأعظم فإنّ يد الله على الجماعة وإيّاكم والفرقة فإنّ الشاذّ من الناس للشيطان كما أنّ الشاذّة من الغنم للذئب ألا من دعا إلى هذا الشعار فٱقتلوه ولو كان تحت عمامتي هذه. فإنّما حُكِّم الحَكَمان ليحييا ما أحيا القرآن ويميتا ما أمات القرآن وإحياؤه الاجتماع عليه وإماتته الافتراق عنه فإن جرّنا القرآن إليهم ٱتّبعناهم وإن جرّهم إلينا ٱتّبعونا. فلم آتِ لا أبا لكم بُجْرًا ولا خَتَلْتُكم عن أمركم ولا لبّسته عليكم إنّما ٱجتمع رأي مَلَئِكم على ٱختيار رجلين أخذنا عليهما أن لا يتعدّيا القرآن فَتاها عنه وتركا الحقّ وهما يُبصرانِه وكان الجور هَواهُما فمَضَيا عليه وقد سبق ٱستثناؤنا عليهما في الحكومة بالعدل والصَّمْد للحقّ سوءَ رأيهما وجورَ حكمهما.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭126‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام فيما يخبر به عن الملاحم بالبصرة‬‎

‮يا أحنف كأنّي به وقد سار بالجيش الذي لا يكون له غُبار ولا لَجَب ولا قعقعة لُجُم ولا حمحمة خيل يثيرون الأرض بأقدامهم كأنّها أقدام النعام.‬‎

‮يومئ بذلك إلى صاحب الزنج. ثمّ قال عليه السلام‬‎

‮ويل لسِكَكِكُم العامرة ودُوركم المزخرفة التي لها أجنحة كأجنحة النسور وخراطيم كخراطيم الفِيَلة من أولئك الذين لا يُندَب قتيلُهم ولا يفقد غائبهم. أنا كَابُّ الدنيا لوجهها وقادرها بقَدْرها وناظرها بعينها.‬‎

tion. Two types of people—with regard to their relationship with me—will perish: one who loves to excess, whose love crosses the boundary of right, and one who hates, whose hate crosses the boundary of right.¹ The best of people—with regard to their relationship with me—are the ones who keep to the middle road,² so keep to it! Keep to the assembled group, for God’s hand guides the congregation. Beware of division, for the isolated individual is hunted by Satan, just as the lone sheep is hunted by the wolf. Kill any person who calls to that evil banner, even if that man were me, the man wearing this turban! The arbitrators’ charge was to revive what revives the Qurʾan and to kill what kills the Qurʾan. To revive the Qurʾan is to unite around it, and to kill it is to splinter from it. The mandate was that if the Qurʾan drew us to them, we would follow them, and if it drew them to us, they would follow us. I have committed no wrong—may you have no fathers! I did not deceive you or muddy your affair. It was you, the majority of you, who chose these two men. I made them pledge that they would not transgress the Qurʾan, but they strayed from it and abandoned the truth, while seeing it all the while in front of them. Their intent was to oppress, and they did. I had made their arbitration contingent upon justice and truth—by their corrupt judgment and unjust ruling they have invalidated it.

‭1.126 ‬From an address by ʿAlī foretelling epic fighting in Basra:³

Listen, Aḥnaf! I see him marching with troops that raise no dust, that make no sound, with no clanking of irons or neighing of horses, their feet silently pounding the earth like swift ostriches.

Raḍī: In these lines, ʿAlī predicted the uprising of the Chief of the Zanj.⁴ Then he said:

Grief to your flourishing quarters and beautiful homes, with their eagle wings and elephant trunks,⁵ from an army whose dead will go unmourned and whose missing will go unnoticed! As for me, I hurl the world on its face, I measure it for what it is worth, I view it with its own eyes!

‮ومنه ويومئ به إلى وصف الأتراك‬‎

‮كأنّي أراهم‭¹‬ قومًا كأنّ وجوههم المَجانّ المطرّقة يلبسون السَّرَق والديباج ويعتقبون الخيل العِتاق ويكون هناك ٱستحرار قتل حتّى يمشي المجروح على المقتول ويكون المفلت أقلّ من المأسور.‬‎

‮فقال له بعض أصحابه لقد أعطيت يا أمير المؤمنين علم الغيب فضحك عليه السلام وقال للرجل وكان كلبيًّا‬‎

‮يا أخا كلب ليس هو بعلم غيب وإنمّا هو تعلمّ من ذي علم وإنمّا علم الغيب علم الساعة وما عدّده الله بقوله ﴿إِنَّ اللّٰهَ عِندَهُ عِلْمُ السَّاعَةِ وَيُنَزِّلُ الْغَيْثَ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا فِي الْأَرْحَامِ وَمَا تَدْرِي نَفْسٌ مَّاذَا تَكْسِبُ غَدًا وَمَا تَدْرِي نَفْسٌ بِأَيِّ أَرْضٍ تَمُوتُ إِنَّ اللّٰهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ﴾ فيعلم سبحانه ما في الأرحام من ذكر أو أنثى وقبيح أو جميل وسخيّ أو بخيل وشقيّ أو سعيد ومن يكون في النار حَطَبًا أو في الجِنان للنبيّين مرافقًا. فهذا علم الغيب الذي لا يعلمه أحد إلّا الله وما سوى ذلك فعلم علّمه الله نبيّه صلّى الله عليه وآله فعَلَّمَنيه ودعا لي بأن يَعيه صدري وتضطمّ عليه جوانحي.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭127‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام في ذكر المكاييل والموازين‬‎

‮عباد الله إنكّم وما تأملون من هذه الدنيا أَثْوِياء مُؤَجَّلون ومَدينون مُقتضَون. أجل منقوص وعمل محفوظ فربّ دائب مضيّع وربّ كادح خاسر. قد أصبحتم في زمن لا يزداد الخير فيه إلّا إدبارًا والشرّ إلّا إقبالًا والشيطان في هلاك الناس إلّا طمعًا فهذا أوان قويت عُدّته وعمّت مكيدته وأمكنت فريسته. اضرب بطرفك حيث شئت من الناس فهل تبصر‭²‬ إلّا فقيرًا يكابد فقرًا أو غنيًّا بدّل نعمة الله كفرًا أو بخيلًا ٱتّخذ البخل بحقّ الله وفرًا أو متمرّدًا كأنّ بأذنه عن سمع المواعظ وقرًا. أين خياركم وصلحاؤكم وأين أحراركم وسمحاؤكم وأين المتورّعون في مكاسبهم والمتنزّهون في مذاهبهم أليس قد ظعنوا جميعًا عن‬‎

From the same address, foretelling the coming of the Turks:¹

I see them before me now, their craggy faces latticed shields, their robes silk and brocade, their mounts purebred steeds. I see violent fighting, the wounded trampling the slain, hardly any escaping and a host being captured.

At that, one of ʿAlī’s associates exclaimed, “You have knowledge of the mysteries, Commander of the Faithful!” ʿAlī laughed and said to the man, who was from the tribe of Kalb:

This is not knowledge of the mysteries, O Kalbite, but what I have learned from one who had true knowledge.² Knowledge of the mysteries constitutes knowing the coming hour and the things God has enumerated in his words, «God has knowledge of the coming hour, he sends down rain, and knows what is in wombs. No man knows what he will earn tomorrow, and no man knows the land in which he will die, but God is all-knowing, all-aware.»³ God knows what is in wombs, male or female, ugly or beautiful, generous or stingy, wretched or blissful. He knows who will go to hell and who will enjoy the company of the prophets in paradise. This is the knowledge of mysteries that God alone possesses. All else is knowledge that God taught to his Prophet, who taught it to me, and he prayed for my heart to preserve it and my breast to keep it safe.

‭1.127 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī about measures and weights:⁴

Servants of God! You, with all that you desire of this world, are lodgers with fixed timespans and debtors whose reckoning is coming due. The term approaches and deeds are preserved. Some who strive still squander and some who work still lose. You live in an era when good retreats, evil advances, and Satan is greedy for people he can throw into hell. This is that time: his army is strong, his plots commonplace, and his victims easy prey. Look at the people, look where you like! All you will see is paupers who suffer, rich men who repay God’s blessings with ingratitude, misers who withhold God’s due, and rebels whose ears are deaf to counsel. Where are the virtuous and the pious, where are the free and the generous, where are the honest earners and the people of scru-

‮هذه الدنيا الدنيّة والعاجلة المنغّصة وهل خلّفتم إلّا في حُثالة لا تلتقي بذمّهم الشفتان ٱستصغارًا لقدرهم وذهابًا عن ذكرهم فـ﴿إِنَّا لِلّٰهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُون﴾ ظهر الفساد فلا منكرٌ مغيّر ولا زاجر مزدجر أفبهذا تريدون أن تجاوروا الله في دار قدسه وتكونوا أعزّ أوليائه عنده هيهات لا يُخدَع الله عن جنّته ولا تنال مرضاته إلّا بطاعته. لعن الله الآمرين بالمعروف التاركين له والناهين عن المنكر العاملين به.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭128‬ ‬ومن كلامه عليه السلام لأبي ذرّ رحمه الله لمّا أُخرج إلى الربذة‬‎

‮يا أبا ذرّ إنّك غضبت لله فٱرجُ من غضبت له إنّ القوم خافوك على دنياهم وخفتهم على دينك فٱترك في أيديهم ما خافوك عليه وٱهرب منهم بما خفتهم عليه فما أحوجهم إلى ما منعتهم وأغناك عمّا منعوك وستعلم مَنِ الرابح غدًا والأكثر حسدًا.‭¹‬ ولو أنّ السماوات والأرض‭²‬ كانتا على عبد رَتْقًا ثم ٱتّقى الله لجعل الله له منهما مخرجًا ولا يؤنسنّك إلّا الحقّ ولا يوحشنّك إلّا الباطل فلو قبلت دنياهم لأحبّوك ولو قرضت منها لآمنوك.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭129‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أيّتها النفوس المختلفة والقلوب المتشتّتة الشاهدة أبدانهم والغائبة عنهم عقولهم أَظْأَرُكم على الحقّ وأنتم تنفرون عنه نفور المِعْزى من وَعْوَعة الأسد. هيهات أن أُطلع بكم سِرار‬‎

ple? They have departed this vicious, murky world, leaving you insignificant scum, you, whose very censure lips disdain to utter, whose slightest mention they spurn! «Truly, to God we belong, and to him we return!»¹ Corruption is everywhere, but no one condemns or changes it, no one censures or disapproves. Is this how you earn lodging in God’s sacred abode and seek to become his dearest friends? Perish the thought! God cannot be tricked into giving you paradise, his pleasure is earned only by obedience. God’s curse on those who command good yet don’t perform, who forbid evil yet don’t renounce!

‭1.128 ‬From an address by ʿAlī to Abū Dharr when he was exiled to Rabadhah:²

Abū Dharr, you were roused to anger in God’s cause, so place your trust in the one in whose cause you were roused to anger. Your adversaries fear you with regard to their worldly gain, while you fear them because of your pious beliefs. Leave in their hands the thing they fear you will seize, and flee from them, taking with you the thing you fear they will take. How desperately they need the thing you forbid them, and how little you need the thing they forbid you! They will learn on the morrow who has the most profit, who is the most envied. Even if skies and earth close in on a true servant of God, God will show him a way to escape, if he remains conscious of him. Let truth be your comfort, and don’t be afraid of anything except keeping company with falsehood. If you had accepted their proposals for worldly gain, they would have been on your side. If you had partaken of their offers, they would have offered you full protection.

‭1.129 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:³

You divided souls and fragmented hearts, present in body but absent in mind! I urge you toward truth, but you bolt from it like goats from a lion’s snarl! How impossible a task to brighten through your help this night of obscured justice,⁴

‮العدل أو أقيم ٱعوجاج الحقّ. اللّٰهمّ إنّك تعلم أنّه لم يكن الذي كان منّا منافسة في سلطان ولا ٱلتماس شيء من فضول الحُطام ولكن لنردّ المعالم من دينك ونظهر الإصلاح في بلادك فيأمن المظلومون من عبادك وتقام المعطّلة من حدودك. اللّٰهمّ إنّي أوّل من أناب وسمع وأجاب لم يسبقني إلّا رسول الله صلّى الله عليه وآله بالصلاة. وقد علمتم أنّه لا ينبغي أن يكون على الفروج والدماء والمغانم والأحكام وإمامة المسلمين البخيل فتكون في أموالهم نَهْمَته ولا الجاهل فيضلّهم بجهله ولا الجافي فيقطعهم بجفائه ولا الجانف‭¹‬ للدول فيتّخذ قومًا دون قوم ولا المرتشي في الحكم فيذهب بالحقوق ويقف بها دون المقاطع ولا المعطّل للسنّة فيهلك الأمّة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭130‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭130‬.‭1‬ ‬نحمده على ما أخذ وأعطى وعلى ما أبلى وٱبتلى الباطن لكلّ خفيّة الحاضر لكلّ سريرة العالم بما تُكِنّ الصدور وما تخون العيون ونشهد أن لا إلٰه غيره وأنّ محمّدًا نجيبه وبعيثه شهادة يوافق فيها السرّ الإعلان والقلب اللسان.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭130‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮فإنّه والله الجدّ لا اللعب والحقّ لا الكذب وما هو إلّا الموت أَسْمَعَ داعيه وأعجل حاديه فلا يغرّنّك سواد الناس من نفسك فقد رأيت من كان قبلك ممّن جمع المال وحذر الإقلال وأمن العواقب طول أمل وٱستبعاد أجل كيف نزل به الموت فأزعجه عن وطنه وأخذه من مأمنه محمولًا على أعواد المنايا يتعاطى به الرجالُ الرجالَ حملًا على المناكب وإمساكًا بالأنامل. أما رأيتم الذين يأملون بعيدًا ويبنون مشيدًا ويجمعون كثيرًا أصبحت بيوتهم قبورًا وما جمعوا بورًا وصارت أموالهم للوارثين وأزواجهم لقوم آخرين لا في حسنة يزيدون ولا من سيّئة يستعتبون. فمن أشعر التقوى قلبه برّز مَهَلَه وفاز عمله‬‎

or to straighten out the distorted truth! God! You know my intent was not to vie for power or seek this world’s fleeting possessions. I did what I did in order to restore the waymarks of your religion and reform your lands, so your oppressed servants would find security and your forsaken mandates be once more upheld. God! I am the first who turned to you, who heard and answered your call. No one except your Messenger preceded me in the prayer of Islam. O people, you know that one who is in charge of marriage contracts, penalties for murder, distribution of war gains, legal rulings, and leadership of the Muslims should not be a miser or his greed would target their property, he should not be ignorant or he would lead them astray, he should not be harsh or he would alienate them, he should not be a tyrant or he would favor one group over another, he should not be corrupt or he would squander rights and be unjust in the distribution of stipends, and he should not be a person who obstructs the Sunnah or the community would perish.

‭1.130 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

‭1.130.1 ‬I give praise to God for what he has taken away and what he has granted, for what he has gifted to us and what he has tested us with. He is aware of all that is hidden and present with all that is concealed, he knows all that hearts cover and all that eyes disclose. Thus, with my thoughts the same as my declaration, and my heart in accord with my tongue, I testify that there is no god other than he, and that Muḥammad is his chosen messenger.

‭1.130.2 ‬From this same oration:

By God, it is seriousness, no jest, all truth, no lies—there is nothing before you but death. Its caller has made its voice heard, and its driver has quickened the caravan, so don’t let the recklessness of the masses distract you from your soul. You have seen the people who went before who amassed wealth and dreaded destitution, who were complacent about retribution because they cherished long hopes and ignored their shrinking lifespans. You saw death alight at each one’s door, shove him out of his homeland, and seize him from his place of safety. He was carried out on fate’s wooden planks, one group of men handing him on to another, transporting him on their shoulders and gripping him by their fingers. Have you not seen those who cherished long hopes, raised edifices with strong mortar, and amassed abundant wealth? Their houses have become graves, what they gathered is in ruin, their property has gone to their heirs, their wives to other men. They are no longer asked to do good or to repent of earlier sins. It is those who robe their hearts in piety, who outrace their peers, whose deeds win the day. Work hard for this. Perform the deeds required to win par-

‮فٱهتبِلوا هَبَلها وٱعملوا للجنّة عملها فإنّ الدنيا لم تخلق لكم دار مُقام بل خلقت لكم مجازًا لتزوّدوا منها الأعمال إلى دار القرار فكونوا منها على أوفاز وقرّبوا الظهور للزِّيال.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭131‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭131‬.‭1‬ ‬وٱنقادت له الدنيا والآخرة بأزمّتها وقذفت إليه السماوات والأرضون مقاليدها وسجدت له بالغدوّ والآصال الأشجار الناضرة وقدحت له من قضبانها النيران المضيئة وآتت أكلها‭¹‬ بكلماته الثمار اليانعة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭131‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮وكتاب الله بين أظهركم ناطق لا يَعْيا لسانه وبيت لا تهدم أركانه وعزّ لا تهزم أعوانه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭131‬.‭3‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮أرسله على حين فترة من الرسل وتنازع من الألسن فقفّى به الرسل وختم به الوحي فجاهد في الله المدبرين عنه والعادلين به.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭131‬.‭4‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮وإنّما الدنيا منتهى بصر الأعمى لا يبصر ممّا وراءها شيئًا والبصير يَنفُذها بصره ويعلم أنّ الدار وراءها فالبصير منها شاخص والأعمى إليها شاخص والبصير منها متزوّد والأعمى لها متزوّد.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭131‬.‭5‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮وٱعلموا أنّه ليس من شيء إلّا ويكاد صاحبه يشبع منه ويملّه إلّا الحياة فإنّه لا يجد له في الموت راحة وإنّما ذلك بمنزلة الحكمة التي هي حياة للقلب الميّت وبصر للعين العمياء وسمع للأذن الصمّاء وريّ للظمآن وفيها الغنى كلّه والسلامة.‬‎

adise. This world has not been created for you as a home, it has been created for you as a passage on which to gather provisions for the final residence. Make haste to leave it. Make ready the backs of your camels for the journey.

‭1.131 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī:

‭1.131.1 ‬This world and the hereafter have submitted their reins to God, the skies and the earth have handed him their keys, and the blossoming trees prostrate to him at dawn and at dusk. From their branches, his luminous flames are kindled, and in response to his words, they bring forth their harvest of fruit.¹

‭1.131.2 ‬From the same oration:

The Book of God is in front of you. It is a speaker whose tongue does not stutter, a house whose pillars do not collapse, and a force whose supporters are never crushed.

‭1.131.3 ‬From the same oration:

God sent Muḥammad—when prophecy had lagged, and tongues fiercely quarreled—to follow his messengers and seal his revelation. Muḥammad fought in God’s path against those who had turned away from him or who assigned him peers.

‭1.131.4 ‬From the same oration:

The blind see only this world. They cannot see past it, whereas the sighted penetrate it to see what is beyond, and they know their home is yonder. The sighted are waiting to leave it, whereas the blind are moving toward it. The sighted gather provisions from it, whereas the blind gather provisions for it.

‭1.131.5 ‬From the same oration:²

Know this: there is almost nothing its possessor doesn’t weary of except life—no one ever takes comfort in death. This knowledge is the wisdom that brings life to the dead heart, sight to the blind eye, sound to the deaf ear, and water to the parched throat.³ It gives you all the counsel you need, and total safety.

‮كتاب الله تبصرون به وتنطقون به وتسمعون به وينطق بعضه ببعض ويشهد بعضه على بعض لا يختلف في الله ولا يخالف بصاحبه عن الله.‬‎

‮قد ٱصطلحتم على الغِلّ فيما بينكم ونَبَتَ المرعى على دِمَنكم وتصافَيتم على حبّ الآمال وتعاديتم في كسب الأموال لقد ٱستهام بكم الخبيث وتاهَ بكم الغَرور والله المستعان على نفسي وأنفسكم.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭132‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام وقد شاوره عمر في الخروج إلى الروم‬‎

‮وقد توكّل الله لأهل هذا الدين بإعزاز الحوزة وستر العورة والذي نصرهم وهم قليل لا ينتصرون ومنعهم وهم قليل لا يمتنعون حيّ لا يموت. إنّك متى تَسِرْ إلى هذا العدوّ بنفسك فتَلْقَهم فتُنكَب لا تكن للمسلمين كانفة دون أقصى بلادهم ليس بعدك من جمع‭¹‬ يرجعون إليه فٱبعث إليهم رجلًا مِحربًا وٱحفز معه أهل البلاء والنصيحة فإن أظهر الله فذاك ما تحبّ وإن تكن الأخرى كنت رِدْءًا للناس ومثابة للمسلمين.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭133‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام وقد وقعت مشاجرة بينه وبين عثمان. فقال المغيرة بن الأخنس لعثمان أنا أكفيكه فقال أمير المؤمنين صلوات الله عليه للمغيرة‬‎

‮يا ٱبن اللعين الأبتر والشجرة التي لا أصل لها ولا فرع أنت تكفيني‭²‬ فوالله ما أعزّ الله من أنت ناصره ولا قام من أنت مُنهضه اخرج عنّا أبعد الله نَوْأَك ثمّ أبلغ جهدك فلا أبقى الله عليك إن أبقيتَ.‬‎

By God’s Book you see and perceive, through it you speak with reason, and from it you hear the truth. One part of the Qurʾan supports the other—it contains no contradictions about God, and never leads its reader away from him.

Although you hate one another, you band together to cultivate the refuse dump of malice, clasping hands for worldly gain, while fighting one another in the pursuit of wealth. Surely, the evil one has caught you in his spell and arrogance has led you astray! I seek God’s help to fight my passions and yours.

‭1.132 ‬From an address by ʿAlī responding to ʿUmar’s request for advice on whether he should lead the expedition against the Byzantines:¹

God has guaranteed to followers of this faith that he will protect their land and guard their honor. He was the one who gave victory to their small band when they struggled to gain the upper hand, and he protected them when they could not protect themselves. He is the everliving who never dies. When you lead the expedition against the enemy, if you engage them and are pushed back, our fighters will have no stronghold to give them refuge and will flee to distant lands. If you are gone, they will have no community to which to return. Instead, dispatch a seasoned fighter accompanied by an experienced and intelligent group of warriors. If God grants them victory, then you have achieved your goal. If the outcome is otherwise, then you will still be here to harbor our people and provide a haven to which our warriors can return.

‭1.133 ‬From an address by ʿAlī. ʿAlī and ʿUthmān exchanged words, whereupon al-Mughīrah ibn al-Akhnas said to ʿUthmān, “I will take care of him for you.” ʿAlī thundered at Mughīrah:²

You son of a barren, cursed father, of a tree without root or branch, you will see to me? By God, no man you support will ever obtain God’s aid, no man you prop up will remain standing! Be gone, may God starve you of rain, and do your worst! And if you do, may God see to you!

‮‭‭1‬.‭134‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮لم تكن بيعتكم إيّاي فَـلْتة وليس أمري وأمركم واحدًا إنّي أريدكم لله وأنتم تريدونني لأنفسكم. أيّها الناس أعينوني على أنفسكم وٱيم الله لأنصفنّ المظلوم ولأقودنّ الظالم بخَزامته حتّى أورده منهل الحقّ وإن كان كارهًا.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭135‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في معنى طلحة والزبير‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭135‬.‭1‬ ‬والله ما أنكروا منكرًا ولا جعلوا بيني وبينهم نِصْفًا وإنهم ليطلبون حقًّا‭¹‬ تركوه ودمًا هم سفكوه فإن كنت شريكهم فيه فإنّ لهم نصيبهم منه وإن كانوا وَلُوه دوني فما الطَّلِبة إلّا قِبَلَهم وإنّ أوّل عدلهم للحكم على أنفسهم. وإنّ معي لبصيرتي ما لبّست ولا لُـبّس عليّ وإنّها لَلفئةُ الباغية فيها الحمأ والحُمة والشبهة المغدفة وإنّ الأمر لواضح وقد زاح الباطل عن نصابه وٱنقطع لسانه عن شَغَبه وٱيم الله لأفرطنّ لهم حوضًا أنا ماتحه لا يصدرون عنه بِرِيٍّ ولا يَعُبّون بعده في حِسْي.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭135‬.‭2‬ ‬منه‬‎

‭1.134 ‬From an address by ʿAlī:¹

Your oath of allegiance to me was not sworn on an impulse,² and, furthermore, our intentions are not the same: I pursue you for the sake of God, while you pursue me for your own ends. People, help me to make you better! By God, I shall bring justice to the oppressed! I shall drag the oppressor by his nose-ring until I bring him kicking and screaming to the waterhole of truth!

‭1.135 ‬From an address by ʿAlī regarding Ṭalḥah and Zubayr:³

‭1.135.1 ‬By God, they have no cause to fault me, nor is the dispute they raise a fair one. They demand from me a right they abandoned and vengeance for blood they spilt. If I had been their partner in this affair, they would still have their share of culpability. But if they have undertaken it on their own—which they have—then they should be the target of vengeance, and the first justice they mete out should be against themselves. But my conviction has not deserted me, and I have never deceived nor been deceived! They are the treacherous faction!⁴ Their insides are filled with dark slime, scorpion venom, and black suspicions.⁵ But the truth has become clear. Falsehood’s grinding mill has been pushed out of its pivot, and its tongue has been curbed from inciting evil. By God, I shall fill the waterhole for them as only I can—they shall neither leave it sated nor ever drink again from a smooth-bottomed pond!

‭1.135.2 ‬From the same address:⁶

‮فأقبلتم إليّ إقبال العُوذ المَطافيل على أولادها تقولون البيعةَ البيعةَ قبضت كفّي فبسطتموها ونازعتكم يدي فجاذبتموها. اللّٰهمّ إنّهما قطعاني وظلماني ونكثا بيعتي وأَلَبّا الناس عليّ فٱحلل ما عقدا ولا تحكم لهما ما أبرما وأَرِهما المَساءة فيما أمّلا وعملا. ولقد ٱسْتَثَبْتُهما قبل القتال وٱستأنيت بهما أمام الوقاع فغَمَطا النعمة ورَدّا العافية.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭136‬ ‬ومن خطبة له عليه السلام في ذكر الملاحم‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭136‬.‭1‬ ‬يعطف الهوى على الهدى إذا عطفوا الهدى على الهوى ويعطف الرأي على القرآن إذا عطفوا القرآن على الرأي.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭136‬.‭2‬ ‬منها‬‎

‮حتّى تقوم الحرب بكم على ساق باديًا نواجذُها مملوءة أخلافها حلوًا رضاعها علقمًا عاقبتها ألا وفي غدٍ وسيأتي غدٌ بما لا تعرفون يأخذ الوالي من غيرها عمّالها على مساوي أعمالها وتخرج له الأرض أفاليذ كبدها وتلقي إليه سلمًا مقاليدها فيريكم كيف‭¹‬ عدل السيرة ويحيي ميّت الكتاب والسنّة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭136‬.‭3‬ ‬منها‬‎

Shouting “the oath! the oath!” you crowded around me like camel mares snuggling their newborn calves. I closed my palm shut, but you forced it open. I snatched my hand away, but you pulled it toward you. I beseech you, O God: Ṭalḥah and Zubayr have severed my ties of kinship, they have wronged me, they have broken their pledge of allegiance, and incited people to march against me. Undo the knots they have tied, unravel the ropes they have twisted, and show them the opposite of what they wish and strive for! Before beginning the fight, I asked them to return to their pledge; before commencing battle, I gave them a second chance; but they have scorned my kindness and rejected my offer of safety.

‭1.136 ‬From an oration by ʿAlī containing narratives of epic battles:¹

‭1.136.1 ‬He will bend passion to conform to guidance, where others have bent guidance to conform to passion. He will bend caprice to conform to the Qurʾan, where others have bent the Qurʾan to conform to caprice.

‭1.136.2 ‬From the same oration:

War will stand fierce among you, baring its teeth, with full udders that are sweet to suckle but leave a bitter aftertaste of gourd.² Be wary of the morrow which will bring you the unknown. A new sovereign will arrive who will punish governors for their injustice. The earth will reveal to him her inner treasures,³ and offer him submissively the keys to her fortress. He will make you walk the path of justice and resurrect what you have killed of the Book and the Sunnah.

‭1.136.3 ‬From the same oration, about an unjust ruler:⁴

‮كأنّي به قد نَعَقَ بالشام وفحص براياته في ضَواحي كوفان فعطف عليها عطف الضَّروس وفرش الأرض بالرؤوس قد فَغَرت فاغرته وثقلت في الأرض وطأته بعيدَ الجولة عظيم الصولة والله لَيُشَرِّدَنَّكم في أطراف الأرض حتّى لا يبقى منكم إلّا قليل كالكحل في العين فلا تزالون كذلك حتّى تؤوب إلى العرب عوازب أحلامها فٱلزموا السنن القائمة والآثار البيّنة والعهد القريب الذي عليه باقي النبوّة وٱعلموا أنّ الشيطان إنّما يُسَنّي لكم طرقه لتتّبعوا عقبه.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭137‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في وقت الشورى‬‎

‮لن يسرع أحد قبلي إلى دعوة حقّ وصلة رحم وعائدة كرم فٱسمعوا قولي وَعُوا منطقي عسى أن تروا هذا الأمر من بعد هذا اليوم تُنتضى فيه السيوف وتُخان فيه العهود حتّى يكون بعضكم أئمّة لأهل الضلالة وشيعة لأهل الجهالة.‬‎

‮‭‭1‬.‭138‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام في النهي عن عيب‭¹‬ الناس‬‎

‮فإنّما ينبغي لأهل العصمة والمصنوع إليهم في السلامة أن يرحموا أهل الذنوب والمعصية ويكون الشكر هو الغالب عليهم والحاجز لهم عنهم. فكيف بالعائب الذي عاب أخاه وعيّره ببلواه أما ذكر موضع ستر الله عليه من ذنوبه ما هو أعظم من الذنب الذي عابَه به وكيف يذمّه بذنب قد ركب مثله فإن لم يكن ركب ذلك الذنب بعينه فقد عصى الله فيما سواه ممّا هو أعظم منه وٱيم الله لئن لم يكن عصاه في الكبير وعصاه في الصغير لَجُرْأَتُه على عيب الناس أكبر يا عبد الله لا تعجل في عيب عبد‭²‬ بذنبه فلعلّه مغفور له ولا تأمن على نفسك صغير معصية فلعلّك معذّب عليه فليكفف مَن علم منكم عيب غيره لما يعلم من عيب نفسه. وليكن الشكر شاغلًا له على معافاته ممّا ٱبتلي به غيره.‬‎

I can almost see him now as he calls to his flock in Syria and scrapes the ground for his banners to roost in the hinterlands of Kufa. Like an ill-tempered camel mare, he snaps and nips at your townspeople. He carpets its earth with decapitated heads. His jaws wide open, he stamps violently, he ranges far, and his onslaughts are brutal. By God, he will scatter you to the ends of the earth until few remain, as specks of kohl in the eye. You will continue thus until the Arabs’ long-departed reason returns home. During that difficult time, hold fast to established practices and clear traces. Look to your recent era that was stamped by the Prophet’s mark.¹ Know that Satan smooths his pathways to lure you into treading in his steps.

‭1.137 ‬From an address by ʿAlī during the Shūrā Council:²

No one will outpace me in calling to the truth, fostering kinship, or acting with kindness, so listen to my words and pay attention to what I say. You will see swords drawn over this matter after today, and pledges broken; some of you will become leaders of the errant, others, followers of reckless fools.

‭1.138 ‬From an address by ʿAlī in which he forbade his followers from exposing people’s sins:

It befits those who are protected by good character and blessed with sound judgment to show compassion to sinners and transgressors. Gratitude should be their dominant trait, and it should stop them from pointing fingers. Doesn’t the faultfinder who censures his brother and shames him for his trials remember the times when God concealed his own sins, sins that were far graver than the ones he censures his brother for? How can he condemn his brother for a sin he himself has also committed? Even if he has not committed the exact same crime, he has still disobeyed God in other things, some of which were perhaps more severe. By God, even if he has committed no mortal sin, even if has transgressed only in minor ways, his insolence in shaming others is worse than anything else. O servant of God, don’t rush to expose your fellow man’s offence, perchance God may have forgiven it! Don’t think your small transgression trivial, perchance God may punish you for it! Any man who recognizes that he too has committed shameful acts should refrain from shaming another. Thanksgiving for being spared the other man’s trials should give him occupation enough.

‮‭‭1‬.‭139‬ ‬ومن كلام له عليه السلام‬‎

‮أيّها الناس من عرف من أخيه وثيقة دين وسداد طريق فلا يسمعنّ فيه أقاويل الرجال‭¹‬ أما إنّه قد يرمي الرامي وتخطئ السهام ويَحيكُ الكلام وباطل ذلك يبور والله سميع وشهيد أما إنّه ليس بين الحقّ والباطل إلّا أربع أصابع.‬‎

‮فسئل عليه السلام عن معنى قوله هذا فجمع أصابعه ووضعها بين أذنه وعينه ثمّ قال‬‎

‮الباطل أن تقول سمعت والحقّ أن تقول رأيت.‬‎