The Seventy-Fourth Assembly, the Assembly of Tuesday, the Twelfth of Jumada al-Ukhra, 368 AH.

I heard Aba `Abdillah al-Sadiq (as) say: Abu Ja`far al-Baqir (as) said: Whoever’s appearances are weightier [in deeds] than his inside, his Scale [of good deeds] will be lightened.

O Sama`a! There are four problems that a believer will not escape: (1) A neighbour that will harm him, (2) a devil that will deceive him, (3) a hypocrite that will follow him, and (4) a believer that will envy him. I said: May I be your sacrifice! A believer that envies him? He said: O Sama`a! He is the harshest of them. I said: How is that? He said: Because he will say something against him, and he will be believed in that.

The believer mixes his knowledge with forbearance. He sits down so that he may learn, he listens so that he may submit, and he speaks so that he may understand. He does not speak about that which he has been entrusted with, even to his friends. He does not fulfill a responsibility with vanity, and modesty does not leave him. When he is praised, he fears what they say, and he seeks Allah’s forgiveness for that which he does not do. He is not harmed by those who ignore him, and he is mindful of impressions of those who know him. The hypocrite forbids others but does not abstain for himself. He commands that which he himself does not fulfill. When he prays, he complains. When he bows, he slumps. When he prostrates, he pecks (prostrates quickly). When he sits, he spreads himself out. When he is going to bed, his only concern is food, even though he is full. When he wakes up in the morning, his only concern is sleep, even though he did not stay up during the night. When he speaks to you, he lies. When he makes a promise, he does not fulfill it. If you entrust him with anything, he betrays it. And if you disagree with him, he backbites you.