إبراهيم بن عبد الحميد

I was with Abu Abdullah (as) when Isa ibn Abi Mansur approached, and he (the Imam) said to me: "If you want to see the best in this world and the best in the hereafter, then look at him."

A man came to the Prophet, Allah’s blessings be upon him and his Family, and said: O Messenger of Allah, I have taught my son this book, so for what thing shall I give it? He said: Give it, for the sake of Allah, to your father, and do not give it to five: do not give it to an evil-wisher, nor a goldsmith, nor a slaughterer, nor a wheat seller, nor a slave trader. Then he said: O Messenger of Allah, and what is an evil-wisher? He said: The one who sells winding sheets and wishes for the death of my nation, whereas the one born from my nation is more beloved to me than what the sun has shined upon. As for the goldsmith, he treats the fraud of my nation. As for the slaughterer, he slaughters until mercy departs his heart. As for the wheat seller, he corners food from my nation, whereas for a servant to meet Allah as a thief is more beloved to me than if he meets Him having cornered food for forty days. As for the slave trader, indeed, Jibra’eel, peace be upon him, came to me and said: O Muhammed, indeed, the evil ones from your nation are those who sell people.

"The Messenger of Allah (swt) (peace and blessings of Allah (swt) be upon him and his family) cursed three: the one who eats their provisions alone, the one who sleeps alone in a house, and the one who travels alone in the wilderness."

The Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be upon him and his Family, entered the Mosque, and a group of people were circling around a man, so he said: What is this? They said: A great scholar, O Allah’s Messenger. Then he said: And what great scholar (is he)? They said: The most knowledgeable among the people about the lineages of the Arabs, their incidents, the days of the Jahiliya and poetry. Then he, Allah’s blessings be upon him and his Family, said: That is a knowledge that does not harm the one who is ignorant of it, nor does it benefit the one who knows it.

“Abu al-Hassan, Musa (a.s.), has said, ‘On the Day of Judgment, Allah, most High, will not look to three kinds of people. Of such people one kind is a man who does not buy or sell anything without swearing.’”

A man came to the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, and said: "O Messenger of Allah (swt), I have taught my son to read and write. In what profession should I place him?" The Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, replied:"Entrust him to Allah (swt) and do not place him in five professions: Do not make him a seller of shrouds, nor a jeweler, nor a butcher, nor a grain merchant, nor a slave trader." The man asked: "O Messenger of Allah (swt), what is the harm in selling shrouds?" The Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, explained: "The one who sells shrouds wishes for the death of my nation, while the birth of a new soul in my nation is more beloved to me than all that the sun has risen upon. As for the jeweler, he engages in defrauding my nation. As for the butcher, he slaughters so frequently that mercy departs from his heart. As for the grain merchant, he hoards food against my nation, and it is more beloved to me that a servant meets Allah (swt) as a thief than that he meets Him having hoarded food for forty days. As for the slave trader, Archangel Jibril (as) came to me and said: 'O Muhammad, the worst of your nation are those who sell human beings.'"

I said to Abu Abdillah (as), "Abdur-Rahman ibn Sayabah has a debt owed to him by a man who has died. We spoke to him about forgiving it, but he refused." Imam (as) said: "Woe to him! Does he not know that for every dirham he forgives, he will receive ten in return? But if he does not forgive, then he will only receive a dirham in exchange for a dirham."

‘If one eats pomegranate his heart becomes bright and whosoever’s heart Allah brightens Satan is kept away from him.’ I then asked, ‘What kind of pomegranate is this? I pray to Allah to keep my soul in service for your cause? He (the Imam) said, ‘It is the one from Sur (name of a place near Baghdad), this one?”

"Do not use a basil twig or a pomegranate branch as a toothpick, for they both can stimulate the nerve of leprosy."

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) once asked, ‘O Ishaq, how many people can you find to whom this verse, ‘ . . . They are pleased when you give them something from it, but if they receive nothing, they become angry with you,’ (9:58) applies? The Imam then said, ‘They are more than two thirds of the people.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘One, who is for al-‘Umrah, must perform Tawaf, Sa‘y between al-Safa’ and al-Marwah and shave.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘After shaving he must perform another Tawaf.’”

“After one hundred and fifty years unbeliever rulers, untrusted treasurers and dissolute officials will control the rule. Then the merchants increase but the profits decrease. Usury spreads, illegitimate sons will be everywhere, adultery increase, relatives deny each other, the crescent is regarded as greater than it is, a woman is satisfied with a woman (in lesbianism) and a man is satisfied with a man.” A man said to him: “What will we do when such a time comes?” Imam Ali said: “Escape! Escape! The justice of Allah will still spread among this umma as long as the ulama do not incline to the rulers and as long as the pious still forbid the dissolute from committing sins. If they do not do so and then they are alerted and say: There is no god but Allah, Allah will say from on His Throne: You say it falsely. You are not truthful.”

I once heard abu al-Hassan (a.s.), saying, ‘You must eat fish; if you eat it without bread it is sufficient; and if you eat with bread it becomes more palatable for you.’”