صفوان بن يحيى

"Nothing benefits a servant more than the benefit of a righteous wife, who gets joyed when he sees her and in his absence she keeps herself protected and his wealth."

They must become married so that (when) Allah makes them self- sufficient through His generosity.’”

“This is concerning my question before abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), if I can marry a Murji’ah or Harawriyah (two sects). He (the Imam) said, ‘No, but you must marry simple hearted woman.’ I then said, ‘By Allah, it is only a believer or unbeliever.’ Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), said, ‘What is the position of Thanawiy (a sect) people about Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious? The words of Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, are truer than what you say “. . . except the weak ones of man, woman and children who cannot plan or find guidance to the right path. . . ’” (4:101)

“This is concerning my question before abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), about the case of a man who wants to marry a woman; if he can think about her, look behind her and to her face. He (the Imam) said, ‘Yes, it is lawful for a man to look at the woman, if he wants to marry, behind her and to her face/”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘The most hated of the creatures of Allah is one from whose tongue people are afraid.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘Whoever opens his morning activities with the publicity of our secrets Allah will make the heat of iron and the congestion of prisons dominate him.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘Whoever sits with those who abuse the friends of Allah has certainly disobeyed Allah,the Most High.’”

I heard abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), giving advice to his children in the beginning of the month of Ramadan. The Imam said, ‘Make yourselves to work hard; in it (month of Ramadan), sustenance is distributed and the duration of lives is written down. During this month, it is decided who should join the delegation before Allah. In it, there is a night when one good deed is better than a good deed for one thousand months.’”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘If one fasting vomits, one is required to make Qada’ (compensatory fast for) that day; and if one feels nausea but does not vomit, one must complete the fast.’”

“The Holy Quran came in four parts: One fourth is about us (Ahl al-Bayt) one fourth about our enemies, one about traditions and axioms and one fourth about obligations and laws.”

“Once abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), was asked, when I was with him, about the case of a newborn who is not a male or female but there is only the anus and how to deal with the inheritance of such person. He (the Imam) said, ‘The Imam and people come in a gathering, pray to Allah then arrange a raffle to see the name of which sex comes and deal with the case according to the result of the raffle. No other means is as fair as raffle; Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, has said, ‘They cast raffle and he lost in the raffle.’” (37:141)

“The Messenger of Allah has said, ‘The reward for one who possesses excellent moral behavior is equal to the reward for one who worships all nights and fasts all days.”’

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘Wudu’ does not become invalid unless something from your two passages of lower end, which Allah has granted you, comes out.’”

“I once asked abu al-Hassan (a.s.), about the case of a pregnant woman who experiences blood discharge even when she is pregnant, like before every month, should she stop performing Salah (prayer)? He (the Imam) said, ’She must stop Salah if it continues.”’

“I once asked abu Ibrahim (a.s.), about the case of a woman who after giving birth waited for thirty days or more, then she becomes clean and performs Salah (prayer), then experiences blood discharge or yellowish things. He (the Imam) said, ‘If it is yellowish she must take Ghusl (bath), perform Salah (prayer) and must not avoid Salah (prayer).”’

“I asked Abu ‘Abdallah (a.s.), ‘If something would happen to the Imam what should then the people do?” The Imam (a.s.) said, “Where are the words of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Gracious, ‘Not all believers have to become specialists in religious learning. Why do not some people from each group of believers seek to become specialists in religious learning and, after completing their studies, guide their group so that they will have fear of God.’” (9:122) The Imam (a.s.) said, “They will have good reason to be excused as long as they are searching also those who wait for them until they complete their religious education and return back to them.”

“The Messenger of Allah has said that Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has said, ‘I have made the world a borrowing (place) for My servants. Whoever gives Me a loan I will return it ten times over up to seven hundred times over, and more if I so wish. Those who do not lend Me a loan I will take something forcibly from them. If they then exercise patience I will give three such rewards of which if I gave only one to My angels they would all become happy with Me.’ The narrator has said that Abu ‘Abdillah (a.s.) recited the words of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy: ‘. . . those who when suffering hardship say, “We are the servants of Allah and to Him we shall all return,” (2:156) it is they who will receive blessing, [one of the three rewards], and mercy from Allah, [the second of the three rewards], and who have recieved the right guidance (2:157) [the third of the three rewards]. Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) then said, ‘This is when Allah takes something from one forcibly.’”

“Allah will not be ashamed to punish an ’Umma (nation) who has lived a religious lile under the guardianship of an unjust Imam who has said the following.would possess no authority form Allah even though such people would be virtuous and pious in their deeds. However, Allah will be ashamed to punish a people who lived a religious life under the guardianship of an Imam who is just in his dealings and possesses authority from Allah even though they would be unjust in their dealings and have committed sins.”

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said that the Holy Prophet never ate while leaning against something, from the time Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, sent him as His Messenger. He (the Messenger of Allah) disliked sitting as kings, but we are not able to do so.’”

“I once asked abu al-Hassan (a.s.), about the meat of a buffalos and its milk. He (the Imam) said, ‘It is not unlawful to use such items for food.’”