محمد بن علي بن الحسين بن بابويه

"Whomever fasts one day in Rajab, from its beginning or its middle or its end, Allah will make Paradise obligatory for him. He will bring him to us, in our rank, on the Day of Resurrection. Whomever fasts two days in Rajab, it will be said to him: “Resume your work, for everything that has passed has been forgiven.” Whomever fasts three days in Rajab, it will be said to him: “Everything that has passed and everything that will remain has been forgiven, so intercede for whichever sinner you wish from your brethren to your acquaintances.” Whomever fasts seven days in Rajab, the seven doors of Hell will be locked from him. Whomever fasts eight days in Rajab, the eight doors of Paradise will be opened for him, and he will be able to enter whichever one he wants."

I heard Abu Ja`far Muhammad b. `Ali al-Baqir (as) say: For Allah, there are angels assigned to those who fast. They seek repentance for them every day in the month of Ramadan until its end. They call to those who fast every night at the time of their breakfast: “Rejoice, servants of Allah, for you have hungered little and will be satiated much. You will be blessed, and blessing will come by you” – until the end of the night in the month of Ramadan, wherein they will call to them: “Rejoice, servants of Allah, for Allah has forgiven your sins and accepted your repentance. So, see how you will be when you continue.”

I visited Fadl b. Rabih and he was sitting on the roof. He said: Come to me. I went close that I was right next to him. He said: Look to the side of that house. I looked to where he pointed, then he asked me: What do you see in the house? I said: I see a thrown cloak. He said: Look closer. I gazed attentively and scrutinized my vision, and then I was certain. I said: A man in prostration. He said: Do you know him? I said: No. He said: This is your master. I said: Who is my master? He said: Are you fooling me? I said: I am not fooling you. I do not know a master. Then he said: This is Abu’l Ḥasan Musa b. Ja`far. I inspect him day and night, and I have not seen him at any time except in this state which I shall describe to you: He prays Fajr, and afterwards he follows that with worship for an hour after his prayer (ta`qib) till sunrise. He then bows down in a prostrates and remains in prostration till midday. Someone was appointed to him to check for midday; I do not know when the boy recognizes that the Sun has reached midday. Then, [the Imam] rises and begins his [Dhuhr] prayer, without renewing his ritual ablutions (wudu’), and by this I know that he has not slept during his prostration and did not drowse. He remains in this state [of worship] till he finishes the `Asr prayer. If he prays `Asr, he then bows in a prostration and remains in prostration until the Sun sets. When the Sun sets, he rises from prostration and prays Maghrib without renewing anything, and he remains in the state of prayer and worship until he prays the first night prayer (`Isha’). When he finishes all this, he breaks his fast on something roasted that is brought to him. He then renews his ablutions. After that, he rises and spends the whole night in worship until dawn. I do not know how the boy recognizes and tells that it is time for Fajr, that I see him [Imam Musa] rising for Fajr prayer. This has been his state since the time he was transferred to me. Then, I said: Fear Allah, and do not do something ill to him which might cause you to be deprived of grace. You know well that no one does harm to one of them [the Ahl al-Bayt] without their bounties vanishing. He said: They sent to me more than once commanding me to kill him but I did not answer them to this, and I made them know that I will not do this, and that even if they kill me I will not answer them to what they are asking me to do. After that, [the Imam] was transferred to Fadl b. Yaḥya al-Barmaki. He was imprisoned there for days, and Fadl b. Rabih used to send him a meal each night. He was the only one allowed to enter upon him, so [the Imam] did not eat and did not break his fast except on this meal which was sent to him. This condition remained for three days and nights. On the fourth night, a meal was presented to him by Fadl b. Yaḥya (not Fadl b. Rabih). He (as) raised his hands to the sky and said: O Lord! You know that if I ate this before this day, I would have been performing suicide by my own hands. He ate, and then he got sick. The next day he was sent a doctor to inspect the illness. The doctor said to him: How are you? He did not answer him. When the doctor insisted, he let out the palm of his hand and showed it to the doctor and said: This is my disease. There was a greenness in his hand which indicated that he was poisoned, and the poison had gathered in that point. The doctor left and he said to: By Allah, he knows what you did to him more than you do! Then, he (as) passed away.

Al-Sadiq Ja`far b. Muhammad (as) said: Whoever attends the funeral of a believer until he is buried in his grave, Allah will assign seventy-thousand angels to attend his funeral and seek repentance for him when he comes out of his grave.

We were with the Messenger of Allah (s) one day when he said: I saw astonishing things yesterday. He said: So, we said: O Messenger of Allah! What did you see? Tell us – may we, our families, and our children be your sacrifice. So, he said: I saw a man from my Nation – when the Angel of Death came to take his soul, his goodness to his parents came and prevented it from occurring. I also saw man from my Nation – when the punishment of the grave came to him, his ablution came and prevented it from him. I also saw a man from my Nation who was surrounded by devils – when the remembrance of Allah came, it delivered him from them. I also saw a man from my Nation who was panting and surrounded by the angels of punishment – so his prayer came and prevented him from them. I also saw a man from my Nation who was panting and thirsty. Every time he would come to a pond, it would be prevented from him. Then, the fasting of the month of Ramadan came, fed him, and quenched him. I also saw a man from my Nation trying to gather with the prophets – every time he came to one, he was refused. So, bathing from sexual intercourse came, took him by the hand and sat him next to me. I also saw a man from my Nation with darkness before him, behind him, to his right, to his left, and beneath him – bogged down in darkness. So, his Hajj and `Umra came to him and took him out of darkness and brought him into light. I also saw a man from my Nation trying to speak to the believers, but they did not speak to him. So, his connecting with blood-relatives came to him and said: “O believers! Speak to him, for he would connect with his blood-relatives.” So, the believers spoke to him, made room for him; and he was among them. I also saw a man from my Nation who feared the glare and the evil of Hell, so his charity came, and it shaded his head and covered his face. I also saw a man from my Nation who was taken by the angels of punishment from all directions. Then, his enjoining of established virtues and prohibiting of evil (amr bil ma`ruf wa nahi `an al-munkar) took him out of their midst and took him to the angels of mercy. I also saw a man from my Nation who was on his knees with a veil between him and the mercy of Allah. So, the beauty of his character came, took him by the hand, and brought him into the mercy of Allah. I also saw a man from my Nation whose Book was placed to his left; so, his fear of Allah came and placed the Book to his right. I also saw a man from my Nation whose Scale was lightened, so his children who passed away before him came and made his Scale heavier. I also saw a man from my Nation standing at the edge of Hell, so his hope in Allah came and saved him from that. I also saw a man from my Nation fall into the Fire, so, the tears that he cried out of humility before Allah came and took him out of it. I also saw a man from my Nation trembling on the Path just as a ringworm trembles on the day of a storm. So, his good opinion of Allah came, stabilized him; and he passed through the Path. I also saw a man from my Nation creeping, crawling, and hanging on the Path – so his prayer came, stood him up on his feet; and he passed through the Path. I also saw a man from my Nation reaching the Gates of Paradise as though he came to a locked door; so, his sincere testimony that there is no god but Allah came and opened the gates; and he entered Paradise.

I heard al-Sadiq Ja`far b. Muhammad (as) say: Fulfilling the need of a believer is better than one thousand accepted Hajj with its rites, freeing one thousand slaves for the sake of Allah, and preparing one thousand horses in the way of Allah with a saddle and bridle.

Abu Usama Zayd al-Shahham informed me. He said: I heard Aba `Abdillah al-Sadiq (as) say: Whoever delays Maghrib without a reason until the stars come out, then surely, I dissociate from him to Allah.

I said to al-Sadiq Ja`far b. Muhammad (as): Inform me of this saying – whose saying is it? –: I ask Allah for faith and God-consciousness, and I seek refuge in Allah from the evil consequences of things. Surely, the most honourable of speech is the remembrance of Allah, and the peak of wisdom is obedience to Him. The most truthful of sayings, the most articulate of exhortations, and the most beautiful of stories is the Book of Allah. The most trustworthy virtue is faith in Allah, and the best of ways is the way of Ibrahim, and the best of traditions is the tradition of the prophets of Allah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (s), and the best of possessions is God-consciousness, and the best of knowledge is that which is of benefit, and the best of guidance is that which is followed, and the best of riches is being needless of the people, and the best thing to come to the heart is certainty. The adornment of speech is honesty, and the adornment of knowledge is beautification. The best of deaths is being killing in martyrdom. The best of affairs is that which has the best consequence and so on in goodness. The wretched is [known as] wretched in the womb of his mother, and the blissful is he who learns from the example of others. The best goodness is the pious, and the most foolish of fools is the immoral. The evillest of reports is the lie, and the evillest of affairs is innovation [in religion], and the evillest of blindness is the blindness of the heart, and the worst of regrets is the regret on the Day of Resurrection. The greatest of sinners with Allah is one with a lying tongue. The evillest of gains is gaining usury, and the evillest of consumption is wrongfully consuming the wealth of the orphan. The most beautiful adornment for a man is serenity in faith. Whoever desires reputation, Allah will ruin his reputation. Whoever recognizes [the nature of] tribulation is patient with it, and whoever does not recognize it denies it. Doubt is disbelief. Whoever is arrogant, Allah will put him down. Whoever follows Satan disobeys Allah, and whoever disobeys Allah, Allah will punish him. Whoever thanks Allah, Allah increases for him. Whoever is patient over a calamity, Allah helps him. Whoever relies on Allah, Allah will be sufficient or him. Do not disobey Allah to please one of His creatures, and do not gain the proximity of a creature by distancing yourself from Allah, for there is nothing obliging Allah to give goodness to or repel harm from the creation except obedience and seeking His pleasure. Surely, obeying Allah is the triumph of every desired good, and the triumph over every fearful evil. Surely, Allah protects he who obeys Him, and He does not protect he who disobeys Him. One who retreats from Allah will find no place to retreat to, for surely, the command of Allah will come down to humiliate him, even if the creatures may be averse. Everything that is coming is near – whatever Allah willed has occurred, and whatever He has not willed will not occur. Help one another in righteousness and piety, and do not help one another in sin and aggression. Fear Allah, for Allah is stern in reprisal. He said: So, Al-Sadiq Ja`far b. Muhammad (as) said to me: This is a saying of the Messenger of Allah (s).

I heard `Ali b. Musa al-Rida (as) narrate from his father from his forefathers (as) that the Messenger of Allah (s) said: None of the proverbs of the prophets remain except the saying of the people: “If you feel no shame, then do what you wish.”

Allah revealed to Adam (as): O Adam! Surely, I have gathered all goodness for you in four sayings: one of them is for Me, one is for you, one is for that which is between Me and you, and one is for that which is between you and the people. (1) As for the one that is Mine, it is: worship Me and do not associate partners with Me. (2) As for the one that is yours: I will reward you for your work when you are most in need of it. (3) As for the one that is between Me and you: Betake to supplication, and I will betake to its response. (4) As for the one that is between you and the people: Want for the people what you want for yourself.

I heard Muhammad b. `Ali al-Rida (as) say: Whoever visits my father (as) and is afflicted by any harm from rain, cold, or heat, Allah will forbid the Fire from his body.

Muhammad Ibn Ali Ibn Matil said: There was a woman called Zainab from the people of Aba. She was married to Muhammad Ibn Abdil Abi. She had three hundred dinars. She came to my uncle, Ja’far Ibn Muhammad Ibn Matil and said: “I want you to give this money to Abul Qasim Ibn Ruh.” My uncle sent me with her to translate for her. When I came to Abul Qasim, he addressed her in an eloquent tongue: “Zainab, chuna, chun bada, kulia, Junista.” It meant, “Zainab, how are you and how did you stay and what is the news of your children?” She did not need my translation. She gave the money and came back.

Aba Abdillah Ja’far b. Muhammad عليهما السلام wrote a letter of condolence to Abdallah b. al-Hasan – may Allah be pleased with him – for what had happened to him when he was deported together with the people of his household: In the name of Allah the Beneficent the Merciful, to the righteous successor and the pure descendant from the son of his brother and uncle: now then, if you and the people of your house who were deported together with you are alone in that which has befallen you, then know that you are not alone in grief, anger, sadness and pain of a suffering heart, for I too have been touched with anxiety, worry and the heat of tribulation [for what has happened to you] as has touched you … So I recommend you – O uncle and the son of an uncle, the children of my uncles and my brothers – towards patience, acceptance, submission and leaving the matter to Allah Mighty and Majestic. Be accepting and patient over His decree, holding on to His obedience, alighting as per His order. May Allah pour upon you and us patience. May He conclude for you and us with reward and felicity. May He save you and us from every peril. By His Might and Power. Verily He is All-Hearing Near. May Allah send blessings on his select among his creation Muhammad the prophet and the people of his House.

The masters of the people of this world are the generous; and [the masters] of the Hereafter are the pious.

When `Ali (as) went to the Messenger of Allah (s) in the conquest of Khaybar, the Messenger of Allah (s) said to him: If sects from my Nation would not claim for you what the Christians have claimed for the Messiah Jesus the son of Mary, I would have said something about you today that would cause the people to take the dust from beneath your feet and seek treatment from it due to the excellence of your purity. However, it is enough [to say] that you are from me and I am from you. You inherit from me, and I inherit from you. You are to me as Harun was to Musa, except there is no prophet after me. You fight upon my Sunna, and tomorrow you will be upon the Pond as my vicegerent. You will be the first to return to me at the Pond, and you will be the first to be gowned with me. You will be the first to enter Paradise from my Nation, and your followers will be upon pulpits made of light with illuminated faces around me. I will intercede for them, and tomorrow they will be my neighbours in Paradise. Your war is my war, and your peace is my peace. Your secret is my secret, and your pronouncement is my pronouncement. Your peace at heart is like my peace. Your descendants are my descendants. You will encounter my enemies. The truth is with you, and the truth is upon your tongue, in your heart, and upon your forehead. Faith is mixed into your flesh and blood just as it is mixed into my flesh and blood. No one that hates you will return to me at the Pond, and no one that loves you will be absent from it – they will return to the Pond with you. He said: So, `Ali (as) fell in prostration, then said: “Praise be to Allah, who blessed me with Islam, and taught me the Qur'an, and made me love the best of people, the Seal of Prophets and Master of Messengers; as an eminence and a favour from Him.” He said: So, the Prophet (s) said: Were it not for you, the believers would not be recognizable after me.

From among that which Allah exhorted `Isa b. Maryam (as) is that He said: O `Isa! I am your Lord and the Lord of your forefathers. My name is One, and I am the Only, Alone, who created everything, and all things are made by My making, and all will return to Me. O `Isa! You are the Messiah by My command, and you create from clay that which is in the form of a bird by My permission, and you revive the dead by My words. So, be attentive to Me, and devote yourself to Me, and you will not find a place of refuge except with Me. O `Isa! I assign to you a compassionate bequest with mercy, until the wilaya is ordained from Me and I am pleased. You are blessed as an adult, and you are blessed as an infant, so long that you testify that you are My servant, the son of my maidservant. Bring Me into your self, like your concerns, and make My remembrance your retreat, and come closer to Me with voluntary prayers, and rely on Me and I will suffice for you, and do not rely on other than Me or I will abandon you. O `Isa! Be patient upon calamities and be pleased with destiny. Be like My felicity in you, for My felicity is in being obeyed and not disobeyed. O `Isa! Give life to My remembrance with your tongue and bring My love into your heart. O `Isa! Be vigilant in the hours of neglect and consider Me of gentle wisdom. O `Isa! Be attentive, devoted, and set your heart upon fear [of Me]. O `Isa! Shepherd the night in search of My felicity, and glorify Me in your day for your needs from Me. O `Isa! Strive to complete the good, and you will be known by the good wherever you may turn to. O `Isa! Judge among My servants by My instructions, and stand among them by My justice, for I have descended a healing upon you for that which is in the chests from the illness of Satan. O `Isa! Do not be seated with the infatuated. O `Isa! Truly I say, no creature has believed in Me except that it gains humility towards Me, and it does not gain humility towards Me except that it hoped for My reward. Bear witness that it is safe from My punishment, and that I do not replace or change My Sunna. O `Isa, son of the chaste virgin, weep for your self with a weeping like one who bids farewell to his family and reject the world and leave it to its people and be like one who has taken interest in that which is with his God. O `Isa! Be, with that, soft-spoken, and offer peaceful greetings, and be vigilant when the eyes of the righteous are asleep. Be cautious of the Return, the severe earthquakes, and the horrors of the Day of Resurrection when neither the family, nor the sons, nor wealth will be of any benefit. O `Isa! Apply the kohl of grief to your eyes whilst the people of falsehood laugh. O `Isa! Be humble and patient, for Tuba is for you if you achieve what has been prepared for the patient. O `Isa! Leave this world day by day, and taste that which has become tasteless. I truly say, you are with nothing but your hour and your day, so leave this world with provision. Rough [clothes] and plain food will suffice for you, for you have seen what becomes of it. What you take and how you consume it is written. O `Isa! You are the caretaker, so be merciful to the weak just like My mercy towards you, and do not subdue the orphan. O `Isa! Weep over yourself in private, and move your feet to the timings of prayer, and let Me hear your sweet [supplication in] remembrance of Me, for My actions to you are good. O `Isa! How many communities have I destroyed before you for their sins, while I have protected you from that. O `Isa! Be gentle to the weak and raise your tired eye towards the sky and supplicate to Me, for I am near you. Do not supplicate to Me unless you are beseeching Me, for your concern is one concern. If you supplicate to Me like that, I will answer you. O `Isa! I was not pleased with presenting this world as a reward for those who came before you, nor as a punishment for those I wanted to seek vengeance from. O `Isa! You shall be annihilated, and I shall remain. From Me is your sustenance, and with Me is the timing of your term. To Me is your return, and upon Me is your judgment, so ask from Me and do not ask from any other, for the best from you is the supplication, and from Me is its answering. O `Isa! How numerous are the humans, yet how few in number are the patient! The trees are many, but the good ones are few, so do not be deceived by the beauty of the tree until you have tasted its fruit. O `Isa! Do not be deceived by a rebellious one who disobeys Me, who eats from My sustenance yet worships something other than Me, who then calls on Me during calamities and I answer him, who then returns to what which he was upon, rebelling against Me or exposing himself to My anger. For I swear by Myself, I will take him with a taking that he will not find a saviour from and find no refuge except in Me. Where will he run to, from My skies and My earth? O `Isa! Say to the unjust of the Children of Israel, 'Do not supplicate to Me whilst your illegal earnings are under your hearts and the idols are in your houses, for I have undertaken that I shall answer he who supplicates to Me, and that I shall make my response a curse upon those [who disobey] until they disperse. O `Isa! How have I given them lengthy consideration, and goodly fulfillment, but the people are in neglect and they will not return. The words come out of their mouths, but their hearts are not congruent. They expose themselves to My abhorrence yet display their love for my nearness to the believers. O `Isa! Make your tongue one, both in private and in public, and do the same with your heart and your sight. Turn your heart and your tongue away from that which I have prohibited and restrain your sight from that which has no good in it. How many glances of a looker have planted lust into his heart and returned him by it to the fountains of destruction. O `Isa! Be merciful and compassionate and be as you would like the servants to be towards you. Increase your remembrance of death and the dispersal of families. Do not trifle, for trifling corrupts its doer. Do not neglect, for the neglectful is far from Me. Remember Me with righteous deeds so that I may remember you [in return]. O `Isa! Repent to Me after the sin, and remember Me by the penitence, and believe in Me, and come closer to the believers by Me, and urge them to supplicate to Me with you. Be weary of the supplication of the oppressed, for I have taken an oath upon Myself to open for it the doors of the heavens in acceptance and answer him even if after a while. O `Isa! Know that the companion of evil infects, and the consort of evil destroys. Know the one whom you befriend and choose brothers for yourself from the believers. O `Isa! Repent to Me, for there is not a grand sin that I do not forgive, and I am the Most Merciful of the merciful ones. Work for yourself during your term before someone else works for it, and worship for a day [which will be counted] like a thousand years of your measurement, during which I will exponentially reward the good deeds, and the sins shall remain with their doers. Prepare yourself in this term, and complete the righteous deeds, for how many gatherings have dispersed and its people uprooted - and they are neighbours in the Fire. O `Isa! Abstain from the fleeting, that which will be cut-off, and avoid the expenses of the houses of those who were before you. Call to them and whisper to them. Do [you think] any of them feel? Take up your protection from them and know that you will follow them [in fleeting]. O `Isa! Tell he who rebels against Me with arrogance and opposing deeds to expect My punishment and to await My destruction of him, so that he will be joined with those who are destroyed. Tuba is for you, O son of Maryam. Then, Tuba is for you if you take the etiquette of your God, who is compassionate towards you and Merciful. He initiated you with favours from Him honourably, and He was for you amidst difficulties, and you did not disobey Him. O `Isa! So it is not lawful for you to disobey Him who has taken a covenant with you, just as He has taken a covenant to those who were before you. And I am one of witnesses over that. O `Isa! I have not honoured any creature with the like of My religion, nor have I bestowed a favour unto it with the like of My mercy. O `Isa! Wash what is apparent with the water with you, and heal what is hidden with your good deeds, for you will be returning to Me. O `Isa! I have continually given to you that which I had favoured you with. I sought from you a loan for your self, so if you are stingy with it, you will be with the destroyed ones. O `Isa! Adorn yourself with religion and the love of the poor, and walk upon the earth with humility, and pray upon its places, for it is all pure. O `Isa! Wrap up [your affairs], for all that comes is close by. Read My Book whilst you are pure and make Me listen to your sorrowful voice. O `Isa! There is no good in enjoyment that does not last. The life of the enjoyer is in decline. O son of Maryam! If you were to see what I have prepared for My righteous friends, your heart would melt, and your being would leave you in desire for it. There is no abode like the Abode of the Hereafter, in which the neighbours are the righteous, and the Angels of Proximity enter upon them, and they are those who will meet the Day of Resurrection safe from its horrors. An Abode in which there is no change in its bliss, nor are its people in any decline. O son of Maryam! Compete for it with the competitors, for it is the desire of the desirous, and it is of beautiful scenery. Tuba is for you, O son of Maryam, if you are of the workers for it, along with your forefathers Adam and Ibrahim, in Paradise and Bliss, not seeking to exchange it or transfer from it. That is how I deal with the pious. O `Isa! Flee to Me like those who flee from the flaming Fire; the Fire of chains and torture. No soul that enters it will ever be relieved from its grief. Its part is like the part of the dark night. He who is delivered from it is successful, and he who is not delivered from it will be of the destroyed. This is the Abode of the Tyrants, the hardened oppressors, and every harsh and rude one, and every arrogant boaster. O `Isa! It is a calamitous abode for those who reside in it, and a calamitous dwelling for the unjust. I caution you so that you may be informed about it. O `Isa! Be, wherever you are, an observer for Me, and bear witness that I have created you, and you are My servant, and I have formed you, and I have sent you down to the Earth. O `Isa! Two tongues are not proper for one mouth, nor are two hearts proper for one chest, and same with the minds. O `Isa! Do not wake up as a disobedient one, and do not indulge in vanities whilst awake, and turn yourself away from the tempting vices, and every desire that distances you from Me. So, migrate from it, and know that you are to Me at the position of a Trustworthy Messenger. So be cautious of Me and know that your world will deliver you to Me, and I will take you upon My knowledge. So, humble your self with My remembrance, and have a revering heart whenever you remember Me - conscious whilst the neglectful sleep. O `Isa! This is My advice to you and My trust to you, so take it from Me. I am the Lord of the Worlds. O `Isa! If My servant is patient beside Me, the reward for his deeds will be upon Me. It is upon him to supplicate to Me, and I am sufficient in taking revenge from those who disobey Me. Where will the unjust run to from Me? O `Isa! Speak good words, and be, wherever you are, a sagacious sage. O `Isa! Bestow the good deeds towards Me until it is mentioned in My presence, and betake to My bequest, for there is a healing for the hearts therein. O `Isa! Do not hesitate when you plan My plan, and do not forget My remembrance in the privacy of this world. O `Isa! Take account of yourself by returning to Me until I distribute the rewards for what the workers have worked towards. Those are the ones who will receive their reward, and I am the best of givers. O `Isa! You were created by My Word, and Maryam gave birth to you by My command, and the messenger I sent to her was My Spirit Gabriel the Trustworthy from the Angels, until you stood upon the Earth alive and walking. All of that had been encompassed by My knowledge. O `Isa! Zakariyya is at the status of your father and the guardian of your mother. When he entered her presence in the prayer-niche, he found [heavenly] sustenance there with her. Your counterpart Yahya is from My creatures, and I gifted him to his mother after old age had set in and she had no strength in her. I wanted, by that, to display My authority to her, and to display My power in you. The most beloved of you to Me is he who is obedient to Me and most fearful of Me. O `Isa! Be vigilant, and do not despair from My Spirit. Glorify Me with those who glorify Me and sanctify Me with good words. O `Isa! How can the servants disbelieve in Me whilst their forelocks are in My grip, whilst they traverse My Earth, whilst they are ignorant of My favours, and whilst they align with My enemies? And like that, the disbelievers will be destroyed. O `Isa! Verily, this world is a prison with a rotten smell. The bounty in it is in what you see the tyrants slaughter for. Be wary of this world, for every bounty in it will decline, and there is no bounty in it except for a little. O `Isa! Reach for Me near your pillow, and you will find Me. Supplicate to Me, and you will be beloved to Me, for I am the most Hearing of the hearers. I answer the supplicant when he supplicates to Me. O `Isa! Fear Me, and instill fear of Me in My servants so that the sinners may hold from what they are doing, so that no one would be destroyed except those who are aware of it. O `Isa! Be in awe of Me as you are awed by the beasts and by the death you will encounter, for I created all of those things, so it is Me that they should be awed of. O `Isa! The Kingdom is Mine and in My Hands, and I am the King, so if you obey Me, I shall enter you into My Paradise amidst righteous neighbours. O `Isa! If I am angry at you, the happiness of those who are pleased with you will not avail you. If I am pleased with you, the anger of those who are angry will not harm you. O `Isa! Remember Me in your self, and I will remember you in My Self. Speak of Me in [your] public, and I will speak of you in [My] public, which is better than man's public. O `Isa! Supplicate to Me with the Supplication of the Drowning (du`a’ al-ghariq), the sorrowful one who has no helper. O `Isa! Do not swear by Me falsely, for My throne shakes in anger. This world has a short life, but its hopes are protracted. With Me is an Abode that is better than that which you accumulate. O `Isa! How will you be when I bring out a Book for you which speaks by the truth? You will testify to the secrets that you have concealed, and the deeds you have performed. O `Isa! Say to the unjust of the Children of Israel, ‘You have washed your faces, but left your hearts unclean. Are you trying to deceive Me, or are you being audacious against Me? You are applying fragrance for the people of this world, whilst your insides to Me are at the status of a rotten carcass. It is as if you are a dead people.’ O `Isa! Say to them, ‘Cut your fingernails off from unlawful gains, and deafen your hearing from indecency, and turn towards Me with your hearts, for I am not after your appearances.’ O `Isa! Be happy with good deeds, for in them is My pleasure. Weep over sins, for they are a disgrace. Do not like to do for others what you do not like for them to do for you. If one slaps your right cheek, then give him your left. Come closer to Me with love and your striving and keep away from the ignorant. O `Isa! Be humble to the people of good deeds and participate with them in goodness. Be a witness upon them and say to the unjust of the Children of Israel, ‘O companions of evil - who are seated upon it - if you do not desist, I will transfigure you into apes and swine.’ O `Isa! Say to the unjust of the Children of Israel, ‘Wisdom weeps from its separation from Me, and you laugh whilst fleeing from Me. Has My disavowal come to you? Or have you found security from My punishment? Or are you exposing yourselves to My punishment? I swear by Myself that I will abandon you as an example for the coming generations.’ Then I inform you, O son of Maryam the chaste virgin, of the [coming of] the Master of Messengers, My Beloved – he is Ahmad – the owner of the red camel, with a face illuminated with the light of the full moon, the pure heart, the stern in reprisal, the honourable and prestigious. Verily, he is the Mercy to the Worlds, the Master of the Children of Adam on the Day that he will meet Me. He is the most honourable to Me from those who came before, and the closest of the messengers to Me. The Arab, the Trustworthy, the trustee of My religion, the patient in that, the striving against the polytheists with his hands for the sake of My religion. Inform the Children of Israel of this, and order them to ratify him, believe in him, to obey him, and to support him. `Isa said: My God, who is he, whom if I please it would please You? Allah said: He is Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah to all the people. His status is nearest to Me, and He is the presenter of intercession. Tuba is for him from the prophets, and Tuba is for his Nation who will meet Me upon his way. The people of the Earth praise him, and the people of the skies seek forgiveness through him. The trustworthy, the entrusted, the pleasant, the pleasing, the best of the remaining ones to Me, who will come in the End Times. When he appears, the sky will loosen its rainfall, and the Earth will bring out its blossoms, until they see the blessing. I will bless for them whatever he places his hand upon. He will have many wives and few children. He will live in Bacca, the place of the foundation of Ibrahim. O `Isa! His religion is uprightness, and his direction is right. He is from My party, and I am with him. So, Tuba is for him, then Tuba is for him [again]. Al-Kawthar is his, in the greatest position in the Gardens of Eden. His living is more honourable than any life, and he will pass away as a martyr. For him is a Pond that is larger than [the area between] Bacca and the Sunrise. Therein are springs of a Sealed Drink, similar in number to the stars of the sky, and cups similar in number to the grains of the Earth, sweetened therein from every drink and food of every fruit in Paradise. Whoever drinks from it will never thirst again, and that is from what I have apportioned for him and my favour for him upon the epoch between you and him. His private self will match his public self, his words are his actions, and he will not order [a thing to] the people except that he will do it first. His religion is striving in hardship and in ease. The cities will surrender to him, and the emperor of Rome will yield to him. He will be upon the religion of Ibrahim. He will mention My name when eating, and he will express the greeting of peace. He will pray when the people are asleep. He will pray five prayers every day, calling out to the prayer in sequence, just as an army is called out to with a slogan. He will begin [prayers] with the takbir, and he will end [them] with a taslim. He will line his feet up in prayer just as angels line their feet up. His heart will be humble before Me, as well as his head. The light will be in his chest, and the truth will be upon his tongue - and he will be upon the truth wherever he is. His origin will be as an orphan, wandering for a time required from him. His eyes will sleep, but his heart will never sleep. Intercession is for him, and the Hour will rise upon his Nation. My Hand will be above their hands, so whoever breaks [My covenant] will have broken it upon himself, and whoever fulfills My covenant to him, I will fulfill him with Paradise. So, command the unjust of the Children of Israel to study his Books, and to not alter his Sunna, and to recite the greetings of peace to him, for his status is of great consequence. O `Isa! All that brings you closer to Me, I have led you to it, and all that distances you from Me, I have prohibited you from it, so refer to it for your self. O `Isa! Verily, this world is sweet, and I have utilized you in it, so leave aside that which I have cautioned you from and take that which I have given to you in allowance. O `Isa! Look to your actions with the consideration of a servant who has sinned and erred. Do not look to the actions of others with the position of the Lord. Be ascetic therein, and do not be allured therein lest you become corrupted. O `Isa! Think, contemplate, and look around the Earth; see how the unjust have vanished. O `Isa! All that I have described to you is advice, and all that I have said to you is truth. I am the Manifest Truth, so truth is what I speak, and if you were to disobey Me after I have informed you, there will be no guardian nor a helper for you. O `Isa! Humble your heart with humility, and look to the one who is below you, and do not look to the one who is above you. Know that the head of all error and sin is love of this world, so do not love it, for I do not love it. O `Isa! Soften your heart for Me, remember Me very often in private, and know that My pleasure is in your humility before Me, so become alive in that, and do not be dead. O `Isa! Do not associate partners with Me, and be cautious of Me. Do not be deceived by [good] health, and do not be envious, for this world is like a fleeting shadow. What approaches it is like what it leaves behind. So, compete in righteous deeds with your striving, and be with the truth wherever it may be, even if you are cut or burned with fire. Do not disbelieve in Me after knowing Me. Do not be of the ignorant, for a thing is with a [similar] thing. O `Isa! Pour your tears out from your eyes for Me, and humble your heart for Me. O `Isa! Cry out to Me during harsh conditions, for I help the broken, I answer the restless, and I am the Most Merciful of the merciful ones.

The Messenger of Allah (s) said: The fasting person is in the worship of Allah, even when he is sleeping on his bed; as long as he is not backbiting a Muslim.

Allah revealed to Dawud (as): Why do I see you alone? He said: I have abandoned the people, and they have made me flee to You. He said: Why do I see you silent? He said: My awe of You has silenced me. He said: Why do I see you exhausted? He said: Loving You has exhausted me. He said: Why do I see that you are poor when I have redeemed you? He said: Fulfilling my responsibilities towards You has made me poor. He said: Why do I see you humbled? He said: The greatness of Your majesty, which cannot be described, has humbled me; and that is Your right, O Master. Allah said: So be glad for My reward, for you will have whatever you like on the Day that you will meet Me. You will receive whatever you want from Me on the Day of Resurrection. Al-Sadiq (as) said: Allah revealed to Dawud (as): O Dawud! Be happy by Me, seek pleasure by remembering [Me], and seek enjoyment by speaking to Me. Soon, I will empty the house of the transgressors, and I will place My damnation upon the oppressors.

I have heard the Messenger of Allah (s) describe the characteristics of `Ali – if only one were spread among all the people, they would have sufficient virtue. He (s) said: “For whomever I am a master, `Ali is his master.” He (s) said: “`Ali to me is as Harun was to Musa.” He (s) said: “`Ali is from me and I am from him.” He (s) said: “`Ali is from me like my own self. Obedience to him is obedience to me, and disobedience to him is disobedience to me.” He (s) said: “The war of `Ali is the war of Allah, and the peace of `Ali is the peace of Allah.” He (s) said: “The friend of `Ali is the friend of Allah, and the enemy of `Ali is the enemy of Allah.” He (s) said: “`Ali is the Proof of Allah and His vicegerent over His servants.”

I heard Maytham al Tammar (qr) say: By Allah! This nation will kill the son of its Prophet in Muharram, when ten days have passed from it. The enemies of Allah shall take that day to be a day of blessing, and it shall be. Its mention has preceded [its occurrence] in the knowledge of Allah. I know that due to the knowledge vested in my Master, Amir al-Mu’minin (as) and he has informed me that everything shall weep over him – even the wild beasts in the deserts, the fish in the seas, the birds [suspended] in the middle of the sky. The Sun, the Moon, the stars, the heaven, the Earth, the believing men and jinn, all of the angels of the heavens, Ridwan and Malik and the bearers of the Throne shall weep over him, and heaven shall rain blood and ashes. Then, he said: Allah has made the damnation of the murderer of Husayn (as) obligatory just as He made [His damnation] obligatory on the pagans, those who appointed another god with Allah, the Jews, the Christians, and the Zoroastrians. Jabala said: Then I said to him: O Maytham! How will the people take that day on which Husayn b. `Ali (as) shall be killed to be a day of blessing?! Maytham (ra) wept and said: People will claim through a hadith which they have invented that it is the day on which Allah forgave Adam (as) while He forgave Adam (as) in Dhu’l Hijjah. And they claim that it is the day on which Allah accepted the repentance of Dawud (as) while He accepted his repentance in Dhu’l Hijjah. And they claim that it is the day on which Allah brought forth Yunus (as) from the belly of the whale while Allah brought him forth from the belly of the whale in Dhu’l Qi`dah. And they claim that it is the day on which the Ark of Nuh (as) came to a rest on Mount Judi while it came to a rest on Mount Judi on the eighteenth day of Dhu’l Hijjah. And they claim that it is the day on which Allah split open the sea for the Children of Israel while that was in Rabi` al-Awwal. Then Maytham said: O Jabala! Know that Husayn b. `Ali (as) is the Master of the martyrs on the Day of Resurrection and his companions are a degree above the rest of the martyrs. O Jabala! When you see the Sun [turn] red as if it was fresh blood, then know that your master, Husayn, has been killed. Jabala said: I went out one day and I saw the Sun upon the walls (i.e. its rays) as if it were a blanket dyed in safflower. So, I shrieked at that time and wept, and I said: By Allah! Surely, our Master Husayn b. `Ali (as) has been killed!