Hadith

Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib [a]

1968 sayings · page 30 of 50

1. The truly noble one is he who has been ennobled by his knowledge, and true chiefdom belongs to he who is wary of his duty to Allah, his Lord.

   Bihar al-Anwar, v. 78, p. 82, no. 82; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 185 · permalink

2. The virtue characteristic of chiefs is the beauty of their worship.

   Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 6559; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 185 · permalink

3. There are four virtues that qualify a man for chiefdom: chastity, courtesy, magnanimity and intelligence

   Bihar al-Anwar, v. 1, p. 94, no. 23; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 185 · permalink

4. Engaging in disputes with the lower classes is a source of disgrace for chiefs.

   Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 9813; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 185 · permalink

5. He who does not exert himself in his childhood will not be high-minded when he grows up.

   Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 8272; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 186 · permalink

6. He who asks questions as a child is able to answer them himself as an adult.

   Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 8273; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 186 · permalink

7. He who does not learn as a child does not progress as an adult

   Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 8937; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 186 · permalink

8. The ignorant man is a child even though he may be old, while the knowledgeable man is an adult even though he be young.

   Bihar al-Anwar, v. 1, p. 183, no. 85; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 186 · permalink

9. Clemency is the completion of the intellect.

   Ghurar al-Hikam, v. 1055; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 187 · permalink

10. Clemency arranges the affair of the believer.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 1420; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 188 · permalink

11. The beauty of a man is his clemency.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 4718; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 188 · permalink

12. said, when he set out to pray for rain, 'Allah tries His servants when they commit evil deeds, with shortage of crops, disallowance of blessings and closing the treasury of bounties, so that a repenting man may repent, a man likely to quit may quit, a man likely to remember may remember, and a man likely to be deterred may be deterred

    Nahj al-Balagha, Sermon 123; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 658 · permalink

13. The greater the ordeal and test, the greater the reward and recompense. Do you not see that Allah, the Praiseworthy, tested our precursors from the time of Adam, peace be upon him, to the last generations in this world, with [the creation of] stones that neither harm nor benefit, nor do they see or hear, and He made from them His sacred House, which He made a standing place for people?! But Allah tries His servants with various ordeals, and obligates them with various forms of struggle, and tests them with various dreads, in order to eradicate vanity from their hearts and instill humility in their souls and that this may open the doors to His favor and the feasible means to His forgiveness.

    Sharhe Nahj al-Balagha by Abi al-Hadid, v. 13, p. 156; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 655 · permalink

14. Verily you will be put in tense perplexity and be finely filtered, until you are turned upside down; then certain people will surpass [others] after having lagged behind, while those who were ahead fall back

    Bihar al-Anwar, v. 5, p. 218, no. 12; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 655 · permalink

15. Do not rejoice at wealth and luxury, nor dread poverty and ordeal; for verily gold is tested by the fire and the believer is tested by an ordeal.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 10394; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 656 · permalink

16. Verily the ordeal is faster in descending upon a pious believer than rain to the bottom of the earth.

    Bihar al-Anwar, v. 67, p. 222, no. 29; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 656 · permalink

17. Praise be to Allah, Who offset the sins of our followers (shi`aa) through their hardships, so that their obedience remains immune through it and they become deserving of reward as a result of it.

    Bihar al-Anwar, p. 232, no. 48; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 659 · permalink

18. Whenever Allah punishes a believing servant in this world, [it is only because] He is too Clement, too Glorious, too Generous, and too Kind to requite him with punishment on the Day of Resurrection.

    Bihar al-Anwar, p. 243, no. 82; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 660 · permalink

19. Look carefully at what [attire] you pray in. If it is not among that which is fitting or permissible for it, then it is not accepted

    Basharat al-Mustafa, p. 28; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 720 · permalink

20. When sleep overcomes you while you are in your prayer, then break your prayer and go to sleep, for verily [in that state] you do not know if you are praying for or against yourself!

    Bihar al-Anwar,, v. 84, p. 283, no. 5; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 723 · permalink

21. Observe the timing of the prayer and perform it at its prescribed time, neither hastening to pray it earlier in order to be free of it, nor delaying it because of some work.

    Bihar al-Anwar, v. 83, p. 14, no. 25; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 723 · permalink

22. Do not cut off a friend, even if he disbelieves

    Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 347 · permalink

23. Allah is the greatest name from among the names of God, Mighty and Exalted, and it is the name that cannot be used to name anyone but Allah, and no creature has ever been named with it

    al-Tawhid, p. 231, no. 5; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 94 · permalink

24. Three things enable a servant to attain Allah's pleasure: persistence in seeking forgiveness, affability towards people, and frequent giving of charity.

    Bihar al-Anwar, v. 78, p. 81, no. 74; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 95 · permalink

25. He who dissatisfies his body earns Allah's pleasure, and he who is not willing to dissatisfy his body defies Allah.

    Bihar al-Anwar, v. 70, p. 312, no. 11; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 95 · permalink

26. He [Allah] has advised you to be Godwary in all things, and has made it the height of His good pleasure and His sole requirement from His creatures.

    Nahj al-Balagha, Sermon 183; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 95 · permalink

27. Allah's pleasure is linked to His obedience.'

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 5410; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 96 · permalink

28. The sign of Allah's pleasure with His servant is the satisfaction found in the servant himself with all that Allah decrees, be it in his favour or not.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 6344; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 96 · permalink

29. The ruination of scholars is the love of leadership.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3930; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 132 · permalink

30. The ruination of subjects is abandoning obedience.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3934; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 133 · permalink

31. The bane of clemency is submissiveness.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3940; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 134 · permalink

32. The bane of giving is procrastination.'

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3941; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 134 · permalink

33. The bane of economy is parsimony.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3942; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 134 · permalink

34. The bane of awe is humor.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3943; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 134 · permalink

35. The bane of the quest is failure

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3944; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 134 · permalink

36. The bane of sovereignty is lack of protection

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3945; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 134 · permalink

37. The bane of pacts is lack of compliance

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3946; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 135 · permalink

38. The bane of rule is pride

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3950; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 135 · permalink

39. The bane of narration is lying

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3947; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 135 · permalink

40. The bane of knowledge is not putting it into practice.

    Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 3948; Mizan ul Hikmah, page No. 135 · permalink

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