Admonish by Ayt Khamenai

THE GOOD ADMONISHMENTS

EIGHT INTERESTING ADMONISHMENTS IN MORAL CONDUCT

IMAM KHAMENIE

Translated from the Arabic by Yasin T. al-Jibouri

1. WEEPING OVER THE SOUL

One of the matters encouraged by the sacred Islamic creed is that one should weep over his soul. Undoubtedly, we all will weep over our souls if we only realized our reality. We, in fact, are quite inattentive about our status.

Allah created mankind for a defined goal, and he bears the responsibility, and he must not spend his life inattentively; such is the responsibility.

You hear about our pure Imams (peace be with them) weeping although they were the people of prayers and adoration, of knowledge and insight; none of the divine branches of knowledge was hidden from them. But the reason of their weeping was due to their deep knowledge and realization of the reality.

Our Imams (peace be with them), as great as they were, wept! For what did they weep and why? Naturally, not to weep is regarded by those who reach such high stations as a shortcoming. As for us, the matter is not as such. We are busy securing the requirements of life: food, drinks, entertainment, etc. Although there is nothing wrong with seeking these permissible things, and they may sometimes be expected for folks like ourselves, yet one who reached such high stations of nearness to the Almighty will find it very difficult to spend one moment of his life inattentively, even if it may for securing the necessary requirements of life. He, for this reason, weeps because of such a moment. I and you of course do not realize the truth behind this weeping; therefore, we wonder how a moment of inattention can be the reason for all such weeping. Yes, they see what is beyond the veil; as for us, we are veiled from seeing.

THE DAY OF SIGHING AND REGRET

Allah Almighty, in reference to the Day of Judgment, says, "… But warn them of the Day of distress, when the matter will be determined" (Qur'an, 19:39). Every actual moment, which may be less than one second, can make high ranks for you in the Hereafter, but you on the Day of Judgment will see how billions of moments were lost in this life for nothing; will this not cause you to regret it?!

The "Day of distress" is this: You will see that some moments of your lives were expended in taking you away from the goal, further from Allah Almighty; therefore, weeping over the soul is one of the best deeds. It is weeping of one over what comes after death: the Day of Judgment, the Day the torment of which will be a lot more than the torment and the pain of the grave. Such weeping is one of the good deeds; so, when we see death surrounding us and are able to visualize the darkness and loneliness of the grave, could we wake up before it is too late?!

We now live among our friends and loved ones, enjoying the pleasures and sources of happiness of this life, but time will come, which could be after one hour, or one year, or twenty years, when we lose sight of all our loved ones and our pleasures and remain in our loneliness under the dust.

At that time, such estrangement, such a distance from what one became accustomed to all his life, will become the hardest especially when he sees all his deeds in this life present, surrounding him, and he comes to know that the questioning by Munkir and Nakeer is the truth as we recite in the Al Yasin ziyara.

The Day of Judgment may look to us through out worldly eyes hard, but it is in fact thousands of times harder than we imagine it, but since it is distant from our eyes at the present time, we do not realize the value of weeping over these issues, and we will not get to know the horror of the "Day of distress", of sighs.

You like to weep over your soul but you leave it out of your shyness, while Allah orders us not to leave this matter on account of our shyness. If you love adoration, then adore, and let one of you not say that if he prays two extra prostrations people will say that he is being pretentious. Let them say it, and let them be the ones at fault, but you ought not leave the doing of such a deed because of people.

TALKS OF THE NOOR:

Imam Ali (peace be with him) has said, "Congratulations to a form upon which Allah looked as it wept over a sin out of fear of Allah, the most Exalted One, the most Great, while nobody saw that sin except Him" (the Prophet [P], Bihar al-Anwar, Vo. 93, p. 331).

– "Every eye on the Day of Judgment will be tearful save three: an eye that remained vigilant in the way of Allah, an eye that over-flowed with tears out of fear of Allah, and an eye that stayed away from what Allah has prohibited to be seen." (Imam al-Baqir (peace be with him), Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 7, p. 195)

– "There is no drop more loved by Allah, the most Exalted, the most Great, than one of two: a drop of blood in the cause of Allah, and a tear in the pitch dark of the night shed by a servant of Allah seeking thereby none but Allah, the most Exalted, the most Great." (Imam Zainul-Aabideen [peace be with him], Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 69, p. 378)

– "Weeping out of fear of Allah enlightens the heart and protects against committing the same sin again." (Commander of the Faithful (peace be with him), Ghurar al-Hikam)

– "Seven shall be shaded by Allah, the most Exalted One, the most Great, when there is no shade except His: … and a man who mentioned the name of Allah, the most Exalted One, the most Great, so his eyes became tearful out of fear of Allah." (the Prophet [P], Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 84, p. 2.)

– "Tearful eyes and fearful hearts are signs of the mercy of Allah, Exalted is His mention; so, if you find them, take advantage of them and supplicate." (the Commander of the Faithful (peace be with him), Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 93, p. 336)

2. BLESSING OF SUPPLICATION

One of the greatest divine blessings which Allah granted mankind is the blessing of supplication. Suffices that Allah, the most Praised One and the most Exalted, is our Creator and Lord, while we are His weak servants. He permits us to ask Him, to seek Him. This is one of the greatest of Allah's blessings and favors on mankind. Had it not been for the blessing of supplication, man would have remained in a strangulating prison as is the case with those who do not believe in Allah, the most Great, the most Sublime. Nobody must say that since these folks are in a strangulating prison, why have they not yet suffocated? No, they actually are suffocating.

Man lives his daily life without paying attention to himself and to his Lord so long as all his affairs are going on very well. But suffices him when he falls into one pitfall; he may then get to know the importance of remembering Allah and supplicating to Him and the value of addressing and seeking Him.

We have seen how many are those poor ones who suffered from prisons and hardships and they were not believers in Allah and how we felt sorry for them. During those conditions when all the gates close up on man and the world straitens on him, nobody is saved, and nobody succeeds, except one who is with Allah, present before Him, permitted to speak to his Lord. Such folks are the ones who enjoy security, comfort and true ease, and all others are poor losers.

Man lives a tough life, and supplication is Allah's blessing and the gate to ease. Woe unto one who closes this gate on himself, and woe unto the inattentive ones who do not ask Allah for anything!

Asking Allah is not when one says with his tongue, "Lord! Have mercy on me, pay off my debt and do such-and-such to me, etc." This is not asking. It represents some waves and vocal vibrations that are worthless. True asking is when the heart and all the senses are with Allah, at His disposal. In these cases a supplication is definitely answered. The value of supplication for the person who supplicates is greater than the response to it. The very condition of supplicating is greater than responding to the supplication. One of the great men of knowledge has been quoted as having said, "I am more apprehensive of being deprived of supplicating than I am of being deprived of getting a positive response."

Poor is one who is deprived of supplication and is inattentive to speaking with his Lord. You, young folks, must supplicate, plead, speak with Allah and seek what you need from Him. Ask Him for everything and anything that you like.

Of course, one who lives a state of ease with Allah will not consider petty things. Rather, he will totally be paying his attention to what is much greater and magnanimous. What is little is, say, ten thousand liras (for examples), and the greatest is ten million. But what is more precious and greater is to seek Allah's forgiveness. In the supplication during the month of Sha'ban, Imam Ali (peace be with him) says, "Lord! I do not think you reject my asking You for something for which I have spent my life-span pleading to You." What is it? It is seeking what He has in store treasured with Him.

SUPPLICATING FOR FORGIVENESS

Among the text of Abu Hamzah al-Thumali's supplication is this: "Some people believed with their tongues in order to save their own lives." Some people's belief in Allah is merely prattle in order to protect their lives and enjoy the blessings of the Islamic society, but we see in this supplication the following: "We believed in You with our tongues and our hearts s you may forgive us." He thus made divine forgiveness and overlooking the goal of believing.

Achieving Allah's forgiveness is the highest of stations and the greatest quests. We have to seek it from Allah always and ask Him to grant His favors unto us, to help us in our needs in the life of this world as well as in the Hereafter.

When you, young folks, supplicate, you must come to know that you stand before Allah without this being in your imagination because Allah can never be envisioned. You must visualize yourselves as weak servants who are very limited and incapacitated. This is the true reality. I and you have very limited capabilities. A germ enters our bodies and causes us to lose control completely. A severe flu afflicts one of us, rendering him incapacitated, up to the list of other diseases and ailments.

We have to always keep in mind our limitation, weakness and insignificance before Allah and before His friends. When we seek, we have to come to know that the Lord is the One Who can make an option and in His hand is the answer.

We ought to repeat on our tongues what we seek in the depths of our hearts. Such is the supplication that brings us closer to Allah. Supplicate for whatever you can, and pray that Allah grant you peace of mind. And when you do supplicate, please supplicate for the same for us, too.

NOOR TRADITIONS

– "Allah, the most Praised and the most Exalted One, hid His response into pleading to Him; so, do not take any portion of supplicating to Him lightly, for perhaps He consents while you do not know." (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 69, p. 274)

– "Supplicate quite often, for it is the key to every type of mercy and the success of achieving every need. Nothing with Allah can be obtained except with supplication, and no is knocked quite often except that it is about to be opened." (Imam al-Sadiq [peace be with him], Bihar al-Anwar, Vo. 93, p. 395)

– "If one of you is inspired to supplicate at the time of affliction, be informed that the affliction will be short-lived." (Imam Abu Abdullah [peace be with him], Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 93, p. 381)

– "Shall I lead you to a weapon that saves you from your enemies and bring sustenance to you?" They said, "Yes, please, O Messenger of Allah!" He [P] said, "You should supplicate to your Lord during the night and the day, for the weapon of a believer is supplication." (Bihar al-Anwar, Vo. 93, p. 394)

– "The most knowledgeable person about Allah, the most Praised One, is the one who pleads to Him the most." (Commander of thee Faithful (peace be with him) as quoted in Ghurar al-Hikam)

– The Messenger of Allah [P] was asked about the Greatest Name of Allah. He said, "Every Name of Allah's Names is greater; therefore, you must empty your heart of anything else besides Him, then call upon Him by whichever Name you wish." (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 93, p. 322)

2. "… AND BE KIN TO YOUR PARENTS"

The structure of the human life is based on people looking after each other. Without care, affection, concern and other such sentiments, human life cannot be stable, nor can it last at all. These sentiments are present in man due to his awareness and commitment, but they are not present in the animals; rather, it is there in the form of instincts.

These sentiments vary among people in as far as their importance and those influenced by them, including nurturing the rights of the parents.

One upon whom Allah has bestowed His blessing of the presence of the parents or either of them, especially the youths, ought to carry out the obligation of this blessing and to appreciate it. There is no harm to mention in this regard the narrative reported from the most honored Messenger of Allah (P) when someone went to him and asked him, "Who is the most worthy of one's kindness, since one has many relatives, friends and acquaintances with whom he is tied with various links? Towards whom should he direct his benevolence?" The Messenger of Allah (P) said, "Your mother." The man asked him again, "Who is next?" The Messenger of Allah (P) said, "Your mother." The man asked him for the third time, "Then who?" The Messenger of Allah (P) answered, "Your mother."

This means that the distance between the obligation towards one's mother and compared with that towards the rest of rights is very broad. And I tell you that fulfilling the rights of the parents, besides its divine impacts in the Hereafter, brings about moral and financial successes the least of which is the achievement of happiness and content as a natural impact of this deed.

USEFUL THOUGHT

It is useful if I convey to you some personal experiences that are considered a testimony to the above. Whenever I used to achieve success in a field and repeat my calculations, I find out that every success and blessing which happened to me was due to a good deed which I did with my parents.

Twenty years before the demise of my late father, may Allah have mercy on his soul, when he was seventy years old, he was afflicted with a disease in his eyes which almost led to his blindness. During that time, I was continuing my studies and residence in the city of Qum. Gradually, I came to realize from the letters which my father was sending me that he was not seeing very well, so I went to Mshhad and found him in need of a doctor. We visited the doctor several times, then I returned to Qum due to the necessities of the study. During the vacation, I went back to Mashhad and looked after my father's treatment, but no progress took place in his vision, so I returned again to Qum.

In the year 43 A.H. (AD 1964), I had to take him to Tehran because he did not benefit from the treatment in Mashhad. But we in Tehran did not succeed to treat his eyes, either. Of course, after about three years, one of his eyes was treated and he was able to see through it for the rest of his life. But prior to that, he could not see at all to the extent that we had to take his hand to move from one place to another. This matter grieved me a great deal, for he was unable to read, keep others company or do anything else. This was very hard for me.

My father used to feel very comfortable being with me as comared with my siblings, for he never went to the doctor except in my company, and I used to read books for him and discuss scholarly issues with him, so much so that I felt that if I left him, he would not be able to do anything, and this would have been very hard on him.

DEALING WITH ALLAH

One day I was very annoyed with doubts and thoughts in preference of taking my father back to Mshhad and my returning to Qum, but due to the hardship of this matter on me, I went to a friend, and he was a man of knowledge and insight. I told him about what was happening to me, how I felt under pressure, frustrated. On one hand, I could not leave my father, while on the other hand, I saw my future, my life in this world and in the hereafter and their best interest lied only in Qum. He took a short while to contemplate before saying to me, "Leave the city of Qum, go and stay in Mshhad. Do it for the sake of Allah."

I considered his statement and found it sound, for how sweet it is when one deals with his Lord! I decided to returned to Mashhad, for if Allah, the most Praised and the most Exalted, wills, He can bring [the best interest of] my life and my Hereafter to Mashhad. When I made that decision, I felt relaxed and in a moment, I turned from one state to another. I returned home with comfort and pleasure and told everyone about my decision.

Allah granted me many successes following that incident. At any rate, I think that what I obtained of successes in life is due to the kindness which I expressed specifically for my father. I have mentioned this incident so you may pay attention to the importance of such matters with Allah Almighty.

PARENTS' RIGHTS AFTER DEATH

Benevolence to the parents is not limited to the time when they are living; rather, it transcends it to the time beyond death as well. Everyone can be good and kind to his parents. Some narratives state that some of those who are kind to their parents during the latter's lifetime become undutiful to them after their demise while others are dutiful to their parents after they die, having been disobedient to them before. Kindness to the parents after their demise is expressed by supplicating for them and offering charity on their behalf; thus do the souls of the parents become pleased and receive the blessings of their children's kindness.

You ought to pay attention that our focus on the parents and on fulfilling the obligations towards them does not mean abandoning our obligations towards the others. The wife has her rights; the children, the brothers and the neighbors, too, have rights on us. One who is rational and intelligent is the one who combines all these rights and undertakes them towards everyone. I hope Allah will enable you to do that, you and all the believers by the will of Allah Almighty.

NOOR TRADITIONS

– The Almighty says, "… And be kind to your parents." Kindness means you have to keep them good company, not to let them ask you for something which they need even if they can do without it." (Imam al-Sadiq [peace be with him], Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 74, p. 39)

– "If one is pleased when his lifespan is extended and his income is increased should be kind to his parents and keep in touch with his relatives." (the Holy Prophet [P])

– "The offspring are obligated to do three things to their parents: They must thank them in any condition, obey them when they bid and forbid without requiring them to disobey Allah, and to advise them secretly and publicly." (Imam al-Sadiq [peace be with him], Tuhaf al-Uqul, p. 338)

– "A servant may be kind to his parents during their lifetime. Then they pass away, yet he does not pay their debt on their behalf, nor does he seek forgiveness for them; therefore, Allah writes him down as disobedient. And he may be disobedient to them during their lifetime, showing no kindness to them, but when they pass away, he pays off their debt and seeks forgiveness for them, whereupon Allah, the most Exalted, the most Great, records him as being kind [to his parents]." (Imam al-Baqir [peace be with him], Usul al-Kafi, Vol. 2, p. 164)

– Regarding the verse of the Almighty saying, And, out of kindness, lower the wing of humility for them and say, “Lord! Bestow Your mercy on them even as they cherished me in childhood” (Qur'an, 17:24), it means: "Do not fill your eyes with looking at them except kindly and gently, and do not raise your voice over theirs, nor should you raise your hand over theirs, nor should you walk ahead of them." (Imam al-Sadiq [peace be with him], Usul al-Kafi, Vol. 2, p. 158)

4. PRIDE

It can be said that the essence and the soul of the creed is when one transcends himself, his desires, his needs, and if someone claims that this is the meaning of "religion", his statement will not be in vain. What is meant by one getting rid of his ego is that he does not carry for it any weight at all compared to the will of Allah, His greatness, bidding and forbidding. Such an individual who reaches this stage is the truly pious one.

One's prayers, charity, pilgrimage and all types of adoration are worthless if he sees himself to be of importance, of a special status, before Allah. The good deeds of the proud ones are not accepted and are worthless. The adoration of those who see themselves as having a higher status than others and place a value for themselves and their egotism without considering the affairs of other people will be less effective even if they are in appearance among the people of asceticism, obedience and piety. This is so because one who is truly pious cannot have such attributes. The proud person, even if he recites the Qur'an, celebrates the Name of his Lord and undertakes jihad, all these calculations will not have a full impact on him.

Throughout history, rulers, sultans and emirs have varied. Not all of them denied the creed. Some of them worshipped Allah and prayed. Not all of them were like Muhammad Reza Shah and his father in their abandonment of prayers. I have read about Fath Ali Shah (one of the Czarist kings) that he used to listen to Kumayl's supplication in the eve of Thursday in the company of his family and a group of people, but what effect did that supplication have on him?! And the same can be said about the prayers which Nasir ad-Deen Shah used to perform, the one about whom it is said that he once said, "We looked from the sun of the building and found people happy, and we looked and found out that the prayer time was late, so we prayed."

Can you imagine such prayer as being useful?

Such supplication and prayers are useless. Deeds such as these do not bring one closer to Allah, and history proves it for us. Had they been close to Allah, they would not have oppressed His creation like that, and would not have sinned, corrupted and discarded people's rights.

HAROUND AL-RASHID'S TEARS

The "caliphs" of the Umayyads and Abbasides were very bad, unjust and mean, but they at the same time were performing the prayers, upholding the fast, weeping and praising their Lord in the night. It is narrated about Haroun al-Rashid that he wept so much that he wetted is beard when one of the ascetics of his time admonished him. Did his tears bear any impact? In fact, weeping over the soul is what is needed and what is effective. Congratulations to anyone who mourns his soul. But Haroun's tears were not like that. Haroun's selfishness was the essence of his tears. He seeks something for himself, he even wants Allah for himself; Haroun worshipped himself, and such is pride.

Pay attention: Do not be proud; do not deceive yourselves because you have a position, resources, a scientific status or a particular attribute and distinction. You will then be like this same man, king Nasir ad-Deen Shah, who used to look at people from the top of the "building's son" with contempt and lowliness.

When one holds himself to account, he does not see for himself any distinction over others. If we pray, weep, offer charity and work along the path of Islam, this does not grant us a distinction over this group or that. The distinction attitude is very harmful. In contrast, it must not stop one from seeing himself as being higher than his enemies because they re the enemies of Allah Almighty if his incentive is submission to Allah, the most Exalted, and the most Great. In this case, it is commendable. Such an individual must humble himself before the friends of Allah and before the believers; otherwise, pride will drag him into the pitfall, and narratives are numerous about the arrogant ones in the world.

PROUD RULER

Yousuf son of Omer al-Thaqafi was ruler of Iraq during the reign of Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik, one of the "caliphs" of the Umayyads, and he was very oppressive and unfair. He is the one who killed Zaid son of Ali son of Imam al-Husain (peace be with him) who is considered as one of the greatest martyrs in Islam. This unfair ruler was very short, greatly proud and irritable. He was known as killing anyone who called him short or skinny. It is said that his tailors used to bring large quantities of cloth to take al-Thaqafi's measurements then tailor his clothes. Whenever he asked them if the quantity of the cloth was sufficient, they were forced to say that it was hardly so, or even that it was insufficient, because anyone who said it was plenty would be beheaded immediately. Al-Thaqafi sometimes used to send the fabric to the tailor; if the tailor returned with the clothes the extra fabric and said it was superfluous, he would have him beheaded. The tailors always used to answer saying that the fabric was little and they would wok hard to tailor it properly, and that fool used to feel great about it!

Drowning in one's love for himself causes many psychological complexes. We must always beware against falling into this sickness and the line which nobody should take for granted, not even the men of righteousness and piety. No matter in what station you are and no matter how sound your adoration is, seek refuge with your Lord and look ahead of you. The greatness of the Creator is broader than the cycle of our thinking. Where do we stand from the greatness of Allah? Where do we stand from the greatness of the prophets and the friends of Allah? Moreover, what is our value in comparison with the greatness of the men of righteousness and the great men in history?

These great men were the ones who surrendered their souls in the path of Allah and fused their souls into the divine lights and love.

What is our value compared to them? We are folks who have sunk in the life, in our egotism, in our whims. Our Imams (peace be with them) used to seek the forgiveness of their Lord, repent to Him and feel painful on account of sins; so, where are we standing? The "sins" of the Imams (peace be with them) are not like those of backbiting, lying, etc., for they are divinely protected from committing them. Rather, the least inattention is a sin in their consideration over which they weep and from which they seek refuge with Allah, returning to Him.

So, what is our worth compared to these men? We, no matter in what level we are, have to see ourselves as being no more valuable than the dust under their feet.

NOOR TRADITIONS

– Imam Ali (peace be with him) has said, "Seek admonishment from what Allah did to Eblis. He nullified his lengthy labor and hard effort on account of a moment's pride! Who, after Eblis, can be safe from Allah if he thus disobeys Him?! So, be forewarned, O servants of Allah, against the enemy of Allah lest he should tempt you with his ailment and provoke you with his call." (Nahjul-Balagha, No. 193)

– Imam al-Baqir (peace be with him) has said, "No pride enters someone's heart except that it decreases his rationality in as much as that, whether a little [pride] or a lot." (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 78, p. 186)

– Imam al-Kazim (peace be with him) is quoted as having said, "Pride is the mantle of Allah, and the proud person fights Allah over His mantle." (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 73, p. 314)

– Imam Ali (peace be with him) said, "I sought submission and did not find it except in exchange for accepting the truth. Accept the truth, for accepting it distances you from pride." (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 69, p. 339)

– Imam al-Hassan (peace be with him) is quoted as having said, "Nobody who comes to know the greatness of Allah ought to seek to be great, for the eminence of those who know the greatness of Allah is that they are humble, and the eminence of those who know the Glory of Allah is that they humble themselves to Him." (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 78, p. 104)

– Imam al-Baqir (peace be with him) has said, "It is amazing how a conceited person makes himself present [anywhere] since he was created from a sperm, then he will return to being a stink, and he, between this and that does not know what will be done to him." (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 78, p. 104)

5. LENIENCY

One of the most important attributes with which one must adorn himself in his relationships with others is leniency. Leniency is required even in our relationship with our enemies unless they are the enemies of Allah, for these unbelievers are the exception, since Allah Almighty says, "… and let them find in you toughness."

One must use leniency as his motto in dealing with everyone, with the prisoners in their prisons, with those who are sentenced to be executed till the sentence is carried out, unless they are the enemies of Allah, and even with the guilty ones who will be penalized for their actions.

DIVINE LIMITS MUST BE PRESERVED

Yet leniency and kindness ought not reach the level which gets one out of the divine limits. The divine limit ought to remain preserved. The thief must receive the penalty which he deserves, and so must the killer and the oppressor, each must receive his penalty according to the dictates of the glorious Shari'a. Allah's rulings must be followed and carried out. Nevertheless, leniency remains required. We commend what is right and forbid what is wrong as Islam orders, and we must be appropriately lenient. It is very important to distinguish between all these matters.

NO ROUGHNESS EVEN WITH ANIMALS

Islam forbids toughness, roughness and cruelty even with animals. It is narrated that Abu Hamzah al-Thumali, the one credited for the supplication bearing his name, who was one of the companions of Imam al-Sajjad (peace be with him), used to have a grandson who kept a flock of pigeons, and that quite often bothered Abu Hamzah till one day he slaughtered them all. Then Abu Hamzah traveled to Medina to visit Imam al-Sajjad (peace be with him). Abu Hamzah says, "When I reached and entered his sacred house, I found in it a large number of pigeons, so I remembered my grandson and regretted what I had done. I thought that raising pigeons was ugly. Had it been so, I would not have found this large number of them at the house of the Imam (peace be with him). I met the Imam (peace be with him) and started asking him questions and he kept answering me as I was writing. But my heart and mind were busy with those birds which I slaughtered without mercy or compassion. The Imam (peace be with him) asked me about the reason for my absent-mindedness and I told him about what had happened. It was then that the face of the Imam (peace be with him) changed color, and he forbade me from doing such a thing."

It was as though the Imam (peace be with him) wanted him to leave his sacred meeting place. And I found a narrative that an Imam once killed a bird inadvertently, so he paid the price of a horse by way of charity in order to atone for what he had done; such is leniency in Islam!

HUMAN NATURE

Of course, leniency does not mean we have to stop confronting the debauchees and the deviated; rather, we are obligated to confront them. People are of two kinds: one with good manners and one with bad ones. The bad mannered persons treat people with roughness and cruelty, and if you greet them, they answer you angrily. Roughness and stone-heartedness are their norms of conduct just like Muhammad Reza Shah in his cruelty. He was cruel before reaching power as well as thereafter. He was always like that. If a rough person, one whose manners are bad, becomes a king, he will be like Reza Shah, and if he becomes an officer, he will be like the officer whom we used to see in the prison in 1349 A.H. (1970 A.D.) when the authorities then had brought a group of youths to the prison and we were among them in addition to a number of officers who violated the military laws. During the break time, one of the prison officials, who kept me company and loved me very much, said to me that if the SAVAK ordered those youths (meaning the Communists in the prison) to be killed, I would have beheaded them all "for they are the enemies of the Shah and the government. Anyone like that has to be killed." I do not know what my feeling was then. But I asked him saying, "If they order you to kill me (because I was an opponent of the Shah and the government), will you kill me?" He then said, "I swear by your Grandfather [Prophet Muhammad {P}] that I will then kill you…" Yes, this person's characteristics were like that. This bad mannered person loved me but at the same time swore by my Grandfather that he would kill me. A bad mannered person is bad, whether he is poor or rich, head or officer or seller.

At the Hujjati School in Qum, there was a bad mannered servant. This servant was not strong or wealthy; he was the opposite, weak and poor and, at the same time, bad mannered. His cruelty affected everyone. Islam does not like such individuals. Rather, it loves those who tolerate people, love and treat them with leniency and kindness.

One does not have to smile in the face of everyone in his relationships and dealings, but he has to at least tolerate them. We sleep in one place, eat of the same food, and we may travel together or play together, but some remain bad manners while others remain lenient.

NOOR TRADITIONS

– Jabir quotes Imam Abu Jaafar (peace be with him). He says, "I told him that there are some people who are stunned when they are reminded of some verses of the Qur'an or someone talked to them about it, so much so that had the hands and the legs of any of them been severed, he would not have felt it. He said, 'Praise be to Allah! Satan is the source of all of that. They were never ordered to be like that. Rather, they should take to leniency, kindness, tear shedding and apprehension.'" (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 92, p. 212)

– In one of his letters to his governors, the Imam (peace be with him) said, "Your country's community leaders have complained about your cruelty, toughness, contempt and cold shoulder. I looked and saw that they were neither fit to be brought closer to shirk nor more distant from their pledge. Outfit yourself for them with an outfit of leniency tainted with a margin of toughness, and alternate for them between cruelty and compassion. Mix for them between bringing them closer to you and to your status and distancing them and excluding them from it, if Allah so wills."

6. FORGIVENESS

Forgiveness is one of the attributes with which one must adorn himself as he deals with people. If one mistreats you, it is possible that you mistreat him in the same way whereby he mistreated you, but do forgive him and overlook, for forgiveness is one of the best qualities and the most sublime in times when one is exposed to mistreatment or misbehavior by his believing brother during the moments of anger and excitement which prompt one to respond to evil with evil. During those conditions, man becomes a real animal, a captive of his own anger and of his nafs which aims at achieving only its own interests. When one is incapable of responding to evil with the same, some people accept humility and weakness, and when they have the opportunity, the response will be savage, violent. This is a natural thing among humans. But we have to curb and restrict it. We must control this animal state which appears during our anger and when we respond to someone who commits evil against us.

FORGIVENESS OF THE MESSENGER OF ALLAH (P)

The Prophet (P) forgave Wahshi who killed his uncle Hamzah son of Abd al-Muttalib. The killing of Hamzah during [the battle of] Uhud had a gret deal of impact ontheheart of the Prophet (P). It has been said that the Messenger of Allah (P) swore if he found Wahshi, he would do such-and-such to him. After the Uhud incident, which took place during the third year after the Hijra, years passed till Mecca was conquered in the eighth year. Wahshi at the time was in Mecca, so he fled away from it to Taif which was more distant, but when the people of Taif saw the armies of the Prophet (P) marching towards them, they dispatched a group of persons to notify the Prophet (P) of their surrender. Wahshi came to know about it and feared for his life, as is the case with his likes during the war with Iraq. Yes, the enemies of the Revolution who fled to Iraq feared the Iranians would enter Iraq and finish them, and so was the case with Wahshi. The man thought of going to Yemen, or to Byzantium or to Syria, but the time was not in his favor, and he could not go anywhere. One of his friends told him he had no reason to worry since the Prophet (P) was a kind man and would forgive him if he believed in him and in his religion. Since Wahshi did not find any other passage to safety besides that, he went to the Prophet (P) at night and suddenly entered his house. When the Prophet (P) saw him, Wahshi pronounced the declaration of faith. The Prophet (P) cast an angry look at him and said, "Are you Wahshi?" the man answered in the affirmative, and it was the right of the Prophet (P), and it was within his ability, to effect retribution despite the man declaring his acceptance of Islam, but the Prophet (P) said, "Woe unto you! Get away from my sight!" This statement is customarily said when one wants to demonstrate mercy and kindness and treat others with righteousness. The statement of the Prophet (P) is interpreted that he did not want to see Wahshi so he would not reawaken his feelings and reminds him of the crime which he had committed. Thus, the Messenger of Allah (P) forgave Wahshi.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF THE FORGIVENESS OF THE PROPHET (P)

It is narrated that during the early inception of the call to Islam, a man went to the Prophet (P) in Mecca and spitted on his face. Imagine the feeling of a man when someone spits on his face. The Prophet (P) told him he would kill him if he one day fell in his hands. The Muslims knew that that man had insulted the Prophet (P) and that he intended to kill him. After the passage of many wars and the spread of the Islamic faith, someone brought the glad tiding to the Prophet (P) that that man had been arrested and would be brought to the Prophet (P). The Prophet (P) wanted to kill him, and he had the right to do so. When the man was brought before him, the Prophet (P) took off his outer mantle and unsheathed his sword, moving towards him. The man said, "I testify that there is no god other than Allah". The Prophet (P) asked him, "Are you so-and-so?" The man answered, "Yes". The Prophet (P) said, "Have you not seen how Allah humiliated you while dignifying Islam?" The man said, "Yes, but do not kill me," declaring is acceptance of Islam. The Prophet (P) returned his sword to its sheath, put his mantle back on and said, "Leave him alone."

Of course forgiveness is observed without the implementation of the Islamic legislative codes. As regarding the legal penalty, it has to be carried out without any hesitation; one must not forgive the enemies of Allah, but the imam, the leader of the Islamic nation, is capable, on behalf of the Islamic nation, of forgiving some unbelievers as well as erring believers. Yet his hands are not stretched out to the extent that he does whatever he pleases. Muslims do not forgive the violation of Allah's limits and they can forgive what concerns them.

NOOR TRADITIONS

Imam al-Sadiq (peace be with him) has said,

– "Forgiveness when one is able [not to forgive] is among the traditions of the messengers of Allah and of the righteous. The interpretation of forgiveness is that you do not openly obligate your fellow to pay for his crime, and you essentially forget what you within yourself have had against him, then you add to the tests an act of kindness. This cannot be done except by one whom Alah has forgiven his early sins and his later ones with His Favor and outfitted him with the noor of His own Glory. This is so because forgiveness and overlooking are two of the Attributes of Allah, the most Exalted One, the most Great, which he deposited in the secrets of those whom he chose so they would deal with His servants with the manners of their own Creator, for Allah Almighty says, 'Let them forgive and overlook; do they not love that Allah should forgive you? Surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful'. If one does not forgive humans like him, how can he hope for the forgiveness of a Great King?! Citing his Lord, the Prophet (P) talks about how his Maker ordered him to decorate himself with these attributes. He (P) said, 'Stay in touch with one who cut off his ties with you, forgive one who oppressed you, give one who deprived you, and be good to one who is bad to you,' ordering us to follow in his footsteps. Allah, the most Great, the most Sublime, says, 'What the Messenger has give you, you should uphold, and whatever he forbade you, you must not do it.' Forgiveness is the secret of Allah in the hearts, the hearts of those whom He chose, those to whom He confides. The Messenger of Allah (P) used to say, 'Is any of you incapable of being like Abu Damdam?' They asked him, 'O Messenger of Allah! Who is Abu Damdam?' He said, 'A man who lived before you. Whenever he woke up, he would say, 'Lord! I offer my honor by way of charity to all people.'" (Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 71, p. 433).

7. THE MONTH OF RAJAB

Dear ones! The month of Rajab ha dawn upon us. It is the month of adoration and the directing of our attention towards Allah. It is the month that the harbinger of both Sha'ban and Ramadan. Undoubtedly, one who has tried the company of his Lord during the month of Rajab will get ready for Sha'ban which is the best of months. About it, the Prophet (P) says, "Sha'ban is my month." This does not mean that this month is dedicated only to the Prophet, but the statement of the Messenger of Allah (P) indicates that during this month, due to the abundance of its merits, he (P) used to exert himself a great deal in his acts of obedience of Allah.

In the supplication of "the tree of Prophethood", which is recited in the afternoon and evening of every day of the Sha'ban, the following exists: "… And this is the month of Your Prophet, the Master of Your Messengers, Sha'ban which You have surrounded with mercy and pleasure, the month during which the Messenger of Allah (P) used to be keen to fasting in the daytime and standing for prayers in the nighttime."

The Prophet (P) always fasted and prayed during he month of Sha'ban; therefore, this month is a blessed one; it cannot be compared with Jumada II. So, make your prayers, supplications, the remembrance of Allah in this month be better than they were in the month that preceded it. If you observe some recommended acts of adoration, do so in this month more than in its precedent. And if you do not, start doing so in this month.

In the past, I reminded the brothers that you are young, and one of the requirements of your action is adherence to your creed and belief in Allah. Take advantage of this energy and build yourselves morally and materially. Morally, endeavor to be servants who apply the rulings of the Shari'a, starting from what is obligates and ending with what it recommends. Keep the divine commandments always before your eyes. Materially, learn all needed arts such as targeting and others as well as everything suitable for your work; learn everything in the best way.

Yet the moral aspect remains the most important: Adherence to the creed must not be weak among the struggling brethren. Some imagine that the same actions which they used to do in the past must now be continued. But the human psyche moves towards perfection, and there is neither place for nor any sense in turning back. You must increase the doing of righteous deeds to which you used to commit yourselves in the past such as recommended prayers and fast, even monitoring what you daily do which is one of the most important tasks so you may get rid of everything bad in our actions. You are prone to being contaminated by various types of corruption. Corruption is not confined to the sexual and moral aspect; rather, it may be political, financial, moral, and all of these combined.

I am very keen so the struggling brethren may not be contaminated by any type f corruption; therefore, you have to stay vigilant. Start by yourselves and end up by the others, and do not let your brethren slip into corruption. Try hard to reform and guide them.

SUPPLICATING DURING THE MONTH OF RAJAB

Supplication is regarded as one of the obligations during the month of Rajab. This month is the month of Allah, the moth during which one directs his full attention towards Allah to thank Him. It is the month of supplication and ziyara, and its recommended deeds are numerous.

Among the recommended supplications that are recited following every prayers rite during the month of Rajab is one starts with "O One upon Whom I rest my hope for everything good". This supplication may be read in one of two ways: One may pay attention during its recitation to the meanings and sublime concepts embedded in the supplication's wording. The other is oral reading in which no attention is paid to the meanings, and it does not leave any effect in the heart. Of course the first recitation is in every stage advancing man towards Allah one degree. Such a recitation, then, represents the state of pleading and adoration towards the Kind Creator.

"O One upon Whom I rest my hope for everything good and feel secure when He is angry for everything evil! O One Who gives a lot for a little! O One Who grants all those who ask Him! O One Who grants those who do not ask Him and those who do not recognize Him out of His affection and mercy! Grant me, Lord, the fulfillment of my need for all the good things in this life and in the Hereafter and keep away from me all the evils of this world and the evils of the Hereafter, for what You give does not diminish, and do, out of Your favor, grant me an increase, O Generous One!"

"O One upon Whom I rest my hope for everything good!" We hope for righteousness and rewards for every [good] deed which we do: in keeping guard [of our actions], in performing our prayers, in saying the truth and doing what is good; we seek [divine] rewards for every godly act.

CLEMENCY AND MERCY OF ALLAH

"… And I feel secure when He is angry for every evil act of our deeds!" We see ourselves in security against the wrath of Allah when we commit wrongful acts, do not we? We have no fear in this regard. Is this not sufficient lesson for us that we se ourselves feeling secure in the face of the Almighty's anger when we do something wrong? Indeed, these two statements suffice to address Allah solemnly. They mean: You, Lord, are Clement; You do not rush to torment us." This demonstrates the Divine Greatness on one hand and the [wrongful] characteristics of His servants on the other.

GENEROSITY OF ALLAH

"O One who gives a lot for a little!" We witness the sacrificial acts of this nation, especially how the imam (S) was oppressed, how the martyrs sacrificed, those who sacrificed their lives, persevered, remained upright in the face of hardships, up to the end of acts which changed the world and turned it upside down; indeed, our actions, compared to such rewards, are quite few.

"O One Who grants everyone who asks Him!" O One Who gives everyone from among Your servants whatever he needs, of course whenever it is in the best interest of man.

Essentially, the basis of creation is that Allah grants His servants what they wish even if one is inattentive to this fact. The time for the fulfillment of the one's need may advance, or it may be delayed, but its fulfillment is imminent, and there is no hardship for Him in doing so. Before the victory of the revolution, some people used to say that we supplicated a great deal yet, despite all this supplication, the rule of the shah and his regime did not disappear from existence! I used to say that the response for the supplication has a time of its own: If you persevere till such time approaches, Allah will bring us ease. As we saw, that time did, indeed, come, and our supplication was answered.

BLESSINGS BESTOWED WITHOUT BEING REQUESTED

"O One Who grants those who do not ask Him!" That is, O One Who gives those who do not ask You, without being requested! When you are born, do you plead Allah for milk? Yet Allah provides us with milk through the mother. Yes, the outgiving by Allah is achieved even when His servants do not ask for it.

"And You give those who do not know Him" such as the apostates, those who have no faith nor knowledge of Allah. Why? It is out of "His affection and mercy", just to show how Affectionate and Merciful He is.

LET YOUR SUPPLICATION BE GOOD

"Grant me for my asking all the good things in this life and all the good things of the Hereafter!" You see that Allah does not grant plenty of things which you imagine as good and pleasurable, for some money, some power and authority may be harmful to man. Allah is the One Who best knows the best interest of man; therefore, it is quite right when one pleads thus: "Lord! Grant me what is good for me, for I do not know what it is and where it is." "… And keep away from me, as Your response to my plea, all the evil things in this life and in the Hereafter", that is, "Keep away from me everything that is harmful in the life of this world and in the Hereafter." "… For what you give does not diminish": The power and the treasures of Allah are infinite, while I am the one who suffers diminution, and so do we all. We all have our shortcomings, and we are short-sighted; we have to address Allah thus and say, "Do give me an increase, O Lord, out of Your favor, O Generous One!"

Here the supplication comes to an end. At that time, you hold your bear in your hand to demonstrate the ultimate pleading, humility and awe before Allah, Praised and Exalted is He, for the imam used to be tearful as he held his beard and would say, "O One Who has all the Greatness and Honor! O One Who has all the bliss and generosity! O One Who has all the favor and outgiving, do keep the Fire away from my beard!" So, if Allah grants us all the blessings without banning the Fire from burning our bodies, will that be to any avail at all?

If you recite this supplication five times a day, you will get closer to Allah, and I have already told you that you have to have full belief in these matters, and you undoubtedly believe and see it as a significant obligation; it is a lance in the face of your foes. If you believe otherwise, you will suffer your life to loss.

Due to the sensitivity of the brothers' work, you have to work very well. Keep guard very well. Perform your obligations quickly. Do not get yourselves involved in or be imprisoned by the political conditions, so you would plead to this person or that.

Pay attention to this act as a pure one; safeguard it, then, as such. Everyone is responsible for and pawned by his life and personal deeds. But you are on the fighting front; such an atmosphere contradicts luxurious life, and I can tell you so because I see myself as being on the front.

When we are on the front, let us observe that this place faces our enemy. It is in such an outlook that we perform our functions, and surely Allah will help us.

8. JUSTICE WINS

In this world, events take place that re do not fall within our calculations or options. The countries that ignited the war between Iraq and Iran relied on materialistic calculations in their game, thinking that such calculations rule. But they, in fact, lost; therefore, they wanted after their failure to recover their energies by creating other problems. The reality unveiled the contrary of what their mental logical calculations dictated.

The world's magnates nowadays try to strike the same force that they themselves had prepared to hit the Islamic Republic. In fact, they wanted to make Iraq a scarecrow from which they would benefit anytime to strike others. But what has taken place did not agree with their mental logical calculations. The calculations of the mind and the material say that 313 persons (during the Badr campaign) did not have but a little ammunition, a few horses and camels in addition to their being hungry, so they should lose the war against an army of a thousand strong equipped with swords, horses and every military ammunition needed besides reserve forces. But these horses did not hold true. Few from among the 313 persons were martyred while the rest were victorious; this is the factual calculation! Material calculations are not accurate in this life.

But does this mean we must stop thinking since there is no benefit from material calculations because their results are not in our hands? For example, the lamp that lights for us does not enable us to see the tiny parts that cannot be seen by the naked eye, nor does it reveal what is behind the wall; so, can we say that due to the weakness of the abilities of this lamp, we should put it out?

What is deducted from this is something else: Beyond this material world there are other worlds, but we cannot say that there is no system in this world in its manifestations, or that everything in it determines its reality on its own.

The issue to which we must pay attention is that the Divine power and will surround this natural science. What is beyond the world of the matter is an immaterial angelical world. Quite often, the Divine will manifests itself in nature. The strength of heart of someone or some group, even when it seems a natural material thing, it is created by Allah; it is the will of Allah that manifests itself in this world. Many ailments and diseases as well as problems which could not be healed were treated through supplication and clinging to the Divine will.

EFFECT OF SUPPLICATION

Some issues have become decisive and convincing to me. For example, it is taken for granted by me that the imam [Khomeini] remained alive for several hours only due to people's supplication for him. One of the imam's doctors told me that three quarters of the imam's heart were not working, while he, may Allah be pleased with him, used to walk three times a day for half an hour each time, and his body was normal, not weak, despite his heavy responsibilities. The imam used to study and think many times more than ordinary persons; so, how can one stay alive on a quarter of a heart?!

Such issues are not subject to materialistic calculations. They are miracles which all are rendered to one factor that is not subject to a materialistic calculation.

Look at all your issues through this viewpoint, that is, beyond all your calculations there is another factor which bears an impact on the ultimate end; it is the Divine Will.

In our prayers, we recite the following: "Thee do we worship, and from Thee do we seek help." This means that we plead that all our affairs become a manifestation of the Divine Will. This matter requires those who know it to strengthen their connection with Allah. Link with the Creator is one of the very basic issues but it, at the same time, is not something difficult. What is required is that we must thus direct our attention. Prayers are a means to be connected with Allah. So are supplications, especially post-prayers supplications. The same Rajab supplication recited after the daily obligatory prayers is a means to be connected with the Creator. Perform supererogatory prayers, take care of them, for they, in addition to paying your entire attention, are a means for such connection.

You are youths, and you must know the value of your youth. Knowing this value is done by everyone, regardless of his condition or work situation, knowing his personal abilities and benefiting from them. The lifespan and the period of one's youth is the center of gravity of his abilities.

TREASURING YOUTH

As regarding how we get to know the value of things, this is done by activating their abilities and benefiting from them before the day comes when we lose them. Physical sport, for example, is one type of knowing the value of man's physical abilities. You can get to know the value of man's physical abilities. You can get to know the abilities of your bodies through sports, and also through them do you secure a measure of the health of your bodies. If you are late in this regard, you my not obtain in the future the resulted anticipated from it.

You are youths, and you have to benefit from all your energies the bet and the most complete benefit. So, if you are able to read and contemplate, do it, and if you are able to memorize, do memorize the useful queries. For example, I now memorize a supplication which I had entrusted to memory 30 or 35 years ago, yet I still remember and recite it. But in my age, I memorize, for example, a supplication or some Arab poetry or some other things, but I forget it only a week later. Knowing the value of abilities is to perfectly benefit from them.

Let us suppose a group is lined up somewhere and everyone walks along a particular line which ends after a hundred meters with all kinds of fruits and blissful things. If these are told that they can take advantage of these blessings, their situation will then be quite different: Everyone will be in a continuous commotion which does not stop even for a short while, so much so that one cannot imagine stopping because everyone is going in one direction in order to reach and enjoy these blissful things.

NIGHT PRAYERS

Time now is to gather blissful things. Read, review, do good deeds, recite supplication, uphold sports, commit yourselves more to spiritual sports, i.e. worship, because its fruit is greater. Perform the night prayers. Perform it wholeheartedly, thus, it will bear an impact on you, O youths, that is greater than that of the night prayers that I perform. Safeguard such impacts; learn everything which is of benefit for your goals and perfection. Take advance of opportunities and of special occasions, for they will not come back. If we do that, then if we cast another look through wider lenses, we will find our live in this world glittering although it is no more than sixty or seventy years long. Before this life, we had lived another life. Likewise, after this life, we will have another. Our life which preceded this one is a weak life, and after we die and depart from this world, we will cut off our ties with the things in this life. What is important now is our life in this world and what we want to do in it. This life is the field in which man develops. This life is the one that gives you the golden opportunity to reach perfection. Life in this world is a good period; so, try hard to get to know its value and do not lose it.

Listen to these pieces of advice which I have mentioned repeatedly and act upon them. If we hear but do not act upon it, you will get used to it, and you will never listen thereafter, nor will you act upon it. Try hard to know the value of your present time. Peace be with you, the mercy of Allah and His blessing.