Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), through his chain of transmission, said: My father related to me from Ali ibn Abi Talib, who said: Among the treasures of righteousness are concealing one's good deeds, patience in calamities, and keeping one's misfortunes hidden. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 66)
Imam Rida (AS) relates from his fathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): Among the treasures of righteousness are hiding one's good deeds, patience in afflictions, and concealing one's misfortunes.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), through his chain of transmission, said: My father related to me from Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS): Good character is the best companion. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 67)
Imam Rida (AS) relates from his fathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): Good character is the best companion.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), from his fathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): The most perfect of you in faith is the best of you in character. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 67)
Imam Rida (AS) relates from his fathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): Whoever has the better character has the more perfect faith.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), through his chain of transmission, said: My father related to me from Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), concerning the words of the Exalted, "Then, on that Day, you shall surely be asked about the blessings": He said, fresh dates and cool water. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 68)
Imam Rida (AS) relates from his fathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): The least of the blessings whose honoring and thanksgiving are made obligatory by the verse "Then, on that Day, you shall surely be asked about the blessings" are these very fresh dates and cool water, which we usually take for granted.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS) said: There is no place in the Qur'an where it says 'O you who believe' but that in the Torah it says: O you poor ones. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 70)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): Wherever 'O you who believe' occurs in the Qur'an, in the Torah it occurs as 'O you poor ones.' (That is, the believers must constantly regard themselves as destitute at the threshold of God Most High, for the firmness of faith rests upon the awareness of one's utter poverty before God.)
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: My father narrated to me, from Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), who said: Whoever exposes himself to suspicion, let him not blame the one who thinks ill of him. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 71)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): Whoever places himself in the path of suspicion should not reproach those who think ill of him.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: My father narrated to me, Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), who said: When one of you desires some need to be met, let him set about seeking it early on Thursday morning, and when he goes out from his house let him recite the end of Surat Al Imran, and Ayat al-Kursi, and 'Indeed We sent it down' [Surat al-Qadr], and the Mother of the Book [Surat al-Fatiha], for in these lies the fulfilment of the needs of this world and the hereafter. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 72)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): To bring an affair to a successful outcome, set about it early on Thursday morning, and as you leave the house recite the end of Surat Al Imran, Ayat al-Kursi, Surat al-Qadr and Surat al-Hamd, for by this the needs of this world and the hereafter are fulfilled.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: My father narrated to me, from Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), who said: Keep to gourd, for it increases the brain. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 75)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): Do not forget gourd among your foods, for it increases the intellect.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: My father al-Husayn ibn Ali (AS) narrated to me, saying: A man invited the Commander of the Faithful, Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), and he said to him: I accept your invitation on condition that you guarantee me three things. The man said: And what are they, O Commander of the Faithful? He said: That you bring in for me nothing from outside; that you withhold from me nothing that is in the house; and that you do not impose hardship upon your family. The man said: That is yours. So Ali accepted his invitation. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 76)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers that a man invited the Commander of the Faithful, Ali (AS), to his house. The Imam said: I accept your invitation on three conditions. First, that you procure nothing for me from outside the house. Second, that without ceremony you set before me whatever you already have in the house. Third, that you put your family to no trouble. The man said: Whatever you command, I obey. So Ali (AS) accepted his invitation.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: My father narrated to me, from Ali ibn al-Husayn, from his father, who said: Ali (AS) said: There is no religion for one who submits to a creature in disobedience to the Creator. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 66)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): Whoever obeys or goes along with a creature like himself in disobedience to God has no religion.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: My father narrated to me, from Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), concerning the words of God Most High, 'devourers of unlawful gain': He said: It is the man who fulfils a need for his brother and then accepts a gift from him. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 82)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): One instance of 'devourers of unlawful gain' is those who, after fulfilling a need for their brother in religion, accept a gift from him.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: When Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS) saw that a sick man had recovered, he would say: May the purification from sins bring you joy. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 83)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS), that whenever he saw that a sick person had recovered, he would say to him: How fortunate you are, for you have been cleansed of your sins.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: Ali (AS) said: You will not find among forty bald men one evil man, and you will not find among forty sparse-bearded men one righteous man; and an evil bald man is dearer to me than a righteous sparse-bearded one. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 66)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): If among forty men who keep their beards a single bad one is to be found, among forty who shave their beards not one good man is to be found. Then he said: I love the man who keeps his beard, even if he be a bad man, more than the good man who shaves his beard off.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS) said: Whoever loves me will find me at his death in the form he loves, and whoever hates me will find me at his death in the form he abhors. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 86)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): The one who loves me sees me at the moment of death in a beautiful form, and the one who bears me hatred will see me at the moment of death in a terrifying form.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, from Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), who said: Whoever eats twenty-one red raisins on an empty stomach will find nothing in his body that he dislikes. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 89)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Faithful (AS): Whoever eats twenty-one red raisins in the morning before breakfast, his body will remain healthy.
Ali ibn Musa al-Rida (AS), with his chain of transmission, said: My father al-Husayn ibn Ali (AS) narrated to me, saying: While the Commander of the Faithful (AS) was addressing the people and urging them to jihad, a young man rose before him and said: O Commander of the Faithful, tell me of the merit of those who fight in the way of God. Ali, God's blessings be upon him, said: I was riding behind the Messenger of God (PBUH) on his she-camel al-Adba as we were returning from the campaign of Dhat al-Salasil, and I asked him what you have asked me. He said: When the fighters resolve upon the campaign, God writes for them a release from the Fire; when they equip themselves for their campaign, God boasts of them before the angels; when their families bid them farewell, the walls and the houses weep for them, and they come forth from their sins as a snake comes forth from its skin. God, Mighty and Majestic, appoints over them, for every man among them, forty angels who guard him from before him and behind him, from his right and from his left. He performs no good deed but it is multiplied for him, and there is written for him each day the worship of a thousand men who worship God for a thousand years, each year of three hundred and sixty days, each day like the lifetime of this world. And when they come into the presence of their enemy, the knowledge of the people of this world falls short of God's reward for them. When they go forth against their enemy and the spearheads are levelled and the arrows notched to the bowstrings and man advances against man, the angels enfold them with their wings and call upon God Most High for them for victory and steadfastness, and a herald cries out: Paradise lies beneath the shadow of the swords. Then the blow and the thrust that fall upon the martyr are lighter to him than a draught of cold water on a scorching day. And when the martyr is felled from his horse by a thrust or a blow, he does not reach the ground before God, Mighty and Majestic, sends to him his wife from among the wide-eyed houris, who gives him glad tidings of the honour that God, Mighty and Majestic, has prepared for him. And when he reaches the ground she says to him: Welcome to the good soul that has come forth from the good body! Rejoice, for yours is what no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and what has never occurred to the heart of any human being. And God, Mighty and Majestic, says: I am his successor over his family; whoever pleases them has pleased Me, and whoever angers them has angered Me. (Sahifat al-Rida, vol. 1, p. 91)
Imam al-Rida (AS) narrates from his forefathers, from al-Husayn ibn Ali (AS), that he said: The Commander of the Faithful (AS) was delivering a sermon to the people and rousing them to jihad in the way of God, when a young man rose from among the people and said: O Ali, inform me of the merit of those who wage jihad in the way of God. So Ali (AS) answered him and said: The Messenger of God (PBUH) and I were riding together, he upon his she-camel al-Adba, as we were returning from the campaign of Dhat al-Salasil. I asked of him that which you have asked of me. The Prophet (PBUH) said: When the fighters in the way of God resolve upon battle, God ordains for them distance from the Fire; and when they make ready for jihad in the way of God, God boasts of them before the angels; and when they take leave of their families, the walls and the houses weep for them; and in that state they come forth from their sins as a snake comes out of its skin. And God appoints over each of these fighting men forty thousand angels to guard him from before and behind, from his right and from his left. They perform no good deed but that more than it is written in the record of their deeds, and each day there is written for them the worship of a thousand men who worship God for a thousand years. And when they meet the enemy, the knowledge of the people of this world falls short of the reward that God gives them. At the moment of clash and encounter with the enemy, when the spears are set in motion and the arrows are loosed and the warriors come face to face with one another, the angels cover those who wage jihad in the way of God with their wings, and in that state they ask of God victory and steadfastness for them. At that moment a herald cries out: Paradise is in the shade of the swords! And the fall of every spear and stroke of the sword upon the body of the martyr is easier and sweeter than the drinking of cold water on a summer's day. And when the martyr falls from his horse to the ground from the stroke of a sword or a spear, he does not reach the ground before God sends to him a wide-eyed houri as his wife, and this houri gives him glad tidings of what God has prepared for the martyr of His own honour. Then, when the martyr's body strikes the ground, the earth says to him: Welcome, O pure soul; you are that great soul which has come forth from a pure body. Be glad! For prepared for you is that which no eye has seen and no ear has heard and which has never passed through the heart of any human being. And God says: I am the successor of the martyr among his family, and whoever pleases his people has assuredly pleased Me, and whoever angers them has assuredly angered Me.