And he said: The Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: I heard the Messenger of God (PBUH) say: God Almighty has said: I am al-Rahman (the All-Merciful), and it [the womb, al-rahim] is from al-rahim; I have derived a name for it from My own name. Whoever joins it, I join him; and whoever severs it, I cut him off. And truly every believing man and woman among our Shi'a is of the kin (rahim) of Muhammad, and to honour them is to honour Muhammad. So woe to whoever makes light of anything of the sanctity of the kin of Muhammad (PBUH), and blessed is he who magnifies his sanctity, honours his kin, and joins with them. (Ta'wil al-Ayat, vol. 1, p. 26)
The Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: I heard from the Messenger of God (PBUH) that he said: God Almighty has said: I am al-Rahman (the All-Merciful), and rahim (kinship, the womb) is derived from My mercy. Whoever joins it, I join him to My mercy; and whoever severs it, I cut him off. Then the Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: The point is that our Shi'a too are the kin of Muhammad (PBUH), and to honour them is to honour Muhammad (PBUH). Woe to him who makes light of the sanctity of the kin of Muhammad, and blessed is he who honours the kin of Muhammad — that is, his Shi'a — and maintains ties with them.
And the Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: I heard the Messenger of God (PBUH) say: As for His word “al-Rahim” (the Merciful): God is merciful toward His believing servants. And of His mercy is that He created a hundred mercies and placed one single mercy among the whole of creation. By it people show mercy to one another, by it a mother has mercy on her child, and by it the mothers among the animals bend tenderly over their young. Then, when the Day of Resurrection comes, He will add this one mercy to ninety-nine mercies, and with them He will show mercy to the community of Muhammad (PBUH). Then He will accept their intercession on behalf of those of the people of the faith for whom they wish to intercede, so much so that a man will come to a believer among the Shi‘a and say to him: Intercede for me. He will say: And what claim have you upon me? He will say: One day I gave you water to drink. Then he will remember it and will intercede for him, and his intercession for him will be accepted. Another will come and say: I have a claim upon you. He will say: And what is your claim? He will say: You took shade in the shadow of my wall for an hour on a hot day. So he will intercede for him, and his intercession for him will be accepted. And he will not cease interceding until his intercession is accepted for his neighbours, his associates and his acquaintances. Truly the believer is more honoured in God’s sight than they suppose. (Ta’wil al-Ayat, vol. 1, p. 26)
The Commander of the Faithful (AS) used to say: I heard from the Messenger of God (PBUH) concerning God’s being Merciful (al-Rahim): the very fact that people are kind to one another, and that mothers love their children, comes from the small portion they have received of God’s mercifulness — the slight share of this Name that has been divided among all in this world. On the Day of Resurrection this mercy will be multiplied a hundredfold and will encompass the community of Muhammad, and with it the Shi‘a will intercede on behalf of others — to the point that someone will come and say: I am the one who gave you a cup of water in the world — and he will intercede for him; and another will come and say: I am the one in the shade of whose garden you rested for a moment on such a day — and he will intercede for him. In this way they will intercede for a great many: for all their neighbours and for everyone they knew. Yes, such is the believer’s standing in the sight of God.
Ibn Abd Allah al-Utrush al-Kufi said: Abu Abd Allah Ja‘far ibn Muhammad al-Bajali related to us, saying: Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Khalid al-Barqi related to me, saying: Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Najran related to us, from Asim ibn Humayd, from Abu Hamza al-Thumali, from Abu Ja‘far al-Baqir (AS), who said: The Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: Truly God, blessed and exalted, is One, Unique, and He is alone in His oneness; by us He has veiled Himself from His creation. (Ta’wil al-Ayat, vol. 1, p. 121)
The Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: God, blessed and exalted, is One and Unique and singular in His oneness; we are the veils between Him and His creation.
From Ali ibn al-Husayn, from his father al-Husayn, from his father the Commander of the Faithful — God’s blessings be upon them all — who said: The believer, in whatever state he dies and in whatever hour his soul is taken, is a martyr. And I heard my beloved, the Messenger of God (PBUH), say: If a believer were to depart from this world bearing the like of the sins of all the people of the earth, death would be an expiation for those sins. (Ta’wil al-Ayat, vol. 1, p. 147)
The Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: However the believer dies, and in whatever hour his soul is taken, he is a martyr. I heard the Messenger of God (PBUH) say: Even if a believer bore the sins of all the people of the earth, his very death would be an expiation for his sins, and when he departs from this world no sin remains upon him.
Al-Abbas ibn Abd al-Rahman, from Sulayman, from al-Kalbi, from Abu Salih, from Ibn Abbas, who said: When the Prophet (PBUH) came to Medina, he granted Ali (AS) and Uthman a piece of land, its upper part to Uthman and its lower part to Ali (AS). Ali (AS) said to Uthman: My land is of no use without your land, so either buy from me or sell to me. He said to him: I will sell to you. So Ali (AS) bought it from him. Uthman’s companions said to him: What have you done? You have sold your land to Ali, when, had you withheld the water from him, his land would have grown nothing until he sold it to you on whatever terms you wished. He said: So Uthman came to Ali (AS) and said to him: I do not allow the sale to stand. He said to him: You sold and you were content, and that is not yours to do. He said: Then appoint a man to judge between me and you. Ali (AS) said: The Prophet (PBUH). Uthman said: He is your cousin; appoint someone other than him between me and you. Ali (AS) said: I will not seek judgement against you before anyone other than the Prophet (PBUH), and the Prophet is a witness over us. But he refused that. So God sent down these verses, up to His words: “and it is they who are the successful” [Qur’an 24:51]. (Ta’wil al-Ayat, vol. 1, p. 363)
When the noble Prophet (PBUH) came to Medina, he granted Ali (AS) and Uthman a piece of land, the upper part of which was for Uthman and the lower part for Ali (AS). Ali (AS) said to Uthman: My land is of no benefit without your land, so either buy from me or sell to me. Uthman said to him: I will sell to you. So Ali (AS) bought it from him. Uthman’s companions said to him: What have you done? You have sold your land to Ali, when, had you cut off the water from him, his land would have grown nothing, until he was forced to sell it to you on whatever terms you wanted. Uthman came to Ali (AS) and said: I do not accept this transaction. Ali (AS) said to him: You sold and you were content, and you no longer have that right. Uthman said: Appoint an arbiter between me and you. Ali (AS) said: I choose the Prophet (PBUH) as arbiter. Uthman said: He is your cousin; choose someone else as arbiter between me and you. Ali (AS) said: I will not bring you to judgement before anyone but the Prophet (PBUH), and the Prophet is our witness. Uthman refused to do this. Then God sent down these verses, up to where He says: “and it is they who are the successful.”
And there occurs in one of his sermons — God’s blessings be upon him — in the Nahj al-Balagha what confirms these traditions, namely his words (AS) to his companions: Cling to the ground, be patient in affliction, and do not set your hands and your swords in motion at the whim of your tongues, and do not seek to hasten that which God has not hastened for you. For whoever of you dies upon his bed while knowing the right of his Lord, the right of His Messenger and the right of his Household, has died a martyr; his reward falls upon God, and he has earned the recompense of the righteous deeds he intended, and his intention stands in place of his drawing his sword. (Ta’wil al-Ayat, vol. 1, p. 642)
The Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: Beware of ill-timed risings, be patient in afflictions, and do not set your hands and your swords in motion in pursuit of your own desires, and do not hasten after something for which God has not hastened for you. For whoever of you dies upon his bed, while he knows the right of his Lord and the right of His Messenger and of his Household, has departed this world a martyr; his reward rests with God, and he becomes deserving of the recompense of the good intentions and righteous deeds he held in his heart. And his sincere intention takes the place of drawing the sword in the way of God.
From al-Harith al-Hamdani, who said: I came in to the Commander of the Faithful, Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS), while he was in prostration, weeping, until his sobbing grew loud and his voice was raised in weeping. We said: O Commander of the Faithful, your weeping has made us ill and has pained and grieved us; we have never seen you do the like of this. He said: I was in prostration, praying to my Lord with a prayer for good in my prostration, when sleep overcame my eyes, and I saw a vision that awed and appalled me. I saw the Messenger of God (PBUH) standing, and he was saying: O Abu al-Hasan, long has your absence from me lasted, and I have longed to see you; and my Lord has fulfilled for me what He promised me concerning you. I said: O Messenger of God, and what is it that He has fulfilled for you concerning me? He said: He has fulfilled it for me concerning you, and your wife, and your two sons, and your progeny — in the highest degrees, in ‘Illiyyin. I said: May my father and my mother be your ransom, O Messenger of God — and what of our Shi‘a? He said: Our Shi‘a are with us; their palaces stand opposite our palaces, and their dwellings face our dwellings. I said: O Messenger of God, and what is there for our Shi‘a in this world? He said: Safety and well-being. I said: And what is theirs at death? He said: Each man will decide for himself, and the Angel of Death will be commanded to obey him; whatever death he wishes, that death he will die. And truly our Shi‘a die according to the measure of their love for us. I said: Is there a limit to this that may be recognized? He said: Yes. He of our Shi‘a who is most intense in love for us — the going forth of his soul is like one of you drinking cold water on a scorching day, water by which the heart is refreshed. And the rest of them die as one of you falls into deep sleep upon his bed, his eye never more comforted than at his death. (Ta’wil al-Ayat, vol. 1, p. 751)
Al-Harith al-Hamdani said: I came into the presence of the Commander of the Faithful (AS) while he was in prostration and weeping. His weeping went on long, and his voice was raised in weeping. I and the others who were there said: O Commander of the Faithful! Your weeping distresses us too. What has happened? He raised his head from prostration and said: I was in prostration, occupied with praying for my Shi‘a, when sleep took my eyes. In sleep I saw the Messenger of God (PBUH). He said: Ali! I have longed for you! I had asked something of God for you, and it has been granted. I asked: What is it? He said: That you should be with me in the highest ‘Illiyyin — and not you alone, but your children and your progeny as well. I said: And what of my Shi‘a? He said: They too are with us; their palaces are beside our palaces and their dwellings face our dwellings. I said: O Messenger of God, how do they fare in this world? He said: In this world safety and well-being are guaranteed to them. I said: And their death? He said: Their death is by their own decision, and the Angel of Death is at their command; they die in whatever manner they wish. For those whose love for us is greater, death is like drinking water most sweet and pleasant that cools the heart; and for the rest it is like a sleep of the utmost repose.
He also related from Ahmad ibn Hawdha, from Ibrahim ibn Ishaq, from Abd al-Rahman ibn Ishaq, from Abd Allah ibn Hammad, from Abu Yahya al-San‘ani, from Abu Abd Allah (AS): I heard him say: My father Muhammad said to me: Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS) recited “Truly We sent it down on the Night of Decree” [Qur’an 97:1] while al-Hasan and al-Husayn were with him. Al-Husayn said to him: O my father, it is as though there were a sweetness in it from your mouth. He said to him: O son of the Messenger of God, and my son, I know of it what you do not know. When it was sent down, your grandfather the Messenger of God (PBUH) sent for me and recited it to me. Then he struck my right shoulder and said: O my brother, my legatee, the guardian of my community after me, and the adversary of my enemies until the day they are raised — this sura is yours after me, and your children’s after you. Truly Gabriel, my brother among the angels, brings to me what befalls my community in its course; and he shall bring that to you likewise, as the tidings of prophethood were brought. And it shall be a shining light in your heart and in the hearts of your legatees, until the break of the dawn of the Qa’im (AS). (Ta’wil al-Ayat, vol. 1, p. 793)
Imam al-Sadiq (AS) said: The Commander of the Faithful (AS) recited Surat al-Qadr while al-Hasan and al-Husayn were beside him. Al-Husayn (AS) said to him: Father! How sweetly you recite this sura! The Commander of the Faithful (AS) said: Because I know something about this sura that no one else knows. When this sura was sent down, your grandfather sent for me and recited this sura to me. Then he struck my right shoulder and said: You are my brother, my legatee and the guardian of my community after me, and until the Resurrection you are the foe of my enemies. This sura, after me, belongs to you, and after you to a son of yours. My brother Gabriel reports to me on this night, each year, the events of the community until the following year, and after me he will do the same with you. And this will be for you a shining light in your heart, and after you in the hearts of your legatees, down to the Qa’im (may God hasten his return).
“Munyat al-Murid” is a book which al-Shahid al-Thani composed on the benefits of religious knowledge and the etiquette of acquiring it, and which from the time of its composition has been held in regard by the religious seminaries and by students of the religious sciences. Most of the traditions that appear in this book are drawn from the books of earlier scholars and have already been cited in the present work. We found two reports in this book of which there was no trace in the earlier books; those two we have included here.
Al-Shahid al-Thani is among the greatest Shi‘i jurists, traditionists and scholars of the tenth century of the Hijra. He was born in Jabal Amil in Lebanon and attained high scholarly rank while still young. To complete his learning he travelled to various regions of the Islamic world, including Egypt, Damascus and Istanbul, and profited from the instruction of great Sunni and Shi‘i teachers. Besides jurisprudence, al-Shahid al-Thani was also an authority in mysticism and ethics. Because of his scholarly and missionary activity he drew the suspicion of the Ottoman government, and in the end he was martyred by order of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent.