In the name of Allah
The All Compassionate, the All Merciful
4th Rabial-Thani 1445 (20th October 2023)
Islamic Universal Association
20 Penzance Place, Holland Park
London, W11 4 PG
Jihad An-Nafs – Part 154
Purification of the heart-Part 96
Some hadiths pertaining to generosity are provided below:
Imam Ali (a.s) once said to his son, Imam Hasan (a.s), “My son, learn four things from me and through them you will learn four more. If you keep them in mind it will be beneficial to you. The greatest wealth is wisdom; the greatest poverty is foolishness; the wildest wildness is vanity and self-glorification; and the best nobility is generosity and refinement of manners.
The next four things, my son, you should avoid are: “Do not befriend a fool for he will harm you, while intending to do good; do not befriend a miser because he will run away from you at the time of your need and cause you distress; do not befriend a vicious and sinful person because he will sell you for a paltry price and do not befriend a liar because he is like a mirage and will portray a false picture of things and will make you visualize near things far and far things near.” (Nahjul Balagha, Short Saying 38)
The Holy Prophet (s.a) has advised: “My Ummah will live in peace and justice if they are faithful to each other, return the deposits to their owners and give alms from their property. However, if they do not fulfil these duties, they will encounter famine and scarcity.”
Imam Ali (a.s.) has said: “O’ children of Adam! Be your own representative in the matter of your property and do whatever you like to be done with it now, rather than wait for it to be done after your death.” (Nahjul Balagha, Saying 255). In other words, if a person desires that after his death his property should be spent on charity, he should not wait for it to be done after his death but rather he should spend it during his lifetime for it is possible that after his death his successors may not act upon his wishes or he may not get an opportunity to write a will.
The Holy Prophet (s.a.) has said: “Give sadaqah and cure the sick by it, because sadaqah can surely remove your bad fortunes and ailments, and moreover it prolongs your life and increases your rewards.” (Kanz Al-Ummal, Vol:6, P:371)
It has been narrated from the Holy Prophet (s.a.): “When I ascended to the sky, I saw three lines written on the door of heaven: The first line read: “In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful; I am Allah and there is no god save Me and My Grace precedes My wrath. “The second line read: “In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent the Merciful; charity is repaid 10 times, loan 18 times, and regard for kinship 30 times.” The third line read: “He who understands My Rank and My Lordship should be aware of My sustenance.” (Al-Ithna Ashariyyah P: 85)
The scholar and companion of Imam Zainul-Abedin (a.s.), Tawus Ibne Kaysan Al-Yameni, heard from Zainul-Abedin (a.s.) that the epithets of a believer are: “Piety in secrecy, donating charity at the time of need, patience during misfortunes, and tolerance at the time of anger, truthfulness when there is fear.” (Al-Khisal by Saduq, P: 127)
In letter 69 from the Nahjul Balagha, Imam Ali (a.s.) advised his companion Harith ibne Abdillah Al-Hamdani as follows: “Know that the most distinguished among the believers, is he who is the most forward in spending from himself, his family and his property, because whatever good you send forward will remain in store for you and the benefit of whatever you leave behind will be derived by others.”
To be continued
Second Sermon
Birth anniversary of Abd Al-Azim Al-Hasani
According to a narration Abd Al-Azim Al-Hasani, known as Shah Abdul Azim, was born on the 4th of Rabial-Thani in Medina, 173 Hijri during the reign of the Abbasside ruler, Harun Al-Rashid, and he died in Iran on the 15th of Shawwal, 252 Hijri.
His father was Abdullah ibne Ali and his mother was Fatima binte Uqba ibne Ghais. He was the progeny of Imam Hasan (a.s.) through his son Zayd. According to the famous historian, Al-Najashi, after Abdul Azim’s death a piece of writing was found in his clothes which read: “I am Abul-Qasim ibne Ali ibne Hasan ibne Zayd ibne Hasan ibne Ali ibne Abi Talib.” Muhaqqiq Mirdamad had also reported: “Abd Al-Azim Al-Hasani has clear lineage in the progeny of Ali ibne Abi Talib.”
He lived during the Abbaside oppression of the Shiite and like his fathers; he was pursued by them for a long time. Although he practiced Taqiyya during his stay in Medina, Baghdad and Samara, he was disliked by Mutawakkil and Mu’tazz. It has been reported that he had the opportunity to meet five of our Imams, namely Imam Musa Kazim, Imam Reza, Imam Jawad, Imam Hadi and Imam Hasan Al-Askari (a.s.). He greatly benefited from the knowledge of Imam Jawad and Imam Hadi (a.s.) and he narrated several hadiths from both of them. He was a great scholar and a transmitter of more than a hundred hadith and he was also a writer of several Islamic books. It has been reported by Sheikh Tusi that he contributed in the compilation of the Nahjal-Balagha. Abu Hammad Razi had narrated that one day he visited Imam Hadi (a.s.) and when he was about to leave, the Imam said: “If you have any question about religious issues, you should ask Abd Al-Azim Al-Hasani and please convey my salutations to him.” Abdul Azim once accompanied Imam Hadi (a.s.) on a journey and the Imam was so pleased with him that he declared: “O Abul-Qasim! You surely are our wali… you have received the religion from us which Allah loves… May Allah support you in this world and in the hereafter?”
Shah Abdul Azim was a great scholar and a great believer in the Unity and Justice of God. He was also very pious, a devout worshipper, extremely trustworthy, honest and one of the greatest narrators in the Shiite history. Sheikh Al-Saduq had narrated that Imam Hadi (a.s.) advised Muhammad ibne Attar, when he returned from Karbala after performing the Ziyarat of Imam Hussain (a.s.)’s shrine: “If you visit Abd Al-Azim Al-Hasani’s grave, it would be as though you have visited Hussain’s shrine in Karbala and get the same reward for it.”
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