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| IMAM ALI (AS) IBN ABI TALIB (AS) |
Letter 21
The following is a letter from Imam Ali (a) to Ziyad.
Give up extravagance and be sparing and moderate in your expenditure. Do not let the pleasures of today make you forget the tomorrow, the Day of Reckoning and Judgement. Keep money with you strictly according to your real requirements and give away the rest to the poor so that it may act as a provision for you in the next world. Do you expect Allah to grant you rewards reserved for courteous, kind and benevolent people, while you actually are proud, vain, haughty and miserly? Do you hope to receive His Blessings reserved for charitable, generous and kind-hearted persons who always help the poor and the needy, while you, rolling in wealth and luxuries, prevent any part of your wealth from reaching the disabled persons and poverty-ridden old widows?
Remember a man receives the reward according to actions he has done in this world because in the next world only the result of such deeds as he has done during his lifetime shall reach him.
Letter 22
Ibn Abbas says that once Imam Ali (a) advised him in the following words, and except for the advice of the Holy Prophet (s) no advice has been so beneficial to him as this.
After glorifying Allah and praising the Holy Prophet (s) let it be known to you, Ibn Abbas, that a man feels very happy if he achieves a thing without understanding that it would have ultimately come to him and he would not have missed it, and sometimes he feels sorry at not acquiring a thing which was not destined for him and which he could never have acquired. Only such things as will earn for you a reward in the next world should please you and you should only feel sorry for losing rewards of the next world. If you attain worldly pomp and pleasures then let not your happiness increase along with every enhancement of such pleasure and if you lose any of these pleasures then do not feel sorry at the loss because you must only feel sorry at the loss of such things as will be of use to you in the next world.
Letter 23
Imam Ali (a) passed the following instructions to his family a little before his martyrdom.
My advice to you is that you should not consider anyone as a co-worker of the Lord, be firm in your belief that there is One and only One Allah. Do not waste the knowledge given to you by the Holy Prophet (s) and do not give up and destroy his Sunnah (traditions). Keep these two pillars of Islam (monotheism and Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (s)) aloft. If you act according to my advice then you cannot be blamed for damaging or destroying the religion.
Until yesterday I was your Amir, today I am only an object from whom you can take lesson and warnings, and tomorrow I shall part company with you. If I survive this fatal wound I shall be at liberty to decide how to treat the man who attempted to kill me. If I die then my worldly life comes to an end. If I forgive my assassin then it will be to gain the Blessings of Allah for forgiving a person who has harmed you, and it will be a good deed if you also forgive him. Do you not desire to be forgiven by the Lord? I swear by Allah that death is not coming to me suddenly and unexpectedly that I may hate or abhor, neither is it such a visitor whom I may refuse to meet. So far as death by martyrdom is concerned I always expected and desired it and I now welcome it like a thirsty person who finds water when he is extremely thirsty. I am a seeker whom martyrdom finds what he was seeking for. To the pious people the best is that which they find with Allah.
Letter 24
The following is the will of Imam Ali (a) in which he has left instructions as to how to treat his property and estate. It was written after his return from the Battle
This is a will of a creature of Allah, Ali son of Abu Taalib (a). It instructs (his heirs) how to spend his property only to gain the Blessings of Allah so that Allah may grant him peace and allow him to enter His Paradise. After me my son Hasan (a) will be the administrator, executor and testator of my property. He can spend it according to the laws of Islam in helping the poor, destitute and the needy in accordance with the canons ordained by Allah. If anything happens to Hasan (a) and Husayn (a) is alive after him, then he will be the next executor and testator and should act according to the spirit of the instructions given herein.
Verily, for the two sons of Fatima (a), Hasan and Husayn (a), the share out of my property is equal to the shares of my other sons (being Imams they should not be barred from taking their share and at the same time their share cannot be more on account of their being administrators and executors). I have appointed sons of Fatima (a) executors to please Allah and out of respect and love that I bear towards the Holy Prophet (a) and his daughter (peace of Allah be upon them and their descendants).
I order the executor to keep this property as it is and to spend the income on the poor and destitute as desired by me. I further order that young date-palm of the estate not to be cut until it is fully afforested with date-palm and take up the shape of a well-developed palm-orchard.
My widows are to be treated with respect and their shares, out of this property, are to be included in the shares of their sons and even if any of them loses her son she will still enjoy her share, she should not be left unhelped to work like a slave-woman for her living.
Letter 25
Directions to assessors and collectors of Zakat.
These directions clearly show what form of regime it was that Imam Ali (a) wanted to introduce. It was not to be a regime whose officers had an upper hand and were fattened on public money. It was to be a regime where the governed and the tax-payers were at premium. It was their convenience for which the State was to function. It was a welfare-state working solely for the welfare of the people living under its rule, a regime where the rich cannot get richer while the poor are made poorer; a regime where canons of religion hold the balance between the governed and the ruler.
Do not give up fearing Allah who has no partner. Do not let the Muslim grieve (over their lot of having you as their ruler) and do not approach them in a way as to make your approach hateful to them. Do not tax them more than what is actually due from them to Allah.
When you reach a group of people (tribe or village) to assess a tax on them, then stay only at their watering-place (a well or water-hole the most convenient place for stay in desert regions) and do not stay in their houses. Then go to them maintaining your dignity and prestige and when you are in their midst, wish them peace and blessings of Allah and show due respect to them. Tell them that the Caliph of Allah has sent you to collect from them their dues to Allah. Ask them whether they possess enough means to pay the dues of Allah that you may gather them and pass them on to His Caliph. If somebody tells you that he does not possess enough wealth to make him liable to pay taxes then do not worry him and accept his plea. If someone tells you that he is in a position to pay Zakat, then go with him to his house, field or pasture (because Zakat was then collected in coins as well as in kind). But do not frighten him or make him nervous and do not behave with them with undue harshness or tyranny. Then accept the gold or silver which he offers.
(Here are the instructions regarding the number of cattle to be assessed for Zakat). If he has cows, bulls, goats and camels then do not enter the herd without his permission because most of it belongs to him (it is not part of Zakat). If you have to enter the herd then do not enter like the one who is coming there to take possession of the cattle. Do not tyrannize the owner, do not frighten the cattle so as to make them disperse. Do not make the owner feel anxious or sorry for them. Then divide the herd into two parts and allow the owner to select the one for himself. If he selects one part for keeping himself, then do not object to it. Again divide the part which he has left for the share of Zakat to be selected from out of these two parts, again allow him to select the lot which he wants to retain for himself. Never object to his selection (because it is the assessor who is dividing them in equal lots; therefore, the selection between the two lots should naturally rest with the owner). Continue like that until you arrive at the lot which constitutes the share of Allah (Zakat) then take possession of it.
Even if, in spite of all these precautions, he thinks the division was unfair and unjust, then mix the whole lot and go through the process once again as I have already explained to you till you arrive at the share of Zakat to the satisfaction of everybody concerned. Remember you have not to accept old and diseased camels or such as have their limbs damaged. Entrust this lot only to such person who is honest and who can be trusted and who can guard the property of the Muslims sympathetically till it reaches their ruler and caliph so that it may be distributed equitably among the Muslims. I want to instruct you once again that you should not entrust these goods and animals to anyone who is not honest.
Entrust them to one who is trustworthy and who is of a kind and sympathetic disposition so that he may not treat the animals cruelly and may not starve them or tire them out during the transit.
Instruct him not to separate a she-camel from its young, not to milk it so much that nothing is left for its young one and not to ride them harshly or to overburden them with heavy loads.
He should ride them in turns so that those who have been already ridden may have an easy journey. He should not drive them fast and should avoid harshness. He should always give them enough rest at watering places. They should not be driven through deserts. As far as possible green lands and well-wooded regions should be selected for the passage. Thus every care should be taken so that they reach their destination in healthy and robust condition without having received any harsh and brutal treatment on the way so that I may distribute them according to the Orders of Allah and the Holy Prophet (s). Verily, the collection of the dues of Allah in the way that I have explained to you is a pious deed and a religious duty which will carry its reward before the Lord.
Letter 26
The following are his instructions to Zakat collectors.
I order you to fear Allah in all those affairs and on all those occasions where there is none to witness your actions and deeds or to guide your activities. I order you not to pretend fear of Allah and assume false piety and to go against His Orders secretly. One whose deeds coincide with his words and who is as honest in his secret activities as in open deeds, is the person who has faithfully discharged the duty laid down upon him by the Lord, his honesty handed over the things entrusted to him and has sincerely obeyed Allah only to achieve His Favours and Blessings.
I order you not to meet Muslims as a tyrant or an oppressor, not to ill-treat them and not to calumniate them because they are your brothers in religion and they will help you to collect taxes and to find means and ways to help the poor.
Certainly there is a share for you in Zakat but remember that the poor, the destitute and the have-nots also have claim over it.
Verily, I have paid you your share and now you should pay them their shares otherwise there will be many who will complain and protest against you on the Day of Judgement (they will be your enemies on that day). Woe be to the person against whom the poor, the destitute, the beggars and those who have been deprived of their rights of receiving Zakat complain before Allah.
Be it known to you that the person who misappropriates Zakat funds, who will fill his stomach with such amounts, and who harms his religion and injures his conscience with such deeds will be punished and disgraced in this world as well as the next. The worst form of dishonesty is the breach of trust of the public funds (Zakat) and the most despicable example of maladministration is that the Imam should tolerate such forms of dishonesty.
Letter 27
When Imam Ali (a) appointed Muhammad bin Abu Bakr as the Governor of Egypt
Treat them (the Egyptians) with respect. Be kind and considerate with them. Meet them cheerfully. Be fair, just and impartial in your dealings so that even the influential persons may not dare take undue advantage of your leniency and the commoners and the poor may not be disappointed in your justice and fair dealings.
O creature of Allah! Remember that the Almighty Lord is going to take an account of everyone of your sins, major or minor and whether committed openly or secretly. If He punishes you for your sins, it will not be an act of tyranny and if He forgives you it will be because of His Great Mercy and Forgiveness.
O creature of Allah! Remember that pious persons passed away from this world after having led a respectable and fruitful life and they are going to be well-rewarded in the next world (when compared with the worldly-minded people they had equal opportunities of gathering fruits of this world and utilized them to the best of their abilities and at the same time kept away from all wicked and vicious ways of life). They did not jeopardize their salvation like worldly-minded persons. They led a more contented, more respectable and happier life than those who lived wickedly. They enjoyed the fruits of their labours and they had more gratifying, sober and healthy experience of the pleasures of life than the rich and the wealthy. They regaled themselves with the joys, the facilities and the bliss of this world as much as the tyrant and vicious people desired to enjoy. Yet while leaving this world they carried with them all that would be of use to them in the next world. While living in this world they enjoyed the happiness of relinquishing its evil ways.
They made themselves sure that in the life to come they will be recipient of His Grace and Blessings, their requests will not be turned down and the favours destined for them in Paradise will not be lessened or reduced.
O creature of Allah! Fear the inevitable and unavoidable death which is so near to everybody. Be prepared to meet it. Verily, it will come as the most important and the greatest event of your life; it will either carry unmixed blessings and rewards for you or it will bring in its wake punishments, sufferings, and eternal damnation. There will be no chance of its lessening or redemption or any change for the better. It is for you to decide whether to proceed towards perpetual peace and blessings -Paradise , or towards eternal damnation - the Hell. Remember that life is actually driving you towards death which will meet you if you are ready to face it and which will follow you like a shadow if you try to run away from it.
Death is with you as if it has been twisted and tied round your head in between your hair and life is being rolled away from behind you with each exhalation of your breath, never to be unrolled.
Be afraid of the fire - the Hell, whose depth is fathomless whose intensity is enormous and where new kinds of punishments are constantly being introduced. The Hell is an abode where there is no place for His Mercy and Blessings. Prayers of those who are thrown there will neither be heard nor accepted and there will not be any lessening in their sufferings and sorrows.
If it is possible for you to be sincerely afraid of Allah as well as have sincere faith in His Justice, Mercy and Love of His creatures, then try to hold these two beliefs firmly because a man entertains and cherishes the love, reverence and veneration of Allah in proportion to His fear and awe that develops in his mind.
Verily, among men he who fully believes in His Justice and is afraid of it, as well as likes it expects the best rewards from Allah.
O Muhammad, son of Abu Bakr! Remember that I have entrusted you with the command of the most important section of my army which is Egyptian. Do not allow your whims and passions to overrun your judgement. Keep on guarding and defending your religion and the State given under your trust. Take care that not for a single moment in your life, you incur the Wrath of Allah, to gain the pleasure of any person. Remember that the Pleasure of Allah can substitute the pleasure of everybody else and it will be the most beneficial substitute for you but His Pleasure cannot be substituted by anything. Offer your prayers on time, do not rush through them, and never delay in offering them. Remember that piety and nobleness of all your activities are subject to sincerity and punctuality of your prayers.
Remember that a true Imam and leader cannot be equal to the one who leads humanity towards wickedness and vice and eventually towards Hell nor can there be an equality between a follower of the Holy Prophet (s) and his sworn enemy.
Remember the Holy Prophet (s) said that so far as his followers are concerned he was not afraid of encroachments upon any true Muslim by a heathen because Allah will protect every true Muslim from evil deeds on account of the sincerity of his faith and He will expose and avert the evils introduced by heathens, but he (the Holy Prophet (s)) felt anxious about the activities of hypocrites among Muslims, activities of those outwardly wise and learned people who loudly proclaimed greatness and virtues of their good deeds but who secretly indulged in vices and sins.
Letter 28
The following is a famous reply of Imam Ali (a) to the letter of Mu’awiya. It throws ample light on many phases of the history of Islam from the time of its dawn up to the time of Imam Ali (a).
After glorifying Allah and praising the Holy Prophet (s) let it be known to you that I am in receipt of your letter wherein you write to me that Almighty Allah selected Muhammad (s), the Holy Prophet as the Messenger of His revelations and He helped those companions of the Holy Prophet (s) who sincerely exerted themselves to assist him. Is it not an irony of fate that circumstances have favoured you to such a position that you dare remind us of the Favours which Allah bestowed upon us and the Blessings conferred by Him upon His chosen Prophet (s) who was one of us. You have nothing to do with them and you have no share in these Blessings and Favours.
Your condition is like that of a man who carries dates to the date-growing districts or that of a man who tries to teach archery to the master from whom he has learnt the art. You believe that the best of the people amongst the Muslims are so and so and you have started discussing a subject (superiority of Muhajirs over Ansar) which if it is proved correct will not be of any use to you, will not enhance your status and if it is repudiated, this repudiation will not harm you because you are neither a Muhajir nor an Ansar.
What have you to do with their respective status and prestige? What is that for you if one is considered superior to the other? How are you considered in their affairs? You are a freed and liberated slave, and slaves and their sons, though freed and liberated, cannot aspire to the status of Muhajirs and Ansar and they have no right to introduce unholy classification amongst the Muhajirs and Ansar. Do you realize your limitations? You do not belong to either group, you are a liberated slave and son of liberated parents and you want to introduce an unhealthy division between these two groups.
The false status you have tried to grasp is not going to enhance your prestige (before Allah or the people). Can you not think of remaining at the place where you old hostility towards Islam and the Holy Prophet (s) has kept you? How is the lower status or defeat of one class or a person of that class, to whom you do not belong going to harm you and how is the success or higher status of the other going to do you good? You have gone astray from the straight path and from the real teachings of Islam. Listen! I want to give you a short description of the Blessings of Allah upon us.
A party of Muhajirs met martyrdom. They were killed in the cause of Islam and Allah. everyone of them was blessed by Allah with a status and rank. Out of them those who belonged to my family and tribe, Bani Hashim, were granted an excellent status by Allah. Hamza (the uncle of the Holy Prophet (s) and Imam Ali (a)) received the title of Chief of Martyrs (Sayyid al-Shuhada). The Holy Prophet (s) himself called him by this name after his martyrdom and at his funeral ceremony.
The Holy Prophet (s) recited Takbir ('Allahu Akbar') seventy times as a mark of distinction for him, which is not for any other Muslim. Some Muhajirs lost their hands in the battlefield but when one of us (Ja'far, cousin of the Holy Prophet (s) and brother of Imam Ali (a)) lost both of his hands and died in the battlefield, Allah granted him angelic wings and the Holy Prophet (s) informed us that this martyr received the title of Tayyar (one who flies in Paradise). If Allah had not disapproved man's habit of eulogizing and praising himself, I would have given several such instances which speak of the enhancement of my prestige and status before Allah, instances which are accepted and can be testified by faithful Muslims about which the hearers will have no reason to doubt. Do not be like a man whom the Devil has laid astray. Accept the obvious truth when it faces you.
Listen O' Mu’awiya! We (Ahlul Bayt, the progeny of the Holy Prophet (s)) are unique examples of the creation of Allah. For such a status, we are not under obligation to any person or tribe but the Almighty Allah who granted us these blessings. Human beings have received and will receive perfection through us. The perpetual supremacy and inherent superiority do not prevent us from making contact with human beings or with your clan, we have married amongst you and have established family connections with your (as well as with others) clan, though you do not belong to our class. How can you be our equal when the Holy Prophet (s) belongs to us and Abu Jahl, the worst enemy of Islam was from amongst you.
Asadullah (lit. “the Lion of Allah” - a title of Imam Ali (a)) is from amongst us, while Asadul Ahlaaf (lion of the opposing groups, who had sworn to fight against Islam and the Holy Prophet (s)) was from you.
The two foremost leaders of the youth of Paradise (Imam Hasan (a) & Imam Husayn (a)) are from us and the children of Hell are from you. The best woman in the world (title bestowed by Allah uponFatima (a)) the beloved daughter of the Holy Prophet (s) is from us, and the slanderer and the wood-carrying woman who tried to spend every hour of her life in doing harm to the Holy Prophet of Islam (s), was your aunt. There are so many other things similar to the few mentioned which praise us and speak ill of your clan and which show how far and superior we are to you.
We were faithful followers of the commandments of Allah and you and your clan always opposed Islam and accepted it out of sheer expediency simply to save yourselves from humiliation and disgrace.
Our sincerity in Islam and our services to its cause are the facts of history and history cannot deny your enmity against Islam and the Holy Prophet (s).
The credit which you want to take away from us and the honour which you want to deprive us of is the one which the Holy Qur’an is carefully guarding for us. It says: “Some relatives are superior and have excellence over others, according to the Book of Allah” [ Qur’an, 33:6 ] and in another place in the very same Book, Allah informs mankind that: “The nearest people to Abraham, are those who follow him and those who follow the Holy Prophet (s) and the true believers. Allah is the guardian of the true believers” [ Qur’an, 2:68 ]. Therefore we hold two excellences: That of close relationship to the Holy Prophet (s) and that of loyally accepting his teachings. Do you know on the day of Saqifa, Muhajirs told Ansar that they were superior to them because they in one way or the other, were related to the Holy Prophet (s) and therefore they deserved the caliphate and with the aid of this argument the Muhajirs carried the day.
If success can be achieved with the help of this argument and if it has got a grain of truth in it then according it, we and not you, deserve the caliphate. If not, then the Ansar still hold their claim over the caliphate.
You want to impress the world with the idea that I envied all the previous caliphs and that I was jealous of them. Even if I grant this, I want to know what right and authority have you to ask for an explanation from me? You have no place in religion to talk of such things. You also want to taunt me by saying that when I refused to accept the caliphate of the First Caliph I was dragged like a camel with a rope round my neck and every kind of cruelty and humiliation was leveled against me. I swear by my life that by talking like that you want to bring disgrace to me but you are actually doing the greatest service to me and are disgracing yourself as well as the cause that you pretend to support.
There is no disgrace for a Muslim if he is subjected to tyranny and suppression so long as he is firm in his faith and belief in Allah and religion. This is exactly what I say that every cruelty and tyranny was leveled against me to deprive me of the right which Allah and the Holy Prophet (s) have given me and this is exactly what you do not want to acknowledge and accept. Your taunts against me go a long way to prove that in reality there was no election, it was a coup d'etat followed by brutal force which decided the fate of caliphate by making it neither hereditary nor elective but possessive. I have no desire to go into these details but you brought in the subject and I was forced to explain a few points about it.
Then you have referred to the murder of Uthman, and declaring yourself to be his relative, you claim vengeance and blood (and want me to arrange for it as if I was responsible for the murder). I want to say something about the insinuation and false propaganda carried on by you in this respect.
My reply to you is that first of all you should try and find out who was the arch-enemy of Uthman. Can the arch-enemy be he who offered his help and services to Uthman and Uthman refused to have anything to do with him and told him plainly to go and sit at home as his help was not required and his services were not needed or the worst enemy of Uthman is he whom Uthman asked to come to his succour and who purposely and intentionally delayed the help and allowed the events to take their course till what was to happen. No, these two persons cannot be considered in the same category. I swear by the Omniscient Allah that He very well knows everything as He says in the Holy Book, “Allah certainly knows the people who put obstacles in the path of those who wanted to go to war and also to those who did not stay to face a battle.” [Qur’an, 33:18 ].
I do not want to offer any excuse for having objected to his introducing innovations in religion. If my objections to the introduction of innovation and my advice to him to give it up was considered by him a sin committed by me, then I do not attach any importance to his opinion, because well-wishers are often blamed, and their good advice is misconstrued but they do their duty to man and religion. Allah in the Holy Book repeats the saying of a prophet which appropriately represents my position. He says, “I only intend to reform you as much as I can. My success lies with Allah. I have faith in Him and trust in His help.” [ Qur’an, 11:88 ].
Then you have tried to frighten me by saying that there is nothing with you for me and my companions but your sword. Well, Mu’awiya! You made the people laugh at your words, they were feeling very sad and depressed at the standard of mental depravity exhibited by you.
When did you find the sons of Abdul Muttalib (the grandfather of the Holy Prophet (s) and Imam Ali (a)) timid in facing their enemies or getting afraid of brandishing swords?
Just wait a little, you will in the near future have to face the attack of a brave soldier. He will shortly invite you for the encounter you are desiring for. The thing which you apparently wish for is not as far away as you imagine it to be. I am coming towards you with an army of Muhajirs, Ansar and those companions who have sincere faith in me. Theirs is a powerful congregation. Their movements will raise huge clouds of dust (indicating the strength of the army). They are prepared to die or to kill. They believe that the best that could happen to the is to receive the Blessings of the Lord by their good deeds. Sons of those warriors who routed your clan in the Battle of Badr is with them.
The swords of Bani Hashim are with them. And you have already realized the sharpness of these swords when your brother, your maternal uncle, your grandfather and kinsmen were killed (those people were killed by Imam Ali (a) in the battles of Badr and Uhud). These swords are now nearing the despots who have tyrannized the Muslim world.
Letter 29
The following is a letter to the people ofBasra
Your activities revealed your disloyalty to Islam, your enmity towards me and the intense malice you nurse against me, the things which you wanted to conceal and which you knew so well. I have forgiven the offenders and I do not want to punish those whose once faced me in the battlefield and then fled. I have accepted the excuses of those who came back to me repenting. If you again do what you have done once before, if you readopt schism and if once again advice of unwise and wicked people drives you towards animosity against Islam, then remember, I shall chastise you. I shall invade you at the head of my army. If you compel me to that then remember that this invasion will be such that the Battle of Jamal will look like a child's play when compared to it.
I know you all and appreciate the sincerity of those who are faithful to me and the excellence of those who come to me with their sincere advice and good wishes. I am willing to forgive and to forget those who have wronged me and to requite those who have exhibited fidelity towards me.
Letter 30
A Letter to Mu’awiya.
Fear Allah in respect of the responsibilities you hold and the power and authority that you command. Deeply deliberate over the duties that Allah has laid down upon you, each one of them is His due which should be respectfully rendered. Try to learn and understand that for which you have no right to plead ignorance.
Remember that there are clear modes, honest means, bright ways, rational procedures, sensible manners, pious methods of faithfully carrying out His orders and obeying His commands and there are innumerable gains and unlimited advantages in that way of life. Wise people adopt those ways and follow them but only fools refuse to accept His advice. Whoever turns away from Allah actually turns away from the realities of life and dictates of wisdom and, therefore, he wanders in the wilderness of ignorance.
The Almighty Allah will take away His Blessings from him and will send His Wrath upon him.
For the sake of yourself be afraid of self-aggrandizement, self-glorification and selfishness. The Merciful Allah has shown you the correct way of leading an honest and a virtuous life and has clearly pointed to you the place where life and its activities are going to end.
Beware that your vicious desire of gaining everything for yourself has landed you in a maze of wickedness and crime, it has forcefully driven you to the folds of vices and sins, it has made it easy for you to achieve your eternal damnation and has rendered it impossible for you to follow the path of virtue and to attain salvation.
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