MAXIMS OF IMAM AL-HASAN
The following sayings, maxims, and words of wisdom are related to the pious grandson of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) Abu Mohammed Al-Hasan bin Ali (peace be upon them).
The following are his answers about questions that were put by his father Amirul Muminin - or others- regarding various subjects.
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent the Merciful
- What is asceticism?
- Asceticism is the desire for God-fearing and the abstinence from the worldly pleasures.
- What is clemency?
- Clemency is the suppression of one’s anger and self-possession.
- What is appositeness?
- Appositeness is to shove evil by means of goodness.
- What is honor?
- Honor is to regard the clan and assume a part of their misdeeds.
- What is relief?
- Relief is to protect the refugee, to be firm in misfortunes, and to be courageous in crises.
- What is glory?
- Glory is to give in loss and forgive the sin.
- What is chivalry?
- Chivalry is to keep the religion, promote the personality, be lenient, sustain in doing favors, fulfill the rights, and behave amicably with people.
- What is generosity?
- Generosity is to begin with providing the gift before it is asked from you and serve food in times of famine.
- What is vice?
- Vice is to take care in worthless things and refrain from giving the few.
-What is meanness?
- Meanness is the fewness of giving and the speech of obscene language.
- What is indulgence?
- Indulgence is to give in sorrow and in joy.
- What is avarice?
- Avarice is to consider what you have in hand as an honor and what you have spent as waste.
- What is fraternity?
- Fraternity is to keep fraternity in misfortune and luxury.
- What is cowardice?
- Cowardice is to dare the friend and fear the enemy.
- What is opulence?
- Opulence is to satisfy with the fated regardless of its quantity.
- What is poverty?
- Poverty is to be greedy to everything.
- What is liberality?
- Liberality is to do the best.
- What is generosity?
- Generosity is to preserve in good and bad situations.
- What is intrepidity?
- Intrepidity is to challenge the opponents.
- What is might?
- Might is the intensity of power and the contest against the strong men.
- What is humility?
- Humility is to feel fearful in situations of frankness.
- What is clumsiness?
- Clumsiness is to confront the ruler and that who is more powerful than you.
- What is sublimity?
- Sublimity is to do the good and avoid the evil.
- What is determination?
- Determination is to be long-suffering, behave leniently with the rulers, and be cautious against all people.
- What is honor?
- Honor is to accede to the friends and regard the neighbors.
- What is deprivation?
- Deprivation is to shun the opportunity when you are able to seize it.
- What is foolishness?
- Foolishness is to pursue the mean and associate the seducers.
- What is faltering?
- Faltering is to play with your beard and to hem excessively before you speak.
- What is courage?
- Courage is to challenge the opponents and to be steadfast during fighting.
- What is overacting?
- Overacting is to intrude in unconcerned matters.
- What is stupidity?
- Stupidity is to behave foolishly with the wealth and to disregard the honor.
- What is lowliness?
- Lowliness is to will to have everything for oneself and to dissociate with the companion.
Words of Wisdom of Imam al-Hasan
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
O people, he who advises for God’s sake and betakes His sayings as guidance will surely be led to the most upright way and God will grant him success to the right guidance and will direct him to the best. The disciple of God is certainly secured and preserved while His enemy is surely fearful and disappointed. Be cautious of God by very much mention of Him, fear Him by means of God-fearing, and approach to Him through obedience to Him, for He is surely near and replying.
God the Blessed the Elevated says:
If any of My servants ask you about Me, tell them that the Lord says, "I am near; I accept the prayers of those who pray." Let My servants answer My call and believe in Me so that perhaps they may know the right direction.
Answer God and believe in Him because it is improper for anyone who acknowledges God’s greatness to behave arrogantly. The sublimity of those who acknowledge God’s greatness is certainly their modesty, the dignity of those who acknowledge God’s majesty is their submission to Him, and the safety of those who acknowledge God’s power is to acquiesce to Him and to avoid denying after acknowledgement and deviating after guidance.
You should know convectively that you will not recognize God-fearing before you realize the character of guidance, you will not hold on the bond of the Book before you know those who deserted it, and you will not recite the Book so properly before you know those who distorted it. After you know all these, you will know heresies and overacting, will see forgery against God and distortion, and will know how the declining ones fell. Let not the ignorant engage you in their ignorance. Seek these from their proper people, for they are surely the light by which enlightenment is sought and the leaders whose examples should be followed. By them, knowledge survives and ignorance fades away. Their clemency refers to their ignorance, their utterance of wisdom refers to their silence, and their appearance refers to their hidden. They neither oppose the right nor do they disagree about it. Different traditions existed before them and God’s decision passed before them. This is surely a reminder for those who mention. When you hear it, you should understand it heedfully, not just for relation. The relaters are certainly numerous while the heedful are few. God is the One Whose help is sought.
Imam Al-Hasan’s Answers of Some Questions
Muawiya sent a disguised man to Al-Kufa to ask Amirul Muminin (peace be upon him) for the answers of certain questions that the King of the Romans addressed at him. The Imam could recognize the man who confessed of his reality as soon as he was interrogated.
Amirul Muminin (peace be upon him) said, “God may curse son of that who ate the livers
. He, as well as his followers, is extremely deviant. God curse him. He manumitted a bondmaid. It was preferable for him to marry her. May God be the judge between this nation and me. They disregarded my kinship, discounted my great rank, and wasted my characters.” He then summoned Al-Hasan, Al-Hussein, and Mohammed - bin Al-Hanafiya-. As they were before him, the Imam said, “O Syrian brother, these two are the Prophet’s sons and this one is mine. You may ask anyone of them.”
The man referred to Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him), then put his questions:
“What is the distance between the right and the wrong? What is the distance between the heavens and the earth? What is the distance between the east and the west? What is that colorless spot seen in the moon? What is the rainbow? What is this galaxy? What was the first thing that sprinkled on the earth? What was the first thing that shook on the earth? What is the spring at which all the spirits of the believers and the disbelievers lodge? What is the hermaphrodite? What are the ten things one of which is stronger than the other?”
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) answered:
O Syrian brother, what is between the right and the wrong is only the distance of four fingers. The right is only what is seen with the eye, whereas you may hear very much wrong with the ears. What lies between the heavens and the earth are the supplication of the wronged and the extension of the sight.
He whoever says anything else is lying. What lies between the east and the west is a day with steady movement of the sun. You wait for sunrise and then wait for sunset. He whoever says anything else is lying.
This galaxy is the rips of the heavens and the place from which the torrential water ascended to Noah the prophet (peace be upon him). Regarding the rainbow, you should not name it ‘Qawsu Quzah - the bow of Quzah-’ because ‘Quzah’ is the name of a devil. You should name it ‘Qawsullah - the bow of God-’. It is security against drowning.
Regarding the colorful spots of the moon, the moonlight was as shiny as sunlight, but God erased it. This is His saying:
We have made the sign of the night to pass away and We have made the sign of the day manifest.
The first thing that sprinkled on the earth was a valley of gloom. The first thing that shook on the earth was the date-palm tree. The spring at which the spirits of the believers lodge is a spring named Salma. The spring at which the spirits of the disbelievers lodge is called Barahout. The hermaphrodite is the human being that is unknown whether he is male or female. He should be waited until attaining maturity. If bosoms appear to him, he is then woman. If a beard appears to him, he is then man. If this is unsuccessful, he should be examined by urinating on a wall. If his urination hits the wall, he is man then. If it shrinks like a camel’s urination, he is woman then. The ten things one of which is stronger than the other are as follows. The strongest creation of God was the stone. Iron is stronger than the stone. Fire is stronger than iron. Water is stronger than fire. Clouds are stronger than water. Wind is stronger than clouds. The angels are stronger than wind. The angel of death is stronger than the other angels. Death is stronger than the angel of death. God’s act is stronger than death.
The Syrian man said: “I declare that you are surely the son of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and I declare that Ali is surely Mohammed’s successor.” He then wrote down the answers and took them to Muawiya who sent them to the king of the Romans. As the latter received them, he said, “I am sure this is not Muawiya’s. These are surely the answers of the house of prophethood.
Imam Al-Hasan’s Wording about the Source of Power
Al-Hasan bin Abul-Hasan Al-Basri wrote the following missive to Abu Mohammed Al-Hasan bin Ali (peace be upon him):
So then, you, the Hashemites, are the progressing ships in the high waves, the celebrated illuminative signs, and the ark of Noah (peace be upon him) on which the believers embark and by which the Muslims are saved. I write to you, son of the Prophet, about out argument about fate and our perplexity about the source of power. I wish you would tell us of the opinion of your fathers and yours. It is surely that your knowledge is a part of God’s, and you are the witnesses on people and God is the witness on you. You are the offspring of one another, and God is All-hearing and All-seeing.
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) answered:
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
I have received your missive. Only because you referred to the perplexity of you and those who passed, I will explain the question to you. He who does not believe in the fact that God has full acquaintance with the good and the evil of the fate is disbeliever. He who refers the doing of the acts of disobedience to Him is sinful. God has not been obeyed by force and has not been defied due to His being overcome. He has not respited the servants uselessly. He is surely the possessor of what He has given to them in possession and controls what He has empowered. His commandments are optional and His warnings are means of caution. If the servants cling to the obedience to God, they will not find any barrier in their way and if they disobey, God may do them favor by precluding them from doing such acts of disobedience. If he does not do, then it is not He who encourages them committing so by force or compulsorily. On the contrary, He does them the favor of informing, advising, warning, ordering, and telling them not to do so. He does not frame them to obey Him like the angels and does not oblige them to commit acts of disobedience to Him. Final authority belongs only to God. Had He wanted, He would have given you all guidance. Peace be upon those who follow the right guidance.
Imam Al-Hasan’s Admonition
You should know that God has not created you vainly and will not let you pass to nothing. He limited your terms of death and arranged your livings so that every intelligent will realize his actual position and realize that whatever God has disposed for him will unavoidably befall him and whatever is taken away from him will never hit him. God has saved you from running after the sustenance of this world, given you all the time for worshipping Him, urged you thanking Him, ordained you to mention Him, advised you to fear Him, and made fear of Him the utmost purpose of His satisfaction. Certainly, God-fearing is the door to all repentance, the head of all wisdom, and the honor of all actions. God - fearing is the means by which triumph is achieved. God says:
The pious ones will be triumphant.
God will save the pious ones because of their virtuous deeds. No hardship will touch them nor will they be grieved.
O servants of God, fear God and know that he whoever fears God will have an exit from seditious matters and God will direct him in his affairs, prepare for his guidance, support him with argument, whiten his face, and achieve all his hopes with those whom receive God’s grace, such as the prophets, the veracious, the martyrs, and the virtuous. They are the best friends one can have.
Imam Al-Hasan’s Sermon
All praise and thanks belong to God.
Peace be upon Mohammed the Prophet and his family.
This is I for those who know me. For those who do not know me, I say that I am Al-Hasan, the son of the messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family). I am the son of the proclaimer of the good tidings and the warner. I am the son of the chosen for the Divine Message. I am the son of that whom the angels have blessed. I am the son of that by whom the umma have been honored. I am the son of that to whom Gabriel the angel was the emissary of God. I am the son of that whom was sent as mercy for the peoples. All peace and blessings be upon him and his family.
As Muawiya could not control his malice and envy, he said to the Imam (peace be upon him), “O Hasan, describe ripe dates for us.”
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
Yes, Muawiya, I will do.
Ripe dates are pollinated by the wind, puffed by the sun, colored by the moon, ripened by hot weather, and cooled by night.
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) then was back to continue his sermon:
I am the son of that whose supplication is answered. I am the son of that who was as close to his Lord as the distance of two bows, or even less. I am the son of the obeyed interceder. I am the son of Mecca and Mina. I am the son of that to whom the people of Koreish submitted unwillingly. I am the son of that whose follower will be happy and whose disappointer will be unhappy. I am the son of that to whom the earth has been made a place of prostration and pure. I am the son of that to whom the news of the heavens came successively. I am the son of those from whom God has removed filth and purified them thoroughly.
Muawiya said: “O Hasan, I think you are willing for the position of caliphate!”
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) answered:
Woe is you, Muawiya. The true caliph is that who pursues the practices of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) and acts upon the obedience to God. I swear by my life, we are surely the signs of guidance and the light marks of God-fearing. You, Muawiya, are one of those who extinguished the (prophetic) traditions, livened up heresies, betook God’s servants as slaves and God’s wealth as means of play. Hence, He caused your affairs to be obscure and you will live for a short time and burden the consequences of your evildoings. O Muawiya, God has created two cities - one in the east and the other in the west. He named them Jabulqa and Jabulsa. Except my grandfather the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), God has never sent anyone to these cities.
Muawiya then asked, “O Abu Mohammed, tell us about the Qadr Night.”
The Imam (peace be upon him) said:
Yes, you should ask such questions.
God created seven heavens, created the jinn from seven (things), and created the human beings from seven. Thus, you should seek the Qadr Night from the twenty-third (night of Ramadan) up to the twenty-seventh.
The Imam (peace be upon him) then left.
Short Maxims of Imam Al-hasan
1-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
The people who consult for their affairs will surely be guided to the right.
2-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
Meanness is to avoid thanking the grace.
3-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said to one of his sons:
O son, do not befriend anyone before you know his means and sources. When you try him and please to associate with him, you should then befriend him on bases of pardoning his faults and consoling him in misfortunes.
4-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
Do not fight the demand like the fighting of the triumphant and do not depend upon the destiny like the surrendering. To seek the graces is a prophetic tradition and to seek moderately is a form of chastity. However, neither chastity will stop the earnings nor will acquisitiveness bring any surplus. The earnings are already divided and acquisitiveness leads to sins.
5-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
The true close is that whom is drawn near by cordiality despite the far kinship, and the true remote is that whom is taken away by cordiality despite the near kinship. Nothing is closer to the body than the hand. Hands may be amputated and cut due to betrayal.
6-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
He who depends upon God’s good option for him will not wish to be in a situation other than that which God opts for him.
7-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
Dishonor is less bearable than the fire (of Hell).
8-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
The good that lacks evil is to thank the grace and to tolerate the misfortune.
9-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said to a man who had just been cured from a disease:
God has mentioned you; therefore, you should mention Him, and has pardoned you; therefore, you should thank Him.
10-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said when he concluded the peace treaty with Muawiya:
By God, it was not doubt or sorrow that made us stop confronting people of Syria. We could fight the Syrian people with safety and steadfastness. Today, enmity, unfortunately, seized the safety and intolerance seized the steadfastness. When you fought in (the battle of) Siffine, your religion was preceded to your worldly life. Today, your worldly life is preceded to your religion.
11-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
I do not know anyone who is not foolish in his relation to His Lord.
12-
As someone accused him of enjoying haughtiness, Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
No, I enjoy honor. God says:
Honor belongs to God, His Messenger and the believers.
13-
Describing the features of one of his virtuous friends,
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
He was the greatest of people in my eye. The head of his characters that made him great in my eye was the insignificancy of this world in his eyes. He was beyond the power of ignorance. He extended his hand to no one except the trustful and only for a profit. He was not complaining, showing dissatisfaction, or repining. He spent most of his time with silence; but when he spoke, he was excelling the speakers. He was weak and feeble, but in situations of seriousness, he was as same as an attacking lion. When he was sitting with the scholars, he was abiding by listening more than speaking. He was not overcome in silence even if he was overcome in speaking. He was not saying what he would not do and was doing what he did not say. When he ignored which of the two matters, which he encountered, was the nearer to his Lord, he used to notice the one that was nearer to his passion so that he would take in the other. He avoided blaming anyone for a matter the like of which might be excused.
14-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
He who frequents to the mosque will gain one of eight things - a decisive (Quranic) Verse, a useful friend, an original information, an expected mercy, a word that guides to the right, a word that saves from perdition, or a desertion of sins whether shyly or fearfully.
15-
People of Koreish visited Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) for the birth of a male baby. They said (their usual expression of congratulation in such an occasion): “Enjoy the existence of this knight.” He answered, “What is this saying? Who knows, he may be walking.” “O son of God’s Messenger,” said Jabir, “What should we say then?”
The Imam (peace be upon him) answered:
To congratulate for a male newborn, you should say: May you thank the Endower, blessed be this gift, and God may cause him to attain maturity and bestow upon you with his earnings.
16-
As he was asked about chivalry, Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) answered:
Chivalry is to cling to the religion, recondition the wealth, and fulfill the duties completely.
17-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
The most discerning sight is that which is most piercing in the good. The most perceptive hearing is that which retains the reminding and makes benefits. The soundest heart is that which is pure from suspicions.
18-
As a man asked him for advice, Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
Avoid praising me because I know myself better than you do. Avoid belying me because the opinions of those whom are belied are valueless. Avoid backbiting anyone before me.
As the man asked the Imam’s permission to leave, the Imam (peace be upon him) permitted him.
19-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
He who seeks worship should clean himself for it. Decline the recommendable rites if they injure the obligatory ones. Conviction is refuge for safety. He who considers the long journey will surely prepare for it. The intelligent should not cheat those who seek advice. Between the admonition and you lies the screen of haughtiness. Knowledge invalidates the excuses of the learners. Every anticipated (one) asks for respite and every respited busies himself with negligence.
20-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
O servants of God, fear God, seek (from Him) seriously and escape (His punishment). Enter upon acting before the befalling of the punishment and the coming of the destroyer of the pleasures. The comfort of this world is not ceaseless, its misfortunes cannot be trusted, and its troubles cannot be avoided. It is surely an unsteady delusion and a slanting pillar. O servants of God, you should therefore take a warning from the examples, learn lessons from the transmitted events, refrain from committing sins for the sake of Paradise, and benefit by the admonitions. God is a sufficient protector and supporter, the Book (of God) is sufficient arguer and adversary, Paradise is a sufficient reward, and Hell is a sufficient penalty and evil result.
21-
Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) said:
When you meet your friends, you should kiss them on the place of light in the forehead.
As he passed by some people who were playing and laughing on the Eid ul-Fitr
, Imam Al-Hasan (peace be upon him) stopped at them and said:
God has made the month of Ramadan the racetrack of His creation so that they will compete with each other in acts of obedience to Him to attain His satisfaction. Some people preceded others and could win, while others dropped behind and failed. How strange that who plays and laughs on the day when the good-doers are rewarded and the wrongdoers are losing is! By God I take the oath, if the cover is removed, they will realize that the good-doers are engaged in their advantages and the evildoers are engaged in their sins.
The Imam (peace be upon him) then left.
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Author: Al-Hasan bin Ali bin Al-Hussein bin Shu'ba Al-Harrani
