Advantages of Justice

     

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AL-KAFI

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H 31, Ch. 1, h 31

Ali ibn Ibrahim ibn Hashim has narrated from Musa ibn Ibrahim from al-Muharibi from al-Hassan ibn Musa from Musa ibn ‘Abdallah from Maymun ibn Ali from abu ‘Abdallah (a.s) who has said the following.
“Amir al-Mu’minin Ali (a.s) has said, “Self glorification is an indication of the weakness of one’s intelligence.”

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Ahl-e-Bait, Ethical Role-Models by Sayyid Mahdi As-Sadr

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…..continued from the Book

Advantages of Justice

The sound souls are created on the nature of the love for justice and hate for wronging. Over the existence on this earth, all human beings agreed unanimously, despite their different trends and courses, on glorifying justice. Furthermore, they have gone on praising its virtues and dedicating themselves to the doing of justice. It is then the secret of the existence of nations and the symbol of virtues. Only was it because the loss of justice, the great powers collapsed and the glorious civilizations reduced to rubble.

 

The The Ahl ul-Bayt (a) were high examples of justice. Their deeds and words were immortal lessons that light for humanity the courses of justice, right, and guidance:

In his final disease, the Prophet (s) asked people to retaliate upon him if he had made mistake with any of them intentionally or unintentionally. Suwada ibn Qays said: “God’s Messenger, once, you were riding your she-camel and having a cane in the hand when I received you after you had been in Ta’if. As you were trying to beat your riding animal with your cane, you hit my belly.” The Prophet (s) ordered him to retaliate. “Show me your belly,” asked Suwada, and the Prophet did. “May I put my mouth on your belly, God’s Messenger?” asked Suwada. The Prophet permitted, and Suwada said: “I seek the guard of the Prophet’s place of retaliation against fire of Hell.”

The Prophet then asked him to retaliate or forgive. “I will certainly forgive, God’s Messenger,” said Suwada. The Prophet prayed: “Allah, forgive Suwada ibn Qays, for he forgave You Prophet Mohammed.”

Abu Saeed al-Khidri narrated the following:

A Bedouin asked the Prophet (s) importunately to defray the debt that he owed him. The companions interfered and reproached the Bedouin, saying, “Woe is you. Do you know to whom are you addressing?” “I am only demanding with my right,” said the Bedouin. The Prophet (s) said to his companions: “You should have been with the right party.” He then summoned Khawla bint Qays and asked her to loan him some dates and promised he would repay her when his share would come to his hand. She did, and the Prophet (s) gave the Bedouin his due in full after he had invited him to a meal. The Bedouin said: “You have given the due in full. God may give you your due in full.” The Prophet commented: “Those who give the due in full are the best of people. Woe to the nation whose individuals do not give the weak his due in full.”

 

It is said that the Bedouin embraced Islam after he had seen the high morality of the Prophet, and said: “God’s Messenger, I have never seen such a fair individual.”

Thus was Amir ul-Mu’minin Ali (a). Imam as-Sadiq (a) narrated the following.

When he hold the position of caliphate, Ali (a) scaled the mimbar and said: “All praise and thanks be to Allah. I will not seize a single dirham from your shares so long as a single bunch of my dates in Yathrib is available. Be sure. Do you think I will prefer you to myself?” Aqil stood up and said: “This means that you will put me and the black ones of Medina on the same level, does it not?” The Imam (a) asked him to sit down, and said, “You have no preference to the black ones of Medina except by means of a virtue in Islam or piety.”

 

The following narration in recorded by Ibn Hagar in his book titled ‘As-Sawaaiq ul-Muhriqa‘ page 79:

(Ibn Asakir narrated that) Aqil asked Amir ul-Mu’minin (a) to give him some money because he was poor. The Imam told him to wait until his share of the public treasury would come out. As Aqil insisted, the Imam asked a man to take Aqil to the market and lead him to the locks of the stores so that he would unlock and take from them. “Do you want me to be thief?” asked Aqil. The Imam (a) said: “And do you want me to be thief as you ask me to give you the shares of Muslims?” Aqil then threatened he would join Muawiya.

As soon as Aqil asked him, Muawiya gave him one hundred thousand dirhams and asked him to take the mimbar and tell people his story with his brother.

Aqil ascended the mimbar and said: “People, when I tried to make Ali give up his religion, he refused and preferred his religion to me. But when I asked Muawiya to prefer me to his religion, he did.”

 

Ibn Abbas narrated the following:

I, once, visited Amir ul-Mu’minin (a) and found him repairing one of his old slippers. As he finished, he added it to the other and asked me to evaluate. “It is valueless,” I answered. As he insisted, I said: “They may be half a dirham.” He (a) commented: “By Allah I swear, these slippers are favorable for me to my leadership to you unless I constitute the right or reject the wrong.”

On another occasion, Imam Ali (a) said: “By Allah, I would rather pass a night in wakefulness on the thorns of as-Sadan (a plant having sharp prickles) or be driven in chains as a prisoner than meet Allah and His Messenger on the Day of Judgment as an oppressor over any person or a usurper of anything out of worldly wealth. And how can I oppress any one for (the sake of a life) that is fast moving towards destruction and is to remain under the earth for a long time.”