Amidst the chaos of the everyday life, certain phrases like Brotherhood, Dignity, and Forbearance have lost their meaning. One might think those phrases belonged to a previous age and to another period of time. The age that a father would ask his son while he did not need to ask; and the son would reply while he knew the father already knows the answer. It was all so a time would come, when some exhausted souls like me, you, and us, would ponder upon their dialog and break the barriers of ambiguity to these strange words.
Amir al-Mu'minin (PBUH) asked his son Hassan: "O my son, what is righteousness?"
Hassan Ibn Ali (PBUH) replied: "O father, righteousness is to replace the bad things with good deeds."
- What is Dignity?
- To be good with relatives, and to remain tolerant of their cruel deeds.
- What is Bravery?
- To be chaste
- What is Lowliness?
- To think of cheap things in life and to refuse giving even smallest belongings in charity.
- What is Generosity?
- To give away (in charity) before requested.
- What is Cheapness?
- To seek owns comfort and ignore one’s spouse.
- What is Mercy?
- To give and benefit others, whether we are in need and whether full.
- What is Stinginess?
- To consider your property as (your) honor, and what you have given away in charity as wealth that has been wasted.
- What is Brotherhood?
- To have Devotion and loyalty in the time of hardship and peace.
- What is Fear?
- To act brave upon friends, and to run away from the enemy.
- What is Opportunity?
- To be pious in this world …
- What is Forbearance?
- To control one’s anger and to keep resentment.
- What is Wealth?
- To be satisfied with what Allah has given, no matter how small …
- What is Poverty?
- To greed for everything.
- What is Abjectness?
- To fear the truth …
- What is Worthless Suffering?
- To talk about something that does not benefit you in any way.
- What is Greatness?
- To give away (in charity) in your time of need and to forgive the bad deeds of others.
- What is Wisely?
- To take good care of what is given to you ...
- What is Great status?
- To do what is beautiful and to refrain from what is ugly.
- What is Providence?
- To be very patient and to treat people with leniency.
- What is Silliness?
- To follow those who think cheap and interact with those who are not on the guided path.
- What is deprivation?
- To lose a benefit that had been granted to you.
- What is Foolishness?
- To rush in reaching opportunities before having them available, and to refrain from answering (to what you already know). Nonetheless, silence is a great companion in most cases, no matter how eloquent of a speaker you are. (1)
When we think about phrases we see:
As a matter of fact, it is possible to look at life through a different perspective, to experience a more pleasant taste of life, and to experience even more beauty in life:
A different perspective and a Life full of true colors.
Footnotes :
This narration has been reported with minor differences in the following resources:
Shiite References: Tuhaf al-'Uqool, p.225 & Kashf al-Ghummah & vol.1 , p.568, Ma'ani al-Akhbar, p.402
Sunni References: Tarikh Madinah Dimashq & vol.13, p.254 & Al-Bidayah wa al-Nahayahvol.8, p.44 & Majma' al-Zawa'id, vol. 10, p.282