Jabir Ibn Abdillah al-Ansari related: We were mentioning the defects of this world when Amir al-Mu’minin (‘as) came to us, after midnight, and asked about our question of discussion after he had finished from fighting his enemies in Basra. As he knew we had been dis-praising this world, he said:
All praise and thanks be to God.
So now, why are some people dispraising this world? Is it for they pursued asceticism from it? This world is the lodging of honesty for them who act honestly with it. It is the lodging of good health for them who understand it. It is the lodging of richness for them who supply themselves with it. It is the place of the prostration of God’s prophets (peace be upon them), the place of the descend of God’s revelation, the place of the Angels’ prayers, the house of the God’s adorers, and the place of the trade of God’s disciples. In this world, the disciples acquire God’s mercy and win Paradise. Who can then offend this world, Jabir? It declared its departure, informed of its discontinuity, announced its vanishing, exhibited its misfortune in the exhibition of misfortune, urged pleasure through its pleasure, ended its day with a misfortune, and began it with grace and good health as a sign of frightening and attraction of desires. Some people are dispraising it after they felt sorry. It served them honestly, reminded them and they remembered, ad-monished them and they learned, frightened them and they feared, and attracted their desires and they were desirous.
O you who dispraise the world but you are deceived by its deception, in which situations did the world deserve your dispraise? In which situations did it attract your desire towards it? Was it when your forefathers were changed into tatter? Or was it when your foremothers laid their heads on dust? Very often you were the nurse of many people as you watched for their cure, pre-scribed medicine for them, and fetched them physicians. But you could not achieve your request, and your hopes did not come true. In fact, the world represented the truth for you in the situation of such people and presented that your manner would be like them when your dearest people will not benefit you, your calls will be not answered. This is when agonies of death attain their climax when moaning is useless and wailing is ineffectual. When the mediastinum presses them forcibly and the throat suffocates with them. Then, no call you will hear and no tune will terrify. How long grief will occur when the deadline falls. Then you will be carried in a casket by four hands to settle in the grave forever in a narrow place. Thus, the power has gone, the period of life come to end, the kind people left, and the amicable brothers interrupted. In addition, the close friends have no longer approached, the visitors have no longer attended, the house has no longer extended. The practices are no longer possible and the news are no longer available. The heirs hurried to have their shares of the heritage, the woe is falling, and the sins are encircling. If you did good acts during your life, your prize will be pleasant. If you did evil, then the result will be anguish. How is it useful for souls to settle when death is the inevitable result and grave is the inevitable house? This is surely a sufficient admonisher.
Jabir said: Then Amir al-Mu’minin (‘as) asked me to visit the graves. There, he spoke: O occupants of dust, O occupants of strangeness, your houses have been abided, your heritage has been distributed, and your wives have been married. There are the news that we carry for you. What are the news that you have for us?
The Imam spoke after a considerable while:
I swear by Him Who raised the heavens and they were exalted, and extended the earth and it was extended, if they are permitted to speak, they will say: We found that the best supplies is God-fearing.
O Jabir, you may return.