1. On his way to Karbala6, Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
This world has changed, snubbed, and its good has turned tail. Nothing has remained from it except a thing that is as scanty as the leftover of a cup and a mean life that is like a noxious grazing. Have you not noticed that the right is ignored and the evil is not forbidden? This is sufficient for making the believers desire for meeting God rightfully. I consider death as happiness and life with the wrongdoers as boredom. People are certainly the slaves of this world. The religion is only a slaver on their tongues. They turn it wherever their livelihood demands. If they are examined by misfortunes, the religious will be very little.
2. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said to a man who backbit another before him:
O you, stop backbiting, for it is the daily meal of the dogs of Hell.
3. Before Imam Al-Husayn (‘as), a man said that favors are worthless if they are done to other than its people. The Imam commented:
No, this is accurate. Favors should be like the heavy rain that covers the pious and the sinful.
4. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
Whenever God seizes the power of somebody, He will surely free him from acts of obedience to Him, and whenever He seizes the ability of somebody, He will surely save him from the burdens.
5. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
Some people worshipped God for the purpose of gaining His gifts. This is the worship of the merchants. Some worshipped Him for the purpose of avoiding His punishment. This is the worship of the slaves. Some worshipped Him as showing gratitude to Him. This is the worship of the genuine ones. It is the best worship.
6. A man received Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) with saying, “How are you? God may grant you good health.” The Imam instructed him:
Salaam greeting should precede wording. God may grant you good health. Do not permit any-body before he says salaam.
7. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
When God wills to lead a servant to destruction gradually, He bestows upon him with graces and does not favor him show gratitude for these graces.
8. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) wrote the following missive to Abdullah Ibn Al-Abbas when Abdullah Ibn Az-Zubair banished him to Yemen:7
So then, I have been informed that Abdullah Ibn Az-Zubbair banished you to Ta’if. God has so therefore raised your reputation and pardoned a sin for so. It is only the virtuous ones who suffer afflictions. If you are rewarded only for what you like, the reward then will be little. God may grant you and us steadfastness against afflictions and gratitude in graces. God may save you and us from the schadenfreude of any envious enemy. Peace be upon you.
9. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said to a man who begged him:
Asking for financial help is acceptable only in big loss, extreme poverty, or horrible guarantee.
The man said: Because of one of these I came.
Hence, the Imam (‘as) ordered to be given one hundred dinars.
10. Imam Al-Husayn said to His son Ali (peace be upon them):
O son, beware of wronging him who does not have a supporter except God the Majestic.
11. As a man asked for the exegesis of God’s saying,
Proclaim the bounties of your Lord, (93:11).
Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
God orders him to proclaim the religious graces.
12. A man from Ansar wanted to ask Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) for financial help, but the Imam said:
O brother of Ansar, protect your face from the humility of seeking others’ help. You may write your need in a paper and I will respond to it pleasantly, God willing.
The man wrote to the Imam (‘as) that he owed a certain individual five hundred dinars and that man insisted on receiving his money soon. He also asked the Imam to speak to persuade that man to grant him a respite until he becomes able to defray the sum. As Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) read the paper, he entered his house to take out a bale containing one thousand dinars. He handed them to the man and said: You may defray the debt and use the other five hundred dinars for settling your financial problems.
Do not say your need to anybody except three—a religious, a chivalrous, or a highborn individual. The religious will try to keep his religion pure, the chivalrous will be embarrassed by his chivalry, and the highborn will feel that you have not kept your face from asking for your need; therefore, he will protect your face against disappointing you.
13. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
There are four kinds of friends: there is the friend who is for you and for himself, the friend who is for you, the friend who is against you, and the friend who is neither for you nor for himself.
As he was asked an explanation, Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
The friend who is for you and for himself is that who seeks the continuity of your friendship through fraternity and does not seek the interruption of your friendship through fraternity. This friend is for you and for himself. This is because the life of both of you will be pleasant as long as your fraternity is achieved, but when fraternity encounters contradiction, everything will be valueless.
The friend who is for you is that who moves from the state of greed to the state of desire. He does not feel greedy to the worldly affairs as long as he desires for fraternity. Such a friend will completely save you from any defect.
The friend who is against you is that who waylays you, conceals his reality, forges lie against you among the clans, and looks at you enviously. The One curse such a friend.
The friend who is neither for you nor for himself is that whom God has filled with idiocy and thrown away. Thus, you see him prefer himself to you and his eye is focused on your wealth.
14. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
Sitting with the intelligent is a sign of successfulness. Disputation with other than the disbelievers is a sign of ignorance. A sign of a scholar is his self-criticism of his sayings and his acquaintance with the various hypotheses.
15. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
The true believer is that who betakes God as his defender and betakes his wording as his mirror. He once looks in the qualities of the believers and once in the qualities of the haughty. He there-fore relieves his character and discovers himself. He is also sure of his intelligence and capable of respecting himself.
16. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
Beware of things for which you apologize. The true believer should not make mistakes and should not apologize. The hypocrite makes mistakes and apologizes every day.
17. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
There are seventy advantages for the greeting. Sixty-nine are given to the one who greets first and one is given to the one who responds to the greeting.
18. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
The true stingy is that who refrains from greeting.
19. Imam Al-Husayn (‘as) said:
He who tries to achieve something through acting disobediently to God will miss what he expects and fall in what he fears.