الفِتنَةُ
TRIAL AND TEMPTATION
الفِتنَةُ / Trial and Temptation
1ـ الكافي عن مُعمَّر بنِ خَلاّدٍ: سَمِعتُ أبا الحَسَنِ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ) يقولُ: «الم * أحَسِبَ الناسُ أنْ يُتْرَكُوا أنْ يَقُولُوا آمَنّا وهُم لا يُفْتَنُونَ» ثُمّ قالَ لي: ما الفِتنَةُ ؟ قلتُ: جُعِلتُ فداكَ الذي عِندَنا الفِتنَةُ في الدِّينِ، فقالَ: يُفتَنُونَ كما يُفتَنُ الذَّهبُ، ثُمّ قالَ: يُخلَصُونَ كما يُخلَصُ الذَّهبُ.
1– Mu`aammar b. Khallad said, ‘I heard Imam al-Rida (AS) say: “Alif, lam, mim. Do people imagine that they will be left off (on their own) saying: “We believe!” and they will not be tried”, and he then asked me, ‘What is trial?’ I said, ‘May my soul be sacrificed for you, what I know is that it is to be tested in religion.’ He said, ‘They
[the believers] will be tried the way gold is tried’, he then said, ‘They will be purified the way gold is purified.’
[al-Kafi, v. 1, p. 370, no. 4]
الفِتنَةُ
TRIAL AND TEMPTATION
3ـ رسولُ اللهِ (صَلَّيَ اللهُ عَلَيهِ وَ آلِهِ): لَأنا لِفِتنَةِ السَّرّاءِ أخوَفُ علَيكُم مِن فِتنَةِ الضَّرّاءِ، إنّكُمُ ابتُلِيتُم بفِتنَةِ الضَّرّاءِ فَصَبَرتُم، وإنّ الدنيا حُلوَةٌ خَضِرَةٌ.
3– The Prophet (SAWA) said, ‘I fear for you the trials that are in good times more than in bad times. You have been struck with tests of bad times and you have endured them with patience, while verily the world remains sweet and luxuriant
[to you].’
[al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib, v. 4, p. 184, no. 74]
4ـ الإمامُ عليٌّ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ): الفِتَنُ ثلاثٌ: حُبُّ النِّساءِ وهُو سَيفُ الشَّيطانِ، وشُربُ الخَمرِ وهُو فَخُّ الشَّيطانِ، وحُبُّ الدِّينارِ والدِّرهَمِ وهُو سَهمُ الشَّيطانِ، فَمَن أحَبَّ النِّساءَ لم يَنتَفِعْ بعَيشِهِ، ومَن أحَبَّ الأشرِبَةَ حَرُمَت علَيهِ الجَنّةُ، ومَن أحَبَّ الدِّينارَ والدِّرهَمَ فهُو عَبدُ الدنيا.
4– Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘Trials are of three kinds: love of women, and this is the sword of the devil; drinking of wine, and this is the snare of the devil; and the love of dinars and dirhams, which is the arrow of the devil. So those who love women will not benefit from life, and those who love drinking will be barred from Heaven, and those who love the dinar and dirham are slaves of the world.’
[Bihar al-Anwar, v. 73, p. 140, no. 12]
5ـ الإمامُ عليٌّ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ) ـ لرجُلٍ يُسَمّى حَرباً يَمشي مَعهُ وهُو راكِبٌ ـ: ارجِعْ، فإنَّ مَشيَ مِثلِكَ مَع مِثلِي فِتنَةٌ للوالي، ومَذَلَّةٌ للمؤمنِ.
5– Imam Ali (AS) who was riding, said to a person by the name of Harb who was walking with him, ‘Go back, for the walking of someone like you with me is a trial for a governor and a
[source of] humiliation for the believer.’
[Nahj al-Balagha, Saying 322]
مَن تَنجَلي عَنهُمُ الفِتَنُ / Those who are Cleared from Trials
6ـ رسولُ اللهِِ (صَلَّيَ اللهُ عَلَيهِ وَ آلِهِ): طُوبى لِلمُخلِصينَ، اُولئكَ مَصابيحُ الهُدى تَنجَلي عَنهُم كلُّ فِتنَةٍ ظَلماءَ.
6– The Prophet (SAWA) said, ‘Blessed are the sincere. They are the lanterns of guidance, and all dark trials are cleared away from them.’
[al-Targhib wa al-Tarhib, v. 1, p. 54, no. 5]
7ـ رسولُ اللهِ (صَلَّيَ اللهُ عَلَيهِ وَ آلِهِ): سَتَكُونُ فِتَنٌ يُصبِحُ الرجُلُ فيها مؤمِنا ويُمسِي كافِراً، إلّا مَن أحياهُ اللّهُ تعالى بالعِلمِ.
7– The Prophet (SAWA) said, ‘There will come a time with trials where a person will rise in the morning a believer and turn a disbeliever in the evening, save those whom Allah, most High, revive with knowledge.’
[Kanz al-`Ummal, no. 30883]
8ـ الإمامُ عليٌّ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ): اعلَمُوا أنّهُ مَن يَتَّقِ اللّهَ يَجعَلْ لَهُ مَخرجاً مِن الفِتَنِ، ونوراً مِن الظُّلَمِ .
8– Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘Know that those who are wary of their duty to Allah will find through Him a way out of the troubles of trials, and a light from darkness.’
[Nahj al-Balagha, Sermon 183]
النَّوادِرُ / Miscellaneous
9ـ رسولُ اللهِِ (صَلَّيَ اللهُ عَلَيهِ وَ آلِهِ): لَيَغشَيَنَّ اُمَّتِي مِن بَعدي فِتَنٌ كَقِطَعِ الليلِ المُظلِمِ، يُصبِحُ الرجُلُ فيها مؤمِناً ويُمسِي كافِراً، ويُمسِي مؤمِناً ويُصبِحُ كافِراً، يَبيعُ أقوامٌ دِينَهُم بعَرَضٍ مِن الدنيا قَليلٍ.
9– The Prophet (SAWA) said, ‘Know that my community after me will become swathed with trials like parts of a dark night. At that time a person will be a believer in the morning and a disbeliever in the evening; he will sleep a believer and wake up a disbeliever. Groups will sell their religion for a small offer of the world.’
[Kanz al-`Ummal, no. 30893]
10ـ الإمامُ عليٌّ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ): مَن شَبَّ نارَ الفِتنَةِ كانَ وَقوداً لها.
10– Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘He who ignites the fire of a troubling test will become its firewood.’
[Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 10109]
11ـ الإمامُ عليٌّ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ): والٍ ظَلومٌ غَشومٌ خَيرٌ مِن فِتنَةٍ تَدُومُ.
11– Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘A brutal oppressing governor is better than a continuous trial.’
[Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 9163]
12ـ الإمامُ عليٌّ (عَلَيهِ الّسَلامُ): كُنْ في الفتنَةِ كَابنِ اللَّبونِ ؛ لا ظَهرٌ فَيُركَبَ، ولاضَرعٌ فيُحلَبَ (فَيُحتَلَبَ).
12– Imam Ali (AS) said, ‘You should be in a trial like a baby camel, neither can it be mounted
[and overcome as a result], nor can it be milked
[and taken advantage of].’
[Nahj al-Balagha, Saying 1]