Translator’s Introduction

On silence Except when Speaking what is Good, Abandonment of what does not concern one, and Slander

On Etiquette and Encouraging Others to do Good

On Good Character, Kindness and Anger

Virtue and Vice

Kindness to Parents, Relatives, Kinsfolk and Severance of Ties

The Rights of Neighbors

What has come in Reference to Slaves

What has come in Reference to this World and One who Seeks it

The Two Angels and what they Record

Humility and Arrogance

Showing off, Hypocrisy, Self-Admiration, and Conceit

Repentance, Seeking Forgiveness, Regret, and Admission (of Guilt)

Crying out of Fear of Allah

Remembering Death and the Grave

What the Believer and Disbeliever will See (Before Dying)

Questioning in the Grave, Chastisement in the Grave, and Barzakh

Resurrection, Reckoning, Standing Before Allah, the Exalted, and al-Ṣirāṭ

Intercession and Those who will come out of the Fire (of Hell)

Traditions About Paradise and Hell

Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil

حدثنا الحسين بن سعيد قال: حدثنا فضالة بن أيوب عن سعدان الواسطي عن عجلان أبى صالح قال: قال أبو عبد الله عليه السلام يا أبا صالح إذا حملت جنازة فكن كأنك أنت المحمول أو كأنك سألت ربك الرجوع إلى الدنيا لتعمل فانظر ماذا تستأنف قال: ثم قال: عجبا لقوم حبس أولهم على آخرهم ثم نادى مناد فيهم بالرحيل وهم يلعبون

1.Al-Ḥusayn ibn Saʿīd narrated to us [saying], “Faḍālah ibn Ayyūb narrated to us from Saʿdān al-Wāsiṭī, from ʿAjlān Abī Ṣāliḥ who said, ‘Abū ʿAbdillāh said [to me], “O Abā Ṣāliḥ, when a [funeral] bier is lifted, imagine that it is you who is being carried [upon it], or that you are the one asking your Lord to return you to the world so that you may do good deeds, and see then what you will resume [of your actions].” Then he said, “How astounding it is for a community whose former members have been confined away [in their graves] from their latter ones [who are alive], then a caller calls out among them for departure [from this world] while they are [busy] playing!”’”

محمد بن أبي عمير عن الحكم بن أيمن عن داود الابزاري عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال: ينادى مناد كل يوم: ابن آدم لد للموت واجمع للفناء وابن للخراب.

2.Muḥammad ibn Abī ʿUmayr narrated from al-Ḥakam ibn Ayman, from Dāwūd al-Abzārī, from Abū Jaʿfar (a) who said, “A caller cries out every day, ‘O son of Ādam, beget for death, amass for annihilation, and build for destruction!’”

ابن أبي عمير عن أبي أيوب عن أبي عبيدة قال: قلت لأبي جعفر عليه السلام جعلت فداك حدثني بما انتفع به فقال: يا أبا عبيدة أكثر ذكر الموت فما أكثر ذكر الموت انسان الأزهد في الدنيا.

3.Ibn Abī ʿUmayr narrated from Abū Ayyūb, from Abū ʿUbaydah who said, “I said to Abū Jaʿfar (a), ‘May I be your ransom! Inform me of something that I may benefit from.’ So he said, ‘O Abā ʿUbaydah, remember death often, for a person does not remember death often but that he detaches himself from the [yearnings of the material] world.’”

علي بن النعمان عن ابن مسكان عن داود بن أبي يزيد عن أبي شيبة الزهري عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله الموت الموت جاء الموت بما فيه جاء بالروح والراحة والكرة المباركة إلى جنة عالية لأهل دار الخلود الذين كان لها سعيهم وفيها رغبتهم وجاء الموت بما فيه جاء بالشقوة والندامة والكرة الخاسرة إلى نار حامية لأهل دار الغرور الذين كان لها سعيهم وفيها رغبتهم وقال عليه السلام: إذا استحقت ولاية الشيطان والشقاوة جاء الأمل بين العينين وذهب الاجل وراء الظهر، قال: وقال: سئل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله: أي المؤمنين أكيس؟ قال: أكثرهم ذكرا للموت وأشدهم له استعدادا.

4.Alī ibn al-Nuʿmān narrated from Ibn Muskān, from Dāwūd ibn Abī Yazīd, from Abū Shaybah al-Zuhrī, from Abū Jaʿfar (a) who said, “The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) said, ‘Death! Death! Death comes with whatever is in it; it brings comfort and ease, and a blessed return to the lofty heavens for the people of the eternal abode – those who had struggled for it and yearned for it. And death comes with whatever is in it; it brings wretchedness and regret, and a return of [great] loss to a scorching fire for the people of the abode of delusion – those who strived for it and yearned for it.’” And he (a) said, “When the guardianship of Satan and wretchedness is deserved, aspiration comes in front of the eyes and [remembrance of] death goes behind the back.” He [also] said, 'The Messenger of Allah (ṣ) was asked, ‘Who among the believers are cleverer?’ He said, ‘Those among them who remember death more often and make more intense preparations for it.’”

حماد بن عيسى عن حسين بن المختار رفعه إلى سلمان الفارسي رضي الله عنه أنه قال: لولا السجود لله ومجالسة قوم يتلفظون طيب الكلام كما يتلفظ طيب التمر لتمنيت الموت.

5.Ḥammād ibn ʿĪsā narrated from Ḥusayn ibn al-Mukhtār who attributed it to Salmān al-Fārsī, may Allah be pleased with him, that he said, “Were it not for prostration before Allah and the gatherings of the [pious ones among the] people who [choose to] utter virtuous words, just as the best dates are plucked [and harvested], I would have wished for death.”

النضر بن سويد عن عبد الله ابن سنان عمن سمع أبا جعفر عليه السلام يقول: لما حضر الحسن بن علي عليهما السلام الوفاة بكى فقيل له: يا بن بنت رسول الله تبكى ومكانك من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله مكانك الذي أنت به وقد قال فيك رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله ما قال وقد حججت عشرين حجة راكبا وعشرين حجة ماشيا وقد قاسمت ربك مالك ثلاث مرات حتى النعل فقال عليه السلام إنما ابكى لخصلتين: هول المطلع وفراق الأحبة.

6.Al-Naḍr ibn Suwayd narrated from ʿAbdullāh ibn Sinān, from someone who heard Abā Jaʿfar (a) say, “When al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī (a) was on his deathbed, he cried, so someone asked him, ‘O son of the daughter of Allah’s Messenger, you are crying despite having the position that you have next to the Messenger of Allah (ṣ)? And despite what the Messenger of Allah (ṣ) has said regarding you? And despite your having gone for pilgrimage twenty times riding and twenty times on foot? And despite having given away all your possessions for the sake of Allah thrice, even your sandals?’ He (a) replied, ‘I am only weeping for two things: the terror of what is to come [in the grave and Hereafter] and separation from loved ones.’”

ابن أبي عمير عن هشام بن سالم عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال: جاء جبرئيل عليه السلام إلى النبي صلى الله عليه وآله فقال: يا محمد عش ما شئت فإنك ميت واحبب من شئت فإنك مفارقة واعمل ما شئت فإنك مجزى به وافعل (واعمل) ما شئت فإنك ملاقيه، قال ابن أبي عمير: زاد فيه ابن سنان يا محمد شرف المؤمن صلاته بالليل وعزه كفه الأذى عن الناس.

7.Ibn Abī ʿUmayr narrated from Hishām ibn Sālim, from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) who said, “Jibraʾīl (a) came to the Prophet (ṣ) and said, ‘O Muḥammad, live as you like for you will indeed die, love whomever you want for you will indeed separate, do whatever you wish for you will indeed be requited therefor, and act however you wish for you will surely meet it [in the Hereafter].’” Ibn Abī ʿUmayr said, “Ibn Sinān added [one more phrase] to it, ‘O Muḥammad, the honor of a believer is [in] his prayer in the night, and his esteem is [in] his refraining from harming the people.’”

محمد بن الحضرمي (الحسين) (الحصين) عن محمد بن الفضيل عن عبد الرحمن بن زيد (يزيد) عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام عن أبيه عن جده عن النبي صلى الله عليه وآله قال: مات داود النبي صلى الله يوم السبت مفجوءا فاظلته الطير بأجنحتها ومات موسى كليم الله في التيه فصاح صائح من السماء، مات موسى وأي نفس لا تموت.

8.Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥaḍramī [al-Ḥuṣayn] narrated from Muḥammad ibn al-Fuḍayl, from ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Zayd [Yazīd], from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a), from his father, from his grandfather, from the Prophet (ṣ) who said, “Prophet Dāwūd died suddenly on a Saturday, so the birds shaded him with their wings. Mūsā, the interlocutor of Allah, died in the wilderness, so a caller cried out from the sky, ‘Mūsā has died! And which soul does not die!’”

فضالة عن أبي المغرا قال: حدثني يعقوب الأحمر قال: دخلت على أبى عبد الله عليه السلام أعزيه بإسماعيل فترحم عليه ثم قال: إن الله عزى نبيه (صلى الله عليه وسلم بنفسه فقال: (انك ميت وانهم ميتون) وقال: (كل نفس ذائقة الموت) ثم انشاء يحدث فقال: انه يموت أهل الأرض حتى لا يبقى أحد ثم يموت أهل السماء حتى لا يبقى أحد الا ملك الموت وحملة العرش وجبرئيل وميكائيل ثم يجئ ملك الموت حتى يقف بين يدي الله عز وجل فيقال له: من بقي - وهو أعلم - فيقول: يا رب لم يبق الا ملك الموت وحملة العرش وجبرئيل وميكائيل فيقال: قل لجبرئيل وميكائيل: فليموتا فيقول الملائكة عند ذلك: يا رب رسولاك وأميناك فيقول: انى قد قضيت على كل نفس فيها الروح ان تموت ثم يجيئ ملك الموت حتى يقف بين يدي الله عز وجل فيقال له: من بقي؟ - وهو اعلم - فيقول: يا رب لم يبق الا ملك الموت وحملة العرش فيقال له: قل لحملة العرش: فليموتوا ثم يجئ ملك الموت لا يرفع طرفه فيقال له: من بقي؟ فيقول: يا رب لم يبق غير ملك الموت فيقول له: مت يا ملك الموت فيموت ثم يأخذ الأرض بشماله والسماوات بيمينه فيهزهن هزا مرات ثم يقول: أين الذين كانوا يدعون معي شركاء؟ أين الذين كانوا يجعلون معي الها آخر؟

9.Faḍālah ibn Abī al-Maghrāʾ said, “Yaʿqūb al-Aḥmar narrated to me saying, ‘I went to visit Abā ʿAbdillāh (a) in order to console him for [the death of] Ismāʿīl, so he invoked [divine] mercy upon him and then said, “Verily Allah consoled His Prophet (ṣ) Himself and said: Verily you shall die, and they will [all] die [too] (Q39:30). And He said: Every soul will taste death (Q3:195).” Then he began speaking [about the subject of death] and said, “Indeed, all the inhabitants of the earth shall die until no one remains. Then the inhabitants of the heavens will die until no one remains except the Angel of Death, the bearers of the [Divine] Throne, Jibraʾīl, and Mīkāʾīl. Then the Angel of Death will come and stand before Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, so he will be asked, ‘Who has remained?’ while He [already] knows better. He will reply, ‘O Lord, no one remains except the Angel of Death, the bearers of the [Divine] Throne, Jibraʾīl,and Mīkāʾīl.’ He will be told, ‘Command Jibraʾīl and Mīkāʾīl so that they both die.’ So the angels [who remain] will say, ‘O Lord, they are Your messengers and Your most trusted ones!’ He will say, ‘I have decreed for every living soul that it must die.’ Then the Angel of  Death will come and stand before Allah, the Almighty, so he will be asked, ‘Who has remained?’ while He [already] knows better. He will reply, ‘O Lord, no one remains except the Angel of Death and the bearers of the [Divine] Throne. He will be told, ‘Command the bearers of the [Divine] Throne so that they may die.’ Then [having done that] the Angel of Death will come with his gaze lowered. He will be asked, ‘Who has remained?’ So he will say, ‘O Lord, no one remains except the Angel of Death.’ So He shall say to him, ‘Die, O Angel of Death!’ The Angel of Death will thus die. Then He will take the earth in His left hand and the heavens in His right hand, shaking them severely many times. Then He will say, ‘Where are those who used to invoke [others as] associates with Me? Where are those who had placed with Me another deity?’”

فضالة عن إسماعيل بن أبي زياد عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام عن أبيه عليه السلام قال: قال علي عليه السلام ما انزل الموت حق منزلته من عد غدا من أجله وقال علي عليه السلام ما أطال عبد الأمل الا أساء العمل وكان يقول: لو رأى العبد أجله وسرعته إليه لا بغض الأمل وطلب الدنيا.

10.Faḍālah narrated from Ismāʿīl ibn Abī Ziyād, from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a), from his father (a) who said, “ʿAlī (a) said, ‘He who counts his morrow as part of his lifetime has not given death its due status!’ ʿAlī (a) also said, ‘A servant does not lengthen his [worldly] aspiration but that he ends up doing evil deeds [to achieve his goal].’ And he used to say, ‘If the servant were to see his death and how quickly it is approaching him, he would have loathed [worldly] aspiration and seeking the world.’”

فضالة عن إسماعيل عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال: كان عيسى بن مريم عليه السلام يقول: هو لا تدرى متى يلقاك ما يمنعك أن تستعد له قبل أن يفجأك؟

11.Faḍālah narrated from Ismāʿīl, from Abū ʿAbdillāh (a) who said,“ʿĪsā ibn Maryam (a) used to say [regarding death], ‘A terror which youknow not when you will meet, so what prevents you from preparing for it before it comes to you suddenly?’”

Kitāb al-Zuhd

Book 2, Chapter 14