سورة النجم

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): Salman al-Farsi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "I was sitting in the presence of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) during the illness in which he passed away, ... The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: 'O Ali (peace be upon him)! Allah the Exalted has decreed division and disagreement upon this ummah, and had He willed, He would have guided them all, to the point that not even two people of this ummah would differ, nor would they dispute in any of His affairs, and no one favoured [by Him] would deny the merit of the meritorious. And had He willed, He would have hastened the punishment and changed the situation so that the oppressor would be exposed and the course of the truth would become known. But Allah has made this world the abode of deeds and the hereafter the abode of settlement; لِیَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَساؤُا بِما عَمِلُوا وَ یَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَحْسَنُوا بِالْحُسْنَی [so that He may recompense those who did evil for what they did, and reward those who did good with goodness], so that the evildoers are recompensed for their deeds and the doers of good are rewarded for their deeds.'" Then Ali (peace be upon him) said: "Praise be to Allah, and I am grateful for His blessings and patient with His trials."

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Praise be to Allah — no one can make firm what He has undone, and no one can undo what He has made firm. Had He willed, no two people of this ummah, nor of all His creation, would ever have differed with one another, and mankind would not have quarrelled over any of His commands, and one who has no merit would not have denied the merit of one who possesses it. The [hand of] destiny has brought us and this people to this place [and set us face to face] and joined us in conflict, and we are within the sight and hearing of our Lord. Had He willed, He would have hastened the vengeance, and change would have come from Him, so that Allah would expose the oppressor as a liar and the destination of the truth would be made known. But He has made this world the place of deeds and the hereafter the abode of recompense and settlement. لِیَجزِیَ الَّذینَ أساءُوا بِما عَمِلُوا وَ یَجزِیَ الَّذینَ احْسَنُوا بِالحُسْنَی [so that He may recompense those who did evil for what they did, and reward those who did good with goodness]. Beware, tomorrow, if Allah wills, you will meet the enemy. So tonight prolong the standing [in prayer], recite the Qur'an abundantly, and ask Allah for patience and victory, and face them with earnestness and resolve, and be pure of heart and successful.

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family): Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, has not left anything He loves without making it clear to His servants, and has not left anything He dislikes without making it clear to His servants and forbidding them from it, so that whoever perishes may perish upon clear proof and whoever lives may live upon clear proof. Beware! Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, does not wrong anyone, nor can any wrong reach Him. لِیَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَساؤُا بِما عَمِلُوا وَ یَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَحْسَنُوا بِالحُسْنَی [that He may reward those who do evil according to what they do, and reward those who do good with goodness]. Whoever does good, [Allah] will reward him with good; whoever does good, does so for himself, and whoever does evil, it is against himself.

Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him): Praise be to Allah who created night and day by His strength and distinguished between them by His power, and appointed for each of them a fixed limit and an extended term. Each of them enters into the other, and the other enters into it, by His measure, for the servants — for what nourishes them and by which He raises them. So He created the night for them that they may rest from the movements of toil and the strain of exertion, and He made it as a garment so that they may clothe themselves in its ease and sleep, and it becomes for them a means of rest and strength, so that they may attain through it pleasure and satisfaction. And He created the day, bright, so that they may seek His bounty in it, and pursue the means to His provision, and roam in His earth in search of what secures the immediate share of their world and the eventual gain of their hereafter. Through all of this He sets their affairs in order, tests their reports, and looks at how they are during the times of His obedience, in the stations of His obligations, and in the occurrences of His rulings — لِیَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَساؤُا بِما عَمِلُوا وَ یَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَحْسَنُوا بِالحُسْنَی [that He may reward those who do evil according to what they do, and reward those who do good with goodness].

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): You human beings have been created by the hand of [Allah's] power; you were raised under compulsion; you are destined for the grave, hidden in the embrace of the earth, then you will decay; then, one by one, you will be raised from the graves and brought to the valley of the reckoning ... How can they come and go while dreadful afflictions have ground them down and the stones and dust of the earth have consumed them, and it is as though you too shall be like them, and this resting place shall take you as its pledge and that trust-chamber shall take you in its embrace. So how will your state be when your affair has come to its end, and the graveyard is overturned, and what is in the breasts is brought out, and you stand for judgment before the Great King? Hearts will fly out of fear of that day, because of the sins that were committed; your veils will be torn and your unseen matters and secrets will be laid bare. It is there that every soul is repaid for what it has earned. Allah says: لِیَجْزِیَ الَّذینَ أَساؤُا بِما عَمِلُوا وَ یَجْزِیَ الَّذینَ أَحْسَنُوا بِالْحُسْنَی [that He may reward those who do evil according to what they do, and reward those who do good with goodness]. Take advantage of the days of health before sickness, and of youth before old age. Hasten toward repentance before regret. Do not let the respite you have been given lead you into heedlessness, for death demolishes hope. The days are commanded with shortness of duration and separation from friends. So hasten, so that Allah may forgive you through repentance before the appointed turn arrives.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): I warn you of the world, for the world is a pleasant, sweet meadow surrounded by desires, made beloved to people because it is a present enjoyment. It is built up with hopes and adorned with deception; its reversals cannot be trusted, and its joy and gladness do not last. It is harmful, treacherous and deceiving, perishing and passing away. The utmost of the world's agreement is with those who seek and love it most. Then, after all this, comes the terror of the Resurrection, the agonies of death, and standing before the divine justice: لِیَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَساؤُا بِما عَمِلُوا وَ یَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَحْسَنُوا بِالحُسْنَی [That He may reward those who do evil according to what they do, and reward those who do good with goodness].

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): The world has moved away from you just as it slipped from those who came before you. Strive as much as you can, O servants of Allah! In the short days of the world take provision for the long day of the Hereafter, for the world is the abode of action, and the Hereafter is the abiding abode of recompense. Withdraw from the world, for the deceived one is he who is deceived by it. Never has the wish of those attached to the world been fulfilled in the final days of their life. Those who rely on the world have been deceived, and they are like [the example in] this verse: "It is like water which We have sent down from the sky, and by which the plants [of various kinds] of the earth — from which people and cattle eat — are intermingled." (Yunus/24) And it is so that no one in this world has seen joy without shedding tears after it, and no one wakes in the morning but is fearful of calamity, or the change of blessings, or the loss of wellbeing. Death follows all these troubles, along with entering the presence of the Just Lord: لِتُجْزی کُلُّ نَفْسٍ بِما کَسَبَتْ. وَ یَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَساؤُا بِما عَمِلُوا وَ یَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَحْسَنُوا بِالحُسْنَی [That every soul may be rewarded for what it has earned, and that He may reward those who do evil according to what they do, and reward those who do good with goodness].

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family): Then [the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)] kissed Fatimah (peace be upon her) and wept, and kissed Ali (peace be upon him) on the forehead and wept, and embraced Hasan and Husayn (peace be upon them) to his chest and wept, and said: "I place Allah as your protector in life and in death, and I entrust you to Allah, and He is the best protector and trustee. Allah preserves the one who preserves you, and joins the one who maintains ties with you. Allah is the helper of the one who helps you, and Allah abandons the one who does not help you and who frightens you. I will leave this world before you, and you will very soon join me. The destiny of all is towards Allah, and all will stand in His presence, and the reckoning is upon Allah; لِیَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَسَاؤُوا بِمَا عَمِلُوا وَیَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَحْسَنُوا بِالْحُسْنَی [That He may reward those who do evil according to what they do, and reward those who do good with goodness]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Praise be to Allah, who is the Director of the celestial spheres, and who after every age brings forth another age, and after every era originates another era, لِیَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَساؤُا بِما عَمِلُوا وَ یَجْزِیَ الَّذِینَ أَحْسَنُوا بِالحُسْنَی [that He may reward those who do evil according to what they do, and reward those who do good with goodness] — out of His justice; hallowed are His names, and mighty are His bounties.