سورة التغابن

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) heard a man saying: 'O Allah, I seek refuge in You from trial (fitnah).' The Imam said: "I see you seeking refuge [in Allah] from your wealth and your child, [for] Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, says: إِنَّما أَمْوالُکُمْ وَ أَوْلادُکُمْ فِتْنَةٌ [Your wealth and your children are only a trial]. Rather say: 'O my Lord, I seek refuge in You from the misleading trials.'"

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): [He said]: Let none of you say, 'O Allah, I seek refuge in You from trial (fitnah)!' For there is no one who is not caught up in some trial; but whoever seeks refuge, let him seek refuge from the misleading trials, for Allah the Glorified says: وَ اعْلَمُوا أَنَّما أَمْوالُکُمْ وَ أَوْلادُکُمْ فِتْنَةٌ [And know that your wealth and your children are only a trial].

Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him): Fear Allah, like that Allah-fearing person who hopes for His reward and fears His punishment. I swear by Allah, He has cut off your excuses and warned you, He has encouraged you and put you on guard. Yet you neither develop an eagerness for the lofty rewards of Allah so as to act, nor do you fear the severe punishment and painful chastisement of which He has warned you, so as to hold back from wicked deeds. In the Noble Quran He has informed you: "And whoever does any good deeds while he is a believer, his effort shall not be ungratefully rejected, and We surely write [it] down for him." (al-Anbiya/94) Whoever does righteous deeds with faith, We do not overlook his effort, and We record it for him. Then Allah gave parables in the Noble Quran and set forth verses so that you would beware of the fleeting beauty of the world. He said: ما أَمْوالُکُمْ وَ أَوْلادُکُمْ فِتْنَةٌ وَ اللهُ عِنْدَهُ أَجْرٌ عَظِیمٌ [Your wealth and your children are only a trial, and Allah — with Him is a great reward]. فَاتَّقُوا اللهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ وَ اسْمَعُوا وَ أَطِیعُوا [So fear Allah as much as you can, and listen and obey].

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Imam Ali (peace be upon him) was asked about the mutashabih (verses of multiple meanings) in the interpretation of فِتْنَةٌ. He said: "And among them is فِتْنَةٌ [in the sense of] love of wealth and children; like the word of Allah the Exalted: إِنَّما أَمْوالُکُمْ وَ أَوْلادُکُمْ فِتْنَةٌ [Your wealth and your children are only a trial] — that is, your love for them is a fitnah (a means of testing) for you."

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) — Buraydah said: One day the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) was delivering a sermon to us, when al-Hasan and al-Husayn (peace be upon them) arrived wearing two red shirts, and as they walked they kept falling to the ground. The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) came down from the pulpit, took hold of them and seated them in front of himself, and then said: "Allah has spoken the truth: إِنَّما أَمْوالُکُمْ وَ أَوْلادُکُمْ فِتْنَةٌ [Your possessions and your children are only a trial]. I saw these two children falling to the ground and my heart could not bear it, so I cut short my speech and lifted them up from the ground."