سورة الضحى

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Abu Amr al-Kindi said: One day we were in the presence of Imam Ali (peace be upon him). Seeing those around the Imam (peace be upon him) in a cheerful and lively mood, they said: "O Commander of the Faithful (peace be upon him)! Speak to us about your companions." The Imam (peace be upon him) said: "About which of them do you ask?" They said: "About the companions of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family)." The Imam (peace be upon him) said: "All the [true] companions of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) are my companions too. About which of them do you ask?" ... We said: "Speak to us about yourself." He said: "Be at ease! Allah has forbidden us from praising ourselves." One person said to the Imam (peace be upon him): "Allah says: وَ أَمّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ فَحَدِّثْ [And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce it]." The Imam (peace be upon him) said: "I too will speak of the favors of my Lord. By Allah! Whenever I asked [the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)] a question, I received an answer, and whenever I remained silent, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) himself would begin to speak [and instruct me]. Know that in my breast there is abundant knowledge, so ask me [whatever you wish]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Fadl al-Baqbaq said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about the word of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: وَأَمَّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّکَ فَحَدِّثْ [And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce it]. He said: "The One who granted you favor and thereby gave you excellence, bestowed upon you, and did good to you"; and the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) spoke of his religion and of what Allah had granted him and the favor He had bestowed upon him.

Imam Husayn (peace be upon him): Umar ibn Abi Nasr said: A man from the people of Basra narrated to me: I asked Imam Husayn (peace be upon him) about the word of Allah the Exalted: وَأَمَّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّکَ فَحَدِّثْ [And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce it]. He said: "Allah commanded the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) to speak of the favor of His religion which Allah had bestowed upon him."

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): The Imam rose to deliver a sermon. After praising and glorifying Allah and sending blessings upon the noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), and mentioning some of the favors that Allah had bestowed upon the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and upon himself, he said: "Were it not for this verse in the Glorious Quran in which Allah says: وَ أَمّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ فَحَدِّثْ [And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce it]; I would not mention the honors that Allah has bestowed upon me and the ranks He has given me, but because of this divine command I begin my speech." [He first raised his hands in supplication and said]: "O Lord, I thank You for Your countless favors and Your boundless and unforgettable grace."

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): وَأَمَّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ فَحَدِّثْ [And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce it]; announce what Allah has revealed to you and commanded you with, namely prayer, zakat, fasting, hajj and wilayah, and that with which Allah has favored you.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): It means: announce what Allah has given you, and by which He has favored you, provided for you, been kind to you, and guided you to the straight path.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Allah is beautiful and loves beauty, and He loves to see the trace of His favor upon His servant.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): The trace of the favor which Allah has bestowed upon you must be seen upon you.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): It is narrated from Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) regarding his argument with Asim ibn Ziyad, who had put on a rough cloak and cast off soft garments, that his brother Rabi' ibn Ziyad complained about him to Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) and said: "With this conduct he has grieved his family and saddened his children." Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) said: "Bring Asim ibn Ziyad to me." They brought him, and when he saw him he frowned at him and said to him: "Did you not feel shame before your family, and did you not have mercy on your children? You believe that Allah has made good things lawful for you and yet does not want you to take any share from them. You are more contemptible before Allah than that. By Allah! Allah's accepting of His blessings through deeds is more beloved to Him than accepting them through words (that is, through remembrance and supplication), and Allah the Mighty and Majestic has said: وَ أَمَّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّکَ فَحَدِّث [And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce it]."

Ibn Abbas (may Allah have mercy on him): وَ أَمَّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّکَ فَحَدِّث [And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce it]; make the Quran manifest and speak about the blessing that Allah has bestowed upon you.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): The earth was created for the sake of seven people, through whom people are given sustenance, through whom rain comes, and through whom they are helped. [Those seven persons are]: Abu Dharr, Salman, Miqdad, Ammar, Hudhayfa, and Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) says: "I am their Imam; it was they who prayed over the body of Fatima (peace be upon her).")

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): When Allah bestows a blessing upon His servant and [the traces and signs of] that blessing become apparent on him, such a servant is called the beloved of Allah and one who announces His blessings. And when Allah bestows a blessing upon a servant and [the traces and signs of] that blessing do not become apparent on him, such a servant is called the enemy of Allah and one who denies His blessings.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Ali ibn Asbat narrated from several of the companions of Ibn Da'b [Abu al-Walid Isa ibn Yazid ibn Bakr ibn Da'b; a contemporary of Imam Sadiq and Imam Kazim (peace be upon them)]: ... I saw people saying: "The Arabs [in the past] used to believe: 'If Allah raises a prophet among us, some of his companions will possess seventy qualities from the noble traits of this world and the Hereafter.' On this basis, they carefully investigated to see whether ten qualities could be gathered in a single person [of the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)], let alone seventy! And [since they did not think that one person alone could possess qualities all of which were good and positive] they inevitably took into account every quality [that came to their mind and] that they liked or disliked, and in the end they arrived at the conclusion that no one other than Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) possessed the noble traits of this world and the Hereafter... [Some of the qualities of His Eminence (peace be upon him) were these]: the food that Ali (peace be upon him) used was the simplest food that ordinary people ate, and the clothing he wore was the simplest clothing that any of the Muslims wore... As for the clothing of His Eminence (peace be upon him): Ziyad ibn Shaddad al-Harithi, who was one of the companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), sought Ali's (peace be upon him) help regarding his brother Abdullah ibn Shaddad, and said: 'O Commander of the Faithful (peace be upon him)! My brother devotes himself only to worship, and has avoided living with me in my house, and has put on the simplest clothing that can be found.' His brother said: 'O Commander of the Faithful (peace be upon him)! I have adorned myself like you and dressed like you.' The Imam (peace be upon him) said: 'You do not have such a right [or duty]. When the leader of the Muslims takes charge of their affairs, he must dress like the poorest of them, so that poverty does not press upon that poor person and destroy him. I know very well that you have worn the best clothing of your tribe [and yet you pretend to live simply]. وَ أَمّا بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّکَ فَحَدِّثْ [And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce (it)]; know that with me, making use of blessings is more beloved than speaking of them.'"

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Keep good company with blessings before they depart, for they pass away and bear witness against their possessor concerning what he did with them.