and confess to their incapacity, weakness and shortcoming? What can we, blindfolded sinners that we are, have to say about His Majesty, except declaring with the inconsequent oscillations of our tongue: "Our hope lies with Your mercy and our reliance in Your favour and forgiveness, and our trust in the generosity and magnanimity of Your Holy Essence, as expressed in the prayers of Your friends:
Al-Kulayni, in al-Kafi, reports with his chain ...
Piety in relation to monotheism means that man has to know that the All-seeing, the All-hearing, the All-wise, the Maker, the Creator, the Healer and the Provider is the One and Only God and that other beings are His creatures. It is really not very difficult to prove the existence of God. Nevertheless, we would like to mention certain reasons to prove it.
1- Whenever man sees an object in this world, he will automatically think about its ...
The human race is mysterious and mystifying. The various aspects of existence are more profound than can be understood. Despite constant endeavor throughout history to solve the riddle of humanity’s existence, there are still incalculable unrevealed mysteries. Even now that we stand upon the heights of a multitude of anthropological studies and research, we are still faced with a number of ambiguities. It is astonishing that with the ...
Among the fundamental intellectual topics that concern human life religious questions enjoy a particular importance. They have always been regarded in fact as the most basic concern for the well- being and destiny of man and have produced profound insights and extensive knowledge.
Scholars and researchers have undertaken wide-ranging and comprehensive studies on the origins and motives of man's religious concerns pursuing their researches with ...
A man approached the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.) and enquired, "What is the worst deed in the eyes of Allah?"
The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.) replied, "To attribute partners to Allah." The man then asked, "After this which is the worst sin?"
The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said: "To sever relations".
After this the same person asked, "After this which is the worst sin?"
The Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.) replied: "To enjoin the evil and to forbid the good ...
mam Ja’far Sadiq, peace be on him, says: “Zakat has been prescribed for the purpose that the rich people should be tested and the poor should be helped. If people had paid Zakat for their wealth there would have been no indigent Muslim. On the other hand by means of this right fixed for the poor by Allah the poor would have become free from need. Hence, if poor and hungry persons are found, it is on account of the sin committed by ...
To praise an oppressor so that his power and authority may increase, or he may be enouraged to become more daring, is also Haraam. This is confirmed by arguments that have been mentioned, and also the proofs concerning the forbidding of evil (Nahy Anil Munkar).
Shaykh Ansari has specifically related a tradition from the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.): "One who shows respect to a rich man and in the greed of his wealth considers him good; the ...
The fear of death, for most of the people, is not a matter which requires any evidence because it is totally obvious and we also see that a lot of people manifest extra-ordinary sensitivity with respect to the term 'death' and its reality. Thus the actual matter is self-evident. That which requires proof and an answer is the reason for this fear and alarm as to why we fear death?Reasons for the Fear of DeathIn answer to this question, it is ...
It is common knowledge that many unusual events do take place which are beyond the established natural system. It is difficult to find someone who has not seen, or heard about some abnormal or seemingly supernatural event. But on close scrutiny it turns out that most of them are not enigmatic and mysterious at all. They are the results of normal and natural causes, like intensive practice and training, for example, eating poison, lifting heavy ...
Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (a.s.) says, "If one intends to do a slender act with the sole intention of pleasing Allah, Allah causes this small deed of his to be manifested on a greater scale upon the people. (On the contrary) if someone performs the greatest of deeds which causes him physical tiredness and exhaustion due to wakeful nights, while his intention had been to acquire the praise of people, his deed would be reduced to a trifle by Allah ...
Hope is the expectation of a dear thing the arrangements of which are already done, such as hope for the yield of a land after it was seeded, watered, and superintended. In case the arrangements of a thing are not done, hope for it will be foolhardiness, just like hope for the yield of a derelict land that was not superintended properly. Hope, furthermore, is the second wing with which, along with fear, the believers fly in the horizons of the ...
in the same sense, stating that it is like saying to someone `May God forgive you', and it is not necessary in such benedictive expressions to take into consideration that the addressee already possesses the blessing invoked in the prayer. Although such an interpretation seems farfetched in relation to this noble verse-and we have already discussed it under one of the earlier traditions'[2]-it is basically right that mostly the actual possession ...
The twenty-eighth sin, which is labelled as a Greater Sin, is to become A'araab (Bedouin, gypsy etc) after Hijrat (migration).
It is recorded in Usool-e-Kafi under the chapter of Greater Sins that according to the Sahih of Ibne Mahboob when he wrote a letter to Imam Musa Ibne Ja'far (a.s.) he (a.s.) replied and this sin was included among the Greater Sins. Moreover, Muhammad bin Muslim has quoted Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (a.s.) and stated that he ...
One of the characteristics of the unique God to the knowledge and worship of Whom Prophets and religious leaders summon us is that He is utterly inaccessible to sense perception. In addition He possesses the attributes of pre-eternity and post-eternity. Existing everywhere He is nowhere. Throughout the world of nature and sensory being His manifestations have an objective existence and His will is everywhere manifest in the world of being all ...
The traditions regarding this subject are based on two important points. The first is concerned with 'Shia' and the second 'Mohibs' (Admirers) of the Holy Ahlul Bayt (a.s.). The position and status of those Shias who have achieved excellence in the field of knowledge and good deeds is definitely higher. Even so, such people did not consider themselves fit to be called the Shias of Ahlul Bayt (a.s.). Take the example of Muhammad bin Muslim ...
A. Ezzati, Tehran University, Al-Serat, Vol XII (1986)
ISLAM as an all inclusive systematic religion is an interrelated set of ideals and realities covering the entire area of human notion and action, beliefs and practices, thought, word, and deed. Islamic principles and concepts cannot be fully and properly appreciated unless they are analysed and realized within the framework of Islam as a whole. [1]
The concept of ...
Every man out of his natural disposition has some conception of the Day of Resurrection because there is no one who would not like to know the ultimate future of man and of this world, where the life's struggle of man ends and what the real purpose of life is?
We have two answers to this question as follows:
(i) All the Divine religions according to the arguments, we shall advance at a later stage, have an optimistic view of the future of man ...
After the crime is proved the judge cuts off the four fingers of the right hand. He leaves the thumb and the palm untouched. The penalty is the same if the thief is convicted of multiple thefts and has not been punished before. If a thief has already had his four fingers cut and he steals again and the theft is proved, his left foot is cut from the front. The heel is left so that he can walk. If he steals for a third time and again the theft is ...
One of the issues a human being has to take seriously and in the words of some religious authorities, the question of following others is not sufficient or as some others say one must reach certainty, is the question of principles of religion and ideology. It is incumbent on every Muslim and non-Muslim to deeply think about his religious principles, that is to choose a right path, to realize that there is a God who is the Lord of the universe ...
Question 123
My husband was handicapped after a traffic accident. How can I continue living with him until the last of my life while I am still young?
The answer: If the love between you is true, the matter is easy, but if the love is weak or you think selfishly, the matter is difficult.
Dear sister, I hope you accept reality because faithfulness and patience are much higher values than personal ambition, except if the husband does not ...
