الدرجات الرفيعة و المنازل الخسيسة فكم بين من لا يرضى لنفسه إلا كمال درجة العلم و الطاعة و القرب و الوصال و بين من يرتضي أن يكون مضحكة للئام لأكلة و لقمة و لا يري لنفسه شرفا و منزلة سوي ذلك.

…the lofty ranks and the base stations. How wide is the gap between one who is content for himself with nothing short of the full rank of knowledge, obedience, nearness and union, and one who is content to be a laughing-stock for base men for the sake of a meal or a morsel, and sees for himself no honour or standing beyond that.

و يحتمل أن يكون المراد التزوج بالأكفاء كما

It may also be that what is meant is marrying among one's equals, as

قَالَ الصَّادِقُ عليه السلام لِدَاوُدَ الْكَرْخِيِّ حِينَ أَرَادَ التَّزْوِيجَ انْظُرْ أَيْنَ تَضَعُ نَفْسَكَ.

al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, said to Dawud al-Karkhi when he wished to marry: Look where you are placing yourself.

و التعميم أظهر.

But the general sense is the more evident.

و الدول مثلثة الدال جمع دولة بالضم و الفتح و هما بمعنى انقلاب الزمان و انتقال المال أو العزة من شخص إلى آخر و بالضم الغلبة في الحروب و المعنى أن ملك 9 الدنيا و ملكها و عزها تكون يوما لقوم و يوما لآخرين و الناس إلى آدم شرع بسكون الراء و قد يحرك أي سواء في النسب و كلهم ولد آدم فهذه الأمور المنتقلة الفانية لا تصير مناطا للشرف بل الشرف بالأمور الواقعية الدائمة الباقية في النشأتين و الأخيرتان مؤكدتان للأوليين.

Al-duwal — the dal taking any of the three vowels — is the plural of dawla, with damma or with fatha, both meaning the turning of time and the passing of wealth or of might from one person to another; with damma it also means victory in war. The meaning is that dominion over this world, its possession and its might belong one day to one people and another day to others. And "people are, with respect to Adam, shara'" — with the ra' unvowelled, though it is sometimes vowelled — that is, equal in lineage, all of them children of Adam. So these shifting, perishing things do not become the measure of nobility; rather nobility lies in the real and enduring things that last in both abodes. The last two clauses reinforce the first two.

«3»- لي، الأمالي للصدوق ابْنُ إِدْرِيسَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنِ ابْنِ هَاشِمٍ عَنِ ابْنِ مَرَّارٍ عَنْ يُونُسَ عَنِ ابْنِ سِنَانٍ ١عَنِ الصَّادِقِ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ عليهما السلام قَالَ: خَمْسٌ مَنْ لَمْ يَكُنَّ فِيهِ لَمْ يَكُنْ فِيهِ كَثِيرُ مُسْتَمْتَعٍ قِيلَ وَ مَا هُنَّ يَا ابْنَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ قَالَ الدِّينُ وَ الْعَقْلُ وَ الْحَيَاءُ وَ حُسْنُ الْخُلُقِ وَ حُسْنُ الْأَدَبِ وَ خَمْسٌ مَنْ لَمْ يَكُنَّ فِيهِ لَمْ يَتَهَنَّأِ الْعَيْشُ الصِّحَّةُ وَ الْأَمْنُ وَ الْغِنَى وَ الْقَنَاعَةُ وَ الْأَنِيسُ الْمُوَافِقُ.

3«3»- al-Amali of al-Saduq: Ibn Idris, from his father, from Ibn Hashim, from Ibn Marrar, from Yunus, from Ibn Sinan (1), from al-Sadiq Ja'far b. Muhammad, peace be upon them both, who said: Five things — whoever lacks them has little in him from which benefit is drawn. It was said: And what are they, O son of the Messenger of God? He said: Religion, intellect, modesty, good character and good breeding. And five things — whoever lacks them, life is not pleasant for him: health, security, sufficiency, contentment, and a congenial companion.

«4»- ل، الخصال أَبِي عَنْ سَعْدٍ عَنِ ابْنِ يَزِيدَ عَنْ إِسْمَاعِيلَ بْنِ قُتَيْبَةَ الْبَصْرِيِّ عَنْ أَبِي خَالِدٍ الْعَجَمِيِّ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عليه السلام قَالَ: خَمْسٌ مَنْ لَمْ يَكُنَّ فِيهِ لَمْ يَكُنْ فِيهِ كَثِيرُ مُسْتَمْتَعٍ الدِّينُ وَ الْعَقْلُ وَ الْأَدَبُ وَ الْحُرِّيَّةُ وَ حُسْنُ الْخُلُقِ.

4«4»- al-Khisal: My father, from Sa'd, from Ibn Yazid, from Isma'il b. Qutayba al-Basri, from Abu Khalid al-'Ajami, from Abu 'Abd Allah, peace be upon him, who said: Five things — whoever lacks them has little in him from which benefit is drawn: religion, intellect, good breeding, freedom and good character.

سن، المحاسن ابن يزيد مثله و فيه و الجود مكان الحرية.

al-Mahasin: Ibn Yazid, the like of it, except that it has "generosity" in place of "freedom".

بيان: حسن الأدب إجراء الأمور على قانون الشرع و العقل في خدمة الحق و معاملة الخلق و الغني عدم الحاجة إلى الخلق و هو غنى النفس فإنه الكمال لا

Exposition: Good breeding (husn al-adab) is the conducting of one's affairs by the rule of the Sacred Law and of the intellect, in the service of the Truth and in dealing with created beings. And sufficiency (al-ghina) is to have no need of created beings — that is, sufficiency of soul, for that is the perfection, not