فَأُثْبِتَ لَهُ الشَّهَادَةُ بِالنَّجَاةِ وَ مَنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ فِعْلُهُ لِقَوْلِهِ مُوَافِقاً فَإِنَّمَا ذَلِكَ مُسْتَوْدَعٌ ١.
I bear witness to his salvation. And whoever's deed does not accord with his word — his faith is a borrowed faith.
«18»- ضا، فقه الرضا عليه السلام أَرْوِي مَنْ تَعَلَّمَ الْعِلْمَ لِيُمَارِيَ بِهِ السُّفَهَاءَ أَوْ يُبَاهِيَ بِهِ الْعُلَمَاءَ أَوْ يَصْرِفَ وُجُوهَ النَّاسِ إِلَيْهِ لِيُرَئِّسُوهُ وَ يُعَظِّمُوهُ فَلْيَتَبَوَّأْ مَقْعَدَهُ مِنَ النَّارِ.
Fiqh al-Rida, peace be upon him: Whoever learns knowledge in order to dispute with the ignorant, or to vaunt himself over the scholars, or to draw people's attention so as to be their chief and be honoured by them — let him make ready his place in the Fire of Hell.
«19»- شا، الإرشاد فِي خُطْبَةٍ لِأَمِيرِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ عليه السلام تَرَكْنَا صَدْرَهَا الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي هَدَانَا مِنَ الضَّلَالَةِ وَ بَصَّرَنَا مِنَ الْعَمَی وَ مَنَّ عَلَيْنَا بِالْإِسْلَامِ وَ جَعَلَ فِينَا النُّبُوَّةَ وَ جَعَلَنَا النُّجَبَاءَ وَ جَعَلَ أَفْرَاطَنَا أَفْرَاطَ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ وَ جَعَلَنَا خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ نَأْمُرُ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَ نَنْهَی عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَ نَعْبُدُ اللَّهَ وَ لَا نُشْرِكُ بِهِ شَيْئاً وَ لَا نَتَّخِذُ مِنْ دُونِهِ وَلِيّاً فَنَحْنُ شُهَدَاءُ اللَّهِ وَ الرَّسُولُ شَهِيدٌ عَلَيْنَا نَشْفَعُ فَنُشَفَّعُ فِيمَنْ شَفَعْنَا لَهُ وَ نَدْعُو فَيُسْتَجَابُ دُعَاؤُنَا وَ يُغْفَرُ لِمَنْ نَدْعُو لَهُ ذُنُوبُهُ أَخْلَصْنَا لِلَّهِ فَلَمْ نَدْعُ مِنْ دُونِهِ وَلِيّاً أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ تَعاوَنُوا عَلَى الْبِرِّ وَ التَّقْوی وَ لا تَعاوَنُوا عَلَى الْإِثْمِ وَ الْعُدْوانِ وَ اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ شَدِيدُ الْعِقابِ أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنِّي ابْنُ عَمِّ نَبِيِّكُمْ وَ أَوْلَاكُمْ بِاللَّهِ وَ رَسُولِهِ ٢فَاسْأَلُونِي ثُمَّ اسْأَلُونِي وَ كَأَنَّكُمْ بِالْعِلْمِ قَدْ نَفِدَ وَ أَنَّهُ لَا يَهْلِكُ عَالِمٌ إِلَّا يَهْلِكُ بَعْضُ عِلْمِهِ وَ إِنَّمَا الْعُلَمَاءُ فِي النَّاسِ كَالْبَدْرِ فِي السَّمَاءِ يُضِی ءُ نُورُهُ عَلَى سَائِرِ الْكَوَاكِبِ خُذُوا مِنَ الْعِلْمِ مَا بَدَا لَكُمْ وَ إِيَّاكُمْ أَنْ تَطْلُبُوهُ لِخِصَالٍ أَرْبَعٍ لِتُبَاهُوا بِهِ الْعُلَمَاءَ أَوْ تُمَارُوا بِهِ السُّفَهَاءَ أَوْ تُرَاءُوا بِهِ فِي الْمَجَالِسِ أَوْ تَصْرِفُوا وُجُوهَ النَّاسِ إِلَيْكُمْ لِلتَّرَؤُّسِ لَا يَسْتَوِي عِنْدَ اللَّهِ فِي الْعُقُوبَةِ الَّذِينَ يَعْلَمُونَ وَ الَّذِينَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ نَفَعَنَا اللَّهُ وَ إِيَّاكُمْ بِمَا عَلِمْنَا وَ جَعَلَهُ لِوَجْهِهِ خَالِصاً إِنَّهُ سَمِيعٌ مُجِيبٌ.
Al-Irshad: 'Ali, peace be upon him, said in the course of a sermon whose opening we have omitted, and whose continuation is this: Praise be to God, who guided us from error, and gave us sight after blindness, and favoured us with Islam, and placed prophethood among us, and made us of the chosen, and made the marks of our path the marks of the prophets, and made us the best of the communities that have come — that we enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong, and worship God and associate none with Him, and take no master besides Him. So we are God's witnesses, and the Messenger of God — may God bless him and his family — is witness over us. We shall intercede on the Day of Resurrection, and our intercession shall be accepted for whomever we intercede for; and we shall call upon God and be answered, and the sins of whomever we pray for shall be forgiven. We have devoted ourselves sincerely to God and have called no other than Him our sovereign. O people, "help one another in righteousness and God-fearing, and do not help one another in sin and transgression; and fear God, for God is severe in punishment." Help one another in good and do not help one another in sin and wrong, and fear God, for God is severe in retribution. O people, I am the cousin of your Prophet and the worthiest of you towards God and His Messenger. Ask me, and ask me again, for it is as though you behold knowledge passing away and perishing; and no scholar perishes but that some of his knowledge goes with him. The scholars among people are only like the moon in the sky, whose light outshines the other stars. Whatever of knowledge is made plain to you, take it; and beware of learning knowledge for these four ends: first, to vaunt yourselves over the scholars and take pride in yourselves; second, to contend and dispute thereby with the empty-headed; third, to show yourselves off in assemblies by it; fourth, to draw people to yourselves by it in order to gain leadership. In the reward of deeds, those who know and those who do not know are not equal and alike. May God profit us and you in what He has taught us and made pure and sincere for Himself; truly He is the Hearing, the Answering.
بيان: الفرط العلم المستقيم يهتدى به و ما لم يدرك من الولد و الذي يتقدم الواردة ليهيئ لهم ما يحتاجون إليه فقوله عليه السلام و جعل أفراطنا أفراط الأنبياء أي جعل أولادنا أولاد الأنبياء أي نحن و أولادنا من سلالة النبيين أو المراد أن الهادي منا أي الإمام إمام للأنبياء و قدوة لهم أيضا أو شفعاؤنا شفعاء الأنبياء أيضا
"Al-farat" is upright knowledge by which one is guided; and it is also said of a child who did not live to be known; and likewise of one who goes ahead of others to a place to make ready what they need — such a one is called a farat. What the Imam, peace be upon him, means is that God has made our children the children of the prophets — that is, we and our children are of the lineage of the prophets; or that the guide is from among us, that is, the Imam is the leader and guide of the prophets too.
كَمَا قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى اللّٰه عليه و آله أَنَا فَرَطُكُمْ عَلَى الْحَوْضِ
It may also mean that our intercessors are the intercessors of the prophets as well, as the Prophet said: I am your forerunner at the Pool.
«20»- مص، مصباح الشريعة قَالَ الصَّادِقُ عليه السلام الْعِلْمُ أَصْلُ كُلِّ حَالٍ سَنِيٍّ وَ مُنْتَهَی كُلِّ مَنْزِلَة
Misbah al-Shari'a: Imam al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, said: Knowledge is the root of every lofty state and quality, and the utmost of every station