بِمَعَارِفِ قُلُوبِهِمْ إِلَى أَنَّ مَنْ فَعَلَ مَا يَفْعَلُونَهُ فَهُوَ فَاسِقٌ لَا يَجُوزُ أَنْ يُصَدَّقَ عَلَى اللَّهِ وَ لَا عَلَی الْوَسَائِطِ بَيْنَ الْخَلْقِ وَ بَيْنَ اللَّهِ فَلِذَلِكَ ذَمَّهُمْ لِمَا قَلَّدُوا مَنْ قَدْ عَرَفُوا وَ مَنْ قَدْ عَلِمُوا أَنَّهُ لَا يَجُوزُ قَبُولُ خَبَرِهِ وَ لَا تَصْدِيقُهُ فِي حِكَايَاتِهِ وَ لَا الْعَمَلُ بِمَا يُؤَدِّيهِ إِلَيْهِمْ عَمَّنْ لَمْ يُشَاهِدُوهُ وَ وَجَبَ عَلَيْهِمُ النَّظَرُ بِأَنْفُسِهِمْ فِي أَمْرِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى اللّٰه عليه و آله إِذْ كَانَتْ دَلَائِلُهُ أَوْضَحَ مِنْ أَنْ تَخْفَى وَ أَشْهَرَ مِنْ أَنْ لَا تَظْهَرَ لَهُمْ وَ كَذَلِكَ عَوَامُّ أُمَّتِنَا إِذَا عَرَفُوا مِنْ فُقَهَائِهِمُ الْفِسْقَ الظَّاهِرَ وَ الْعَصَبِيَّةَ الشَّدِيدَةَ وَ التَّكَالُبَ عَلَی حُطَامِ الدُّنْيَا وَ حَرَامِهَا وَ إِهْلَاكِ مَنْ يَتَعَصَّبُونَ عَلَيْهِ وَ إِنْ كَانَ لِإِصْلَاحِ أَمْرِهِ مُسْتَحِقّاً وَ التَّرَفْرُفِ بِالْبِرِّ وَ الْإِحْسَانِ عَلَى مَنْ تَعَصَّبُوا لَهُ وَ إِنْ كَانَ لِلْإِذَلَالِ وَ الْإِهَانَةِ مُسْتَحِقّاً فَمَنْ قَلَّدَ مِنْ عَوَامِّنَا مِثْلَ هَؤُلَاءِ الْفُقَهَاءِ فَهُمْ مِثْلُ الْيَهُودِ الَّذِينَ ذَمَّهُمُ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى بِالتَّقْلِيدِ لِفَسَقَةِ فُقَهَائِهِمْ- فَأَمَّا مَنْ كَانَ مِنَ الْفُقَهَاءِ صَائِناً لِنَفْسِهِ حَافِظاً لِدِينِهِ مُخَالِفاً عَلَى هَوَاهُ مُطِيعاً لِأَمْرِ مَوْلَاهُ فَلِلْعَوَامِّ أَنْ يُقَلِّدُوهُ وَ ذَلِكَ لَا يَكُونُ إِلَّا بَعْضَ فُقَهَاءِ الشِّيعَةِ لَا جَمِيعَهُمْ فَأَمَّا مَنْ رَكِبَ مِنَ الْقَبَائِحِ وَ الْفَوَاحِشِ مَرَاكِبَ فَسَقَةِ فُقَهَاءِ الْعَامَّةِ فَلَا تَقْبَلُوا مِنْهُمْ عَنَّا شَيْئاً وَ لَا كَرَامَةَ وَ إِنَّمَا كَثُرَ التَّخْلِيطُ فِيمَا يُتَحَمَّلُ عَنَّا أَهْلَ الْبَيْتِ لِذَلِكَ لِأَنَّ الْفَسَقَةَ يَتَحَمَّلُونَ عَنَّا فَيُحَرِّفُونَهُ بِأَسْرِهِ لِجَهْلِهِمْ وَ يَضَعُونَ الْأَشْيَاءَ عَلَى غَيْرِ وُجُوهِهَا لِقِلَّةِ مَعْرِفَتِهِمْ وَ آخَرِينَ يَتَعَمَّدُونَ الْكَذِبَ عَلَيْنَا لِيَجُرُّوا مِنْ عَرَضِ الدُّنْيَا مَا هُوَ زَادُهُمْ إِلَى نَارِ جَهَنَّمَ وَ مِنْهُمْ قَوْمٌ نُصَّابٌ لَا يَقْدِرُونَ عَلَى الْقَدَحِ فِينَا فَيَتَعَلَّمُونَ بَعْضَ عُلُومِنَا الصَّحِيحَةِ فَيَتَوَجَّهُونَ بِهِ عِنْدَ شِيعَتِنَا وَ يَنْتَقِصُونَ بِنَا عِنْدَ نُصَّابِنَا ثُمَّ يُضِيفُونَ إِلَيْهِ أَضْعَافَهُ وَ أَضْعَافَ أَضْعَافِهِ مِنَ الْأَكَاذِيبِ عَلَيْنَا الَّتِي نَحْنُ بُرَآءُ مِنْهَا فَيَقْبَلُهُ الْمُسْتَسْلِمُونَ مِنْ شِيعَتِنَا عَلَى أَنَّهُ مِنْ عُلُومِنَا فَضَلُّوا وَ أَضَلُّوا ١ وَ هُمْ أَضَرُّ عَلَى ضُعَفَاءِ شِيعَتِنَا مِنْ جَيْشِ يَزِيدَ عَلَيْهِ اللَّعْنَةُ عَلَى الْحُسَيْنِ بْنِ عَلِيٍّ عليهما السلام وَ أَصْحَابِهِ فَإِنَّهُمْ يَسْلُبُونَهُمُ الْأَرْوَاحَ وَ الْأَمْوَالَ وَ هَؤُلَاءِ عُلَمَاءُ السَّوْءِ النَّاصِبُونَ الْمُتَشَبِّهُونَ بِأَنَّهُمْ لَنَا مُوَالُونَ وَ لِأَعْدَائِنَا مُعَادُونَ يُدْخِلُونَ الشَّكَّ وَ الشُّبْهَةَ عَلَى ضُعَفَاءِ شِيعَتِنَا فَيُضِلُّونَهُمْ وَ يَمْنَعُونَهُمْ عَنْ قَصْدِ الْحَقِّ الْمُصِيبِ لَا جَرَمَ أَنَّ مَنْ عَلِمَ اللَّهُ مِنْ قَلْبِهِ مِنْ هَؤُلَاءِ الْعَوَامِّ أَنَّهُ لَا يُرِيدُ إِلَّا صِيَانَةَ دِينِهِ وَ تَعْظِيمَ وَلِيِّهِ لَمْ يَتْرُكْهُ فِي يَدِ هَذَا الْمُتَلَبِّسِ الْكَافِرِ وَ لَكِنَّهُ يُقَيِّضُ لَهُ مُؤْمِناً يَقِفُ بِهِ عَلَى الصَّوَابِ ثُمَّ يُوَفِّقُهُ اللَّهُ

they had grasped by the knowledge of their own hearts that one whose conduct is like that of their scholars is a transgressor, and that it is not permissible that he be believed on God's behalf nor be taken as an intermediary between the creation and God. So because they imitated men they knew — men of whom they knew that accepting their reports, affirming their accounts, and acting on what reached them from persons they had never seen was not permissible or proper — and because it was obligatory for them to look to themselves and think well upon the matter of the Messenger of God, may God bless him and his family, since his proofs were too plain to remain hidden and too famous for their truth not to appear. And such is the case of the common folk of our community: whenever they find in their scholars open transgression, fierce partisanship, and a rushing upon the worthless stubble of this world and its forbidden things; and see too that instead of setting their followers right they have girded themselves to destroy them, and that though they are more deserving of abasement and contempt they are treated with kindness and benevolence by their own followers — in such a state of affairs, any of our common folk who imitates such jurists will be exactly like the Jew who fell under God's censure for imitating his transgressing jurists. So every jurist who guards his soul, keeps his religion, opposes his own lower self and obeys the command of his Master — it is for the common folk to imitate such a jurist; and these conditions apply only to some of the Shi'i jurists and not to all of them. For whoever commits an ugly and flagrant deed like the transgressing jurists of the Sunnis — do not accept what they relate from us, and do not keep their standing. Indeed much of what is related from us has been mixed up, for transgressors listen to our words and in their ignorance distort them all, and from the little knowledge they have they put matters in places other than their own. Another group deliberately lie about us so as to get hold of a means to the worthless stubble of this world, and that very thing only increases the flames of Hell's fire for them. And there is a group among the enemies of the school who cannot attack us openly: they learn some of our sound sciences and pass them on to our Shi'a, while finding fault with us before our enemies, and they add to that many times as many lies and many times as many falsehoods, of all of which we are innocent and free; yet, alas, the Shi'a who submit to us accept it, holding it to be of the sciences of our knowledge — and so they go astray and lead others astray. The injury and harm of these persons to our weak Shi'a is greater than that of Yazid's army to Husayn b. 'Ali, peace be upon them both, and his companions; for they plunder the spirit as well as pillage the wealth. And this group of evil scholars are Nasibis in creed who outwardly count themselves among our friends and the enemies of our enemies, and who cast doubt and uncertainty upon our weak Shi'a and lead them astray and bar them from reaching the goal of truth. But if God, exalted, finds in the heart of any of these common folk that he has no aim but to keep his religion and to honour his master, He will never leave such a one in the hands of deceitful unbelievers; rather He will raise up for him a believer to make him aware of the right way, and then God will grant him the grace to accept from him,