Light of Reflection

H 2, Ch. 1, h 2 Ali ibn Muhammad has narrated from Sahl ibn Ziyad, from 'Amr ibn ‘Uthman, from Mufaddal ibn Salih from Sa‘d ibn Tarif from Asbagh ibn Nabatah, from Ali (a.s) who has said the following. "Once Jibril came to Adam (a.s) and said, ‘I am ordered to offer you three choices. You may chose one and leave the other two. Adam then asked, "What are those three things?" Gibril replied, ‘They are Intelligence, bashfulness and religion.’ Adam then said, "I chose Intelligence." Gibril then asked bashfulness and religion to return and leave Intelligence with Adam. They said to Gibril, ‘O Gibril, we are commanded to be with Intelligence wherever it may exist. Gibril then said, "It then is up to you." He then ascended to heavens.

Thus whoever attaches attributes to Allah recognises His like,  and whoever recognises His like regards Him two;  and whoever regards Him as two recognises parts for Him; and whoever recognises parts for Him mistook Him;  and whoever mistook Him pointed at Him;  and whoever pointed at Him admitted limitations for Him;  and whoever admitted limitations for Him numbered Him.  Whoever said: ‘In what is He?’, held that He is contained; and whoever said: ‘On what is He?’, held He is not on something else. Prior Parts: Praise is to Allah whose worth cannot be described by speakers, whose bounties cannot be counted by calculators and whose claim (to obedience) cannot be satisfied by those who attempt to do so, whom the height of intellectual courage cannot appreciate, and the divings of understanding cannot reach; He for whose description no limit has been laid down, no eulogy exists, no time is ordained and no duration is fixed. He brought forth creat...

Following is the Will of Hazrat Ali after Zarbat on 19th of Ramadan. We are dividing each direction into a separate sentence, so that each separate command is recognized. Video at the bottom is the narration of the will in Urdu with English sub-title.  "My advice to you is to be conscious of Allah and steadfast in your religion.  Do not yearn for the world, and do not be seduced by it. Do not resent anything you have missed in it.  Proclaim the truth; work for the next world.  Oppose the oppressor and support the oppressed.  I advise you, and  all my children , my relatives, and whosoever receives this message, to be conscious of Allah, to remove your differences, and to strengthen your ties. I heard your grandfather, peace be upon him, say:  "Reconciliation of your differences is more worthy than all prayers and all  fasting ."  Fear Allah in matters concerning orphans. Attend to their nutrition and do not forget their interests i...

The foremost in religion is the acknowledgement of Him,  the perfection of acknowledging Him is to testify Him,  the perfection of testifying Him is to believe in His Oneness,  the perfection of believing in His Oneness is to regard Him Pure,  and the perfection of His purity is to deny Him attributes,  because every attribute is a proof that it is different from that to which it is attributed and everything to which something is attributed is different from the attribute. Part 1 Praise is due to Allah whose worth cannot be described by speakers, whose bounties cannot be counted by calculators and whose claim (to obedience) cannot be satisfied by those who attempt to do so, whom the height of intellectual courage cannot appreciate, and the divings of understanding cannot reach; He for whose description no limit has been laid down, no eulogy exists, no time is ordained and no duration is fixed. He brought forth creation through His Omnipotence, disper...

SURAH AL-BAQARAH  In the Name of Allah, the All-beneficent, the All-merciful.  1 Alif, L¡m, M¢m.  2 This is the Book,  there is no doubt in it, a guidance to the Godwary 3 who believe in the Unseen,  and maintain the prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them;  4 and who believe in what has been sent down to you and what was sent down before you,  and are certain of the Hereafter.  5 Those follow their Lord’s guidance,  and it is they who are the felicitous.  6 As for the faithless, it is the same to them whether you warn them or do not warn them, they will not have faith.  7 Allah has set a seal on their hearts Page 2 (34) Reflections: Quran is a code of life. It is a constitution. Countries typically have a small one page constitution but have thousands of books and court orders written to interpret that constitution, Quran is a constitution sent by the God for those who have fear and who believe in t...

H 1, Ch. 1, h 1 Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn Ya’qub has narrated from a number of our people of whom one is Muhammad ibn Yahya al-‘Attar who narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from Hassan ibn Mahbub from 'Ala' ibn Razin from Muhammad ibn Muslim from abu Ja’far (a.s) who has said the following: " When Allah, God, created Intelligence He made it speak and then He said to it, ‘Come forward’.  It came forward. He then said, "Go back." It went back. Then Allah said, "I swear by My honor and glory that I have not created any creature more beloved to Me than you. I will not perfect you in anyone except those whom I love. I, however, will command only you to do things and prohibit only you from doing certain things. I will grant blessings (rewards) to you only and will subject only you to punishments." Reflections: Such an amazing thing is intelligence. Intelligence not only sets us apart from other living beings, it allows us to differentiate between go...

In this sermon, Hazrat Ali recalls the creation of the earth and sky and the birth of Adam: "Praise is due to Allah Whose worth cannot be described by speakers,  whose bounties cannot be counted by calculators and  whose claim (to obedience) cannot be satisfied by those who attempt to do so,  whom the height of intellectual courage cannot appreciate and the depths of understanding cannot reach;  He, for whose description no limit has been laid down, no praise exists, no time is ordained and no duration is fixed.  He brought forth creation through His Omnipotence, dispersed winds through His Compassion and made firm the shaking earth with rocks." Reflections: It seems like these words are coming from an individual who recognizes something that we as simple mortals cannot comprehend. Words don't do justice to the knowledge with which they are uttered. And understanding of that knowledge through these words, is like trying to explain the beauty of Taj Mah...

Sura Al Fatiha (Sura #1) In the Name of Allah, the All-beneficent, the All-merciful. (1) All praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds, (2) the All-beneficent, the All-merciful, (3) Master of the Day of Retribution. (4) You [alone] do we worship, and to You [alone] do we turn for help. (5) Guide us on the straight path, (6) the path of those whom You have blessed — such as have not incurred Your wrath, nor are astray. (7) Allah = God: God of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus & Mohammad (PBUH)