His Supplication in Calling down Blessings
upon the Followers of the Messengers
In this supplication, the Ima`m, peace be on him, mentioned the followers of the messengers and those who attested to them, and then he mentioned the Companions of his grandfather, the Greatest Messenger, may Allah bless him and his Household, who supported Islam during its early days. He, peace be on him, said:
"O Allah, as for the followers of the messengers and those of the people of the earth who attested to them unseen (while the obstinate resisted them through crying lies)( they yearned for the emissaries through the realities of faith, in every era and time in which You did send a messenger and set up for the people a director from the period of Adam down to Mohammed (Allah bless him and his Household) from among the Ima`ms of guidance and the leaders of Allahfearing (upon them all be peace)( remember them with forgiveness and good pleasure!"
The Ima`m, peace be on him, praised the followers of the messengers and those who attested to them from the period of Adam down to the last of the prophets and their Lord, Mohammed, may Allah bless him and his Household. This is because they represented the true faith when the believed in Allah and attested to His messenger when he told them about the unseen creatures. They did not pay
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attention to the rumors of their enemies; rather they rejected them and waged war against them. Now, let's listen to another part of this holy supplication. He, peace be on him, said:
"O Allah, as for the companions of Mohammed specially, those who did well in companionship, who stood the good test in helping him when he made them hear his messages' argument, separated from mates and children in manifesting his word, fought against fathers and sons in strengthening his prophecy, and through him gained victory; those who were wrapped in affection for him, hoping for a commerce that comes not to naught in love for him; those who were left by their clans when they clung to his handhold and denied by their kinsfolk when they rested in the shadow of his kinship; forget not, O Allah what they abandoned for You and in You, and make them pleased with Your good pleasure for the sake of the creatures they drove to You while they were with Your Messenger, summoners to You for You. Show gratitude to them for leaving the abodes of their people for Your sake and going out from a plentiful livelihood to a narrow one, and (show gratitude to) those of them who became objects of wrongdoing and whom You multiplied in exalting Your religion."
In this part, the Ima`m, peace be on him, lauded the Companions of his grandfather, the Greatest Messenger, may Allah bless him and his Household, who did well in companionship and stood the good test in supporting Islam and protecting its principles. They firmly believed in Islam, hence they suffered for it bitter difficulties and hardships of which are the following:
1. They abandoned their wives and their children who did not believe in Isla`m.
2. They fought their fathers and their sons who opposed Islam.
3. Their tribes abandoned them, for they embraced Islam and supported the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his Household.
4. They faced economic hardships because of their support to
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Islam. These are some affairs from which the Companions of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his Household, suffered. Let's listen to another part of this supplication.
"O Allah, and give to those who have done well in following the Companions, who say, Our Lord forgive us and our brothers who went before us in faith, Your best reward; those who went straight to the Companions' road, sought out their course, and proceeded in their manners. No doubt concerning their sure insight diverted them and no uncertainty shook them from following in their tracks and being led by the guidance of their light. As their assistants and supporters, they professed their religion, gained guidance through their guidance, came to agreement with them, and never accused them in what they passed on to them."
"O Allah, and bless the Followers, from this day of ours to the Day of Doom, their wives, their offspring, and those among them who obey You, with a blessing through which You will preserve them from disobeying You, make room for them in the plots of Your Garden, defend them from the trickery of Satan, help them in the piety in which they seek help from You, protect them from sudden events that come by night and day(except the events which come with good( and incite them to tie firmly the knot of good hope in You, what is with You, and refrain from ill thoughts (toward You) because of what the hands of Your servants' hold. Thus You may restore them to beseeching You and fearing You, induce them to renounce the plenty of the immediate, make them love to work for the sake of the deferred and prepare for what comes after death, make easy for them every distress that comes to them on the day when souls take leave from bodies, release them from that which brings about the perils of temptation and being thrown down in the Fire and staying forever within it, and take them to security, the resting place of the Allah-fearing.
1"
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1 Ibid., Supplication no. 4.
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The Ima`m, peace be on him, asked Allah, the Exalted to bless those who followed the Companions of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and his Household, while they did not see the Prophet, but they believed in him in their inner selves and followed the way of his Companions. No doubt prevented them from following them and their guidance, hence they raised up the Banner of the Unity of Allah, and spread among the people the principles and values of this religion, so the Ima`m asked Allah:
1. To preserve them from committing acts of disobedience.
2. To defend them from the trickery of Satan.
3. To help them to do good and to adhere to piety.
4. To Protect them from sudden events that come by night and day.
5. To tie firmly the knot of good hope in Him, that they might be free from need to the people.
6. To make them renounce the world and make them love to work for the sake of the next world. These are some contents of his supplication for the followers of the Companions of his grandfather, the Messenger, may Allah bless him and his family.
His Supplication for himself and the
People under his Guardianship
The following is one of the excellent supplications of the Ima`m, peace be on him. He would supplicate with it for himself and the people under his guardianship:
"O He the wonders of whose mightiness will never end! Bless Mohammed and his Household and prevent us from deviation concerning Your mightiness! O He the term of whose kingdom will never cease! Bless Mohammed and his Household and release our necks from Your vengeance! O He the treasuries of whose mercy will
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never be exhausted! Bless Mohammed and his Household and appoint for us a portion of Your mercy! O He whom eyes fall short of seeing! Bless Mohammed and his Household and bring us close to Your nearness! O He before whose greatness all great things are small! Bless Mohammed and his Household and give us honor with You! O He to whom all hidden tidings are manifest! Bless Mohammed and his Household and expose us not before You! O Allah, remove our need for the gifts of the givers through Your gift, spare us the loneliness of those who break off through Your joining, that we may beseech no one along with Your free giving, that we may feel lonely at no one's absence along with Your bounty! O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, scheme for us, not against us, device to our benefit, not to our loss, give the turn to prevail to us, not to others! O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, protect us from Yourself! He whom You protect stays safe, he whom You guide knows, and he whom You bring near Yourself takes the spoils. O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household and spare us the cutting edge of time's turning changes, the evil of Satan's snares, and the bitterness of the sovereign's aggression!"
In this part of his supplication, the Ima`m, peace be on him, started with praising the Great Creator, and then he asked Him to protect him from unbelief which makes man leave his humanity. After this he mentioned the mightiness of Allah. He asked Allah to bestow upon him His favors and boons, to remove his need for the gifts of the givers through His gift, to spare him the loneliness of those who break off through His joining, to spare him from the misfortunes of time, and save him from the evil of Satan's snares and the bitterness of the sovereign's aggression. This part is full of wonderful words and good style and is among the most beautiful rhetorical parts in Arabic literature. Now, let's listen to another part of this supplication:
"O Allah, the spared are spared only through the bounty of Your strength, so bless Mohammed and his Household and spare us! The givers give only through the bounty of Your wealth, so bless Mohammed and his Household and give to us! The guided are guided
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only by the light of Your face, so bless Mohammed and his Household and guide us! O Allah, he whom You befriend will not be injured by the abandonment of the abandoners, he to whom You give will not be diminished by the withholding of the withholders, he who You guide will not be misled by the misguidance of the misguiders. So bless Mohammed and his Household, defend us from Your servants through Your might, free us from need for other than You through Your support, and make us travel the path of the Truth through the right guidance! O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household and put the soundness of our hearts into remembrance of Your mightiness, the idleness of our bodies into giving thanks for Your favor, and the flow of our tongues into the description of Your kindness! O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household and make us one of Your summoners who summon to You, Your guiders who direct to You, and You special friends whom You have singled out! O Most Merciful of the merciful!
1"
How wonderful this faith is! How great this love for Allah is! Have you seen how this Ima`m displayed love for Allah and sincerity to Him? He believed that Allah had power over all things, that those other than Him had neither force nor strength, hence he set his hope and expectation on Him, not on other than Him.
His Supplication in Morning and Evening
This is one of the greatest supplications of the Ima`m, peace be on him. He would supplicate with it in morning and evening. It is full of reliable proofs for the existence of the Almighty Creator and His tremendous power. The following is its text:
"Praise belongs to Allah, who created night and day, through His strength, set them apart through His power, and appointed for each a determined limit and a drawn-out period. He makes each of the two enter into its companion, and makes its companions enter into it,
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1 Al-Sahifa al-Sajja`diya, Supplication no. 5.
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as an ordainment from Him for His servants in that through which He makes them grow. He created for them the night, that they might rest in it from tiring movements and wearisome exertions and He made it a garment for them that they might be clothed in its ease and its sleep, that it might be for them refreshment and strength, that they might reach therein pleasure and passion. He created for them the daytime, giving sight, that they might seek within it of His bounty, find the means to His provision, and roam freely in His earth, searching for that through which to attain the immediate in their life in this world and to achieve the deferred in their life to come. Through all of this He sets their situation, tries their records, and watches their state in the times for obeying Him, the way stations of His obligations, that He may repay those who do evil with that they have done and repay those who do good with goodness."
As for this part, it is one of the proofs for the Islamic Unity based on thinking and sense, for faith in Allah, according to the Islamic viewpoint, is a mere traditional phenomenon or an emotional inclination; rather it is based on the most reliable proofs and the best of them in awareness and originality.
In this part the Ima`m, peace be on him, considered carefully the universe and life and based on this his deep faith in Allah. He considered carefully night and day and concluded that they followed a wonderful, orderly movement, concerning which the Holy Qur'a`n said: "Neither it is allowable to the sun that it should overtake the moon, nor can the night outstrip the day; and all float on in a sphere." Who ordered this movement, created it, and ordained it with this accurate ordination? Without doubt, it is Allah, the Giver of life, who did this!
The Ima`m, peace be on him, mentioned the profits which man gain during his life from the march of night and day. Allah, the Most High, created for man the night, that he might rest in it from tiring movements and wearisome exertions and He made it a garment for His servants that they might be clothed in its ease and its sleep. As for
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the daytime, Allah, the Exalted, made it giving sight and light, that man might seek within it of His bounty and provision through agriculture, work, trade, and other works which help him earn his livelihood, that his life might continue on this earth on which he lives. Now, let's listen to another part of this supplication:
"O Allah, to You belongs praise for the sky You have split into dawn for us, giving us to enjoy thereby the brightness of daytime, showing us sought-after nourishment, and protecting us from the striking of blights. In the morning we and all things, every one rise for You, the heaven and the earth and what You have scattered in each, the still and the moving, the resident and the journeying, what towers up in the air and what hides under the ground. We rise in the morning in Your grasp: Your kingdom and authority contain us and Your will embrace us. We move about by Your command and turn this way and that way through Your governing. We own nothing of the affair except what You have decreed and nothing of the good except what You have given. This is a fresh, new day, over us a ready witness. If we do good, it will take leave from us with praise, and if we do evil, it will part from us in blame."
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, provide us with the day's good companionship and preserve us against parting from it badly by doing a misdeed or committing a sin, whether small or great! Make our good deeds within it plentiful empty us therein of evil deeds, and fill what lies between its two sides for us with praise and thanks giving, wages and stores, bounty and beneficence! O Allah, ease our burden on the Noble Writers, fill our pages for us with our good deeds, and degrade us not before them with our evil works! O Allah, appoint for us in each of the day's hours a share from Your servants, a portion of giving thanks to You and a truthful witness among Your angels! O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, and safeguard us from before us and behind us, from our right hands
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and our left hands and from all our directions, a safeguarding that will preserve from disobeying You, guide to obeying You, and be employed for Your love!"
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, and give us success in this day of ours, this night of ours, and in all our days, to employ the good, stay away from the evil, give thanks for favor, follows the Sunna's norms, avoid innovations, enjoin good behavior, forbid the disapproved, defend Islam, diminish falsehood and abase it, help the truth and exalt it, guide the misguided, assist the weak, and reach out to the troubled!
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, and make this the most fortunate day we have known, the most excellent companion we have accompanied, and the best time in which we have lingered! Place us among the most satisfied of all Your creatures whom night and day have passed by, the most thankful of them for the favors You have done, the firmest of them in the laws You have set down in the Shari'a and the most unyielding of them toward the prohibited acts against which You have cautioned! O Allah, I call You to witness (and You are sufficient witness( and I call Your heaven and Your earth to witness and Your angels and Your other creatures who inhabit them, in this my day, this my hour, this my night, and this my resting place, that I bear witness that You are Allah, other than whom there is no god, Upholding justice, Equitable in judgment, clement to the servants, Master of the Kingdom , Compassionate to the creatures, and that Mohammed is Your servant and Your messenger, Your chosen from among Your creatures. You did charge him with Your message and he delivered it; You did command him to counsel his community and he counseled it.
"O Allah, so bless Mohammed and his Household, more than You blessed any of Your creatures! Give him for our sake the best You have given any of Your servants, and repay him on our behalf better and more generously than You have any of Your prophets on behalf of his community! You are All-kind with immensity, the
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Forgiver of the great, and You are more merciful than every possessor of mercy! So bless Mohammed and his Household, the good, the pure, the chosen, the most distinguished!
1"
The Ima`m, peace be on him, spoke in this part about the submission of all things to Allah's power and will, for it is He who makes them walk on the path of His desire. After this the Ima`m asked Allah to give him success to in order to employ the good, stay away from the evil, give thanks for favors, follow the Sunna's norms, avoid innovations, enjoin good behavior, forbid the disapproved, defend Islam, diminish falsehood and abase it, help the truth and exalt it, guide the misguided, assist the weak, and reach out to the troubled, and other good works and noble moral traits through man become sublime. In this supplication, the Ima`m has chosen the most beautiful words and the purest of them. It is certain that there are no Arab words more eloquent and purer than this supplication except those of the Holy Qur'a`n and of 'Ali's Nahjj al-Bala`gha.
His Supplication for Good Outcomes
This is one of the Ima`m's holy supplications. He supplicated Allah with it to be kind to him through good outcomes. This is its text:
"O He remembering whom brings honor to those who remember! O He thanking whom brings triumph to those who give thanks! O He obeying whom brings deliverance to those who obey! Bless Mohammed and his Household, and divert our hearts through remembering You from every act of remembrance, our tongues through thanking You from every act of thanksgiving, our limbs through obeying You from every act of obedience! If You have ordained for us idleness from these occupations, make it an idleness of safety, within which no ill consequence visits us or weariness overtakes us! Then the writers of evil deeds may depart from us with
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1 Ibid, Supplication no. 6.
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a page empty of the mention of our evil deeds, and the writers of good deeds may turn away from us happy with the good deeds of ours which they have written. And when the days of our life have passed by, the terms of our lifetimes have elapsed, and Your call, which must come and be answered, summons us forth, then bless Mohammed and his Household, and make the outcome of what the writers of our works count against us an accepted repentance, which afterwards gave us no rest in a sin that we committed or an act of disobedience that we performed! Remove not from us any covering with which You have covered over the heads of the witnesses on the day when records of Your servants are tried! Verily You are compassionate to him who supplicates You, the responder to him who calls upon You!
1"
Have you seen this sincerity to Allah and love for Him? The Ima`m asked Allah, the Exalted, to make his outcome an accepted repentance, that he might be safe from the terrors of the hereafter and chastisement of the Day of Resurrection, and delight at Paradise.
His Supplication in Seeking Repentance
He, peace be on him, would supplicate with this supplication asking Allah, the Exalted, to be kind to him through repentance and forgiveness:
"O Allah, three traits have prevented me from asking You and one trait has urged me on: I am prevented by a command You have commanded in which I have been slow, a prohibition You have prohibited toward which I have hurried, and a favor through which You have favored for which I have not given sufficient thanks. I am urged to ask You by Your gratuitous bounty upon him who turns his face toward You and comes to You with a good opinion, since all Your beneficence is gratuitous bounty and every one of Your favors a new beginning! So here I am, my Allah, standing at the gate of Your might, the standing of the lowly, the surrendered, asking You in my
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1 Ibid, Supplication no. 11.
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shame, the asking of the destitute, the pitiful, admitting to You that at the time of Your beneficence I surrendered not save through abstaining from disobedience toward You and in none of my states was I ever without Your Kindness. Will it profit me, my Allah, to admit to You the evil of what I have earned? Will it save me from You to confess the ugliness of what I have done? Or will You impose upon me in this my station Your displeasure? Will You hate hold fast to me in the time of my supplication? Glory be to You! I do not despair of You, for You have opened the door of repentance toward Yourself. Rather, I say, the words of a lowly servant, having wronged himself and made light of his Lord's inviolability, and whose sins are dreadful, great, whose days have parted, fled, until, when he sees the term of his works expired and the limit of his lifetime reached and knows with certainty that he has no escape from You, no place to flee from You, he turns his face toward You in repeated turning, makes his repentance toward You sincere, stands before You with a pure and purified heart, then supplicates You with a feeble, quiet voice. He is bowed before You, bent, his head lowered, thrown down, his legs shaking in fear, his tears flooding his cheeks. He supplicates You: O Most Merciful of the merciful! O Most Merciful of those toward whom seekers of mercy keep on turning! O Tenderest of those around whom run seekers of forgiveness! O He whose pardon is greater than His vengeance! O He whose good pleasure is more abundant than His anger! O He who seeks His creatures' praise with excellent forbearance! O He who has accustomed His servants to the acceptance of their repeated turning! O He who seeks to heal their corruption through repentance! O He who is pleased with the easy of their acts! O He who recompenses with the much their little! O He who made himself accountable to them to respond to supplication! O He who pledged Himself by His gratuitous bounty to give them excellent repayment! I am not the most disobedient of those who have disobeyed You and whom You have forgiven, nor am I the most blameworthy to offer excuses which You have accepted, nor am I the most wrongdoing of those who have repented to You and to whom You have returned. I repent to You in this my station, the repentance
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of one remorseful over what preceded from him hastily, apprehensive of what has gathered around him, pure in shame for that into which he has fallen, knowing that pardoning great sins is nothing for You, overlooking enormous misdeeds is not difficult for You, putting up with indecent crimes does not trouble You, and the most beloved of Your servants to You is he who refrains from arrogance before You, pulls aside from persistence, and holds fast to praying forgiveness! I seek refuge in You from persistence, I pray forgiveness from You for shortcomings, I seek help from You in incapacity!
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, dispense with what is incumbent upon me toward You, release me from what I merit from You, and grant me sanctuary from what the evildoers fear! For You are full of pardon, the hoped-for source of forgiveness, well known for Your forbearance. My need has no object but You, my sin has no forgiver other than You(could that be possible? I have no fear for myself except from You; You are worthy of reverential fear, and worthy to forgive! Bless Mohammed and his Household, grant my need, answer my request favorably, forgive my sin, and give me security from fear for myself! You are powerful over everything, and that is easy for You. Amen, Lord of the worlds!
1"
In this supplication the Ima`m, peace be on him, has opened a new door to conversation with Allah, the Exalted. I (the author) think that none knew or used such a door to conversation in the Arab words except the supplication which have been handed down from Ima`m 'Ali, the Commander of the faithful, peace be on him. The Ima`m (Zayn al-'Abidin) displayed before Allah the factors which prevented him from asking Him as well as he presented what urged him to ask him. He mentioned this in a detailed exiting manner, asking Him, the Exalted, for repentance, pardon, and mercy. He asked him with the words of one fearful, lowly, and miserable. He bent, lowered his head, shook (in fear), and burst into tears. He pled to Allah, asked Him to
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1 Ibid, Supplication no. 12.
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forgive him for falling short of fulfilling His rights against him, and showed remorse over His affairs which he neglected. He, peace be on him, addressed Allah, the Exalted in such a manner, while he, peace be on him, was Sayyid al-Sa`jidin (the Lords of those who prostrate themselves in prayer), Ima`m of the Allah-fearing, and Leader of the monotheists. What an angelic soul this is! It became small and melted out of honoring and magnifying the Great Creator!
His Supplication when Sick
He, peace be on him, would supplicate with this great supplication when he was sick or visited by distress or an affliction. The following is its text:
"O Allah, to You belongs praise for the good health of my body which lets me move about, and to You belongs praise for the ailments which You cause to arise in my flesh! For I know not, my Allah, which of the two states deserves more my thanking You and which of the two times is more worthy for my praise of You: the time of health, within which You make me delight in the agreeable things of Your provision, through which You give me the joy to seek the means to Your good pleasure and bounty, and by which You strengthen me for the acts of obedience which You have me success to accomplish; or the time of illness through which You put me to the test and bestow upon me favor: lightening of the offenses that weigh down my back, purification of the evil deeds into which I have plunged, incitement to reach for repentance, reminder of the erasure of misdeeds through ancient favor; and, through all that, what the two writers write for me: blameless acts, which no heart had thought, no tongue had uttered, and no limb had undertaken, rather, as Your bestowal of bounty upon me and the beneficence of Your benefaction toward me.
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, make me love what You have approved for me, make easy for me what You have sent down upon me, purify me of the defilement of what I have sent ahead, erase the evil of what I have done beforehand, let me find the
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sweetness of well-being, let me taste the coolness of safety, and appoint for me a way out from my illness to Your pardon, transformation of my infirmity into Your forbearance, escape from my distress to Your refreshment, and safety from this hardship in Your relief! You are gratuitous bountiful in beneficence, ever gracious in kindness, the Generous, the Giver, Possessor of majesty and munificence!
1"
The Ima`m, peace be on him, firmly believed that Allah, the Exalted, had power over health, safety, and maladies. He thought that it was Allah who gave well-being and tried with malady whomever He wished of His servants, yet the Ima`m, peace be on him, thanked his Lord for both states: He thanked Him for well-being, the agreeable things of provision, activity to seeking His good pleasure, and strength to obeying Him. Also he thanked for malady, for he thought that illness would decrease one's sins and crimes, meanwhile he wanted to draw the attention of people to repentance. After this he asked Him to give him well-being and safety, to save him from hardships, and to relieve him.
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1 Ibid, Supplication no. 15.
