A short sermon of Ali ra

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A short sermon of Ali ra
se7en
02/25/01 at 01:02:31
Ja'far narrated that after a funeral prayer which 'Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, officiated, and when the procession reached the grave site, 'Ali descended the grave along with a helper, and upon laying the deceased in his sepulcher [lahd] his family broke out in mourning.  Hearing that, 'Ali turned to his companinon and soberly commented: "Why are they crying thus?  I swear by Allah Almighty, that if they were to taste what their deceased person was experiencing right now, their cognizance will lead them to forget about their departed companion, and they will surely think of nothing but their own individual conclusion in this world.  Nevertheless, they will certainly come back to this cemetary, time after time, until none of them is left in this world."

After the burial, 'Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, stood up and delivered a short sermon, wherein he said, "O servants of Allah, I admonish you to persevere in piety before the Lord of majesty and glory, who teaches you through parables, and who has fixed your life time in this world.  He gave you ears to listen with and minds to perceive the meaning of what you hear, and He gave you eyes through which you must see, and consequently, wash off any stupor.  He gave you hearts that understand fate, and He gave you form and existence.  Surely Almighty Allah did not create you in vain, nor did He deprive you of hearing His admonitions and revelations.  Instead, He blessed you with countless favors, bestowed generous benedictions upon you, provided for you all what you need in this life, and He promised you every exalted reward for every moment of elation or adversity you experience in this world.  

Therefore, O dependants of Allah, strive hard, and further your pursuit of good deeds as long as the opportunity of this life is present.  Do as much as you can, before the destroyer of pleasures in this world arrives.  Surely, the comfort of this life will not last, and no one is secure from bereavements.  This world is the ground of dying arrogance, and a disappearing shadow, and it is a mutable stand which yields pride at first, and then it lies down motionless to be carried on its back for its burial in its own grave.  The price of what it desires is surely exuberant, and its pretension of humility is most deceiving.  

O servants of Allah Almighty, hearken to these allegories, and heed the signs and the traces left for you to ponder upon.  Repel potential calamities with votive offerings, and try to benefit from the admonitions of human's past history.  In reality, it seems as though the claws of death have gotten hold of you, and that a house of dirt is dug for you, and it looks as though the trumpet of the Resurrection has interrupted your wordly pursuit, followed by the scattering of graves, the exposure of cadavers, the resurrection of the dead who will be driven to the land of the great gathering, and where they will stand up for as long as Allah wills, and await their final reckoning.  All these events are controlled solely by the divine power of the magnificent Lord.  Each soul is driven to its destined location by it's own guide.  Each soul is accompanied with witnessing angels who testify to its deeds, and then, thereat....

Re: A short sermon of Ali ra
Arsalan
02/25/01 at 00:40:44
Where's the rest of it?  Isn't it incomplete?
Re: A short sermon of Ali ra
se7en
02/25/01 at 00:58:21
It's comin... I have to finish typing it.
Re: A short sermon of Ali ra
se7en
02/25/01 at 01:01:53
... Each soul is accompanied with its witnessing angels who will testify to its deeds, and then, thereat {The earth will resplend with the glorious light of its Lord, the book of records will lay open, the prophets and the witnesses will be brought forward; and all shall be judged by the divine and just criterion, and they will not be treated unjustly.} (Q39.69)

On that day, all the cities will be rent asunder, and the harbinger will call, for it is the convened promised day for the grand gathering.  On that day, the shin will be laid barren, the sun will be eclipsed, the beasts grouped, the gathering laid flat, the secrets exposed, the evil ones destroyed, the hearts shaken, and the dewellers of the hell-fire will receive a most humiliating blow, and a most painful and lasting punishment for their sins.  Hell will be brought forth, and along with it will come its tumult, uproar and thunder, rage and sanctions.  Its fire will be blazed, its waters boiling, and its poisions biting.  Its eternally doomed dwellers never die, their sorrow and pain do not end, and their shackles and fetters do not brake.  Next to them will also stand the angels who will announce to them the coming {entertainment of scalding water, and an ever burning hell-fire.} (Q56.93) {On that day they shall be veiled from the light of their Lord} (Q83.15) They will be set apart from His blessed ones and His awliya, and they will be bound to hell.  

O servants of Allah Almighty!  Fear your Lord with the piety of the one who understands the truth and humbles himself before his Lord.  Fear Him with the piety of the one who is terrified by the possibility of meeting such consequences, and who struggles to escape from any such associations that could drive him to be in such company.  Fear your Lord with the piety of one who has seen with his own eyes what has just been described, and the one who holds back himself at once to protect it against such a dreadful fall.  By pondering such a sight, he is prompted to speed up his efforts, to accelerate his steps, and to escape from such potential horrific end.  Instead, he chooses to counter it with heeding Allah's adminition, carrying worthy deeds, and sufficient is Allah for a reward.  Allah is indeed All-Hearing, the All-Seeing Lord, and sufficient is one's own records as a challenger of arrogance, and a proof guilt.  Sufficient is the heavenly paradise as a reward for the believers, and hell as a curse and as an eternal punishment for the unbelievers.  

In conclusion, I pray to Almighty Allah to forgive me and to forgive all of you."


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