Nahjul Balagha 2

Nahj al-Balagha (The Peak of Eloquence) is the most famous collection of speeches and letters attributed to Imam Ali.

• A virtuous person is better than virtue and a vicious person is worse than vice.

• Recommended prayers cannot attain the pleasures of Allah for you when obligatory prayers are left unattended.

• Value of a man depends upon his courage; his veracity depends upon his self-respect and his chastity depends upon his sense of honor.

• Every breath you take is a step towards death.

• Like your body your mind also gets tired so refresh it by wise sayings.

• A friend cannot be considered a friend unless he is tested on three occasions: in time of need, behind your back and after your death.

• There is enough light for one who wants to see.

• It is wiser to abstain then to repent.

• Obstinacy will prevent you from a correct decision.

• If two opposite theories are propagated one will be wrong.

• When truth was revealed to me I never doubted it.

• Death is never very far.

• One who forsakes truth earns eternal damnation.

• O son of Adam, if you have collected anything in excess of your  actual need, you will act only as its trustee for someone else to use it.

• When some blessings come to you, do not drive them away through thanklessness.

• He who is deserted by friends and relatives will often find help and sympathy from strangers.

• Every person who is tempted to go astray, does not deserve punishment.

• Our affairs are attached to the destiny decreed by Allah, even our best plans may lead us to destruction.

• Failures are often the results of timidity and fears; disappointments are the results of bashfulness; hours of leisure pass away      like summer-clouds, therefore, do not waste opportunity of doing good.

• Recommended prayers cannot attain the pleasures of Allah for you when obligatory prayers are left unattended.

• A wise man first thinks and then speaks and a fool speaks first and then thinks.

• A fool’s mind is at the mercy of his tongue and a wise man’s tongue is under the control of his mind.

• Lack of friends means, stranger in one’s own country.

• Not to have a thing is less humiliating than to beg it.

• Do not feel ashamed if the amount of charity is small because to refuse the needy is an act of greater shame.

• To refrain from unlawful and impious source of pleasures is an ornament to the poor and to be thankful for the riches granted is the      adornment of wealth.

• If you cannot get things as much as you desire than be contented with what you have.

• An ignorant person will always overdo a thing or neglect it totally.

• The wiser a man is, the less talkative will he be.

• Time wears out bodies, renews hopes, brings death nearer and takes away aspirations. Whoever gets anything from the world lives in anxiety for holding it and whoever loses anything passes his days grieving over the loss.

• Whoever wants to be a leader should educate himself before educating others. Before preaching to others he should first practice      himself. Whoever educates himself and improves his own morals is superior to the man who tries to teach and train others.

• Every breath you take is a step towards death.

• Anything which can be counted is finite and will come to an end.

• If matters get mixed up then scrutinize the cause and you will know what the effects will be.

• A man hypocritically started praising Imam Ali, though he had no faith in him and Imam Ali hearing these praises from him said “I am      less than what you tell about me but more than what you think about me”.

• Those who have come alive out of a blood-bath live longer and have more children.

• One who imagines himself to be all-knowing will surely suffer on account of his ignorance.

• I appreciate an old man’s cautious opinion more than the valor of a young man.

• I wonder at a man who loses hope of salvation when the door of repentance is open for him.

• If you understand Allah’s Majesty, then you will not attach any  importance to the creatures.

• If you want to pray to Allah for better means of subsistence, then first give something in charity

• When someone is sure of the returns, then he shows generosity.

• Aid (from Allah) is in proportion to the trouble.

• He who practices moderation and frugality will never be threatened with poverty.

• One of the conveniences in life is to have less children.

• Loving one another is half of wisdom.

• Grief is half of old age.

• Grant of patience (from Allah) is in proportion to the extent of calamity you are passing through. If you exhibit fretfulness, irritation,      and despair in calamities, then your patience and your exertions are wasted.

• Many persons get nothing out of their fasts but hunger and thirst, many more get nothing out of their night prayers but exertions and      sleepless nights. Wise and sagacious persons are praiseworthy even if they do not fast and sleep during the nights.

• Defend your faith (in Allah) with the help of charity. Protect your wealth with the aid of Zakat. Let the prayers guard you from calamities      and disasters.

• The first fruit of forbearance is that people will sympathize with you and they will go against the man who offended you arrogantly.

• One who takes account of his shortcomings will always gain by it; one who is unmindful of them will always suffer. One who is afraid of the Day of Judgment, is safe from the Wrath of Allah. One who takes lessons from the events of life, gets vision, one who acquires vision becomes wise and one who attains wisdom achieves knowledge.

• Bear sorrows and calamities patiently, otherwise you will never be happy.

• One who comes into power often oppresses.

• Adversities often bring good qualities to the front.

• If a friend envies you, then he is not a true friend.

• Avarice dulls the faculties of judgment and wisdom.

• Oppression and tyranny are the worse companions for the Hereafter.

• The best deed of a great man is to forgive and forget.

• Silence will create respect and dignity; justice and fairplay will bring more friends; benevolence and charity will enhance prestige and      position; courtesy will draw benevolence; service of mankind will secure leadership and good words will overcome powerful enemies.

• A greedy man will always find himself in the shackles of humility.