Greats of thought and Imam Ali (PBUH)Category Archive

 In his book A Literary History of the Arabs, Nicholson remarked: "Ali was a gallant warrior, a wise counsellor, a true friend and generous foe. He excelled in poetry and in eloquence. His verses and sayings are famous throughout the Muhammadan East, though few of them can be considered authentic. He can be compared with Montrose and Bayard in the fineness of spirit. He had no talen More ...

  In his book A History of Muhammadanism, Charles Mills assessed Imam Ali as follows: "As the chief of the family of Hashim, and as the cousin and son-in-law of him whom the Arabians respected almost to idolatry it is apparently incredible that Ali was not raised to the caliphate immediately after the death of Muhammad p.b.u.h. In the advantage of his birth and marriage was add More ...

 In his book, The Caliphate, its Rise, Decline and Fall, Sir William Muir paid his tribute to Imam Ali in the following words: "In the character of Ali, there are many things to commend him for. Mild and beneficent, he treated Basra when prostrate at his feet with a generous forbearance. Towards theocratic fanatics, who wearied his patience by incessant intrigues and sense More ...

 In his book History of the Arabs, Professor Hitti assessed the character of Imam Ali as follows: "Valiant in battle, wise in council, eloquent in speech, true to his friends, magnanimous to his foes, Ali became both the paragon of Muslim nobility and chivalry, and the Solomon of Arabic tradition around whose name, poems, proverbs, sermonettes and anecdotes innumerable have clu More ...

Had the full human somehow been bereft of these emotions, I would have been tempted to give up, to think that these luminous souls belong to some other realm of existence, a place that we, the rest of us, cannot go to. But no, even the saint still has to deal with these emotions. There is one last chapter in the story that has a lot of relevance for today’s world. As Ali and the fallen warr More ...

 As Rumi says, if the measure of a human being were simply about power, then elephants would be more human than humans! Rather, the model of humanity is to strive in the path of God, yet to channel away one’s selfish desires so that one can be imbued with divine attributes. If we don’t cleanse the cup of our hearts first, it’s like having a muddy cup in which we keep pouring More ...

 The story that the Masnavi tells is the path that all of us have to go through, moving from brokenness to healing, from spiritually feeling worthless and cut off to being wholehearted. That is the whole goal of the spiritual path: not divinity, but full humanity. In Rumi’s telling, that state is represented by the saintly Imam Ali, a chivalrous knight who met a mighty w More ...

 The Prophet of Islam (PBUH) said: O’ Ali (AS), I am the city of knowledge and you are its gate, one cannot enter the city except through its gate; you are the leader of my Ummah (Islamic nation) and my successor in this city, the one who obeys you is prosperous and the one who disobeys you is helpless; the one who loves you has benefited and your enemy is in loss [1]. [1] Jame’u More ...

  In her description of Imam Ali (AS), Lady Fatima Zahra (AS) said: He is a Divine Leader, the manifestation of light and luminosity, he is the centre of the attention of all the creatures and seekers of the truth, a pure child from a pure family, he is a truthful speaker and a guide, he is the centre and axis of Imamate and leadership [1]. [1] Riaheen Alsharia, Vol. 1, page 93. More ...

 Did you know that both Shiites and Sunnis believe Verse 67 in Chapter Al-Ma’ida has been revealed on Ghadir day and for the sake of Imam Ali’s (A.S) guardianship (walaya)? Shiite: Usul Kafi, Vol. 1, P 290 Sunni: Shavahed at-Tanzil, Vol. 1, Hadith 249 * * * Did you know that both Shiites and Sunnis believe Verse 55 in Chapter Al-Ma’ida regards Imam Ali’s (A.S) ring More ...

  Ibn Abelhadeed, the famous Sunni scholar narrated: It is narrated from Imam Ali (AS) who said: I asked the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) to request forgiveness for me from Allah (SWT).The prophet (PBUH) stood up, raised his hands towards the sky and said: O’ Allah (SWT), for the sake of the rights which Ali (AS) has with God, forgive Ali (AS). I asked the Prophet (PBUH): What kind of p More ...

 Salman Farsi (RA) used to repeat this saying of the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) a lot: Truly, Ali (AS) is a door which Allah (SWT) has opened; whoever enters through this door is a believer, and whoever does not is a disbeliever [1]. After the Prophet (PBUH) passed away, and the Caliphate was taken away from Imam Ali (AS), Salman (RA) in a scathing and revealing sermon said: O’ people, whe More ...

In a book, by the Shiite scholar and poet in Bagdad, Sharif Al-Razi, "The Way to Eloquence",  which was written in the ninth century, Imam Ali, cousin of Prophet Mohammad, advised to reduce taxes on his people in the times of difficulties (see letter 53). The new anti-crisis plan, which was generally approved by Vladimir Putin last week, responds to the great Imams advice: The plan More ...

  Mohammad Sharif Khan Shirwani in the book of “Chot’hi Ketab” referred to the birth place of Imam Ali (AS) inside Ka’aba, and mentioned the crack which appeared in the wall of Ka’aba, and hearing the voice of invisible proclaimer [1]. Molawi Hafiz Hakim Zahir Ahmad Sahsawani in the book of “Zahirul Bashar” wrote: “When Fatimah decided to a More ...

 Father Christopher Clohessy, a Cape Town Catholic priest believes that Imam Ali (AS) and his children are a perfect role model for people. “Ali, and his children after him, are perfect role models for ordinary people,” Clohessy said in an interview with IRNA on the sidelines of his trip to london made on the occasion of the anniversary of Imam Ali birthday. He add More ...