Imam Zainul Abideen's Slave girl says; PART 2
This paragraph presents important affairs which the fasting should follow:
1. They should attend to the appointed moments of the five prayers, which are the pillar of the religion, within the bounds Allah has set, accompanied by what the greatest Prophet, may Allah bless him and his family, practiced such as manners, invocations of Allah in their bowing and prostration; rather in all their affairs. In other word they should perform the five prayers in complete manners such as humility and submission to Allah, the Exalted, only.
2. They should tighten their bonds of kin with devotion and gifts, for this is one the best acts of obedience to Allah.
3. They should attend to their neighbors with bestowal and giving.
4. They should purify their possessions through paying Kums (one-fifth) and Zakat (the alms), which are obligatory.
5. They should go back to him who has gone far from them, from among their friends and brothers.
6. They should treat justly him who has wronged them and should not aggress against him with word or action, for this is among the noble moral traits.
7. They should make peace with him who shows enmity toward them (except him who is regarded as an enemy in Allah and for Him, for he is the enemy whom they will not befriend, the party whom they will not hold dear.
8. They should seek nearness to Allah through blameless works which are certainly desirable in the blessed month of Ramada`n.After this, let's listen to the last paragraphs of this holy supplication:
"O Allah, I ask You by the right of this month and by the right of him who worships You within it from its beginning to the time of its passing, whether angel You have brought nigh to You, prophet You have sent, or righteous servant You have singled out, that You bless Mohammed and his Household, make us worthy of the generosity You have promised Your friends, make incumbent for us what You have made incumbent for those who go to great lengths in obeying You, and place us in the ranks of those who deserve through Your mercy the highest elevation!
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, turn us aside from deviation in professing Your Unity, falling short in magnifying You, in Your religion, blindness toward Your path, heedlessness of Your inviolability, and being deceived by Your enemy, the accursed Satan!
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, and when in every night of this month's nights You have necks which Your pardon will release and Your forgiveness disregard, place our necks among those necks and place us among the best folk and companions of this our month!
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, efface our sins along with the effacing of its crescent moon, and make us pass forth from the ill effects of our acts with the passing of its days, until it leaves us behind, while within it You have purified us of offenses and rid us of evil deeds!
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household, and should we go off to one side in this month, set us aright; should we swerve, point us straight; and should Your enemy Satan enwrap us, rescue us from him!
"O Allah, fill this month with our worship of You, adorn its time with our obedience toward You, help us during its daytime with its fast, and in its night with prayer and pleading toward You, humility toward You, and lowliness before You, Hence that its daytime may not bear witness against our heedlessness, nor its night against our neglect!
"O Allah, make us like this in the other months and days as long as You give us life, and place us among Your righteous servants, those who shall inherit Paradise, therein dwelling forever, those who are given what they give, while their hearts quake, that they are returning to their Lord, those who vie in good works, outracing to them!
"O Allah, bless Mohammed and his Household in every time, in all moments, and in every state, to the number that You have blessed whomever You have blessed and to multiples of all that, through multiples which none can count but You! Surely You are Accomplisher of what You desire."(Al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiya, Supplication no. 44).
Indeed, the supplications of the Ima`m are a school for religious awareness, for they are full of faith in Allah and sincerity to Him. These brilliant paragraphs of his supplication contain the following:
He asked Allah by the right of the month of Ramada`n and by the right of him who worshipped within it from among His righteous servants:
1. To place him among those who were worthy of the high position with Him.
2. To make his good deeds for the pleasure of Him, the Exalted; to make them free from hypocrisy and others which corrupt works.
3. To turn him aside from doubt and corrupt imaginations in the affairs of the religion.
4. To help him not to follow a way other than the way He has made lawful and to help him not to be heedless of the things He has made unlawful.
5. To help him not to follow the way of the accursed Satan.
6. To do him a favor through placing him among those whom He released in this great month.
7. To grant him a success in this month to worship Him and to show obedience, pleading, humility, and lowliness toward Him, the Exalted.
These are some important matters which these words of his supplication contain.
His good Acts in the Month of Ramada`n
He, peace be on him, did many good acts in the Month of Ramada`n. The following is some of them:
A. Giving Food
Islam urges (Muslims) to give food to the fasting and makes it desirable for them. Every day in the Month of Ramada`n, Ima`m Zayn al-'Abidin ordered a sheep to be slaughtered and cooked. When the food was ready, he said: "Bring the bowls." He ordered the food to be divided among the poor, the widows, and the orphans to the extent that there was nothing left for him, Hence he broke his fast with bread and dates.(Al-Mahasin, p. 396. Al-Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 46. p. 72).
B. His Freeing Salves
Among his good deeds in the blessed month of Ramada`n was that he freed many of his slaves. It is worth mentioning that he respected his slaves, treated them as he treated his children, and forgave them when they misbehaved toward him. The narrators said:
"'Ali b. al-Husayn did not punish a female slave nor did he punish a male salve when they committed a sin; rather he recorded the day when they committed sins. When the month of Ramada`n was about to end, he gathered them and brought the book where he had written their sins and said to them: Raise your voices and say:
O 'Ali b. al-Husayn, your Lord has counted against you all what you have done, as you have counted against us all what we have done. He has a book which speaks the truth and does not leave a small one nor a great one of what you have done, but numbers them all, and you will find present with Him all what you had done, as we have found present with you all what we had done.
Hence pardon and forgive (us), as you want the most powerful King (Allah) to pardon and forgive you. Hence forgive us, and He will forgive you and have mercy on you, and Your Lord never wrongs anyone. As you have a book which speaks the truth against us and does not leave a small one nor a great one, but numbers them all against us, Hence 'Ali b. al-Husayn, remember the abasement of your standing place before your Lord, the Just King, Who does not wrong (anyone) to the weight of a grain of mustard seed, and Allah is sufficient to take account and to be a witness. Hence pardon and forgive (us), and the most Powerful King will pardon and forgive you, for He says: They should pardon and forgive. Do you not love that Allah should forgive you? "
He (Zayn al-'Abidin) dictated to them these words which represent his absolute devotion and clinging to Allah. He stood, wept and said:
"Our Lord, You have commanded us to pardon him who wrongs us. We have pardoned him who has wronged us, as You have commanded, Hence pardon us, for You are worthier of that than us and the commanded ones. You have commanded us not to dismiss any beggar from our doors.
Now, we have come to You as beggars and miserable. We have sat at Your courtyard and Your door seeking bounty and favor and giving, Hence do us a favor through it and disappoint us not, for You are more worthier of that than us and the commanded ones.
"My Lord, I have entertained (Your servants), Hence entertain me if I am of Your beggars. I have done (Your servants) a lot of good, Hence place me among the people of Your giving, O Generous!"
to be continued...
