721 - مَثَلُ الدُّنيا

721. THE PARABLE OF THE WORLD

(وَاضْرِبْ لَهُمْ مَثَلَ الْحَياةِ الدُّنْيا كَماءٍ أَنزَلناهُ مِنَ السَّماءِ فَاخْتَلَطَ بِهِ نَبَاتُ الْأَرْضِ فَأَصْبَحَ هَشِيماً تَذْرُوهُ الرّياحُ وَكانَ اللَّهُ عَلى‏ كُلِّ شَي‏ءٍ مُقْتَدِراً) .¹

"Draw for them the parable of the life of this world: [it is] like the water We send down from the sky. Then the earth's vegetation mingles with it. Then it becomes chaff, scattered by the wind. And Allah is omnipotent over all things." ²

2237.رسولُ اللَّهِ صلى اللَّه عليه وآله : ما الدنيا في الآخِرَةِ إلّا مِثلُ ما يَجعَلُ أحدُكُم إصبَعَهُ في اليَمِّ فليَنظُرْ بِمَ يَرجِعُ .³

2237.The Prophet (SAWA) said, 'This world when compared to the Hereafter is just as if one of you dips his finger in the sea and sees what he comes out with.' ⁴

2238.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام : مَثَلُ الدنيا كَظِلِّكَ ؛ إن وَقَفتَ وَقَفَ ، وإن طَلَبتَهُ بَعُدَ .⁵

2238.Imam Ali (AS) said, 'The parable of this world is like your shadow - if you stop, it stands still, and if you chase it, it distances itself from you.' ⁶

2239.الإمامُ الباقرُ عليه السلام : أنزِلِ الدنيا كمَنزِلٍ نَزَلتَهُ ثُمّ ارتَحَلتَ عَنهُ ، أو كمالٍ وَجَدتَهُ في مَنامِكَ فاستَيقَظتَ ولَيس مَعكَ مِنهُ شي‏ءٌ ، إنّي (إنّما) ضَرَبتُ لكَ هذا مَثَلاً لأ نّها عِندَ أهلِ اللُبِّ والعِلمِ باللَّهِ كَفَيْ‏ءِ الظِّلالِ .⁷

2239.Imam al-Baqir (AS) said, '[Consider] your sojourn in this world just as a house that you stayed in and [soon] departed from, or an object of perfection that you witnessed in a dream then you awoke and not a thing from it remained with you. I have given you this parable because this world, according to the people of intellect and knowledge of Allah, is just as the shadow in the shade.' ⁸

2240.الإمامُ الباقرُ عليه السلام : إنّ الدنيا عِندَ العُلَماءِ مِثلُ الظِلِّ .⁹

2240.Imam al-Baqir (AS) said, 'The world in the eyes of the learned ones is like a shadow.' ¹⁰

2241.الإمامُ الكاظمُ عليه السلام : مَثَلُ الدنيا مَثَلُ الحَيّةِ؛ مَسُّها لَيِّنٌ وفي جَوفِها السُّمُّ القاتِلُ ، يَحذَرُها الرِّجالُ ذَوُو العُقولِ ، ويَهوِي إلَيها الصِّبيانُ بأيديهِم .¹¹

2241.Imam al-Kazim (AS) said, 'The parable of this world is like that of a snake, it is soft to touch but it contains a deadly poison. Men of intellect are cautious whereas children extend their arms towards it.' ¹²

2242.الإمامُ الكاظمُ عليه السلام : مَثَلُ الدنيا مَثَلُ ماءِ البحرِ ؛ كُلَّما شَرِبَ مِنهُ العَطشانُ ازدادَ عَطَشاً حتّى‏ يَقتُلَهُ .¹³

2242.Imam al-Kazim (AS) said, 'The parable of this world is that of sea water, however much the thirsty man drinks from it, his thirst intensifies until it kills him.' ¹⁴

2243.الإمامُ الكاظمُ عليه السلام : تَمَثَّلَتِ الدنيا للمسيحِ عليه السلام في صُورةِ امرأةٍ زَرْقاءَ ، فقالَ لَها : كَم تَزَوَّجتِ؟ فقالَت : كثيراً ، قالَ : فَكُلٌّ طَلَّقَكِ؟ قالَت : لا ، بَل كُلّاً قَتَلتُ ، قالَ المسيحُ عليه السلام : فَوَيحٌ لأزواجِكِ الباقينَ ، كيفَ لا يَعتَبِروُنَ بالماضينَ ؟ !¹⁵

2243.Imam al-Kazim (AS) said, 'The world was embodied to Jesus (AS) in the form of a blue-eyed woman, and he said to her, 'How many have you married?' she said, 'Lots', so he asked, 'So all of them divorced you?', she replied, 'No, rather I killed all of them', then Jesus (AS) said, 'Woe upon your current spouses, for how do they not take a lesson from your previous ones?!' ¹⁶

2244.الإمامُ الكاظمُ عليه السلام : إنّ لُقمانَ قالَ لِابنِهِ: ... إنّ الدنيا بحرٌ عميقٌ ، قد غَرِقَ فيها عالَمٌ كثيرٌ ، فلتَكُنْ سَفينتُكَ فيها تَقوَى اللَّهِ ، وحَشوُها الإيمانُ وشِراعُها التوكُّلُ ، وقَيِّمُها العقلُ ، ودليلُها العِلمُ ، وسُكّانُها الصَّبرُ .¹⁷

2244.Imam al-Kazim (AS) said, 'Luqman said to his son:...the world is a deep ocean in which many worlds have already drowned, so make Godwariness your boat, faith its content, trust in Allah its sail, reason its custodian, knowledge its guide and patience its inhabitants.' ¹⁸