348. Imām Ali (a.s.): “The humiliated person in my view is honorable until I secure his rights for him and the strong in my view is weak until I take the rights (of others) from him.”¹

349. Imām Ali (a.s.) – in his instructions to Mālik al-Ashtar: “Then, look into the matter of the judgments among people with good intention. The true judgment is to take back the rights of the oppressed from the oppressors, to support the weak against the strong and to execute God’s laws according to their proper ways and courses, which will set aright God’s servants and His lands.”²

350. Imām al-Bāqir: “Ali (a.s.) was returning home in the heat [of the day] when he saw a woman standing, saying: ‘My husband has wronged me, scared me, harassed me and he has threatened to beat me.”
‘Ali (a.s.) said: “O Servant of God! Be patient until the weather cool off and then I will go with you if God wills.”
The woman said: “His anger and fury will increase against me.”
He lowered his head, then raised it and said: “By God, (I will not stop) until the right of the oppressed is secured without stammering. Where is your house?”
He went to the man’s house, stopped at the door and called out: “Peace be on you (assalām alykum!)”
A young man came out and Ali (a.s.) said: “O Servant of God! Be wary of God! You have scared your wife and brought her forth.”
The young man said: “Who are you to get involved? By God, I will burn her because of your words!”
Then the Commander of the Faithful said: “I am enjoining you to do good and refraining you from doing wrong and you respond to me with wrong and ignore the good?”
The narrator [Imām al-Bāqir (a.s.)] said: “People were gathering around and saying: “Peace be on you O Commander of the Faithful!”
Repentant and confused, the man said: “O Commander of the Faithful! Forgive my fault. By God, [from now on] I will be like the ground for her to step on.”
Ali (a.s.) sheathed his sword and said: “O Servant of God! Enter your house and do not force your wife into such troubles.”³

348. عنه علیه السلام: الذَّليلُ عِندي عَزيزٌ حَتّى آخُذَ الحَقَّ لَهُ، وَالقَوِيُّ عِندي ضَعيفٌ حَتّى آخُذَ الحَقَّ مِنهُ.¹

349. عنه علیه السلام ـ في عَهدِهِ إلى مالِك الأَشتَرِ ـ: ثُمَّ انظُر في أمرِ الأَحكامِ بَينَ النّاسِ بِنِيَّة صالِحَةٍ؛ فَإِنَّ الحُكمَ في إنصافِ المَظلومِ مِنَ الظّالِمِ والأَخذِ لِلضَّعيفِ مِنَ القَوِيِّ وإقامَةِ حُدودِ اللهِ عَلى سُنَّتِها ومِنهاجِها مِمّا يُصلِحُ عِبادَ اللهِ وبِلادَهُ.²

350. الإمام الباقر علیه السلام: رَجَعَ عَلِيٌّ علیه السلام إلى دارِهِ في وَقتِ القَيظِ فَإِذَا امرَأَةٌ قائِمَةٌ تَقولُ: إنَّ زَوجي ظَلَمَني وأخافَني وتَعَدّى عَلَيَّ وحَلَفَ لَيَضرِبُني، فَقالَ علیه السلام: يا أمَةَ اللهِ!اصبِري حَتّى يَبرُدَ النَّهارُ، ثُمَّ أذهَبُ مَعَكِ إن شاءَ اللهُ، فَقالَت: يَشتَدُّ غَضَبُهُ وحَردُهُ عَلَيَّ، فَطَأطَأَ رَأسَهُ ثُمَّ رَفَعَهُ وهوَ يَقولُ: لا وَاللهِ أو يُؤخَذُ لِلمَظلومِ حَقُّهُ غَيرَ مُتَعتَعٍ، أينَ مَنزِلُكِ؟ فَمَضى إلى بابِهِ فَوَقَفَ، فَقالَ: السَّلامُ عَلَيكُم. فَخَرَجَ شابٌّ، فَقالَ عَلِيٌّ: يا عَبدَ اللهِ! اتَّقِ اللهَ فَإنَّكَ قَد أخَفتَها وأخرَجتَها. فَقالَ الفَتىٰ: وما أنتَ وذاكَ؟ وَاللهِ لاَُحرِقَنَّها لِكَلامِكَ!
فَقالَ أميرُ المُؤمِنينَ: آمُرُكَ بِالمَعروفِ وأنهاكَ عَنِ المُنكَرِ تَستَقبِلُني بِالمُنكَرِ، وتُنِكرُ المَعروفَ؟ قالَ: فَأَقبَلَ النّاسُ مِنَ الطُّرُقِ ويَقولونَ: سَلامٌ عَلَيكُم يا أميرَ المُؤمِنينَ، فَسَقَطَ الرَّجُلُ في يَدَيهِ³ فَقالَ: يا أميرَ المُؤمِنينَ أقلِني عَثرَتي، فَوَاللهِ لأكونَنَّ لَها أرضاً تَطَأُني، فأَغمَدَ عَلِيٌّ سَيفَهُ وقالَ: يا أمَةَ اللهِ ادخُلي مَنزِلَكِ، ولا تُلجِئي زَوجَكِ إلى مِثلِ هذا وشِبهِهِ.⁴