أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ!
O people!
إِنَّ أَخْوَفَ مَا أَخَافُ عَلَيْكُمُ اثْنَانِ:
What I fear most about you are two things –
اتِّبَاعُ الْهَوَى، وَطُولُ الاَمَلِ ;
acting according to desires and extending of hopes.
فَأَمَّا اتِّبَاعُ الْهَوَى
As regards acting according to desires,
فَيَصُدُّ عَنِ الْحَقِّ،
this prevents from truth;
وَأَمَّا طُولُ الاْمَلِ
and as regards extending of hopes,
فَيُنْسِي الاْخِرَةَ.
it makes one forget the next world.
أَلاَ وَإنَّ الدُّنْيَا قَدْ وَلَّتْ حَذَّاءَ،
You should know this world is moving rapidly
فَلَمْ يَبْقَ مِنْهَا إِلاَّ صُبَابَةٌ كَصُبَابَةِ الاْنَاءِ اصْطَبَّهَا صَابُّهَا،
and nothing has remained out of it except last particles like the dregs of a vessel which has been emptied by someone.
أَلاَ وَإِنَّ الاْخِرَةَ قَدْ أَقْبَلَتْ،
Beware, the next world is advancing,
وَلِكُلٍّ مِنْهُمَا بَنُونَ،
and either of them has sons i.e. followers.
فَكُونُوا مِنْ أَبْنَاءِ الاْخِرَةِ،
You should become sons of the next world
وَلاَ تَكُونُوا مِنْ أَبْنَاءِ الدُّنْيَا،
and not become sons of this world
فَإِنَّ كُلَّ وَلَد سَيُلْحَقُ بأُمِّهِ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ،
because on the Day of Judgement every son would cling to his mother.
وَإِنَّ الْيَوْمَ عَمَلٌ وَلاَ حِسَابَ،
Today is the Day of action and there is no reckoning
وَغَداً حِسَابٌ وَلاَ عَمَلَ
while tomorrow is the Day of reckoning but there would be no (opportunity for) action.
قال السيد الشريف: اَقُولُ: الْحَذّاءُ: السَّريعَةُ. وَ مِنَ النّاسِ مَنْ يَرْويهِ جَذّاءَ، بِالْجيم وَ الذّالِ، اَىِ انْقَطَعَ دَرُّها وَ خَيْرُها.
As-Sayyid ar-Radi says: “al-hadhdha’“means rapid but some people have read it “jadhdha’ “. According to this version the meaning would be that the cycle of worldly enjoyments would end soon.
Alternative Sources for Sermon 42: Nasr, Siffin, 3, 4; al-Mufid, al-Majalis, 50; Ibn Qutaybah, ‘Uyun, II, 353; al-Kulayni, Furu’ al-Kafi, III, 29; al-Harrani, Tuhaf, 35, 47; al-Mufid, al-'Irshad, * 138; al-Tusi, al-'Amali, * 73, 145; Abu Nu’aym, Hilyah, I, 56; al-Mas’udi, Muruj, II, 436
