أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ، إِنَّمَا أَنْتُمْ فِي هذِهِ الدُّنْيَا غَرَضٌ تَنْتَضِلُ فِيهِ الْمَنَايَا،
O people, you are, in this world, the target for the arrows of death.
مَعَ كُلِّ جَرْعَة شَرَقٌ، وَفي كُلِّ أَكْلَة غَصَصٌ!
With every drinking there is choking and with every eating there is suffocation.
لاَ تَنَالُونَ مِنْهَا نِعْمَةً إِلاَّ بِفِرَاقِ أُخْرَى،
You do not get any benefit in it except by foregoing another (benefit)
وَلاَ يُعَمَّرُ مُعَمَّرٌ مِنْكُمْ يَوْماً مِنْ عُمُرِهِ إِلاَّ بِهَدْمِ آخَرَ مِنْ أَجَلِهِ،
and no one among you advances in age by a day except by the taking away of a day from his life.
وَلاَ تُجَدَّدُ لَهُ زِيَادَةٌ فِي أَكْلِهِ إِلاَّ بَنَفَادِ مَا قَبْلَهَا مِنْ رِزْقِهِ،
Nothing more is added to his eating unless it reduces what was there before.
وَلاَ يَحْيَا لَهُ أَثَرٌ إِلاَّ مَاتَ لَهُ أَثَرٌ،
No mark appears for him unless a mark disappears.
وَلاَ يَتَجَدَّدُ لَهُ جَدِيدٌ إِلاَّ بَعْدَ أَنْ يَخْلَقَ لَهُ جَدِيدٌ،
Nothing new comes into being unless the new becomes old.
وَلاَ تَقُومُ لَهُ نَابِتَةٌ إِلاَّ وَتَسْقُطُ مِنْهُ مَحْصُودَةٌ،
No new crop comes up unless a crop has been reaped.
وَقَدْ مَضَتْ أُصُولٌ نَحْنُ فُرُوعُهَا،
Those roots are gone whose off-shoots we are.
فَمَا بَقَاءُ فَرْع بَعْدَ ذَهَابِ أَصْلِهِ!
How can an off-shoot live after the departure of its root?
منها: في ذمّ البدعة
A part of the same sermon censuring innovation (bid’ah)
وَمَا أُحْدِثَتْ بِدْعَةٌ إِلاَّ تُرِكَ بِهَا سُنَّةٌ،
No innovation is introduced unless one sunnah is forsaken.
فَاتَّقُوا الْبِدَعَ،
Keep away from innovations
والْزَمُوا الْمَهْيَعَ،
and stick to the broad road.
إِنَّ عَوَازِمَ الاْمُورِ أَفْضَلُهَا،
Surely the old tested ways are the best
وَإِنَّ مُحْدِثَاتِهَا شِرَارُهَا.
and the innovated ones are bad.
Alternative Sources for Sermon 145: Al-Harrani, Tuhaf, 73; al-Mufid, al-'Irshad, 139 as well as al-'Amali; al-Tusi, al-'Amali, I, 220; al-Qali, al-'Amali, II, 67.
