أُوصِيكُمْ، أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ،
I advise you, O people,
بِتَقْوَى اللهِ،
to fear Allah
وَكَثْرَةِ حَمْدِهِ عَلَى آلاَئِهِ إِلَيْكُمْ،
and to praise Him profusely for His favours to you
وَنَعْمَائِهِ عَلَيْكُمْ،
and His reward for you
وَبَلاَئِهِ لَدَيْكُمْ.
and His obligations on you.
فَكَمْ خَصَّكُمْ بِنِعْمَة،
See how He chose you for favours
وَتَدَارَكَكُمْ بِرَحْمَة!
and dealt with you with mercy.
أَعْوَرْتُمْ لَهُ فَسَتَرَكُمْ،
You sinned openly; He kept you covered.
وَتَعَرَّضْتُمْ لاِخْذِهِ فَأَمْهَلَكُمْ!
You behaved in a way to incur His punishment, but He gave you more time.
الموت
Condition of persons facing death
وَأُوصِيكُمْ بِذِكْرِ الْمَوْتِ،
I also advise you to remember death
وَإِقْلاَلِ الْغَفْلَةِ عَنْهُ،
and to lessen your heedlessness towards it.
وَكَيْفَ غَفْلَتُكُمْ عَمَّا لَيْسَ يُغْفِلُكُمْ،
Why should you be heedless of Him Who is not heedless of you?
وَطَمَعُكُمْ فِيمَنْ لَيْسَ يُمْهِلُكُمْ؟!
Why expect from him (i.e., the angel of death) who will not give you time?
فَكَفَى وَاعِظاً بِمَوْتَى عَايَنْتُمُوهُمْ،
The dead whom you have been watching suffice as preachers.
حُمِلُوا إلَى قُبُورِهِمْ غَيْرَ رَاكِبِينَ،
They were carried to their graves, not riding themselves,
وَأُنْزِلُوا فِيهَا غَيْرَ نَازِلِينَ،
and were placed in them but not of their own accord.
كَأَنَّهُمْ لَمْ يَكُونُوا لِلدُّنْيَا عُمَّاراً،
It seems as if they never lived in this world
وَكَأَنَّ الاخِرَةَ لَمْ تَزَلْ لَهُمْ دَاراً،
and as if the next world had always been their abode.
أَوْحَشوُا مَا كَانُوا يُوطِنُونَ،
They have made lonely the place where they were living,
وَأَوْطَنُوا مَا كَانُوا يُوحِشُونَ،
and are now living where they used to feel lonely.
وَاشْتَغَلُوا بِمَا فَارَقُوا،
They remained busy about what they had to leave,
وَأَضَاعُوا مَا إِلَيْهِ انْتَقَلُوا،
and did not care for where they were to go.
لاَ عَنْ قَبِيح يَسْتَطِيعُونَ انْتِقَالاً،
Now they cannot remove themselves from evil,
وَلاَ فِي حَسَن يَسْتَطِيعُونَ ازْدِيَاداً،
nor add to their virtues
أَنِسُوا بِالدُّنْيَا فَغرَّتْهُمْ،
They were attached to the world and it deceived them.
وَوَثِقُوا بِهَا فَصَرَعَتْهُمْ.
They trusted it and it overturned them.
سرعة النفاد
Transience of this world
فَسَابِقُوا ـ رَحِمَكُمُ اللهُ ـ
May Allah have pity on you.
إِلَى مَنَازِلِكُمْ الَّتِي أُمِرْتُمْ أَنْ تَعْمُرُوهَا،
You should therefore hasten towards (the preparation of) houses
وَالَّتِي رُغِّبْتُمْ فِيهَا،
which you have been commanded to populate,
وَدُعِيتُمْ إِلَيْهَا.
and towards which you have been called and invited.
وَاسْتَتِمُّوا نِعَمَ اللهِ عَلَيْكُمْ بِالصَّبْرِ عَلَى طَاعَتِهِ،
Seek the completion of Allah’s favours on you by exercising endurance in His obedience
وَالْـمُجَانَبَةِ لِمَعْصِيَتِهِ،
and abstention from His disobedience,
فَإِنَّ غَداً مِنَ الْيَوْمِ قَرِيبٌ.
because tomorrow is close to today.
مَا أَسْرَعَ السَّاعَاتِ فِي الْيَوْمِ،
How fast are the hours of the day,
وَأَسْرَعَ الاْيَّامَ فِي الشَّهْرِ،
how fast are the days in the month,
وَأَسْرَعَ الشُّهُورَ فِي السَّنَةِ،
how fast are the months in the years
وَأَسْرَعَ السِّنِينَ فِي الْعُمُرِ!
and how fast the years in a life.
Alternative Sources for Sermon 188: Abu Mansur al-Tha’alibi, al-'I’jaz wa al-'Ijaz, 31.
