لَقَدْ نَقَمْتُما يَسِيراً،
Both of you frown over a small matter
وَأَرْجَأْتُمَا كَثِيراً،
and leave aside big ones.
أَلاَ تُخْبِرَانِي،
Can you tell me of
أَيُّ شَيْء لَكُمَا فِيهِ حَقٌّ دَفَعْتُكُمَا عَنْهُ؟
anything wherein you have a right of which I have deprived you
وأَيُّ قَسْم اسْتَأْثَرْتُ عَلَيْكُمَا بِهِ؟
or a share which was due to you and which I have held away from you,
أَمْ أَيُّ حَقّ رَفَعَهُ إِلَيَّ أَحَدٌ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ ضَعُفْتُ عَنْهُ،
or any Muslim who has laid any claim before me and I have been unable to decide it or been ignorant of it,
أَمْ جَهِلْتُهُ، أَمْ أَخْطَأْتُ بَابَهُ ؟!
or committed a mistake about it?
وَاللهِ مَا كَانَتْ لِي فِي الْخِلاَفَةِ رَغْبَةٌ،
By Allah, I had no liking for the caliphate
وَلاَ فِي الْوِلاَيَةِ إِرْبَةٌ(3)،
nor any interest in government,
وَلكِنَّكُمْ دَعَوْتُمُونِي إِلَيْهَا،
but you yourselves invited me to it and prepared me for it.
وَحَمَلْتُمُونِي عَلَيْهَا،
When the caliphate came to me,
فَلَمَّا أَفْضَتْ إِلَيَّ نَظَرْتُ إِلَى كِتَابِ اللهِ وَمَا وَضَعَ لَنَا،
I kept the Book of Allah in my view and all that Allah had put therein for us,
وَأَمَرَنَا بِالْحُكْمِ بِهِ
and all that according to which He has commanded us to take decisions;
فَاتَّبَعْتُهُ،
and I followed it,
وَمَا اسْتَسَنَّ النَّبِيُّ (صلى الله عليه وآله) فَاقْتَدَيْتُهُ،
and also acted on whatever the Prophet - may Allah bless him and his descendants - had laid down as his sunnah.
فَلَمْ أَحْتَجْ فِي ذلِكَ إِلَى رَأْيِكُمَا،
In this matter I did not need your advice
وَلاَ رَأْيِ غَيْرِكُمَا،
or the advice of anyone else,
وَلاَ وَقَعَ حُكْمٌ جَهِلْتُهُ،
nor has there been any order of which I was ignorant
فَأَسْتَشِيرَكُمَا وَإِخْوَانِي مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ;
so that I ought to have consulted you or my Muslim brethren.
وَلَوْ كَانَ ذلِكَ لَمْ أَرْغَبْ عَنْكُمَا، وَلاَ عَنْ غَيْرِكُمَا.
If it were so I would not have turned away from you or from others.
وَأَمَّا مَا ذَكَرْتُمَا مِنْ أَمْرِ الاْسْوَةِ،
As regards your reference to the question of equality (in distribution of shares from the Muslim common fund),
فَإِنَّ ذلِكَ أَمْرٌ لَمْ أَحْكُمْ أَنَا فِيهِ بِرَأْيِي،
this is a matter in which I have not taken a decision by my own opinion,
وَلاَ وَلِيتُهُ هَوىً مِنِّي،
nor have I done it by my caprice.
بَلْ وَجَدْتُ أَنَا وَأَنْتُما
But I found, and you too (must have) found,
مَا جَاءَ بِهِ رَسُولُ اللهِ(صلى الله عليه وآله) قَدْ فُرِغَ مِنْهُ،
that whatever the Prophet - may Allah bless him and his descendants - brought had been finalised.
فَلَمْ أَحْتَجْ إِلَيْكُمَا فِيَما قَدْ فَرَغَ اللهُ مِنْ قَسْمِهِ،
Therefore, I felt no need to turn towards you about a share
وَأَمْضَى فِيهِ حُكْمَهُ، فَلَيْسَ لَكُمَا،
which had been determined by Allah and in which His verdict has been passed.
وَاللهِ،
By Allah,
عِنْدِي وَلاَ لِغَيْرِكُمَا فِي هذَا عُتْبَى.
in this matter, therefore, you two or anyone else can have no favour from me.
أَخَذَ اللهُ بِقُلُوبِنَا وَقُلُوبِكُمْ إِلَى الْحَقِّ،
May Allah keep our hearts and your hearts in righteousness,
وَأَلْهَمَنَا وَإِيَّاكُمْ الصَّبْرَ.
and may He grant us and you endurance.
ثم قال عليه السلام:
Then Amir al-mu'minin added:
رَحِمَ اللهُ رَجُلاً رَأَى حَقّاً فَأَعَانَ عَلَيْهِ،
May Allah have mercy on the person who, when he sees the truth, supports it,
أَوْ رَأَى جَوْراً فَرَدَّهُ،
when he sees the wrong, rejects it,
وَكَانَ عَوْناً بِالْحَقِّ عَلَى صَاحِبِهِ.
and who helps the truth against him who is on the wrong.
Alternative Sources for Sermon 205: Abu Ja’far al-'Iskafi, Naqd al-’Uthmaniyyah; see Ibn Abi al-Hadid, Sharh, II, 173.
