A Tribute to Master of Masters

[Presentation time: 5 min]

A Masterpiece from the Master of Eloquence

His knowledge, wisdom, eloquence, piety, bravery, power of judgement and leadership is well known among Muslims of all schools of thought. His mastery over the Arabic language is seen in his extempore sermons delivered without preparation

It was a ceremony of marriage (nikah), perhaps it was his ownand he said extemporarily

CB jdB B kdB jCB k jCB eCs jo E Cnk nBosB C nCB t nCB so All praise be to Allah: the praised King, the
affectionate Owner, the Fashioner of all who are born, the Recourse for every downtrodden, the Outstretcher of lands, the Establisher of firm mountains, the Sender of rain, the Alleviator of difficulties, the Knower and Perceiver of secrets

nB jn Cno nkB n C B ok BKtB C Cn cCs Cnk| nF oB sF B

...the Destroyer of kingdoms and Perisher of possessions, the Renewer of eras and their Repetitor, the Source of all things and their Destination. Widespread is His generosity and sufficient are the layered clouds and the supply of rain. He responds to the one who asks or hopes, giving wide and with abundance.

I praise Him endlessly. I consider Him one as He is considered one by those who turn to Him. Lo ! He is Allah, there is no god for the nations except Him. No one can distort what He set upright and established. He sent Muhammad as the standard-bearer of submission (Islam)

Bjk Bkc kcF jC{ Bs H B s C Bkd snF Bs k C

The leader for the rulers and limiter of their oppression, the crippler of the authorities of Wudd and Sawa` (two idols). He informed and educated, appointed and perfected. He founded the fundamentals and eased them in. He emphasized the appointed promise (Day of Judgment) and forewarned. Allah has linked him with honor

Cd CCH {B {F cF c F Bs j BoB B {F kF jB kF k

BoB F D cn tB cn jF .B s Bj MBn C and granted his soul the peace, and may Allah have mercy on his progeny and his venerated family; as long as the guiding stars shine, the crescent continues to rise, and the chant of the oneness (La ilaha illa Allah) is made to be heard around.

B{ B oF BsB j BodB BcoB BoC{ CjnB ABB B{C CBn CcnB May God protect you! Work towards the best of oC| B B n deeds. So tread the path seeking the lawful, and give BnC{ nB b|B F up the forbidden and abandon it. Listen to the
command of Allah and be aware of it. Maintain the ties with relations and nurture them. Disobey desires and repel them. Bind as kins with the righteous and pious, and discontinue the company of amusement and greed.

Bjn cF BjjKs BosF Bk nBocB oF so C oc c F C oB Your groom is the most impeccable of free men by birth, most generous and honorable with glories, and of the sweetest of descent. Here he came to you, took your kin with permission, in marriage, the gracious bride

o{ oF s F B sn o C C oC CsC jBnF C jB jF { c u
And offered a dowry, just as the Messenger of Allah did to Umm Salamah. Certainly, he [s] was the most gracious son-in-law. Kind to his progeny. He gave them in marriage to whom he wanted. He was neither confused in his choice of wife nor had an oversight.

jCcB B GsB jC E jBkB Cc b{B .(z) kcF so bkB kotB kdB I ask Allah, on your behalf, for the lasting
graciousness of His connection. And the continuation of His pleasures, and that He may inspire all; the reform of their own condition, and the preparation for their individual destiny and the hereafter. Gratitude is for Him forever and the praise for His Messenger Ahmad [s].
[Sayyid al-Musawi, al-Qatarah min bihar manaqib Aal-Nabi wa al-`Itrah, vol. 2, p. 179]

Did you notice something unusual The Arabic used in this sermon is devoid of following alphabets
v p l f ^ Z V P

All the alphabets with dots !

It was a sermon without dots

To deliver such a sermon without using alphabets with dots is indeed a super human feat and truly miraculous

Imam Ali (a) derived his vast knowledge and striking eloquence by virtue of his long and close association with the Prophet Muhammad (s). The Prophet (s), with Divine inspiration, was the source of all such knowledge and wisdom and a teacher par excellence for Imam Ali (a).

Indeed Prophet (s) had said...

I am the house of wisdom and Ali (a) is its door

[Sahih al-Tirmidhi, (Cairo edition), Kitab al-Manaqib, vol. 5, p. 637, hadith # 3723]

The history has recorded over 300 sermons, 200 prayers, 11000 wise sayings, 150 amazing judgments and 100 letters from Imam Ali (a)

This great legacy from Imam Ali (a) recorded in history books is a proof of authenticity of what the Prophet (s) said about him

Imam Ali (a) was martyred on 21st of Ramadhan, 40th year of Hijra. He was secretly buried in the mountains of Najaf, Iraq by Imams Hassan and Hussain, few very close family members and friends.

His grave remained unknown for over 135 years until it was discovered in the times of Harun al-Rashid in 175th year of Hijra (791 A.D.).

For further reading:

Selection of sermons, letters and sayings of Imam Ali (a) [Nahjul Balagha] http://al-islam.org/nahj/ Sermon of Imam Ali (a) without letter Alif http://www.al-islam.org/arabic/short/noalef.htm Prayers of Imam Ali (a) [Sahifaye Alawiya] http://www.duas.org/alaviya/ Event of Ghadir-e-Khumm http://al-islam.org/ghadir/

Thanks for your time