Written transcript of the lecture
The Meshkat-e Noor teachings series
🌸🔆🌿 “Envy in the End Times” “Community-Building” “The Greater Envy” ” “
🔅🌹 Abstract, with a supplement on “Envy in the End Times,” “Community-Building, the Heavenly Society,” “The Greater Envy,” “Session 207, Supplication 20 of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya” ” ” 1402.06.30 Ali Saei (Abdullah Mishkat) 110.141(903) 🌹🔅
🌹🔅☘️ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحيمِ ☘️🔅🌹
🔅🌼The Description of the Imam as Adornment and Ornament🌼🔅
🌻To be in the presence of Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him) means to sit in the presence of knowledge.
🌻Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him) is the special gate of the City of the Prophet’s Knowledge; he is the doorway of adornment and ornament, opening the way to soar toward the soul of knowledge, wisdom and mysteries.
🌻To enter the city of knowledge through the gate of Sajjad is to enter the section of the Sajjadiyya mysteries of the City of the Prophet (peace be upon him).
🌻In an instant one can leap from this side of the world to the other side; it is enough to find its window—a window that carries us in a moment past all boundaries and brings us to the farthest reaches of this universe. That is the reality of wilaya. Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him) is one of those windows of mystery for passing beyond the universe. It is enough to grasp the secret of the wilaya of Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him) and to find, with the heart, the truth of his wilaya.
🌻To enter and exit through this window of mysteries, we must become keepers of the Sajjadiyya secrets, so that we may journey from the lowest point to the highest station of existence.
🌻Let us grasp the secrets of the Sajjadiyya so that we may become fellow travellers with Sajjad. One of the great secrets of Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him) is al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya.
🌻Every supplication of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya is a wing for our flight toward the malakut, the jabarut, the lahut, and the Sidrat al-Muntaha of the universe.
🌻Springs of delight flow from the heart of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya.
🌻To disregard al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya is among the greatest acts of ingratitude for the blessing of knowledge in the universe.
🌻Let not knowledge depart and ignorance take rule over our bodies and souls. With the departure of knowledge, the death of humanity’s age of ignorance begins.
🌻One who estranges al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya is near to ignorance and an ally of jahiliyya.
🌻Each of the supplications of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya is fuel and a secret of ascent, and wings for flight.
🌻Through al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya, a person attains the greatest divine wealth and treasure.
🌷🔅 An-Najm: 48 وَ أَنَّهُ هُوَ أَغْنى وَ أَقْنى
🌻Through al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya, a person becomes not merely the owner of the whole world but reaches beyond it—to intimacy and companionship with the Master of the Kingdom.
🌻The value of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya cannot be determined.
🌻At every moment we must give thanks for the blessing of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya and for the wilaya of Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him).
🔅🌼Sajjadiyya Community-Building🌼🔅
🌷🔅 اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ، وَ أَبْدِلْنِي مِنْ بِغْضَةِ أَهْلِ الشَّنَآنِ الْمَحَبَّةَ، وَ مِنْ حَسَدِ أَهْلِ الْبَغْيِ الْمَوَدَّةَ، وَ مِنْ ظِنَّةِ أَهْلِ الصَّلَاحِ الثِّقَةَ، وَ مِنْ عَدَاوَةِ الْأَدْنَيْنَ الْوَلَايَةَ، وَ مِنْ عُقُوقِ ذَوِي الْأَرْحَامِ الْمَبَرَّةَ، وَ مِنْ خِذْلَانِ الْأَقْرَبِينَ النُّصْرَةَ، وَ مِنْ حُبِّ الْمُدَارِينَ تَصْحِيحَ الْمِقَةِ، وَ مِنْ رَدِّ الْمُلَابِسِينَ كَرَمَ الْعِشْرَةِ، وَ مِنْ مَرَارَةِ خَوْفِ الظَّالِمِينَ حَلَاوَةَ الْأَمَنَةِ.
🌻When the place of “resentment, envy, suspicion, enmity, disobedience, abandonment, deceitful friendships, rejection of the people of mixing, and the bitterness of fear of the oppressors” is filled with “love, affection, trust, wilaya, maintaining ties, mutual support, the mending of friendship, good companionship, and the sweetness of security,” then the virtuous city takes shape.
🌻In this blessed passage, Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him) has drawn the map for the reform of society. This passage sets out the root and the principles of community-building. If these qualities prevail among individuals, the virtuous city and a worldly paradise take form. This passage displays the structure of a society moving toward exaltation. It teaches the principles of comfort and tranquillity. This passage contains the principles of civic governance and statecraft.
🌻For a community to escape cruelty and predation, it must follow the principles set out in this blessed passage.
🌻This passage underscores the principles that bind members of a community together. Guided by them, the community becomes one body and one heart.
🌻After setting oneself right, one should devote oneself to setting the community right. A community is made fragrant by the reform of its members: from personal reform to the reform of society.
🌻One must not stop with oneself, making oneself the end of the road. If the atmosphere of society changes, we change too; we all breathe the same air.
🔅🌼 Envy in the End Times 🌼🔅
🌷🔅 « وَ مِنْ حَسَدِ أَهْلِ الْبَغْيِ الْمَوَدَّةَ »
🌻Envy is a seven-headed dragon with a mouth of fire—or more dangerous still.
🌻In the End Times, envy manifests itself in a distinctive way.
🌻In the End Times, a Cain-like world is taking shape; devils are busy producing and multiplying Cains. In this age, Cain has been multiplied many times over, and envy has likewise multiplied in its manifestations.
🌻The physical and virtual worlds are under the devils’ sway and control. They are working relentlessly to subdue and enslave humanity. The devils have turned this age into a breeding ground for envy and malice.
🌻Using all kinds of media and other tools, and with consummate skill, the devils influence every cell of human beings, body and soul. They have turned the present age into a club for envy.
🌻In our time, the worm of envy has become an elephant.
🌻Through films, music, games and other tools, envy is being produced, intensified and multiplied. In our time, it seethes at its very peak.
🌻We must not overlook hidden and more deeply concealed envy. A hidden virus strikes by stealth; hidden envy catches us off guard and reduces body and soul to ashes.
🌻Envy disarms the body’s systems of immunity, security, calm and comfort.
🌻The flag of envy flies high in this age. Seeking refuge with God from the evil of envy is essential at every moment of our lives.
🌻Envy comes in many forms and guises. It lies in wait to destroy us, to burn us to ashes.
Envy burns: it turns a person into fuel for the fire, then sets the whole world ablaze.
🌻Envy accompanies every person, and we must not let our guard down against it. It is rife in many forms: among jinn, between jinn and humans, among humans, among animals, between humans and animals, between children, and among all kinds of people—even among multiple births in the womb.
🌻Envy knows no borders. The damage it wreaks between states, races and peoples is irreparable.
🌻Envy drives the world toward decline.
🌻The envy of base people toward those of higher standing drags history down. Such was the envy of the Companions of Saqifah.
🌻Envy changes the course of history and debases it. Had there been no envy, the world would look different.
🌻Envy is an evil rooted in human nature. It is part of the test of creation. By bringing the fire, bite and predatory force of envy under control, a person rises to higher things.
🌻Many physical and psychological illnesses have their roots in envy, as do many of the world’s killings and massacres.
🌻Even a little envy is too much.
🌻Envy is hell made manifest. It is a vast, blazing volcano in the heart of the envious.
🌻The worst kind of envy is envy of the people of Hell. No one is more foolish than the person who envies people of wickedness—for example, someone who envies a woman who goes unveiled and flaunts her adornment.
🌻Worldly desires and ambitions nurture envy.
🌷🔅 Al-Qasas: 82 وَ أَصْبَحَ الَّذينَ تَمَنَّوْا مَكانَهُ بِالْأَمْسِ يَقُولُونَ وَيْكَأَنَّ اللَّهَ يَبْسُطُ الرِّزْقَ لِمَنْ يَشاءُ مِنْ عِبادِهِ وَ يَقْدِرُ لَوْ لا أَنْ مَنَّ اللَّهُ عَلَيْنا لَخَسَفَ بِنا وَيْكَأَنَّهُ لا يُفْلِحُ الْكافِرُونَ
🌻Longing for Qarun’s wealth leads down the road of envy.
🌻How fortunate I am that I never became a Qarun or attained Qarun-like riches.
🌻Invisible, silent envy is among the most dangerous kinds of envy—like a snake with no warning rattle.
🌻Envy takes many forms and comes in varying degrees of intensity. When the nuclear bomb of envy is detonated, its devastation spreads far and wide.
🌻Envy among the envious turns the world into a wasteland; the envy of oppressors toward the oppressed drives the world toward savagery.
🌻The envious compete with one another to conquer both hearts and minds.
🌻Once envy is put into action, joy and peace are extinguished.
🌻The sinful, corrupt envier imagines himself master of bodies and souls.
🌻The most pernicious kind of envy—and also the most foolish—is envy directed at the Divine Essence. The envier presumes to own the Lord of all dominion, as though the Creator must heed his wishes and arrange all affairs to suit him. At its extreme, this envy becomes a claim to divinity: the envier claims to be God.
🌻Envy is a kind of protest against God. It is a war against God. The envier imagines himself master of the entire world.
The beautiful world belongs to every person in it, since its benefits are equally available to all.
🌻Every creature is a work of the One God, a manifestation of His artistry; so we should praise God’s artistry at every moment.
🌻When people witness beauty and wonder in any of God’s creatures, their cry should ring out: «فتبارک الله احسن الخالقین».
🌻Every beauty and every glimmer brightens the eyes of each creature of God. In the same way, it brightens the heart and soul. Praise be to God’s artistry.
🌻We must not fall into Cain’s pit; envy brings ruin.
🌻The envier wounds himself. He sacrifices his own virtues and standing to his envy, and destroys his own rank and glory.
🌻The envier casts himself down from the lofty roof of servitude into degradation.
🌻Because of his envy, Iblis hurled himself from the roof of the seven heavens to the lowest depths. Iblis’s envy did not prevent Adam from rising and attaining perfection.
🌷🔅 Al-Nisa: 54 أَمْ يَحْسُدُونَ النَّاسَ عَلى ما آتاهُمُ اللَّهُ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ فَقَدْ آتَيْنا آلَ إِبْراهيمَ الْكِتابَ وَ الْحِكْمَةَ وَ آتَيْناهُمْ مُلْكاً عَظيماً
🌼 Ali Saʿi (Abdullah Mishkat) 110.141 (903) 🌼
