Hadith and Traditions

Solo travel is discouraged because the traveler is said to be accompanied by Satan and to be straying from the right path. When traveling alone is unavoidable, however, one may do so by reciting supplications and taking appropriate precautions. Travel undertaken for frivolous entertainment or to assist an oppressor is also religiously condemned, and prayers should not be shortened during such trips.

The wilayah of the Ahl al-Bayt (AS) is a central pillar of Islam and the key to the acceptance of other acts of worship. But this does not mean that prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and zakat should be taken lightly. On the contrary, sincere commitment to worship is essential if one is to benefit from the blessings of wilayah. Whoever treats acts of worship lightly thereby places themselves outside the bounds of wilayah.

The report that a martyr was detained over a three-dirham debt to a Jewish man appears only in al-Tabarsi’s *al-Ihtijaj*, and its chain of transmission is weak. Nevertheless, its emphasis on the importance of people’s rights—even when owed to a non-Muslim—is noteworthy, and it serves as a serious warning to the Muslim community.

The withdrawal from people mentioned in the hadith, “Well-being has ten parts, nine of which lie in withdrawing from people,” means distancing oneself from those given to folly and sin—not severing ties with relatives. The hadith points to particular conditions at the end of time, when protecting one’s faith and dignity may leave no choice but to avoid worldly people, fools, and those enslaved by desire and vice.

A believer’s insight is illumined by God, and its ability to uncover what is hidden depends on the believer’s degree of faith and spiritual discernment. Those endowed with such insight are, first and foremost, Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad (AS), followed by the truly faithful. God grants the Imams (AS) perfect insight and blesses believers with this gift in proportion to their faith.

The divine names are distinct from the Essence of the Almighty. We invoke and worship Him by these names; we do not worship the names themselves, for that would be disbelief. To worship both the names and the Essence would likewise be polytheism. True worship is worship of the Essence, of which these names are signs—and this is the very essence of monotheism.

The “intoxication of sleep” (sukr al-nawm) refers to sleep overwhelming the senses, causing a loss of awareness and incoherent speech. It differs from intoxication caused by wine. In this state, a believer’s heart remains sound, but one should not begin prayer while so drowsy, to avoid speaking incoherently.

Anyone who loves Ali (AS) is called “God’s captive on earth,” and God takes pride in him before the angels and the Bearers of the Throne. To become God’s captive means to have a constant, unbreakable bond with Him, to be under His special care, and to attain the highest degrees of divine love. The greatness and weight of love for our master Ali (AS) are such that if a mountain loved him, it would crumble.

The animation “After Me” depicts the Event of Ghadir by examining historical and scholarly evidence. It also refers to the Cursed Document, an agreement said to have been made by some Companions before Ghadir to prevent the caliphate from passing to Imam Ali (AS). The animation also mentions a report from the Prophet (PBUH) about the people behind the document and his Ahl al-Bayt.

Some hadith reports say that the Prophet (PBUH) added a third rakʿah to the Maghrib prayer in gratitude for the birth of Lady Fatima (SA). However, these reports are considered weak in their chains of transmission. According to these narrations, God prescribed the prayers as two rakʿahs, and the Prophet added two rakʿahs when people were at home, while the rule differed during travel and for the dawn and Maghrib prayers.

The authenticity of the Sermon of Bayān, attributed to Imam ʿAlī (peace be upon him), is disputed, and it is not cited in the authoritative Shiʿi sources. The text can be verified only through the path indicated by the supplication «اللهم عرفنی نفسک...», which requires attaining stations of divine unity. Without this, extolling the authority of the Imams can be a deadly poison.

Sincerely holding fast to the Two Weighty Things and worshipping God with sincerity can be achieved by turning to the Sermon on the Pious, Letter 31 of Nahj al-Balagha, and Supplication 20 of al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya. These sources beautifully outline the bounds of pure devotion to God and map the way of the sincere.

True knowledge consists of three things: a clear verse, which is an evident sign and a guide to understanding the allegorical verses; a justly balanced duty, which sets out the obligations of serving God; and an enduring tradition, which encompasses religious practice, law and noble character. Fields such as Arab genealogy and poetry are forms of knowledge that bring no harm to those who do not know them, nor any benefit to those who do.

The introduction to al-Kulaynī’s *Uṣūl al-Kāfī* draws on hadith. Its message—that religion must be understood through the Qur’an and the Prophet’s Sunnah, and that taking one’s religion from other people is dangerous—remains relevant in every age.

A good word is a pure utterance that rises to God, and a righteous deed carries it upward. The best way to dispel passing thoughts and temptations is through faith in divine unity and the declaration of God’s oneness. Preparing oneself for the Hereafter means vividly recalling death, the grave, resurrection, the gathering, the reckoning, and the Scales. Training the will and the imaginative faculties might better be described as practical, intellectual, reflective, and spiritual-discipline training.

The journey of Imam al-Mahdi’s (AJ) companions to Mecca and their presence at his side will take place by God’s leave and through a miracle. It has nothing to do with political relations, such as an agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia. God Himself will bring the Imam’s companions together, as stated in the verse: «أین ما تکونوا یأت بکم الله جمیعا».