Ali al-Rida

‘Alī ibn Mūsā ar-Ridhā (Arabic: علي بن موسى الرضا‎; 765 – 818 AD) was the eighth Twelver Shī‘ah Imām. He was the son of Mūsā al-Kādhim and was the sixth generation grandson of Muhammad.

General Quotes

• The rank of the eldest brother is like that of father.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 335.

• Every curiosity is in need of the curiosity of speech.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 335.

• Time will come when one's safety lies in ten things: nine of which are in staying aloof from men, and the tenth in staying silent.
  • Ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, Tuhaf al-'Uqul, p. 446-450.

• The best wealth is the one by which the honour of man is protected.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 352.

• The miserly one is never restful; the envious is never pleased; the grumbler is never loyal; the liar has no conscience.
  • Ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, Tuhaf al-'Uqul, p. 446-450.

• A trustworthy person does not betray you, but you consider the betrayer to be trustworthy.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 335.

Regarding Knowledge & Wisdom

General

• The most valuable stage of wisdom is the stage of self-consciousness.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 352.

• Wisdom and intellect is every man's friend, ignorance and illiteracy are his enemies.
  • Ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, Tuhaf al-'Uqul, p. 467.

• Everyone's friend is his reason; his enemy is his ignorance.
  • Muhammad Kulayni, Usūl al-Kāfī, vol.1, p. 11; Wasā'il al-Shī‘ah, vol.1, p. 161.

• Knowledge and science are the coffers and caches to the treasures of Perfection; and the only access to them is to ask and question.
  • ‘Uyūn al-Akbar, vol.2, p. 28.

• Silence is a door among the doors of wisdom - indeed, silence begets and attracts love, it is the proof of all the beneficiences.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 355.

• Some signs of understanding are: clemency, knowledge, and silence. Silence is one of the doors to wisdom. It brings about love and is evidence for all good.
  • Muhammad Kulayni, Usūl al-Kāfī, vol.2, p. 124.

• Silence is one of the gates to wisdom.
  • Ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, Tuhaf al-'Uqul, p. 523.

Religious

• For the Devil, the presence of learned one is by far more painful than a thousand worshipers.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.2, p. 16.

• A Muslim will never get tired and bored of educating himself throughout his life.
  • Ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, Tuhaf al-'Uqul, p. 467.

• One who offers (suggests) what he doesn't know, will be under the curse of the angels of the heavens and the earth.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.2, p. 116.

Religious Wisdom

• Assisting the weak is better for you than your act of charity.
  • Ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, Tuhaf al-'Uqul, p. 446-450.

• The worst of men is he who stops his contributions to charity, eats by himself, and whips his slave.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 335.

• Worship is not the abundance of prayer and fasting; rather it is the abundance of reflecting on the affairs of God, the Great and Almighty.
  • Tabatabaei, Al-Mīzān, vol.8, p. 369; Muhammad al-Hur al-Aamili, Wasā'il al-Shī‘ah vol.11, p. 16.

• Man is not worshipful unless he is clement.
  • Muhammad Kulayni, Usūl al-Kāfī, vol.2, p. 113.

• He who reckons his own soul is successful; he who is heedless of it is unsuccessful.
  • Muhammad Kulayni, Usūl al-Kāfī, vol.2, p. 111.

• Reason is a free gift from God and politeness is acquisition. He who undertakes politeness has power over it. He who undertakes reason increases (himself) through that nothing but ignorance.
  • Muhammad Kulayni, Usūl al-Kāfī, vol.1, p. 23.

• He who takes himself to account gets benefitted, and the one who gets negligent and careless about himself bears loss. The one who fears (Allah) becomes peaceful, and the one who takes lesson becomes most clear sighted and discerning. He who becomes most clear sighted, understands; and he who understands and comprehends becomes knowledgeable and informed.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.78, p. 352.

• The one for whom the day of ‘Āshūrā is a day of tragedy, grief and weeping, Allah The Mighty, The Glorious, shall make the Day of Judgment, a day of joy and happiness for him.
  • Majlisi, Bihārul Anwār, vol.44, p. 284.

External links

• Community website of Imam Rida