5. Imam’s Letter to Ibn Bābawayh al-Qummi
‘AlibinHusaynbinBābawayhal-Qummi,thefatherofthefamousschol-
ar Shaykh Sadūq, was a prominent scholar of his time. Imam Hasan
al-‘Askari(a.s.)sentaletterwhichisenoughtoshowhishonouranddig-
nityintheeyesoftheAhlulBayt.Afterthepreliminarytextaboutprais-
ing Allāh and the Prophet, the Imam wrote:
“...OrespectedandreliableShaykh,andOfaqih(jurist)ofmyfollow-
ers,AbulHasan‘AlibinHusayn al-Qummi,may Allāhbless youwith
what He pleases and may He bring forth worthy sons from you.
“Iadviseyoutofear[displeasing]Allāh,toestablishprayerandpay
alms—becausetheprayerofonewhodoesnotpayalmsisnotaccepted.
Iadvise you to forgive the mistakes of othersandcontrol your anger,
andtobekindandgeneroustoyourrelatives,andtobehelpfulandcon-
cernedforyourbrethren,andtobe patientin responsetothe deedsof
the ignorant people.
“[Iadviseyou]tobelearnedinreligion,steadfastinyourwork,famili-
arwiththeQur’an,andtoacquirethenoblecharacter,bidthegoodand
forbid the evil. Allāh,the Almighty, says: ‘Thereisno usein much of
your whispering except [in case of] one who recommends [others] to
give charity or do good deeds or make peace between people.’
“Refrainfromallbaddeeds;andbediligentaboutthenightvigilpray-
er(namāz-eshab/salātullayl)becausetheProphet(s.a.w.)recommendedit
to‘Ali(a.s.)andsaid,‘O‘Ali, bediligentaboutthe salātullayl;be dili-
gent about the salātul layl; be diligent about the salātul layl. Whoever
considers salātul layl as worthless is not one of us.’
“Therefore,followmyadvice, andadvisemy Shi‘aswhat Ihavead-
visedyouwith.Youshouldhaveforebearanceandbepatient;verilythe
Prophet said,‘The best deedof myUmmah iswaiting forthe deliver-
ance.’OurShi‘aswillconstantlybesadandanxiousuntilmyson[Imam
al-Mahdi]makeshisappearance,theone aboutwhomtheProphet had
givengoodtidingsthathewillfilltheearthwithjusticeandequalityjust
as it would be filled with injustice and tyranny.