IMAM HASAN'S CHARACTERThe researcher who examines the life of the Holy
Prophet's grandson, Imam Hasan and his brother, Imam
Hussein (a.s.), can't help drawing the conclusion that
they enjoyed a high level of education and spiritual and
ideological upbringing, which no other person had won
next to their grandfather (s.a.w.), mother and father
(a.s.). Although they lost both their grandfather and mother
at an early age, their upbringing suffered no
interruption. Their father, Imam Ali bin Abi-Talib
(a.s.), the disciple of the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.),
and the graduate from the school of Divine revelation,
who was the beacon for the people, was alive, throwing
his shade over them. There is no doubt that Imams Hasan
and Hussein (a.s.) wound up in the stage of Divine
preparation. 1. Spiritual Side: The excellent preparation which was provided for the
grandson of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.), helped his
spiritual entity to sublimate. His closeness to Allah,
and his attachment to Him was a source of awe and
respect. "Hasan bin Ali (a.s.) was certainly the most true worshipper, ascetic and merited man among the people of his time." Rawdhat al-Wa'ideen (Orchard of the Preachers)
mentions that whenever "Hasan would do his ablution,
he would tremble and his face would turn pale. He was
asked about it, and he replied: 'It is only natural that
one who stands in the presence of the Lord of the Throne
turns ashen, and trembles...'" "Hasan bin Ali (a.s.) had certainly gone to hajj twenty-five times on foot. He shared his property with Allah twice...or three times." Ali bin Jadh'an, and Abu-Na'im report in Hulyat al-Awaliya' (Ornament of the Saints) and Tabaqat bin Sa'd (Castes of bin Sa'd) that Imam Hasan had given all his money to the needy twice, seeking Allah's pleasure, and had given half his money to the needy three times. He would even give a single shoe and retain the other, and give a single sandal and retain the other. When he approached the door of the mosque, he would say. 'O Lord! Your guest is at Your gate. O Generous! The transgressor has come to You. Forgive me my ugly deeds with Your Generosity. O Generous!' When he remembered death he wept. When he thought of
the grave he wept. When he thought of the Resurrection
and Day of Judgement he gasped so deeply and painfully
that he fainted because of it. As for his charity and alms, suffice it to say that he had given all his money twice and half his money three times in the way of Allah.(9)
If a living, receptive mind is rated as the mainstay
of the Islamic character, and if the Messenger of Allah
(s.a.w.) and the guiding Imams of Ahlul-Bait (a.s.) had
ascended to the top peg of the ladder of Islamic
characteristics due to their direct subjugation to the
Divine preparation, Imam Hasan (a.s.), the grandson of
the Prophet (s.a.w.), as well as all of the blessed,
guiding Imams (a.s.) were pioneering activists in the
sphere of thought. They had no match in that. As for the new questions and developments of life, the
sublime, inner entity of the Imam himself, and his
boundless spirituality, qualified him for self-acquired
knowledge. That is why the Muslim orators dubbed the
knowledge of the Imams, from the perspective of the
"present knowledge". An Imam wouldn't need to
be tutored or taught by others in this respect. He
acquired knowledge by means of direct inspiration. A. Hasan al-Basri wrote to Imam Hasan (a.s.), asking him about the Divine decree. The grandson of the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.) answered him in these words: "Mind you, he who does not believe that all sudden incidents that happen, be they good or bad, are known earlier by Allah, is an infidel. He who blames sins on Allah, is unchaste. Allah is not obeyed against His will. He is not sinned against by force. He does not leave aside His servants in His Kingdom. He is the Owner of what He gives to them. He is the Powerful over whatever He puts at the disposal of them. Nay, He orders them with no coercion, and prohibits them as a warning. If they opt to obey Him, none would stand in their way, and if they choose to sin, He may prevent them from doing it. But if He does not, He is not to blame, because it is not He Who forces them to do it, or compels them into committing it against their will. But He does them a favor by opening their eyes, teaching, warning, ordering and prohibiting them. He does not force them to do what He orders, so as to be like the angels, not does He pressure them to keep away from what He forbids. Allah's is certainly the conclusive argument. If Allah willed, He would have guided you to the right path..."(10) By these eloquent, concise words the Imam explains one
of the most complicated, and thorny matters of thought.
It was so difficult, that many intellectuals were
perplexed and at a loss because of it. Moreover, it gave
rise to extremely fanatical groups.
"The desire to be pious and abstemious in this life," he replied. "What is forbearance?" he was asked. "Restraining one's anger and controlling oneself," he answered. "What is righteousness?" he was asked. "Replacing the bad with the good," came the answer. "What is honor?" they asked. "Being kind to one's relatives and shouldering people's burdens of sin." "What is the succour?" he was asked. "Defending the neighbor, patience in war, and advance during adversities," he said. "What is glory?" he was asked. "Giving while being in debt and forgiving others their offences." "What is manliness?" "Holding onto the faith, keeping one's self-respect, being merciful, being kind, giving back people's trusts, and ingrantiating oneself to the people..."(11) C. A man from Syria asked Imam Hasan (a.s.): "What distance is between the right and the falsehood?" "Four fingers," the Imam replied. "What you see with your own eye is the right. You may hear a lot of falsehoods with your ear." "What distance is between faith and certitude?" the Syrian asked. "Four fingers," Imam Hasan (a.s.) again answered. "The faith is what we hear, and certitude is what we see." "What is the distance between the sky and the heaven?" asked the Syrian. "The prayer of the wronged," replied Imam. "What is the distance between the east and west?," asked the Syrian. "A day's travel of the sun," said the Imam.(12)
"O people! He who is faithful to Allah, taking His words as a beacon, is guided to that which is most upright. Allah helps him to attain righteousness and leads him to goodness. The neighbor of Allah is certainly secure and protected. His enemy is fearful and in failure. Be cautious of Allah's wrath by much remembrance of Him. Fear Allah by piety and draw close to Allah by obeying Him. He is Near and Answering. Allah, the Blessed and Most High, says: "And when My servants ask you concerning Me, then surely I am very near; I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls on Me, so they should answer My call and believe in Me that they may walk in the right way." Holy Qur'an (2: 186) Imam Hasan (a.s.) continued, "Be obedient to Allah, and have faith in Him. It is unbecoming of him who grasps the greatness of Allah, to be haughty. The loftiness of those who know the greatness of Allah is expressed in their modesty, and those who know the highness of Allah in humbleness before Him. The safety of those who know the power of Allah is expressed in their surrender to Him, undenial after they have known the truth, and not straying after they have been guided. You should know for sure that you will not attain peity until after you have known the nature of guidance. You will not hold onto the covenant of the Book until after you have known those who turned their backs on it. You will not recite it as you should, until after you have known those who tried to distort it. Having known that, you can know the innovations and pretentions, see the lies against Allah and the distortion, and see how will fall aside those who go astray. Do not be influenced by the ignorant. Seek the knowledge from its bearers. They are the light with which one can enlighten oneself. They are the rightful Imams whom one can follow. With their existence, knowledge revives and ignorance fades away. They are those whose knowledge tells you about the non-existence of ignorance in them, the way of their reasoning about the soundness of their judgements, their appearance about their inner self. They do not go against the right, nor do they differ on it. Allah set a sunnah for them, and issued His verdict on them. It is a reminder for those who want to remember. Understand what I say when you hear it, take care to act in compliance with it, and do not try to grasp it as if it were conveyed to you by the word of mouth. It is because the transmitters of the Book are many, but those who preserve it are few. Allah is the One Whose support is sought."(13) E. One day Imam Hasan (a.s.) was asked about politics. He said: "Politics means observing the rights of Allah and the rights of the living and the rights of the dead. Rights of Allah are that you should obey His orders, and avoid what He forbids. Rights of the living are that you should observe your duty to your brothers, and not tarry in serving your ummah. You should be faithful to the one in authority among you as long as he is faithful to his ummah. You should speak up in his face should he deviate from the right path. Rights of the dead are that you should remember their good deeds and overlook their bad ones. They have a Lord Who shall ask them about whatever they did." This is only a mere glimpse of the vast and deep knowledge and rays from the light of Imam Hasan's (a.s.) perfect reason which Allah favored him with. We cited them here as samples of the rich ideological heritage left by Imam Hasan (a.s.) to the future generations of the Muslim ummah throughout its long history.(14)
Covering this aspect of the character of the grandson of the Prophet (s.a.w.) by no means signifies a difference among the guiding Imams (a.s.) in this respect, or in any other ingredient of the ideal Islamic character. They are equal in this. We will confine ourselves to presenting some narratives of the Imam's behavior with the people. We hope that his morals are the ones which we adopt and follow.
1. It is reported that he once chanced upon some poor men who put a few crumbs of bread on the ground in front of them, which they had earlier picked up from the road. They were eating them. They invited him to eat with them. He accepted the invitation and said: "Certainly Allah does not like the proud." Having finished eating with them he invited them to his house. He showered them with money, fed and clothed them. 2. Imam Hasan (a.s.) reportedly passed by some boys who were eating. They invited him to share their food with them. He accepted their invitation, then called them to his house and generously rewarded them. 3. It is reported that he was sitting in some place. When the Imam (a.s.) rose to go, a poor man came in. The Imam (a.s.) greeted him, and spoke kindly to him. "You have come at the time when I was taking leave," he said to the man. "Do you permit me to go?" "Yes, O son of the Messenger of Allah," replied the man. We can get an idea of Imam Hasan's (a.s.) smooth manners and modesty from this narrative.
1. He once found out that an ewe had a broken leg. He called one of his slaves and asked him: "Who did it?" "I," the slave answered. "Why?" "So as to disconcert you!" the slave retorted. The Imam (a.s.) smiled to him and said: "But I will make you happy." He freed him and generously rewarded him. 2. A Syrian, imbued with hatred and spite against the family of the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.), by Mu'awiyah bin Abi-Sufyan, once saw the Imam on horseback. He at once emitted a series of curses! Imam Hasan (a.s.) did not put in a word of protest or interruption. When the man finished, Imam Hasan (a.s.) approached him with a tender smile. He said to him: "O old man! I think you are a stranger here. Maybe you mistook me for someone else? If you propitiate us, we will satisfy you. If you ask us, we will give you what you need. If you ask our advice, we will guide you. If you ask us to give you a ride, we will take you with us. If you are hungry, we will satisfy you. If you are naked, we will clothe you. If you are in need, we will make you rich. If you are a refugee, we will give you lodgings. If you have a request, we will grant it. If you join your luggage to ours, and be our guest until the time of your travel, it will be more useful to you, because we have a spacious place, a good social position, and a vast amount of money." Upon hearing these words, the Syrian broke into tears.
Then he said: "I bear witness that you are the
viceroy of Allah on the earth. Allah knows best whom to
entrust with His message. You and your father were the
most hateful creatures of Allah to me. But now you and
your father are the most beloved from among all the
creatures of Allah to me."
Maybe the most eminent of Imam Hasan's (a.s.) attributes is his generosity. He believed that money was only a means to clothe the naked, help the destitute, pay the debts of the indebted, or satisfy the hungry. Once, he was asked: "We do not see you disappoint a beggar. Why?" He replied: "I am asking Allah for His favors, and I love to be near Him. I am ashamed, as I am myself in need of Allah, to repulse a beggar. Allah got me used to a habit; to shower me with His bounties, and I get Him used to me showering His bounties on the people. I fear that should I stop my habit, He may stop His habit." Following are examples of his unlimited generosity: 1. An Arab desert-dweller once asked for help. In response, Imam said: "Give him what is in the safe." In it there was ten thousand Dirhams. "Sir," the bedouin said, "won't you allow me to reveal my need and praise you?" Imam's reply was something like this: "We are people whose bounties are flowing. In them hopes and wishes dwell. Our souls give out before we are asked in fear of the disgrace of the one who asks. Should the sea know how much we give who asks us, it will shrink, after its flooding, in shame." The grandson of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.) bought an
orchard from the ansars (the supporters of the Holy
Prophet (s.a.w.) in Madinah), at the price of 400,000
Dirhams. Then he got word that they lost their wealth. He
gave them the orchard back with no charge.
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