The Transients

سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ‌ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ خَلَقَ خَلْقاً لِلْإِيمَانِ لَا زَوَالَ لَهُ وَ خَلَقَ خَلْقاً لِلْكُفْرِ لَا زَوَالَ لَهُ وَ خَلَقَ خَلْقاً بَيْنَ ذَلِكَ وَ اسْتَوْدَعَ بَعْضَهُمُ الْإِيمَانَ فَإِنْ يَشَأْ أَنْ يُتِمَّهُ لَهُمْ أَتَمَّهُ وَ إِنْ يَشَأْ أَنْ يَسْلُبَهُمْ إِيَّاهُ سَلَبَهُمْ وَ كَانَ فُلَانٌ مِنْهُمْ مُعَاراً[2].

“I heard either of the two Imams (a.s.) saying, ‘Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has created a creature for belief and there is no transition in it. He has created a creature for disbelief and there is no transition in it. He has created a creature in between. He has deposited belief in certain individuals amo

إِنَّ الْعَبْدَ يُصْبِحُ مُؤْمِناً وَ يُمْسِيَ كَافِراً وَ يُصْبِحُ كَافِراً وَ يُمْسِيَ مُؤْمِناً وَ قَوْمٌ يُعَارُونَ الْإِيمَانَ ثُمَّ يُسْلَبُونَهُ وَ يُسَمَّوْنَ الْمُعَارِينَ ثُمَّ قَالَ فُلَانٌ مِنْهُمْ.

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.) has said, ‘A servant (of Allah) may live in the morning as a believer and in the evening as an unbeliever. One may live in the morning as an unbeliever and in the evening as a believer. A people borrow belief then it is removed from them and they are called people with transient (belief).’ Then t

كُنْتُ قَاعِداً فَمَرَّ أَبُو الْحَسَنِ مُوسَى ع وَ مَعَهُ بَهْمَةٌ[1] قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا غُلَامُ مَا تَرَى مَا يَصْنَعُ أَبُوكَ يَأْمُرُنَا بِالشَّيْ‌ءِ ثُمَّ يَنْهَانَا عَنْهُ أَمَرَنَا أَنْ نَتَوَلَّى أَبَا الْخَطَّابِ ثُمَّ أَمَرَنَا أَنْ نَلْعَنَهُ وَ نَتَبَرَّأَ مِنْهُ فَقَالَ أَبُو الْحَسَنِ ع وَ هُوَ غُلَامٌ إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَلَقَ خَلْقاً لِلْإِيمَانِ لَا زَوَالَ لَهُ وَ خَلَقَ خَلْقاً لِلْكُفْرِ لَا زَوَالَ لَهُ

“Once I was sitting when abu al-Hassan Musa (a.s.) passed by and with him was a goat. I (the narrator) asked him, ‘O young man, do you know what your father does? He commands us to do something and then he prohibits us to do the same thing. He commanded us to be friends with abu al-Khattab and then he commanded us to c

إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَلَقَ النَّبِيِّينَ عَلَى النُّبُوَّةِ فَلَا يَكُونُونَ إِلَّا أَنْبِيَاءَ وَ خَلَقَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ عَلَى الْإِيمَانِ فَلَا يَكُونُونَ إِلَّا مُؤْمِنِينَ وَ أَعَارَ قَوْماً إِيمَاناً فَإِنْ شَاءَ تَمَّمَهُ لَهُمْ وَ إِنْ شَاءَ سَلَبَهُمْ إِيَّاهُ قَالَ وَ فِيهِمْ جَرَتْ- فَمُسْتَقَرٌّ وَ مُسْتَوْدَعٌ‌[3] وَ قَالَ لِي إِنَّ فُلَاناً كَانَ مُسْتَوْدَعاً إِيمَانُهُ فَلَمَّا كَذَبَ عَلَيْنَا سُلِبَ إِيمَان

‘Allah has created the prophets with prophet-hood, thus, they are nothing else but prophets. He has created the believers upon belief and they are nothing else but believers. He has deposited belief in a people. If He wills He completes it in them and if He wishes He removes it from them.’ The Imam said, ‘About these p

إِنَّ اللَّهَ جَبَلَ النَّبِيِّينَ عَلَى نُبُوَّتِهِمْ فَلَا يَرْتَدُّونَ أَبَداً وَ جَبَلَ الْأَوْصِيَاءَ عَلَى وَصَايَاهُمْ فَلَا يَرْتَدُّونَ أَبَداً وَ جَبَلَ بَعْضَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ عَلَى الْإِيمَانِ فَلَا يَرْتَدُّونَ أَبَداً وَ مِنْهُمْ مَنْ أُعِيرَ الْإِيمَانَ عَارِيَّةً فَإِذَا هُوَ دَعَا وَ أَلَحَّ فِي الدُّعَاءِ مَاتَ عَلَى الْإِيمَانِ‌[1].

‘Allah has formed the prophets upon their prophet-hood, thus they never, turn away therefrom. He has formed the successors of the prophets upon their successor-ship and they never turn away therefrom. He has formed certain believers upon belief and they never turn away therefrom. Belief in certain ones among them is de