قَالَ أَبُو الْحَسَنِ الرِّضَا ع يَا ابْنَ عَرَفَةَ إِنَّ النِّعَمَ كَالْإِبِلِ الْمُعْتَقَلَةِ فِي عَطَنِهَا[1] عَلَى الْقَوْمِ مَا أَحْسَنُوا جِوَارَهَا فَإِذَا أَسَاءُوا مُعَامَلَتَهَا وَ إِنَالَتَهَا نَفَرَتْ عَنْهُمْ.
“Abu al-Hassan al-Rida (a.s.), has said, ‘O ibn ‘Arafah, bounties are like guarded camels around drinking water. It is up to people to maintain good relations with the camel. If they fail to keep the good relations, the camel runs away from them.’”
سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع يَقُولُ أَحْسِنُوا جِوَارَ النِّعَمِ قُلْتُ وَ مَا حُسْنُ جِوَارِ النِّعَمِ قَالَ الشُّكْرُ لِمَنْ أَنْعَمَ بِهَا وَ أَدَاءُ حُقُوقِهَا.
‘Keep good neighborly relations with bounties/ I then asked, ‘How is that done?’ He (the Imam) said, ‘Thank the One who has granted bounties and pay the rights due on the bounties/”
سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع يَقُولُ أَحْسِنُوا جِوَارَ نِعَمِ اللَّهِ وَ احْذَرُوا أَنْ تَنْتَقِلَ عَنْكُمْ إِلَى غَيْرِكُمْ أَمَا إِنَّهَا لَمْ تَنْتَقِلْ عَنْ أَحَدٍ قَطُّ فَكَادَتْ أَنْ تَرْجِعَ إِلَيْهِ قَالَ وَ كَانَ عَلِيٌّ ع يَقُولُ قَلَّ مَا أَدْبَرَ شَيْءٌ فَأَقْبَلَ.
“I heard abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), say, ‘You should keep good neighborly relations with the bounties of Allah, and guard them being transferred from you to others; if bounties transfer away from a person, they very rarely return. Ali (a.s.), would say, “It is very rare for something to come forward once it goes away.’””