The Thirty-Third Assembly, Friday, Halfway into Muharram, 368 AH.

The Messenger of Allah (s) said: Allah said: I have divided the Fatiha of the Book between Me and My servant. Half of it is for Me, and half of it is for My servant. For My servant is whatever he asks. When the servant says: “In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful” (1:1), Allah says: “My servant has begun with My name, and it is My responsibility to fulfill his affairs and to bless him in his condition.” When he says: “Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds” (1:2), He says: “My servant has praised Me, and he knows that the blessings that he has are from Me, and that the calamities that have been deflected from him were due to My power. I testify to you that I will offer him the good of this world and the good of the Hereafter, and I will deflect the calamities of the Hereafter from him just as I deflect the calamities of this world from him.” When he says: “The Beneficent, the Merciful” (1:3), Allah says: “My servant has testified that I am the Beneficent and the Merciful. I testify to you that I will set some of My mercy in his omen, and I will grant him a share of My bestowal.” When he says: “Master of the Day of Judgment” (1:4), Allah says: “I testify that just as you recognize that I am the Master of the Day of Judgment, I will ease his judgment, and not punish him for his sins.” When he says: “You do we worship” (1:5), Allah says: “He worships Me. I testify to you that I will reward him with a blessing for everyone that goes against him due to his worship of Me.” When he says: “and from You do we seek help” (1:5), Allah says: “He seeks help in Me. I testify to you that I will support him in his affairs, I will assist him in his hardships, and I will take him by his hand in his moments of destitution.” When he says: “Guide us to the straight path” (1:6) to the end of the chapter, Allah says: “This is My servant, and for My servant is whatever he asks. I have answered My servant, and I have given him whatever he has hoped for. I have secured him from what is greater than him.”

The Fatiha of the Book is the Seven Oft-Coupled Verses.

Amir al-Mu’minin (as) said: Surely, “In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful” (1:1) is a verse from the Fatiha of the Book. It is seven verses, the best of which is “In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.” (1:1) I heard the Messenger of Allah (s) say: Surely, Allah said to me: O Muhammad! “We have given you the Seven Oft-Coupled verses and the Great Qur’an” (15:87), so be grateful to Me through the Fatiha of the Book and put it at the beginning of the Great Qur’an. Surely, the Fatiha of the Book is more honourable than the treasures of the Throne. Surely, Allah has chosen Muhammad and honoured him with it, and no prophet shares [any of] that honour except Sulayman (as), for he was given “In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful” (27:30), which is seen in the story of Balqis, who said, “It is from Sulayman, and it reads: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.” (27:30). Surely, whomever recites it, whilst aligned with Muhammad and his Righteous Family, acting by their orders, and believing in their apparent and esoteric [teachings], Allah will give him a deed for every letter: each of which is better than this world and everything in it, from its wealth to its goodness. Whomever listens to a reciter who recites it will be given the same reward at the reciter. So, you should increase this good thing that has been given to you, for it is a treasure that does not disappear with time, and it will remain in your repentant hearts.

When this verse, “And brought, that Day, is Hell” (89:23) was revealed, the Messenger of Allah (s) was asked about that, so he said: The Trustworthy Spirit informed me that when Allah – and there is no god except Him – raises the creation, and brings the firsts and the lasts together, He will bring forth Hell, which be steered by one thousand reins, and each rein will be held by one thousand rough, severe angels. It has a clunk, rage, a wail, and a howl. It wails with a wail. Had Allah not delayed them for the Judgment, it would have consumed everything. Then, a flare will emerge from it that will surround the creatures, both the righteous and the transgressor. Allah has not created a servant from the servants of Allah, nor an angel, nor a prophet, except that he will call out: “My self, my self!” But you, O Prophet of Allah, will call out: “My Nation, my Nation!” Then, a Path will be placed upon it that is thinner than a hair and sharper than a sword. There will be three arches upon it: the first will be safety and mercy, the second will be prayer, and the third will be the justice of the Lord of the Worlds, there is no god except Him. They will be made to pass upon it, then safety and mercy will trap them. If they overcome that, then prayer will trap them. If they overcome that, then the end is to the Lord of the Worlds, and that is His saying, “Surely, your Lord is in observation” (89:14). The people will be upon the Path, and they will hang from it with the hand, and the foot will slip, so they will cling [to it] by the foot. The angels around it will call: “O Forbearing One! Forgive, and fulfill Your promise, by Your grace! Give peace, give peace.” The people will fall into the Fire like a moth. If a person is saved by mercy and passes through it, he will say: “Praise be to Allah, and by His blessing, good works are fulfilled, and good deeds are purified. Praise be to Allah, who saved me from you after despair by His favour and His grave. Surely, our Lord is Forgiving and Thankworthy.”

People will pass through the Path in different ranks. The Path is thinner than a hair and sharper than a sword. Some will pass through it like lightning, some will pass through it galloping, some will pass through it walking, and some will pass through it crawling. Some will pass through it hanging, and the Fire will overtake part of him and leave part of him.

When Allah decides to resurrect the creation, He will cause the sky to rain on the Earth for forty mornings. Then, the bones, the vegetation, and the flesh will reassemble.

Amir al-Mu’minin (as) saw a man from his Shi`a after a long time [away from him], and the signs of aging were visible on him. He had a limp in his walk. So, he (as) said: O man! You have aged. He said: In obedience to you, O Amir al-Mu’minin. So, he (as) said: You are limping. He said: Due to your enemies, O Amir al-Mu’minin. So, he (as) said: I see some strength in you. He said: It is for you, O Amir al-Mu’minin.

Al-Rayyan b. al-Salt said: al-Rida (as) recited a poem of `Abd al-Mutalib to me: “All the people blame time, But there is nothing as blameworthy in our time as us, We blame our time when we are to blame, If time could talk, it would have attacked us. Surely, a wolf leaves the flesh of a wolf, But we knowingly eat [the flesh of] one another.”

Be more hopeful in that which you have no hope than in that which you have hope. Surely, Musa b. `Imran (as) went to fetch some fire for his family, yet Allah spoke to him and he returned [to them] as a prophet. The queen of Saba’ came out and accepted Islam with Sulayman (as). The magicians of Pharaoh went out seeking glory for Pharaoh, yet they returned as believers.

“I am at Your service, O Allah, I am at Your service.” (labbayk allahumma labbayk) He would not be seen in any condition except that he would be remembering Allah. He was the most truthful of people in words and the most eloquent of them in speech. It was proposed to Mu`awiya one day: “If you order al-Hasan b. `Ali b. Abi Talib to climb the pulpit, his defects will become clear to the people.” So, he called for him and said to him: “Climb the pulpit and speak words that will exhort us.” So, he (as) stood, climbed the pulpit, praised and commended Allah, and said: “O people! Whoever knows me knows me, and whoever does not know me: I am al-Hasan b. `Ali b. Abi Talib. I am the son of the Mistress of Women Fatima the daughter of the Messenger of Allah (s). I am the son of the best of Allah’s creation. I am the son of the Messenger of Allah. I am the son of the possessor of merit. I am the son of the possessor of miracles and signs. I am the son of Amir al-Mu’minin. I am the one who has been ejected from my right. I and my brother al-Husayn are the Two Masters of the Youth of Paradise. I am the son of the rukn and the maqam. I am the son of Mecca and Mina. I am the son of al-Mash`ar (in Muzdalifa) and `Arafat.” So, Mu`awiya said to him: “O Aba Muhammad, take a date and leave this.” So, he (as) said: “Wind expands it, heat ripens it, and cold sweetens it.” Then, he (as) returned to his speech. He said: “I am the Imam of the creation of Allah. I am the son of Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah.” So, Mu`awiya was too humiliated to speak thereafter, as the people were enchanted by him. So, he said: “O Aba Muhammad! Descend, for what you have said is sufficient.” So, he descended.