al-'Uzlah wa-l-Infirad — Seclusion According to the Wise

Volume 1 · Page 61Seclusion According to the Wise

Translation · EN

AI translation

Seclusion According to the Wise

46 - Al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān narrated to me, he said: One of the wise said: "Have you not seen the solitary one—how sweet is his scrupulousness (waraʿ), how elevated is his living, how contented is his soul with moderation, how safe he is from people, and how distant he is, even if he appears prepared against the vicissitudes of time while being humble? If he is denied, his anxieties are few; if he suffers misfortune, his regret is little; if he receives, rights upon him do not multiply; if he faces hardship, patience is not burdensome upon him; if he is content, death does not distress him; if he seeks, abundance does not delight him. He does not complain of another's pain, nor does he fear except for himself. And the possessor of abundance is the target aimed at by time, its sought-after vengeance, and the victim felled by its calamities and afflictions! How continuous is his toil, how scant his rest, how wretched his share and lot from his wealth, how intense his apprehension of time, and how exhausted time is by his wound and deficiency! Moreover, he is caught between a ruler watching him, an enemy wronging him, obligations questioning him, peers competing with him, and children wishing for his death. Hardship is sent upon him by his ruler, envy from his peers, oppression from his enemies, and blame from unfulfilled rights. He does not seek beyond sufficiency; he is content, so his joy endures; he rejects the world, so he is safe from envy; and he is satisfied with bare subsistence, so obligations bypass him." (1)

Notes

(1) His statement: dhī al-waḥda (the one of solitude), meaning: the possessor of solitude. And al-mustakīn: the submissive and humble one.
And ṭaraqa: became relaxed.
And asafuhu: grief.
And akdā: meaning: his goodness diminished.
And al-naṣab: fatigue.
And yabghī: acts wrongfully against him and oppresses him.
And akfāʾ: equals.
And al-ʿanat: hardship.
And al-bulgha: bare subsistence.
Al-tankīb: veering away from something.

This translation was produced with AI assistance and is part of an ongoing human-review process. Found a mistake? Use the feedback option in the reader menu.

Arabic (Source)

الْعُزْلَةُ عِنْدَ الْحُكَمَاءِ٤٦ - حَدَّثَنِي الْحُسَيْنُ بْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، قَالَ: قَالَ بَعْضُ الْحُكَمَاءِ: " أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى ذِي الْوَحْدَةِ مَا أَحْلَى وَرَعَهُ وَأَرْفَعَ عَيْشَهُ، وَأَقْنَعَ نَفْسَهُ بِالْقَصْدِ، وَآمَنَهُ لِلنَّاسِ، وَأَبْعَدَهُ وَإِنْ بَدَا بِالْحِرْصِ مُسْتَعِدًّا لِصُرُوفِ الأَيَّامِ مُسْتَكِينًا؟ إِنْ مُنِعَ قَلَّتْ هُمُومُهُ، وَإِنْ طُرِقَ قَلَّ أَسَفُهُ، وَإِنْ أَخَذَ لَمْ تَكْثُرِ الْحُقُوقُ عَلَيْهِ، وَإِنْ أَكْدَى لَمْ يَكْبُرِ الصَّبْرُ عَلَيْهِ، وَإِنْ قَنَعَ لَمْ يَحْصُرْهُ الْمَوْتُ، وَإِنْ طَلَبَ لَمْ تُلْذِذْهُ الْكَثْرَةُ، لا يَشْتَكِي أَلَمَ غَيْرِهِ، وَلا يُحَاذِرُ إِلا عَلَى نَفْسِهِ، وَذُو الْكَثْرَةِ غَرَضُ الأَيَّامِ الْمَقْصُودُ، وَثَأْرُهَا الْمَطْلُوبُ، وَصَرِيعُ مَصَائِبِهَا وَآفَاتِهَا، مَا أَدْوَمَ نَصَبَهُ، وَأَقَلَّ رَاحَتَهُ، وَأَخَسَّ مِنْ مَالِهِ نَصِيبَهُ وَحَظَّهُ، وَأَشَدَّ مِنَ الأَيَّامِ حَذَرَهُ، وَأَعْيَا الزَّمَانَ بِكَلْمِهِ وَنَقْصِهِ، ثُمَّ هُوَ بَيْنَ السُّلْطَانِ يَرْعَاهُ، وَعَدُوٍّ يَبْغِي عَلَيْهِ، وَحُقُوقٍ تَسْتَرِيبُهُ، وَأَكْفَاءٍ يُنَافِسُونَهُ، وَوَلَدٍ يَوَدُّونَ مَوْتَهُ، قَدْ بُعِثَ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ سُلْطَانِهِ بِالْعَنَتِ، وَمِنْ أَكْفَائِهِ الْحَسَدُ، وَمِنْ أَعْدَائِهِ الْبَغْيُ، وَمِنَ الْحُقُوقِ الذَّمُّ، لا يُحْدِثُ الْبُلْغَةَ، قَنَعَ فَدَامَ لَهُ السُّرُورُ، وَرَفَضَ الدُّنْيَا فَسَلِمَ مِنَ الْحَسَدِ، وَرَضِيَ بِالْكَفَافِ فَتَنَكَّبَتْهُ الْحُقُوقُ " (١) .

Notes

(١) قوله: ذي الوحدة، أي: صاحب الوحدة. والمستكين: الخاضع الذليل.وطرق: استرخى.وأسفه: الحزن.وأكدى: أي: قل خيره.والنصب: التعب.ويبغى: يجور عليه ويظلمه.وأكفاء: أنداد.والعنت: المشقة.والبلغة: ما يتبلّغ به من العيش.التنكيب: العدول عن الشيء.