John Shaqi

وَأَمَّا قَوْلُكَ: إِنَّا بَنُو عَبْدِ مَنَافٍ، فَكَذلِكَ نَحْنُ، وَلكِنْ لَيْسَ أُمَيَّةُ كَهَاشِمٍ، وَلَا حَرْبٌ كَعَبْدِ الْمُطَّلِبِ، وَلَا أَبُوسُفْيَانَ كَأَبِي طَالِبٍ، وَلَا الْمُهَاجِرُ كَالطَّلِيقِ، وَلَا الصَّرِيحُ كَاللَّصِيقِ، وَلَا الْـمُحِقُّ كَالْمُبطِلِ، وَلَا الْمُؤْمِنُ كَالْمُدْغِلِ، وَلَبِئْسَ الْخَلَفُ خَلَفٌ يَتْبَعُ سَلَفاً هَوَى فِي نَارِ جَهَنَّمَ.


Translation

As for your saying that both of us are sons of ‘Abd Manāf, it is no doubt so, but Umayyah cannot be like Hāshim, nor Ḥarb like ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib, nor can Abū Sufyān be like Abū Ṭālib. The muhājir (immigrant) cannot be a match for him who was set free (on the day of fall of Mecca), nor can one of pure descent be a match for him who has been adopted, nor the pursuer of truth be a match of the adherent to wrong, nor a believer be a match for a hypocrite. How bad are the successors who go on following their predecessors who have fallen in the fire of Hell!


Chapter (Bab)In response to a letter from Muawiya
CollectionNahj al-Balagha

Compiled by al-Sharif al-Radi

Source

License: Free for educational and research use (Thaqalayn Data API)

Provided for research and educational purposes. Original source: Thaqalayn Project. Open License.