However...

However, in the books of Traditions such as Wasa-il-Shi’a, al-Kafi and the like, as well as in the old history books, such as those of Tabari, ibn Athir and Ya’qubi, no chain of authorities can be found concerning the contents of the Nahj-ul-Balagha.

Firstly, although the Nahj-ul-Balagha itself does not mention the chain of authorities and narrators, this can be checked in the Shi’ite and Sunni books of Traditions where the Sermons, Letters and Sayings of this book have been extracted and compiled.

Several years ago, one of the Arab writers wrote a book entitled Madarik Nahj-ul-Balagha wa Masanidu (The Documents and Authorities of Nahj-ul-Balagha) which may later be introduced to the readers in an analysis of the books written about the Nahj-ul-Balagha. In this book, the writer has quoted the authentic authorities of the Sermons, Letters and Sayings of the Nahj-ul-Balagha from the books of the Traditions.

It is, therefore, concluded that the content, of the Nahj-ul-Balagha, should not be considered to be without authority on the mere ground that the book itself does not mention any authority. Secondly, although the authorities of Traditions are proper means of reliance or vice versa, the text of Traditions can also be a means of obtaining confidence for one who undertakes research, i.e.

when you study a text and find its contents miraculous (as you will, God-Willing, observe when interpreting Ali’s words), when you see that in one sentence the writer has referred to something beyond the prevailing mentality of his own time, which others have been able to understand only in the course of centuries, when you are faced with a saying that predicts future events which cannot be presaged except by the likes of Amir al-Muminin who are in contact with endless divine knowledge and, in addition to all these merits, when you observe the highly eloquent words and expressions of the writer, it becomes quite clear to you that he is not an ordinary human being and that his saying cannot be but those of an immaculate Imam.

Based upon this, Sayyid Radhi states that certain words and expressions of the Nahj-ul-Balagha, are matchless in human expression, something which has never been opposed, in the course of one thousand years, by eloquent writers, Islamic thinkers and even the adversaries of Islam.