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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Provisions for the Journey (Mishkat), Volume 1 Lesson 1: The Quality of Servitude and the Path to Eternal Bliss The hadith which we have put forward as the pivot of our discussion is one of the most comprehensive and rewarding exhortations of the Noble Prophet (S)[^1] to one of his most eminent companions by the name of Abu Dharr.

The text of this hadith has been recorded in the distinguished books entitled “ Makarim al-Akhlaq ”, “ Amali Shaykh Tusi ”, “ Majmu‘ah Warram ” and “ Bihar al-Anwar ” . With Allah’s grace we have quoted it from “ Bihar al-Anwar ” , and we will set about explaining and elucidating it as far as we can. Abu al-Aswad Du’ili says, “When Abu Dharr was living in exile in Rabadhah, I went to visit him. While I was there with him, he narrated a hadith to me.

Abu Dharr said, ‘Early one morning, I went to see the Noble Prophet (S) in the Mosque. He was seated with no one present save ‘Ali ( ‘a )[^2]. After being admitted in His Holiness’ audience and subsequent to greeting him with respect, I availed myself of the opportunity and presented my humble request to him. I said ‘May my father and mother be thy ransom! Give me a piece of advice by means of which Allah will grant me good’.’ “The Noble Prophet (S) kindly stated, ‘O Abu Dharr!

What a noble man you are, and you are surely reckoned as one of our household’…” The grammatical form ‘ af‘il bih ’ in Arabic functions as an exclamation phrase [ sighah ta‘ajjub ]; that is to say, it is used when a person is surprised at something. For instance, they say ‘ ajmil bik ’ to mean “How beautiful you are!” when they are amazed at the beauty and charm of someone.

Therefore, the meaning of ‘ akrim bik ’ [in the above-mentioned narration’s Arabic text] is “What a noble man you are!” The application of the term ‘noble’ [ karim ] by the Prophet (S) on such a man as Abu Dharr speaks clearly about the eminence, status and rank of that great companion in the perception of His Holiness (S). In addition, in order to lay emphasis on the above statement, the Noble Prophet (S) has included Abu Dharr among his (S) kith and kin, the ( ‘a ).