ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books The Faith of Shi'a Islam Themes in the Ad'iyah From As-sahifat As-sajjadiyyah ======================================================== After the deplorable tragedy (of Karbala'), and after the Ummayids had taken over the leadership of the Islamic community, they committed excesses in oppression, revelled in bloodshed and made a mockery of Islamic teachings.

There was no alternative for Imam Zayn al-'Abidin, Sayyid as-Sajidin (A.S.) but to remain in the seclusion of his own home, dejected and full of sorrow. No-one dared to approach him in his house, and he was forbidden to guide the people as they should have been.

He was forced to adopt the method ofdu'a' (as we have mentioned, this is one of the methods of nurturing purity of character) as a means of propagating the teachings of the Qur'an, the principles of Islam, and the message of the Household of the Prophet, of instilling in the minds of the people a sense of spirituality and piety, and as a means to the necessary purification of the soul and morality.

This was a method of dissemination that he adopted to teach people without arousing the suspicions of the tyrannical rulers, and without giving them any evidence with which to condemn him. That is why we see that most of these eloquentad'iyah, some of which have been collected together in as-Sahifat as-Sajjadiyyah, also known as Zabur Ali Muhammad (The Psalms of the Household of the Prophet), consist of various topics in Islamic learning.

Their style and meaning count them among the greatest examples of authorship in Arabic literature; they are the embodiment of the teachings of the true religion; they contain the innermost subtleties oftawhid andnubuwwat; and they constitute the best way to propagate the ethics of Muhammad and Islamic morality. Thus they are spiritual and ethical teachings in the style ofad'iyah, orad'iyah in accordance with spiritual teachings and ethics.

Without doubt, after the Qur'an and Nahj al-Balaghah these are the greatest examples of literary style in Arabic, and the best philosophical discussions of theological matters and ethics. From then, we understand how to praise Allah and how to sing his glories and how to thank Him and turn to Him in repentance; and it is in this way that we can understand how to establish communion with Allah and to express our secrets to Him in private, and how to become solely dependent on Him.