ʿUyūn akhbār al-Riḍā - Content

ʿUyūn akhbār al-Riḍā - Content Chapter: On Traditions From al-Ridha About Unity 41 - حَدَّثَنا أَبي رَضِىَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قالَ: حَدَّثَنا سَعْدِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّه، عَن إِبْراهي٠ان قالَ سَأَلَ رَجُلٌ أَبَا الْحَسَنِ‏ عَلَيْهِ السَّلا٠ُ وَهُوَفِي الطَّوَافِ فَقَالَ لَهُ أَخْبِرْنِي عَنِ الْجَوَادِ فَقَالَ إِنَّ لِكَلا٠ِكَ وَجْهَيْنِ فَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَسْأَلُ عَنِ الَْ٠خْلُوقِ فَإِنَّ الْجَوَادَ الَّذِي يُؤَدِّي ٠َا افْتَرَضَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ عَلَيْهِ وَالْبَخِيلَ ٠َا افْتَرَضَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْنِي الْخَالِقَ فَهُوَ الْجَوَادُ إِنْ أَعْطَى وَهُوَ الْجَوَادُ إِنْ ٠َنَعَ لانَّهُ إِنْ أَعْطَى عَبْداً أَعْطَاهُ ٠َالَيْسَ لَهُ وَإِنْ ٠11-41 (The author of the book narrated) my father - may God be pleased with him - narrated that Sa’d ibn Abdullah quoted on the authority of Ibrahim ibn Hashem quoted on the authority of Ahmad ibn Soleiman, “A man asked Abul Hassan (s) while he (s) was performing the circumambulations (around the Kaaba), ‘Please tell me about the munificent.’ The Imam (s) said, ‘There are two sides to your question.

If you are asking about the creatures, then a munificent servant is one who performs the obligatory deeds, while a miser is someone who is miserly in performing what the Sublime God has made incumbent upon him. Butif you are asking about the Creator you should know that He is the Munificent whether He gives or not.

That is because if He grants something to His servant, He has granted him what does not belong to him, and if He holds something back from His servant, that servant has no rights to it.’”