Hadith 109

(The book) ‘Irshad al Quloob’ –
‘Zirar Bin Zamrah Al-Laysi entered to see Muawiya. He said to him, ‘Describe Ali-asws to me! ’ He said, ‘And can you excuse me from that? ’ He said, ‘I will not excuse you’. He said, ‘He-asws was of long-term (thinking), intense of strength, speaking decisively, and judging justly, the knowledge burst forth from his-asws sides, and the wisdom spoke from his-asws tendencies. He-asws was averse from the world and its blossoms and was comforted with the night and his-asws loneliness. By Allah-azwj! He-asws was of mighty lessons, long of thinking. He-asws used to turn his-asws hand and address himself-asws and whisper to his-asws Lord-azwj. It used to fascinate him-asws from the clothing, what was coarse, and from the food, what was dry. By Allah-azwj! He-asws was among us like one of us, drawing us closer whenever we came to him-asws, and he-asws would answer us when we asked him-asws, and we, along with his-asws closeness from us, and our closeness from him-asws, we would not speak to him-asws due to his-asws awe, and we dared not to raise our eyes due to his-asws magnificence. If he-asws smile, it would be from like from the systematic pearls (teeth). He-asws used to magnify the people of the religion and loved the poor, not coveting in his falsehood, nor despair the poor from his-asws justice. I testify with Allah-azwj I had seen him-asws in one of his-asws standings (for Salat), and the night had brought down its darkness and displayed its stars, and he-asws was standing in his-asws prayer niche holding on to his-asws beard, being restless like the restlessness of the one bitten by a snake and crying with grief-stricken crying. It is as if I can now hear him-asws and he-asws is saying: ‘O world! O world! Is it me-asws you are displaying to, or to me-asws you are luring? Far be it! Far be it! Deceive others, there is no need for me-asws regarding you! I-asws have already divorced you thrice, there is no return to me regarding you. Your life is short, and your perils are little, and your ownership is basic. Alas! Alas! Scarcity of provision and the long journey, and loneliness of the road, and greatness of the (arrival to) the resources! ’
The tears of Muawiya flowed upon his beard, and he wiped it with his sleeve, and the people choked with the crying. Then he said, ‘By Allah-azwj! Abu Al-Hassan-asws was like that, so how was your patience from him-asws, O Zirar? ’ He said, ‘Patience of the one (mother) whose young is slaughtered upon his chest, so she can neither cry any tears nor can her regret (grief) calm down’. Then he stood up and went out crying. Muawiya said, ‘As for you all, if you were to lose me, there would not be anyone among you who can praise Ali-asws with this praise’. One of ones who were present said, ‘The companion is upon a worth of his companion’’. [47]