Anecdotes of Ali

He decried flattery

Once a person flattered Ali. Ali said: "Do not flatter me. I am not what you say, but I am more than what you think of me in your heart".

One day Ali delivered a sermon, which was most impressive and eloquent. Some one praised him for his sermon. He said: "Do not praise me. That would mislead me and beguile me into vainglory. Remember that all praise is for God alone."

He would carry his own burden

One day Ali purchased some provisions in the market. It was a heavy load and he carried it himself. Many persons offered to carry the load for him. He refused the offer saying that every one should carry his burden himself.

He did not want the people to follow in his retinue

One day Ali was riding a horse. Some people followed him and began to walk in his train. He asked them why they were following him. They said that they felt elated to walk in his retinue. He said: "Go back to your business. By walking behind me you will breed feelings of inferiority in yourselves, and infect me with arrogance."

He prayed for patience to bear suffering

At the Battle of Uhud, Ali received over a hundred wounds. In spite of these wounds he continued fighting and said: "May God grant me patience to bear this suffering. It is a favor of God that He gave me the courage to stand and fight, and not to leave the battlefield".

His complaint against his people

One night Ali saw the Holy Prophet in a dream. He complained to the Holy Prophet that he had received much trouble from his people. The Holy Prophet said that he might invoke the curse of God on them. When it was day, be lifted his hands after the Morning Prayer and said: "O God. Give me a better people, and give these people a worse ruler then me".

He rode on a mule instead of a horse

When going to battle, Ali used to ride on a mule instead of a horse. He was asked why he preferred a mule to a horse when the horse would carry him faster. He said that it was so he did not wish to fly from the battlefield.

He would never turn his back to the enemy

Ali always wore the armor on the front part of his body. He was asked why he did not wear the armor on his back. He said that it was because he did not want to turn his back to the enemy.

He would not seek a concession

Once Ali went to the market to purchase some cloth. He went to a shop and a shopkeeper recognizing him offered the cloth at a confessional rate. Ali refused to make the purchase.

He preferred his slave to himself

Once Ali went to the bazaar to purchase some cloth for himself and his slave. One piece was purchased at a higher price, and the other at a lower price. He gave the costlier piece of cloth to his slave and kept the cloth of inferior quality for himself.

He had no ambition for the caliphate

It is related that when on the way to Basra, Ali and his troops were camping at Rabdha, Ibn Abbas came to see him. At that time Ali was mending his shoe. Ali asked Ibn Abbas as to what would be the value of the shoe. Ibn Abbas said that the old shoe had hardly any value and its value would at the most not exceed a quarter of a dirham. Ali thereupon said, "By God, this shoe is more valuable to me than the caliphate. I have no ambition to rule."

He freed the slave who did not respond to his call

Once Ali called his slave, but the slave did not respond to his call. He called him thrice, but the slave kept silent. Thereafter Ali went to the slave and said, "Did you not hear my call?" He said that he had heard to his call, but was at that time calling upon God who had subjected him to the humiliation of slavery. Thereupon Ali said, "I release you from slavery forthwith in the name of God."

He saw God with inward eyes

Once Ali was asked whether he had seen God. He said that verily he had seen God because he could not worship Him without knowing Him. He was asked how he had seen Him, and he said that He had seen him with the inward eyes of the heart.

He lost consciousness while praying

Once an arrow stuck in the feet of Ali. It could not be taken out because of the intensity of the pain felt. When Ali stood up in prayers, he was so much absorbed in the devotional exercise that the surgeon pulled out the arrow without Ali feeling any pain.

He would not pay the enemy in its own coin

At the battlefield of Siffin, the forces of Muawiyah had the control over the source of water supply, and they would not allow thereto the troops of Ali. When the troops of Ali overpowered the enemy and got control over the source of water supply, Ali was advised that he should deny access of water to the enemy. He repudiated the advice saying that he would not pay the enemy in its own coins, but in the coins of Islam.

He preferred his men to himself

During the water shortage in Siffin, he refused to quench his own thirst saying that the water should be given to those of his men who were more thirsty than him.

Two wrongs cannot make a right

When, after the Battle of Siffin, Muawiyah began harassing the people by making raids into the territory adjoining Syria, the Governor of Ali, Kameel b Ziyad, suggested that he should be authorized to lead retributive expedition into Syria. Ali turned down the suggestion saying, "Two wrongs cannot make a right. Let Muawiyah take pleasure in harassing innocent people. I cannot resort to such measures."

He was dispirited because he had no guest

One day Ali felt unusually dispirited and dejected. When asked about the reason for his unusual dejection he said that he was feeling dispirited because he had received no guest for a week.

He wore dress of coarse cloth

Ali always wore clothing of coarse cloth. When asked why did he wear such shabby dress when he was the Head of the State, he said that it was so because coarse cloth softened the heart while fine cloth hardened the heart.

He wanted to travel light

The house of Ali was bereft of the usual furniture. When asked, why he, deprived himself of such necessities when he was the ruler of a state, he said, "This life is a journey, and while on a journey one should travel light. I have booked my luggage for the destination- the hereafter."

He would not break open the lock of the shop of God

Once, Aqueel, a brother of Ali, asked him to provide some relief for him as he was feeling sore. Ali said that when he got his usual allowance from the Baitul Mal, he would give something out of it to him. They did not satisfy Aqueel. Ali thereupon said, "Then you may break open the locks of the of the ships in the market." Aqeel said, "Do you want me to become a thief." Ali retorted, "Then do you want to break open the lock of the Shop of God and become a brigand instead of the custodian of the Baitul Mal."

He was not afraid of death

In the Battle of Siffin, Ali penetrated into the front ranks of the Syrian forces without any protective armor. One after another his assailants fell before the onslaught of his sword. His son Imam Hasan objected to such neglect to protect himself. Ali said, "It is immaterial to me whether I fall to death or death fall on me. I love death as much as a suckling loves the milk of his mother."

He did not care for the booty

In the battle Ali killed a wealthy Quraish chief Umar b Ubda, but contrary to the Arab custom, he did not mutilate his body, nor take off his costly coat of mail. When asked why he had not taken his valuable coat of mail, Ali said, "The lion who enters the battlefield either kills himself or is killed he does bother about the booty."

He would not own the treasure in the land that he had purchased

Once Ali purchased a plot of land from a person in Madina. When the plot was dug a treasure was found therein. Ali would not except the treasure, as it did not come from a part of his transaction with the original owner. He offered the treasure to the original owner, but he did not except it. Thereupon Ali distributed the entire treasure in charity.

He undertook to clear the debt of a dead Muslim

Once the Holy Prophet attended the funeral of a dead Muslim. Before leading the funeral prayer, the Holy Prophet inquired whether the dead man had to clear any debt. He was informed that the dead man had to pay the debt of a dinar. The Holy Prophet said that before he could lead the funeral prayer some one should undertake the responsibility of clearing the debt of the dead Muslim. It was Ali who stepped forward to undertake the responsibility for clearing the debt.

He would not accept the allegiance from whom he had released

Marwan a cousin of Muawiyah was a bitter enemy of Ali. He had played a great part in inciting revolt against the caliphate of Ali. He was taken captive in the Battle of the Camel at Basra. When brought before Ali he asked for mercy. Ali released him unconditionally. Thereupon Marwan offered to pay allegiance to him, but Ali said, "I did not want his allegiance. I released him for the sake of God, and not for securing allegiance to me."

He did not believe in the prognostication of the astrologer

When Ali led his troops against the Kharijites at the Battle of Nahrawan, an astrologer advised him not to proceed to battle as the time was not propitious. Ali refused to act on the advice saying: "All knowledge of the unknown belongs to God. I cannot accept any person as a partner in the knowledge of God."

He would take no precaution to protect himself

During the last days of his life, when Ali was asked to take protective measures against any murderous attack, he said, "The shield of God is around my body, and nobody can harm me against the will of God. And if God wills me to be martyred, no protective measures will avail."

People stood in the way of his right

At Basra someone said to Ali that he was ambitious for the caliphate. Ali said, "I am not ambitious, what has happened is that there are people who stand in the way of my right. To strive for the right is no ambition."

Spacious house

At Basra, Ali went to the house of one of his companions A'ala b Ziyad. He had constructed a spacious house. Ali was critical of the spaciousness of the house. He said, "A'ala what have you gained by constructing a spacious house in the world. You should have built a spacious house for yourself in the world Hereafter."

Renunciation, not the way of Islam

It was complained to Ali that one of his companions Asim b Zaid was undergoing devotional exercises to such an extent that he had neglected and disregarded his obligation to his wife and children. Ali reprimanded him and said that renunciation was not the way of Islam. He asked him to maintain a proper balance between his duties to God and his duties to the people.

Hosting dinner

When it was brought to the notice of Ali that one of his governors had hosted a big dinner, Ali wrote him a letter expressing his disapproval and said, "What have you gained by hosting such dinner were the wealthy are fed extravagantly, and the poor are returned out. "

He could still wield the sword

Writing to Muawiyah, Ali said in one of his letters: "I wield the same sword with which I severed the head of your maternal grandfather, maternal uncle and brother with the same stroke".