Sitting gathering
الأمالي للشيخ الطوسي الْحُسَيْنُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ وَهْبَانَ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ زَكَرِيَّا عَنِ الْحَسَنِ بْنِ عَلِيِّ بْنِ فَضَّالٍ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ عُقْبَةَ عَنْ سَعِيدِ بْنِ عُمَرَ الْجُعْفِيِ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ مُسْلِمٍ عَنْ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ ع قَالَ: إِنْ كَانَ صَاحِبُكُمْ يَعْنِي أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ لَيَجْلِسُ جِلْسَةَ الْعَبْدِ وَ يَأْكُلُ أَكْلَ الْعَبْدِ وَ يُطْعِمُ النَّاسَ الْخُبْزَ وَ اللَّحْمَ وَ يَرْجِعُ إِلَى رَحْلِهِ فَيَأْكُلُ الْخَلَّ وَ الزَّيْتَ وَ إِنْ كَانَ لَيَشْتَرِي الْقَمِيصَيْنِ السُّنْبُلَانِيَّيْنِ ثُمَّ يُخَيِّرُ غُلَامَهُ خَيْرَهُمَا ثُمَّ يَلْبَسُ الْآخَرَ فَإِذَا جَازَ أَصَابِعَهُ قَطَعَهُ وَ إِنْ جَازَ كَعْبَهُ حَذَفَهُ وَ مَا وَرَدَ عَلَيْهِ أَمْرَانِ قَطُّ كِلَاهُمَا لِلَّهِ رِضًى إِلَّا أَخَذَ بِأَشَدِّهِمَا عَلَى بَدَنِهِ
(The book) ‘Al Amaali’ of the sheykh Al Tusi – Al Husayn Bin Ibrahim, from Muhammad Bin Wahban, from Muhammad Bin Ahmad Bin Zakariya, from Al Hassan Bin Ali Bin Fazaal, from Ali Bin Uqbah, from Saeed Bin Umar Al Jufy, from Muhammad Bin Muslim,
From Abu Ja’far-asws having said: ‘Your Master-asws, meaning Amir Al-Momineen-asws, would sit ‘جِلْسَةَ ’ the sitting of the slave, and eat the eating of the slave, and feed the people bread and meat, and return to his-asws belongings and eat the vinegar and oil. And if he-asws bought two new shirts, would give his-asws slave the better of the two, then he-asws would wear the other. When it (sleeve) exceeded his-asws fingers, he-asws cut it off, and if it (trouser) exceeded the ankles, he-asws cut it, and no two matters arrived to him-asws, both of them being with Pleasure for Allah-azwj, except he-asws took with the more difficult of the two upon his-asws body.
وَ لَقَدْ وَلِيَ النَّاسَ خَمْسَ سِنِينَ مَا وَضَعَ آجُرَّةً عَلَى آجُرَّةٍ وَ لَا لَبِنَةً عَلَى لَبِنَةٍ وَ لَا أَقْطَعَ قَطِيعَةً وَ لَا أَوْرَثَ بَيْضَاءَ وَ لَا حَمْرَاءَ إِلَّا سَبْعَمِائَةِ دِرْهَمٍ فَضَلَتْ مِنْ عَطَائِهِ أَرَادَ أَنْ يَبْتَاعَ بِهَا لِأَهْلِهِ خَادِماً
‘And he-asws had ruled the people for five years, not placing a wage upon a wage (increasing wages), nor a brick upon a brick (building anything for himself-asws), nor cut out a piece of land, nor did he-asws leave inheritance, neither while (silver) nor red (gold), except seven hundred Dirhams, being a surplus from his-asws stipend, he-asws wanted to acquire a servant for his family.
وَ مَا أَطَاقَ عَمَلَهُ مِنَّا أَحَدٌ وَ إِنْ كَانَ عَلِيُّ بْنُ الْحُسَيْنِ ع لَيَنْظُرُ فِي كِتَابٍ مِنْ كُتُبِ عَلِيٍّ ع فَيَضْرِبُ بِهِ الْأَرْضَ وَ يَقُولُ مَنْ يُطِيقُ هَذَا
‘And no one from us-asws can endure his-asws deeds, and Ali-asws Bin Al-Husayn-asws had looked into a book from the books of Ali-asws, struck the ground with it and said: ‘Who can endure this?’’[1]
[1] Bihar Al-Awaar – V 40, The book of History – Amir Al-Momineen-asws, Ch 98 H 25