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My first and foremost advice to you, my son, is to fear Allah. Be His obedient servant. Keep His thought always fresh in your mind. Be attached to and carefully guard the principles (Islam) which connect you with Him. Can any other connection be stronger, more durable and more lasting than this to command greater respect and consideration or to replace it?

Accept good exhortations and refresh your mind with them. Adopt piety and kill your inordinate desires with its help. Build your character with the help of true faith in religion and Allah. Subjugate your nature with the vision of death, make it see the mortality of life and of all that it holds dear, force it to realize the actuality of misfortunes and adversities, the changes of circumstances and times and compel it to study the lives of past people.

Persuade it to see the ruined cities, the dilapidated palaces, decaying signs and relics of fallen empires of past nations. Then meditate over the activities of those people, what they have all done when they were alive and were in power, what they achieved, from where they started their careers; where, when and how they were brought to an end, where they are now; what have they actually gained out of life and what was their contributions to the human welfare.

If you carefully ponder over these problems, you will find that each one of those people has parted company with the others and with all that he cherished and loved and he is now in a solitary abode, alone and unattended; and you also will be like him.

Take care to provide well for your future abode. Do not barter away eternal blessing for pleasures of this mortal and fleeting world.

Do not talk about things which you do not know. Do not speculate about and pass verdicts on subjects about which you are not in a position to form an opinion and are not called upon to do so.

Give up the way where there is a possibility of your going astray. When there is danger on your wandering in the wilderness of ignorance, possibility of losing the sight of the goal which you want to attain and of reaching the end aimed at, then it is better to give up the quest than to advance facing uncertain dangers and unforeseen risks.
Nahjul balaghah, letter31

فَإِنِّي أُوصِيكَ بِتَقْوَى اللهِ ـ أَيْ بُنيَّ ـ وَلُزُومِ أَمْرِهِ، وَعِمَارَةِ قَلْبِكَ بِذِكْرِهِ، وَالاْعْتِصَامِ بِحَبْلِهِ، وَأَيُّ سَبَب أَوْثقُ مِنْ سَبَب بَيْنكَ وَبَيْنَ اللهِ عَزّوَجَلَّ إِنْ

أَنْتَ أَخَذْتَ بِهِ

أَحْيِ قَلْبَكَ بِالْمَوْعِظَةِ، وَأَمِتْهُ بِالزَّهَادَةِ، وَقَوِّهِ بِالْيَقِينِ، وَنَوِّرْهُ بِالْحِكْمَةِ، وَذَلِّلْهُ بِذِكْرِ الْمَوْتِ، وَقَرِّرْهُ بِالْفَنَاءِ، وَبَصِّرْهُ فَجَائِعَ الدُّنْيَا، وَحَذِّرْهُ

صَوْلَةَ الدَّهْرِ وَفُحْشَ تَقَلُّبِ اللَّيَالِي وَالاَْيَّامِ، وَاعْرِضْ عَلَيْهِ أَخْبَارَ الْمَاضِينَ، وَذَكِّرْهُ بِمَا أَصَابَ مَنْ كَانَ قَبْلَكَ مِنَ الاَْوَّلِينَ، وَسِرْ فِي دِيَارِهِمْ وَآثَارِهِمْ، فَانْظُرْ مَا فَعَلُواعَمَّا انْتَقَلُوا، وَأَيْنَ حَلُّوا وَنَزَلُوا! فَإِنَّكَ تَجِدُهُمْ انْتَقَلُوا عَنِ الاَْحِبَّةِ، وَحَلُّوا دَارَالْغُرْبَةِ، وَكَأَنَّكَ عَنْ قَلِيل قَدْ صِرْتَ كَأَحَدِهِمْ

فَأَصْلِحْ مَثْوَاكَ، وَلاَ تَبِعْ آخِرَتَكَ بِدُنْيَاكَ، وَدَعِ الْقَوْلَ فِيَما لاَ تَعْرِفُ، وَالْخِطَابَ فِيَما لَمْ تُكَلَّفْ، وَأَمْسِكْ عَنْ طَرِيق إِذَا خِفْتَ ضَلاَلَتَهُ، فَإِنَّ الْكَفَّ عِنْدَ حَيْرَةِ الضَّلاَلِ خَيْرٌ مِنْ رُكُوبِ الاَْهْوَالِ
نهج البلاغه، کتبه 31


پسرم! همانا تو را به ترس از خدا سفارس مي کنم که پيوسته در فرمان او باشي، و دلت را با ياد خدا زنده کني، و به ريسمان او چنگ زني، چه وسيله اي مطمئن تر از رابطه تو با خداست؟ اگر سر رشته آن را در دست گيري

دلت را با اندرز نيکو زنده کن، هواي نفس رابا بي اعتنايي به حرام بميران، جان را با يقين نيرومند کن، و با نور حکمت روشنايي بخش، و با ياد مرگ آرام کن، به نابودي از او اعتراف گير، و با بررسي تحولات ناگواردنيا به او آگاهي بخش، و از دگرگوني روزگار، و زشتي هاي گردش شب و روز او را بترسان، تاريخ گذشتگان رابر او بنما، و آنچه که بر سر پيشينيان آمده است به يادش آور. در ديار و آثار ويران رفتگان گردش کن، و بينديش که آنها چه کردند؟ از کجا کوچ کرده، و در کجا فرود آمدند؟

از جمع دوستان جدا شده و به ديار غربت سفر کردند، گويا زماني نمي گذرد که تو هم يکي از آناني

پس جايگاه آينده را آباد کن، آخرت را به دنيا مفروش، و آنچه نمي داني مگو، و آنچه بر تو لازم نيست بر زبان نياور، و در جاده اي که از گمراهي آن مي ترسي قدم مگذار، زيرا خودداري به هنگام سرگرداني و گمراهي، بهتر از سقوط در تباهي هاست
نهج البلاغه، نامه 31