Around forty ·years ago, in Madressa Darush Shifa, on 25th night of Rajab, a gathering of scholars and learned was held to seek mediation of Imam Musa Kazim ('a).

A gentleman from them said: When an affluent person from Mashraaq locality of Najaf al-Ashraf died, I saw myself in the holy courtyard of Amir ul-Mu’minin ('a) and observed that Imam ('a) was majestically seated on the pulpit. That rich man of Mashraaq, who had just died, was brought over there with two guards and signs of punishment were apparent on him. When he came before the Imam, he begged him for intercession.

His Eminence asked: Have you forgotten your mistakes and sins? He replied: You are right, but I have a right on you, because, on all days of your happiness, I gathered people of the locality and held celebrations and during days of your mourning, I held gatherings of grief. In other words, I used to do this and that.

His Eminence said: Whatever you did was for selfish aims. You wanted leadership to remain with you and your intention was to gain popularity and status.

He pondered for sometime and then said: It is correct, but you know that I am sincerely devoted to you and always desirous of exalting your name. I was pleased when your name was mentioned with respect. Imam ('a) agreed that it was right, and told his captors: Leave him. And they did. That man became extremely elated by this.

An Act Of Show-Off Is Invalid

Among the signs of accuracy of dreams is its being according to jurisprudential principles and Islamic laws. Two issues become clear from this dream: and both are definite matters.

The first point is invalidity of acts performed for show-off; it is among the definite issues of our faith that all worship acts; obligatory or recommended, physical or monetary: like Prayer, fasting, Hajj, Enjoining good and forbidding evil, supplications, recitation of Qur’an, Ziyarat of holy places, mention of the merits or tragedies of Ahl ul-Bayt (‘a), weeping on calamities of Imam Husayn ('a), every kind monetary expense like: Zakat, Khums and recommended expenses like helping the poor and donating for construction of Mosques or hospitals; if the real objective is to show-off and to gain respect and status, are invalid and not only that they would not be recorded in scroll of deeds, on the contrary according to verses of Qur’an and traditional reports any act performed with intention of show-off is unlawful and a sin.

It is explained in detail in the book of Greater Sins. At this point only pay attention to the following verse:

فَوَيْلٌ لِلْمُصَلِّينَ

"Woe to the praying ones, " (Surah al-Maa’un 107:4).

الَّذِينَ هُمْ عَنْ صَلَاتِهِمْ سَاهُونَ

“who are unmindful of their prayers, " (Surah al-Maa’un 107:5).

الَّذِينَ هُمْ يُرَاءُونَ

“who do (good) to be seen." (Surah al-Maa’un 107:6).

Thus, the people of faith should assure that their deeds are pure and not that they should leave them fearing show-off as would be explained in a story after this.

Innumerable benefits of devotion to Ahl ul-Bayt (‘a) Another issue is the obligation of loving Ali Ibn Abi Talib ('a), because obligation of loving Ahl ul-Bayt of the Prophet is among the necessities of Islam, and the chief of them is Amir ul-Mu’minin ('a) and its reasonings are mentioned in related books. On this juncture, the verse of Love (Mawaddat) is hinted:

"Say: I do not ask of you any reward for it, but love for my near relatives." (Surah ash-Shura 42:23).

Along with this we should also know that this command is not in any way beneficial to Ahl ul-Bayt ('a); on the contrary it carries benefits for Muslims themselves. Thus, in the Holy Qur’an, it is mentioned in another place:

"Say: Whatever reward I have asked of you, that is only for yourselves." (Surah Saba 34:47).

Among those benefits is getting their intercession. Regarding this, large number of traditional reports are recorded, most of which are mentioned in Bihar ul-Anwar, Volume 4 and Volume 15. In other words, the followers of Ahl ul-Bayt ('a) would get intercession of those personalities and divine mercy would surround them; and this is definite and certain.

However, followers and devotees should understand that even though they would be purified of sins due to intercession, they would remain deprived of the reward of the sincere. For example, even though that rich man got relief from his bad deeds, but if he had performed those acts with sincerity, how nice it would have been for him; but he deprived himself from it.

This matter is explained in detail the book of Immaculate Conscience. Here we shall just quote one story by way of illustration:

Assistance Of A Sincere Deed

A very pious gentleman came to the side of a man who was in the agony of death. He saw that the Purgatory (Barzakh) body of that person was extremely dirty and the sins of evil character and deeds were apparent in him. That scene made him highly pained.

He said: What a pity, if this person dies in this condition, what would befall him in Purgatory (Barzakh)? An unseen voice came: We have a right of that man on us and we would help him at that time.

Suddenly he saw something like water surrounding him from the head to toe. All his filth was washed away and his Purgatory (Barzakh) body became clear and bright like a crystal. After that the angel of death captured his soul and he passed away from the world. The pious man supplicated the Almighty Allah to inform him what right that man had on Him that He helped him in this way?

That night, in dream, he saw that man's soul and it said: In the world, I possessed much honor and was quite influential in the royal court. One day a man was sentenced to death, while I was certain of his innocence. I used my influence to prevent them from awarding the death sentence; then I proved his innocence and he was subsequently released. Since I had done this only for the pleasure of the Almighty and there was no other intention in it; that is why, as you saw, the Almighty Allah purified me before death.

Surely Allah does not waste the acts of the doers of good. (Surah Hud, 11:115).

Include Everything In The Account Of The Almighty

Another issue relevant to this is the statement of Imam Husayn ('a) when Habib Ibn Mazahir and some other martyrs were martyred, he said:

I put this calamity in the account of Allah and in the tragedy of his infant son, said: That, which makes this tragedy easy for me to bear is the belief that it is seen by Allah.

In other words, a believer should put all his worship acts, charity and all that befalls him in the account of the Almighty and the sign of it being in the account of Allah, is that he should forget all that he has done, and not mention it again and again, because in its remembrance, there is risk of falling into the sin of show off and its exclusion from the account of the Almighty. (The details of this matter are mentioned in the book of Greater Sins and Immaculate Conscience).

Another sign of it being in the account of Allah is patience in calamities and not to object to divine destiny. May the Almighty Allah give us good sense (Tawfiq) to only remain attached to Him.