Shafaqna English- A selection from the translated Nahjul-Balaghah with commentary by Martyr Ayatollah Murtaza Mutahhari and edited by Yasin T. Al-Jibouri.
Another spiritual motif conspicuous in the teachings of Nahjul-Balaghah is zuhd, which after Taqwa is the most recurring theme of the book. “Zuhd’ means renunciation of the “world’, and very often we encounter denunciation of the “world’, and invitation and exhortation to renounce it. It appears to me that it forms one of the important themes of Nahjul-Balaghah, which needs to be elucidated and explained in the light of various aspects of Ali’s approach.
We shall begin our discussion with the word “Zuhd’ the words “Zuhd’ and “Raghbah’ (attraction, desire), if mentioned without reference to their objects, are opposite to each other. “Zuhd’ means indifference and avoidance, and “Raghbah “means attraction, inclination, and desire.
Indifference can be of two kinds: Involuntary and cultivated. A person is involuntarily indifferent towards a certain thing when by nature he does not have any desire for it, as in the case of a sick person who shows no desire either for food, or fruits, or anything else. Obviously, this kind of indifference and abstinence has nothing to do with the particular sense implied in Zuhd.
Another kind of indifference or abstinence is spiritual or intellectual; that is, things which are natural objects of desire are not considered the goal and objective by a human being in the course of his struggle for perfection and felicity.
The ultimate objective and goal may be something above mundane aims and sensual pleasures; either it may be to attain the sensuous pleasures of the Hereafter, or it may not belong to this kind of things. It may be some high ethical and moral ideal, like honor, dignity, nobility, liberty, or it may belong to the spiritual sphere, like the remembrance of Allah (SWT), the love of Allah (SWT), and the desire to acquire nearness to God.
Accordingly the Zahid (i.e. one who practises Zuhd) is someone whose interest transcends the sphere of material existence, and whose object of aspiration lies beyond the kind of things we have mentioned above. The indifference of a Zahid originates in the sphere of his ideas, ideals, and hopes, not in his physiological makeup.
There are two places where we come across the definition of “Zuhd’ in Nahjul-Balaghah. Both of them confirm the above interpretation of Zuhd. Ali (AS), in Khutba/Sermon 81, says the following: O’ people! Zuhd means curtailing of hopes, thanking Allah (SWT) for Divine Blessings and bounties, and abstaining from that which God has forbidden.
In Hhikmah/Wisdom 439, he says the following: “All Zuhd is summarized in two sentences of the Holy Quran: “Allah, the Most Exalted, says: So that you may not grieve for what escapes you, nor rejoice in what has come to you. [57: 23] Whoever does not grieve over what he has lost and does not rejoice over what comes to him has acquired Zuhd in both of its aspects.”
Obviously when something does not occupy a significant status among one’s objectives and ideals, or rather is not at all significant in the scheme of things which matter to him, its gain and loss do not make the slightest difference to him.
However, there are some points that need clarification. Is Zuhd, or detachment from the world, on which Nahjul-Balaghah, following the Quranic teachings, puts so much emphasis, to be taken solely in an ethical and spiritual sense? In other words, is Zuhd purely a spiritual state, or does it possess practical implications also?
Is Zuhd spiritual abstinence only or is it accompanied by an abstinence in practical life also? Assuming that Zuhd is to be applied in practice, is it limited to abstinence from unlawful things (Muharramat), as pointed out in Khutba 81, or does it include something more, as exemplified by the life of Imam Ali (AS) and before him by the life of the Holy Prophet (PBUH)?
Proceeding on the assumption that Zuhd is not limited to Muharramat only and that it covers permissible things (Mubahat) as well, one may ask: what is its underlying rationale and philosophy? What is the use of an ascetic life that limits and confines life, rejecting its blessings and bounties? Is Zuhd to be practiced at all times or only under certain particular conditions? Is Zuhd-in The sense of abstinence from even permissible things-basically in agreement with other Islamic teachings?
Apart from this, the basis of Zuhd and renunciation of the world is the pursuit of supra-material objectives and ideals. What are they from the point of view of Islam? In particular, how does Nahjul-Balaghah describe them?
All these questions regarding Zuhd, renunciation, and curtailing of hopes-themes which have so often been discussed in Nahjul-Balaghah need to be clarified. We shall discuss these questions in the following pages and try to answer them.
Part of a series: Nahjul-Balaghah with Commentary by Martyr Ayatollah Murtaza Mutahhari
The Zahid and the Monk