Poems of Imam Al Sha'fi

[badmash_khel]

Let days go forth and do as they please
And remain firm when settled is the Decree

Don’t be afraid of what happens by night
For the affairs of this world are not to last

And be a man, strong in the face of calamities
And let your nature be that of kindness and honesty

If your faults become too much in front of the people
And you wish that they were to be concealed,

Then know that kindness covers all faults
And how many faults are kept hidden by kindness!

No sadness lasts forever, nor any happiness
And you shall not remain in poverty, or any luxury

Generosity cannot be hoped from the miserly
For no water exists in the Fire for the thirsty

Your provision will not be lessened due to life’s delays
And it cannot be increased due to your haste

If, in your heart, you possess contentment
Then you and those who possess the world are equal

And for him upon whose horizon death descends,
No earth can offer him protection, nor any sky

Indeed, the earth of Allah is certainly vast
But if decree descends, then decree is constricted

Let days be the ones that betray you at all times
For no cure can avail a person of death

[badmash_khel]

“The intelligent and refined find no rest in dwelling in one place,

So leave your homeland and travel far away!
Travel and you will meet new people replacing those left behind,
And tire yourself out, because it makes life worth living!
I have seen that water stagnates when it stands still,

Yet when it runs it is sweet and pure.
And if the lion left not its land,
it would not catch its prey
And if the arrow left not the bow,
it would not hit its aim
And if the sun moved not across the horizon,
People the world over would have tired of the sky.”

- Imam Shafi

[jankhan]

So true so beautiful

Thank you

[Badlun]

Indeed, the earth of Allah is certainly vast
But if decree descends, then decree is constricted

Here seems to be a paradox. If death is inevitable then there is no meaning in struggle.

The obsession of religion with death makes the life horrible. I do not understand but in Qur'an life after death is mentioned more than the life before it.

I think this other-worldliness did not let Muslims to get progress in this world hoping for the success in the life to come. The same is the approach of suicide bombers to get to paradise quickly, which is the real eclat.

Also Imam Shafi along with Imam Hanbal inspired more the ahle hadith and wahabi school of thought as opposed to Imam Abu Hanifa who was ahle raye(rationalist) not ahle hadith.

I prefer Imam Abu Hanifa who according to many believe in very few hadith. Some say he believed only in 16 hadiths. His approached is based on Qur'an and qyas(reasoning)