Extracted from the Book ” AL-HASAN IBN ‘ALI IBN ABI TALIB HIS LIFE AND TIMES by Dr. Ali M. Sallabi

Commander of the Faithful’ Ali called for al-Hasan and al-Husayn and said:
“I urge you to fear Allah and not to seek worldly luxury even if it becomes available to you. Do not weep for anything that you have lost [of worldly gains]. Speak the truth, show compassion to orphans, help the destitute, and strive for the hereafter.
Oppose the wrongdoers and support the one who is wronged.
Act upon what is in the Book, and never fear the blame of the blamers [when striving] for the sake of Allah.

‘Ali said to al-Hasan:

• I advise you, my son, to fear Allah, establish regular prayer and pay zakah to those who are entitled to it. Do ablution well, for there is no prayer without purification; also, no prayer is accepted from one who withholds zakah.
• I advise you to forgive others, suppress your anger, uphold ties of kinship, be forbearing with the ignorant, seek knowledge of lslam, verify the facts before making any decision, read the Qur’an, be a good neighbour, enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil and avoid immoral actions.

When death was imminent, he gave the following advice:

• I advise you, al-Hasan and all my children and family, to fear Allah, your Lord, and never die except in the state of Islam, and hold fast, all of you together, to the rope of Allah [the Qur’an] and be not divided among yourselves. (See Qur’an 3: 102-3.)
• I heard Abul-Qasim say: Reconciling between people is better than supererogatory prayers and fasts. Check on your relatives and uphold ties with them, and then your reckoning with Allah will be easier.
• I urge you, by Allah, to be kind to orphans; do not silence or ignore them when they are with you.
• I urge you, by Allah, to be kind to your neighbors, for your Prophet enjoined that and continued to enjoin it until we thought that he would make the neighbor an heir.
• I urge you, by Allah, to take care of the Qur’an; do not let others be better at putting it into practice than you.
• I urge you, by Allah, to take care of the prayer, for it is the foundation of your religion.
• I urge you, by Allah, to take care of the house of your Lord; do not forsake it as long as you live.
• I urge you, by Allah, to engage in jihad for the sake of Allah with your wealth and your lives.
• I urge you, by Allah, to take care of zakah, for it extinguishes the wrath of the Lord.
• I urge you, by Allah, to take care of those whom your right hands possess.
• Prayer, prayer; never fear the blame of the blamers for the sake of Allah. Allah will suffice you against anyone who wants to harm or transgress against you.
• Speak kindly to people as Allah has commanded you, and do not give up enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil, lest the worst of you attain positions of authority – then you will call upon Allah but will receive no response.
• I enjoin you to keep in touch with and help one another; beware of cutting off ties with one another and thus becoming divided. Cooperate in righteousness and piety, and do not cooperate in sin and transgression.
• Fear Allah, for Allah is severe in punishment. May Allah take care of you, my household. May the teachings of the Prophet continue to guide you. I bid you farewell. Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah. Following that, he repeated the words la ilaha ilia Allah (there is none worthy of worship other thanAllah) until he died. May Allah be pleased with him. (Recorded by at-Tabari with a sound chain)

According to another report, he said:

• My son, I advise you to fear Allah in private and in public, to speak the truth whether content or angry, to be moderate in spending whether you are rich or poor, to be fair towards friends and enemies alike, to strive whether you have energy or you feel lethargic, and to be content with Allah whether it is a time of hardship or a time of ease.
• My son, there is nothing bad if it ultimately leads to paradise, and there is nothing good if it ultimately leads to hell. Every delight other than paradise is nothing, and any calamity less than hell is fine.
• My son, whoever focuses on his own faults will be distracted from the faults of others, whoever is content with the provision Allah has decreed for him will not feel sad for what he missed,
• whoever unsheathes the sword of transgression will be killed by it, whoever digs a hole for his brother will fall into it, whoever exposes his brother is exposing his own faults, who ever forgets his own faults will regard the faults of others as great, whoever admires his own opinion will go astray, whoever is content with his own reasoning will err,
• whoever looks down upon the people will be humiliated, whoever mixes with riffraff will be despised, whoever spends time in inappropriate places will be suspected, whoever sits with knowledgeable people will become dignified, whoever jokes will be thought little of, whoever does a great deal of something will be known for it,
• whoever speaks a great deal will make a lot of mistakes, whoever makes a lot of mistakes will have little shame, whoever has little shame will have little fear of Allah. The heart of anyone who has little fear of Allah will be deadened, and anyone who has a deadened heart will enter hell.
• My son, good manners are the best inheritance, and a good attitude is the best companion.
• My son, wellbeing comprises ten parts, nine of which are keeping quiet except for remembering Allah, and the last part is to avoid mixing with foolish people.
• My son, the adornment of poverty is patience, and the adornment of riches is gratitude.
• My son, there is no honour greater than Islam, no dignity greater than piety, no protection stronger than the fear of Allah, no intercession more effective than repentance, and no garment more beautiful than good health.
• Greed is the source of tiredness and exhaustion, and planning before taking action will spare you from regret.
• A negative provision on your journey to the hereafter is transgression against other people.
• Glad tidings are for the one who devotes his knowledge and actions, love and hate, taking and leaving, speaking and silence, and words and actions, sincerely to Allah alone.