⚠️ “If a person does not reform himself in youth, making up for it in old age is extremely difficult.”

If someone naively imagines that he can repent and correct his sins in old age — woe to him! For he has postponed the correction of what is present to an uncertain future. Moreover, in old age, the fifth deceiver — the devil — will block his path to repentance.

Does Satan ever leave the elderly alone? Has this open enemy not prepared special traps for them? Has not a particular temptation called “takāthur” (competition in wealth and offspring) been appointed as a snare for the old?
So if one fails to purify himself in youth, reform in old age becomes extremely hard — because he must face both the deceptions of youth and the perils of old age.

When Jābir ibn ʿAbdullāh sighed deeply (“tanaffus al-suʿadāʾ”) in the presence of Imam ʿAlī (peace be upon him), the Imam asked:

“Jābir! Was that sigh for the world?”
He replied, “Yes.”

The Imam said:

“Let me describe this world to you so that you realize it’s not worth your sigh.
The best of worldly pleasures lie in food, clothing, and carnal desires. The finest food is pure honey — yet it’s produced by an insect! The best clothing is silk — and that too is spun by a worm!
So woe to the one who sighs for not having silk carpets — regretting not possessing what is made by a worm — or sighs for not having honey — lamenting the fruit of a bee’s labor.”

Therefore, the material pleasures of this world are not worth sorrow or longing. Even rank and power are but illusions — and God does not love the arrogant and self-conceited.

📚 Reference:

Bihār al-Anwār, vol. 75, p. 11

Akhlaq-e Kargozaran dar Hokumat-e Eslami (Ethics of Islamic Governance), pp. 174–175

#Ayatollah_Javadi_Amoli
#IslamicEthics #ImamAli #WorldlyDeception #SelfPurification #YouthAndFaith #SpiritualWisdom 🌿
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