1 00:00:00,550 --> 00:00:07,805 There's a short passage in Tuhaf al-Uqool, a classic collection of hadith compiled by Ibn Shooba al-Harrani. 2 00:00:07,805 --> 00:00:14,563 It's the advice of the Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, to Imam Ali, peace be upon him. 3 00:00:14,563 --> 00:00:16,724 It's only about four pages long. 4 00:00:16,724 --> 00:00:21,893 But the way most of us read a text like this means we forget almost all of it within a week. 5 00:00:22,833 --> 00:00:26,091 So in this video, I'm not going to just read it to you. 6 00:00:26,091 --> 00:00:31,338 I'm going to show you how to actually learn it, so it stays with you, and changes how you act. 7 00:00:32,517 --> 00:00:33,925 Here's what we're dealing with. 8 00:00:33,925 --> 00:00:35,878 Twenty-two separate sayings. 9 00:00:35,878 --> 00:00:39,329 Every one of them starts with the same words: Ya Ali. 10 00:00:39,329 --> 00:00:40,266 O Ali. 11 00:00:40,266 --> 00:00:44,159 If you read them top to bottom, it feels like one long list. 12 00:00:45,100 --> 00:00:48,201 And a list is one of the worst ways to learn anything. 13 00:00:48,201 --> 00:00:50,844 Your brain doesn't store it as one thing. 14 00:00:50,844 --> 00:00:55,076 It stores twenty-two loose facts, and loose facts fade fast. 15 00:00:56,000 --> 00:00:58,307 Now, the text gives us one hint. 16 00:00:58,307 --> 00:00:59,570 Look at the numbers. 17 00:00:59,570 --> 00:01:01,158 Three things that save you. 18 00:01:01,158 --> 00:01:02,656 Three that destroy you. 19 00:01:02,656 --> 00:01:04,010 Four that go to waste. 20 00:01:04,010 --> 00:01:09,999 The Prophet is already grouping the ideas for Ali, because groups are easier to hold than lists. 21 00:01:09,999 --> 00:01:12,591 So we're going to take that idea one step further. 22 00:01:13,783 --> 00:01:15,205 We'll learn it in layers. 23 00:01:15,205 --> 00:01:17,015 First, the big picture. 24 00:01:17,015 --> 00:01:20,140 What is this whole passage about, in one sentence? 25 00:01:21,067 --> 00:01:22,905 Second, the concepts. 26 00:01:22,905 --> 00:01:27,670 The few big parts, and, more importantly, how they connect to each other. 27 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:30,790 And only then, the details. 28 00:01:30,790 --> 00:01:32,365 The actual sayings. 29 00:01:32,365 --> 00:01:36,076 Each one gets hung on a concept, so it has somewhere to live. 30 00:01:36,076 --> 00:01:38,550 Details without a structure get forgotten. 31 00:01:38,550 --> 00:01:40,816 Details with a structure get remembered. 32 00:01:42,017 --> 00:01:43,724 Let's start with the big picture. 33 00:01:43,724 --> 00:01:47,670 And the text hands it to us right away, in the very first saying. 34 00:01:47,670 --> 00:01:54,011 God, by His wisdom and grace, placed ease and joy in certainty and contentment. 35 00:01:54,011 --> 00:01:57,748 And He placed worry and grief in doubt and discontent. 36 00:01:58,667 --> 00:01:59,893 That's the thesis. 37 00:01:59,893 --> 00:02:03,890 Almost everything else in the passage unpacks this one line. 38 00:02:03,890 --> 00:02:05,505 Here it is in plain words. 39 00:02:05,505 --> 00:02:13,552 What you are certain of on the inside shapes everything on the outside: how you see yourself, how you speak, and how you treat people. 40 00:02:13,552 --> 00:02:16,572 And the reward isn't only in the next life. 41 00:02:16,572 --> 00:02:18,421 It's a calm heart, right now. 42 00:02:19,617 --> 00:02:20,921 Now the concepts. 43 00:02:20,921 --> 00:02:23,212 I like to picture this passage as a tree. 44 00:02:23,213 --> 00:02:25,426 At the root, there are two things. 45 00:02:25,426 --> 00:02:29,137 Certainty, which is how you see who is really in control. 46 00:02:29,137 --> 00:02:31,507 And intellect, which is how you think. 47 00:02:32,433 --> 00:02:36,055 Growing out of the root is the trunk: awareness of God. 48 00:02:36,055 --> 00:02:39,141 The text says it twice, almost word for word. 49 00:02:39,141 --> 00:02:41,211 Fear God as if you see Him. 50 00:02:41,211 --> 00:02:43,178 Certainty is a belief. 51 00:02:43,178 --> 00:02:47,566 Awareness is that same belief, live, in every moment. 52 00:02:48,500 --> 00:02:50,781 From the trunk come three branches. 53 00:02:50,781 --> 00:02:52,838 The self, meaning your ego. 54 00:02:52,838 --> 00:02:54,856 The tongue, meaning what you say. 55 00:02:54,856 --> 00:02:57,200 And people, meaning how you treat them. 56 00:02:58,133 --> 00:03:00,974 And at the top, the fruit: contentment. 57 00:03:00,974 --> 00:03:04,867 A heart that feels rich, and doesn't need much from anyone. 58 00:03:05,800 --> 00:03:07,716 Take a second and look at this. 59 00:03:07,716 --> 00:03:12,312 Almost every one of the twenty-two sayings hangs on one of these six parts. 60 00:03:12,313 --> 00:03:15,060 Once you see that, it stops being a list. 61 00:03:15,060 --> 00:03:17,560 So let's walk up the tree, from the root. 62 00:03:18,750 --> 00:03:19,885 Start at the root. 63 00:03:19,885 --> 00:03:23,830 The first saying defines certainty in a very practical way. 64 00:03:23,830 --> 00:03:28,283 Part of certainty is that you don't please anyone by angering God. 65 00:03:28,283 --> 00:03:30,874 You don't praise anyone for what God gave you. 66 00:03:30,874 --> 00:03:34,052 And you don't blame anyone for what God didn't give you. 67 00:03:34,967 --> 00:03:36,206 And here's the reason. 68 00:03:36,206 --> 00:03:39,526 Provision is not dragged in by the greed of the greedy. 69 00:03:39,526 --> 00:03:42,820 And it's not pushed away by the hatred of someone who hates you. 70 00:03:43,767 --> 00:03:45,110 Pause, and ask why. 71 00:03:45,110 --> 00:03:47,792 Why would certainty stop me from pleasing people? 72 00:03:47,792 --> 00:03:51,568 Because if I believe people control my outcome, I'll flatter them. 73 00:03:51,568 --> 00:03:52,545 I'll fear them. 74 00:03:52,545 --> 00:03:55,240 And I'll resent them when I don't get what I want. 75 00:03:55,240 --> 00:03:59,511 If I'm certain the outcome is with God, I'm free from all three. 76 00:04:00,433 --> 00:04:03,873 The passage backs this up with lines it quotes from the Torah. 77 00:04:03,873 --> 00:04:07,974 Whoever wakes up greedy for this world wakes up angry at God. 78 00:04:07,974 --> 00:04:14,303 And whoever goes to a rich man and humbles himself before him loses two thirds of his religion. 79 00:04:14,303 --> 00:04:15,253 Same root. 80 00:04:15,253 --> 00:04:16,594 Different symptoms. 81 00:04:17,783 --> 00:04:20,168 The other half of the root is the mind. 82 00:04:20,168 --> 00:04:22,772 One saying gives us seven comparisons. 83 00:04:22,772 --> 00:04:25,507 No poverty is worse than ignorance. 84 00:04:25,507 --> 00:04:28,228 No wealth is more useful than intellect. 85 00:04:28,228 --> 00:04:31,457 No loneliness is worse than admiring yourself. 86 00:04:31,457 --> 00:04:34,009 No support is better than consultation. 87 00:04:34,009 --> 00:04:36,249 No intelligence like planning ahead. 88 00:04:36,249 --> 00:04:38,371 No nobility like good character. 89 00:04:38,371 --> 00:04:40,533 And no worship like reflection. 90 00:04:41,467 --> 00:04:42,771 Look at that last one. 91 00:04:42,771 --> 00:04:45,687 Reflection is ranked as the highest worship. 92 00:04:45,688 --> 00:04:52,667 So what we're doing right now, thinking about the text instead of just reading it, is exactly what the text asks for. 93 00:04:53,600 --> 00:04:56,766 And another saying shows why the mind sits at the root. 94 00:04:56,766 --> 00:05:00,751 Three things, and without them, none of your deeds stand. 95 00:05:00,751 --> 00:05:03,003 Piety that holds you back from sin. 96 00:05:03,003 --> 00:05:05,308 Knowledge to answer a fool's ignorance. 97 00:05:05,308 --> 00:05:08,967 And intellect, to deal wisely and gently with people. 98 00:05:08,967 --> 00:05:12,378 Notice, intellect here isn't about being clever. 99 00:05:12,378 --> 00:05:14,214 It's about handling people well. 100 00:05:14,214 --> 00:05:16,675 The root already points to the branches. 101 00:05:17,883 --> 00:05:18,901 Now the trunk. 102 00:05:18,901 --> 00:05:21,948 When a short text repeats something, pay attention. 103 00:05:21,948 --> 00:05:26,323 Twice, the Prophet tells Ali to fear God as if he sees Him. 104 00:05:26,323 --> 00:05:30,750 And the second time, he adds: if you don't see Him, He sees you. 105 00:05:31,700 --> 00:05:33,798 Then the passage makes it concrete. 106 00:05:33,798 --> 00:05:37,353 Every eye will weep on the Day of Judgment, except three. 107 00:05:37,353 --> 00:05:39,840 An eye that stayed awake in the way of God. 108 00:05:39,840 --> 00:05:42,509 An eye that looked away from what God forbade. 109 00:05:42,509 --> 00:05:46,351 And an eye that overflowed with tears, in awe of God. 110 00:05:47,267 --> 00:05:53,857 And: blessed is a face that God looks at, weeping over a sin that nobody but God knows about. 111 00:05:53,857 --> 00:05:55,211 See the common thread? 112 00:05:55,211 --> 00:05:56,995 All of these happen in private. 113 00:05:56,995 --> 00:05:59,339 Nobody is watching except God. 114 00:05:59,339 --> 00:06:00,758 That's what the trunk is. 115 00:06:00,758 --> 00:06:03,428 It's what holds you up when no one else is looking. 116 00:06:04,617 --> 00:06:05,856 Now the branches. 117 00:06:05,856 --> 00:06:07,288 First, the self. 118 00:06:07,288 --> 00:06:10,478 The passage names three things that destroy a person. 119 00:06:10,478 --> 00:06:12,041 Desire that is followed. 120 00:06:12,041 --> 00:06:13,473 Greed that is obeyed. 121 00:06:13,473 --> 00:06:15,921 And a person's admiration of himself. 122 00:06:16,867 --> 00:06:19,434 Then there's a beautiful saying about banes. 123 00:06:19,434 --> 00:06:21,673 Every good thing has its own disease. 124 00:06:21,673 --> 00:06:23,835 The bane of knowledge is forgetting. 125 00:06:23,835 --> 00:06:25,827 Of worship, slacking off. 126 00:06:25,827 --> 00:06:29,213 Of generosity, reminding people of what you gave. 127 00:06:29,213 --> 00:06:31,061 Of courage, aggression. 128 00:06:31,061 --> 00:06:32,806 Of beauty, vanity. 129 00:06:32,806 --> 00:06:35,189 And of a noble family, boasting. 130 00:06:36,100 --> 00:06:37,951 Here's the pattern worth noticing. 131 00:06:37,951 --> 00:06:40,724 These diseases don't attack your weak points. 132 00:06:40,724 --> 00:06:42,365 They attack your strengths. 133 00:06:42,365 --> 00:06:45,243 The generous person is tempted to remind. 134 00:06:45,243 --> 00:06:47,782 The brave person is tempted to bully. 135 00:06:47,782 --> 00:06:49,774 The ego feeds on what you're good at. 136 00:06:50,733 --> 00:06:51,894 So what's the cure? 137 00:06:51,894 --> 00:07:00,801 Among the three people under the shade of the Throne is a man who doesn't criticise his brother for a fault, until he has fixed that fault in himself. 138 00:07:00,801 --> 00:07:04,316 And every time he fixes one fault, he finds another. 139 00:07:04,316 --> 00:07:07,168 That's enough to keep anyone busy with himself. 140 00:07:08,350 --> 00:07:10,357 The second branch is the tongue. 141 00:07:10,357 --> 00:07:14,290 Hold on to truthfulness, and never let a lie leave your mouth. 142 00:07:14,290 --> 00:07:16,399 The bane of speech is lying. 143 00:07:16,399 --> 00:07:20,501 And the very first of the three things that save you is to hold your tongue. 144 00:07:21,433 --> 00:07:25,693 But then the text adds nuance, and this part is easy to misread. 145 00:07:25,693 --> 00:07:28,219 There are three cases where lying is allowed. 146 00:07:28,219 --> 00:07:29,769 A stratagem in war. 147 00:07:29,769 --> 00:07:31,279 A promise to your wife. 148 00:07:31,279 --> 00:07:33,232 And making peace between people. 149 00:07:33,232 --> 00:07:36,084 And three cases where telling the truth is ugly. 150 00:07:36,084 --> 00:07:38,037 Spreading tales between people. 151 00:07:38,037 --> 00:07:40,771 Telling a man something hurtful about his family. 152 00:07:40,771 --> 00:07:43,727 And calling a man a liar when he tells you something good. 153 00:07:44,667 --> 00:07:46,179 So what's the real principle? 154 00:07:46,179 --> 00:07:48,861 It isn't just: say true sentences. 155 00:07:48,861 --> 00:07:52,442 It's: use your words to build, and never to break. 156 00:07:52,442 --> 00:07:55,502 Truth that destroys a relationship is ugly. 157 00:07:55,502 --> 00:07:59,070 Words that bring two people back together are beautiful. 158 00:07:59,070 --> 00:08:01,179 And notice the link back to the root. 159 00:08:01,179 --> 00:08:04,135 You lie to people when you think they control your outcome. 160 00:08:05,317 --> 00:08:07,597 The third branch is how you treat people. 161 00:08:07,597 --> 00:08:11,569 The highest character, the Prophet says, is three things. 162 00:08:11,569 --> 00:08:14,017 Keep ties with the one who cuts you off. 163 00:08:14,017 --> 00:08:15,774 Give to the one who denied you. 164 00:08:15,774 --> 00:08:17,728 And forgive the one who wronged you. 165 00:08:18,667 --> 00:08:20,804 Now put that next to another saying. 166 00:08:20,804 --> 00:08:23,265 Four things whose punishment comes fastest. 167 00:08:23,265 --> 00:08:26,494 A man you were good to, who repaid you with harm. 168 00:08:26,494 --> 00:08:29,085 A man you didn't wrong, who wronged you. 169 00:08:29,085 --> 00:08:31,807 A man you made a pact with, who betrayed you. 170 00:08:31,807 --> 00:08:34,945 And a relative you kept ties with, who cut you off. 171 00:08:35,867 --> 00:08:37,457 Look at them side by side. 172 00:08:37,457 --> 00:08:40,752 They're the same situations, seen from both sides. 173 00:08:40,752 --> 00:08:42,171 Someone cuts ties. 174 00:08:42,171 --> 00:08:44,215 Someone repays good with harm. 175 00:08:44,215 --> 00:08:45,452 Someone wrongs you. 176 00:08:45,452 --> 00:08:47,653 The noble person answers with good. 177 00:08:47,653 --> 00:08:52,002 The other person is the one who started it, and his punishment comes fast. 178 00:08:52,002 --> 00:08:53,772 So you don't need revenge. 179 00:08:53,772 --> 00:08:56,728 That's certainty again, coming up from the root. 180 00:08:57,667 --> 00:08:59,205 And the standard is simple. 181 00:08:59,205 --> 00:09:01,744 Love for your brother what you love for yourself. 182 00:09:01,744 --> 00:09:07,799 The gates of righteousness are a generous soul, good words, and patience when people hurt you. 183 00:09:07,799 --> 00:09:09,127 Notice the middle one. 184 00:09:09,127 --> 00:09:10,130 Good words. 185 00:09:10,130 --> 00:09:12,682 That's the tongue branch, showing up again. 186 00:09:13,883 --> 00:09:15,435 Finally, the fruit. 187 00:09:15,435 --> 00:09:20,161 Whoever is content with what God has given him is among the richest of people. 188 00:09:20,161 --> 00:09:23,326 And asking little of people is wealth you have right now. 189 00:09:23,326 --> 00:09:27,427 Asking a lot of them is humiliation, and poverty, right now. 190 00:09:28,367 --> 00:09:30,035 And one exchange sums it up. 191 00:09:30,035 --> 00:09:33,629 Poverty is the greatest death, the Prophet says. 192 00:09:33,629 --> 00:09:37,106 Someone asks: poverty of dinars and dirhams? 193 00:09:37,106 --> 00:09:39,489 He answers: poverty of religion. 194 00:09:39,489 --> 00:09:43,134 Real wealth, and real poverty, are on the inside. 195 00:09:44,100 --> 00:09:46,485 And that brings us right back to where we started. 196 00:09:46,485 --> 00:09:49,922 Ease and joy are in certainty and contentment. 197 00:09:49,922 --> 00:09:54,688 The root and the fruit are the same idea, seen from the two ends of the tree. 198 00:09:55,883 --> 00:09:57,396 So here's the whole picture. 199 00:09:57,396 --> 00:10:00,104 Certainty and intellect at the root. 200 00:10:00,104 --> 00:10:02,526 Awareness of God as the trunk. 201 00:10:02,526 --> 00:10:06,276 Three branches: the self, the tongue, and people. 202 00:10:06,276 --> 00:10:08,281 And contentment as the fruit. 203 00:10:09,200 --> 00:10:11,845 But the real learning is in the connections. 204 00:10:11,845 --> 00:10:17,379 Fearing people, down at the root, is what makes you lie, up on the tongue branch. 205 00:10:17,379 --> 00:10:21,650 Certainty is why you don't need revenge, on the people branch. 206 00:10:21,650 --> 00:10:23,798 And good words tie the tongue to people. 207 00:10:23,798 --> 00:10:28,147 When you can explain these links in your own words, you've actually learned the text. 208 00:10:29,317 --> 00:10:31,376 Before you go, test yourself. 209 00:10:31,376 --> 00:10:32,691 Not by rereading. 210 00:10:32,691 --> 00:10:34,501 By trying to answer from memory. 211 00:10:34,501 --> 00:10:36,702 Pause the video, and try these. 212 00:10:36,702 --> 00:10:37,444 One. 213 00:10:37,444 --> 00:10:40,178 Why does certainty stop you from flattering people? 214 00:10:40,178 --> 00:10:40,855 Two. 215 00:10:40,855 --> 00:10:43,004 The ego attacks your strengths. 216 00:10:43,004 --> 00:10:45,087 Give two examples from the text. 217 00:10:45,087 --> 00:10:45,803 Three. 218 00:10:45,803 --> 00:10:51,077 How does keeping ties with someone who cuts you off link to the four fastest punishments? 219 00:10:56,033 --> 00:10:57,949 If you struggled, that's good. 220 00:10:57,949 --> 00:11:00,137 That struggle is what makes it stick. 221 00:11:00,137 --> 00:11:05,098 Then pick one branch, just one, and practise one line from it this week. 222 00:11:05,098 --> 00:11:09,824 Because, as the Prophet told Ali: the bane of knowledge is forgetting. 223 00:11:09,824 --> 00:11:12,871 And the best cure for forgetting is to act on it.