{"id":1302,"date":"2021-02-02T12:08:11","date_gmt":"2021-02-02T08:38:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/?p=1302"},"modified":"2026-08-01T23:26:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T19:56:10","slug":"wisdom-12-the-illuminated-path-commentary-on-the-wisdoms-of-nahj-al-balagha-of-imam-ali-a-s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wisdom-12-the-illuminated-path-commentary-on-the-wisdoms-of-nahj-al-balagha-of-imam-ali-a-s\/","title":{"rendered":"Wisdom 12 \u2013 The Illuminated Path: Commentary on the Wisdoms of Nahj al-Balagha of Imam Ali (A.S.)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Wisdom 12<\/h2>\n

Imam Ali (A.S.) said regarding those who refused to fight alongside him:<\/p>\n

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“They abandoned the truth, yet they did not support falsehood.”<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Keywords<\/h2>\n

Withdrew (\u0627\u0639\u0652\u062a\u064e\u0632\u064e\u0644\u064f\u0648\u0627):<\/strong> To withdraw, distance oneself, or refrain from participating.<\/p>\n

Battle (\u0627\u0644\u0652\u0642\u0650\u062a\u064e\u0627\u0644):<\/strong> Warfare or armed conflict.<\/p>\n

Abandoned (\u062e\u064e\u0630\u064e\u0644\u064f\u0648\u0627):<\/strong> To forsake, fail to support, or leave without assistance.<\/p>\n

Did Not Support (\u0644\u064e\u0645\u0652 \u064a\u064e\u0646\u0652\u0635\u064f\u0631\u064f\u0648\u0627):<\/strong> To refrain from helping, defending, or assisting.<\/p>\n

Summary of Wisdom 12<\/h2>\n

This wisdom refers to several prominent Muslims, including Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas, Abdullah ibn Umar, Abu Musa al-Ash’ari, and Anas ibn Malik, who neither joined Imam Ali (A.S.) during the Battles of the Camel and Siffin nor sided with his opponents. Instead, they chose neutrality and justified their position with weak excuses.<\/p>\n

Imam Ali (A.S.) described them by saying that they abandoned the truth without actively supporting falsehood. His words indicate that merely avoiding support for falsehood is not sufficient. Those who fail to support the truth when it requires their assistance are still deserving of criticism.<\/p>\n

Commentary<\/h2>\n

1. Allegiance Requires Commitment<\/h3>\n

Imam Ali (A.S.) challenged those who sought to excuse themselves by asking:<\/p>\n

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“Do you deny the pledge of allegiance you gave me?”<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

They replied:<\/p>\n

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“No.”<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

He then said:<\/p>\n

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“If you pledged allegiance, then you have already accepted the responsibility to fight alongside me.”<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This demonstrates that pledging allegiance was not merely symbolic. It carried practical obligations, including defending legitimate leadership. If they intended to remain neutral, they should never have entered into that covenant in the first place.<\/p>\n

2. The Qur’an Commands Support for Justice<\/h3>\n

The Qur’an commands believers to confront those who rebel against justice until they return to Allah’s command:<\/p>\n

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“Fight the party that acts unjustly until it returns to the command of Allah.”<\/strong> (Qur’an 49:9)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Likewise, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH & His Family) declared:<\/p>\n

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“Ali is with the truth, and the truth is with Ali. It turns wherever Ali turns.”<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Given these teachings, claiming neutrality while distancing oneself from Imam Ali (A.S.) cannot be regarded as genuine impartiality. Refusing to stand beside falsehood does not justify abandoning the side of truth.<\/p>\n

3. Neutrality May Strengthen Falsehood<\/h3>\n

In critical situations, refusing to support the truth indirectly benefits falsehood.<\/p>\n

Remaining neutral can weaken the morale of those defending justice while encouraging the forces of falsehood. Therefore, in circumstances where truth and falsehood are clearly distinguished, neutrality is neither acceptable nor praiseworthy.<\/p>\n

Practical Lessons<\/h2>\n
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  • Every covenant and commitment carries responsibilities. This is especially true for important social and religious commitments, which should be honored faithfully.<\/li>\n
  • Influential members and leaders of society must clearly and courageously declare their position during decisive moments. Their support for the truth provides guidance and confidence to others.<\/li>\n
  • It is not enough merely to avoid wrongdoing. We must also avoid neglecting responsibilities that strengthen the cause of truth. Failing to defend justice may unintentionally strengthen falsehood.<\/li>\n
  • Human actions have consequences. Just as gratitude attracts Divine blessings and ingratitude drives them away, our choices either strengthen truth or weaken it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Self-Assessment<\/h2>\n
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    1. To whom, and under what circumstances, did Imam Ali (A.S.) speak these words?<\/li>\n
    2. How should the leaders and influential members of society behave during critical social events, and why?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
      \n

      Related Articles<\/h3>\n
        \n
      • Wisdom 12 \u2013 The Illuminated Path: Commentary on the Wisdoms of Nahj al-Balagha of Imam Ali (A.S.)<\/strong><\/li>\n
      • Wisdom 12 \u2013 Nahj al-Balagha, Imam Ali (A.S.)<\/strong><\/li>\n
      • The Illuminated Path: Commentary on the Wisdoms of Nahj al-Balagha \u2013 Wisdom 1<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Wisdom 12 Imam Ali (A.S.) said regarding those who refused to fight alongside him: “They abandoned the truth, yet they did not support falsehood.” Keywords Withdrew (\u0627\u0639\u0652\u062a\u064e\u0632\u064e\u0644\u064f\u0648\u0627): To withdraw, distance oneself, or refrain from participating. Battle (\u0627\u0644\u0652\u0642\u0650\u062a\u064e\u0627\u0644): Warfare or armed conflict. Abandoned (\u062e\u064e\u0630\u064e\u0644\u064f\u0648\u0627): To forsake, fail to support, or leave without assistance. Did Not Support […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1956,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71,120],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1302","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","category-the-luminous-path"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1302","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1302"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1302\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2362,"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1302\/revisions\/2362"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1302"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1302"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/2noor.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1302"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}