Ali Ibn Abi Talib - Volume 1 of 2

'Ali ibn Abi Tilib 77
will do that." The Messenger of Allah (g) said: "Your answer is not
bad, because you have spoken sincerely. No one can support the
religion of Allah (&) except the one who will support it in all ways.
Why don't you wait a while, and soon you will see how Allah (&)
will give you inheritance of their land and yon will take their women
as slaves? Why don't you glorify and sanctify Allah (s)?" An-
Nu'mik ihn Shareek said: "Then we grant you that."89
This hadith contains lessons that 'ALi ibn Ahi Tilib (&) ..,
learned from this incident, including the following:
1. 'Ali (&) learned that the Prophet (g) refused to give any
guarantee of power to any individual by way of reward for their
support for the call of Islam. That is because the call of Islam is
in fact a call to Allah ($1, and the basic condition with regard to
the one who believes in it and is prepared to support it is that it
should be sincerely for Allah (&) alone, and seeking His
pleasure should he the utmost aim that the person is trying to
achieve by means of his support and sacrifice, not the hope for
power or the desire for authority. That is because the motive for
a person's action is what will have an impact on the way he tries
to go about it, so it is essential that the aim behind supporting the
call should he free from any material interest, in order to
guarantee continuous support for it, to protect it from any
deviation and to guarantee the maximum support for it and
sacrifices for its sake.90 So everyone who wants to adhere to the
main body of Muslims that calls people to Allah (&) should not
stipulate any condition that he should be given a position or any
kind of worldly gain, because this call is to Allah (&) alone. The
matter is in the hands of Allah (&), and He decides things as He
wills. The one who wants to join the effort should seek thereby
the countenance of Allah (%) and strive to raise His banner. But
if position and status are what is motivating him, this is a serious