193 - نُدرَةُ المُؤمِنِ‏

193. The Scarcity of the [True] Believer

601.الإمامُ عليٌّ عليه السلام : ولَم يُخْلِ أرضَهُ مِن عالمٍ بما يَحتاجُ إليه الخَليقةُ، ومُتَعلِّمٍ على‏ سبيلِ النَّجاةٍ ، اُولئكَ هُمُ الأقلُّونَ عَدَداً ، وقد بَيّنَ اللَّهُ ذلكَ في اُمَمِ الأنبياءِ ، وجَعلَهُم مثَلاً لِمَن تأخّرَ ، مثلُ قولهِ في قومِ نوحٍ : (ومَا آمَنَ مَعَهُ إلّا قَلِيلٌ ) .¹

601.Imam Ali (AS) said, 'He has not kept His earth free of a knowledgeable mant whom all of creation need, who is well-versed with the means of salvation. Such [people] are very few in number, and Allah has expounded this among the communities of the prophets, and made them the example for those to come after them, when He said concerning the people of Noah: "And none believed with him except a few" ² .' ³

602.الإمامُ الصّادقُ عليه السلام : المؤمنةُ أعَزُّ مِن المؤمنِ ، والمؤمنُ أعَزُّ مِن الكبريتِ الأحمرِ ، فمَن رأى‏ منكُمُ الكبريتَ الأحمرَ ؟!⁴

602.Imam al-Sadiq (AS) said, 'The believing woman is scarcer than the believing man, and the believing man is scarcer than red sulphur, and who from among you has ever seen red sulphur [elixir]?!' ⁵