is this, O grandson of the Messenger of Allah?” ʿAlī answered, “Take it; I have been informed that you have presented me with your good deeds, so I wished to recompense you with this gift.
Another anecdote: Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn ʿAlī ibn al-Ḥusayn once set out for the mosque, whereupon a man insulted him. His servants rushed forward to strike the man, but Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn stopped them, saying, “Keep your hands off him.” Then he turned to the offender and said, “My friend, I am worse than what you have said, and there is more about me that you do not know than what you do know. Should you wish to hear it, I will tell you.” The man was overcome with shame. Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn took off his own tunic, gave it to him, and ordered that he be granted one thousand dirhams. The man departed, declaring, “I testify that this young man is indeed a grandson of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him.”
It is related that Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn once summoned a servant and called him twice, but the servant did not answer. He asked, “Did you not hear me?” The servant replied, “Indeed I did.” He then asked, “What kept you from responding?” The servant said, “I felt safe with you and knew the purity of your character, so I grew negligent.” Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn remarked, “Praise be to Allah who has made my servant feel secure from me.”
Another report tells that a servant of his deliberately broke the leg of a sheep. When asked why, the servant said, “I did it only to provoke your anger.” Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn replied, “I am not more angered than the one who taught you—Satan. Go; you are free for the sake of Allah.”
It is also narrated that a man reviled him, whereupon Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn said, “Between me and Hell lies a rugged ascent. If I cross it, I will not mind what you say; if I fail, then I am worse than your words.”
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “By means of forbearance and pardon, a man may attain the rank of one who fasts by day and prays by night; yet another may be recorded among the tyrants, though his authority extends no further than the members of his own household.”
It is reported that Satan once appeared to Moses, peace be upon him, and said, “O Moses, I will teach you three things, and you shall ask Allah to grant me a single request.” Moses asked, “What are the three?” Satan said, “Beware of anger and resentment, for the resentful man is light-headed and I toy with him as children play with a ball. Beware of miserliness, for I ruin the miser’s worldly life and his religion. And beware of women, for I have never set a snare for mankind on which I rely more than women.”