The Test of Sincerity
اخلاص کی آزمائش
اتَّقُوا مَعَاصِيَ اللهِ فِي الْخَلَوَاتِ، فَإِنَّ الشَّاهِدَ هُوَ الْحَاكِمُ.
خلوتوں (تنہائیوں) میں اللہ کی نافرمانی سے بچو، کیونکہ جو اس وقت گواہ ہے وہی (قیامت کے دن) فیصلہ کرنے والا قاضی ہے۔
“Fear committing sins of Allah in solitude, for the Witness (of the act) is Himself the Judge.”
Reflections: Imam Ali ؑ presents a powerful legal and spiritual paradox. In worldly courts, the witness and the judge are two different people. A judge can only rule based on the testimony of others. However, in the Divine court, Allah is the One who sees the sin in the darkness of the night and is the same One who will pass the verdict. This wisdom encourages Self-Accountability; it reminds us that “privacy” is an illusion, and true piety is being the same person in the dark as you are in the light.