وَ عَنِ الْحَارِثِ الْاَعْوَرِ قَالَ اَتَيْتُ اَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ ؑ فَقَالَ مَا جَاءَ بِكَ فَقُلْتُ حُبُّكَ فَقَالَ اللهَ اللهَ مَا جَاءَ بِكَ اِلَّا حُبِّي فَقُلْتُ نَعَمْ فَقَالَ اَمَا اِنِّي سَاُحَدِّثُكَ بِشُكْرِهَا اِنَّهٗ لَا يَمُوتُ عَبْدٌ يُحِبُّنِي حَتّٰى يَرَانِي حَيْثُ يُحِبُّ وَ لَا يَمُوتُ عَبْدٌ يُبْغِضُنِي حَتّٰى يَرَانِي حَيْثُ يَكْرَهُهٗ
Al-Haarith al-A’war came reports, “I came to Ameerul Momineen (peace be on him).
He (peace be on him) asked, ‘What has brought you?’
I replied, ‘Your love’.
He (peace be on him) inquired, ‘By Allah! By Allah! Nothing has brought you here but my love?!!’ I replied, ‘Yes’.
He (peace be on him) retorted,
‘Now, soon I will talk to you about its reward. Verily, no person who loves me dies till he sees me where he will love and no person who bears malice against me dies till he sees where he will dislike it’.”
Notes:
1) Al-Haarith al-Hamdani belonged to a Yemeni tribe Hamdan. This Hamdan should not be confused with Hamedaan province of Iran.
2) Apparently, the tone and tenor of tradition shows that Ameerul Momineen (peace be on him) was happy on hearing the reply that al-Haarith had visited him merely for his love for him and not for any worldly purposes. It applies for all of us that when we visit the graves of our beloved Imams (peace be on them), we must tell them that O our masters! We have come to you only because we love you so that this statement becomes the cause of their joy.
3) Everyone, without exception, be he a believer or a disbeliever or hypocrite or polytheist, will see Ameerul Momineen (peace be on him) at all the stages of death, starting from the death till Paradise and Hell-fire. Obviously, the believer will be delighted on seeing him and others will be pained since they did not follow him or disobeyed him.
References:
1. Rejaal al-Kashi, p. 88, H. 142
2. A’laam al-Deen, p. 448
4. Behaar al-Anwaar, vol. 6, p. 191, H. 40
5. Behaar al-Anwaar, vol. 27, p. 122, H. 106