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The Five Things
Submitted by Sarah

It is mentioned in a reliable tradition that Ima Al-Rida (a.s.) said, Allah revealed to one of His Messengers that he should

eat the first thing that came before him the next morning

hide the second

accept the third

not disappoint the fourth, and

evade the fifth.

The Prophet proceeded from his place the next morning. First of all, a big black hill came in front of him. He thought, My Lord you have commanded me to eat it up but how? Then he pondered, surely my Lord will not ask me to do a thing which I cannot do. So he walked towards that mountain, and as he advanced closer, it became smaller and smaller until finally it took the form of a morsel, and he devoured it. It tased better than anything he had eaten before.

Going on further, he confronted a golden plate. He told himself, My Lord has ordered me to hide it. So, he dug a pit and concealed it. After walking further, when he looked back, he observed that the plate could be seen. He told hemself, I have done what my Lord instructed me to do and therefore I am not responsible for its reappearance.

After walking still further, he saw a bird followed by an eagle. The fleeing bird came to the Prophet and began to hover over him. The Prophet thought that his Lord had enjoined upon him to accept it. Therefore, he opened up his sleeve and the bird entered it.

In the meanwhile, the eagle also arrived there and said to the Prophet "You have caught my prey even though I was after it for several days." The Prophet thought he should not disappoint the eagle. So he cut a piece of flesh from his own thigh and gave it to the eagle and proceeded further.

The Prophet now reached a corpse which had decomposed and was giving out a bad smell. It was full of worms. The Prophet recalled that his Lord had dictated him to avoid it. So he ran away from it and returned home.

At night, he had a dream wherein someone asked him if he knew what was the meaning behind all those things he had done according to his Lord's orders. He replied in the negative. So he told him

The mountain stood for anger (rage or fury) because when a man becomes furious he forgets himself, but when he looks at himself and recognizes himself, his anger cools and finally it becomes like a morsel of food pleasing enough to eat (and you got an idea of its tastefulness).

The golden plate is a good deed (amal-e-Salih). Whenever a slave hides his good deed from the eyes of others, Allah makes it apparent to them so that people may admire what lies hidden for them in the Hereafter.

The fleeing bird is a man who gives you good counsel (advice). It is better for you to accept a good counselor's admonition.

The eagle was the embodiment of a man who came to ask something form you. So do not disappoint such needy persons.

The rotten and foul corpse was backbiting. So always refrain from talking bad about anyone in his absence.

Ref: Hayat-al-Qulub, Vol. I, (Accounts of some Unnamed Messengers - pp. 630-631); Allamah Muhammad Baqir Al-Majlisi, Translated by Sayyid Athar Husain S.H. Rizvi