Translation of the saying:

One of our companions informed us, saying: We were in the presence of our master Mansoor Hashemi Khorasani. Then he gave us a sermon where he described the pious, and in it he said:

Do you not see those who do not sleep at night out of fear of death and weep out of fear of the fire? Their belief in the Hereafter is such as though they see it. Their longing for Paradise is the longing of those who walk through its green plains, sit beside its beautiful streams, and rest in the everlasting shade of its fruit-laden trees—while knowing that after the first death, they will never die again and will live forever in the neighborhood of Allah. Each one of them has cut his heart off from this lowly world and attached himself to the Abode of Eternity. When they look ahead of them, they see houses raised high by the light of Allah, surrounded by gardens that stretch out as far as the eye is of use—paradises whose expanse is boundless and marvelous, like the expanse of the vast sky. At that moment, they do not look behind them toward the ugly world, because what they see before them keeps them occupied from what lies behind them. Allah, Exalted and Majestic, lifts the veil from before their eyes and shows them what He has prepared for them; so they grow restless out of longing for it and become self-restrained out of fear of not attaining it. In Paradise, they will be neighbors of the Prophets and companions of the truthful, the martyrs, and the righteous; so these will visit those, and those will visit these—and this is among the greatest blessings of Paradise.

Then he turned toward me and said:

Would you not love to be a neighbor of Muhammad and a companion of his household?!

Then he returned to his speech and said:

When the believer is placed in the grave, he senses fear; then Allah wafts the fragrance of Paradise toward him so he may be calmed by it, and if someone does not perceive the fragrance of Paradise, no good has been intended for him. Then nothing will be more pleasing to the believer than finding the friends of Allah by his side and feeling at ease with them. Then, after a delay which there is no escape from, one of the gates of Paradise is opened to him, and he enters Paradise among the friends of Allah—like a bridegroom entering the bridal chamber—and his eyes are brightened by its horizons. At that moment, some of those who are with him say: “Leave him be so he may regain himself—because he comes from the world.” So he sits in the shade of a tree, or by the side of a river, or upon a couch, or in one of the houses, and something is brought to him so he may eat and drink, and his eyes may be brightened, and he may remove the weariness of death. Then, slowly, his righteous friends and virtuous relatives who passed away before him come to him and welcome him, and they rejoice at meeting him, and he at meeting them; so he thinks as though he has returned from a journey or awakened from a short sleep. Then they give him the glad tidings of visiting the Messenger of Allah , and through this glad tiding, a joy enters him the like of which has never entered him before; so he goes to visit him and to visit his caliphs, and he receives their care. Then they settle him in a paradise that the Merciful Lord has made especially for him, and grant him enjoyment of its endless blessings.

I said: May I be sacrificed for you, you have filled our hearts with longing through your words! I wish you would describe its endless blessings more.

He said:

If you were to see the endless blessings of Paradise as they truly are and come to know its mysterious beauties, nothing in your eyes would be more worthless than this world and its adornments. If you were to see the lush trees of Paradise, whose branches tremble in breezes blowing from beneath the Throne, whose roots are sunk into hills of musk and saffron, and beneath which springs of rosewater are bubbling, you would surely lose all appetite for the desires of this world and leave it to its people. Do you not know that amber hangs from the trunks of the trees of Paradise, and jasmine and violet vines intertwine around them, and these trees grow amid plains covered in thousand-colored flowers and eye-pleasing greenery? Do you not know that amid those verdant plains and around those fruit-laden trees flow rivers of pure water, rivers of fresh milk, rivers of clear honey, and rivers of pure wine? And among them is a river called Tasnim, and another called Salsabil, which has the taste of ginger. Do you not know that from the ceilings of the houses of Paradise and the walls of its caves hang lanterns of diamond, its gravel is of pearls and rubies, its brushwood is of agate and turquoise, and its soil is of musk and saffron? There are houses there built with bricks of gold and adorned with sheets of silver; and those houses have doors of green emerald, windows of solid bronze, and panes of transparent crystal. In their rooms, around the rivers, amid the gardens, and beneath the fruit trees are daybeds made of oak and walnut wood, carved with beautiful patterns; and on those daybeds are rugs intricately woven from pure silk; and on those rugs are mattresses finely woven from green velvet; and on those mattresses are cushions made from blue brocade; and on every daybed a spread is laid out, on which are placed various fruits of all four seasons—from apples, grapes, bananas, pears, figs, pomegranates, plums, oranges, peaches, and fruits not found in the world—and foods delightful in color, aroma, and taste, and plates of crystal, bowls of gold, and spoons of silver; and beside every spread is a beautiful lady who longs for her husband, while she is arrayed in garments of blue tulle and white brocade and has adorned herself with jewels and made herself fragrant with incense. The tresses of these ladies are as black as the dark night, their faces as radiant as the orb of the sun, and their bodies as delicate as spring blossoms; and the tresses of some of them are golden, and the tresses of some others are the color of dates; and they have eyes of black, blue, and green hues, slender lips, and arched eyebrows of a beauty beyond imagination; and in their hands are silver goblets of wine and honey drink, which they offer to their husband, while they outdo each other in keeping him company and compete to win his attention.

At that moment, he fell silent, and after a while he said:

One of the blessings of Paradise is that Allah has appointed an angel over the people of Paradise to address them every day and call out: “O people of Paradise! You shall live forever!” And another angel calls out: “Be aware that yours is whatever you desire—and more!” And another blessing is that Allah has removed heat, cold, and darkness from Paradise, and suffering, illness, and old age from its people. And another blessing is that none of the days of Paradise is equal to the day before it. And another blessing is that at times the people of Paradise see the people of the fire amid the punishment and speak with them. And another blessing is that the angels speak with the people of Paradise, and the people of Paradise speak with the angels. And another blessing is that the people of Paradise see nothing but beauty and hear nothing but beauty; and seeing the people of the fire is seeing justice. And another blessing is that the people of Paradise dwell wherever in Paradise they wish. And another blessing is that Allah has lifted reckoning from the people of Paradise, and it is not for them to sin there. And another blessing is that Allah raises the ranks of the people of Paradise. And another blessing is that the people of Paradise are the kings of Paradise. And another one is that Paradise is greater than all of this!

Then he turned toward me and said: “Is it not enough?” I said: “May I be sacrificed for you, half of what you have said is enough for people of understanding.” Then he turned toward his companions and said in a loud voice:

Be aware! This Paradise is for you and for those who follow your path, and for others there is nothing but the fire!”

Explanation of the saying:

What is meant by “your path” in this noble saying is the set of righteous beliefs and deeds that has been explained in the noble book Return to Islam on the basis of the Book of Allah, the mutawatir Sunnah of His Prophet, and in the light of sound intellect, and which represents pure and perfect Islam; whoever accepts it is among the people of Paradise, and whoever rejects it is among the people of the fire.

It should be noted that many of Mansoor’s companions keep this noble saying with them and read it at the beginning of the day so that the remembrance of Paradise may become firmly rooted within them and they may remain safe from being bewitched by the world until the end of the day.