No one is exempt from advice, and no society is free from the need for guidance and counsel. Advice is a word that softens and nurtures the heart. It removes hardness from the heart, calms anger and desires, quiets the passions, and gives the soul purity and clarity.
Therefore, no individual is exempt from being advised. A person may not need to be taught by someone else, but they are never exempt from receiving advice. Knowing something is one thing, but being reminded and influenced by the guidance of a pious preacher is another.
When the advice comes from the mouth of religion, it has a deeper and more profound effect. Religious advice is what most influences the hearts, softening them and bringing them humility. Moreover, not only should advice be spoken from the teachings of religion, but it is even better if the preacher himself is affected by his words and speaks from the heart.
Thus, people must always be given advice, reminded of God, and awakened from any possible heedlessness regarding death. They should become aware of the consequences of their sins, listen to stories of the grave and the Day of Judgment, and be reminded of God’s justice. This is essential and necessary, and no society can ever be free of it.
For this reason, Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) says: “If scholars refrain from advising and guiding, they have betrayed. If they see someone lost and fail to show them the way, they have committed a great wrong. For Allah has taken a pledge from them in His book to command what is good, forbid what is evil, and assist in righteousness and piety”[1].
The words of Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) call for the attention of the advisers on one hand, and for the willingness of the listeners to accept the advice on the other.
(Adapted from the book Khutbah and Minbar by Martyr Morteza Motahhari)
Footnote:
[1] Al-Kafi, Volume 8, Page 54