قال الإمام الصّادق عليه السّلام: لسليمان بن جعفر الـهذلي - : يا سليمان من الفتى؟ قال: قلت: جعلت فداك الفتى عندنا الشابّ, قال (عليه السّلام) لي: أما علمت أن أصحاب الكهف كانوا كلهم كهولا فسماهم اللّه فتية بإيـمانـهم؟! يا سليمان من آمن باللّه وأتّقى فهو الفتى.
Imam Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad as-Sadiq (a.s.) said the following to Sulayman ibn Jaʿfar Al-Hadhali: “O’ Sulayman, what is meant by a young person [Al-Fata]?” He said, “May I be sacrificed for your sake. In our opinion, a young person [Al-Fata] is a youth [Al-Shabb].” The Imam said to me, “However you should know that surely the Companions of the Cave [Ashabul Kahf] were all old people, however Allah refers to them as youth who have true faith?! O’ Sulayman, the one who believes in Allah and has consciousness of Him is a young person.”
1. Imam Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad as-Sadiq (a.s.) said the following to Sulayman ibn Jaʿfar Al-Hadhali: “O’ Sulayman, what is meant by a young person [Al-Fata]?” He said, “May I be sacrificed for your sake. In our opinion, a young person [Al-Fata] is a youth [Al-Shabb].” The Imam said to me, “However you should know that surely the Companions of the Cave [Ashabul Kahf] were all old people, however Allah refers to them as youth who have true faith?! O’ Sulayman, the one who believes in Allah and has consciousness of Him is a young person.”1
1) قال الإمام الصّادق عليه السّلام: لسليمان بن جعفر الـهذلي - : يا سليمان من الفتى؟ قال: قلت: جعلت فداك الفتى عندنا الشابّ, قال (عليه السّلام) لي: أما علمت أن أصحاب الكهف كانوا كلهم كهولا فسماهم اللّه فتية بإيـمانـهم؟! يا سليمان من آمن باللّه وأتّقى فهو الفتى.
2. Imam Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad as-Sadiq (a.s.) said to a man: “What is meant by a young person [Al-Fata] in your estimation?” The man replied, “A youth.” The Imam (a.s.) replied, “No, the young person [Al-Fata] is the true believer. Surely the Companions of the Cave [Ashabul Kahf] were all old people, however Allah, Glory and Greatness be to Him, called them youth who believed in Him.”2
2) قال الإمام الصّادق عليه السّلام: - لرجل – ما الفتى عندكم؟ فقال له: الشابّ, فقال: لا. الفتى: المؤمن، إنّ أصحاب الكهف كانوا شيوخا فسماهم اللّه عزّ وجلّ فتية بإيـمانـهم.
Imam Hasan ibn ʿAli al-Mujtaba (peace be upon him) has said:
“Surely today you are the youth of the nation, and tomorrow, you will be the leaders of the community, thus, it is incumbent upon you to seek knowledge. So then if you are not able to memorize all that you learn, then you must write it down and preserve it (for safe keeping) so that you can refer to it later on (when you need it).” 3.
قال الإمام الحسن ابن علي المجتبـى عليه السلام:
إنكم صغار قوم و يوشك أن تكونوا كبار قوم آخرين فتعلموا العلم. فمن لم يستطع منكم أن يحفظه فليكتبه و ليضعه في بيته
Footnote:
1.Tafsir al-`Ayashi, Volume 2, Page 323, Hadith 11
2.Al-Kafi, Volume 8, Page 395 and 595
3. Biharul Anwar, Volume 2, Page 152, Hadith
Source: http://www.al-islam.org