Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Bahjat Foumani (r.a) was an Iranian Twelver Shia Marja.

Ayatollah Behjat (r.a) knew why he was created! He was a pious man who could be heard crying when he was praying. His spiritual position and virtue was so grand that it was talked about amongst other scholars & people. But he never mentioned or talked about them himself.

There are scholars and normal people who have mentioned his way of performing (prayer) salat, saying that it was so unique & incredible in a spiritual way that people who prayed behind him felt his humility And docility.

His Sayings & Advices

1✦ "Look at the world worshippers! what are they attached to? and for what are they fighting for? Simply a world made of paper and cardboard & a house similar to a spider web."

2✦ "Honesty is beneficial for Spiritual refinement."

3✦ "By behaving appropriately and paying attention to morality, non-Muslims will become interested in Islam & knowing more about Muslims."

4✦ "With patience and prayer you'll be able to solve your problems, stay away from haram and gain Allah's Mercy."

5✦ "Everyone knows they must study about Islamic teachings, understand it and do as it says. Also to learn about their halal and haram. They can't say they don't know what to do or how to do it."

6✦ "The door is open and the path is clear in terms of reaching perfection and getting closer to Allah (swt). Isn't it sad for us to not achieve such great things that can easily be obtained by being a practising servant of Allah (swt)."

7✦ "By Seeing the majority of non Muslims who dominate the world and small population of faithful Muslims, we must not feel worried or despondent."

8✦ "People must check themselves every day and think, if they're a follower of God & on the right path or the opposite!"

9✦ "Consuming foods that we aren't sure of them being halal might be okay but it makes us sick spiritually and weakens us in doing our prayers, etc."

10✦ "Humans are greater than Angels when they reach perfection in terms of getting closer to Allah & spiritually. But when they go downhill, commit sins and get tainted with corruption, they are worst than Shaytan."

11✦ "We know the pain and we have the medicine but we don't care about the treatment!" (Spiritually)

12✦ "Prophets & Imams (as) have not come to say, 'People shouldn't have anything to do with this world.' They have come to teach us the right way of living in this world with dignity and happiness."

13✦ "All the misfortunes comes from our own mistakes. It means when we disobey Allah (swt) intentionally and go after sinning. Inevitably, the punishment of our deeds is plight & reverse of fortune."

14✦ "Some of us don't act according to simple religious orders that are clear and easy to understand. Thus we go after people who are experts in knowledge, morality and upbringing. Then ask them to teach us greater and more complicated information to help us. This shows that we don't want to climb up from the right way & obtain perfect and higher spiritual qualities."

15✦ "I have said this many times and I'm going to say it again, whoever remembers Allah (swt) in their life, he (swt) will be with them. And these kind of people don't need any Muslim preachers ."

16✦ "If you want your prayers to get accepted, then do not commit sins & do not disobey Allah (swt) commands. Sometimes the benefits lies within not having your prayers accepted. And sometimes the benefit is in having your prayers get accepted." (We must not complain when our prayer doesn't work since we don't know what lies beyond what we see. Allah (swt) knows best).

17✦ "We must always look for Allah's satisfaction in our lives & in our everyday work."

18✦ "We must not copy each other blindly but follow Islamic teachings."

19✦ "Our problem is that our knowledge is not similar to our actions."

20✦ "Whoever knows they're being watched by Allah (swt) must not commit sins. Our mistake is not realizing that Allah (swt) is watching us."

21✦ "If we had trust in Allah (swt) as much as a child that trusts his mother. And believed that whatever we want, he'll give us. Then we wouldn't have any issues and our problems would get solved."

How do we become successful in life?

Ayatollah Behjat (ra) said, "I recommend you to keep up with your daily prayers on time and perform them as best as you can. And if you perform your Nafilah prayers, it's better which is going to be 51 rakat altogether. But if it's difficult, then perform only 44 rakat. However, if you're busy with your works, then at least perform Tawa'bin prayer which is 8 rakat at the time of noon prayer, when the sun reaches the middle of sky."

He (ra) also said, "You should perform your daily prayers on time for reaching grand and high spiritual position."

It's been narrated, one day they brought a man who had problems to visit him (ra) so he could give him some advices. Ayatollah Behjat (ra) said, "Tell this man to Perform his daily prayers on time." Then later it was revealed, the man used to always perform his daily prayers later than their actual time.

He had mentioned prayers a lot, saying, "Don't turn the prayers into a market and perform them on time with humility & docility. If you protect your prayers, then everything else is safe. Keep up, Tasbih Lady Fatimah (sa) and reciting Ayat Al Kursi after your prayers.

Do we go from Paradise to Hell!?

One of the things that he (ra) mentioned is that humans need to be careful. The deeds that their end leads to Paradise, these deeds and actions shouldn't be the path to instead of reaching Paradise, to reach Hell.

The actions that causes one to go Paradise, if one forgets the goal of this actions and not being attentive towards them. It causes these deeds to instead of Paradise, lead to Hell.

One example is that: A person does good deeds but their intention is impure. They only think about this world and gaining something.

Your intention must be for the sake of Allah (swt), it should be good and pure.

Another example is a person who teaches about Islam, Ahlulbayt (as) and other holy things, but their intention is not spreading good knowledge for the sake of Allah (swt) and with love and helping people, but to get love and praise for themselves and to gain popularity because of that for themselves, etc.

These examples are some of the ones that a good deed instead of helping you reach Paradise, it causes one to become deserving of Hell.

Careful of your Nafs/desires

Another thing he mentioned is that Shaytan has a specific trap for every human.

Shaytan never tells a religious scholar go and steal a car or climb from someone's house. He tries to deceive the Scholar by the love of position, rank and popularity.

Another young person who is drowning in sexual instinct and they don't have a halal way of dealing with this. So shaytan looks to find a trap for them so they fall into committing sins.

(Note: Marriage, one gets married and has a halal and healthy relationship and they deal with it in a halal way.

But in this young person's case, they aren't married yet or they are married but have issues that prevents them, maybe being far away from their family due to problems. etc.)

He mentioned, Nafs doesn't leave humans alone so be careful of you Nafs a lot.

The roots of a shaky Nafs

Why does the path that should take us to Paradise, instead leads to Hell. What is the problem and where does it come from?

A man was in deep thoughts and when they asked him why is that? He replied, 'I have issues. No matter how much I think about it, I can't convince myself to think of the words 'choose Allah (swt) as your lawyer' and accept that. This is the root of the problem.

If we see our worldly life which involves dealing with this world, our holy life which involves our worship and prayers, our Hereafter as being dependent on this person and that person and in their hands. It isn't good!

And if we see our own achievements regarding this world or our Hereafter as being achieved by our own personal power and might and just by ourselves.

'Me' appears here. It means you are giving the dependence on yourself.

It's me who has this talent. It's me who has this wealth, it's me who has this knowledge.

No!

Humans need to see that all the matters are within the power and mercy of Allah (swt).

Of course you worked hard but there are many times in which you are weak, unaware, deceived, easily swayed and not thinking properly. Then No matter how intelligent you are, you make a terrible mistake that will cause many issues.

But! If you put your trust in Allah (swt) then your work will be successful and Allah (swt) will protect you against failures and misfortunes and other disasters that can easily happen in life.

There are people who say I have trust in Allah (swt) in every situation. But no, deep down they only confidence in their own talent, pocket, bank account and in their own abilities, etc.

Always have Allah (swt) as the only one and your lawyer. You put Allah (swt) in the place instead of yourself.

We imagine a 'Me' exists but truly everything belongs to Allah (swt) and covered with the blessings and mercy of Allah (swt).

Avoid Judging people

An example is: you see a respected scholar is not present at an important religious event. Don't judge them quickly or say why aren't they here?

An scholar once didn't attend an event and was criticised by some people, but then later they asked him why?

He explained the situation.

Then they realised, they shouldn't judge!

Perform your prayers on time

If you're on a path to achieve good and becoming a better Servant of Allah (swt) and you don't perform your prayers on time, you won't get anywhere.

Dua for Qunut

He (ra) suggested to read this dua in your Qunut of prayers:

«اللهم ارزقنی حبّک و حبّ ما تحبه، و حبّ من یحبّک، والعمل الذی یبلغنی إلی حبّک واجعل حبّک احبّ الاشیاء إلی.»

"O Allah! Grant me your love and the love of those whom you like and the love of those who love you and the deed that helps me to get closer to you and turns your love to me the most precious thing."

Don't ever become separated from Quran

He (ra) had told one of his great students, "Don't ever become separated from Quran."

Thus the student would always recite Quran whenever their important works were done.

Mr. Muhammad Hassan Qazi mentioned that He (ra) instructed to: "Reading Quran and making sure that you are reading it the right way and in the correct way."

He (ra) also suggested to reading about an era of Islamic History. He (ra) said,"Read about an era of Islamic History from the birth of Prophet (saw) until 225 Hijri or 260 Hijri. And also after doing these things, perform your Night Prayer!"

He (ra) also mentioned, "May you recite Holy Quran in the heart of Night and with sad & sorrowful voice, and make sure that it's not less than a chapter."

Night Prayer

"As for Night Prayer, there is no excuse or escape for any believers, and I'm surprised at someone who wants to reach the ultimate perfection and yet doesn't wake up for Night Prayer. And we haven't heard anyone reaching high spiritual rank unless they performed their Night Prayer."

He (ra) told a Scholar who went to Najaf for studying, "If you want success in this world perfom Night Prayer, If you want success in hereafther perform Night Prayer!"

His recommendation: "When you wake up for Night Prayer in the middle of night, eat a little bit of food like some grapes or tea or anything that can refresh you and take away your sleepiness."

Praying for reapperance of Imam Mahdi (a.j)

"One of the important things that is necessary to do is to pray for the reappearance of Imam Mahdi in your Qunut of Witr prayer, but also everyday and during any of your supplications.

Miracle of Imam Hussain's recourse

"It's impossible for anyone to reach high spiritual rank in any other way except through the path of Imam Hussain (as)."

Don't ever hurt anyone's feelings!

"Obey your parents, be good tempered, keep up honesty, your inner selvers should be similar to what you show outside to people and not being deceitful, Allah Allah Allah! know that you should never hurt anyone's feelings!

Getting rid of mental problems and Anxiety

He (ra) recommended to read this words when you have mental problems and anxiety:

《لا اله الا الله وحده لا شریک له، له الحمد و له الملک و هو علی کل شیء قدیر، أعوذ بالله من همزات الشیاطین و أعوذ بک ربی من أن یحضرون إن الله هوالسمیع العلیم》

The right of people

"Until you have fulfilled any rights or due that people have on you, no spiritual doors or doors of knowledge will be opened to you. It means these things all belongs to Allah and Allah has placed his satisfaction in making sure people are happy with you and you haven't deprived them of their rights."

The specific advice of Ayatollah Behjat (ra) to Youth!

"Teenagers should know that they are in that important age, and as their age number goes up day by day, their knowledge and faith should also be the way."

Ayatollah Behjat's recommendation regarding the 15th night of Shabaan

"According to a hadith from Imam Baqir (as), the 15th night of Shabaan is one of the best nights after the Night of Qadr. It is a night where in order to get closer to Allah, we must work hard. There are many beneficial prayers and supplication for this night. One of them is to read Dua Kumayl.

In this night, one hundred and four thousand Prophets (as) visit the Holy Shrine of Imam Hussain (as) in Karbala. The sins of those who visit Imam (as) will be forgiven. They'll be told, "Start your deeds from the beginning."

Ayatollah Behjat (ra)'s warning to awaiters of Imam Mahdi (a.j)'s reappearance

"Inshallah our faith stays with us until the time of reappearance, otherwise even if the time is close but we have lost our faith, then what would the reapperance of Imam (a.j) have anything to do with us and what would Imam (a.j) have anything to do with us!"

How do we treat Anger?

Ayatollah (ra) said, "With complete belief, saying Salawat a lot.

How do we have concentration during our prayers?

Ayatollah (ra) said, "You need to do two things:

1. The one performing their prayer should not pay attention to the insinuating whispers that comes to them from Shaytan.

2. Everytime, they manage to have focus in their prayers, they shouldn't voluntary think about something else other than Allah.

In explanation for the information above, he (ra) said, "Shaytan wants to make people think about other matters and not about Allah, when he sees they don't personally pay attention to something else and have their focus on their connection with Allah, Shaytan will then leave them."

For well being of the eyes

"For the well being of eyes, after daily prayers, read Ayat al kursi and after that put your hands on your eyes and say:

أَللهُمَّ احْفَظْ حَدَقَتَیَّ بِحَقِّ حَدَقَتَیْ عَلِی بْنِ أَبِی طالِبٍ، أَمِیرِالْمُؤْمِنِینَ علیه‌السلام.

The question below was asked by someone regarding complete Hijab in Muslim countries:

For Islamic covering for women, Is Chador obligatory or not?

Ayatollah (ra) replied, "Complete hijab is Chador."

Avoid sins

"If we don't prevent ourselves from committing sins, we'll then begin to deny, disproof and mock divine Ayahs or reach such stage where we become hopeless towards Allah's mercy."

The wrong assumption

"People think by getting further away from religion and faith, they'll be successful in their worldly affairs; but they didn't even succeed in their worldly life. They didn't know that success in this world does not mean leaving your religion, otherwise every non believer would be rich & successful in their life. Thus we must try to not fall into committing haram.

What should we do regarding bad dreams & nightmares?

Ayatollah (ra) said, "At the time of sleep, read Surahs that begins with «قل» and also read the dua that begins with: «...سبحان الله ذی الشأن دائم السلطان»

What is the true piety? How do we truly become pious?

Ayatollah (ra) said, "piety is that you have control over your Nafs, and in every deeds and actions, you pay attention to Allah's permission.

Someone asked Ayatollah (ra),'Why don't you teach about morals & ethics?'

He (ra) replied, " I also asked this question from Allameh Qazi and asked, "Why don't you have more classes about moral and ethics?!

He replied, "Go to Al-Sahla Mosque and anything that you see, let me know of them tomorrow."

Ayatollah Behjat said, "I went to Al-Sahla mosque at night, and tomorrow I visited him again."

He asked, "What did you see last night in the mosque?"

I responded, "At the beginning of Night, there were many people and everyone were busy with supplications, but in the middle of Night, just a few old men remained there that were performing prayers, reading Duas and long Surahs, and in Qunut reading Jawshan Kabir.

Allameh Qazi asked, "How many young people were amongst them.?!

I replied, "It was only me."

He said, "If you find any young people amongst them, then I will increase my classes regarding morals and ethics.

3 Certain actions that will lead to you having a good end, Ayatollah Behjat's (r.a) advice.

He (r.a) said that, "Whoever reads Surah

Yasin everyday and send its rewards as a gift to Lady Fatimah Zahra (s.a).

Also reads Dua Ahd and send it rewards to mother of Imam Mahdi (a.j) as a gift.

Also reads Surah Waqi'ah and send its rewards as a gift to Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s) will have a good end.

Ayatollah Behjat (r.a) said at the end that whoever does such acts whether they want it or not will definitely have a good end.