O God, You are the sovereign of bestowals while I am a captive of my faults

c. In one Ziyara of Arba'in89 (40th of Imam al-Husayn ('a)) said to be taught by Imam al-Sadiq ('a), we address Imam al-l:Iusayn ('a) as follows:

Peace be upon the captive of deep sorrows

d. In his well known epistle90 to Malik al-Ashtar Imam' Ali ('a) says:

...for surely this Religion was a captive in the hands of the evil folk, for under its pretext they would follow their base inclinations and achieve worldly gains. ..

e. In Nahju'l Balagha91, while explaining the characteristics of the angels, Imam' Ali is reported to have said:

...for they are captives of faith. ..

The word' asir' likewise has a relative connotation: whereas a group of people may be captives of their vain inclinations but suffer no physical imprisonment, a group may enjoy utter spiritual freedom, but be in the state of physical captivity.

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88 'Allama Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar, v.94, p. 93, tr. 8
89 'Al1ama Majlisi, Bihar al-Anwar, v.101, p. 331, tr. 2
90 'Imam' Ali ('a), Nahj al-Balagha, Letter 53
91 'Imam' Ali ('a), Nahj al-Balagha, Sermon 91