names Sajjad, Zayn al-Abedin, and Ḏul-tafenat. It has been repeatedly narrated that at nights, in order not to be recognized, he would cover his face and distribute charity to poor households. It was only after his death that people discovered the identity of their benefactor. Ali is said to have bought and freed dozens of slaves in his life. Donaldson describes the occasion when a slave accidentally spilled hot soup over Ali and he freed the slave instead of scolding him. Kohlberg writes that even though Hisham ibn Isma'il, the governor of Medina, was abusive to Ali, the latter forbade his family and friends from speaking ill of Hisham when he was dismissed by the caliph. The Shia writer Sharif al-Qarashi believes that Zayn al-Abidin renounced worldly pleasures without giving in to poverty and feebleness. In one account, when Ali saw a beggar crying, he consoled him by telling him that even if he had lost the whole world, it would still not be worth crying for. Al-Zuhri, the renowned Arab jurist, reportedly described Zayn al-Abidin as the most ascetic of all people. In view of his piety, Sufi authors have written about Ali. When asked about it, Zayn al-Abidin replied that asceticism was summarized in one verse (57:23) of the Quran, "Hence that you may not grieve for what has escaped you, nor be exultant at what He has given you." Works Al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya According to Chittick, Al-Sahifa al-Sajjadiyya () is the oldest collection of Islamic prayers and a seminal work in Islamic spirituality. Shia tradition regards this book with great respect, ranking it behind the Quran and Ali's Nahj al-Balagha. Fifty-four supplications form the main body of the book, which also includes an addenda of fourteen supplications and fifteen s (). The book, attributed to Ali, is often regarded as authentic by the specialists in the science of hadith. Jafri believes that these supplications teach us the essence of Islamic spirituality and embody the answers to many questions faced by both the man of Ali's time and the man of our age. While the supplicatory form of Al-Sahifa emphasizes the spirituality of Islam, the book also provides a broad range of teachings about the faith, from theological to social. For instance, according to Chittick, among the existing works, the prayer "Blessing Upon the Bearers of the Throne" best summarizes the Islamic views about angels. The book also refers