عَنْهُ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنِ النَّوْفَلِيِّ عَنِ السَّكُونِيِّ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ (عليه السلام) قَالَ قَالَ أَمِيرُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ (عليه السلام) كَانَتِ الْفُقَهَاءُ وَ الْعُلَمَاءُ إِذَا كَتَبَ بَعْضُهُمْ إِلَى بَعْضٍ كَتَبُوا بِثَلَاثَةٍ لَيْسَ مَعَهُنَّ رَابِعَةٌ مَنْ كَانَتْ هِمَّتُهُ آخِرَتَهُ كَفَاهُ اللَّهُ هَمَّهُ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا وَ مَنْ أَصْلَحَ سَرِيرَتَهُ أَصْلَحَ اللَّهُ عَلَانِيَتَهُ وَ مَنْ أَصْلَحَ فِيمَا بَيْنَهُ وَ بَيْنَ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ أَصْلَحَ اللَّهُ تَبَارَكَ وَ تَعَالَى فِيمَا بَيْنَهُ وَ بَيْنَ النَّاسِ.
477. From him, from his father, from Al-Nowfaly, from Al-Sakuny, who has narrated the following: Abu Abdullah  has said that the Amir-ul- Momineen  said: ‘When the jurists and the scholars used to write to (deal with) each other, they did so in three ways, and there was no fourth. The one who thought of his Hereafter, Allah (azwj) Sufficed for his concerns of the world. And the one who corrected himself in secret, Allah (azwj) Corrected him publicly. And the one who corrected with regards to what was in between him and Allah (azwj), Allah (azwj) Blessed and High Corrected with regards to what was in between him and the people’.