HEIRARCHY OF CREATION (EPISTLES OF THE BRETHREN OF PURITY)

----You must know, dear brother, God aid you and us with His sustaining
spirit, that mineral substance are the lowest things that come to be.
They include all bodies that arise as composites of the four elements:
fire, air, water, and earth. Plants, too, are compounded of these elements.
But nourished by the elements, they can grow, expanding in all three dimensions:
length, width, and depth. Animals share with plants the functions of nourishment
and growth but are distinguished by locomotion and sensitivity. Man share these
traits with plants and animals but adds his own distinctions: reason and discernment.

REF: EPISTLES OF THE BRETHERN OF PURITY
EDITED AND TRANSLATED BY LENN E. GOODMAN AND RICHARD MCGREGOR

COME CLOSER YOUNG MAN (MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE)

---Then they asked for permission to see the Shaykh, and when he gave them permission he ordered
the young man to perform a complete ablution and to dress in his finest clothing, so when the young man
set about those preparations, his heart was joyful that his need would be fulfilled on the very day, and
that this preparation which he had been ordered to undertake was sign pointing to the good that would
come to him subsequently.-------
Next (the Shaykh) ordered the young man to come close to him, so he approached and came nearer.
Then (the Shaykh)  came even closer and began to speak of what cannot be comprehended by imagination,
what pens cannot expresss, and what has not occured to the heart of any mere mortal (bashar). This is
among those things which must not be mentioned in the schools of sermons and should not be openly
expressed in the contents of books, because of its tremendous worth- for it is only unveiled to those
who are worthy of it.
Now, when (the Shaykh) had fulfilled his duty and had led (the young man) out of wandering in the
wilderness to the end of his guidence, then his way (madhhab) became pure, his drinking-place became
sweet, and he came to know his Lord. Then his consecration was accomplished, through glorifying
what God made sacred. He held firmly to the solid connection (with God) circled around the age-old
House, fulfilled his devotion through remembrance (of God), and completed his pilgrimage with (God's)
greatest sign.-------

 REF:THE MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE BY JA'FAR B. MANSUR AL-YAMAN
EDITED AND TRANSLATED BY JAMES W. MORRIS

SECRET NAME (MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE)

--(The narrator continued) Then he turned his gaze toward the young man and said:
'O brave youth (fata) you have been honoured by a newly arriving intimate friend,
and you have been greeted by a visitor (a soul like yours) ,so what is your name?'
'Ubayd Allah ("the little servant of God"), son of the servant of God,' he answered.
'That is your description,' replied the Shaykh, 'but we have already been informed
about you.'
'I am Hurr ("freed-man"), son of the servant of God,' the young man replied.
'Then who set you free from being owned, so that you become free?' inquired the Shaykh.
'This Knower set me free,' said the young man, pointing with his hand toward the Knower
who had called him (to the way).
'But do you think,' continued the Shaykh, 'that if he is also owned and not your owner,
does he have any right to set you free?'
'No, he doesn't,' replied the young man.
'Then what is your name?' repeated the Shayth.
(The narrator) continued: Then the young man hung his head, bewildered and unable to
respond.
'O brave youth,' pursued the Shaykh. 'how can we recognise something that has no name,
even if it has been born?'
'I have been born to you,' replied the young man, 'so you name me!'
'That is only after the fulfilment of seven days (of waiting), the Shaykh responded.
'But why must that be postponed until after seven more days?' asked the young man.
'In honour of the new-born infant,' replied the Shaykh.
'But what if  the new- born should die before the seven days are finished?' the young man continued.
'Nothing will harm him,' replied the Shaykh, 'and after that he will be named.'
'Then will this name by which you'll have named me be my own?' asked the young man.
'In that case you would be what is worshipped,' replied the Shaykh.
'But then how should we speak of it?' asked the young man.
'The Name is your owner,' the Shaykh answered, 'and you are owned by it. For you cannot
penetrate further than your own (spiritual) rank. Now depart until you period of waiting (is over).' ----

REF:THE MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE BY JAFER B. MANSUR AL YAMAN
EDITED AND TRANSLATED BY JAMES W. MORRIS

THE SHEIKH AND THE DOG

A dog brushed up against a sheikh, who made
No move to draw his skirts in or evade
The filthy stray- a puzzled passer-by
Who'd noticed his behaviour asked him why.
He said: "The dog is filthy, as you see,
But what is outside him is inside me-
What's clear on him is hidden in my heart;
Why should such close companions stay apart?"
If inward filth is slight or if it's great,
The outcome is the same disgusting state-
If straws impede you, or a mountain-top,
Where is the difference if you have to stop?


                                                      ATTAR

THE LOVER WHO SAVED HIS BELOVED FROM DROWNING

A girl fell in a river-in a flash
Her lover dived in with a mighty splash,
And fought the current till he reached her side.
When they where safe again, the poor girl cried:
"By chance I tumbled in, but why should you
Come after me and hazard your life too?"
He said; "I dived because the difference
Of 'I' and 'you' to lovers makes no sense-
A long time passed when we were separate,
But now that we have reached this single state
When you are me and I am wholly you,
What use is it to talk of us as two?"
All talk of two implies plurality-
When two has gone there will be Unity.

                                                 ATTAR

THE DEATH OF SOCRATES

When Socrates lay close to death, a youth-
Who was his student in the search for truth-
Said: "Master, when we've washed the man we knew
And brought your shroud, where should we bury you?"
He said: "If you can find me when I've died,
Then bury me wherever you decide-
I never found myself; I cannot see
How when I'm dead you could discover me.
Throughout my life not one small particle
Had any knowledge of itself at all!"'

                                            ATTAR

GABRIEL AND THE UNBELIEVER

One night in paradise good Gabriel heard
The Lord say: "I am here" and at His word
The came another voice which wept and prayed -
"Who knows whose voice this is?" the angel said,
"It comes from one, of this at least I'm sure,
Who has subdued the self, whose heart is pure."
But no one in the heavens knew the man,
And Gabriel swooped toward the earth to scan
The deserts, sea and mountains- far and wide
He searched, without success, until he cried
For God to lead his steps. "Seek him in Rome,"
God said. "A pagan temple is his home."
A worthless idol ruled his hopes and fears.
Astonished, Gabriel turned and said: "Tell me,
Dear Lord, the meaning of this mystery;
You answer with your kindness one who prays
Before a senseless idol all his days!"
And God replied: "He does not know our Way;
Mere ignorance has led this man astray-
I understand the cause of his disgrace
And will not coldly turn aside My face;
I shall admit him to My sanctuary
Where kindness will convert his blasphemy";

                                                                 ATTAR

THE STORY OF KING MAHMOUD AND THE WOODCUTTER

King Mahmoud went out hunting. In the chase
His courtiers flagged, unequal to the pace.
An old man led a donkey whose high load
Of brushwood slipped and fell into the road.
The old man scratched his head; the king came near
And said: "Do you need help?" "I  do, that's clear,"
The old man said; "if you could lend a hand,
You won't lose much. I see that you command
Your share of grace- such men are always good."
The king got down and helped him with the wood,
His flower-like hands embraced the thorns; and then
He rode back to his waiting lord again.
He said to them: "An old man will appear,
Riding a piled-high donkey- lead him here;
Block all the paths and highways to this place;
I want him to confront me face to face."
The winding roads were blocked up in a ring,
Of which the center was the waiting king.
The old man mumbled as he rode alone:
"Why won't he go...this donkey's skin and bone.
Soldiers!...Good day, my lord!" and still the way
Led pitilessly on; to his dismay
There rose ahead a royal canopy,
And there was no escape that he could see.
He rode, for there was nothing else to do
And found awaiting him a face he knew.
"I made a king hump wood for me," he cried;
"God help all sinners now, I'm terrified."
"What troubles you, my man?" inquired the king.
"Don't play with me, you took in everything,"
The old man said; "I'm just a wretched fool
who day and night must scour the plain for fuel;
I sell the thorns I get and buy dry bread-
Give me some scraps, and blessings on your head."
The king replied: "Old man, I'll buy your wood-
Come name a price you think is fair and good."
"My lord, such wood cannot be cheaply sold;
It's worth, I reckon, ten full bags of gold."
The courtiers laughed: "It's worth two barley grains.
Shut up and sell, and thank you for your pains."
"Two grains, my friends, that's true- but this rare buyer
Can surely manage something rather higher?
A great one touched these thorns- his hand brought forth
A hundred flowers; just think what that is worth!
A dinnar buys one root- a little gain
Is only right, I've had my share of pain;
The wood itself is worthless, I agree-
It is that touch which gives it dignity"'

                                                       ATTAR

PROCESS OF BEING GUIDED IN "THE MASTER AND THE DISCIPLE"

....The Knower answered: Surely God did not created the (human) creatures as fully grown men
and as (divine) knowers. He only created them as infants, small and ignorant, not knowing anything,
so that they only become big after having been small, and only come to be knowing after they were
ignorant. Thus their smallness is a precondition for their becoming big and their ignorance is a sign
pointing toward knowledge. The same is true of (spiritual) knowledge: One can only attain its essence
on the basis of preceding, lower form of knowledge which hearts can more quickly assimilate and the
understanding can more easily grasp, so that the first stage (of that process of spiritual growth) is
established in (people's) minds and they are humbled enough to carry out the duties (required by that),
and so that their hearts come to open up to the essence (of that knowledge) and their intellect are
able to bear its goal. That is God's accustomed way regarding His servants, So it is not necessary for us
to depart from the opinions of (this) religious community, nor do we need to follow other than (His)
accustomed way in our process of being guided........

 (From JA'FAR B. MANSUR AL-YAMAN  "Kitab al- Alim wa'l-ghulam" Edited and Translated
by James W. Morris)

SAYINGS OF KAHLIL GIBRAN

-It was but yesterday I thought mt self a fragment quivering
  without rhythm in the sphere of life.
  Now I know that I am the sphere, and all life in rhythmic
  fragments moves within me.


-They say to me in their awakening, "You and the world you
  live in are but a grain of sand upon the infinite shore of an
  infinite sea."
  And in my dream I say to them, "I am the infinite sea, and
  all worlds are but grain of sand upon my shore."


-When God threw me, a pebble, into this wondrous lake
  I disturbed its surface with countless circles.
  But when I reached the depth I became very still.


-Once I knew a man whose ears were exceedingly keen,
but he was dumb. He had lost his tongue in a battle.
I knew now what battles that man fought before the great
silence came. I am glad he is dead.
The world is not large enough for two of us.


-Remembrance is a form of meeting.


-We measure time according to the countless movement of
 countless suns; and they measure time by little machines in
 their little pockets.
 Now tell me, how could we ever meet at the same place
 and the same time?

KAHLIL GIBRAN (1883-1931)

Kahlil Gibran was a poet, philosopher and artist. He was born in Lebanon.
The millions of Arabic speaking people are familiar with his writings in
Arabic language. His poetries have been translated into more than twenty
languages. His drawings and paintings have been exhibited in the great capitals
of the world. In United States, which he made his home during last twenty years
of his life, he began to write in English. "The Prophet" and other books on his
poetries are loved by many Americans and seen as expression of reflecting
inside of human mind and soul. His message was Universal and reflects
fundamentals of all pure souls regardless of from which religion they belong.
Some of the treasures by Kahlil Gibran are, The Prophet, Prose Poems,
The Tear and a Smile, Jesus the son of man, Sand and Foam, The forerunner,
The Madman, The Earth Gods, and Spirits Rebellious ect. Today Kahlil Gibran
is not among us but, his words still light ups our mind and soul.

       "I came to say a word and I shall say it now. But if death prevents me,
         it will be said by Tomorrow, for Tomorrow never leaves a secret in
         the book of Eternity.
               I came to live in the glory of Love and the light of Beauty, which
         are the reflections of God. I am here, living, and I cannot be exited
         from the domain of life, for through my living word I will live in death.
               I came here to be for all and with all, and what I do today in my
         solitude will be echoed Tomorrow by the multitude.
                What I say now with one heart will be said Tomorrow by thousands
          of hearts."

                                                                                   KAHLIL GIBRAN

THE ALLEGORY OF THE SHIP

The allegory of ship in al-Kindi's "Treatise on the Device for Driving Away Sorrows" makes the broad point that all possessions, not merely superfluous ones, cause sorrow and threaten to harm us. Our passage through this world of destruction, al-Kindi says, is like that of people embarked upon a ship "to a goal, their own resting- place, that they  are intent upon." When the ship stops so that the passengers may attend to their needs, some do so quickly and return to wide, commodious seats. Others-who also tend quickly to their needs but pause to gaze upon the beautiful surrounding sights and enjoy the delightful aromas-return to narrower, less comfortable seats. Yet others-who tend to their needs but collect various objects along the way-find only cramped seating and are greatly discomforted by the objects they have gathered. Finally, others wander far off from the ship, so immersed in the surrounding natural beauty and the objects to be collected that they forget their present need and even the purpose of the voyage.Of these, those who hear
the ship's captain call and return before it sails, find terribly uncomfortable quarters. Others wander so far away that they never hear the captain's call and, left behind, perish in horrible ways. Those who returned to the ship burdened with objects suffer so, due to their cramped quarters, the stench of their decaying possessions, and the effort they expend in caring for them, that most become sick and some even die. Only
the first two groups arrive safely, though those in the second group are somewhat ill at ease due to their more narrow seats.

For al-Kindi, those passengers who endanger themselves and others by their quest for possessions are like the unjust we encounter in daily life. Conversely, the just must be those who attend to their needs or business quickly and do not permit themselves to become burdened with acquisitions or even to be side-tracked into momentary pleasures.

The passengers are all bound for their homeland, but it is not clear where they are heading. At one point, al-Kindi claims that we are going to "the true world" and at another that the ship is supposed to bring us to "our true homelands." There is no doubt, however, that whether the destination be one or many, it can be reached only by acquiring the habits that eschew material possessions.

AL-KINDI

Ref: Great Thinkers Of The Eastern World

DEATH-BED REPENTANCE

A true believer said: "There is a crowd
Who when they come to die will cry loud
And turn to God. But they are fools; they should
Have spent their lives in seeking what is good.
When leaves are falling it's to late to sow;
Repentence on a death-bed is too slow-
The time to turn aside has flown; be sure
whoever waits till then will die impure"

The Devil Complain

A sluggard once approached a fasting saint
And baffled by despair, made this complain:
"The devil is a highwayman, a thief,
Who's ruined me and robbed me of belief."
The saint replied: "Young man, the devil too
Has made his way here to complain- of you.
'My province is the world,' I heard him say;
'Tell this new pilgrim of God's holy Way
To keep his hands off what is mine- if I
Attack him it's because his fingers pry
In my affairs; if he will leave me be,
He's no concern of mine and can go free'."

ATTAR

THE STORY OF KING MAS'OUD AND THE FISHERBOY

He said: 'King Mas'oud, riding out one day,
Was parted from his army on the way.
Swift as the wind he galloped till he saw
A little boy sat by the ocean's shore.
The child was fishing-as he cast his hook,
The king dismounted with a friendly look
And sat by him; but the unhappy child
Was troubled in his heart and hardly smiled.
"You seem the saddest boy I've ever seen,"
The monarch said. "what such sorrow mean?"
"Our father's gone; for seven children I
Must cast my line" was his subdued reply.
"our mother's paralysed and we are poor;
It is for food that I must haunt this shore-
I come to fish here in the dawn,s first light
And cannot leave until the fall of night.
The merge harvest of my toil and pain
Must last us all till I return again."
The king said: "Let's be friends, do you agree?"
The poor child nodded and, immediately,
His new friend cast their line into the sea.
That day the boy drew up a hundred fish.
"This wealth is far beyond my wildest wish,"
He said: "A splendid haul,"the king replied.
"Good Fortune has been busy at your side-
Accept your luck, don't try to comprehend
How this has happened;you'd be lost, my friend.
Your wealth is greater than my own; today
A king has fished for you- I cannot stay."
He leap onto his horse. "But take your share,"
The boy said earnestly. "That's only fair."
"Tomorrow's catch is mine. We won't divide
Today's; you have it all," the king replied.
"Tomorrow when I fish you are the prey,
A trophy I refuse to give away."
The next day, walking in his garden's shade,
The king recalled the friend that he had made.
A captain fetched the boy, and this unknown
Was at the king's command set on his throne.
The courtier murmured at his poverty-
"He is my friend, this fact suffices me;
He is my equal here in everything,
The partner of my throne," declared the king;
To every taunt the boy had one reply:
"My sadness vanished when the king passed by."

ATTAR

FAME

I walked upon the sand at ebb-tide.
And bending down, I wrote a line upon the sand.
And in that line I wrote what my mind thought
And what my soul desired.

And when the tide was high,
I returned to that very shore,
And of that which I had written I found naught.
I found only the staff marks of one who had walked blindly.

                                                                KAHLIL -GIBRAN

LOVE TRIANGLE

One night, out of unbearable pain
The moth came out and put on a claim:
He asked the candle: Pray!
How long will you be burning me thus, in dismay?
And the candle said in return:
You heedless creature, what do you say?
You in the blink of an eye
And are freed from suffering and pain.
All along the night till morning
I spend my time weeping and burning in agony.
At times, I laugh but it is at myself;
At times, I weep in mourning....
There exist another candle but hidden from sight;
A candle which is neither lit nor extinct.
To that candle I am the moth, the ardent moth
And from that comes my disposition to wailing
It makes me burn as I make you burn:
This is ultimate sign of love
Why do you thus bully me, since like you
I spend my days in unbearable pain?
If that candle would shine from the invisible world
So many moths will fall prey to Him.
'Attar shall continue candle-like to burn
A long as there is a trace of him to burn.

                                                                ATTAR

MY SOUL COUNSELLED ME

My soul counselled me and charged me to
listen for voices that rise neither from
the tongue nor the throat.
Before that day I heard but dully, and
naught save the clamour and loud cries
came to my ears.
But now I have learned to listen to silence,
To hear its choirs singing the songs of ages,
Chanting the hymns of space, and disclosing
the secrets of eternity.

KAHLIL- GIBRAN

MARRIAGE

Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness,
And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.
Love one another, but make not a bond of love:
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores
of your souls.
Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from
the same loaf.
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let
each one of you be alone,
Even as the string of a lute are alone though
they quiver with the same music.


KAHLIL-GIBRAN

GIVING

You often say, "I would give, but only to the deserving."
The trees in your orchard say not so, nor the flocks in
your pasture.
They give that they may live, for to with hold is to perish...
So first that you may yourself deserve to be giver, and
instrument of giving.
For in truth it is life gives unto life- while you, who deem
yourself a giver, are but a witness.

KAHLIL GIBRAN

TALKING

And then a scholar said, Speak of Talking.
And he answered, saying:
You talk when you cease to be at peace with
 your thoughts:
And when you can no longer dwell in the solitude
of your heart you live in your lips, and sound is a
diversion and a pastime.
And in much of your talking, thinking is half murdered.
For thought is a bird of space, that in a cage of words
may indeed unfold its wings but cannot fly.

KAHLIL GIBRAN

GROWING

  Sometimes it seems to me that He heard the murmuring pain of all things grow in the sun, and that then He lifted them
up and supported them, not only by His own knowledge,but also
by disclosing to them their own power to rise and become whole.


KAHLIL GIBRAN

AYAZ'S SICKNESS

Ayaz, afflicted with the Evil Eye,
Fell ill. For safety he was forced to lie
Sequestered from the court, in loneliness.
The king (who loved him) heard of his distress
And called a servant. "Tell Ayaz," he said,
"What tears of sympathy I daily shed.
Tell him that I endure his suffering,
And hardly comprehend I am the king;
My soul is with him (though my flesh is here)
And guards his bed solicitous with fear;
Ayaz, what could this Evil Eye not do,
If it destroy such loveliness as you!"
The king was silent; then again he spoke:
"Go quickly as a fire, return like smoke;
Stop nowhere, but outrun the brilliant flash
That lights the world before the thunder's crash.
Go now; if you so much as pause for breath
My anger will pursue you after death."
The servant scuttled off, consumed with dread,
And like a wind arrived at Ayaz' bed-
There sat his sovereign, by the patient's head!
Aghast, the servant trembled for his life
And pictured in his mind the blood-smeared knife.
"My king," he said, "I swear, I swear indeed,
That I have hurried here with utmost speed-
Although I see you here I cannot see
How in the world you have preceded me;
Believe my innocence, and if I lie
I am a heathen and deserve to die."
His sovereign answered him: "You could not know
The hidden ways by which we lovers go;
I cannot bear my life without his face,
And every minute I am in this place.
The passing world outside is unaware
of mysteries Ayaz and Mahmoud share;
In public I ask after him, although
Behind the veil of secrecy I know
Whatever news my messengers could give;
I hide my secret and in secret live."

ATTAR

EMPTINESS OF THE WAY

      One moonlit night Sheikh Bayazid,
 attracted by the sight of such refulgent
 brilliance, clear as day, across the
sleeping city took his way and thence
into the desert, where he saw unnumbered
stars adoring heaven's floor.
     He walked a little and become aware
that not a sound disturbed the desert air,
that no one moved in that immensity save him.
His heart grew numb and gradually pure terror
touched him. "O great God," he cried, "Your
dazzling palace beckons far and wide- where
are the courtiers who should throng this court?"
A voice said: "Wanderer, you are distraught;
be calm. Our glorious King cannot admit all
comers to His court; it is not fit that every rascal
who sleeps out the night should be allowed to
glimpse its radiant light. Most are turned back,
and few perceive the throne; among a hundred
thousand there is one."

ATTAR

THE POMEGRANATE

Once when I was living in the heart of a pomegranate,
I heard a seed saying, "Someday I shall become a tree,
and the wind will sing in my branches, and the sun will
dance on my leaves, and I shall be strong and beautiful
through all the season."
     Then another spoke and said, "When I was young as
you, I too held such views; but now what I can weigh
and measure things, I see that my hopes were vain."
  And a third seed spoke also, "I see in us that promises
so great a future."
  And a forth said, "But what a mockery our life would
be, without a great future!"
  Said a fifth, "Why dispute what we shall be, when we
know not even what we are."
  But a sixth replied, "Whatever we are, we shall continue
to be."
   And a seventh said, "I have such a clear idea how
everything will be, but I cannot put it into words."
  Then a eighth spoke-and a ninth- and a tenth- and the many-
until all were speaking, and I could distinguish nothing for
 the many voices.
   And so I moved that very day into the  heart of a quince,
where the seeds are few and almost silent.

KAHLIL GIBRAN

IT CUTS THE PLOW REINS

            What does the Purity do?
            It cuts the plow reins.

It frees you from working and dinning
                 In the mud

      It frees you from living behind
                 A big ox
       That is always breaking wind.

      What can Purity do, my dear?

           It can lift your heart
       On a rising, bucking Sun
     That makes the soul hunger
   To reach the roof of Creation

It offers what the whole world wants-
      Real Knowledge and Power.

    It offers what the wise crave-
  The priceless treasure of Freedom.

  Pure Divine Love is no meek priest
                  Or tight banker.
      It will smash all your windows
And only then throw in the holy gifts.

      It will allow you to befriend
      Life and light and sanity-

     And not even mind waking
               To another day.

It reveals the excitement of the Present
        And the beauty of Precision.
It confers vitality and a sublime clarity

     Until finally all the heart can do
                   Is burst open
       With great love and laughter!

                   O Purity,
O dear Truth and Friend within me,
    Why didn't you tell me sooner
           You could do all this-

          Cut the reins of illusion,

                   So we can all
                    Just go wild
                   Loving God
            And everyone all day!


HAFIZ

SOMEONE SHOULD START LAUGHING

          I have a thousand brilliant lies
                   for the question:
                    How are you?

          I have a thousand brilliant lies
                    for the question:
                     What is God?
   
        If you think that the Truth can be known
                        From words,

         If you think that the Sun and the Ocean

             Can pass through that tiny opening
                    Called the mouth,

               O someone should start laughing!

            Someone should start wildly Laughing-
                                 Now!


HAFIZ

THE BEST INVESTMENT

The grey haired man at the door was weary from his travel but thankful to
be home. A captive for many years, he had only recently been freed. As he
knocked, he wondered if his wife and son were still living there. Would they
recognize and welcome him?
          The young man who opened the door was polite but not inclined to let
the stranger enter. "Who are you?" asked the old man.
"I am Rabia ar Ray," the younger man answered politely, "And who, might I ask,
 are you?"Hearing voices, his mother came to the door in time to hear this last
question. With tearful eyes she gasped, "He is your father, Farukh. Let him come in!"
     The next morning, Farukh, sleeping in his own bed for the first time in years, woke early
to perform the required cleaning before morning prayers. "We should wake Rabia," he said
to his wife, "so he can walk to the mosque-the masjid- with me."
 "Rabia is already at the masjid," she replied. "He always goes before the time of the morning
prayer."
   Farukh left the house and headed towards the mosque, amazed and pleased, to see hundreds
of people also headed to prayer before dawn. Mashaa Allah-wonderful are the ways of God!
so many people attending the masjid early in the morning! The mosque, in fact, was crowded
that Farukh was forced to stand up against the back wall. He could hear an inspiring talk, but
couldn't see who the speaker might be.
    After the prayer, as everyone left the masjid, Farukh looked, but still could not see his son.
He went back home alone. Rabia entered a while later while his father was discussing the family's
finances with his mother.
     "I left you with quite a sum of money. I hope that you've had enough money for your needs,"
He said to her.
    "The money has taken good care of our home and the two of us," she replied. I have invested
all of the rest," she smiled and reached for the Rabia's hand.
   "I see evidence of everything but the investment," Farukh said, looking around the room.
"These are the same furnishings as when I left. What has been the return?" he asked. "How
much has the money increased?"
  Mother looked at son. "I'm certain the increase is 100,000 fold. I hired the best scholar
to tutor our son." She smiled at Rabia. "100,000 is the number of people who have come to the
mosque these many months to hear him talk. A wise scholar now, he is the one that you heard
speaking in the masjid today."His eyes bright, Farukh replied, "Al hamdu lil Allah, all thanks to
God, this is the best investment anyone could make."


REF: Ayat Jamilah

THE PEARL

Said one oyster to a neighboring oyster, "I have a very
great pain within me. It is heavy and round and I am in
distress."
  And the other oyster replied with haughty complacence,
"Praise be to the heavens and to the sea, I have no pain
within me. I am well and whole both within and without."
  At that moment a crab was passing by and heard the two
oysters, and he said to the one who was well and whole
both within and without, "Yes, you are well and whole;
but the pain your neighbor bears is a pearl of exceeding
beauty."


KAHLIL GIBRAN

THE HEAD AND THE LUTE

Late one evening under a full moon, Bayazid Bustani,
a religious teacher, walked by a drunkard sprawled
along the roadside. As Bayazid neared, the drunkard
became quite feisty, bellowing the most hateful and filthy
curses at him.
        Bayazid did not respond, but curiously, his silence
seemed to stir the drunkard further. Rising, he pulled out
 his lute, and angrily smashed it on Bayazid's head. The
lute shattered into a hundred pieces, yet Bayazid did not
fight back. He simply continued walking home, dabbing
his bloody wounds from time to time.
         The next morning Bayazid sent his servant- with money
and a heaping tray of desert-back down that same road to find
the drunkard. He also instructed his servant to deliver the
following message: "Last night my head was responsible
for breaking your lute. I apologize. Please purchase a new one
with these dirhams. I also found your tongue to be quite unpleasant
and bitter, Please eat all of these deserts to sweeten it!"
       Ashamed of his behavior, the drunkard dusted himself off,
came straightaway to Bayazid to beg his forgiveness, and gave
up drinking for good.


Ref: Ayat Jamlah