14.06.2017 Views

Hundred Great Muslims

http://www.islamicglobe.com

http://www.islamicglobe.com

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

<strong>Hundred</strong> <strong>Great</strong> <strong>Muslims</strong><br />

/33<br />

"For your part, you are searching God in the Royal Palace", retorted the<br />

stranger.<br />

The incident produced a deep effect on the mind of King Ibrahim. He<br />

renounced his throne, became a hermit, and set out in quest of spiritual peace<br />

and Divine truth. All that he carried with him was a tumbler, a blanket and a<br />

pillow. He had hardly gone a few miles when he observed a man drinking water<br />

with his scooped hands. Instantly, he threw off the tumbler, thinking it to be<br />

useless.<br />

When he went further, he found a man sleeping, using his arms as a pillow.<br />

He cast away the pillow, carried by him, considering it to be equally useless. A<br />

little further, he saw, another man sleeping without covering his body with a<br />

blanket. Ibrahim, thereupon, gave away his blanket as well.<br />

Now he had no worldly belongings left with him. He roamed about in<br />

different countries in quest of Divine truth. He now yearned for a spiritual<br />

teacher who could lead him to the path of Divine Reality.<br />

At last he called on the famous Sufi Saint, Ha/rat Bayazid Bustami, and<br />

requested him to accept him as his disciple.<br />

Hazrat Bayazid told him that he would have to undergo a period of<br />

prayers and severe test. Ibrahim readily agreed.<br />

He was asked by the Sufi Saint, to bring logs of firewood from the forest.<br />

One day, the Saint instructed his maid servant to inform Ibrahim that the<br />

firewood he brought was not dry and caused a lot of smoke while cooking food.<br />

This embittered Ibrahim and he cried, "Had you been in my State, I would<br />

have flogged you to death for this impertinent complaint".<br />

When Bayazid came to know of Ibrahim's reaction to the complaint, he<br />

observed that he had not forgotten his rega/life and required further test.<br />

A few months later, the Sufi Saint asked his maid servant to give coarser<br />

food to Ibrahim.<br />

Ibrahim took this food without grumbling but his dislike for it was visible<br />

from his facial expressions.<br />

The maid servant reported the incident to the Saint, who remarked that<br />

Ibrahim required further training.<br />

After a few months, the Saint observed that a person unknowingly threw a<br />

basket of dust on Ibrahim, but he did not protest to it. Bayazid Bustami was<br />

much pleased with the transformation of Ibrahim and conferred on him his robe<br />

of Khilafat.

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!