feel ashamed. In this connection, let’s listen to 2 admonitory parables and learn lesson by obtaining Madani pearls:

Can he become better than me?

Sayyiduna Imam Hasan Basri رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه was a very humble person who used to think of himself as lower than everyone else. One day at the bank of the River Tigris he saw a Habashi (dark-skinned person) along with a woman and a bottle of alcohol. Shaykh thought to himself, ‘Can this alcoholic Habashi be better than me?’ In the meanwhile, a boat passed by with seven people on board. All of a sudden, that boat sank and all people aboard began to drown in the river. After seeing that, the Habashi jumped into the river and took out 6 people one after another, and then said to me: ‘You save the life of only one person. I was testing whether you have spiritual insight or not’.

Beware! This woman is my mother and what I have in this bottle is nothing but water.’ Shaykh realized that the Habashi is not just a common man but was sent from the unseen to reform him. Shaykh then threw himself on Habashi’s feet and requested to save him from arrogance as he saved 6 people from drowning. He made the supplication, ‘May Allah عَزَّوَجَلَّ bestow upon you the eyes that can see the spiritual insight and keep you away from pride and arrogance.’ After that, the Shaykh never thought of himself better than anybody. (Tazkira-tul-Awliya, vol. 1, pp. 43)

فخر و غُرور سے تُو مولٰی مجھے بچانا

یا ربّ مجھے بنا دے پیکر تُو عاجِزی کا

Jewel in rags

On page 18 of book ‘Uyoon-ul-Hikayat, part 2 (the 413-page publication of Maktaba-tul-Madinah, the publishing department of Dawat-e-Islami), it is reported: Sayyiduna Ibraheem Aajuri Kabeer رَحْمَةُ اللهِ تَعَالٰی عَلَيْه said: It was the time of winter and I was sitting at the entrance of the Masjid. Someone passed by me who was wearing two ragged sheets. I thought to myself, he may be a beggar and that it would be better if he could earn with his own hands. When I fell asleep I saw two angels come down, they grabbed me by the arm and