the door and opened the door. As they opened the door they found a beggar in front of them. They asked the beggar, ‘Why did you come here?’ The angel of death replied, ‘Go and send your master out, I have some work with him.’ The slaves lied by saying, ‘He has gone out to help a beggar like you.’ After a short while Sayyiduna Malak-ul-Maut عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلَام again knocked the door. The slaves came out. He said to them, ‘Go and tell your master: I am Malak-ul-Maut’. On hearing it the rich man got frightened and said to his slaves: Go and talk to him very politely. Servants came out and started saying to Sayyiduna Malak-ul-Maut عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلَام: ‘Please seize the soul of any other person in place of our master and spare him. Allah عَزَّوَجَلَّ will bless you.’ Sayyiduna Malak-ul-Maut عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلَام replied, ‘It’s not possible at all.’ Then Malak-ul-Maut عَـلَيْـهِ الـسَّـلَام went inside and said to the rich man, ‘Whatever will you want you can make, I will not leave without seizing your soul.’

On hearing it the family of the rich man yelled out and started crying. That person asked his family members and slaves: Open the boxes of gold and silver and bring my entire wealth to me. His order was immediately carried out and all the treasure was brought to him. The man came towards the hoard of gold and silver and started saying, ‘O disgraceful and condemnable wealth! Curse be on you! You made me heedless of the remembrance of Allah عَزَّوَجَلَّ, you kept preventing me from the preparation of the Hereafter.’ Having heard this, the wealth started saying to him: Do not rebuke me. Are you not the one who was inferior to the worldly people? I increased your respect. It was because of me that you were able to get to the courts of the kings, otherwise the poor and the righteous cannot reach there. It was because of me that you married princesses and the rich women, otherwise the poor cannot marry them. Now it is your bad fortune that you spent me on evil acts. If you had spent me on the acts which Allah عَزَّوَجَلَّ likes, you would not have been subjected to this humiliation and disgrace. Did I ask you not to spend me on virtuous acts? Today, not me but you deserve to be rebuked and cursed more. (‘Uyoon-ul-Hikayaat – Arabic, pp. 49)

مجھے مال و دولت کی آفت نے گھیرا                     بچا یا اِلٰہی بچا یا اِلٰہی

نہ دے جاہ و حشمت نہ دولت کی کثرت               گدائے مدینہ بنا یا اِلٰہی