It is written in the books of history that Sultan Maḥmūd al-Ghaznawī رَحْمَةُ الـلّٰـهِ عَـلَيْه, a great ruler of his time and a devotee of the Prophet, wished to learn the truth behind three matters:

2. Who are the people referred to in the saying of the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم:

اَلْعُلَمَاءُ وَرَثَةُ الأَنْبِيَاءِ  “The scholars are the heirs of the Prophets.”

2. Whether his father was truly Sabuktigin, or someone else.

3. Whether he would be forgiven or not.

One night, while travelling with his army, a servant was walking ahead holding a lantern. Seeing the light, a man came out of his house carrying a book and began reading by the lantern’s light.

Sultan Maḥmūd thought to himself that this must be a scholar. Since he deeply loved knowledge and the people of knowledge, he respectfully ordered the army to halt so the man could read in peace. Once the man finished and returned home, the Sultan continued his journey.

That very night, his fortune shone. When he slept, in his dream, the beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم appeared and said only one sentence: “O Nāṣir al-Dīn, son of Sabuktigin! Because of your service to my heir (the scholar), Allah Almighty has forgiven you.”^[1] سُـبْحٰـنَ الـلّٰــه ‎! What a magnificent status of the beloved Prophet  صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم!

By the grace of Allah Almighty, the beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم is alive, and aware of the conditions of his Ummah, even their inner thoughts. He knew that Sultan Maḥmūd al-Ghaznawī had honoured a scholar, humbled himself before him, and that three questions troubled his heart.

In a single blessed sentence, all three matters were resolved:

1. By saying “son of Sabuktigin”, it became clear that his father was indeed