Assalam Allaikum Brothers,
Here is a story from the life of a renowned sufi hazrat Haatam Asamm Rahmatullah alaihe.
"Haatam Asamm Rahmatullah alaihe was a renowned sufi and a favorite pupil of Shaqiq Balkhi Rahmatullah alaihe. Once the shaikh asked him, “Haatam, how long have you been here, in company with me?” He replied, “Thirty-three years”. The shaikh said,“What did you learn during these thirty-three years of association with me?” Haatam Asamm Rahmatullah alaihe replied, “I have learned eight lessons”. At this, Shaqiq Rahmatullah alaihe out of a sheer dissapointment recited:
‘Lo! We are Allah’s and lo! unto him we are returning’
He said regretfully, “You leart only eight lessons during long years of associations with me? I have wasted all my life in associating with you”. Haatam Rahmatullah alaihesubmitted most respectfully,“I have learnt only eight lessons: I cannot lie to you”. The sheikh said,"Tell me, what are those eight lessons?. Haatam Rahmatulllah alaihe answered thus:
(a) ‘I have found that everybody loves someone or something (wife, children, property, friends, etc), but I know that, as soon as he is laid in the grave, the loved ones part company with him. Consequently, I have cultivated love for good deeds so that, when I die and pass into the grave, my loved ones also accompany me into the grave and I should not be left alone.’
(b) I have read in the holy Quran that Allah Ta’ala says:
‘But as for him who feared(in this world) to stand before his Lord(in the hereafter)and restrained himself from (unlawful indulgence in)lust, Lo! Jannah will be his home’.(an-Naaziaat:40-41)
I know that whatever Allah Ta’ala says is true. Therefore, I have restrained myself from worldly desires and I have become steadfast in devotion to him.
(c) I know that, in this world, things which are most dearest and most precious to men are preserved with great care and protected with diligence. Then I read in the holy Quran that Allah Ta’ala says:
‘That which you have(in the world)wasteth away(either you will die and leave it behind or it will be wasted away in your life;it is all one to you);and that which Allah has, remains(eternally).(an-Nahl:96)’
Accordingly, whenever I came by something which was of great value to me, or which I prized above other things, I consigned it to the custody of Allah(spent it for the cause of Allah Ta’ala, so that it should be preserved forever.
(d) I have observed that, for honor and glory, all men turn to wealth, nobility of parentage and other things of pride. That is they take pride in wealth, high parentage, etc. and assert their superiority over others. But I have read in the holy Quran that Allah Ta’ala says:
‘Lo! the noblest of you, in the sight of Allah, is the best in piety.’(al-Hujurat:13)
I, therefore, have cultivated piety in myself, so that I should become the noblest of men in the sight of Allah Ta’ala.
(e) I have noticed that people upbraid others, revile them or find fault with them out of jealousy. Then I read in the holy Quran that Allah ta’ala says:
‘We have apportioned among them their livlihood in the life of the world, and (in this apportionment) we have raised some of them above others in rank, (so) that some of them (should) take labor from others.(al-Zukhruf:32)’
(That is to say, if all men were alike and equal in rank, no one would work for others or serve anybody and, consequently, there would be disorder and chaos in the affairs of the world).
Therefore, I have restrained myself from jealousy and ceased to concern myself with other people’s affairs. I know for certain that distribution of livelihood is entirely in the hands of Allah Ta’ala and He grants as much as He pleases to pleases to whomsoever he likes. I, therefore, ceased to harbor enmity against anyone, realising that a man’s personal effort has little to do with his prosperity or adversity. It has rather been preordained by Allah Ta’ala, Who is the Sovereign Lord of the worlds. So, I do not feel angry with anyone.
(f) I have observed that, in this world, everybody is hostile to someone or the other. I have considered this in the light of Allah Ta’ala says in the Holy Quran:
'Lo! Shaitaan (the devil) is an enemy for you, so treat him as an enemy (Do not be friends with him).(al-Fatir:6)
So, I directed all my hostilities against Shaitaan alone and I always try to keep away from him, by all possible means. And, as Allah Ta’ala has commanded us to treat him as an enemy, I bear no enmity against anyone other than Shaitaan.
(g) I have observed that all people are struggling hard to seek their livlihood, so much so that they disgrace or abase themselves before others and adopt unlawful means for procuring their daily bread. But I have read in the Holy Quran that Allah Ta’ala says:
- ‘And there is no living being that moves on earth, but his sustenance depends on Allah Ta’ala’.(Hood:6)*
Considering that I am also one of the creatures (that move on earth) whose sustenance depends upon Allah Ta’ala, I occupied myself with paying what I owe to Allah Ta’ala and ceased to worry about what Allah Ta’ala has taken the responsibilty to provide.
(h) I have observed that all men have faith upon and put their trust in things which have themselves been created by Allah Ta’ala. Some have faith in their estates or business concerns, others in their own skill or craftsmenship, and their still others who trust their own physical power and energy. In short, all people have put their trust in things which have been created by Allah Ta’ala, like themselves. I have read in the Holy Quran that Allah Ta’ala says:
- ‘And whosoever puts his trust in Allah, He will suffice him’.(at-Tallaq:3)*
Therefore, I have put my trust and faith in him alone.
Shaqiq Rahmatullah alaihe thereupon said, "Haatam, may Allah bless you with ‘taufiq’(Divine aid for performance of good deeds)! I have viewed the teachings of the Torah, the Injeel, the Zabur and the Holy Quran, and I believe that these eight moral lessons form a gist of all that is really good and beneficial for man. Therefore, anyone acting upon these precepts will be deemed to have practiced the learning contained in all the four Scriptures revealed by Allah Ta’ala.
[This message has been edited by iqadeer (edited June 15, 1999).]