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~Nawal~
Saudi Arabia
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Salamun Alaikum It is said that David( as), one day, walked by another prophet by the name of Haskell who used to live a very humble life in the mountains. He dedicated his time to praying to Allah( swt).
David(as) asked him" You spend the whole time worshiping Allah( swt), has it ever appeared to you that you are such a good worshiper and there is no one better than you?"
Haskell said" No.. No matter how much I pray to Allah(swt), I still find I am not doing enough and I need to pray hard." Then, David asked" Do you ever try to sin, even to think about committing a sin?"
- " Never.. I never ever think of committing a sin." Haskell said
- " Has it ever appeared to you that you need to give up this modest life, go out, try to see the world and to build yourself a house, live a better life and eat better fruit?" David asked
- " Yes.. That thought has appeared to me"
- "Then, What do you do when that happens?"
- " I enter into this cave and come out. I learn from what is inside that cave."
- " May I go into that cave?"
- " Yes, you may."
He went inside the cave and found a skeleton lying on a bed made of iron and the skull is lying on a rock. Next to that skeleton is a piece of writing; a manuscript. He picked up the manuscript and started reading it. It said the following:
" I am so-and-so. I have ruled for one thousand years as a king. I built one thousand cities. I married so many women and enjoyed my life. I had everything I wanted. However, when my time came, I realized that my soft bed that I used to sleep on everyday is now going to be changed with a bed made of iron. That beautiful pillow I used to rest on is now going to be changed with a rock. Instead of having all those ministers and kings being my friends and neighbors treating me so kindly with respect are changed with the snakes and the scorpions which used to come and eat of my flesh. Thus, I realized that this world is not worth it. So, whomever is reading this manuscript, my advice to you is not to be fooled by this world and its attractions because it is not eternal."
David( as) read that manuscript and said" Yes.. Haskell.. You have a point.. Now I know why you do not ever care about this world and its materialistic life. "
However, that does not mean that we should all now go and live in a cave and abandon this world, sell our houses and our cars, and donate them all to charity. This is not the meaning here because a man came to Imam Ali bin Abi Talib( as) and told him" O' Ameer Almoameneen, my brother and I are very good businessmen. We had such a great life. But he sold his house, abandoned his family and gave up everything all to charity and now he is going to live in a mountain. He said that this is how he would like to worship Allah." Imam Ali said" Call your brother over." He called his brother over and Imam Ali asked him" What is going on?" He said" O' Ameer Almoameneen, you are the teacher. You are the one who is telling us to abandon this world. Look at the way you are living, Imam Ali." Imam Ali said" You have completely misunderstood my message and my words. It is correct that I told you not to be attached to this world. In other words, it did not mean that you could not have a big house or a good life as long as you are owning them and they are not owning you. Whenever you need to give, you give with generosity. As long as that happens, you are a true devout. Asceticism in its true meaning is when you stop yourself from committing sins and disobeying your lord. For me, however, since I am the khalefa( leader) of the Muslims, I have to live the way that the average Muslim is living. So, you cannot compare yourself to me because I am the leader and that is why I live the humble and modest life like the average Muslim."
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