MUSJIDUL HAQ

Download PDF: [S] The Saint who went to the Royal Court

Hadrat Sayyiduna Bishar bin Haarith – may Allah be pleased with him – narrates:

There was a great friendship between Hadrat Sayyiduna Sufyan Souri – may Allah be pleased with him – and Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him. They had great respect for each other and used to also have the same small type of business.

Every year, Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – went for Hajj and when he used to reach Kufah, Hadrat Sayyiduna Sufyan – may Allah be pleased with him – used to walk a long way with him until he exited the actual town. As a matter of fact, once he even went as far as Najaf Shareef to bid him farewell.

One year, as Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – was travelling, some people from a certain area complained to him that the King had nominated a tax collector who they were not pleased about and they also pleaded to him to bring this to the attention of the King. He did not give any answer to their request and continued on his journey.

When Hadrat Sayyiduna Sufyan Thouri – may Allah be pleased with him – heard of his arrival, as per his behavior, he travelled all the way to Najaf Shareef to bid him farewell.

The following year, when Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – was again travelling for Hajj, the people of that locality again approached him and asked him to intercede on their behalf with the King about the tax collector.

Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – then acceded to their request and approached the palace to present their complaint. He also sent a request to the King that Abu Jafer wanted to meet him. When the King heard about this, he informed his guards, “When he arrives, you should show him extreme respect and decorum.”

The guards then took Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – with great respect to the King. When the King saw him, he asked him again with great respect what is it he could do for him. Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – then presented the complaint of these people. The King heard replied, “I have now removed this person from his position. Please also inform the people that they can nominate whoever pleases them to this position. Whoever they nominate, I will also approve that person.”

After writing out this command, the King also asked his guards to give the Saint ten thousand Dirhams as a gift. However, when Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – exited the palace he took all of these Dirhams and immediately distributed it among the poor and needy.

However, as Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – left the palace, he also realised that these Dirhams would cause great harm to him in the long term. When this news reached Hadrat Sayyiduna Sufyan Thouri – may Allah be pleased with him – that Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – had actually visited the palace of the King, he refused to meet him again and without informing the people he also went to live in another area.

When Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer – may Allah be pleased with him – arrived in Kufah, he asked people where the great Saint was and they informed him that they had no idea where he had moved to. Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer Razi – may Allah be pleased with him – then began to search all around and finally met one of the close friends of Hadrat Sufyan Thouri – may Allah be pleased with him.

He then informed Hadrat Sayyiduna Abu Jafer – may Allah be pleased with him – that he was not allowed to show him the residence of the Saint but if he wanted to pass a message he would have it conveyed on his behalf. He then wrote a note and handed it to this person.

When this person brought this note to Hadrat Sayyiduna Sufyan Thouri – may Allah be pleased with him – the Saint asked him to read this note and also instructed him to write a reply on the back of this note.

The Saint informed him, “First write the 78^th verse of Surah Maidah (5) and then also inform him to return the money through which we do business and that he has no need for any profit in this business from him.”

When this letter was presented, no one had any idea what was the meaning of this letter. However, when this letter was presented to Hadrat Sayyiduna ibn Abi Layla Thouri – may Allah be pleased with him – he replied, “The letter written by the first person shows that there is a difference in his word and his action. As for the person who wrote the answer, this is someone who has achieved the Divine Pleasure of Allah Almighty.” (Uyunul Hiqaayah)