How a ‘cheat’ exposed the biases hidden in Mehmood Ghaznavi’s court
Once, Sultan Mehmood Ghaznavi said to his courtiers, “I have a cherished desire to meet Hazrat Khidr (AS). Can anyone among you make it possible for me?” All the courtiers dropped deep curtsies. A proclamation was made throughout the kingdom about the king’s longing.
An ordinary fellow approached the king and said, “Your Majesty, I can arrange your meeting with Hazrat Khidr (AS), but it will take me six months. Since I am a pauper, you must bear the expenses of my family for these six months.” Sultan nodded his head, and the man went to a deserted place to chant the required mantras.
After six months, the man was brought to the royal court, and the king asked him, “Have you succeeded in your mission?” The man bowed his head and pleaded for another six-month intermission. “My Lord, something went wrong with my mantras and rituals. Grant me another six months,” he said. The compassionate Sultan granted the request.
After the stipulated time, the man was again brought before Mehmood Ghaznavi. “Have you accomplished your mission to arrange my meeting with Hazrat Khidr (AS)?” asked the king. “O great king, I was bluffing you. I have no such spiritual powers to carry out your wish,” he said in a feeble and guilt-ridden voice.
The answer infuriated the king. He asked his courtiers, “What should be done with this cheat?” One of the courtiers stood up and said, “He should be beheaded in broad daylight.” Others voiced similar opinions.
A radiant-faced elderly man sitting in the audience stood up and endorsed the courtier’s viewpoint, saying, “He is absolutely right.” Then, another courtier suggested he be put before the bloodhounds to be ripped apart. The elderly man endorsed this too, saying, “He is absolutely right.” Then came the turn of Hazrat Ayaz (RA), who said, “O Sultan, your grandeur and splendour have no parallel in the world. The man is very poor; you should pardon him.” Once again, the elderly man remarked, “He is absolutely right.”
The king was bewildered and slightly annoyed by the repetition of the same phrase. He stared at the elderly man and asked him directly, “You made identical remarks to three different suggestions. Justify your answer now or face the consequences.”
The elderly man replied, “O great king, your first courtier is the descendant of a butcher clan. Slaying and killing are his inborn traits and ancestral attributes. You are guilty of appointing the wrong man as your minister. Choose your friends and ministers wisely. Your second courtier belongs to a tribe whose ancestors used to bathe dogs. The company of dogs has influenced his behaviour. So, biting and tearing are in his genes. And Ayaz is from a Syed ancestry. His lineage connects with the tribe of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW). Forgiveness, compassion, kindness, and generosity are in his blood.”
The king was elated but surprised. He told Ayaz, “You should not have kept it a secret from me.” Ayaz stood up and said, “O generous king, since my secret has been unveiled, let me unfold another. The elderly man in the audience is Hazrat Khidr (AS).”
Tailpiece: A donkey in lion’s attire can only bray, not roar.
The writer is a teacher and a columnist
Mushtaq Hurra
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