There was once a king who had numerous servants. One day, the king decided to make his favourite servant Ayaz his treasurer. When the king’s officers heard the news, they were very angry. As the days went by, the officers grew more and more jealous of Ayaz. They began to spy on him, hoping he would do something wrong. Then they could complain to the king and get rid of him.
They found out that Ayaz had a secret chamber, which he visited every day and they reported the same to the king. They added that he allowed no one into the chamber and kept it tightly locked. It seemed to them that he was hiding gold and silver stolen from the treasury.
The king trusted Ayaz completely. To prove his officers wrong, the he told them to search the secret chamber. The officers went to Ayaz’s chamber that night and broke down the door. To their dismay, all they found inside was a pair of torn shoes and a ragged coat. They thought it was a trick, so they dug up the floor and broke down the walls, but still they found no sign of stolen treasure.
Puzzled and disappointed, the officers returned to the king, who asked them of what they had found in the secret chamber. They informed that all they had found was a pair of torn shoes and an old coat. Thereafter, the king inquired Ayaz why he hid those old and useless things in a locked chamber. Ayaz responded that these were the shoes and the coat he wore when he was a slave. He had kept them to remind him not only about his past but also that he should not become proud now that he is the king’s treasurer.
The officers lowered their heads in shame and pleaded to the king for his forgiveness. The king responded that since they had wronged Ayaz, they should ask him to forgive them. Ayaz, however, was too kind to think of revenge. He immediately forgave the officers even though they had tried to bring about his downfall.
-- Mawlana Rumi, Mathnawi
In the above story Ayaz exemplifies values like gratitude, humility, honesty and forgiveness . It reminds us to reinforce the practice of these values in our lives.
Source: The Institute of Ismaili Studies, A Fountain of Stories, London: Islamic Publications Limited.
