You will find the texts of the stories below the audio, and the titles are linked to individual blog posts where you can learn more about sources, see notes, etc.
~ 1. A Handful of Dust ~
God told Gabriel, "Fetch me a handful of Earth's dust."
"No!" said Earth. She didn't want God to create Adam.
God sent Michael. Earth refused.
Then Seraphiel. Earth refused.
Finally, God sent Azrael.
"I cannot fail to accomplish God's command," Azrael said to Earth.
They debated back and forth, and when Earth was distracted by their argument, Azrael snatched the handful of dust.
God then appointed Azrael as the Angel of Death.
"But everyone will hate and fear me," said Azrael.
"I will create fevers and sicknesses," God replied, "and weapons of war. They will bear the blame, not you."
~ 2. Noah and Canaan ~
God flooded the whole earth.
Deep waters covered all the land.
Noah and his family were safe in the ark upon the waters, but Noah's son Canaan was trying to swim on his own.
"I won't get into Noah's ark!" he shouted.
Noah shouted back, "But I'm your father! Get into the ark!"
"You are my enemy. I defy you!" said Canaan. "I can swim! I'll swim to the mountain-top to find salvation."
"God is the only salvation!" replied Noah. "Get into the ark!"
"No!" said Canaan. "Never!"
And then a great wave smashed down upon Canaan, and he drowned.
~ 3. The Child in the Shipwreck ~
"Why are you grieving?" God asked Azrael, Angel of Death.
"Because of the child from the shipwreck," said Azrael. "Remember? I saw a mother and child clinging to a plank. You let me save the mother, but not the child. I'm still grieving."
"Hear what happened next," God replied. "I told the waves to bear the child to an island. A leopardess nursed him. The fairies taught him. But that blessed child grew up to become Nimrod, an unbeliever who curses my name and persecutes my prophet Abraham, casting him into the fire. That's the child for whom you grieve!"
~ 4. Abraham in the Fire ~
There is a living fire that gives life, and a death-dealing fire that brings fear. All believers should burn with the living fire as Abraham did, the son of Azar.
Azar was a maker of idols, but Abraham smashed the idols of the temple with an ax. Abraham spared only the largest idol, putting the ax in the idol's hands.
"Who smashed the idols?" shouted the people.
"Just ask the idol with the ax in its hands!" Abraham replied.
Enraged, King Nimrod threw Abraham into the fire, but with God's help, Abraham did not die in the fire: Abraham lived.
~ 5. The Sound of Joseph's Cup ~
During a famine, Joseph's brothers came to Egypt for relief.
Joseph received them, his face covered with a veil.
As they spoke, Joseph kept striking a cup which resounded mournfully.
Finally, Joseph's brothers could bear it no longer. "What is the meaning of this mournful sound?" they asked.
Joseph struck the cup. "The cup says you had a brother named Joseph."
Again. "It says you threw Joseph into a well."
Again. "You sold him into slavery."
Again. "You told your father his son was dead."
Joseph's brothers all wept and were afraid.
Now they were the ones in the well.
~ 6. Pharaoh and the Newborns ~
Pharaoh's astrologers predicted the night of Moses's conception, and nine months later, Pharaoh summoned the Israelite mothers and their newborns.
"Bring your babes," Pharaoh proclaimed, "and I will give you golden gifts."
Then, when the women came, Pharaoh's soldiers executed every male child.
Moses's mother was more cautious. She didn't go to Pharaoh, and when soldiers came looking for her, she hid Moses in the oven.
"God protect him!" she prayed as she threw Moses into the fire.
The soldiers came, and they did not find the child.
By God's grace, Moses survived the fire: it did not burn him.
~ 7. Moses and Khidr ~
Moses was traveling with Khidr, his teacher.
"Obey," Khidr told Moses, "and be silent."
They saw a child drowning in a river. "Save him!" shouted Moses.
"Be silent," Khidr said, "and obey."
They saw a ship sinking in a lake. "Save them!" shouted Moses.
"You are not being silent," said Khidr. "You are not obeying."
Only later did Khidr explain. "The boy who drowned would have led the world into cataclysmic war if he had lived. The boat was full of pirates who were ready to attack a ship of pilgrims. God is behind it all; be silent, and obey."
~ 8. The Language of Animals ~
A man said to Moses, "Teach me the language of animals!"
"You'll regret it," Moses warned him, but the man insisted.
So Moses taught him.
The man then understood what the animals said.
"Cock-a-doodle-doo! Horse will die today!" shouted the rooster.
So the man sold his horse.
The next morning: "Cock-a-doodle-doo! Slave will die today."
So the man sold his slave.
The next morning, the man was shocked to hear: "Cock-a-doodle-doo! Master will die today."
The man ran to Moses for help. "Save me from this doom!"
"Go sell yourself if you can," said Moses. "There's nothing I can do."
~ 9. Moses and the Bearded Dervish ~
A dervish begged Moses for help. "Please ask God why I can't make spiritual progress despite my endless prayers and deep devotion."
When Moses asked God, God explained, "That dervish is obsessed with his beautiful bushy beard. He even interrupts his prayers to comb his beard. His beard obsession is blocking his progress."
Moses told the dervish what God said, and the dervish immediately began tearing out his beard, wailing.
The angel Gabriel then appeared to Moses. "Look at that poor dervish!" Gabriel scoffed. "While tearing out his beard, he's just as obsessed with it now as he was before."
~ 10. Moses and the Shepherd ~
Moses overheard a shepherd in the desert. "I will darn your socks!" said the shepherd. "I will kiss your hands and rub your feet! I will comb your hair and remove all the lice!"
"Surely you're not speaking to me," Moses called out. "Who are you talking to?"
"To the Creator! God! My beloved!" replied the shepherd.
"You can't talk to God like that," said Moses indignantly.
Ashamed, the faithful shepherd began to weep.
Then God rebuked Moses. "How dare you scoff at this shepherd's devotion? I hear the heart, not the words. Let love's fire burn in every heart!"
~ 11. God Questions Moses ~
"Moses!" God called. "Moses! Why didn't you visit me when I was sick?"
"I don't understand," Moses replied. "You are All-Powerful and All-Perfect! How could you be sick?"
But God didn't answer Moses's question. Instead, God said, "When I was sick, why didn't you ask after me?"
"God, I still don't understand," replied Moses. "How could you be sick?"
"When my servant is sick, then I am sick," God replied. "Why didn't you visit me when I was sick?"
Moses wept and said, "O God, now I understand. I will ask after your servants and visit them in their sickness."
~ 12. Moses Questions God ~
Moses once asked God, "Why do you destroy the life you have brought forth?"
God did not answer the question but only said, "Go sow a field with seed, and then you will know."
Moses sowed, the crop grew, and the ears of wheat waved in the wind. Moses took a sickle and began the harvest.
Then God's voice rang out. "Why do you destroy the life you have brought forth?"
"Because I must separate the straw and grain on the threshing floor," Moses replied.
"If you understand how to do that," replied God, "then know that I do likewise."
~ 13. Moses Seeks Advice from Iblis ~
"Moses!" said God. "I see that you are troubled. Go ask Iblis for advice."
So Moses went to see Iblis, who had once been a heavenly angel but who had rebelled and been cast out.
"God sent me to you for advice," Moses said to Iblis.
"My advice is simple," replied Iblis. "Never say "I" about anything. Set aside all ego. That way you won't become like me. Your vanity and self-pride, your resentment, your envy and your anger are like dragons. Yet instead of subduing them, you pet them and cherish them, and you do so at your peril."
~ 14. Azrael and King Solomon ~
"Save me, King!" shouted Solomon's courtier. "The angel of death looked at me angrily in the marketplace!"
"I cannot save you from Azrael," Solomon replied.
"Command the winds to transport me to India; that way I'll escape."
Solomon commanded the winds; whoooosh... the winds carried the man to India.
The next day, Azrael visited Solomon's court.
"Why did you look upon my courtier so angrily that he fled to India?" Solomon asked.
"I wasn't angry at him," Azrael replied. "I was simply astonished to see him there because I knew he was fated to die later that day in India."
~ 15. The Gnat and King Solomon ~
A gnat came to King Solomon's court with a complaint.
"We gnats beg you for protection from the wind!" shouted the gnat. "He blows us wherever he wants; we are powerless under his sway."
"Let us hear what the wind says about this," said King Solomon. "Wind, I summon you here to face your accuser!"
The wind rushed in, and the gnat flew away.
"Where are you going?" shouted Solomon. "The accused must confront his accuser!"
"The wind is my doom!" the gnat's voice cried faintly from far away. "I cannot breathe when he blows: in his presence, I'm nothing."
~ 16. Jesus and the Jug of Water ~
Jesus and his companion drank from a stream.
"How sweet this water is!" Jesus said.
They filled a jug with water from the stream and continued their journey.
When Jesus felt thirsty, he drank from the jug but immediately spat it out. "I don't understand!" he exclaimed. "It's the same water. Why does it taste bitter?"
The jug itself answered Jesus. "I'm old as earth, made and remade many times, taking many forms; this time my form is that of a jug. I always carry the bitterness of death, and it is death's bitterness you just tasted in my water."
~ 17. Jesus and the Name of God ~
A fool kept begging Jesus for the secret of resurrection. "Teach me the name of God that restores the dead to life!"
But Jesus refused.
"Look! Some bones!" the fool exclaimed. "You can recite the secret name and bring the bones to life."
Jesus prayed, and God brought the bones back to life.
They were a lion's bones, and the raging lion tore the fool to pieces.
"Why don't you eat him?" Jesus asked the lion.
"I ate all I needed in life," said the lion. "I killed this fool not for food, but so others can see and learn."
~ 18. Jesus and the Fool ~
A fool chased Jesus through the wilderness; Jesus fled as though from a lion.
"Why are you fleeing?" shouted the fool.
"I'm fleeing from you, fool!"
"But aren't you Jesus who heals the deaf and the blind?"
"Yes."
"Who brings life to birds made of clay?"
"Yes."
"Then why are you afraid of me?" asked the fool.
"I can heal the sick and I can quicken lifeless matter, but there is nothing I can do for the fools. I have tried to save them, but a fool's heart is hard; it is the sand in which no green can grow."
~ 19. Jesus Went Walking ~
The great teacher Al-Ghazali told this story about Jesus.
Jesus went walking along the road and saw a group of richly dressed people who all looked very sad.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"We are sorrowing because of our fear of Hell," they replied.
Jesus continued walking and saw some more sad-looking people.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"We are anxious that we will not attain Paradise," they replied.
Jesus continued and met a third group of people. Their clothes were humble, but their faces shone with joy.
"Rejoice!" they said. "We have seen the Truth!"
And Jesus rejoiced with those people.
~ 20. The Dreams of the Three Travelers ~
Three men of different faiths traveled together: Jewish, Christian, and Muslim. They begged for food and shared what they received.
One day they received four pieces of halvah.
Each ate one, and one piece was left.
They decided that whoever had the best dream would eat the last piece, and at dawn they reported their dreams.
"Moses led me up Mount Sinai, where fiery angels danced."
"The Messiah led me through the gates of the heavenly city."
"Muhammad came to me and said, 'Moses took the one, and Jesus the other; you can eat the halvah now.' So I did."
~ 21. The Sufi Who Went to Heaven ~
A Sufi dreamed he ascended to heaven.
"Rejoice!" the angels said. "Today is God's birthday!"
Then the Sufi saw a holiday parade. Muhammad rode a white stallion, surrounded by angels and flocks of followers. Then came Krishna on a peacock, also with angels and followers. Next was Jesus. Buddha. Mahavira. So many holy leaders.
Finally there came an old man riding a donkey, all alone.
"Who are you?" the Sufi asked.
"I'm God," he said, "and I'm alone here because my followers follow others."
When he awoke, the Sufi decided to worship God only; he no longer followed any religion.
~ 22. The Bundles of Misery ~
A wretched man prayed, "God, I'm miserable! Let me trade my misery for another's!"
God's voice boomed from the sky. "Everyone, gather your miseries into a bundle and come to the town square."
The wretched man gathered his miseries and was shocked to see people coming to the town square with bundles far bigger than his. Even people he thought prosperous! Even they had huge bundles.
"Put your bundles down," God commanded. "And now, pick any bundle you want."
"Who knows about those other bundles?" the wretched man thought. "This burden I know."
And thus everyone chose their own bundle.
~ 23. The Dervish and the Ship's Captain ~
A dervish was crossing the sea on a ship.
"Someone has stolen my bag of gold!" shrieked one of the ship's passengers, and the captain ordered a search of everyone on board.
Suspicion soon fell on the dervish. "Strip off your clothes!" said the captain.
But the dervish said, "O God, do thy will!"
And from the sea thousands of fishes arose, each bearing a priceless pearl in its mouth.
The dervish grabbed a handful of pearls, cast them on the ship's deck, and then rose up into the air. "Keep your ship!" he proclaimed. "I will go with God!"
~ 24. The Man of Baghdad's Treasure ~
A man of Baghdad heard a voice in a dream. "Go to Cairo to find the treasure!"
He spent every penny on the journey.
Then, with no money for a room, he wandered Cairo's streets.
A patrolman accosted him, and he explained about the dream that brought him to Cairo.
The patrolman laughed. "You can't put stock in dreams!" he said. "I often have a dream about Baghdad where I see treasure buried under a house..."
As the patrolman described the dream, the man of Baghdad recognized his own house!
He hurried back to Baghdad and found the treasure there.
~ 25. The Haunted Mosque ~
The town's mosque was haunted. Anyone seeking shelter there died before dawn.
The townspeople put up a sign: DANGER!
A wandering dervish arrived. "I'll sleep in the mosque," he declared. "I've died in the flames of love already; I fear nothing."
In the night, he heard a dreadful voice.
"Be afraid!" said the voice.
"I fear not!" he replied.
Five times the voice spoke; five times the dervish replied.
The fifth time, gold rained down, filling the mosque.
The dervish worked until dawn hauling out the gold.
"Fear not," said the dervish, and he gave the gold to the townspeople.
~ 26. The Sultan's Seven Years ~
"Plunge your head into this basin of water," said the Sufi to the Sultan.
The Sultan found himself on a seashore.
A beautiful woman approached. "I must marry a shipwrecked man!" she said.
They married and had seven sons, living luxuriously for seven years.
"My wealth is gone," the woman said. "Provide for us!"
So the Sultan became a porter in the marketplace.
One day he bent down to wash his face in a basin of water — and found himself in his old palace.
"Seven years..." muttered the Sultan.
"No," said the Sufi, smiling. "It was only a moment."
~ 27. Turning Lead into Gold ~
A greedy king wanted to turn lead into gold, so he found a teacher who could do this.
"If you too want this power," said the teacher, "you must spend twelve years with me in the forest as my disciple."
Greedy for gold, the king agreed.
Together with the teacher's other disciples, the king endured pain and discomfort year after year.
After twelve years, the teacher taught him the mantra for turning metal into gold and rocks into jewels.
But the king now realized that such wealth meant nothing.
He chose instead to remain in the forest with his teacher.
~ 28. The Water of Old ~
"Store water now," warned Khidr. "New water is coming that will drive you mad."
Only one man followed Khidr's advice.
The rivers, lakes, and oceans dried up. Then rains fell: rains of new water.
People drank the new water, and they lost their minds.
Meanwhile, the one man kept drinking the old water.
He knew everyone was mad, but they said he was mad. He remembered what had happened; they said he was imagining things.
Finally, he too drank the new water.
He also lost his mind, and he no longer remembered where he had stored the water of old.
~ 29. The Stream in the Desert ~
A mountain stream flowed down into the desert.
There, the stream saw the wind crossing the desert. "I too want to cross over!" shouted the stream.
"Let the wind absorb you," advised the sand. "The wind will take you to the ocean."
"But I'm a stream! I don't want to be absorbed by the wind, and I've never heard of this ocean you speak of."
"Trust me," said the sand. "I know. I myself stretch to the ocean."
So the stream released itself into the arms of the wind, and later, the stream fell into the ocean, drop by drop.
~ 30. The Bread and the Ocean ~
An old man went on a long ocean voyage.
After a while, the only food he had left was a crust of bread, so stale and hard that he couldn't eat it. The old man was hungry, but the bread was no good to him, so he threw it into the water.
A wave swept the bread away and said to it, "Who are you?"
"I'm just a hard, dry crust of bread that nobody even wants," the bread replied.
"Stay with us here and get soaked," said the wave. "Then we shall all be part of the ocean together."
~ 31. Qays and Layla in Love ~
A boy named Qays and a girl named Layla once fell completely in love.
Layla could see only Qays, and Qays could see only Layla; there was no one else.
When the teacher asked Qays to recite aloud, he repeated "Layla Layla Layla." That was all he could see.
When the teacher dictated, Layla wrote "Qays Qays Qays," covering her slate with his name. That was all she could hear.
Qays later became known as Majnun - "madman" - because of his love for Layla.
For the lovers, there is nothing but their beloved in the world.
The beloved is their world.
~ 32. Majnun and Layla's Dog ~
Qays loved Layla, and she loved him.
But the greatness of Qays' love made him act strangely, and people started calling him "madman" - Majnun.
Majnun's parents begged Layla's family to let them marry.
Layla's parents agreed, provided Majnun wasn't really mad.
When they went to visit Layla's family, her little dog ran out to greet them.
Seeing her dog, Majnun was overcome with emotion. "This is Layla's dog!" he thought. He fell to the ground, kissing the dog's feet. "My love, my love!" he groaned.
"He really is Majnun!" shouted Layla's parents, and they promised her in marriage to another.
~ 33. Majnun and Layla's Beauty ~
When the people heard Majnun raving about Layla's beauty, they laughed.
"She's attractive, to be sure," they said, "but there are thousands of ravishing women in the city who are far more beautiful than she is."
"You understand nothing," Majnun replied. "The outward form is just the pitcher. God has poured wine for me from that pitcher, and I am drunk on her beauty. For you, he pours forth nothing but vinegar. God can pour forth honey or poison from the same pitcher. You can see the pitcher from the outside, but you do not know what is hidden inside."
~ 34. Majnun's Eyes ~
Majnun was completely devoted to Layla, but Layla's parents were alarmed by Majnun's strange behavior, so they arranged for her to marry someone else.
Thus separated from his beloved Layla, Majnun fell into despair. His behavior grew more and more bizarre.
Majnun's family tried to help, but they could find no cure for his lovesickness.
"Layla is not even all that beautiful!" his friends and relatives told him. "We can find someone for you who is even more beautiful than Layla."
"You understand nothing," Majnun replied. "To see the beauty of Layla, you must see with the eyes of Majnun."
~ 35. Majnun and the Letter-Carrier ~
Majnun loved Layla, and she loved him, but her parents arranged for her to marry someone else who lived in a city that was a hundred miles away.
Majnun sought out the letter-carrier. "I need you to take a message to Layla."
The letter-carrier agreed, and Majnun walked alongside him, dictating his message of love.
He walked ten miles, speaking only of Layla.
"Will your message never end?" the letter-carrier asked.
Majnun didn't stop.
Ten miles.
Another ten miles.
Majnun walked a hundred miles speaking only of Layla.
He did not need the letter-carrier after all: Majnun himself had come.
~ 36. Majnun and the Shepherd ~
Majnun followed his beloved Layla's caravan into the desert, but her parents wouldn't let him near her.
Mad with love, he persuaded a shepherd to loan him a sheepskin. "Disguised as a sheep, I will join your flock and when you lead your flock past Layla's tent, I might catch the scent of her perfume."
But when they reached Layla's tent and Majnun smelled Layla's perfume, he fainted.
The shepherd had to carry the unconscious Majnun back out into the desert.
The shepherd then threw water on Majnun's face, reviving him, but the water could not cool his burning love.
~ 37. Majnun and the Caravan ~
As Majnun roamed the desert, grieving because of his separation from Layla, he chanced upon a caravan.
The merchants invited him to sit by their campfire, having heard of this strange madman and of his love for Layla.
"Surely the time has come to set this love aside," one of the merchants said to Majnun. "You could go back to your old life, and everyone would praise you for making a wise choice."
"I don't want everyone's praise!" Majnun shouted. "I refuse such praise! An insult from Layla is worth more to me than a thousand compliments from anyone else."
~ 38. Majnun's Feet ~
Majnun had made a long journey to the city where his beloved Layla lived with her husband. He knew that this was her city, but he did not know where exactly she lived.
North? South? East? West?
Layla could be anywhere.
Everywhere.
"It would be rude for me to sleep with my feet stretched in her direction," Majnun thought to himself.
He tried to sleep standing up, but he was afraid he might fall down in his sleep.
"I need to tie my feet with a rope and suspend myself from a beam," Majnun decided, and so he did.
Madman.
~ 39. Majnun among the Beggars ~
Knowing Majnun had come to see her and was living among the beggars, Layla sent her maid with baskets of food to give him.
But another beggar, greedy for food, said, "I'm Majnun!"
He ate the food, and Majnun said nothing.
The beggar grew fat on Layla's gifts, day after day.
Majnun said nothing.
The maid told Layla that Majnun thanked her kindly. "He's starting to get quite fat," she added.
"That doesn't sound like Majnun!" Layla said.
Then the maid told her about the silent one. "He is sad, and never speaks."
"That one is my Majnun!" Layla cried.
~ 40. Majnun's Blood ~
Layla needed her maid to find Majnun among the beggars, so she devised a test.
"Take this knife and tell them: Layla is ill, and Majnun's blood is the only medicine that can cure her."
Seeing the knife, Majnun didn't hesitate. "Blood means nothing; I would give my life for her."
But when he went to cut himself, not even a drop of blood came out. He had starved himself so long that he was only skin and bone.
Finally, he was able to draw forth a single drop.
"That's all I have left," he said. "It is for her."
~ 41. Majnun and the Tree ~
Layla's husband took her away to escape Majnun.
"I'll come back to you, Majnun!" she promised.
Majnun waited, standing propped against a tree. His hands clutched the branches; they became branches. His body became the tree.
"That tree is haunted!" people said. "It keeps saying Laaay-laaa."
When Layla returned, she learned of the ghost in the tree and realized it must be Majnun. She ran to the tree.
"I'm Layla!" she cried.
Majnun's voice echoed, "I'm Layla!"
"No, I'm Layla," she said.
"You are Layla?" he said. "Then I am ... not."
And he died.
"Majnun!" Layla cried.
And she died.
~ 42. The Beggar and the King ~
A beggar fell at the king's feet, professing his love.
"For daring to love me," said the king, "you must choose: beheading or exile."
"O beloved king," replied the beggar, weeping, "I will go into exile."
But the king ordered the guards to behead him.
Later, in private, the king's minister asked, "Why did you execute that beggar?"
"Because he wasn't a true lover," replied the king. "If he truly loved me, he would have chosen death, and then I would have spared him and become his dervish. But he loved his head better; he didn't love me at all."
~ 43. Knocking at the Door ~
A lover came to the house of the beloved and knocked on the door.
"Who is it?" asked the beloved.
"It is me," replied the lover.
"Go away!"' said the beloved. "This house does not have room for a you and a me."
The lover went away into the wilderness to ponder these words. What did this mean? Love had pulled the lover to the house, and love continued to pull the lover to the house.
The lover went back and knocked again.
"Who is it?" asked the beloved.
"It is you," replied the lover.
The door opened at once.
~ 44. The Man without a Key ~
"Help!" a man shouted. "Has anyone found a key lying in the road? This is my house, this is my door, but I have lost my key."
A wandering Sufi walked towards him.
"Do you have my key?" the man asked eagerly.
"No, I don't have your key," said the Sufi. "But don't worry. Just stay here near the door, even though it's shut. Be patient, and someone will open the door for you. You are lucky: I do not have a door or a key. I pray to God that I might find my own door, open or shut!"
~ 45. The Traveler and the Teacher ~
A wealthy man had traveled far to meet a famous teacher. He had studied the teacher's words; now they would meet in person.
He reached the teacher's door and knocked.
"Come in!" said a friendly voice.
When he entered the room, he saw the teacher sitting on the floor, and there wasn't any furniture.
"But where is the furniture?" asked the traveler.
"Where is yours?" the teacher replied.
"I'm just a visitor here. It wouldn't make sense to try to carry furniture with me."
"In this world we're all just visitors," replied the teacher. "We're here, and then, we're gone."
~ 46. The Palace with One Door ~
Fearing his enemies, a mighty king built his palace without windows. There was one door only, guarded by a thousand soldiers.
Then one day, the king took a walk.
A Sufi by the roadside laughed at him.
"Why are you laughing?" asked the king angrily.
"The door is still open to your enemies," said the Sufi. "You need to brick it in."
"The palace would then be a tomb!" protested the king.
"So it is already," replied the Sufi. "Eliminating doors and windows, you eliminated life. Widen the doors! Widen them until the walls are no more. That is life!"
~ 47. The King's New Palace ~
A king had built the most splendid palace in the world, and he celebrated with a splendid feast.
The king then asked his quests, "What do you think of my new palace?"
Everyone praised the king's great achievement, but then a lone sage spoke forth. "Were it not for one flaw, O King, this palace could be a paradise on earth!"
"What flaw?" shouted the king in anger. "I see no flaw!"
"I'm referring to the door through which Azrael, the Angel of Death, will enter," replied the sage. "With all your wealth and power, you cannot close that door."
~ 48. The Boy and his Candle ~
A wandering Sufi saw a little boy bringing a candle to the mosque.
The Sufi decided to tease the boy, asking, "Did you light the candle yourself?"
The little boy nodded.
"And what is the source of the light?" the Sufi asked.
"I don't understand," replied the boy.
"It was dark, and then it was light," said the Sufi. "Where did the light come from?"
Smiling, the boy blew out his candle. "It was light, and now it is dark," said the boy. "Where did the light go?"
Thus in the end the wise little boy had humbled the Sufi.
~ 49. The Faithful Man's Shadow ~
A man worshiped God constantly. He danced, and he sang God's praises. Every step, every breath, all was for God. He cared nothing for himself; he cared only for God.
God wanted to reward this faithful man. "Ask for anything!" God said.
"I have everything," the man replied.
"Ask not for yourself," God suggested.
"On one condition," said the man.
"Name it," God replied.
"Let my shadow behind me work miracles, so I neither see it nor know it. My shadow, not me. That way I will not fall into the trap of ego from which love has freed me."
~ 50. The Sufi and the Gravedigger ~
A Sufi wandered one day into the cemetery and saw an old gravedigger working there.
"Old man," the Sufi said to him, "may I ask you a question?"
The gravedigger looked up from his work. "Of course," he said. "Ask!"
"In the many years you have spent here in the cemetery digging graves, have you ever witnessed a miracle?"
The gravedigger laughed. "The only miracle I've witnessed is this: every day the dead come here and I bury them, but I still can't master my own desires. People die every day, but the dog of desire inside me never dies."