Aslam

The great saint Ihya-b-Muaz said: Ikhlas or sincerity separates an action from its faults as milk separates itself from urine and blood. There is a story that a man used to wear the dress of women and join the ceremonies of marriage and other festivals where women gathered together. One day he just joined a gathering of some women. It was then noticed that a diamond of a woman was missing and the women raised hue and cry and said : Shut up the doors. We shall search for the diamond. Thereafter they began to search one by one. When the turn of the female-dressed man came, there was a woman with him. He called Allah sincerely and said : I will never do such an act if I get acquitted this time. Immediately then the diamond was found with the woman who was with him. They then cried aloud : Leave the rest. We have found out the diamond.

There is the story of a saint who said: I was travelling by sea for Jihad or holy war. Some one of us wanted to sell his bag and I thought that I should purchase this bag and sell it for a higher price in a city. Then I purchased it but dreamt in that night that two persons got down from heaven and one of them said to the other : Write down the names of the warriors in the way of Allah. The other said : So and so came out only to take a journey. So and so made jihad only for fame. So and so came to make merchandise. So and so came out only for the sake of Allah. I at once exclaimed : O Allah, I have not come out to make merchandise. I have got no such commodities, I have come out for Jihad. Then the other person retorted : O man, you intended to make profit after purchasing a bag yesterday. Thereafter I wept bitterly and said : Don't enroll me among the merchants. The man said to his companion : Write, so and so came out as a warrior in the way of Allah. Then he purchased a bag for profit. The result then rests oh Allah.

The saint Sarri Sakti said: Your two rakat prayer in solitude is better than your writing 70 to 700 Hadis with Isnad. Some pious man said : Wisdom is like seed, action is like crop and Ikhlas or sincerity is like water for irrigation. Another pious man said : When God becomes displeased with a man, He grants him three things and prohibits him three things. He grants him the

328 WILL OR INTENTION VoI-IV

company of pious men but does not give him benefits from them. He grants him strength to do good deeds but without sincere intentions. He grants him wisdom but without its practical application. The great saint Susi said : Among the actions of a man, Allah desires only his Ikhlas or sincerity.