Renunciation Is In The Mind

Tuesday, November 3, 2009, 14:36

Renunciation is in one's mine.

Ibrahim Adham was a king before he became a great sufi and travelled with a huge retinue and riches . His tents were pitched with golden pegs.

A Dervish who passed by was taken aback by the display of luxury and approached the Sufi in his tent with his begging bowl. He then asked the Sufi as to how he could live in luxury while calling himself a Sufi.

The Sufi invited the Dervish for a pilgrimage to Mecca. The Dervish readily agreed to the proposal. After having covered a considerable distance, the Dervish suddenly remembered the begging bowl that he had left behind in the tent and wanted to turn back to fetch it.

The Sufi pointed out, "This is the difference between the two of us. When I had left behind all my riches, you are unable to part with your small begging bowl. The golden pegs driven into the earth that really surprised you were not actually driven into my heart!"

One cannot be judged by one's external activities. Its actually one's mental state and outlook that has to be taken into consideration. An enlightened man though to be amidst riches lives without the slightest attachment to it, where as an ignorant man with egoism is deluded by his attachment to material things.
Hence an enlightened man is beyond comparison as his mind has merged with God.