A peasant tied his cow in the stable, in its place;
A lion ate his cow, and sat there with grace.
The peasant went to the stable, seeking his cow;
Groping in the night, he got there somehow.
He was patting the body of the lion thereof;
Its back and its side, below and above.
“If he has more light, his gallbladder would burst,
And his heart would melt,” the lion thought at first.
“He’s stroking me like this? Isn’t he bold?
He thinks that I am his cow in his hold.”
God says, “You fool, where is your shame?
Did not the mount collapse at My Name?
Had We sent down a book on a mountain, you would see;
That the rocks divide, shatter, and then flee.
If Mount Uhud had been acquainted with Me,
Rivers of blood would have gushed from its knee.
So heedless you are from a truth so deep,
You’ve heard it from your parents, so you take it so cheap.
If this knowledge of yours were without imitation,
You would be an angel, free of limitation.”
[poem recited by Sayyid Hashim Haddad (on left in picture) at his first meeting with his disciple Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Husayni Tihrani (on right), trans. by Tawus Raja in Liberated Soul]
The Prophet ﷺ was reportedly asked: “Which of our companions are best?” He replied: “One whose appearance reminds you of God, and whose speech increases you in knowledge, and whose actions remind you of the hereafter.”
A Mercy Case 