Once there was a slave called Asif who served king Suleiman with great devotion. Fiercely loyal, Asif carried out his duties with full sincerity. Though Asif was a slave, he himself was a highly eveolved person. Free from all anger, resentment and greed, he was very content with his life. Asif enjoyed the 'freedom' that this slavery gave him. King Suleiman, very noble and wise, saw through Asif's exterior and knew that he was a noble soul.
Sometimes, King Suleiman used to disguise himself as a slave and make Asif his master and travel around the city to see how his subjects were doing. He always enoyed Asif's company and never ate anything before Asif first tasting it.
One day King Suleiman received as basket of melons from the Amir of Ghazni. They were reputed to be the sweetest melons in the world. King Suleiman loved melons and he immeditaely ordered for Asif to come by. King Suleiman himself cut the first slice and offered to Asif. Asif took the slice and gracefully bit into it and in no time, he finished the slice. When King Suleiman saw how much Asif had enjoyed the first slice, he offered him another one. Asif ate the second slice with such relish, slurping the juice that everyone in the room craved a slice of the melon. King Suleiman was happy that Asif like it and he gave him more and more slices till the time only one slice was left.
With great pleasure, King Suleiman took a bite of the last slice of the delicious looking melon, but even before he could chew, his mouth was on fire. The melon was so bitter that King suleiman's tongue was blistered and his throat burned. He had to run to the garden to spit it out.
It took King Suleiman one hour to regain his composure. He asked Asif, " My Dear, how could you eat such a bitter melon again and again and smile at me with such satisfaction? All i saw was pure joy on your face. Why did you not complain?
Asif replied, " From you, O Generous Master, I have recieved such bountiful gifts all my life. How can i complain about one bitter thing?"
"But how could you keep enduring this bitterness slice after slice", asked King Suleiman.
" With Love and faith, O Master. The reason for my whole existence is your benovelence. How could i complain about one instance of being served inedible food?"
The END
Discussion Points
The slave relationship between Asif and Suleiman in this story is a metaphor for the relationship of man with GOD
2. This story depicts the idea of karma yoga in a very beautiful way. Through his whole hearted serving of Sulaiman, Asif has reached a stage where even the bitter food does not alter his state of contentment
3. The story tries to bring it out that even in the worst of conditions, we can attain the best of human qualities. Although Asif was a slave, which is considered to be a very sorry state for a human being, he has elevated himself where he was free from anger or frustration and had attained that freedom which is beyond any physical dependence. He was not swayed by the external surroundings/ circumstances.
4. The story also brings out the kind heartedness of his king who seeing that his slave is enjoying the melon, chose to give him as much as he could so that his slave could enjoy it. His behavior is a good example of how one should be treating their juniors
4: Our life on earth is the greatest gift from GOD which we should be cherishing each and every moment. Yes, sometimes we’ll get a tasty or not so tasty food but that does not mean we should be making a big fuss about it. Each and every thing which we have is a blessing and if we are able to experience the world with good health, that in itself is a blessing.
STORY CREDIT: This story has its source in the six volumes of Masnavi by Jalalu'din Rumi, translated by Maryam Mafi
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