Category: Words of Wisdom

For Shaykh Muhyiddin Ansari, it was very important not to break anyone’s heart, as it should be for all Sufis. Sufis should be able to get along with everyone. When Muhyiddin Baba was with children, he acted as a child. When he was with adults, he acted as an adult. He went along with the mentality of the person with whom he happened to be keeping company.

One day, a friend of his invited him to go on a treasure hunt. He thought that since Muhyiddin Baba was a shaykh, he would be able to help find the treasure with his special powers. Shaykh Muhyiddin consented to go and took one of his young dervishes along.

While they were digging here and there, the young dervish thought, “Why is my shaykh looking for treasure?”

The shaykh was able to read the dervish’s thoughts and said, “My Son, I don’t do this to get rich. Come here, son, let me show you something.” He grabbed a handful of earth and said, “Be gold.” The dirt instantly became a handful of gold.

Shaykh Muhyiddin said, “If I want, I can do this. But I will not. I came here only because I didn’t want to break my friend’s heart. If I want, I can turn anything to gold, just like that. But we obey Allah’s decrees. We don’t try to override them. We want to be natural, simple, and to not do anything against the laws of nature.”