Ghulám Yahyá is well known to students. He was a great scholar, excelling in philosophy and logic. In fact his kitáb has been, and still is, taught as a standard textbook. He presented himself at the residence of a very well-known sheikh, Mirzá Ján-jánah رحمة الله عليه. The doorman went inside to obtain permission for him to enter. Nobody was allowed to enter without permission. The appointment of a doorman was a common practice with the Naqshbandí mashá’ikh of old.
When permission had been obtained, Ghulám Yahyá entered and greeted: “Assalámo-alaikum.” Mirzá Ján-jánah رحمة الله عليه replied: “Wa-alaikum-salám”. But as he lifted his head and his eyes fell on Ghulám Yahyá, he quickly covered his face with his one arm and shooed Ghulám Yahyá away with the other hand, saying: “There is no place here for a bear!” Quite perplexed, Ghulám Yahyá left the room.
In actual fact, that one glance by Mirzá Ján-jánah was sufficient to size up Ghulám Yahyá. The reason for calling him a bear was that he had a big, thick beard which was unkempt and disorderly. Being an ’álim, a molvísáhib, the condition of his beard betrayed a streak of disorderliness in his personality. Once outside Ghulám Yahyá paused to ponder over Mirzá Ján-jánah’s رحمة الله عليه reaction. “It must be my beard,” he surmised correctly. Straightaway he went to a nearby barber to have it trimmed. When he presented himself again, beard neatly shaped and combed, the response was completely different. Mirzá Ján-jánah رحمة الله عليهwelcomed him happily, asked him to be seated and complimented him: “Má-shá-Alláh! You now look like a human being!”
Did you notice how quick the “interview” was? Just a glance and the “interview” was over. Each person is judged according to the rank he wishes to attain. In our worldly affairs, a candidate applying for the governmental position of Collector will be interviewed with regard to qualities desired in such a person. Is he strong willed? Is he firm and dependable? And so forth, and so forth.
Here is another way a sheikh may “interview” a candidate: provide him with a cup of tea. If he drinks audibly, slurping his tea, he has failed. Our Díní teaching is that water (or any liquid) should not be drunk in a noisy fashion – animals drink that way! When eating, chew silently.
For Friends Vol 1 Pg 45
