The Fable
"Hasan, who was your master?" somebody asked the great Sufi mystic as he was dying.
Hasan gave a surprising answer. He said he had thousands of masters and there was no time to speak about all of them. So he would give three examples:
One master was a thief.
One night Hasan got lost in the desert and when he finally reached a village, everything was closed. Then he spotted a man trying to make a hole in the wall of a house. Hasan asked where he could stay. The man replied: "It is not easy to find a place at this time of night but you can stay with me - if you don't mind staying with a thief."
Hasan stayed with him for one month, struck by the beauty of the thief who never gave up hope. Every morning he came back from ‘work' empty handed but he was never sad or frustrated. He would say, "I tried my best and could not find anything today. But tomorrow I will try again. And, God willing, what did not happen today will happen tomorrow."
During the following years that Hasan meditated he would get frustrated because nothing was happening. He often wanted to give up out of desperation. Then he would remember the thief who always trusted in existence and it would give Hasan courage to continue his practice.
His second master was a dog.
Hasan was thirsty and went to the river. There he saw a dog who was also thirsty. This dog was afraid to drink because he saw his own reflection in the water and thought another dog was there. He barked at his reflection and ran away but he kept coming back, driven by thirst. In the end, the dog just jumped into the water, despite his fears, and the image disappeared. Hasan learnt from the dog that one must jump, even if one is afraid. He saw the dog as a messenger from God.
Hasan's third master was a small child.
He came across the child carrying a lit candle to the mosque. Hasan was in a playful mood and asked the child if he had lit the candle himself. The child said yes. Hasan probed further: "There was a moment when the candle was unlit and then there was a moment when the candle was lit. Can you show me the source of the light?"
The boy laughed, blew out the candle and said: "You have seen the light go. Can you tell me where it has gone? If you can tell me where it has gone I will tell you from where it has come, because it has gone to the same place. It has returned to the source."
And then Hasan learnt that everything returns to its source finally. And as he was dying this thought comforted him. He said to his disciples, "Since that time I have been meditating on nothingness and slowly slowly I have entered into nothingness. And now the final moment has come when the candle will go out. And I know where I am going - to the same source."
Understanding the Fable
Hasan accepted the whole of existence as his master and allowed himself to learn from every experience. His attitude was one of openness. He trusted each moment in his life and made himself humble to everyone and everything, including a thief, a dog and a child with a candle. He saw the world filled with signs from the Beloved everywhere.
Hasan learnt that no situation is without a lesson. Though the lesson may not be available on the surface - who would have thought one could learn from a thief? - you have to be watchful, you have to look at all aspects of a situation.
Even in today's world, we have the opportunity to learn from every person, thing and event. Many times we react to life based on past conditioning or we approach a situation with preconceived notions and because of our experiences, we feel we know the answer already. Hasan's gift was to respond freshly to life, to be spontaneous and receptive.
Working With This Story In Our Lives
In her book, Singing the Soul Back Home; Shamanic Wisdom For Everyday, Celtic shaman Caitlin Matthews encourages us to learn from every experience in life and to acknowledge influences that may not look obviously spiritual.
In a practice called Mapping Your Spiritual Journey, Caitlin suggests taking a large piece of paper to draw the journey of your life, noting where Spirit has inspired you and touched your life. The idea is to include inspiring people, insights, music etc.
"These events, influences or experiences may not be specifically religious or conventionally mystical: if Mickey Mouse has changed your life, if watching a tree cut down has altered your spiritual perceptions, then include it on your map."
When I draw my own map, I notice how much nature is a teacher for me. From the beach I learn how to rest and be, and from the ocean I remember that life, like waves, ebbs and flows, one moment calm, in anther moment, life is like crashing waves and I believe I must remember to stay calm.
From the wind I learn how to listen. From the mountains looming behind my grandmother's house, I learn constancy. From the voices of tropical birds at dawn, I learn prayer and from their swooping, soaring flight, I learn freedom.
When I was eight years old and sick in bed with mumps. For two weeks I watched ants carrying minute crumbs back and forth. Humbly and tirelessly they did their work. I admired their patience and dedication to the same routined job, carrying those crumbs all day long.
At first I was frustrated to be ill and felt rather sorry for myself but that misfortune only masked a secret blessing. To have the time to watch the work of those small insects and learn that with an ant's attitude I could accomplish whatever task I wished.