Darveshi vs Kingdom

Ibrahim Adham was the king of Balakh and was ruling with great pomp and show. He loved God but his activities kept him so engrossed in wordly affairs that he could hardly find any time for meditation.

One night he woke up suddenly and noticed that someone was walking on the roof. He went upstairs and questioned the man, ‘Who are you and what are you doing at this hour ?’ He replied, I am your friend and here I am searching for my lost camel.’ Ibrahim said, ‘How is it possible that a camel should climb the roof of our palace?’ The man replied, ‘How is it possible that with all the comforts of the kingdom, you hope to meet the Lord?’ The reply made him shiver a while.

The next day, he was sitting on his throne. A man straight away entered the court. His personality was such that none could dare to stop him. The king was surprised too. He asked, Who are you and how you came here? He replied, ‘I want to stay in this inn.’ The king said, ‘This is not an inn, this is a royal palace.’ The man questioned, Please tell me who lived here before you. The king said, My father. The man asked who lived before your father? The king replied, My grand father. Likewise after counting several generations, the man asked the king, Please tell me, who will live here after you? The king replied, My children. The man concluded and told the king, Just think where so many people come and leave, is that place not an inn? Saying this he went out. After the incident of the last night, this incident added fuel to the fire. He all alone ran after the man and asked him? Who are you? He replied, ‘Khijir’.(A godly person who shows way to the waywards). Hearing this, his pain increased all the more and he became restless. Finally he made up his mind and forsake his kingdom and started treading the path of God Realisation. After several years of meditation, he became a Darvesh.

When once a Darvesh was complaining about his poor financial condition, Ibrahim remarked, It seems that you have attained the status of Darvesh free of cost. The Darvesh asked, ‘Can it be purchased?’ He replied, Yes, I have got Darveshi in place of the kingdom of Balakh. And I feel that I got it very cheap.