Guest guest Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 THE FALSE TEACHER There was a Teacher, a great deceiver , whose guile Could even tie sailor's knots on pools of water . Outwardly he was a pious eloquent priest, Inwardly,he had the guile of a bird catcher. Some wndering Sufis asked him to expound On the various deceits of the `phantom ego' Enquiring " what secret selfish interests Does it mingle with in our practice and devotion? " They were not looking for outward signs of piety Nor any strange freakish observable defects. But hair by hair ,bit by bit, they sniffed out his guile , Plain as the difference between a nettle and a rose. Even the very many fault finders amongst Islam Have been upset by Mohammed's condemnation Of misguided pedagogues and pundits. How seductive is the vain gullibility of man . Oh Lord, there are numerous snares and baits We are as greedy as ravenous scavenging gulls . From moment to moment we are trapped anew, " Though by your Grace we become, in the end, Like the simurgh or the fabled phoenix bird. From Some Versifications of the Mathnawi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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