Yanya, son of Iskander, says:
I sat all evenings in the house of Sufi Anwar Ali Jan. People brought him gifts, which he exchanged for food, which was served before the evening meditation. He would sit in the corner, not allowing anyone to sit next to him, and eat from his bowl with his hand. Many of those who came to him said: “This man is arrogant and unkind, since he separates himself from his guests.”
Evening after evening I sat closer and closer until I could see that his bowl, although he made movements with his hand, was empty.
Unable to contain my curiosity, I asked him:
“What is the reason for your strange act: why pretend that you eat when you do not eat, and why do you allow people to think that you are arrogant, when in fact you are modest and moderate in food, O best of people?”
He answered:
- Since I am judged by external things, let them think that I lack modesty, rather than attribute to me virtues that I do not have. There is no greater sin than giving a person credit for his appearance or other manifestations. To do so is to insult the inner virtues by imagining that they cannot be felt. Superficial people will always judge by superficial things: at least they will not defile what is inside.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru