“What Will People Say”
One night, Mawlana Jalaluddin Rumi (RA) invited his teacher, Hazrat Shamsuddin Tabrizi (RA), to his home.
When Shams (RA) arrived and all the dishes were prepared, he said to Rumi (RA):
“Can you bring me some wine to drink?”
Rumi (RA) was shocked:
“Does my teacher also drink wine?”
Shams (RA) replied:
“Yes, of course.”.
Rumi (RA) said:
“Please forgive me, I did not know this.”
Shams (RA) said:
“Now you know, so bring me some wine.”
Rumi (RA) answered:
“But at this late hour, where can I get it from?”
Shams (RA) said:
“Send one of your servants.”
Rumi (RA) replied:
“My honor will be destroyed in front of my servants.”
Shams (RA) then said:
“Then go yourself and bring it.”
Rumi (RA) hesitated:
“The whole city knows me—how can I go and buy wine?”
Shams (RA) insisted:
“If you are truly my student, then do as I say. Otherwise, tonight I will neither eat, nor speak, nor sleep.”
Out of love and obedience for his teacher, Rumi (RA) wrapped a cloak around himself, hid a bottle under it, and set out towards the Christian quarter. On the way, no one noticed anything unusual. But as soon as he entered the Christian area, people grew curious and began to follow him.
Everyone saw Rumi (RA) enter the wine shop and come out with a bottle hidden under his cloak. More people gathered behind him as he walked back, following him all the way to the mosque.
At the mosque gate, a man shouted:
“O people! Your Imam, Sheikh Jalaluddin Rumi (RA), has just come back from the Christian quarter with wine!”
He pulled away Rumi’s cloak, and the bottle was revealed before everyone.
The crowd, enraged, spat on Rumi (RA), struck him, and even knocked off his turban.
Rumi (RA) remained silent and offered no defense.
The people became even more convinced that he had deceived them. They beat him further, and some even considered killing him.
At that very moment, Shams Tabrizi (RA) raised his voice:
“O shameless people! You have accused a great scholar and jurist of drinking wine. Know this—inside that bottle is not wine, but vinegar!”
Someone protested:
“But I saw with my own eyes that he brought it from the wine shop!”
Shams (RA) opened the bottle and poured a few drops onto people’s hands so they could smell it. To their amazement, it was indeed vinegar.
In truth, Shams (RA) had gone earlier to the wine shop and instructed the shopkeeper:
“If Rumi comes to buy, give him vinegar instead of wine.”
Now the people beat their chests in regret. Ashamed, they fell at Rumi’s feet, begged forgiveness, and kissed his hands, before slowly dispersing.
Rumi (RA) then said to Shams (RA):
“Today you put me through such a great trial—my honor and dignity were dragged into the dust before my disciples. What was the meaning of all this?”
Shams (RA) replied:
**“So that you may understand that worldly respect and reputation are nothing but an illusion. Do you think people’s honor lasts forever? You yourself witnessed it—over just one bottle, they turned against you, spat on you, struck you, and nearly killed you. Such is the respect in which you took pride—gone in a single moment.
From now on, never rely on people’s respect. True honor is only with Allah—the honor that neither fades with time nor perishes. He alone knows who is truly honorable and who merely seeks false honor. Therefore, fix your gaze only upon Allah.”**
Lesson:
Worldly honor and people’s opinions change in an instant. The only true and lasting honor is the one that Allah Almighty grants.
