If you must fool someone, let him be you!

“I have always been a man who believes in Karma. I also believe that what we concealed in our minds more often determine how we reap from our deeds.”

I read of a deceptive beggar while in Modrasah years ago. There was a man who was honest and poor and earned decent living. There was another man who was lazy, dishonest and earns his living by begging, while pretending to be blind. He had an injury in one eye and crookedly used it to appeal to people's empathy. People responded in kind by giving him money regularly. Unknown to many the man was not really blind. What he had was an old injury which left an ugly scar on the left eyes. He managed to dress the eyes such that it looks fresh with pus ever coming out of it... So this beggar has turned the act into vocation and is now rich. Yet, he continues to go round the town acting like a poor beggar.

On the other side is the man who knew all about the grand pretension. He tried variously to alert people of the sham but nobody paid attention to him. He finally decided to take law into his hands. He will blind the second eye, with stone when next he has the chance to do so. Every time he sees the blind man, he boils inside.

His chance finally came, unfortunately, there was no stone in sight; at least, not the kind he wanted. The only thing that can do the job is his last gold coin. He planned to hit the beggar in the eyes and then pick up the gold while the beggar struggles to tend to his wound. Plan hatched, he set u to execute his deadly mission.  He hauled the metal at his unsuspecting victim. By strange act of providence, the precious metal landed inside the beggar's bowl. The beggar, oblivious of what happened simply said...''May God rewards you abundantly.''

Someone who witnessed this scene then went to a sage and asked: what kinds of reward will God bestows the man knowing that his mission was to hurt and blind the beggar?'' The saint smiled and said...''God will reward them according to their intentions!''

The story was told to me in my primary school and had shaped one of the core personal creeds ingrained inside of me. It has indeed, opened my eyes and heart to many things.

For instance, I have been able to establish that majority of the so called men of God and their followers are not going to houses of worship for the love of the religion or God or their fellow men, but out of fear. The common denomination is ''salvation,'' ''paradise,'' ''hell fire,'' ''suffering,'' ''prosperity,'' ''deliverance,'' etc. Most go there not to serve God but either out of fear or out of selfishness. Little wonder why religion leaders are smiling to the banks while their followers are hoping to reap their own fortune in hereafter.

It is sad that most can’t do you an act of goodness if you don’t belong to them and without seeking anything in return from God or the clergies. Only few have such purity and they are not making noise about it just as they may not even be considered ''religious''.

I think it is tragedy of faith for people to believe in something because of the reward they hope to gain. No wonder, the world is in crisis because some people are desperate to escape the suffering of the world (which they created anyway) and go to paradise. Now some people are using this as excuse to doubt God and the creator itself. I don’t blame them, I casts my blame on those godly fools who think they are deceiving God so that they can go to heaven. God will not reward but according to what your heart concealed and of course, not according to folly. That is why He sent many people to teach and to enlighten mankind on the truth. It is up to us to pick which ever appeal to us.

Similarly, I found this in politics, business and even at work. People tend to do things because of the gains the hope to reap, or fear of not doing it, and not because they love the people they are doing it to/for.  I have seen people who are so good to their employers only to work against him behind him and while the hapless man is praising them, they are milking him dry somewhere.  Politicians compete with one another cooking inconceivable promises they know will never happen and of course, many people love the taste and so willingly consume them.

Above all, I marvel at the people who cook up one act of deception or the other and wrap it around their good faces and reputation to deceive or fool others. It seems to me that most people cannot get things done without following someone or hurting someone. The irony is that the onlookers more often treat these people are heroes and as gave them credit which they do not deserve. Yet, there are those well intentioned ones who are not given chances and those who do little with highest intention and motivation. All of these are mostly unnoticed.

While I have learned to take away my eyes from why, and how people do the things they do, I found it very interesting to note that each and everyone always get back what they give out in another measure they never imagine. So the next time you want to make a show of someone or display your level of piety or ride your way to the top or the heart of your boss, whatever, just remember, nature rewards according to your intention. Whatever you get now is just temporary satisfaction or disappointment, your reward will truly come when you least expected. There is no good and bad, the Newton’s law of motion equally applies to life... ”for every action, there is corresponding reaction”

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So if you must fool someone, fool yourself... The punishment is lighter and temporary.

...Isqil Najim