The Companions of the Ditch ... Lessons and Reflections [3]

 

A Monk on the Path

By Tareq Hamida

The narration says, “When the magician grew old, he said to the king, ‘I have grown old, so send me a boy whom I can teach magic.’ So the king sent him a boy to teach.”

Here, several questions arise:

- Why is the magician keen to pass on his magic to someone else after him?

- Why does he want it to be a boy?

- Why did he wait until he grew old?

- Why does he feel the need to tell the king, “I have grown old”?

- How will this boy be chosen?

Since it is the devil who guides the magician, he wants the state of disbelief and deviation from the path of God to continue. Moreover, when a person is forsaken by God and surrounded by sins, he does not stop at being corrupt but also seeks to be a corrupter, having an ongoing negative influence around him.

As for why the magician waited until he grew old, if he had requested this earlier, he would fear that the boy might compete with him or take his place and position.

Why did he need to tell the king that he had grown old, especially since it was not hidden from the king or anyone else? It seems to be a preemptive move for what the king might ask of him later, establishing a prior justification that would prevent punishment for any shortcomings and benefit him when he can no longer serve the king effectively.

He wanted a boy because he would be more obedient, easier to mold, and have fewer distractions, making him more dedicated to learning. This also means the boy would serve the ruling system for a longer period.

In the narration by al-Tirmidhī, “Look for a smart—or he said: intelligent—and quick-witted boy, so I can teach him my knowledge,” indicating the need for a bright student to become an outstanding magician capable of deceiving the masses.

The hadith does not tell us how the boy was chosen or who his family was, but the reality of these regimes is that everything and everyone in the state is essentially at the king’s disposal. A boy cannot refuse, nor can his family reject or even argue, even if they are taken along with their children to certain death. How then, when the boy is taken to become the king’s magician, where there is honor and happiness?

The Boy Between the Magician and the Monk

“And on his way, he came across a monk, so he sat with him and listened to his words, and he was impressed.” This statement indicates that the boy encountered a monk while traveling. Here, several questions arise:

·         Where does the magician live?

·         Why did the monk become a monk, and what led him to engage with the boy?

·         What is the significance of “so he sat with him?”

·         What is the significance of “and he was impressed?”

·         What is the significance of “his words?”

The magician lives in a place far from society, which aligns with the secretive and mysterious nature of his work. The unsavory tasks performed by magicians are carried out in the dark, away from prying eyes, as light and transparency pose the greatest threat to them and their deeds. Furthermore, the magician, being close to the king, does not mind living far from populated areas and does not need to reside even in elite communities. Whatever he and his household require can be provided in abundance if necessary.

What does it mean to be a monk? Why did he become a monk, and what led him to engage with the boy?

The monk is a devout worshipper who isolates himself from life to worship away from people. It is worth noting that this monk is a monotheist, not adhering to the Trinity. Commentators mention that he might have followed the religion of Jesus, peace be upon him, which is a possibility. It is also plausible that he was from the Children of Israel, after Moses, peace be upon him, or among the believers before them, unless we understand the verse (But monasticism, which they invented) (Quran 57:27) to mean that no one practiced monasticism before the Christians. In general, identifying them specifically does not yield significant benefit, as the story lacks any temporal or spatial specifics or detailed identification of the characters, focusing instead on the moral lesson.

As for why he isolates himself, this was not by choice but by necessity due to the regime’s persecution of the monotheistic call and its followers. Tyrannical regimes may tolerate isolated religious adherents who do not engage in preaching, enjoining good, or forbidding evil, nor seek to change the current situation. In fact, such regimes might even encourage this kind of religiosity. We have seen how the Quraysh did not oppose the Prophet, peace be upon him, when he worshipped in the Cave of Hira before receiving revelation.

The question arises: Had the state’s terrorism and aggression against religion and its followers driven the monk to such a level of fear and despair that he decided to permanently isolate himself to save his own life? However, seeing the attempt to corrupt the purity and innocence of the boy, and the insistence on perpetuating disbelief, falsehood, and deviation from the path of Allah, provoked him to invite the boy? Or was he hiding behind his monasticism to avoid conflict with the regime, waiting for the opportunity to secretly invite and gradually educate others? When he met the boy, did he see in him the fulfillment of his purpose? Who knows, perhaps he had invited others before, but the boy was the most prominent.

It is not easy to decide, but the wisdom, sincerity, and good upbringing of the boy by the monk incline us toward the second opinion. Particularly, the monk choosing his hermitage on the path between the city and the magician’s fortress, where both commoners and nobility could pass, suggests he did not intend complete isolation but was waiting to select. If he had intended mere isolation and escape with his faith, he would have chosen a more secluded location away from people’s paths.

This monk possesses a warm and likable demeanor, prompting the boy to quickly engage with him—an essential trait for preachers who are approachable, friendly, and compassionate, thus earning the affection of others. Subsequent events in the story will underscore the boy’s strong bond with the monk, his reliance on him for guidance, and his tendency to seek his counsel for any issues or challenges that arise.

“He listened to his words, and he was impressed.” The mention of “his words” suggests that the monk’s teachings differ from what the boy hears from the magician and experiences in his social milieu... “his words”: They stand in contrast to the magician’s teachings. While the magician aims to indoctrinate the boy to oppose the true religion, the monk represents adherence to the monotheistic faith. “He was impressed”: indicating that the boy was astonished by the novelty, peculiarity, and virtue of the monk’s teachings. This emphasizes the superiority of monotheism and the true religion over other ideologies and belief systems, no matter how intricately embellished they may be. Introducing monotheism often evokes feelings of wonder, astonishment, and admiration—sentiments that can only be evoked through faith and submission.

Therefore, we have seen the stance of al-Walid ibn al-Mughira when he heard the Qur’an from the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, and likewise, as the Qur’an informs us about a group of jinn who listened to it,

﴿قُلۡ أُوحِيَ إِلَيَّ أَنَّهُ ٱسۡتَمَعَ نَفَرٞ مِّنَ ٱلۡجِنِّ فَقَالُوٓاْ إِنَّا سَمِعۡنَا قُرۡءَانًا عَجَبٗا١ يَهۡدِيٓ إِلَى ٱلرُّشۡدِ فَ‍َٔامَنَّا بِهِۦۖ وَلَن نُّشۡرِكَ بِرَبِّنَآ أَحَدٗا٢﴾

(Say, [O Muhammad], “It has been revealed to me that a group of jinn listened and said, ‘Indeed, we have heard an amazing Qur’an. It guides to the right course, and we have believed in it. And we will never associate with our Lord anyone.’”) (Qur’an 72:1-2).

Thus, the tyrants are keen to prevent the truth from being heard. They advise each other,

﴿وَقَالَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ لَا تَسۡمَعُواْ لِهَٰذَا ٱلۡقُرۡءَانِ وَٱلۡغَوۡاْ فِيهِ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَغۡلِبُونَ٢٦﴾

(Do not listen to this Quran and speak noisily during [the recitation of] it that perhaps you will overcome.) (Qur’an 41:26). Even one of the poets placed cotton in his ears so as not to be affected after the warning from the Quraysh. Noah complained about his people because they blocked their ears and covered themselves with their garments to avoid hearing his words,

﴿وَإِنِّي كُلَّمَا دَعَوۡتُهُمۡ لِتَغۡفِرَ لَهُمۡ جَعَلُوٓاْ أَصَٰبِعَهُمۡ فِيٓ ءَاذَانِهِمۡ وَٱسۡتَغۡشَوۡاْ ثِيَابَهُمۡ وَأَصَرُّواْ وَٱسۡتَكۡبَرُواْ ٱسۡتِكۡبَارٗا٧﴾

(And indeed, every time I invited them that You may forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears, covered themselves with their garments, persisted, and were arrogant with [great] arrogance.) (Qur’an 71:5).

They did not just stop at closing their ears to avoid hearing the truth; they also covered their faces to deter people from responding to his call. They aimed to avoid being influenced by the appearance of the caller, which carries the sincerity, clarity, and radiance of faith in their face, along with the tone of truth conveying the word of truth, goodness, and justice. Therefore, modern states have resorted to distancing preachers from places of influence in education, and media. They prohibit veiled women from appearing on screens and being present in schools and universities, and they tarnish the image of preachers with rumors so that people stay away from them. However, different regimes vary in this regard for various reasons.