Three Friends...!!!

Once there lived a man in an Arab Dynasty who had three friends. He loved the first friend very much. He used to give anything the first friend wanted. Never said NO for anything to him. Always did whatever he told to him. For the second friend, the man loved him but less than the first one. Had respect for him. But he didn’t love his third friend much, didn’t obeyed him ever.  The friend loved him but the man never showed respect for his love.

Once the man was in some trouble and he was very much depressed by the matter. He had to face the king of the dynasty and so he needed help for the same. He approached his first friend whom he loved the most. He said to him “I have got a problem with the king and need some help of yours for the same matter.” The friend said a direct NO to the man. The man was shocked. He had never denied for anything to his friend but today when he needed him he denied. The friend said “What have u done for me so that I should do something for you????.” The man was depressed a lot.

He went to the second friend and ask for the help. The friend said that he will help him by coming till the gate of the king’s palace. After that he can’t come because he has the fear of the king.

At the end he went to the third friend. Seeing him nervous the friend asked about what was the matter. The man told him about his problem. The friend said that he will help him get out of the problem. The man had a sigh of relief. His problem was solved and the king did nothing to him. He apologized to the friend because he never loved his friend and at time of difficulty, he only came and solved his problem.

Same is the case in the life of the human. The first friend whom we love is the MONEY and Wealth. We always go after it. We always do what it make us do. But after death the money we earned, we had will be of no use.

The second friend is the Family. They will help us in the life till death. But after death they will just come up to our grave or Final Rights and return back.

The third and the final friend is “Amal Saaleh”, the Good Deeds. This is what we never love to do. But it is the only saviour in our Life. This helps us make happy. People always want to priorities Earning Money over Family and Good Deeds which is right but depending extensively only on it will not help. Proper balance has to be kept.

By doing good deeds, I do not mean to donate money or do spend time with the poor or something like that. Just define what a “good deed” according to you is and what gives you happiness and then go for it.

I do not talk about Life after Death like most of the Religion do, but I strongly believe that doing Good Deeds can make you happy.

Contributed by: Hozefa Malek

(Note: This article was also published in BADRE MUNEER, the worldwide magazine of Dawoodi Bohra)