SHAMAUN, a fire-worshipper, was on his deathbed, and his entire body had singed, as if he was badly burnt. His neighbour, a Muslim saint, paid a visit to him and asked him to convert to Islam in the final hour of his life.
“Three questions stopped me from embracing Islam,” Shamaun winced. “Firstly, why do Muslims get so much involved in worldly love when the religion disapproves of it? Secondly, why don’t the Muslims prepare for death when there is no escape from it? And thirdly, why do they do things that are against Allah’s dictates?”
“These thoughts are no different from that of a true believer,” the saint replied. “You worshipped fire for 70 years, but you didn’t have any advantage over a non-worshipper of fire. However, my Allah has the power to save me from fire.” Saying this, he held the fire in his hands and it didn’t hurt him. Shamaun was very impressed, but he said plaintively: “What use it would be to convert when I have worshipped fire for 70 years and I’m now dying?” The saint nevertheless invited him to accept Islam, to which he agreed on one condition that the saint should write him an agreement that after accepting Islam Allah would forgive all the sins that Shamaun had committed. Without any hesitation, the saint did the same as he strongly believed in Allah’s mercy.
Shamaun became a Muslim from the bottom of his heart and asked the saint to give him a bath after his death. Saying this, he took the agreement in his hand as proof of his being a Muslim and left this world while reciting the Kalimah [Worship none but Allah and that Mohammad (Peace be upon him) is His Prophet]. The saint bathed and buried him in a Muslim graveyard, leaving the agreement in his hand.
On the same night, the saint saw Shamaun in his dream strolling in the paradise, wearing a beautiful dress and a crown on his head. The saint asked him what had happened after he died. He said: “Allah blessed me with His mercy, now I don’t need that agreement anymore.” When the saint woke up in the morning he found the agreement, which he had buried with Shamaun, in his hand. He thanked Allah for His mercy and forgiveness. That saint was none other than Khawaja Hasan Basri. He was not only a true follower of the Prophet (Peace be upon him), but a very learned religious scholar as well.
Khawaja Hasan Basri was born in 21 Hijra, in Medina Munawara. Immediately after his birth, his father Musa bin Rai took him to the second Caliph, Hazrat Umer Farooq for his blessings. Seeing the beautiful baby, the caliph asked the father to name him Hasan — meaning beautiful. The Holy Prophet’s wife Ume Salama reared him as his mother was her personal servant. He received spiritual training from Hazrat Ali and 120 other Sahaba Karam. After living for 14 in Medina, as mentioned in Tofatul Abrar, he moved to Basra, which later brought him the title Basri.
Khawaja Hasan Basri has a special place amongst the early saints of Islam. After the event of Karbala, the Muslims and their rulers had indulged in worldly affairs, forgetting the teachings of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him). The rulers would appoint the clergies of their own choice to deliver only what pleased them. Khawaja Hasan took up the task to revive the teachings of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) and put the Muslims on the right path.
With his strong belief in Allah and the teachings of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) he started his mission without any fear of the rulers. And he actually demonstrated it when one day Hajjaj Bin Yousuf, the sitting ruler, appeared at his gathering with his bare sword. His followers took it as a test for Hasan Basri whether he would stand up in honour of the ruler or continue with his sermon. But Khawaj Hasan didn’t pay any attention to the ruler and carried on with his sermon. Hajjaj Bin Yousuf, after kissing his hand, left without any interruption.
The period of Khawaja Hasan is known for two important events. Firstly, the Mu’tzilah group emerged, which brought disorder to society, to fulfil their worldly desires. They scared and harassed the righteous people. Khawaja Hasan was the first one to stand against this Fitna (evil). Secondly, contemporary saints began getting the title of Sufis, and the school of mysticism was organized. As a result, two chains of mysticism originated from there: Punjchast and Qadir, which branched into further sub-chains.
Teachings of Hazrat Khawaja Hasan Basri covered the entire range of human life. He said: “Piety has three important ingredients (1) always speak the truth; (2) perform the deeds ordained by Allah; (3) refrain from what is prohibited. He’d keep pressing on the people to shun away the company of the rulers, never stay alone with a woman and never indulge in singing and music as it always led to evil things. As far as knowledge is concerned, he said: “Acquiring knowledge in childhood is like engraving it on stone, learning it in old age is like engraving it on water.”
People of all faiths can still learn from his exemplary life. So humble he was that he considered everyone better than him. One day, while sitting on the bank of the River Dejlah, he saw a Negro drinking wine with a woman. He thought how could a drunkard be better than him. The moment this thought crossed his mind, a boat appeared in the river with seven people on board; but very soon it capsized. Seeing people drowning, the Negro immediately jumped into the river and saved six of them. “You could have saved at least one person,” saying this, the Negro disclosed that he was just testing him. “The woman sitting here is my mother and the liquid in the bottle is nothing but water.” Khawaj Hasan immediately fell at his feet and asked him to save him from his Takabur (arrogance) as he saved the other six people. The Negro prayed to Allah and disappeared.
After this event, Khawaja Hasan would always plead to Allah to accept his prayers and humbleness. Once a person asked him a strange question: “Are you better than a dog?” “If I’m saved from the wrath and punishment of Allah then I’m better,” Khawaja Hasan humbly replied.
After dedicating his entire life to Allah and Islam, Khawaja Hasan left this world in 110 Hijra and was buried in Basra. After his death, one of his followers saw in his dream someone saying “Hasan Basri has come and Allah is very pleased with him.”
