A Devotee Should be Completely Honest

After a few years, Ibrahim went on a tour. There was a merchant who owned a garden. He needed a servant. He employed Sultan to guard the garden. After a year, the merchant came to the garden. He asked Ibrahim to bring pomegranate. Ibrahim brought pomegranates and gave them to the merchant. The pomegranates were sour. The merchant said, “You have not even found out in a year what sweet pomegranates are like?”

Sultan said, “Seth ji! You have kept me to protect the garden, not to destroy the garden. If the protector becomes the eater, then how will things work out? I have never eaten any fruit, so how can I have the knowledge of sweet and sour?” When the Seth asked other servants, the servants told him, “This servant only eats the bread that he gets, and then keeps walking around the garden while mumbling something. We have even watched him secretly. He has never plucked any fruit and eaten it, nor has he picked up any fruit lying on the ground.”

Some servant told the merchant, “He is the king of Balakh city. I saw him 10 years ago while hunting in the forest. When I asked him that you seem to be Sultan Ibrahim Adham of Balakh city, then initially, he denied. Then I told him, “I saw you in the forest while hunting. My brother-in-law, Yakub, is a senior officer in your army. He told me that the king has taken sanyas (renunciation). His son is sitting on the throne.” Then he said, “Please do not tell anyone.” The merchant fell at Sultan’s feet and asked for forgiveness, and giving him a lot of money, said, “Kindly take this money and sustain yourself; worship as well. Feel free to stay at my house or I shall build a palace for you in the garden; stay here and worship.” Sultan thanked him and departed from there.