Mr. Kareem was a farmer who lived in a village far from the city. He had two sons, Ameen and Mateen. Both of his sons fasted wholeheartedly in the month of Ramzan. The month of Ramzan was about to end; Eid-ul-Fitr came nearer. Kareem, hence, required some money for Eid shopping. Unfortunately, he could not find a client who could purchase his crop. One day, going back to his home, he was pleased because he was able to manage some money after selling crops for his kids’ shopping. Entering the home, he called his elder son Mateen. He said, “Take this money, Mateen, and tomorrow you have to go to the city to purchase clothes and shoes for yourself and your younger brother”. Mateen, a bachelor-level student, was familiar with the markets in the city. The next day, he went to the city for shopping. Purchasing the clothes and shoes in the market was his main wish; he had yearned for this moment the whole year. Although Mateen was good at shopping, his attitude was discriminatory in purchasing things. He usually purchased low quality products for his brother or any other individual and high-quality things for himself. After purchasing things from the market and returning home, Mateen handed over the clothes and shoes to Ameen, his younger brother. On Eid day, they wore new clothes and shoes.
On this beautiful occasion, Fahad, a childhood friend of Ameen, arrived at their home. He spent a few hours in their home. Noticing the vivid difference between the clothes of Ameen and Mateen, Fahad asked Ameen about this matter. Ameen replied, “There is nothing like this; you might have some misunderstanding.\” After his friend had departed from his home, Ameen started pondering over this matter. To resolve this ambiguity, he asked about the price of things from his elder brother. Surprisingly, he learned that his friend was right in this matter. He was very sad at his brother’s behaviour. When night came, Mateen dreamt himself sitting on a heightened wall. On the left side of the wall was fire and hot water, but an eye-catching and amazing view was on the right side. He wanted to go to the right side of the wall, but unfortunately, he could not do so. Being in this sad state, he saw an angel.┬á
He asked the angel if he could go to the beautiful place, but the angel told him, “No.”┬á
He further said, “It is hell on your left side and paradise on your right side, and you are on the wall of ARAF.”┬á
Mateen asked, “Can you tell me what is ARAF?.”┬á
The angel replied, “It is the wall that separates paradise and hell, and those with equal weightage of right and wrong deeds are meant to sit on this wall.”┬á
Curiously, he asked, “What should I do to be able to go to paradise?”
The angel answered, “Choose for your brother what you would choose for yourself. This way, your good deeds would definitely be greater than your bad deeds, and you would be eligible for Jannah.”
Mateen woke up suddenly, entrenched in sweat. And the next morning, he apologized to his brother for his unjust act. Then, he made it his life’s principle to always purchase similar things for himself and others.
Moral
None of you can became a perfect momin until you choose the same thing for you brother that you like for yourself.
