He climbed the roof of the palace and sat looking for a...
He climbed the roof of the palace and sat looking for a chance to get into the boudoir of the queen. He was waiting for the king and the queen to fall asleep. During this time he heard the queen and the king converse. The queen said to the king that Allah has granted to them a pretty daughter who has now reached the age of the marriage. The king said that he too was looking for a pious person to be the consort for his daughter.
The queen said it might not be a difficult task to find such a person. She suggested that the vizier should go to the mosque early morning and the first young person who arrived there should be the best choice. She said that they should get their daughter married to that person because they didn’t need to search a person with riches. The king liked this idea very much and issued suitable instructions to the vizier. The thief heard all this and saw a wonderful opportunity for himself.
He quietly descended from the roof of the palace and reached the mosque carefully to be the first person entering there. The vizier brought him to the court. The king ordered the young man to be given a shower and robed in royal finery. The king also declared that the princess will be married to him and he would get half the kingdom as a dowry. The king asked the young man if he was willing to accept the proposal.
At this juncture the young man got the idea that for falsely assuming piety he was getting half of the kingdom. If he became a true worshipper of Allah the bounties could be unimaginable. Therefore the young man refused the offer of the king. He told him that Allah, who has given him half the kingdom, might give him much more. The king hugged the young man and said, “Alright! I have given you the entire kingdom” Therefore, it is imperative that there has to be honesty of purpose in prayer.
Amir’ul-Mu’mineen ‘Ali (as) has said, “The people who pray with the desire of entering the Heaven, their devotion is commercial; and those who offer prayers with the fear of going to Hell, their attitude is slavish. The third category is of persons, who offer prayers to Allah with the awareness that they owe devotion to Him and are the selfless worshippers. I too offer prayers to Allah because He is the true Lord deserving of worship.
His blessings and gifts are of such magnitude that offering Him thanks would not be possible even if every cell gets a tongue.” Prophet Musa (as) was told by Allah, “O Musa!