Juha’s Prayer
It was Juha’s habit to pray to Allah Almighty in every Salah. He would ask Allah to give him one thousand (1,000) gold coins. He would also say in his prayer that he will not take it if it was nine hundred and ninety-nine (999). It must be a thousand, no less.
Naughty Neighbour
Juha had a wealthy neighbour who would hear him making this prayer every day during the Asr prayer. One day he wanted to test Juha whether he will stay true to his word. So, he took out nine hundred and ninety-nine (999) gold coins and put them in a bag. When the Asr prayer time came, and Juha was praying to his Lord, he threw the bag in front of Juha and hid behind the door, watching Juha from the corner.
When Juha saw the gold coins, he could not believe his own eyes. He felt, at last, his prayer got accepted. He thanked Allah by falling into prostration there and then.
After that, he picked up the bag and began to count. He discovered that a coin was missing, but he could not care less. He thought: The One who gave me this cannot be ungenerous of one coin. He took the bag and stored it in a safe place.
Trapped!
The wealthy neighbour immediately rushed to Juha. Smiling naughtily, he said:
‘Give me my gold coins. I wanted to test you and I have found out that you don’t keep to your promises!’
Juha was puzzled. He said to the neighbour:
‘What gold coins are you talking about? Did you lend me anything in the past?’
‘The coins you found are not yours. They are mine; I threw them at you!’ the wealthy neighbour replied.
Now Juha was very annoyed.
‘You must be insane! Nobody would believe your made-up story. Is there anybody who would risk throwing away such a big amount of cash!’ exclaimed Juha. ‘What I found was a reply to my prayer and has come from the vast treasure of Almighty Allah!’
In the Court of the Qadhi (Judge)
The row continued for quite a long time. However, Juha would not move from his word.
Finally, the neighbour said:
‘There is no other way to sort this out except through the court. Let’s go to the qadhi (judge)!’
‘I cannot go to the qadhi, as his house is far,’ replied Juha, ‘and it is freezing outside. I don’t have any warm clothes to protect me from the cold weather.’
‘I will bring my mule and my coat’, the neighbour said.
Putting on the neighbour’s coat, Juha rode the mule and the neighbour set off on foot.
The neighbour began to tell his story to the qadhi.
When he finished, the qadhi said:
‘And what do you say about this, Juha?’
Juha replied:
‘Ask him whether he has ever given me any coin in his life! … The truth is that I prayed to Allah to give me some gold. Allah Almighty is the most generous, the most powerful and capable of giving a little and a lot. What this man says is totally baseless! He is nothing but bluffing and trying to deceive! If he could, he would claim that my mule, which is standing outside, belongs to him too.’
The neighbour was utterly baffled by this new story. Now he realised that his mule too is going to meet the similar end as of his gold coins.
‘Are you also going to deny that the mule belongs to me? I just brought it for you, so that you can ride on it’, he protested desperately.
Juha said:
‘Have you heard, O honourable qadhi, his new strange claim? I fear that he is about to claim that my other possessions also belong to him. He is going to claim that the coat I am currently wearing also belongs to him.’
The neighbour could not hold his breath anymore.
‘Isn’t that my coat that I had just lent to you?’ he said miserably.
At that moment, the qadhi saw no option but to address the neighbour:
‘It has become crystal clear to me that your claims are futile and unfounded. Your lies and treachery have become apparent. You intend to deprive this poor man of his possessions!’
The neighbour became depressed and sad. On the other hand, Juha was cheerful and delighted. He rode the mule and went back home with the coat.
Back home
Having returned home, Juha called his wealthy neighbour. The neighbour, miserable and desperate, came. Juha gave all the gold coins and other belongings back to him. Then he said:
‘Never, after today, come in between the Creator and His creation! And never disturb the servants of Allah, who seek from His infinite treasure!’
The neighbour had learned his lesson and promised not to ever meddle with Juha.