Idries Shah
A Sufi master was visited by a perplexed Seeker-after-Truth, who said to him :
‘I have only one question to ask. Why is it that, wherever I go, I always seemed to get different pieces of advice from Sufis?’
The master answered :
‘Come with me for a walk through this town, and we shall see what we can discover about this mystery.’
They went into the market-place, and the Sufi asked a greengrocer :
‘Tell me, what time of prayer is it?’
The greengrocer said :
‘The time for the morning prayer.’
They continued their walk. After some time the Sufi asked a tailor :
‘What prayer-time is it?’
The tailor answered :
‘It is the time of the midday prayer.’ After spending more time in conversation and companionship with the Seeker, the Sufi approached another man, this time a bookbinder. He asked him :
‘What time of prayer is it?’
The man replied :
‘It is now the time of the afternoon prayer.’
The Sufi turned to his companion and said :
‘Do you want to continue the experiment,