A truly virtuous person
is held in awe by others.
He is not afraid to speak the truth
and he does not fawn on others.
Nabeel was a quiet man by nature and a scholar by training. Admired by all who knew him, he treated everyone, even animals and the plants around his small mud house with respect and love. And when others needed help, he always stepped forward.
The villagers loved him for his kindness and sincerity. They delighted in his humility and virtuousness. Very simply, they were just in awe of him.
One day, a high-ranking government official rode into the village square on a handsome black horse and dismounted. His servants scrambled off their donkeys and rushed to the official’s horse. Suddenly some dogs began barking excitedly at the newcomers, and the horse reared in fright.
“You fools!” he shouted, striking the servants with his wooden staff. “You clumsy fools! You let my horse become frightened! I’ll teach you not to do that again.” And again he struck out at the cowering men.
Not daring to say anything to an important, powerful man, the gathering crowd of villagers looked on in horror.
The official was about to strike the servants again when Nabeel came through the crowd. He quickly moved in between the official and his cringing servants.
After calmly paying respects to the official, Nabeel said, “My lord, your servants were at fault, but so too were the dogs who frightened your horse. Since the dogs did not know any better and they belong to us villagers, then surely each of us is also at fault. So we should be punished as well.”
Nabeel turned to the crowd. “My friends, please line up behind me so the official can strike each one of us.”
The villagers were terrified and yet they trusted Nabeel completely. So even though they did not understand why he was putting them in such danger, they did as he asked.
The official watched in amazement as every man, woman, and child lined up behind Nabeel. There they quietly stood with heads bowed, too frightened to look directly at such an important man. Too confused to even speak to one another.
When they were all in line behind him, Nabeel turned back to the official and calmly looked into his eyes. “My lord, we are ready. Beginning with me, please strike each one of us in turn for the fright our dogs gave your poor horse.”
The official gazed back at Nabeel. Even in the capital, few people dared to look him in the eye, much less stand up to him. Yet, here was this old man in this out-of-the-way village doing just that. But that was not all. This old man had, with just a few words, got every person in the village to do as he said!
The official was no longer angry—he was intrigued. He looked at Nabeel and asked simply, “How?”
Nabeel smiled. “My lord. In truth, it was no one’s fault that your horse was frightened. It was an accident. And you cannot deal out punishment for an accident anymore than you can justly punish a whole village for it.”
“Also, trust and respect can overcome fear. But trust and respect have to be earned. And fear? Fear is a weapon, and weapons accomplish little that is good. So my lord, it is much wiser to move people through trust than with fear.”
A virtuous person
is respected and loved by all who know him.