Hazrat Khwaja Ajmeri Making a Thief a Qutb

Question

A thief entered the abode of Hazrat Ghawth Pak (an epithet of Shaykh ‘Abd al-Qadir Jilani) with the intention of theft, but was caught while stealing. When he was brought before Hazrat Ghawth Pak, he said: “No one has ever gone from my abode empty-handed; therefore go — you are appointed to the position of the qutb of the city.” On hearing this, all those present in the gathering were dumbfounded. Is this incident correct or not?

Answer

Pious elders mostly do good to those who trouble them. It is not far-fetched that some ordinary thief should repent in an instant and become reformed. Al-Haqq, the Exalted, is the Turner of Hearts (Muqallib al-Qulub): whenever He wills, He crowns some lowly person with the crown of honour; the opposite can also happen.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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