STORY XII. The Four Hindustanis who censured one another.
Four Hindustanis went to the mosque to say their prayers. Each one duly
pronounced the Takbir, and was saying his prayers with great devotion, when the
Mu'azzin happened to come in. One of them immediately called out, "O
Mu'azzin, have you yet called to prayer? It is time to do so." Then the
second said to the speaker, "Ah! you have spoken words unconnected with
worship, and therefore, according to the Hadis, you have spoiled your
prayers." 1 Thereupon the third scolded the last speaker, saying,
"O simpleton, why do you rebuke him? Rather rebuke yourself." Last of
all, the fourth said, "God be praised that I have not fallen into the same
ditch as my three companions." The moral is, not to find fault with
others, but rather, according to the proverb, 2 to be admonished by
their bad example. Apropos of this proverb, a story is told of two prisoners
captured by the tribe of Ghuz. The Ghuzians were about to put one of them to
death, to frighten the other, and make him confess where the treasure was
concealed, when the doomed man discovered their object, and said, "O noble
sirs, kill my companion, and frighten me instead."
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