MEMORIES OF MAULANA

him a good morning with a smile, to which he responded, and then he said: “This cat is a pest. Because of him, my dog barks every day!”, or something to that effect. I did not react and say anything. Instead, I continued smiling and went my way, with Ginger following me. My focus was to first give hungry Ginger his food peacefully outside before another obstacle might come our way! After finishing this task, as I returned to the apartment, I realized that my neighbour’s statement had hurt me. After all, a dog will bark, because dogs do bark—that’s how God has made dogs, and so, that’s the way it is. Now, I could have answered my neighbour back by complaining about some aspects of his own behaviour (including his occasional quarrels with his spouse and his scolding delivery boys) and I could also have said that all of this behaviour on his part was a ‘pest’ (to use a word that he had used). But I didn’t. What made me refrain from doing so? Apart from the ‘You must get along well with your neighbours’ logic, it was Maulana’s words on patience which I had been reading a few days ago that led me not to react to my neighbour’s remark. Keeping quiet in the face of this challenge, I experienced, through this little event, what is a really workable solution in such challenging situations. Avoiding reaction and practising patience can really help one maintain one’s peace of mind (as well as good neighbourly relations), this event showed me. While a corner of my heart still hurts that an innocent cat could be talked about in such a harsh manner by someone, I know the patience that I practiced then will not be in vain! Thank you, Maulana, for leaving behind precious practical wisdom, so useful for everyday living, through your writings. We need reminders every now and then of your wisdom about how to positively deal with challenges, because life is not all roses, for it has its share of thorns, too! Ending this tribute to Maulana, I would like to say “Thank You” to my father for having introduced me to Maulana and to Maulana for sharing his precious wisdom with so many people, including myself. o Thank you, Maulana, for leaving behind precious practical wisdom, so useful for everyday living, through your writings.