Jafar of Portugal journeyed to Mecca, seeking a teacher.
There, a divine voice told him, "The greatest teacher is ibn-Arabi of Seville."
Jafar returned to Europe, but this ibn-Arabi of Seville was just a schoolboy, not a teacher at all!
"Where can I find the greatest teacher?" Jafar asked him.
"I can't tell," said the boy. "Only time can tell."
Thirty years passed, and Jafar was still searching.
He came to Aleppo. "Who is the greatest teacher?" he asked.
"Ibn-Arabi!" the people all said.
When ibn-Arabi saw Jafar, he smiled. "We meet in the right time and place at last!"
Inspired by: Sufi Stories from Around the World by Debjani Chatterjee
Notes: This is story 12 in the book. You can read about Muhyiddin ibn Arabi at Wikipedia, and also about Al-Khidr.
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