The Sama and the Call to Prayer

Abu Said lived for a while in Qaen, the City of Saffron, which was the home of Mohammad Qaeni, a renowned scholar, and Mohammad often attended the Sufi sama.
During one sama as the dervishes whirled in ecstasy, Mohammad heard the evening call to prayer in the mosque nearby.
"It's time for prayer," he said. "I must go to the mosque."
"We are already praying!" shouted Abu Said in reply.
Mohammad went alone to the mosque.
The next day, Abu Said observed, "Mohammad Qaeni is a great scholar of religion, but he knows nothing of the Path of the Heart."


Inspired byUnder the Sufi's Cloak: Stories of Abu Said and His Mystical Teaching by Mohammad Ali Jamnia and Mojdeh Bayat
Notes: This story is on p. 44 of the book. You can find out more about the Sufi ritual called sama at Wikipedia.



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