A STORY ON EARNING LAWFULLY AND UNLAWFULLY

When I was a student of my Sheikh, he sent me to work as a laborer.
I used to load and unload goods on ships, sweating from morning till evening.

At the end of each day, whatever money I earned, my Sheikh would take. He would set aside just enough for two simple meals and then give the rest away in charity.

One day, puzzled, I asked him why.
He smiled and replied, “Work like this for eleven months, and then I will explain.”

So I did. For eleven months I toiled. At the end of that time, my Sheikh gave me a new instruction:

“Tomorrow, go again for labor. But when the work begins, pretend to fall ill. Lie down all day and don’t lift a finger. In the evening, collect your wage and return to me.”

I obeyed. I spent the day feigning a stomach ache, lying on the ground while others worked. At sunset, I received my pay and went back to him.

My Sheikh said, “Now, as always, set aside enough for two meals and give the rest in charity.”

But that day, something strange happened. For the first time in eleven months, my heart resisted giving charity. I wanted to keep it.
That evening, I ate until I was full, but my hunger did not go away.
That night I locked my room for the first time. I lay in bed but could not sleep.

The next morning, I noticed a foul odor from my body, and for the first time I had to use perfume.
And when I prayed, I felt no sweetness in it.

I hurried to my Sheikh and told him all this.

He listened, then said gently:
“My son, this is the effect of haram — unlawful earnings.
Haram robs the blessings from your life. It leaves you restless, hollow, and without peace. It reduces a man to the level of an animal.”

He explained further:
“Haram increases your hunger, it makes your sleep heavy, it causes a stench in your body, it hardens your heart, it narrows your thinking, and it robs your soul of tranquility.

Even a single day of haram will harm you for forty days.
In those forty days, you will feel drawn to lying, to gossip, to greed, to deception, and to the desire for wealth gained without honesty.”

Terrified, I asked, “Then how can I protect myself from the effects of haram?”

He replied, “Through fasting and silence. These two will cleanse you from within.”

Then he shared the greatest lesson of his life:
“After forty years of spiritual struggle, I have learned this secret — the entire universe is like a treasure chest, locked with a heavy lock. And the only key to that lock is Halal (lawful living).

As you increase halal in your life, the treasure chest of the universe opens before you.”

I asked him, “And how do we recognize haram?”

He said, “Anything in this world that, after seeing, hearing, tasting, or touching, plants greed in your heart — that is haram.

Avoid it.
Because haram will turn your being into a graveyard.
It will empty you from the inside. It will destroy your worth — in your home, in your neighborhood, in society, in the world.

Even the light on your face will fade away.”

SHORT TERM GAINS, LONG TERM CONSEQUENCES.