The renowned religious scholar was never tired of preaching to people the greatness of his religion. With great zeal he travelled from country to country, sometime by land and sometime by sea, held meetings and taught his audience how to pray. He believed that unless one followed the right method for prayer, one did not benefit by it.
The king of his country, who subscribed to the same faith, was much impressed by his art of preaching. He placed a ship with a knowledgeable crew at his disposal so that he could sail to distant lands and islands spreading the great faith. The preacher was much pleased with his own mission.
Once when he was returning home by his ship after preaching in a distant continent, the captain of the ship drew his attention to a small island. "Your Holiness, this island is inhabited by only three recluses. I saw them on more than one occasion while stopping by their shore for collecting drinking water. There is a spring with sweet water and several fruit-bearing trees. The three recluses
are satisfied with what they get. They rarely talk to strangers who are also rare. I see them sitting in silence or praying. I wonder how they live without any help from anybody."
"It is time we went to help them!" said the preacher. "Will you mind stopping at the island?"
"It will be my privilege to do as you say, Your Holiness," said the captain.
As the ship approached the island, the preacher could see the three old men, scantily clothed, staring at the ship, their long white beards flowing in the wind. The preacher felt pity for them. "How many years have they wasted following incorrect methods of prayer? But God is kind to them and that is why we are here today to teach them the proper way to pray," he told himself.
The three men stood still while the preacher went closer to them. "How are you, friends? I hope God has been to kind to you!" he said smiling. The three looked at one another, as if unable to understand what the preacher said. When the preacher repeated his observation, one of them said in broken sentences that they did not understand what the gentleman meant by God being kind to them. Could He be unkind, too?
