Page:A Moslem seeker after God - showing Islam at its best in the life and teaching of al-Ghazali, mystic and theologian of the eleventh century (IA moslemseekeraft00zwem).pdf/289

 th his

companion and saw a gazelle with her two young, and Jesus called one of them and it came to him and he killed it and prepared it and they ate to gether. Then he said to the young gazelle: * Get up by God’s will/ and it arose and departed. And he turned to the man and said: I ask you in the name of Him who worked this miracle before your eyes, who took the loaf? He answered: I know not/ So they departed to a cave and Jesus (upon whom be peace) began to collect the pebbles on the sand and said: Become bread by God’s permis sion! and they became bread; then he divided them into three parts and said: A third is for me, a third is for you and a third is for the man who took the loaf/ and the man said: I am he who took the loaf/ Jesus replied: Take all of it and depart from me/ " (Vol. Ill, p. 188.) This story is related by Al-Ghazali in his chapter on greed and covetousness to show that he who loves this world cannot be a companion of the saints!

That Jesus was gentle in word and conduct seems to be the lesson taught in the following two stories: " It is related of Jesus that once a pig passed by him and he said to it: Go in peace/ They said to him: O Spirit of God, why do you say this to a pig/ He replied: I dislike to accustom my tongue to use any evil words/ (Vol. Ill, p. 87.) "!t is related that Jesus with his disciples once passed the carcase of a dog. Said the disciples: How noisome is the smell of this dog/ Said