Islamic scholars are very critical of those who claim to be wise teachers of Islam yet never take its teachings into their own hearts. Their attitude is conveyed in a story about a saint who wanted to stop hunters catching songbirds for sale at the market. He trained a parrot so that whenever it saw a net covered in bird food it squawked, "Don't eat the food? It's a trap!" When the other birds heard the parrot's warning they flew away and were saved. The parrot, however, had no idea what he was saying and, seeing the food, flew down to eat it and was captured. When we pay wisdom lip-service but don't live it, we are like that parrot. No matter how wise we seem to be, we will end up getting caught in the net of illusion.
Islam, emphasizes the need for complete authenticity and sincerity. Our Prophet (saaw) teaches, "Allah does not accept your belief if it is not expressed in deeds, and does not accept your deeds unless they conform with your beliefs." We should live what we know. We should do what we feel in our hearts is right, regardless of what others think. To do otherwise is hypocrisy. The scholars convey these teachings in the story of a great sage who was invited to the funeral of a well-respected member of the community. Having sat through speaker after speaker eulogizing the dead man's virtues, the sage suddenly got up and walked out. The organizers of the funeral were appalled and ran after him to demand to know what he was doing. The sage replied, "Not one person had a bad thing to say about the deceased. From this I can tell that he must have been a complete hypocrite, so I left."
Focus For Contemplation
Are you living what you know? Are you doing what your heart is telling you to do? Are you being all that you know you are? Spend some time in search of authenticity. The poet Rumi warns, "Lies collect around those who are living a lie." Are you living a lie or are you being true to yourself?