In a small village, there was a large pond. On either side of the pond were two bathing ghats—an eastern ghat and a western ghat. Every day, villagers used the pond to fetch water, bathe, and perform ablution.
One early morning, before the sky had fully brightened, the village was silent and still. At that quiet moment, two men stood at the pond’s opposite ghats, washing their faces in the cool water.
At the eastern ghat was a pious man. Every night, he would wake up before dawn to pray Tahajjud.
This morning too, he was performing ablution for prayer. Suddenly, he looked across the pond to the western ghat and saw another man also washing his face.
He thought to himself,
“SubhanAllah! I used to think I was the only one in this village who prayed Tahajjud.
But now I see someone else doing ablution too. May Allah accept his worship.”
Meanwhile, the man at the western ghat was a thief. After a night of stealing, he had come to clean himself up at the pond. He too noticed the man on the other side and thought,
“Ah! I used to think I was the only thief in this village. Now I see another one cleaning up at this hour. He must be returning from a robbery as well.”
Moral of the Story:
This story teaches us that people often judge others based on their own mindset. A person tends to see the world through the lens of their own nature. Therefore, we should never draw conclusions about others solely based on appearance—intentions matter more.