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A small village in Northern India was home to this Muslim trading family. Their family house was situated by the side of a little mountain stream which made pleasant sounds as it flowed over the rocks all year round. A lilting recitation of Koranic verses could be heard emerging from this house on a winter day. The voice was that of Aaron, a 14 year old boy. He finished the recitation  and, putting aside the holy book and the rihal, he quickly got lost in thoughts. He got so much satisfaction and peace of mind from following the tenets of Islam. But he was upset that his friend, Taanish did not have any inclination towards religion. He was a very likeable boy with pleasant manners and was also good at studies  but he rarely appeared for the daily prayers. He probably had never touched the holy book. The only books he was interested in were all about  mysteries and horror stories. Probably not all his fault, thought Aaron.

He was woken up from his thoughts by his close friend Haashir who had entered the room quietly without his noticing. Haarish was a tall, lanky boy who was a couple of years older to Aaron. 

“Hello! Aaron! A penny for your thoughts”, said Haashir. “So much engrossed in thoughts!”  

“Well”, replied Aaron, “An important issue close to my heart is bothering me all ends up”. 

When Haashir insisted he told him about his dear friend Taanish who he thought had gone astray in life.l. He wondered aloud whether they could do anything to mend Taanish’s ways. They had tried so many different ideas in the past. Once they had even given Taanish booklets from the famous South African Missionary, Ahmed Deedar whose teachings about Islam were interesting and enlightening. But Taanish was loath to change his ways even a bit.

The two boys continued with their discussions. They even offered a silent prayer for his betterment. And then suddenly the “The Eureka!” moment came to them. Both were aware that Haarish was good at acting in a local drama group and perhaps they could use his talents in shaking up Taanish from his rebellion. The boy always whiled away his time in the evenings in a secluded spot near an old deserted temple, reading his favourite horror and mystery books. And so they made a plan.

Haarish required a couple of days for making the preparations and they decided to implement their plan on the following Monday, when this particular place was even more deserted as people flocked to the weekly market elsewhere. 

Aaron excused himself from Allah for missing his evening prayers and went to the agreed place at the outskirts of the village. He was careful to keep himself hidden behind bushes as he saw Taanish sitting in the distance under a tree, reading a book. They had confirmed the time of their act. After the muezzin called azan from the nearby village masjid, Haashir would wait for the twilight and then appear dramatically dressed in  a white robe and  a flowing white beard.

Aaron waited patiently behind the bushes, battling a couple of bugs which had ventured inside his shirt. Luckily he was entertained by the constant chirping of birds around him. One particular bird sang such a superb musical note! Aaron wondered what the bird  was saying. Was it a signal to other birds to come over?  Probably praising its Lord in some way! So unlike Taanish, he thought and he chuckled at his inference. 

The muezzin had called the faithful to prayers and now Haarish had to wait for twilight. Taanish was still engrossed in his book, peering closely at the words as the light weakened. Aaron could sense an approaching storm. He was admiring Taanish’s engrossment in what he liked most but how much more beneficial it would be for him  if he would change his priorities and divert his energies to the call of Allah.

Aaron’s heart was now racing as their plan was about to materialize. Would it work, thought Aaron? Was the plan too simplistic? What if Taanish saw through their drama? God forbid, he thought. No, their plan would definitely work. As time clicked on, Aaron had doubts in his mind once again- what’s delaying Haarish?

Just then, he saw Haarish appearing from behind the temple looking very holy and immaculate in his glowing robe and long beard. The storm was upon them by now and there was thunder and lightning. This made Haarish’s entry even more dramatic and perhaps more feersome. They had rehearsed Haarish’s dialogue with the help of the local maulvi who was well versed in this matter- religious teaching was his job. Aaron wanted to hear every part of it and so he creeped a little nearer to the action spot  to catch the whole drama from close quarters, while keeping himself hidden from  Taanish’s view.

Aaron was impressed with the drama unfolding in front of him. He saw the effect of the ‘apparition’ on Taanish as he stopped reading his book and looked up in alarm. And then he heard the resounding religious sermon from the old holy cleric who had appeared before him so dramatically, amidst thunder and lightning. The booming  sermon admonished him for keeping himself away from religion, reminding him regarding the purpose of his life and his  duties to the Creator to whom he must return at the end of his journey in this world. He should prepare to answer questions raised by the Lord on the Day of Resurrection.If he did not mend his way then dire consequences await him yonder. Aaron thought Haarish was very, very impressive and even improvised on their rehearsed dialogue to good effect. Taanish was left speechless and he heard the sermon with his mouth wide open in astonishment.

The drama was over in a few moments and the storm subsided. As darkness set in Haarish disappeared round the corner. Aaron kept watching the reaction on Taanish who seemed to be in a trance. Slowly he picked himself up and walked away. Aaron was fully satisfied with their efforts and when he walked home he had spring in his steps!. Proof is in the pudding, he thought,  we will see his response tomorrow.

Sure enough, on the next day Aaron was elated to see Taanish at the mosque for the morning prayers. He patted himself on the back for planning such a noble operation while attributing their success to Haarish’s super performance.. As he could not see Haarish at the mosque, he quickly left the place and headed for Haarish’s house to congratulate him. It took some time for Haarish to come out and meet Aaron. He had a bad headache and appeared groggy. Aaron could not keep the news to himself and blurted out his congratulations, not noticing the incredulous expression on Haarish’s face. Haarish could not believe what he was being said and thought maybe Aaron was joking.

Atlast, Haarish said in a shaking voice, “But, Aaron my friend, I have had this lousy migraine since last evening and so I never went to the place!” 

Aaron was speechless as if he was hit by a thunder- the same thunder which had punctuated the cleric’s entry last evening!