The woman who was the Master Of Bayazid Bustami (ra)

It is said that when Bayazid Bustami was asked who his master was, he explained:
She was an old woman. One day, I was possessedby such ecstasy and
yearning and sense of unity that not even a hair of anything else
could be found in me. In this selfless mood, I wentfor a stroll in the
desert, where I happened to meet an elderly lady burdened with a bag
of flour.
She asked me to carry the flour for her, but I was incapable of taking
it, so I beckoned to a lion to take the load. Thelion came up to me
and Ilaid the sack upon its back. I then asked the old lady what she
intended to say to the townspeople since I did not want them to
apprehend who I was.
"I'll tell them," she replied, "that I met a vain tyrant."
"What are talking about?" I exclaimed.
The lady explained thus, first asking: "Has the lionbeen put to trouble or not?"
"No," I answered. -
"Except for the fact that you burden down those whom God Himself has
not burdened!" she objected. "Is that not oppression?"
"So it is", I admitted.
"And, despite this", she continued, "still you desire the townspeople
to know that you have subjected a lion and are a miracle worker. Is
that not vanity?"
"Yes, it is", I confessed.
So I repented, experiencing abasementfrom my former exaltation. Indeed
that old woman's words performed the function of a spiritual guide and
master for me. - - ▓███▓ Translator:->
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