“It is indeed you who is the Rider, and I who am the Foot Traveller.”

One year, Ibrahim bin Adham decided to perform hajj on foot, walking from his homeland to Makkah. As he was leaving his homeland, a man riding on a camel passed by and said, “O Ibn Adham, where are you going?”

“I am going to perform hajj, if Allah wills,” said Ibrahim.

“Then where is your mount, Ibn Adham, for the journey is long,” asked the man.

“I have many mounts that I ride upon though you cannot see them,” said Ibrahim.

“If I am afflicted with a calamity, I ride on the mount of patience. If I am given a blessing, I ride on the mount of thankfulness. If something that is decreed happens to me, I ride on the mount of contentment. And when my soul invites me to satisfy some lust or desire, I reflect on how the time I have left on earth is less than the time that has already gone by.”

“You are indeed traveling by the command of Allah,” said the man. “Then, by Allah, it is you who is the rider, and I who am the foot traveler.”

Source : Stories of Repentance – by Muhammad Abduh Mughawiri