King Ibrahim was in two minds, one which desired to become a Sufi and the other which wished to continue in the royal life, albeit with a sense of responsibility towards his subjects. One night, he heard footsteps on the terrace. The guards brought a man dressed in the clothes of a Sufi. When asked to explain what he was doing on the terrace, the man said he was searching for his lost camel. Ibrahim was not sure whether he should be angry or laugh at the man. "And how did you think that you would find the camel that you lost on my terrace? he asked.
The Sufi replied: "If King Ibrahim can think that he can continue to perform
his kingly duties, and yet learn to be a Sufi wholly devoted to god, there is
nothing improbable in my thinking that my camel might have strayed on to the
terrace". Ibrahim looked at the man carefully, grew thoughtful, and asked his
guards to set him free. A few days later Ibrahim heard a commotion at his palace
gates. The palace guards brought a man to Ibrahim and said the man was asking
them who stayed in the palace in which lbrahim lived. He had also referred to the palace
as a caravanserai. The King looked closely at the man and had a vague suspicion
that it was the same person who had come searching for his camel on the terrace.
"What do you mean by calling my palace a caravanserai? he asked. "Who lived
here before you?
Ibrabim replied that it was his father. "And who before that?" Ibrahim said that it was his grandfather.
"So this is a building where others have lived and passed out. And you still
say that this is not a caravanserai, where people come and stay for a temporary
period. lbrahim looked up and saw that the Sufi was now dressed in shining green;
he immediately recognized him as Qidr, the angel from heaven. King lbrahim now
understood everything in a flash. He gave up the kingdom, moved into the forest
and devoted himself to God.