Defeating His Own Will

There was a heavy rainfall in Tehran. The Hefdah Shahrivar Street was full of water. A few old men wanted to cross the street. They didn’t know what to do. Ibrahim came along at that time. He folded up his pants and carried the old men to the other side of the street on his shoulders. Ibrahim often did these like this. He didn’t have any goal other than to defeat his own will. He especially did things like this whenever he became very famous among the people! We were walking with Ibrahim. It was one summer evening. We came to an alley where the boys were playing soccer. When we were passing by one of the boys kicked the ball very hard. The ball hit Ibrahim straight in the face with such force that Ibrahim had to sit down on the ground for a few seconds. Ibrahim’s face was very red. I was very angry. I looked at the boys. All of them were running away to avoid being beaten by us. While Ibrahim was sitting on the ground, he put his hand in his bag and took out a bag of walnuts. He called out, “Boys! Where did you go? Come and have some walnuts!” He put the bag of walnuts next to the soccer goal and we moved on. As we continued on our way, I said in surprise, “Brother Ibrahim! Why did you do that?”! He said, “The poor boys were scared. They didn’t do it on purpose.” Then he went back to our previous discussion and changed the subject! But, I knew that great men live like this. We were in the gym for wrestling. We were getting ready for exercise. Ibrahim entered. A few minutes later another of our friends came in. When he entered, he said without introduction, “Dear Ibram! Your style and body have become very attractive! On the way when you were coming, two girls were behind you. They were talking about you continuously!” Then he continued, “You are wearing a stylish shirt and pants. You have a sports bag in your hand too. It is obvious that you are an athlete!” I looked at Ibrahim. He was thinking and had become upset! It seemed he wasn’t expecting such a thing. The next session I went to exercise again. When I saw Ibrahim, I started laughing. He was wearing a long shirt and loose pants! Instead of a sports bag, he had put his clothes in a plastic bag! From that day on he came to the gym like this! The other athletes used to say, “What kind of a person are you?! We come to the gym to be athletic looking and to wear tight clothes. Why are you in shape physically, but wearing these kinds of clothes?” Ibrahim didn’t care about what they said. He advised his friends, “If exercising is for God, it will be an act of worship. But if it is for any other intention, it will be to your detriment.” I was in a grass field playing soccer. Suddenly I saw Ibrahim standing close to the bleachers. I went to him quickly. I said hello, then happily I said, “What a surprise! You have come here!?” He had a magazine in his hand. He raised it and said, “They have printed your picture!” I was very happy. I went forward and wanted to take the magazine from him. He pulled his hand back and said, “There is one condition!” I said, “Whatever it is, I’ll accept it.” He asked again, “Will you accept what I say?” I said, “Yes, I’ll accept it.” He gave the magazine to me. The middle page was a big, tall picture of me. Next to it was written, “The new phenomenon in youth soccer.” They had written a lot about me. I sat down next to the bleachers. I read the page again. I flipped the pages of the magazine a few times. Then I raised my head and said, “Bravo dear Ibram! You have made me very happy. By the way, what was your condition?!” He asked softly, “Will you accept it whatever it is?” I said, “Yes! Tell me.” He was silent for a few seconds then said, “Don’t go after soccer anymore!!” I froze. I said in surprise and wonder, “Don’t play soccer anymore?! What does that mean? I am just becoming famous!!” He said, “Not that you shouldn’t play. But don’t go into professional soccer.” I asked him, “Why?!” He came forward and took the magazine. He showed me my picture and said, “See this color picture! This is your picture in sports clothes and shorts. This magazine is not just in my and your hands. It is in the hands of everyone. Many girls may have seen or see this picture.” Then he continued, “Since you go to the Mosque, I am telling you these things. Otherwise I wouldn’t say anything to you. First go make your beliefs strong, then go into professional sports, so that you won’t create any problems for yourself.” Then he said, “I have things to do.” He said goodbye and left. I was very shocked. I sat down and thought deeply about Ibrahim’s words. These words were unlikely from a person who was always joking and saying normal things. However, later on I came to understand his words. That was the time when I saw some boys who didn’t have strong beliefs who used to come to the Mosque. They went into professional sports. They gradually stopped praying because of the influence of their environment!