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The old man at once followed Jelāl’s advice, and begged forgiveness of God. Just then, news was brought him there that his son had been found. Many who were witnesses of these circumstances became devoted followers of Jelāl.

Jelāl was one day lecturing, when a young man of distinction came in, pushed his way, and took a seat higher up than an old man, one of the audience.

Jelāl at once remarked: “In days of yore it was the command of God, that, if any young man should take precedence of an elder, the earth should at once swallow him up; such being the divine punishment for that offence. Now, however, I see that young men, barely out of leading-strings, show no respect for age, but trample over those in years. They have no dread of the earth’s swallowing them up, nor any fear of being transformed into apes.13 It happened, however, that one morning the Victorious Lion of God, ‘Alī, son of Abū-Tālib, was hasting from his house to perform his devotions at dawn in the mosque of the Prophet. On his way, he overtook an old man, a Jew, who was going in the same direction. The future Caliph, out of innate nobility and politeness of nature, had respect for the Jew’s age, and would not pass him, though the Jew’s pace was slow. When ‘Alī reached the mosque, the Prophet was already bowed down in his devotions, and was about to chant the ‘Gloria;’ but, by God’s command, Gabriel came down, laid his hand on the Prophet’s shoulder, and stopped him, lest ‘Alī should lose the merit attaching to his being present at the opening of the dawn service; for it is more meritorious to perform that early service once, than to fulfil the devotions of a hundred years at other hours of the day. The Prophet has said: ‘The first act of reverence at dawn worship is of more value than the world and all that is therein.’