Junayd Baghdadi once said, “I learned sincerity from a barber.”
One day, his teacher told him, “Your hair has grown too long; go get a haircut.”
He had no money in his pocket. When he reached the barber’s shop, the barber was cutting another customer’s hair.
Junayd said, “Uncle, will you cut my hair for the sake of Allah?”
The moment the barber heard this, he set his customer aside and said,
“I cut hair every day for money. Today, someone has come for the sake of Allah.”
He kissed Junayd’s head, seated him on the chair, and started cutting his hair while crying.
Junayd thought to himself, “One day, when I have money, I will definitely give something to this man.”
Years passed. He became a great Sufi saint. One day, he went to meet the barber and reminded him of the incident, offering him some money.
The barber replied, “Junayd, you have become such a great Sufi, yet you still haven’t understood that when something is done for the sake of Allah, its reward is not taken from His creation.”
Aal-e-Qutub Aal-e-Syed Abdullah Shah Ghazi 