A. Watan Mal
B. Shaikh Tahir
C. Mubarak
D. None of them
Submitted by: Ghulam Mustafa
Watayo Faqir is a legendary character who is said to have lived in Sindh, Pakistan during 10th century. There are many (rather funny) anecdotes associated with him, often providing some wisdom deeply contextualized within the social/culturual norms of the province of Sindh in Pakistan. This particular tale involves a promise made in the Koran (I should probably refer the exact verse here, somebody help?). A promise of provision of the basic needs of food by the Giver. The promise is that The Giver provides the food for sustenance of all creatures in the world, no matter what. The Giver could be a metaphor for God, but the original source from which this was taken does not explicitly use words Allah, Khuda etc.
The Tale:
Once Watayo grew sceptical of the promise of the Giver to provide for all creatures, so he decided to test it instead of having blind faith. So out he went from the village, deep in the woods. He climbed a tree and thought to himself that if the Giver wants to provide for me, he will provide here automatically. So a day passes without anything. Another day and Faqir grew feeble. So he became double-minded as to whether he should climb down and eat something or should wait for the ultimate test.
At the age of 75, he is said to have died and buried at Tando Allahyar
Once Watayo saw the cook going with the pot full with freshly cooked food, he thought this may be his last chance. So he started coughing very loudly to grab his attention. The cook saw Watayo and thought that he is some poor logger and called him downstairs to eat food. When Watayo climbed down, the cook recognized him and asked him what was he doing on the tree? Watayo said, he was testing Allah as to how does He fetch him food on the tree. Watayo went on to say: The Giver giveth but makes you at least cough for it and with that he finally started eating.
