The village was called Shalban. The whole village was filled with green paddy fields, unpaved roads, and the sound of the call to prayer in the evening. In that village lived a man named Rafiq. Looking at him from the outside, there was no way to understand how dishonest he was. He wore a white Punjabi, and had a sweet smile on his face—but inside, his heart was full of greed and deceit.
Rafiq was clever since childhood, but he never put that cleverness to good use. While studying at school, he would copy his friends' books and get good marks in exams. If someone said something, he would blame them. As he grew older, his tricks also grew.
He opened a small grocery store in the village. At first, he was very polite. He would give things in small amounts, and inquire about everyone. People started to trust him. But gradually his true nature began to emerge. He would rig the weighing scales. Instead of one kilogram, he would give 900 grams, but he would charge the price of a whole kilogram. He would mix sand with rice, mix low-quality oil with oil and sell it.
The poor people of the village would fall into his trap and not realize that they were cheating. Even if someone suspected, they could not prove it. Rafiq would laugh to himself—“What is money if you don’t cheat?”
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One day, the village’s old uncle Hafiz came to the shop. He was a very honest man. He lived on a small pension. He bought a kilogram of pulses. When he went home, he saw small stones mixed in the pulses. Angry and distressed, he went to Rafiq’s shop the next day and said,
— “Rafiq, what are you doing? Will you find peace by killing people’s rights?”
Rafiq said coldly,
— “Uncle, you are misunderstanding. These things don’t happen in my shop.”
Hafiz’s uncle left without further ado. But rumors started circulating in the village. Many people started saying, “There is definitely something wrong with Rafiq’s shop.”
Still, Rafiq did not stop. Instead, he planned an even bigger fraud. He told me about opening a society in the village—“Savings Society.” He said, “You deposit money every month, I will do business and bring profit.” Many agreed to his sweet words. Poor farmers, rickshaw pullers, widows—everyone started depositing money with hope.
After a few months, the society’s money had reached a good amount. One night, Rafiq secretly took all the money and fled to the city. In the morning, people were shocked to see the shops closed. As soon as the news spread, many families burst into tears. Some had their daughter’s wedding money, some had their medical money—all gone.
But the story did not end here.
After going to the city, Rafiq started a new business. New name, new identity. It was going well for a while. But he did not understand that fraud does not last long. One day, when his new business partner asked for the accounts, he found a misunderstanding. The investigation revealed his old story. The police arrested him.
Sitting in jail, Rafiq was alone for the first time. None of the people he had cheated for money were by his side. He could not sleep at night. I remembered Uncle Hafiz's words—"Will you find peace by killing people's rights?" The words kept ringing in my ears.
After a few years, he was released from prison. His hair was gray, his eyes were tired. He returned to the village with shame and regret. No one looked at him favorably. The shop was now someone else's. The wounds of the association had not yet healed.
This time, Rafiq really wanted to change. He went to Uncle Hafiz's house. Uncle was very sick at the time. Rafiq fell at his feet and started crying,
— "Uncle, forgive me. I made a mistake."
Uncle Hafiz said in a weak voice,
— "Everyone makes mistakes, but it takes courage to admit it. If you really want to change, then do good to people."
From that day on, Rafiq started a new life. He worked as a daily wage laborer, and gradually started returning money to those from whom he had taken money. Not everyone forgave him right away, but seeing his change, people's hearts gradually softened.
The people of the village understood—unscrupulous people do not end well. And Rafiq learned—even if the income from the righteous path is small, there is peace in that income.
The lesson of the story is one: Greed blinds people, but repentance and honesty can bring people back to the light.
