Among the many challenges Hazrat Inayat Khan faced in his work to deliver the Message was the reaction of his own mureeds, as can be seen from the following talk. A thoughtful reader might ask, “And how well do I myself understand Murshid and the Cause?”

The work which we are doing just now is that of making a building, a building in which to preserve the Message for the time when humanity will be wakened to appreciate it, to value it, so that it may not be too difficult to find it, for it will be preserved somewhere in the building so made. And what is this building? It is the building which may be called in other words an embodiment of the illuminated souls. Its parts and particles are those who are born to serve God and humanity, who are meant to give their life to the service of the Cause. And it is this building which is a sacred temple, and it is this building to which our life and our work is dedicated.

If one asked, “How must the devotion of a mureed be expressed toward Murshid, toward the Cause?” the answer will be, “The best way of expressing devotion is by understanding Murshid and by understanding the Cause.” One may say, “But we serve.” Yes, service in this Cause is most appreciated and valued at this time of need, when the number of servers is so very small. Nevertheless, service without understanding Murshid and understanding the Cause may not always be satisfactory. Many work at a building, but the architect makes a plan. If every worker of the building had his own plan and his choice of work, the building would be broken to pieces before it was erected. Desire for work is not enough; the understanding of the law of harmony with one’s co-workers is most necessary.

People will say, ‘But I cannot understand why in this beautiful building, where there should be a carved pillar, you have put a simple wood one; why, when the floor is so well made, the frames of the windows are still left unfinished? Why, when the walls are so nicely made, the ceiling seems to be incomplete? Why, when the house is so nicely painted, there is a fence standing around the house?’ I will only answer, as an architect would answer, that the building is not yet finished; you are unjust to form your opinion upon something which is not yet complete. Another one comes along and says, ‘I have a beautiful pillar, carved nicely, I had it made for your beautiful building.’ I appreciate the great love and I value that pillar, which is brought with the desire to help. But at the same time I cannot use it when I have my plan before me. When I have my plan before me, I cannot accept any pillar brought even with great love and devotion by a person who says, ‘Remove this fence and put this pillar, it is beautifully carved.’

This temple of the Sufi Movement that we build may not be compared with a material building. It is a living building; and what is the nature of a living being? All that does not belong to him, to his system, to his being, does not remain with him, it falls from him. And so this living building will only hold that which belongs to it, that which is fitted in it, that which is meant to be a part of it. That which does not belong to it cannot endure, will not remain there. If it existed today, tomorrow it will fall away; it must fall away, it cannot remain. This building must be seen at the time of its finishing, when it is completed. That is the time to form an opinion if it is made right or wrong, not just now. Everything in its beginning has its shortcomings. A building which will keep the Message of God for years to come cannot be made in a day; it takes a lifetime.

Then what remains is one thing, and that is trust in the architect. You can trust the architect if you understand his point of view. If you cannot understand his point of view, then everything he does is wrong. Since I have no doubt about the great devotion and sincerity that my mureeds possess I must say that our struggle is great; we meet no end of disturbing influences and obstacles and oppositions, and we cannot help meeting them. And, with all this, we shall go on, we shall never be disappointed; we never shall give up our task. But at the same time one thing must be understood, that for us to stand together against all difficulties we want one thing, and that is harmonious co-operation; and that is only possible in understanding Murshid and the Cause.