Once in Baghdad some Hindus had bought an elephant.
They put the elephant in a dark house because they wanted no-one to see it, as they were going to ask them for money to see the elephant. But when the people went into the house it was so dark that they could only feel the elephant.
One man touched his trunk, and he said, 'This creature is like a water pipe'. Another touched his ear and he said, 'This creature is like a fan.' Another handled his leg and said, 'It is shaped like a pillar.' Yet another laid his hand on his back and said, 'Truly this elephant resembles a throne'.
If these people had had a light they would have been able to see the truth.
This story shows that people need a light to understand what Sufism is about.