It is also related that one day Rumi said: "I am with seventy-two different sects and creeds." Siraj al-Din of Konya was a man of grudge. To hurt Rumi and to discredit him in the eyes of the public, he sent one of his religious friends to ask Rumi in public whether or not he actually said that he was with seventy-two sects and creeds. He advised him to insult, curse, and swear at him if Rumi admitted to saying those words. The man came and asked Rumi: "It has been claimed that you said: 'I am with seventy-two sects and creeds.' Is that true?" Rumi did not deny what he had said. He replied: "Yes, that is what I said." The man immediately started to swear and curse at Rumi. Rumi just smiled at him and said: "In spite of all that you are saying, I am also with you."
— Sefik Can, Fundamentals of Rumi's Thought