Care for Animals

8/9/2019 Care for Animals

1/106

CARE FOR ANIMALS

A man once came to Prophet Muhammad (s) carryingwith him his belongings and a box. He said, "O Prophet !hile was passing through a #ungle, heard the $oice o% some

bird&s babies. too' them and put them in this box. hemoment did that, their mother came uttering round myhead."

And the Prophet said, "Put them down". !hen the manput the box on the ground, the mother o% the young birds

#oined them. *eeing this, the Prophet as'ed the man who nowhad a loo' o% surprise on his %ace, "Are you surprised by thea+ection o% the mother towards her young swear by Him(Almighty Allah) who has sent me, surely, -od is more lo$ingto his ser$ants than the mother to these young birds. eturnthese baby birds to the place %rom where you too' them, andlet their mother be with them."

"/ear -od with regard to animals", said the Prophet o% slam, "ride them when they are 0t to be ridden, and get o+ their bac's when they are tired1 surely, there are rewards %orbeing 'ind and gentle to animals, and %or gi$ing them water todrin'."

slam has taught that in the eyes o% Allah, animals alsoha$e rights in the same way as man has. hey should not betreated badly, tortured or le%t to star$e without %ood or water.

mam Ali (a) had some duc's under his care in hishouse. At the time o% his death, he had gi$en particular ad$iceto his sons to ta'e good care o% those animals, or to set them%ree i% it was not possible to loo' a%ter them properly.

he Holy 2ur&an has also guided us by telling us that, inthe eyes o% -od there is no di+erence between the humanworld and the animal world. "here is no beast on earth, norbird which ieth with its wings, but they are nations li'e you 3unto the 4ord shall they return".

he Prophet o% slam was once per%orming ablution(!udhu) %or prayers %rom a pot o% water. A cat passed thereand turned its eyes at the pot o% water with a thirsty loo'. heProphet realised at once that the cat was $ery thirsty, so hestopped the ablution (!udhu) and placed the pot be%ore thecat.

Only a%ter the cat had %ully 5uenched its thirst, did theProphet resume the ablution (!udhu). 6y this action, theProphet has shown that 5uenching the thirst o% e$en a smalldumb animal is a noble act %ull o% $irtue and should be gi$en0rst attention be%ore one prepares %or o+ering prayers to -od.

AL-QUR'AN - THE GREAT AND HOLY BOOK

About a hundred years ago, 7ngland had a power%ulPrime Minister. He was a 8hristian to a high section o% the

Anglican 8hurch. His name was -ladstone. One day in theyear 9::;, he was spea'ing in the 6ritish Parliament on how


2/106

to wea'en the power o% Muslims in 7gypt so that the 6ritishcould continue to rule o$er them.

At one stage he raised a copy o% the Holy 2ur&an in hishand and said that so long as this boo' remained with the

Muslims in that country and they respected and %ollowed it,the 6ritish would ne$er be able to dominate them. He addedthat the only solution was to try and separate the Holy 2ur&an%rom the Muslims o% 7gypt.

At the end o% the speech1 a committee was %ormed todecide upon ways and means o% carrying out -ladstone&srecommendation. he committee resol$ed to send someexperts to 7gypt who would launch a campaign which wouldwea'en the %aith o% people and ma'e them suspicious o% thetruth o% the Holy 2ur&an. he aim was to discourage people tore%er to the Holy 6oo' and gradually ma'e them turn againstthe slamic way o% li%e.

n the course o% this political and $icious programme, alearned man by the name o% ow let us 0nd out what are the 5ualities o% this boo'which the enemies wished to remo$e %rom the Muslims.

he Holy 6oo' is 'nown as Al32ur&an which means &heeading&, the reading o% the Prophet o% slam who ne$er wentto any school. Prophet Muhammad (s) had retired to a ca$e onMount Hira not %ar %rom Mecca. One day Angel ?ibrail (-abriel)came to him and said "ead". he Holy Prophet said@ "!hatshould recite" ?ibrail said@ "ead in the name o% thy 4ord,who created1 created man out o% a mere clot o% congealedblood1 read1 and thy 4ord is most bounti%ul1 He who taught(he use o%) pen1 taught man that which he did not 'now".

he Holy 2ur&an as word o% -od, the Almighty, asre$ealed to his Prophet Muhammad (s) his boo' gi$esguidance %or our daily li%e. t appeals to our power o% reasoning, and exhorts us to %ollow the commands o% Allah. tis a li$ing miracle o% Prophet Muhammad (s), the last o% theProphets who came %rom -od. t is not surprising at all thatthis Holy 6oo' has remained intact %or the last 9BB years.And it shall remain so till the


3/106

D;;D $erses (Ayats) containing CC,D words made up o% EEB,99B letters.

mam ?a&%ar *adi5 (a) has said that one should at leastrecite FB Ayats e$eryday. 4et us, there%ore, $alue and respect

this -reat 6oo' by reading it with understanding and %ollow itsteachings.

BAHLOOL PROVES THE THREE FACTS

Abu Hani%a was once teaching slamic belie%s to hisstudents. He was arguing and challenging the $alidity o% someo% the statements which had been proclaimed by mam ?a&%aral3*adi5 (a) 6ahlool happened to be present as well. AbuHani%a proclaimed that he could not agree with the threeunderstated statements as made by the mam.

he 0rst one was that "Allah can ne$er be seen."According to Abu Hani%a it was impossible %or a thing to existand yet be in$isible he second things that the mam hadstated was that "*atan (de$il) will be thrown in the in%erno o% Hell which will scorch him bitterly." Abu Hani%a argued@ "Howwas it possible %or 0re to hurt &0re&, the %act that *atan wascreated %rom 0re itsel%"

he third statement o% the mam was that "Man alone isresponsible %or his actions and Allah 3 the most power%ul 3 has

nothing to do with his actions." "How is it possible, when Allah

alone guides the destiny o% man without !hose will nothingcan happen" his was Abu Hani%a&s third challenge.

As soon as the spea'er, Abu Hani%a, had made thesethree criticisms, 6ahlool got up, too' a piece o% bric' and

aiming at Hani%a, let it go and crac'ed Abu Hani%a head.

6ahlool was caught and ta'en be%ore the 8aliph %orpunishment. n his de%ence, he pleaded that he had donenothing else except reply to the three criticisms which AbuHani%a had made against the mam.

he 8aliph as'ed him to explain as to how and why hechose to reply by hitting and in#uring Abu Hani%a. 6ahlool said,"his man claims that i% -od is there, then he must be seen.He is now complaining o% pain in his head due to the bric'ha$ing hurt him. % the pain is de0nitely there, can he showme where it is !ell #ust as pain can be there without beingseen Allah also exists without being seen."

"*econdly, he says that 0re cannot burn 0re. t is a %actthat man is made out o% clay and this bric' with which hit hishead is also made out o% clay, i% clay can inict pain and hurtclay, why can&t 0re do the same to 0re"

"he third thing he says is that man is not responsible%or his own actions but Allah does all things. % this is so, thenwhy does he want #ustice %rom you and why does he want me

to be punished %or hurting him He might as well trans%er the


4/106

punishment to Allah !ho, according to him 3 is responsible %orall the actions o% man"

7$eryone in the court was stunned at this and AbuHani%a was dumb %ounded 3 ha$ing nothing to say. *o 6ahlool

was released without any punishment.

hus, while some Muslim sects belie$e that Allah can beseen, perhaps on the


5/106

Hercules was now becoming more and more interestedand he went on as'ing 5uestions. His next 5uestion was, "Arehis %ollowers on the increase or decrease" "ncreasing", Abu*u%yan replied shortly. "Ha$e you 'nown him to tell lies"as'ed Hercules. ">o", admitted Abu *u%yan. "ot so %ar. 6ut we ha$e to see whether he carries out thenew agreement made between us and him", Abu *u%yananswered lengthily %or a change. "Ha$e you e$er %ought himin wars" Hercules 5uestioned.

"es", answered Abu *u%yan "!hat has been the result"Hercules as'ed, getting more and more interested."*ometimes we ha$e won, sometimes he", replied Abu*u%yan. "!hat does he teach" as'ed Hercules. "!orship One-od, #oin no partners with Him, carry out your prayers, bechaste, spea' the truth and 'eep union with your relati$es",answered Abu *u%yan, e$en surprised at his own answer as itsounded li'e he was preaching slam.

Hercules stood up and said, "% all you said is true, then am sure that this Prophet&s Gingdom will reach here where am standing. was certain that a Prophet was coming, but didn&t 'now that he would be born in Arabia. % were to gothere, would embrace slam and wash the Prophet&s %eet withmy own hands." his was the way in which the Prophet spreadslam. He impressed them by his truth%ulness, honesty, noblecharacter and dedication in the ser$ice o% Allah. He did not

compel people to accept slam under threat o% waging wars,nor did he compel people to accept slam by the %orce o% the

sword. He %ought only in de%ence, and only when the enemieswaged war on him.

SHE HAD TRUE FAITH

Abu 6aseer was once in the company o% mam ?a&%ar al3*adi5 (a) when a woman came and said to the mam, " ha$ecome to as' a 5uestion. am ill. Physicians in ra5 ha$e toldme to ta'e li5uor. >ow want to 'now what to do in suchcircumstances"

he mam as'ed her, "!hy don&t you drin' what the doctorsha$e prescribed %or you"

*he replied, "As am your %ollower, shall obey whatyou say. % you permit me, shall drin' it1 i% not, shall 'eepaway %rom it1 so that i% am as'ed by the Almighty -od on the


6/106

*o saying the mam pointed at her throat1 and as'ed herthree times i% she understood what he had said. he womannodded her head. One o% the things which slam has strongly%orbidden is the ta'ing o% any intoxicating drin', li'e beer,wine. hey are harm%ul to the body and mind. Inder their

inuence one loses one&s senses and is apt to commit criminalacts. !e read o% %atal accidents and crimes committedbecause o% drin's.

7$en trading in li5uor and sitting in bars where peopleare drin'ing are also %orbidden in slam so that there is notemptation in the way o% people to ta'ing them. he Holy2ur&an says, "O 6elie$ers, ntoxicants and games o% chance,idols and di$ining arrows, are abominations de$ised by *atan.A$oid them, so that you may prosper. *atan desires to stir upenmity and hatred among you by means o% intoxicants andgambling, and to 'eep you %rom the remembrance o% Allahand %rom your prayers. !ill you not abstain %rom them"(8hapter F, Jerses CB, C9)

he abo$e $erses %rom the 2ur&an warn us o% the e+ectso% drin'ing. he 0rst mam, Ali (a), said, "*uppose a drop o% li5uor is put in a well and %rom its water a land is irrigated.-rass grows on the land and a sheep gra=es there. hat sheepthen gets mixed in a oc' o% other sheep who ha$e gra=edelsewhere. % all the sheep are slaughtered ma'ing it diKcultto identi%y the meat o% the sheep who had gra=ed on a landwhich was irrigated %rom the water o% the well, then shall not

eat any o% that meat."

hus mam Ali (a) has emphasi=ed the e$il o% alcohol./or the sa'e o% our own physical, mental and spiritual wel%are,we should always 'eep away %rom drin's.

A Call to Prayr! o" a Col# $%"try Mor"%"&

t was a wintry morning with much snow %alling coupledwith the blowing o% a strong cold wind. t was not easy tocome out in the open air. et one could see people rushing totheir wor' and students with boo's in their hands hastening totheir schools.

n one o% the mos5ues in Hamadan 3 ran, religiousstudents were assembling in order to attend a morning class.t was an important school o% slamic theology and the tutorwas also a $ery great learned one. His discourses were indeed$ery thought3pro$o'ing and so were his students 5uiteintelligent. he tutor was none else but the world %amous anda great Persian thin'er and philosopher &lbn *ina&, popularly'nown in 7urope as A$icenna. His lectures and writings on$arious science sub#ects had become the standard text boo's%or hundreds o% years in the uni$ersities o% 7urope. *tudentsadmired his deep philosophical thin'ing. hey %elt honoured tosit in his class and hear his inspiring lectures.

hat cold morning, students had already assembled inthe mos5ue and were still anxiously awaiting the arri$al o% their learned tutor. hey were wondering i% the intense cold

weather that day had delayed his coming. A %ew minutes hadpassed when suddenly the students witnessed the grace%ul


7/106

arri$al o% &lbn *ina&, their great learned tutor. hey %elt $eryhappy and stood up as a mar' o% re$erence and respect %orhim. He sat down at his usual place and exchanged greetingswith his students. He commenced his discourse in his usuallucid manner that held his students spellbound. He also ga$e

satis%actory answers to their 5uestions. Among the studentswas one $ery young and enthusiastic by name &6ahman ar&.He was much more close and attached to &lbn *ina& thelearned tutor. He was also the %oremost among the cle$er andad$anced students o% the class. 7$ery time he listened to thelectures o% his tutor, he became more and more %ascinatedwith his deep philosophy and 'nowledge on e$ery sub#ect.

He would say to his class3mates@ " wonder why ourtutor &lbn *ina& does not claim to be a prophet despite hissupreme intelligence and magic personality" t is said that oneday by chance &lbn *ina& was standing at a ba'er and loa%3seller shop. His attention was drawn to a $ery smart youngboy who was displaying signs o% much intelligence. he boywas saying to the ba'er@ "My mother is re5uesting %or a little0re." he ba'er responded@ "Ha$e you brought any pot tocarry the 0re" ">o 6ut 'now how to carry it", replied theboy instantly. *o saying he applied some ash o$er his palmand stretched his hand to the ba'er who placed a piece o% burning 0rewood o$er his palm. !ithout any hesitation, theboy too' it and went home.

&lbn *ina& was rather ama=ed to see the intelligence andcourage o% this boy. He thought o% ha$ing him %or special

training and education under his personal care. he proposalwas communicated to the parents who agreed and entrustedthe boy to his %ull care. hus &6ahman ar& since then wasstaying at no other place except at the house o% his tutor andcare3ta'er, &lbn *ina&. hey were all the time to be seen

together. he boy being highly intelligent deri$ed the best o% the 'nowledge that his tutor could impart. ears passed and&6ahman ar& grew up not only in age but also in 'nowledgeand understanding under the patronage o% his tutor. helearned tutor was also $ery proud o% this most capablestudent.t was one o% the coldest nights o% the wintry season.Midnight had passed and the snow3%alling was $ery hea$y.6oth &lbn *ina& and &6ahman ar& were sleeping in one roomunder warm thic' blan'ets. he light in the room was alreadyextinguished but the student was still as'ing intricate5uestions on some deep sub#ects. he tutor was replying inhis usual impressi$e manner. /ascinated by the supreme'nowledge and deep philosophy o% his tutor, he again madethe suggestion which he had made be%ore@

"Oh my learned tutor" he pleaded, "with all this highstatus o% 'nowledge that you en#oy and being master o% allthe sciences, why not declare yoursel% a prophet *ir


8/106

*ince &6ahman ar& was still young and immature, hisabo$e proposal to his tutor was rather emotional than logical.&lbn *ina& smiled but did not gi$e any reply.

hat night the cold weather had become extreme and

there was hea$y snow3%alling. 6oth were already %ast asleep. twas past midnight and suddenly &lbn *ina& wo'e up and raisedhis head out o% the warm blan'et. ncidentally he was $erythirsty and the water3mug in the room was empty. *o hedecided to wa'e up his student to go out and bring him somewater.

"Oh &6ahman ar& My son &6ahman ar& Please wa'e upand bring me some drin'ing water %rom outside", he saidrepeatedly. "!hy is there no water in the water3mug near yourgoodsel%, *ir" as'ed &6ahman ar.&

">o" replied &lbn *ina.& &6ahman ar& raised his headand saw hea$y snow%all outside. he thrilling sound o% thestrong cold wind also made him ner$ous to go out. Again &lbn*ina& grumbled@ "Oh &6ahman ar& !hy the delay 6ring mesome water, am too thristy."

&6ahman ar& dared not come out o% the warm blan'etsto %ace the cold weather outside the room. He was, there%ore,putting %orward lame excuses to his tutor. "Oh my respectedtutor t is harm%ul %or you to drin' water now that you ha$e

#ust come out o% the warmth o% thic' blan'ets. t is better you

go to sleep again till the early morning which is not %ar o+",said &6ahman ar&.

"My son 6ring me water, am too thirsty. mysel% am amedical expert and 'now better what is harm%ul than you do. am unable to sleep, please bring me some water %romoutside", again appealed &bn *ina&. n response &6ahman ar&again put %orward excuses and argued that he would catch

cold and %all sic' i% he were to go out in that extreme coldweather. *o saying he went bac' to sleep.

here was dead silence e$erywhere and no sound o% anything was to be heard. Outside it was still pitch dar'except the 0rst light o% *ubhe *adi5 (true dawn) in the easternhori=on had commenced to appear. *uddenly the silencebro'e with a melodious $oice o% a mue==in 3 caller to prayer%rom the top o% a minaret at the nearby mos5ue. A%ter recitingsome $erses o% the, Holy 2ur&an, the mue==in in a loud $oicesaid, "Allaho A'ber" 3 Allah is the -reatest. "Ash3hado an lailaha illallah" 3 bear witness that there is no god except Allah.

6oth the tutor and his student 5uietly listened to themelodious $oice o% the mue==in. he call to prayers thenproceeded to the words "Ash3hado anna Muhammadanasoolullah" 3 bear witness that Muhammed is theMessenger o% Allah. On hearing this, &bn *ina& thought o% ta'ing the opportunity o% responding to the repeated proposalmade to him by &6ahman ar&. He said@

"4isten to me, oh my son &6ahman ar&. >ow wish toreply to your repeated suggestion". he student sat up to hear

attenti$ely o% what his learned tutor abruptly wanted to say.&bn *ina& then proceeded@ "ou ha$e been suggesting to me


9/106

se$eral times to claim prophethood, that people would put %ull%aith in me and that you would be the 0rst one to do so. >owloo', you ha$e been my close student %or se$eral years andbene0ted %rom me a great deal, yet you did not thin' itprudent to obey me by coming out o% your warm bed %or a

moment and bring me water that badly needed to 5uenchmy thirst. nstead you chose to put %orward lame excuses."

"6ut thin' o% this man who is now calling to prayers atthe top o% the minaret a%ter coming out in the coldest weatherand ma'ing ablution with cold water in the early hour o% thismorning. t is %or no other purpose but in obedience to andrespect %or the command o% Allah as con$eyed by His apostleProphet Muhammad Musta%a (s) some %our hundred years ago."!hat a great di+erence there is between me and thatProphet sent by Allah"

T Car("tr

A highly s'illed carpenter who had grown old was readyto retire. He told his employer3contractor o% his plans to lea$ethe house building business and li$e a more leisurely li%e withhis %amily. He would miss the paychec', but he needed toretire.

he employer was sorry to see his good wor'er go andas'ed i% he could build #ust one more house as a personal%a$or. he carpenter agreed to this proposal but made surethat this will be his last pro#ect. 6eing in a mood to retire, thecarpenter was not paying much attention to building this

house. His heart was not in his wor'. He resorted to poorwor'manship and used in%erior materials. t was anun%ortunate way to end his career.

!hen the #ob was done, the carpenter called his

employer and showed him the house. he employer handedo$er some papers and the %ront door 'ey to the carpenter andsaid "his is your house, my gi%t to you."

he carpenter was in a shoc' !hat a shame % he hadonly 'nown that he was building his own house, he wouldha$e made it better than any other house that he e$er built

Our situation can be compared to this carpenter. Allah a&la has sent us to this world to build our homes in paradiseby obeying His commands. >ow, we ha$e to decide how wellwe wish to build the homes where we will li$e %ore$er.

A $orl# o) S*%l

About ten years ago when was an undergraduate incollege, was wor'ing as an intern at my Ini$ersity&s Museumo% >atural History. One day while wor'ing at the cash registerin the gi%t shop, saw an elderly couple come in with a littlegirl in a wheelchair.

As loo'ed closer at this girl, saw that she was 'ind o% perched on her chair. then reali=ed she had no arms or legs,

#ust a head, nec' and torso. *he was wearing a little whitedress with red pol'a dots. As the couple wheeled her up to me


10/106

was loo'ing down at the register. turned my head towardthe girl and ga$e her a win'. As too' the money %rom hergrandparents, loo'ed bac' at the girl, who was gi$ing me thecutest, largest smile ha$e e$er seen. All o% a sudden herhandicap was gone and all saw was this beauti%ul girl, whose

smile #ust melted me and almost instantly ga$e me acompletely new sense o% what li%e is all about. *he too' me%rom a poor, unhappy college student and brought me into herworld1 a world o% smiles, lo$e and warmth.

hat was ten years ago. &m a success%ul businessperson now and whene$er get down and thin' about thetroubles o% the world, thin' about that little girl and theremar'able lesson about li%e that she taught me.

T Pr!%!t"t Co+&

Ha'im was coughing at night and could not sleep. Mumtoo' him to the doctor to get a cough mixture. hat night andthe %ollowing night there was no impro$ement to his cough.

>ext day mum was tal'ing to her %riend and shesuggested ma'ing a home remedy. Her %riend ?asmina saidthat she used a home ready with the whole %amily and itwor'ed well by the will o% Allah *!.

Mum ga$e Ha'im 8o+help. Ha'im said, L6ismillah nthe name o% AllahN. Mum said, L4et us ma'e a dua to Allah(*ubhanahu wa a&ala). t is Allah who heals us. hen Ha'imsaid, La Allah heal me.

he 0rst night Ha'im still coughed but it was not as bad.!ith each passing night mum noticed Ha'im was coughingless and less and Ha'im was getting a more peace%ul sleep.

A%ter a %ew days Ha'im was able to sleep through the

night without coughing. Ha'im wanted to share this news withgrandma so he called her and said, L-randma my cough isgone, Alhamdulillah Praise be to Allah *!N. can sleepthrough the night. 8o+help has wor'ed. ou must use it whenyou ha$e a cough.

-randma said, LAlhamdulillah, you are %eeling wellagain. Ha'im, 8o+help has wor'ed only because Allah(*ubhanahu wa a&ala) has willed it. ou should say, by the willo% Allah (*ubhanahu wa a&ala) 8o+help has wor'ed and dont cough anymore, Alhamdulillah.

T M%, a"# t El(a"t

Once upon a time there was a colony o% mice who %eared theelephants. !hene$er the elephants wal'ed through the mice’ sland with their enormous %eet many mice were harmed. Oneday, the mouse 'ing went to the Ging o% the 7lephants andsaid, "% you spare our li$es, we will help you in a time o% need." he elephant 'ing agreed. He ordered the elephants tobe care%ul ne$er to step on a single mouse.

/rom that day %orth the elephants paid attention andli%ted their huge legs care%ully, ne$er harming their tiny


11/106

%riends. % they entered the land o% the mice, they li%ted theirtrun's and trumpeted a warning1 "!e are wal'ing. !e arewal'ing."

One day, elephant trappers came to the %orest. hey

were see'ing many elephants %or the human 'ing’ s soldiers toride into battle. o one had %orgotten howtheir huge %riends had spared their li$es. One cle$er mousemade a plan. All the mice re#oiced.

he mice %ormed into little groups. 7ach group gnawedthe ropes o% a single trap with their tiny sharp teeth. 6ymorning, all the elephants were %reed. /rustrated, the trappersle%t the %orest.

T S%&t o) Kaa

One ne$er tires o% ga=ing at the sight o% the House o% Allah, the Gaa&ba. he site upon which the mercy andblessings o% Allah are constantly descending. here is trulynothing comparable to the House o% Allah on this 7arth.People wish time would stand still so they could 'eep ga=ing

at the Gaa&ba1 their thirst is ne$er 5uenched, rather itincreases. Once, while on a $isit to !ashington, people toldme that a woman had accepted slam and had some5uestions %or me. hey told me that many non3practicingMuslim women had started practicing again due to her. Atprayer time she would dress in her best clothes as i% readyinghersel% %or someone special, and would become obli$ious toe$erything around her as soon she started praying.

A%ter a brie% 5uestion and answer session, as'ed herwhat prompted her to accept slam. *he sighed and startedexplaining1 " was a ?ew and my husband was a 8hristian who

was posted in *audi Arabia %or some technical wor'. 7$eryday used to see Muslim men and women dressed in white ontheir way somewhere. as'ed my husband where they weregoing and he told me that they go to per%orm pilgrimage atthe Muslim shrine o% Gaa&ba. expressed a desire to go but hetold me that non3Muslims were not allowed. Howe$er, wasdetermined and so we both bought white clothes and set out./ortunately no one stopped us and we reached Ma''ah, %romwhere we %ound directions to the Gaa&ba. Ipon seeing theGaa&ba our eyes %ro=e and time seemed to stand still. !henwe turned to loo' at each other a%ter some time, we wereboth crying. !ith our eyes we told each other that this wasthe ruth and we should accept slam. >o one e$er told me


12/106

about slam, but there were so many blessings descending onthat House that they changed my li%e %ore$er."

he blessings o% awhid descend in Ma''ah, and theblessings o% Prophethood descend in Madinah. One has seen

nothing in li%e i% he has not seen these two holy sites. MayAllah gi$e all Muslims the opportunity to $isit to His House.

Ma*oo#'! A#."t+r

t was during the last wee' o% ?anuary when Mahmoodand his %riends went out camping in the mountains by a la'e.As it was Allah&s will, it happened that the %riends arri$ed onan island at the $ery center o% a %ro=en la'e because the car

bro'e down and they could do nothing but stay on the island.A %ew days later, the la'e showed signs o% thawing and

the %riends hurried across the la'e, ta'ing whate$er theycould with them. In%ortunately, during the same time period,Mahmood was gone to explore and was %ar away %rom them atthe time they escaped across the island. !hen Mahmoodcame bac', he saw most o% the stu+ gone and no one around.Most o% the la'e had now melted and Mahmood was trapped.

he island, as Mahmood estimated was about ; mileslong and 9 mile wide. t was %ull o% greenery and had much o% the li'ing o% a %orest. Mahmood was able to identi%y many o% the plants because o% his pre$ious camping experiences. hela'e on the other hand, was too cold and wide to cross by

swimming. Many attempts to swim across it %ailed and soMahmood had to accept the idea that he would ha$e to waituntil somebody rescued him or until the la'e got a little bitwarmer. He 'new he was marooned and alone on the island.

As the days passed, Mahmood 'ept on remembering his

parents, brothers, and sisters. He slept on his sleeping bagthat he had brought with him %or camping. He li$ed on many%ruits he recogni=ed as sa%e ones.

One day, as Mahmood had %eared, a great pythonappeared. "his is not going to be any regular 0ght,"Mahmood thought to himsel%. he python, e$en though thisone was extraordinarily deadly and the center o% terror amongthe animal inhabitants o% the island, retreated bac' a little.>e$er had it seen a thing so big. t was a%raid.

Mahmood had gathered many roc's and now hurledthem with all his might on the python. he python couldn&tdodge these missiles and one by one the roc's began tearing

up its body. he sna'e, ne$ertheless, tried to ma'e its way%orward but only %ound that to ma'e its end come sooner.

Mahmood hurled the last, hea$y roc' on the sna'e,splitting the sna'e&s head into two and brea'ing up into tinypieces on the roc's below the python&s head. he python wasdead.

Mahmood had a %ew more s'irmishes o% the li'e with a%ew more animals and began %eeling more con0dent aboutli$ing alone with the animals o% prey all around him. He wasnow learning the true meaning o% courage.

*ummer was coming up %ast. Mahmood had hoped thatsomeone might come boating on the la'e and rescue him.Mahmood&s hope was %ul0lled later than he had expected. He


13/106

waited past ?une, ?uly, and then e$en August. Maybe this isnot a public la'e, he 0gured out.

/inally on the third wee' o% *eptember, a %ew boatersappeared. Mahmood wa$ed to them. hey came to the islandand pic'ed him up. He was %ree at last He had stayed on the

island %or Q months. Mahmood stayed with the boaters ontheir $acation. !hen the boaters decided to go home, theydropped Mahmood o+ because he li$ed close to where theyli$ed.

As Mahmood wal'ed up to the door o% his house, hewondered what his %amily would say to him. His parents werethe 0rst to meet him. His mother couldn&t belie$e her eyesand as'ed him, "!here were you"And his %ather as'ed, "!hat had happened" Mahmood toldhis %amily what had happened. hey couldn&t belie$e how hehad 'illed the sna'e. hey were $ery proud o% him.

As %or Mahmood, he became more courageous %rom that dayonward. He also learned how to handle the situation when hewas alone. t was the best ad$enture o% his li%e.

Ha,%/o0 t Fa%t)+l Do&

n 9CE, a bron=e statue o% a dog called Hachi'o waserected at the *hibuya rain station in o'yo, ?apan. he storyo% this dog is mentioned below.

Hachi'o was born in 9C;E and was owned by 7isaburoIeno, a pro%essor in the agriculture department at theIni$ersity o% o'yo. he pro%essor used to ta'e a train %romthe *hibuya *tation e$ery day to go to the uni$ersity. 7achday Hachi'o accompanied the pro%essor to the train station

when he le%t %or wor'. Ipon returning, the pro%essor would0nd the dog patiently waiting %or his master and wagging itstail. his happy routine continued until one %ate%ul day in9C;F, when the pro%essor was ta'en ill on the #ob andun%ortunately died be%ore he could return home. As usual, thedog waited at the train station that day %or his master toreturn bac'. Howe$er, seeing that he wasnt coming bac',

Hachi'o waited till night %ell and retuned bac' home. he next day Hachi'o went bac' to the train station again,waiting %or his master to come bac'. He patiently waited tillsunset and then retuned bac' home. he dog was so de$oted

to the pro%essor that he continued to $isit the train statione$eryday %or the next 9B years he people who passed theloyal dog each day were so touched by his story that theyerected a statue in his honor in 9CE.n 9CEF, Hachi'o died at the $ery same spot where he used towait %or his master.

Dear readers, we should take a lesson from this story for ourselves. Byreciting the kalimah of Tawheed, all of us have taken an oath to be loyal to our

Master, Allah Ta’ala. Now, we should look dee into ourselves and check tosee how much love we really have for Allah in our hearts .


14/106

I! tr a Go#1

Once upon a time there was a 'ing and he was a wiseman too. n his 'ingdom used to li$e many other wise men.

>ow some o% these would not agree to belie$e that -od didexist, while others not only agreed but argued to thesatis%action o% the Ging that there was &-od&. he Ging, being awise man, arranged %or a discussion.

he date and time %or discussion was 0xed. he 'ingheld his court at the appointed time on the appointed date.

he non3belie$ers assembled in his presence but the belie$ingwise man did not come at the appointed time

he people waited and waited till they lost theirpatience and uttered the words@ "He has no arguments to

ad$ance in support o% his con$iction, so he will not come. Hehas lost, we ha$e won."

At last, the wise man arri$ed and there was an uproar inthe court o% the 'ing. he people cried@ "!hy are you late ouha$e lost".

he 'ing as'ed him to explain the cause o% his delay. he belie$ing wise man explained, saying@ " started %rom myhome in time, but when came by the side o% the ri$er which had to cross be%ore reaching here, did not 0nd a single boat,by which could cross and reach the opposite ban'".

Ipto this point the disbelie$ing men heard him patientlyand did not say a single word. he belie$ing man thencontinued@

" waited and waited till at last saw some plan's o%

wood coming out o% the ri$er".

And the unbelie$ing men began to shout "O, t is a lie. tis unbelie$able. t is unthin'able".

8ontinued the belie$ing wise man@ "Plan' by plan'came out o% the ri$er and then saw the plan's were cut toproper si=e and shape and #oined to each other with nails bythemsel$es until they %ormed a boat. And then too' my seatin it and came o$er to the other ban'. am late because o% the delay in the a$ailability o% the boat".

Amid a roar o% the non3belie$ing men, the belie$ing wiseman tried to con$ince them o% the cause o% the delay1 but theopponents would not belie$e him. hen he said@

"ou do not belie$e what say. t appears the story o% the boat %orming by itsel% is something impossible %or you tobelie$e. >ow in the name o% #ustice, as' you.


15/106

his silenced them all and there was no answer to this.*o the non3belie$ers lost and the belie$er won.

T F%!r*a"

An in$estment ban'er was at the pier o% a small coastal$illage when a small boat with #ust one 0sherman doc'ed.nside the small boat were se$eral large yellow 0n tuna. hein$estment ban'er complimented the 0sherman on the 5ualityo% his 0sh and as'ed how long it too' to catch them.

he 0sherman replied, "Only a little while." he in$estment ban'er then as'ed, "!hy didn&t you stay outlonger and catch more 0sh" he 0sherman said, "!ith this ha$e more than enough to support my %amily&s needs."

he in$estment ban'er then as'ed, "6ut what do you dowith the rest o% your time" he 0sherman said, " sleep late,0sh a little, play with my children, ta'e siesta with my wi%e,stroll into the $illage each e$ening and spend time with my%amily, ha$e a %ull and busy li%e."

he in$estment ban'er sco+ed, " am a Har$ard M6Aand could help you. ou should spend more time 0shing1 andwith the proceeds, buy a bigger boat@ !ith the proceeds %romthe bigger boat you could buy se$eral boats. 7$entually youwould ha$e a eet o% 0shing boats. nstead o% selling yourcatch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor1

e$entually opening your own cannery. ou would control theproduct, processing and distribution. ou would need to lea$ethis small coastal 0shing $illage and mo$e to a big town ande$entually to the the city where you will run your e$er3expanding enterprise."

he 0sherman as'ed, "6ut, how long will this all ta'e"

o which the in$estment ban'er replied, "9F to ;B years."

"6ut what then" as'ed the 0sherman.

he in$estment ban'er laughed and said that&s the best part.


16/106

"!hen the time is right you would announce an PO and sellyour company stoc' to the public and become $ery rich, youwould ma'e millions." "Millions...hen what"

he in$estment ban'er said, "hen you would retire.

Mo$e to a small coastal 0shing $illage where you would sleeplate, 0sh a little, play with your 'ids, ta'e siesta with yourwi%e, stroll to the $illage in the e$enings and spend time withyour %amily."

T%r!t )or Lar"%"&

Hadhrat Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased withhim) says@"A%ter the passing away o% the Prophet (peace be upon him), said to an Ansari %riend o% mine@ Rhe Prophet is not now withus. 6ut a large number o% *ahabah are still among us. 4et us

go to them and get 'nowledge o% the slamic practices. Hesaid@ & !ho is going to approach you %or learning a regulationin the presence o% these eminent *ahabah& was notdiscouraged. 'ept up my 5uest %or 'nowledge andapproached e$ery person who was supposed to ha$e heardsomething %rom the Prophet. managed to gather substantialin%ormation %rom the Ansar. % on my $isit to someone o% the*ahabah, %ound him asleep, spread my shawl at the gateand sat waiting. *ometimes my %ace and body would getco$ered with dust, but 'ept sitting till they wo'e and wasable to contact them. *ome o% them said@ &Abdullah you arethe cousin o% the Prophet1 you could ha$e sent %or us. !hy didyou ta'e the trouble o% coming to our places& said to them@

& must come to you, %or am a student and you are myteachers.& *ome people %or whom had waited said@ &*incewhen ha$e you been waiting %or us& in%ormed them that had been sitting there %or a pretty long time. hey said@ &!hata pity ou could ha$e awa'ened us %rom our sleep.& said@ &

did not li'e to disturb you %or my own sa'e.& thus carried onmy pursuits, till there came a time when people began tooc' to me %or learning. My Ansari %riend reali=ed this at thattime and remar'ed@ &his boy has surely pro$ed himsel% moresensible than us.&"

*ource@ /rom the boo' "*tories o% the *ahabah" by *hai'hMuhammad Sa'ariyya Gaandhlawi.

6esides our 5uest %or 'nowledge to earn a li$elihood in thisworld, we must as well gain suKcient 'nowledge o% slam. >omatter what age group we belong to at this moment, we

should atleast ha$e that much slamic 'nowledge with whichwe can turn our ; hours li%e into worship. hose with'nowledge and practice will be exalted in this world and in theherea%ter.

Prayr o) a S%,/ Pr!o"

mam 6aiha5i has stated on the authority o% Hadhrat Ali(ra) who stated@ "Once, was present with the Prophet (peacebe upon him). At that time, had %allen so much sic' that prayed to Allah Almighty to grant me death i% am destined todie so that may get relie% %rom the sic'ness, otherwise, maybe restored to normal health %rom the sic'ness i% ha$e to li$e


17/106

%or sometime. , also, prayed %or being granted patience i% thissic'ness is a test %or me %rom Allah Almighty." Hearing that,the Prophet beat Ali with his %oot and obser$ed@ "Oh Alirepeat what you were saying." Ali (ra) repeated his prayer.

hen the Prophet prayed to Allah Almighty@ "O Allah Heal him

%rom the sic'ness." Ali (ra) stated that he became healthy thesame day and the pain ne$er appeared again.

*ource@ /rom the boo' "he Miracles o% the ProphetMuhammad" by *hai'h Ahmed *aeed


18/106

emen. He presented his idea to the 'ing o% 7thiopia who agreedto it. *o the house (church) was built and he named it Al32ullais1there was no church o% its li'e at that time. hen a man %rom the2uraish tribe o% Ma''ah came there and was in%uriated by it, so

he relie$ed his nature (stools and urine) in it, soiled its walls andwent away. !hen Abrahah Al3Ashram saw that, he could notcontrol his anger and raised an army to in$ade Ma''ah anddemolish the Gabah. He had in that army thirteen elephants andamongst them was an elephant called Mahmud which was thebiggest o% them. *o that army proceeded and none amongst theArab tribes that %aced them (%ought against them) but was 'illedand de%eated, till it approached near Ma''ah. hen there too'place negotiations between Abrahah Al3Ashram and the chie% o% Ma''ah (Abdul Muttalib bin Hashim, the grand%ather o% theProphet), and it was concluded that Abrahah would restore thecamels o% Abdul Muttalib which he had ta'en away, and then he

(Abrahah) would decide himsel% as regards the Gabah. AbdulMuttalib ordered the men o% Ma''ah to e$acuate the city and goto the top o% the mountains along with their wi$es and children incase some harm should come to them %rom the in$adingoppressors. hen that army mo$ed towards Ma''ah till theyreached $alley Muhassir. !hile the army was marching towardsMa''ah, in the middle o% the $alley, suddenly it was o$erta'en byoc's o% birds, oc's a%ter oc's, air3raiding that army with smallstones slightly bigger than a lentil seed. here ne$er %ell a stoneon a soldier except it dissol$ed his esh and burst it into pieces.*o they perished with a total destruction. Abrahah Al3Ashram edaway while his esh was bursting into pieces till he died on the

way (bac' to emen). *uch was the $ictory bestowed by Allah,

(the All3Ma#estic, All3Power%ul) to the people o% Ma''ah and suchwas the protection pro$ided by Him %or His House (Gabah inMa''ah).

R4ar# )or Hl(%"& Otr!

bn Abbas narrated, Once was in a state o% iti'aa% inthe Prophet&s Mos5ue (Medina). A certain person came to meand sat down. said to him, &O so and so, you loo' sad&. Hesaid, &es o% course, o %raternal brother o% the Prophet. *o3and3so has his due on me, and by the one who lies in eternalpeace in the gra$e (i.e. Prophet Muhammad), am not able topay the debt& said, &*hould not tal' to him about your debt&

He said, &ou can do so i% you li'e& here upon put my shoeson and went out o% the mos5ue. he personas'ed him, &Ha$e you %orgotten the state youwere in (i.e. iti'aa%)& replied, &>ot at all, but ha$e heard rom the one who lies in eternalpeace in the gra$e saying this his eyes became 0lled withtearsN, said@

"One who mo$es to %ul0ll any need o% his brother, and ma'ese+ort %or it, will 0nd it better than iti'aa% o% ten years1 and onewho per%orms iti'aa% %or one day %or the pleasure o% Allah, hewill create a distance o% three ditches between him and the


19/106

hell 3 and each ditch has a width which lies between 7ast and!est, or between the hea$en and earth."

Bttr to G%.

A young man, a student in one o% the uni$ersities, wasone day ta'ing a wal' with a Pro%essor, who was commonlycalled the student&s %riend, %rom his 'indness to those whowaited on his instructions.

As they went along,they saw lying in the path a pair o% oldshoes, which they supposed to belong to a poor man who wasemployed in a 0eld close by,and who had nearly 0nished hisday&s wor'.

he student turned to the pro%essor, saying@ "4et us play theman a tric'@ we will hide his shoes, and

conceal oursel$es behind those bushes, andwait to see his perplexity when he cannot 0ndthem."

"My young %riend," answered the pro%essor, "we should ne$eramuse oursel$es at the expense o% the poor. 6ut you are rich,and may gi$e yoursel% a much greater pleasure by means o% this poor man. Put a coin in each shoe, and then we will hideoursel$es and watch how this a+ects him."

he student did so and they both placed themsel$es behindthe bushes close by. he poor man soon 0nished his wor', and

came across the 0eld to the path where he had le%t his coat

and shoes.

!hile putting on his coat he slipped his %oot into one o% hisshoes, but %eeling something hard, he stooped down to %eelwhat it was, and %ound the coin. Astonishment and wonder

were seen upon his countenance. He ga=ed upon the coin,turned it around, and loo'ed at it again and again.

He then loo'ed around him on all sides, but no person was tobe seen. He now put the money into his poc'et, andproceeded to put on the other shoe1 but his surprise wasdoubled on 0nding the other coin.

His %eelings o$ercame him1 he %ell upon his 'nees, loo'ed upto the hea$ens and uttered aloud a %er$ent than'sgi$ing inwhich he spo'e o% his wi%e who was sic' and helpless, and hischildren without bread, whom this timely bounty, %rom some

un'nown hand,would sa$e %rom perishing.

he student stood there deeply a+ected, and his eyes 0lledwith tears. ">ow," said the pro%essor, are you not much betterpleased than i% you had played your intended tric'"

he youth replied, "ou ha$e taught me a lesson which willne$er %orget. %eel now the truth o% these words, which ne$erunderstood be%ore@ "t&s more blessed to gi$e than to recei$e."

Abdullah bin Abbas (radi Allahu anhu) reported that theProphet (sallAllahu alaiyhi wassallam) said that encouraging

good, prohibiting e$il, li%ting the burden o% the wea' person


20/106

and remo$ing an o+ensi$e thing %rom a path are allacceptable prayers to Allah.ibn Ma#ahN

A To+!a"# Ca*l!

n the times o% Imar (adiallahu Anhu) there was ase$ere %amine. All the people o% Madinah were su+ering dueto the shortage o% %ood. A cara$an made up o% a thousandcamels loaded with a large stoc' o% %ood grains belonging toIthman (adiallahu Anhu) arri$ed %rom *haam (*yria).*e$eral merchants o+ered to buy all o% it. He as'ed them whatpro0t they would pay. L/i$e per cent, they said. He answeredthat he could get higher pro0t than that. hey began to arguewith him, saying that they did not 'now o% any merchant whowould o+er him more than their 5uote. He saidto them, L 'now o% one who repays a pro0t o%

more than se$en hundred to a dirham (Arabiancurrency). He then recited the $erse o% the >oble 2uran inwhich Allah aala mentioned this pro0t. Lhe li'eness o% thosewho spend their wealth in the !ay o% Allah, is as the li'enesso% a grain (o% corn)1 it grows se$en ears, and each ear has ahundred grains. Allah gi$es mani%old increase to whom Hepleases. And Allah is All3*uKcient %or His creatures& needs, All3Gnower. (;@;D9).

LO traders 6ear witness with me that donate all this to thepoor people o% Madinah said Ithman (adiallahu Anhu).

-i$ing a Helping Hand

Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) and his

companions (radiAllahu anhum) went on a #ourney. heytra$elled by camels.

A%ter much tra$elling they got tired. On the way they stoppedto rest. hey decided to ma'e a small camp and coo' their%ood. *o they put their camels com%ortably to rest and ga$ethem grass to eat. A%ter that his companions decided to di$idethe wor' among themsel$es.

One companion said, " will go and 'ill the lamb %ormeat."

Another companion said, " will clean the ground aroundthe camp."

he third companion said, " will do the coo'ing."

Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said, "will bring wood %or the 0re."

All the companions (radiAllahu anhum) said with one$oice, ">o, *ir, we will do that %or you."

6ut the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) replied, "

$ery well 'now that you all will do that %or me. 6ut it is not


21/106

good %or me to sit idle while you wor'. am your companion. must wor' as much as you do. Allah does not li'e any one toen#oy any superiority o$er his companions."

*o saying, the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) went

to gather 0re wood.

Gey Points@ t is not good to sit idle while others wor'1 youshould always share the wor' with your companions.

eaching the $alue o% wor', co3operation, sharing, aiding andhelping others, la=iness.

he 6oy who threw stones at trees

here was a boy who li$ed in the city o% Madinah, who lo$edthe taste o% dates. He would do almost anything to en#oydates %resh %rom the tree.

?ust outside the city was a beauti%ul pool, an oasis. ound thepool there were many palm trees. And on the palm trees grew

the dates which the boy lo$ed so much.

7ach day the boy slipped away %rom his %riends and went byhimsel% to the oasis. here he too' out a hand%ul o% stoneswhich he had collected during the day. He chose a tree where

he could see the dates hanging, ready to eat.*electing a stone with care, the boy too' aim and threw ithard at the tree. !ith luc' he would hit the tree #ust right, anda date would %all to the oor, ripe and #uicy.

hen he would choose another stone, and another, until lotso% dates lay in the sand around, leaning against the tree andate his %ear o% %resh dates. He ne$er thought about thedamage he had caused to the trees. He ne$er imagined thatthe trees might ne$er grow %ruit again, at that they mighte$en die.

!hen the people who owned the trees came to chec' their%ruit, they were $ery surprised. 7ach day there were %ewerdates to be seen. 7ach day the trees loo'ed less and lesshealthy. hey decided to watch the trees %or a whole day, tosee what was happening.

hey were curious when the boy arri$ed to throw his stonesand eat his dates. hey were angry when they saw what hewas doing to the beauti%ul trees. >o wonder they did not loo'healthy. he owners stepped out o% their hiding place and too'

hold o% the boy. He was surprised, and a little %rightened. hey


22/106

were angry, and a little con%used. hey did not 'new what todo, "letUs ta'e him to Prophet Muhammad," one said "He will'new what is right."

*tanding in %ront o% he Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam),the boy was a%raid. He was usually $ery well beha$ed and hadne$er been in serious trouble be%ore. 6ut he did lo$e %reshdates. And it was easy to 'noc' them out o% the branches withstones.

Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) loo'ed at theboy. He spo'e $ery 5uietly, because he was not angry.

He could tell that the boy lo$ed dates so much that he did notthin' about damaged he had caused to the trees.

"!hy do you throw stones at trees


23/106

than my %ather" he woman said, "es. My 4ord and the 4ord o% your %ather isAllah."

Pharaoh&s daughter told her %ather what had happened.

Pharaoh demanded this woman blaspheme and lea$e slam,and not be a Muslim anymore, but she re%used. At that,Pharaoh threatened to 'ill her children.

He brought a great pot o% water and built a great 0re under it.!hen the water boiled, Pharaoh brought her children andstarted to drop them into that pot one a%ter the other.

hroughout all this, the woman remained stead%ast to slam 3and re%used to lea$e slam, e$en when Pharaoh reached heryoungest child 33 a little boy still breast %eeding 33 but she %eltpity %or him.

At that, Allah enabled this child to spea'. He said to hismother, "O Mother, be patient. he torture o% the Herea%ter is%ar more se$ere than the torture o% this li%e, and do not bereluctant, because you are right."

At this the woman re5uested Pharaoh collect her bones andthe bones o% her children and bury them in the same gra$e.Pharaoh promised her that 33 then dropped her into thatboiling water. *he died as a martyr.

he good odour the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wassalam)smelled coming %rom her gra$e is an indication o% her high

status.

hree ough 2uestions

here was a young man who went o$erseas to study %or 5uitea long time. !hen he returned, he as'ed his parents to 0ndhim a religious scholar or any expert who could answer his

hree 2uestions./inally, his parents were able to 0nd a Muslim scholar.

"!ho are you 8an you answer my 5uestions," as'ed theyoung man

" am one o% Allah (*ubhanahu wa a&ala)&s sla$es andnsha&Allah (-od willing), will be able to answer your

5uestions," replied the *cholar.

"Are you sure A lot o% Pro%essors and experts were not able toanswer my 5uestions," replied the young boy

" will try my best, with the help o% Allah (*ubhanahu wa a&ala)"

" ha$e E 5uestions," began the boy

9.


24/106

E. % shaitan (o."

"hat is ta'dir (%ate)........" he scholar continued, "My handthat used to slap you, what is it created %rom"

"t is created %rom esh," replied the young man

"How about your %ace, what is it created %rom"

"/lesh, as well" replied the young man

"How did you %eel a%ter slapped you"

"n pain."

"7$en though *haitan (satan) and ?ahunnum (Hell30re) were

created %rom 0re, i% Allah wants, insha&Allah (-od willing), the


25/106

Hell30re will become a $ery pain%ul place %or *haitan (


26/106

reached "one" and he stopped counting.

"6ut what comes be%ore &one&" as'ed the boy.

"here is nothing be%ore one 3 that is it" said the man.

"!ell then, i% there ob$iously is nothing be%ore the arithmetic&one&, then how do you expect that there should be anythingbe%ore the &One& who is Absolute ruth, All37ternal, 7$erlastingthe /irst, the 4ast, the Mani%est, the Hidden"

>ow the man was surprised by this direct, intelligent answerwhich he could not dispute.

*o the oman thought that he would do better with thesecond 5uestion. his 5uestion would surely not be answered

by this young boy. "hen tell me, in which direction is Allah%acing"

"6ring a candle and light it," said the boy, "and tell me inwhich direction the ame is %acing."

"6ut the ame is #ust light 3 it spreads in each o% the %ourdirections, >orth, *outh, 7ast and !est. t does not %ace anyone direction only," said the man in wonderment.

he boy cried, "hen i% this physical light spreads in all %ourdirections such that you cannot tell me which way it %aces,

then what do you expect o% the Nur-us-Samawati-wal-'Ard@

Allah 3 the 4ight o% the Hea$ens and the 7arth 4ight upon4ight, Allah %aces all directions at all times."

he oman was stupe0ed and astounded that here was ayoung child answering his challenges in such a way that hecould not argue against the proo%s *o, he desperately wantedto try his 0nal 5uestion. He didn&t want to be de%eated by thisyoung boy.

6ut be%ore doing so, the boy said, "!ait ou are the one whois as'ing the 5uestions and am the one who is gi$ing theanswer to these challenges. t is only %air that you shouldcome down to where am standing and that should go upwhere you are right now, in order that the answers may beheard as clearly as the 5uestions."

his seemed reasonable to the oman, so he came down %romwhere he was standing and the boy ascended the plat%orm. hen the man repeated his 0nal challenge, "ell me, what isAllah doing at this moment"

he boy proudly answered, "At this moment, when Allah %oundupon this high plat%orm a liar and moc'er o% slam, He causedhim to descend and brought him low. And as %or the one whobelie$ed in the Oneness o% Allah, He raised him up andestablished the ruth. 7$ery day He exercises (uni$ersal)power."


27/106

he oman had nothing to say except to lea$e and returnbac' to his country, de%eated and ashamed.

Meanwhile, this young boy grew up to become one o% themost %amous scholars o% slam. Allah, the 7xalted, blessed himwith special wisdom and 'nowledge o% the deen. His namewas Abu Hani%ah (rahimullah) and he is 'nown today as mam3e3A&dham, the -reat mam and scholar o% slam.

>abil&s !hite *hoes

>abil loo's into the padi 0eld and watches the tadpolesswimming. t is the planting season and the padi 0eld is

ooded. /armers are going to remo$e the seedlings %rom theseed beds and transplant them into the ooded 0elds. hewarm, wet climate in the tropics is ideal %or growing padi.Meantime the tadpoles are ha$ing %un swimming in the empty0eld.

>abil is waiting %or his %ather to ta'e him to the mas#id. He canhear his %ather calling him, ">abil, where are you" (Aina anta,ya >abil) >abil replies, " am coming, Ayah." He rushes to theroad to meet his %ather.

As they start wal'ing they hear a sound, s5uiissh, s5uiissh,

s5uiissh, s5uiissh. "!hat is that noise" as's >abil. hey stopto listen, but the noise stops as well. As they start wal'ingagain, they hear the noise again, s5uiissh, s5uiissh, s5uiissh,s5uiissh. Again they stop to listen. Again the noise stops. heyare $ery pu==led. " s someone %ollowing us" as's >abil, as heloo's bac'. 6ut there is no one there. !hat could the noisebe s it a bird in the s'y or an insect in the padi 0eld Againas they start wal'ing they hear the noise.

>abil loo's down at his shoes and s5ueals in delight. "ts myshoes, they are wet and are ma'ing this s5uiisshing sound."

hey both laugh glee%ully. His %ather loo's at >abil&s shoes andexclaims, ">abil, there is a hole in your shoe. !e need to buyyou a new pair o% shoes. >ext wee' when get some money,insha Allah, will put aside some money %or your shoes 0rst."

>abil is $ery excited. *hopping %or new shoes will be %un.

On Monday a%ter school, >abil as's his %ather, "Ayah, can wego shopping %or my shoes" His %ather says, "*abar (bepatient), >abil." hen >abil says to his %ather, "Ayah, today saw my %riend A=man wearing a nice pair o% blac' shoes." His%ather says, "Alhamdulillah, that is what Allah (subhanahu wa

a&ala) has gi$en to him."

On uesday a%ter school, >abil as's his %ather again, "Ayah,can we go shopping %or my shoes" His %ather says the samething, " *abar, >abil." hen >abil says to his %ather, "Ayah,today saw Ista= Marwan wearing a new pair o% white shoes."

His %ather says, "Alhamdulillah, that is what Allah s.w.t has


28/106

gi$en to him."

On !ednesday a%ter school, >abil as's his %ather again,"Ayah, can we go shopping %or my shoes" His %ather says,"*abar, >abil." ">abil, today saw the postman wearing smartblue shoes." his time >abil says, "Alhamdulillah, that is whatAllah (subhanahu wa a&ala) has gi$en to him."

On *unday again >abil says, "Ayah, can we go shopping %ormy shoes" His %ather says, "es, today a%ter salatul Sohor,insha Allah, we will go and buy your shoes." >abil per%orms hissalatul Sohor and 5uic'ly gets ready to go out shopping.

At the shoe shop, >abil sees a nice pair o% blac' shoes. "Ayah,these shoes loo' $ery smart," says >abil. His %ather says, "es,they loo' great, >abil." His %ather loo's at the price. ">abil, we

can only spend V;F %or your shoes. hese shoes cost VFF. twould be a waste to buy these expensi$e shoes. his is anextra$agance. !e would be spending an extra VEB. Allah(subhanahu wa a&ala) does not want us to be extra$agant,>abil. !hat do you thin' we can use the VEB %or"

>abil&s %ather then reads a $erse o% the 2ur&an.

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim

Walaa Tusri fuu

Innahu La yuhibbul Musrifeen

And waste not [laa Tusri fuu] by extravagane!exess"#

$erily% &e !Allah" loves not those who waste by extravagane !exess"#

*urah D Jerse 99

"O'ay, Ayah," >abil says. !e will not be extra$agant." >abilalways obeys his %ather, he is a soleh child.

hen >abil sees a pair o% brown shoes that loo' $ery nice."Ayah, these shoes are V;Q only, can buy them," as's >abil.His %ather loo's at the shoes and says, "es, >abil, these

shoes are #ust right %or you."As the salesman loo's %or the right si=e o% shoes, >abilwanders around the shop and soon sees a pair o% white shoesthat cost V9Q only. He li'es the shoelaces on them. here arelittle bells dangling at the end o% the shoelaces. "Ayah, Ayah,">abil calls as he runs to the other side o% the shop inexcitement. "8an buy these pair o% white shoes with the littlebells on them. hey are cheaper than the brown shoes1 we willsa$e money too.


29/106

V;Q %or the brown shoes, i% you want them," his %ather says.">o, don&t want the expensi$e brown shoes. want thesewhite shoes which are cheaper. Ayah, we must not wastemoney. emember what Allah (subhanahu wa a&ala) says,">abil reminds his %ather by reading the $erse %rom the 2ur&an.


Wa laa Tusri fuu

Innahu La yuhibbul Musrifeen

And waste not [laa Tusri] by extravagane !exess"#

$erily% &e !Allah" loves not [ La yuhibbu] those who

waste by extravagane !exess"#

*urah D Jerse 99

His %ather smiles when >abil 0nishes reading the $erse. Hesays, "!ell, >abil, now you ha$e a new pair o% white shoes.">abil replies, "Alhamdulillah, this is what Allah (subhanahu wa

a&ala) has gi$en to me."

>abil is $ery happy. He 'eeps loo'ing at his new white shoes,smiles and 'eeps saying, "Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah."

On the way bac', >abil&s %ather says, ">abil you can ha$e theV9B we sa$ed by buying these white shoes. ou can do whatyou want with it, but remember to do only those things thatwill earn you the pleasure o% Allah (swt) !hen Allah(subhanahu wa a&ala) brings re=e'i to us He also waits to seewhat we do with it. his V9B comes to you %rom Allah(subhanahu wa a&ala)"

>abil&s %ather reads a $erse o% the 2ur&an.


Wama bi'um min ni(matin faminallah

And whatever of blessings [ ni(matin] and good thingsyou have% it is from Allah#

*urah An3>ahl 9D@FE

he next day >abil is thin'ing o% what he would li'e to do withall that money. t is a lot o% money and he has ne$er had somuch be%ore. At 0rst he thin's he would li'e to spend all themoney on ice cream or chocolates or e$en buy that toy car hehas seen at the supermar'et. ?ust the thought o% it ma'es him$ery excited. 6ut then he as's himsel%, "!ill Allah (subhanahuwa a&ala) be pleased with me i% spend all the money onmysel%"


30/106

>ext day a%ter school he sits down with his %ather and startswriting down his ideas. >abil decides to use the money in 0$edi+erent ways. >abil starts thin', "How much money is there%or me to use %or each way i% di$ide V9B into 0$e ways">abil sees that he has V; to gi$e his mother, whom he lo$es$ery much. He can spend V; %or himsel%, he can use V; to buytreats %or his brothers and sisters, he can sa$e V; and the lastV; he can gi$e to the poor %amily who li$es near the mas#id.He says to himsel%, " Allah (subhanahu wa a&ala) will bepleased with me i% use the money in this way rather than i% spend it all on mysel%."

>ext day he goes with his mum to $isit the poor %amily. !henthey reach the house they hear some children crying. >abiland his mum say, "Assalamu Alai'um, Ma'ci' Meriam."Ma'ci' comes out and replies, "!a alai'umus *alam." One

little girl %ollows ma'ci' and 'eeps saying, " am hungry, ma'. am hungry, ma'. -i$e me some %ood" (Ana #aw&an. Ana #aw&an. A&tinee ba&dha toa&am.)

>abil&s mother gi$es some old clothes to ma'ci'. >abil gi$eshis V;. Ma'ci' is $ery happy and says, "Alhamdulillah." *heimmediately wispers to her son to go and buy a pac'et o% riceso that she can coo' it %or his little sister. here is nothing inthe house to eat. 7$en though she spea's $ery so%tly >abiland his mother can hear.

>abil is $ery upset and shoc'ed that there is nothing to eat in

Ma'ci' Meriams house. At his house there is always

something to eat. He puts his hand in his poc'et and %eels thebalance o% the money. He reali=es that ma'ci' needs themoney to %eed the %amily but he does not need the extramoney. He decides to gi$e all the balance o% V: to Ma'ci'. Heimmediately sees her %ace light up e$en more as she 'eepsrepeating, "Alhamdulillah, Masha Allah." *he tells her son tobuy some more rice and dried 0sh.

!hen they reach home, >abil starts crying as he remembersma'ci'&s %amily who has no %ood in their house. His motherconsoles him and says, " Allah (subhanahu wa a&ala) sendsre=e'i to whome$er he chooses. Allah (subhanahu wa a&ala)gi$es more to some and waits to see whether they will spendit all %or themsel$es or they will share with those who are inneed."

>abil loo's at his new shoes and says, "Alhamdulillah, amglad bought this pair o% white shoes and sa$ed V9B andthere%ore could gi$e it to ma'ci'&s %amily."


31/106

he Poor Man

t was a usual meeting. he Prophet (salAllahu alayhiwasalam) was in his place and his companions gatheredaround him to hear the words o% wisdom and guidance.*uddenly a poor man in rags appeared, saluted the assembly@

"Assalamun Alai'um" and 0nding a $acant place, com%ortablysat down. he Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) had taughtthem that all Muslims were brothers and in an assembly oneshould sit where$er one 0nds a place, regardless o% anystatus.

>ow, it so happened that this poor man sat next to a $ery rich

man. he rich man %elt disturbed and tried to collect theedges o% his dress around himsel%, so that the poor man didnot touch them.

he Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) obser$ed this andaddressing the rich man he said@

"Perhaps you were a%raid that his po$erty would a+ect you"">o, O Messenger o% Allah," he said"hen perhaps you were apprehensi$e about some o% yourwealth ying away to him"">o, O Messenger o% Allah.""Or you %eared that your clothes would become dirty i% he

touched them"

">o, O Messenger o% Allah.""hen why did you draw yoursel% and your clothes away %romhim"

he rich man said@ " admit that was the most undesirablething to do. t was an error and con%ess. >ow to ma'eamends %or it, will gi$e away hal% o% my wealth to this Muslimbrother so that may be %orgi$en. "

?ust as he said this, the poor man rose and said@ "O Prophet o% Allah, do not accept his o+er."

People present were all ta'en by surprise. hey thought thepoor man was a %ool. 6ut he explained@

"O Prophet o% Allah, re%use to accept his o+er because %ear

that might then become arrogant and ill treat my Muslimbrothers the way he did to me."

4oo', you are being called upon to expend in Allah&s !ay, yetsome o% you are being niggardly, whereas the one who isniggardly is, in %act, being niggardly only to hims el%. Allah is*el%3*uKcient@ it is you who are the needy. % you turn away,Allah will replace you by another people, and they will not beli'e you.Q@ E:N


32/106

"Allah does not lo$e the arrogant and the boast%ul, who areniggardly and bid others to be niggardly and conceal thebounty which Allah has bestowed upon them. !e ha$e 'ept inreadiness a humiliating chastisement %or such deniers (o% Allah&s bounty)"@ ED3EQN

Allah Gnows 7$erything

Mr Hasan had three sons@ /aru5, Abdullah and 2asim. Helo$ed them $ery much. He wanted to see them grow up asgood Muslims.

Mr Hasan himsel% was a good Muslim. He did his best to obey

all commands o% Allah.One day, Mr Hasan thought to test his sons. He ga$e each o% them some sweets and said, "7at the sweets in such a placewhere no one can see you, and when you ha$e done so, comebac' to me."

/aru5 too' the sweets and went to his room. He shut the door%rom the inside and ate the sweets thin'ing that no one couldsee him there.

Abdullah went to the cellar o% the house and he was sure that

nobody was there. He ate the sweets in the dar'ness o% the

cellar.

2asim thought and thought about a place where he could eatthe sweets without anyone seeing him. He could thin' o% nosuch place. 7$ery time he thought about a place, heremembered that Allah could see him, and he did not eat thesweets.

/aru5 and Abdullah came bac' and told Mr Hasan about whatthey did. 2asim came and returned the sweets to his %athersaying, "here is no place which is secret %rom Allah, and so did not eat the sweets."

Mr Hasan was $ery pleased with 2asim. he told /aru5 andAbdullah to learn a lesson %rom their brother 2asim.

Mr Hasan also said, "My dear sons, always 'eep in mind thatAllah 'nows e$erything and He sees e$erything. He is with usall the time. *o we should not do anything bad, e$en in secret3 because Allah Gnows."

he 6oy and the Apple ree

A long time ago, there was a huge apple tree.


33/106

A little boy lo$ed to come and play around it e$eryday. Heclimbed to the treetop, ate the apples, too' a nap under theshadowUhe lo$ed the tree and the tree lo$ed to play withhim.

ime went byUthe little boy had grown up and he no longerplayed around the tree e$ery day. One day, the boy camebac' to the tree and he loo'ed sad.

"8ome and play with me" the tree as'ed the boy." am no longer a 'id, do not play around trees any more"the boy replied. " want toys. need money to buy them.""*orry, but do not ha$e moneyU but you can pic' all myapples and sell them. *o, you will ha$e money."

he boy was so excited. He grabbed all the apples on the treeand le%t happily. he boy ne$er came bac' a%ter he pic'ed theapples. he tree was sad.

One day, the boy who now turned into a man returned andthe tree was excited "8ome and play with me" the tree said." do not ha$e time to play. ha$e to wor' %or my %amily. !eneed a house %or shelter. 8an you help me"

"*orry, but do not ha$e any house. 6ut you can chop o+ mybranches to build your house."*o the man cut all the branches o% the tree and le%t happily.

he tree was glad to see him happy but the man ne$er camebac' since then. he tree was again lonely and sad.

One hot summer day, the man returned and the tree wasdelighted. "8ome and play with me" the tree said.

" am getting old. want to go sailing to relax mysel%. 8an yougi$e me a boat" said the man.

"Ise my trun' to build your boat. ou can sail %ar away and behappy." *o the man cut the tree trun' to ma'e a boat. Hewent sailing and ne$er showed up %or a long time.

/inally, the man returned a%ter many years. "*orry, my boy.6ut do not ha$e anything %or you anymore. >o more apples

%or you U" the tree said.">o problem, do not ha$e any teeth to bite" the man replied.

">o more trun' %or you to climb on"" am too old %or that now" the man said." really cannot gi$e you anything... the only thing le%t is mydying roots" the tree said with tears.

" do not need much now, #ust a place to rest. am tired a%terall these years" the man replied.

"-ood Old tree roots are the best place to lean on and rest,

8ome, come sit down with me and rest." he man sat down


34/106

and the tree was glad and smiled with tearsU

his is a story o% e$eryone. he tree is li'e our parents !henwe were young, we lo$ed to play with our Mum and o matterwhat, parents will always be there and gi$e e$erything theycould #ust to ma'e you happy. ou may thin' the boy is cruelto the tree, but that is how all o% us treat our parents. !e ta'ethem %or granted we don&t appreciate all they do %or us, I>4it&s too late.

Allah has said1

"And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him. And that you be dutiful to your parents. If one of them or bothof them attain old age in your life say not to them a word of disrespect nor shout at them but address them in terms of honour."

Allah (ta&ala) tells us to be good and 'ind to our parents. Hereis a du&a that you can learn to ma'e du&a %or them@

ربممممممممممممممممممممممانكممممممممممممممممممممممرحهممممممممممممممممممممممر ! مممممممممممممممممممممم"

Rab)bir ham)huma 'ama Rabba)yani *agheera

My 4ord Place on them our Mercy e$en as they cherishedme in childhoodsurah bani sra&il1 9Q@ ;N

Abdullah ibn Mas&ud

A young boy o% short stature was gra=ing a herd o% goats onthe mountain trails on the outs'irts o% Ma''ah. He saw twomen in the distance coming towards him. As they came closerthey loo'ed tired and thirsty.

hey approached him and as'ed, "O young boy, can you o+erus some mil' %rom any o% your goats to 5uench our thirst"

n reply the young boy said, " am sorry, these goats are notmine, they belong to I5aba bn Ali Muait, so will bedishonest i% gi$e you mil' without his permission."

6oth men were $ery impressed with the young boy&s honesty.

his young boy was none other than Abdullah bn Masud, and


35/106

the two men were Prophet Muhammed (salAllahu alayhiwasalam) and Abu 6a'r (radiAllahu anhu).

hey had le%t Ma''ah that day to escape the persecution o% he 2uraysh. his incident shows the 'een sense o% honesty

Abdullah bn Masud had e$en be%ore he accepted slam andrelates to the saying o% he Prophet (salAllahu alayhiwasalam) that, "he best o% you be%ore he accepting slam arethe best a%ter accepting it".

*oon a%ter this incident Abdullah bn Masud became $eryattached to the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) and $erysoon he became a Muslim. He ga$e up herding goats andinstead de$oted himsel% to ser$ing the 6lessed Prophet.

He used to accompany Prophet Muhammed on his #ourneysand tend to his personal needs. He recei$ed the uni5uetraining and guidance in the household o% Prophet (salAllahualayhi wasalam). He is 'nown and recognised as one o% themost 'nowledgeable companions with 'nowledge o% the2ur&an.

One a man came to Imar bn Al Ghattab and told him, " ha$e #ust come %rom Gu%ah in ra5 where le%t a man 0lling copies o% the 2ur&an %rom memory".

"!ho is he" as'ed Imar angrily

"Abdullah bn Masud" replied the man.

hen Imar became calm and said, "!oe to you, by Allah don&t 'now anyone more 5uali0ed to do this".

Another time, the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam), Imar

and Abu 6a'r (radiAllahu anhum) passed the mos5ue whilesomeone was reciting the 2ur&an beauti%ully in prayer.

he prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said, "!hoe$er wantsto read the 2ur&an as %resh as it was re$ealed, should read li'ebn Masud", as he was the person reciting it.

bn Mas&ud was one o% the %our people the Prophet (salAllahualayhi wasalam) recommended people to learn the 2ur&an%rom1 including *alama Maula Abu Huday%a, Muadh bn ?abaland Ibayy bn Ga&ab (radiAllahu anhum).

!hen the *ahabah (radiAllahu anhum) were $ery %ew inMa''ah, wea' and oppressed, one day they said, "he2uraysh ha$e not heard the 2ur&an being recited loudly, !hocan do it"

" will do it" said Abdullah bn Masud. his was a big tas'. he *ahabah were a%raid %or him becausehe did not ha$e any tribe to protect him. he 2uraysh couldeasily attac' and harm Abdullah ibn Mas&ud i% he started toread the 2ur&an %or e$eryone to hear.

6ut bn Masud said, "Allah will 'eep me sa%e %rom their

mischie%".


36/106

bn Masud went to the Gab&ah where some o% the 2urayshwere gathered and started reciting *urah Ar3ahman o% the2ur&an.

!hen the 2uraysh realised he was reciting the 2ur&an, they

came o$er to him, and started beating him till he bled.Howe$er, although he was $ery swollen and bruised, he0nished reciting the *urah.

he *ahabah were sorry %or Abdullah bn Mas&ud when theysaw his condition, but Abdullah ibn Mas&ud said, "6y Allah, theenemies o% Allah are more uncom%ortable than me, and would go and do it again."

he sahabah said, "t is enough."

bn Mas&ud had excellent manners and he lo$ed to ma'esacri0ces %or Allah&s sa'e. He too' part in all the ma#or battleso% slam with Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wasalam).

n the battle o% 6adr, he 'illed Abu ?ahl. He also %ought in thebattles o% Ihud, Ghanda5, Ghaybar, the con5uest o% Ma''ahand Hunayn.

Abdullah ibn Mas&ud was also $ery care%ul in narrating hadith%rom the 6lessed Prophet, to ma'e sure he said the exact

words o% the Prophet, and didn&t ma'e any mista'es.

Once a%ter telling people a hadith, he smiled a%ter it, becauseMuhammed (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) also smiled a%ter it. He'new that he said the hadith correctly, and that the 6lessedProphet was pleased. his shows us bn Mas&ud&s truth%ulnessand determination to be correct.

bn Masud also ne$er allowed in#ustice o% any 'ind, no matterwho was doing it. One day !ahid bn A5aba, the go$ernor o% Gu%a was late to lead the prayers in congregation, so Abdullahbn Mas&ud led the prayers.!hen bn A5aba came he was $ery angry and demanded anexplanation %rom bn Mas&ud.

"Allah does not li'e the prayer delayed %or you. !hy shouldthe people wait in the Mos5ue %or prayer whilst you are busyin your wor'," replied bn Mas&ud

!ahid could not reply.

bn Masud would treat his %amily with a+ection and 'indnessand made sure he educated them in the 2ur&an and aboutslam. He was $ery hospitable and in Gu%ah had emptied hishouse %or ser$ing guests.

His speeches $ery mainly about the Oneness o% Allah, prayers,%earing Allah and the Herea%ter. He used to say, "O people, hewho wants this world loses the next, he who wants the

Herea%ter does not care about this world".


37/106

bn Masud was bra$e and pious, though he was short and had$ery thin legs. One day he climbed a tree and his legs wereunco$ered and some people laughed at them.

6ut the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said, "On the


38/106

at last hit upon an idea. ogether they arranged a plan toteach the man how to ma'e wudu correctly, without insultinghim, ad$ising him in a manner be0tting o% his age.

hey went o$er to the old man, and as'ed him i% he could helpthem. "My brother and disagree o$er who amongst us

per%orms !udu the best. !ould you mind watching us ma'ewudu, and be the #udge to see which one o% us indeedper%orms !udu more correctly 8ould you please correct uswhere$er we are wrongU

he man watched care%ully as the two grandsons o% the6lessed Prophet per%ormed !udu in an explicit manner. *oonhe 'new the correct way o% ma'ing wudu, realising hismista'es.

A%ter Hasan and Hussain (radi Allahu anhum) had completedtheir wudu, the old man than'ed them and said, U6y Allah, did not 'now how to per%orm wudu be%ore this. ou ha$e bothtaught me how to do it correctly.U

eaching points@ One o% the most beauti%ul examples o% Hi'mah (wisdom) in ad$ising others. espect and treatment o% elders.

Ging ?ahangir and the baby ?ahangir was one o% the Mughal 7mperors o% ndia, ruling %rom

9DBF39D;Q.

?ahangir was a wise and %air 'ing. He was well lo$ed by thepeople in his 'ingdom. 7$eryone 'new that ?ahangir would

listen to their problems, no matter how small.

Outside his palace there was a special bell, with a great, thic'rope. Anyone who wanted to tal' to the 'ing could simplycome to the palace and pull on the rope. ?ahangir would hearthe bell, and come to listen.

One 0ne sunny day two women arri$ed at the palace. heywanted the 'ingUs wise ad$ice, so they pulled on the bell.>either woman loo'ed $ery happy. One o% them was carrying

a small child. he other women was crying. 6oth told Ging ?ahangir that the baby belonged to them.

he women stood be%ore the 'ing, hoping he would ma'e adecision. 6ut the 'ing could not ma'e a decision straightaway.7ither woman might be the babyUs mother. 6oth o% themloo'ed $ery upset.

Ging ?ahangir thought %or a while. hen he sent a ser$ant tobring a sharp 'ni%e. U will settle the problem. shall cut thebaby into two pieces. hen you can ha$e exactly hal% each.U


39/106

One o% the women began to cry and sob. *he came and 'neltbe%ore the 'ing. UPlease do not cut my baby in hal%. -i$e himto the other woman, only do not harm him.U

he Ging now 'new the answer to his problem. He said to the

woman who was 'neeling, Ut is easy to see that you are thebabyUs mother. Here, ta'e your baby. Geep him sa%e.U

Gey deas@ 4o$e o% mothers to their children, wisdom, sacri0ce

he Old !oman and the Prophet(salAllahu alayhi wsalam)

More than 9BB years ago in Arabia the people were li$ing$ery much in %ear. hey %eared their neighbours. hey %earedother tribes. hey e$en %eared their idols. /or this was thetime be%ore slam.

he Arabs were worshipping idols. n their ignorance theywould bury their newly born daughters ali$e. As slam beganto spread among Arabs such cruel practices stopped. /orslam taught lo$e and peace. t taught 'indness and respect.

Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wsalam) himsel% was a$ery 'ind and lo$ing person. He treated e$ery one, young andold, with 'indness and respect.

6ecause Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wsalam) wasspreading the word o% -od, because he was changing, %orbetter, the li$es o% many Arabs and because some Arabs %eltthat by the teachings o% Muhammad their old idols were losingpower they disli'ed Muhammad and planned to 'ill him. 7$erytime they tried to 'ill him, they %ailed. his angered the

enemies o% slam e$en more. *o they began to harass him ine$ery way they 'new.

One old woman made a habit o% throwing rubbish on ProphetMuhammad (salAllahu alayhi wsalam) whene$er he passed%rom her house Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wsalam) had topass that house daily on the way to the mos5ue.7$en when the old woman threw rubbish on him, he wouldpass silently without showing any anger or annoyance. hiswas a regular, daily e$ent.

One day when the Prophet was passing by, the woman wasnot there to throw the rubbish. He stopped, and as'ed theneighbour about her well3being, and wondering why shewasn&t dropping any rubbish on him.

he neighbour in%ormed the Prophet that the woman was sic'on bed. he Prophet politely as'ed permission to $isit thewoman. !hen allowed he entered the house, the womanthought that he had come there to ta'e his re$enge when shewas unable to de%end hersel% because o% sic'ness.

6ut the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wsalam) assured her that he

had come to her, not to ta'e any re$enge, but to see her and


40/106

to loo' a%ter her needs, as it was the command o% Allah that i% any one is sic', a Muslim should $isit him and should help himi% his help is needed.

he old woman was greatly mo$ed by this 'indness and lo$e

o% the Prophet. 6y the example o% greatness o% Muhammad,she understood that he was truly the Prophet o% -od andslam was the true religion. *he accepted slam at once,Alhamdulilah.

Gey Points@ ights o% >eighbours in slam, Gindness, Jisitingand caring %or the ill, /orgi$eness.

he -ossiper

A woman repeated a bit o% gossip about a neighbor. !ithin a%ew days the whole community 'new the story. he person itconcerned was deeply hurt and o+ended.

4ater the woman responsible %or spreading the rumor learnedthat it was completely untrue. *he was $ery sorrow%ul andwent to a wise old sage to 0nd out what she could do to repairthe damage.

"-o to the mar'etplace", he said, "and purchase a chic'en,

and ha$e it 'illed. hen on your way home, pluc' its %eathersand drop them one by one along the road". Although,surprised by this ad$ice, the woman did what she was told.

he next day the wise man said, ">ow go and collect all those%eathers you dropped yesterday and bring them bac' to me."

he woman %ollowed the same road, but to her dismay, thewind had blown a99 the %eathers away. A%ter searching %orhours, she returned with only three in her hand.

"ou see," said the old sage, "itUs easy to drop them, but itsimpossible to get them bac'. *o it is with gossip. t doesnUtta'e much to spread a rumor, but once you do, you can ne$ercompletely undo the wrong."

A Pri=e %or Piety

Once long ago, a young man named *alman came to per%ormHa##. He was poor and had no money %or good %ood. *o hestayed at Ma''ah spending much o% his time in the Haram.


41/106

glittering under the sun in the distance. "!hat could thatbe," thought *alman.

As he came closer, he %ound that someone had dropped theirpurse. !hen he opened it, he %ound an expensi$e nec'lacealong with plenty o% money.

" could buy a lot o% nice things with all this money," *almanthought. " could buy a good house and good %ood with thatmoney". 6ut his piety spo'e to him@ "t is haram 3 it&s not yourproperty".

hen *haitan whispered to *alman to be greedy and to 'eepthe money. hen *alman thought that he could spend some o% the money and gi$e some o% the money to charity. He thoughtthat he was doing the right thing by 'eeping the money.

Meanwhile, the owner o% the purse came searching %or it.*alman saw the owner as'ing people i% they had seen theirpurse. "&m a thie%," thought *alman, " ha$e the purse".

6ut *haitan again whispered to him, "


42/106

He entered the mos5ue, thirsty, hungry, in#ured and tired. he$illagers in the mos5ue saw the tried loo'ing stranger, andwere $ery 'ind and help%ul to him.

*alman stayed in the mos5ue, trying to gather his strength

a%ter the ship3wrec' and continued with his worship. hen heled the people in salat li'e an mam and ga$e them sermons%ull o% good ad$ice and piety. He also used to help people with

#obs that they needed doing, and was 'ind and help%ul asmuch as he could. he people were impressed with this youngpious man.

here was a rich man in the $illage who had a beauti%uldaughter named *hayma. He wanted to gi$e her in marriageto the pious young man who would also manage his business.One night, he came to *alman and said, "ou are a $ery lo$ingperson to me. want you to marry my daughter."

*alman could not belie$e what he heard. He 'new that theperson was the richest man in the $illage. *alman 'issed hishead and the rich man embraced *alman. A%ter three days, asimple ni'ah was arranged in the mos5ue and the bride cameto li$e with him. !hen he entered the room he %ound abeauti%ul lady wrapped in sil'en clothes. *he stood towelcome him.

As *alman came closer to greet his new wi%e, he saw

something glisten under the sun. His sight was caught by the

nec'lace *hayma was wearing. t was the same nec'lacewhich he had returned in the Haram

*alman turned his %ace and %ell in prostration to Allah andsaid, "hou Art -reat. ruly, hou ne$er waste the reward o%

righteous ones."

*hayma told the whole story to her %ather. he next day, the%ather came to *alman with a 'ey in his hand saying, "his isthe 'ey o% all my businesses and properties." He embraced*alman.Piety smiled in *alman&s heart and said, "!ill you lo$e menot"

A leper, A blind man and A bald3headed man

Abu Huraira said that he heard Allah&s Apostle saying, "Allahwilledto test three sraelis who were a leper, a bli

Care for Animals

Documents

Transcript of Care for Animals