Prophet Adam(A.S.)

Allah made the mountains and the seas.He made all the animals.He made the heavens and the stars.He made the sun and the moon and he made the angels.The angels were like Allah's servants and did everything He ordered.Then Allah decided to make a man.
He called this first man Adam.He taught him many things so that Adam had more knowledge than the angels. There was one Jinn, called Iblis and he thoughthe was better than Adam so Allah would not let him stay with the other angels. He was tobe called 'Shaytan', the Devil.
Shaytan blamed Adam for what had happened to him and was very angry. Allah let Adam live in a beautiful place because he was good. The place was called Paradise.
It was a very nice place but Adam was a little lonely, on his own all of the time.Allah decided to help Adam.He made Hawa to be Adam's wife.They were happy and liked living in Paradise. There was, however, one thing they were not allowed to do.There was a special tree and Allah had told them they must noteat any fruit from that tree.At first Adam and Hawa were very good and kept awayfrom the tree.
Shaytan decided to do something very naughty.He told them they were silly to keep away from the tree. He said nothing would happen if they ate its fruit.He said the fruit was delicious and they should try it.After a while they began to listen to Shaytan and thought they would have just a little taste of the fruit, just to see what it was like. Shaytan was very happy because he had made them disobey Allah.
As soon as they had eaten the fruit, Adam and Hawa realised that they had been very naughty and they felt guilty for what they had done. Allah forgave themBut He wouldn't let them stay in Paradise any more So He sent them to live on earth.

Habil and Qabil
Adam had two sons called Habil and Qabil. Adam thought that Habil, the younger son, should take over after him. But Qabil didn't like this idea and was very jealous. To settle the argument Adam thought of an idea. He told his sons to think of a present to give to Allah and to leave it on top of a certain hill.
The one whose present Allah accepted, would win the argument. Allah chose Habil's present because Habil had taken a lot of time and trouble to choose his present. Qabil was very upset and angry.
He was so angry that he killed his own brother. Afterwards, when he realised what he had done, he cried and cried but it was too late to be sorry.

Prophet Nuh (A.S.)
After many years Adam had grandchildren and even great grandchildren. There were now lots of people on earth. Many of them obeyed Allah but some were not so good and did just what they wanted to do all the time. This made Allah very unhappy. Allah chose Nuh, a good man, to tell the people that what they were doing was wrong.But they wouldn't listen to him and carried on doing bad things. Allah decided that all the naughty people should be punished. He told Nuh to build a big ark near his house. Nuh quickly got busy choosing good wood and building it up into a fine ark.
A lot of people laughed at him but he did not take any notice of them, because Allah had told him what to do. When he had finished, he put lots of food into the ark and collected the good people together. They also took lots of animals with them into the ark, two of every kind. One day, all of a sudden, the sky went very dark and it started to rain.
Lightly at first, then more and more heavily. Soon there was water everywhere. The bad people were not laughing any more. They were frightened because they had no shelter from the water. Only the good people in the ark were safe and dry.

Prophet Hud (A.S.)
A long time ago,a great tribe lived in the South of Arabia. They were called Ad. They were very clever and could do many things. They used the mountains for their homes. They carved out great mansions with wonderful pillars. They called their city Iram. It was very famous. As time went on, the people of Ad thought more about themselves and less about Allah. They thought they didn't need Allah, because they had lots of money and power. They thought they were being clever but really they were foolish. Before long they turned to bad ways. Gangs of them used to rob and kill people travelling by.
There was still one good man among them. His name was Hud. He did not belong to any of the gangs. He did not agree with the things they did. He tried to tell them to stop their bad ways and told them to follow Allah's ways. Hud said Allah would punish the bad ones but most of the people still would not listen. They thought they were more clever than the messenger of Allah.
Allah told Hud to take all the good people into a big cave near the city. The very next day a terrible tornado came and only the good ones, the ones who had listened, were saved.

Prophet Salih (A.S.)
The people of Thamud lived in a valley called al-Hajr in the north of Arabia. It was a good land so everything grew very easily. Cattle and sheep grazed on the land. Everyone had plenty of everything. When people have a lot they sometimes forget who provides everything, they sometimes forget Allah. When this happens Allah sends a messenger or a prophet to try to help the people. To the people of Thamud, Allah sent Salih.
Salih told the people to remember Allah but a lot of people just laughed at him and would not listen. He did not give up. He still tried to persuade them to worship Allah and soon people began to listen. They realised Salih was right. The leaders of Thamud were upset by this. They did not want people to listen to Salih. They did not believe Salih was sent by Allah. They wanted him to prove it, they wanted a sign.
They told Salih to bring them a camel but it had to be a special camel. Salih prayed to Allah and Allah sent the special camel. The camel gave lots and lots of milk so all the poor people had enough to drink, and they were very happy. The leaders of Thamud became angry again to see Salih and his followers so happy. They decided to kill the camel. Salih told them that Allah would punish them. Salih took all the good people away from the valley. A terrible earthquake came and destroyed the valley and all the bad people. If they had listened to Salih they would have been saved.

Prophet Ibrahim (A.S.)
Many years ago a boy called Ibrahim lived in Canaan. he was very clever and was always asking questions. Most of the people he knew worshipped idols but Ibrahim did not. The people had forgotten the messages that Adam, Hud, Nuh and Salih had brought them. Instead of praising Allah they worshipped statues. Ibrahim told his father he didn't think people should worship objects they had made themselves. His father was angry and told him not to say anything about the gods again.
Ibrahim decided he must show the people they were wrong so he thought of a plan. One night he sneaked into the place where all the statues were kept. With an axe he chopped off the heads from all but one of the statues. The biggest onehe left.
The next morning the people were very angry and upset at what had happened. They were sure Ibrahim had done it. They gathered in the public square and asked him if he had done it. Ibrahim told them to ask their big idol if he knew who was responsible. But, of course, the statue could not speak and the people knew it was only stone. Ibrahim shouted at them and asked how they could worship lumps of stone. The bad people were even more angry. They started to collect wood for a fire. They were going to burn Ibrahim to death.
They made a big bonfire and put Ibrahim on the top. Everyone came to watch. They lit the wood. The fire burned, the flames grew higher and higher. The people had to back away from the heat of the flames. Ibrahim was a good person. He believed in Allah. Allah would protect him. Allah would not let the fire harm him. When the flames dies down the people could not believe their eyes. They saw that Ibrahim was alive and the flames had not harmed him at all.
How had this happened?They all knew this was a great miracle and they fell to their knees. This wonderful thing hadmade them believe in Allah. Some people would still not listen. They thoughtIbrahim was just a magician Nimrod, the king of Canaan, heard all about Ibrahim.He wanted to talk to him.He asked Ibrahim about Allah. Ibrahim told him that Allah could do all things. He could give life and death. Nimrod said that he too could do that.
His soldiers brought two men in. Nimrod ordered one to be killed and theother to be saved. Nimrod thought that this made him like Allah. Ibrahim told him that Allah brings the sun every morning from the East.He asked Nimrod if he could bring the sun from the west next day, of course, Nimrod as unable to do that. Ibrahim married a girl called Sarah. They lived very happily in Palestine. hey worked and had plenty of everything. Ibrahim became very wealthy, but he was agood man. He always helped other people too.After many years Ibrahim and Sarah still had no children.
his madethem very sad. They both wanted a child to share their life with. Sarah told Ibrahim that he should marry her servant Hajar too, so that Ibrahim and Hajar could make a child together.

Prophet Ismail (A.S.)
After a while Ibrahim did marry Hajar and she had a son. They called him Ismail.They were all very happy. Ibrahim, Hajar and Ismail moved to a valley in Arabia. They settled in a good place with hills and mountains on allsides to protect them. After a while Ibrahim said that he should go back to see Sarah and to get more food and water. Before he left he prayed to Allah to look after hiswife and son because they did not have much food and water left. The food and water soon began to run low. Hajar was very worried. What could they live on? They prayed to Allah.
Hajar went to the top of the mountain, Mount Safa, to look for Ibrahim. Now their water was all gone and they were desperate. She went to the other side of the valley and climbed to the top of Mount Marwa. She looked towards the North, East, West and South for help but found none. Hajar kept running backwards and forwards between Mount Safa and Mount Marwa. She did this seven times. Suddenly she saw Ismail kick the ground with his heel. A spring of water gushed out - beautiful, pure water, they were saved.Even today this water, called Zamzam, still flows in the alley of Hijaz and when people go to Makkah on Hajj they go seven times between the two mounts in memory of this miracle that saved the lives of Hajar and Ismail. When Ibrahim returned he was amazed to see the valley.
The water had made the place very fertile. All the animalsand caravans visited and made it a prosperous place.
The Sacrifice of Prophet Ibrahim (A.S)
One night Ibrahim had a bad dream. He dreamt Allah told him to sacrifice Ismail.Ibrahim thought it was Shaytan playing nasty tricks on him. The next night Ibrahim had the same horrid dream. Ibrahim knew that Allah would only ask him to do such a thing if he had good reason.Even though he loved his son dearly, he was prepared to do this difficult thing for Allah. Ibraim told Ismail they had to go to Mount Arafat.
He took a knife and a rope with him. On the way they passed place called Mina. The devil, Shaytan, came to Ibrahim and tried to talk him out of sacrificing his son. Ibrahim turned his back on him and would not listen. When they reached Mount Arafat, Ibrahim told Ismail what Allah wanted him to do. Ismail listened and accepted what was to happen. He was an exceptional child. He too was a great prophet. Ismail told his father to tie his hands and legs and blindfold himself so he would not struggle and make his father even more upset than he was going to be and Ibrahim was blindfolded so he would not see his son suffer.
Ibrahim did as Ismail had said. He then took the knife and did what Allah had told him to do. When he took the blindfold from his eyes he looked down, not at his son but at a dead ram. Ismail was at his side. Ibrahim was afraid. He thought he had disobeyed but then he heard a voice telling him not to worry. Allah looks after his followers. Ibrahim and Ismail had passed a difficult test.
Each year, during the month of Dhul Hijjah, many Muslims, from all over the world, travel to Makkah. They want to remember what Ibrahim and Ismail did. In the month of Dhul Hijjah these pilgrims go to Makkah,Mina and Arafat. Theyvisit places where Ibrahim and Ismail lived and preached. They give a sacrifice just as Allah commanded Ibrahim to do. The pilgrims sacrifice animals in memory of the deed. We must obey Allah's commands as Ibrahim and Ismail did. We obey by doing the things we know are right, praying, obeying our parents and always telling the truth.

Prophet Ibrahim (A.S.) & Prophet Ishaq (A.S.)
The Well of Zamzam where water first flowed to save the lives of Hajar and Ismail, became a popular place for the caravans to stop. Some people liked the place so much they decided to stay there.
This place became known as Makkah. One day Ibrahim had a message from Allah. He and Ismail were to build a place for people to pray. They were to build an altar, it was to be known as the Ka'aba. The angel Jibrail brought the message saying that the Ka'aba should be built near the Well of Zamzam, the most sacred place on earth.
The foundation stone for the Ka'aba was tocome from heaven. It is found today in a corner of the Ka'aba and is known as the black stone. When Ibrahim was building the Ka'aba he was standing on a large rock. Allah softened the rock and the shape of Ibrahim's bare feet was left init. It is still there, for all to see. When Ibrahim was very old the angels came to see him and said Allah was going to give a son to him and Sarah.
Sarah could not believe it was true. She too was old. The angels said that all things are possible to Allah. They said the son was to be called Ishaq. He was to be a prophet.Sure enough, Sarah did havea son and they called him Ishaq. he grew up to be a great prophet. Ishaq married a girl called Rebecca. They had two sons, called Esau and Yaqub.
Yaqub became a great prophet. Yaqub grew up and married Zia and they had lots of children, both boys and girls. His second wife Rohsie had two sons,Yusuf and Benjamin. Yusuf and Benjamin were very good, obedient sons and they became Yaqub's favourites because of their good behaviour. Yusuf too grew up to be a prophet. All of these great prophets were descendents of Ibrahim. He is known as the father of all the prophets.
Muhammad (s), our great and beloved prophet, the last of all the prophets was a descendant of Ismail.

Prophet Yaqub (A.S.) & Prophet Yusuf (A.S.)
Yaqub was also known as Israil. Israil's children could see that Yusuf was their father's favourite. This made them very jealous. They became so jealous, some of them actually wanted to kill him.
The jealous brothers finally decided to throw Yusuf into a deep well. They went to Israil, their father, to ask if they could take Yusuf out with them; they said they would teach him to be a good shepherd. Israil would not let Yusuf go because he thought the others were planning to do something bad. One day Yusuf went to Israil and said that he had had a strange dream. In the dream Yusuf had seen the sun, the moon and eleven stars bowing down to him! Israil felt that the dream had a message, Yusuf was going to have a great future.
He told Yusuf not to tell his brothers about the dream. Israil's son were still thinking of their plan to kill Yusuf. They pestered Israil to let them take Yusuf with them to their work. At last Israil agreed, but he made them promise to look after him. They were so bad they knew they would break their promise. At the end of the day they asked Yusuf to take off his shirt. They killed a sheep and put blood all over Yusuf's shirt; then they threw Yusuf into a well. They went home and showed the shirt to Israil. Pretending to be very upset; they told their father that Yusuf had got left behind and a wolf had eaten him! Israil was very upset but he did not believe the story.
He knew that one day Allah would bring Yusuf back to him. Poor Yusuf spent the night in the well. The next morning, when someone put the bucket down the well to get water, he sat in the bucket. The man had to get help to pull the bucket up. He was very surprised to see a boy in it. The man was a merchant. The merchant decided to take Yusuf with him to Egypt and to sell him as a slave. When they arrived in Egypt, one of the noble families bought Yusuf.
The man who bought him told his wife that they should take care of him, as he was a good-looking child and they had no children of their own. Yusuf became one of the family.
Prophet Yusuf (A.S.) in Egypt
The Pharaoh of Egypt called Firawn had many people working for him. One of his assistants had a very wicked wife who said many things about Yusuf that were quite untrue. She thought she loved him but he told her that she should honour her husband. She became very angry and persuaded her husband to have Yusuf put in prison. While he was in prison, Yusuf used to tell everyone what their dreams meant and his explanation of the dreams always came true.
Allah had given Yusuf this great gift. Firawn kept having a strange dream and none of his wise men could explain what it meant. Then Firawn heard of Yusuf's great gift and sent for him. Yusuf would not leave the prison until he had proven his innocence. Firawn had an inquiry and discovered that Yusuf really was innocent, so he was able to leave prison. Firawn's dream was most unusual. In it, he saw seven skinny cows eat seven big fat ones and there were seven skinny ears of wheat and seven fat ears of wheat.
Yusuf explained that this meant there would be seven years of plenty but seven years of famine would follow, when there would be no water and no food for anyone. After that there would be a year of rain. Firawn liked and trusted Yusuf so he put him in charge of all the store houses in the land. Yusuf had worked himself up to a very powerful position. Allah always rewards good people. Yusuf worked hard; he made sure the store houses were filled with wheat and grain. Just as he had said, there were seven years of plenty. Those years passed very quickly.
Soon the seven years of famine came. The crops failed. People were hungry. Others were starving. Yusuf had planned for this. He opened his stores and let everyone have some of the wheat. Back in Palestine, Israil too was facing a hard time with no food for his family or the animals. He sent his sons to Egypt to get grain from the famous treasurer of Egypt. When they arrived they were told that they must get permission from the governor to buy grain. They went to see him, but did not realise that the fine man, in splendid robes was really their brother. He told them they could have some grain, but if they wanted any more, they would have to come with their youngest brother and parents.
Yusuf had recognised them straight away and he longed to see his father, mother and youngbrother Benjamin again. Eventually the eleven brothers returned with their mother and father. They bowed down before Yusuf. Yusuf put his father on his throne and reminded him of the dream he had had so long ago. The sun, the moon and eleven stars had bowed down before him just as his father, mother and brothers had done at this meeting, This was a great moment in his life and he thanked Allah, for all He had done for him.

Prophet Shu'ayb (A.S.)
The Prophet Shu'ayb was a descendent of the Prophet Ibrahim. He was sent to Midian and the Dwellers of the wood to give them Allah's message. The Midianite people committed many sins. They gave short measures and weights, they robbed people and caused mischief but most seriously they tried to stop people from worshipping Allah.
Shu'ayb tried to make them change but they would not listen to him. They wanted to throw him out and all the people who had listened to his words. Then Allah sent an earthquake and all the evil people were destroyed because they would not obey the word of Allah.

Prophet Yunus (A.S.)
The prophet Yunus was sent to Ninevah. He became known as the Lord of the Fish (Dhan-Nun). He warned the people about their evil ways and told them to follow Allah but they would not listen. Yunus was so angry he left. He sailed away but the ship was so full and heavy, poor Yunus was thrown overboard.
He was swallowed by an enormous fish and he lived in its belly for three days. Then the fish spewed him out on a shore. He was very ill but Allah was protecting him. A plant grew and its leaves protected Yunus from the sun and kept the flies away.A wild goat provided him with milk.
When he became better he went back to Ninevah and gave the people Allah's message once more. This time the people listened and Allah forgave them.

Prophet Ayyub (A.S.)
The Prophet Ayyub had been a wealthy man. He was a very good man but he lost his family and his wealth. He became ill and had terrible sores all over his body. However he never gave up. He spent his time praying. He was very patient and always kept his faith in Allah. Eventually Allah showed mercy. He told Ayyub to strike the earth with his foot and miraculously a fountain appeared. He drank the water and used it to wash his body. All his sores were healed and everything was returned to him as before.

Prophet Musa (A.S.)
Israil's family decided to stay in Egypt. For a long time they were happy. The family grew. There were many peoplerelated to Israil and they became known as the Bani Israil. For some reason the Egyptian people did not like the Bani Israil. A new Firawn became ruler of Egypt.
Israil's people became slaves to the government. They wereforced to do many unpleasant jobs and were treated very badly. One night Firawn had a dream. His high priest, Haman, told him what he thought the dream meant. An Israil boy would be born and he would grow up and cause the death of Firawn. This made Firawn very angry and so he thought of a horrible plan.
All the boys born to the Israilites would be killed at birth. He thought this would stop the dream from coming true. Imran and his wife had twochildren, a girl called Maryam and a boy called Iram. Soon after Firawn told of his plan, Imran's wife found out that she was going to have another baby.
They were pleased but they were also worried that if the baby was a boy, he would be killed. She did not tell anyone that she was going to have a baby. She stayed at home and kept her secret until the baby was born. It was a boy. She loved the baby very much but realised that if she kept him, he might be killed. She put the baby in a special box and Maryam went with her to the river Nile. They carefully put the box in the river and prayed that it would sail to safety. Allah was watching over the baby.
No harm would come to him. The box sailed into Firawn's gardens. Some maids were there and saw the box caught in the bullrushes. They pulled it out and were amazed to find a beautiful baby inside. They took him to Firawn's wife, Asia, who looked at him and knew at once that he was an Israili. Firawn wanted to kill the baby but Asia cried and cried and was so upset that eventually he said she could keep him and even adopt him.
The baby was called Musa. He was not happy. He cried because he was hungry but would not take milk from anyone. Maryam heard of this and she let it be known that she knew someone who might be able to help. She went to her mother and told her what had happened. They went to the palace and when Musa was put in her arms he stopped crying and took milk from her. With Allah's help Musa and his mother were reunited. She was able to look after Musa for a long time and he loved her dearly.

The Story of Our Prophet Shu'ayb
An Arab tribe led a happy life in the village of Madyan(Ma'an in Jordan),which had green valleys.There was a small village near Madyan.The village was famous for its gardens,so it was called the village of al-Ayka.Life bloomed in that area over three thousands years ago.
The climate of the two villages was moderate.It rained heavily there.So agriculture and pastures flourished.Thus, the people of the two villages led a happy life.
The people of Madyan village were few in number.Then they increased owing to the good life in that village.Thus,Madyan village had many markets and was full of activity.
There was a righteous man called Shu'ayb.Shu'ayb loved his village and his tribe.He loved people in general.
For this reason he took care of their affairs in Madyan, and the village of al-Ayka.
However, why did Shu'ayb look sad? Why did he feel pain for his people?
The people of Madyan were unbelievers. They worshipped idols. They worshipped useless stones. They imagined that idols would give them livelihood and bless their village.
For this reason our prophet Shu'ayb was sad. His people did not look at the sky full of stars. They did not look at the earth full of mountains. They did not think of the creation of trees.
If they had thought of those idols, they would have understood that the idols were insignificant gods.
If they had considered carefully people, trees, and the stars, they would have understood that there was no god except Allah, the Glorified.
Our prophet Shu'ayb asked his people to serve Allah and to refrain from worshipping idols.

Cheating in the Markets
Allah, the Glorified, gave the people of Madyan every thing. The people of Madyan led a happy life. Every thing was available in their markets. However, they practiced cheating in buying and selling. They decreased weight. They cheated both seller and buyer. When they bought something, they decreased its weight. When they sold something, they increased its weight.
They thought that they were free from this deed.
At that time Allah, the Glorified, chose the righteous person Shu'ayb as a prophet. He ordered him to propagate His message.

Allah's Message
Our prophet Shu'ayb was an eloquent orator. His proofs were strong, for he spoke in the name of truth and justice, He spoke in the language of pure nature.
Our prophet Shu'ayb summoned his people to serve Allah, the One and only and to refrain from worshipping idols. Then he calmly talked about corrupt markets and cheating in buying and selling.
Our prophet Shu'ayb said to his people: "With these acts of yours you'll spread corruption. Social life depends on exchanging commodities. You must exchange your commodities with each other.
"Exchanging commodities in the market requires public security. This public security will keep the weight, quality, and quantity of all commodities.
"Beware of cheating both buyer and seller. Be Careful not to decrease the weight of the commodities you sell. Don't take good commodities for bad ones. If you don't refrain from these deeds, Allah, the Glorified, will destroy your houses."
Prophet Shu'ayb words were very sweet. The Prophet used such words because he wanted the people of Madyan to lead a better life. He wanted them to live in a village full of good, livelihood, peace, and faith.
Our prophet Shu'ayb knew what had afflicted the people of Noah, Salih, and Hud. He knew that Allah, the Glorified, had destroyed Noah's people with the flood, Thamud's tribe with storms, Sodom and Gomorrah (two tribes at the Dead Sea) with meteors.
Shu'ayb said to his people: "Allah destroyed Lot's people because they disobeyed their prophet."

Struggle
The people of Madyan divided into two parties. One party believed in Shu'ayb and Allah's message. The members of this party were poor.
The other party disbelieved in Shu'ayb and Allah's message. The rich and the tyrants of Madyan joined this party.
The members of this party annoyed Shu'ayb and the believers. They threatened Shu'ayb, saying: "Shu'ayb, we don't understand your words. You're a weak person. Were it not for th members of your tribe, we would kill or dismiss you from Madyan."
Shu'ayb (A.S.) said to them: "Why do you fear the members of my tribe and not fear Allah? I want to spread good manners in this village. I don't want any reward for that.
"I want to warn you against Allah's wrath! If you go on practicing corruption, cheating, and worshipping idols, Allah will surely punish you!"
The tyrants said: "We're free to do anything! We're free to spend our money!"
One of the unbelievers laughed and said with: "Do your prayers order us to abandon our gods? Do they prevent us from spending our money freely?"
Our prophet Shu'ayb answered: "Freedom doesn't mean that you should oppress each other."
"Spend your money freely. However, don't oppress others.
Don't cheat them. Buy and sell with the scales fairly.
"You live in one village. You must help each other. You must respect the freedom of others.
"My people, ask your Lord for forgiveness. Turn to him in repentance. Surely, my Lord is most Gracious, Most Merciful. Allah want you to follow the way of good. For this reason He's sent me to you."
One of the unbelievers said: "Shu'ayb, you're a bewitched person! We never understand your words! Were it not for a person of your relatives, we'd kill you! We're able to do that at any time!"
The people of Shu'ayb were stubborn. They did not listen to his words. So Shu'ayb warned them against Allah's wrath, saying: "My people, act according to your ability. I will also act according to my ability. You will know the one to whom the punishement will come and disgrace him."
One ofthe unbelievers said to him: "We accuse you of lying. If you're truthful, then let your Lord punish us."
Our prophet Shu'ayb said: "You'll know who the liar is!"
Thus he left them and went to a neighboring village called al-Ayka.

The People of al-Ayka
Our prophet Shu'ayb was not from the people of al-Ayka; he was from the people of Madyan. When Shu'ayb (A.S.) arrived at al-Ayka village, he found the people there leading a life similar to that of the people of Madyan.
Shu'ayb found gardens full of fruit trees. The trees had twisted around each other. Springs gushed from the core of the dust and rocks. They watered the fields. However, the people of al-Ayka also worshipped idols. They practiced cheating when they bought and sold.
For this reason our prophet Shu'ayb said to them: "Don't you fear Allah's wrath? I'm afraid that Allah will punish you. Allah dislikes corruption and the wicked. So don't make corruption in the land."
The people of al-Ayka refused to believe in Shu'ayb message. They accused him of lying and magic.
They said to him: "If you're truthful, then let your Lord punish us."
Shu'ayb politely said to them: "Surely Allah knows your deeds. I want to propagate my Lord's message. I want to spread good manners as far as possible."
One of the unbelievers said: "You're a false magician. There's no difference between you and us. You're a person like us."
So Shu'ayb came back to the village of Madyan. As for the people of al-Ayka, they led a life void of faith, justice, and righteousness.
In the village of Madyan, the struggle between the believers and the unbelievers started. The unbelievers refused to believen in Allah's message. Besides they threatened and hurt the believers to force them to worship idols.
Shu'ayb advised his people, saying: "Don't hinder the way of faith, for it's the lighted way in the dark. Allah, the Glorified, won't forgive this fault of yours."
One day the unbelievers came to Shu'ayb and said to him: "We'll dismiss you and your followers."
One of the believers explained: "We've done nothing worthy of dismissal!"
One of the unbelievers said: "We'll force you to follow our religion."
The prophet Shu'ayb (A.S.) said: "We hate your religion. The believers won't follow your religion, for Allah's enlightened their hearts with faith."
Then Shu'ayb raised his hands towards the sky and humbly said: "Our Lord, decide between us and our people with truth. you are the best of deciders."

The End
Our prophet Shu'ayb left his people. However, the unbelievers did not let Shu'ayb and the believers live peacefully. They spared no effort to force Shu'ayb and his followers to follow their religion. They always hurt them.
When a person wanted to go to Shu'ayb to listen to his words, the unbelievers hindered and threatened that person.
Our prophet Shu'ayb reminded his people of the final results of the past nations. He said to them: "If you hurt me and wage war against me, Allah will punish you as He punished the past nations, who hurt the prophets and waged war against believers."
The people of Shu'ayb had seen the ruins of Sodom and Gomorrah; nevertheless they did not take a lesson from them.
The promised day came. The people prostrated themselves to their idols, and then they went to their work early in the morning.
Their markets were full of noise; their eyes flashed with cheating.
They thought about ways to cheat both the buyer and the seller to gain much more money. Such passed the day. The sun set; it got dark.
The hours of that night passed slowly.
Suddenly, an earthquake occurred. Those moments were terrible. Madyan turned to ruins.
Allah saved only the believers from that earthquake.
Allah also punished the village of al-Ayka.
Our Prophet Shu'ayb saw the ruins of the village, so he said: "My people, surely I delivered to you the messages of my Lord and I gave you good advice; how shall I then be sorry for an unbelieveing people?"( Holy Qur'an, 7:93).
Our prophet Shu'ayb spent the rest of his life at Madyan grazing his cattle.
When he became an old man, his two daughters grazed the cattle. They suffered very much from this work. When they wanted to water the cattle, they were ashamed to water near the shepherds.
One day a young man came from Egypt. The young man was thirty years old. His name was Musa b. 'Umran, who escaped from the oppression of the Pharaohs and came to the village of Madyan. What and happened?
In The Name of Allah, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful
And to Madyan (We sent) their brother Shu'ayb. He said: "O my people, serve Allah, you have no god other than him; clear proof indeed has come to you from your Lord, therefore give full measure and weight and do not diminish to men their things, and do not make mischief in the land after its reform; this is better for you if you are believers* And do not lie in wait in every path threatening and turning away from Allah's way him who believes in Him, seeking to make it crooked, and remember when you were few, then He multiplied you, and consider what was the end of the mischief-makers*
And if there is a party of you who believe in that with which I have been sent, and another party who do not believe, then wait patiently until Allah judges between us, and He is the best of Judges*
The chiefs, who were proud from among his people, said: "We will most surely turn you out, O Shu'ayb, and (also) those who believe with you from our villag, or you shall come back to our faith. He said: What! though we dislike (it)? Indeed we shall have forged a lie against Allah if we go back to your religion after Allah has delivered us from you, and it befits us not that we should go back to it, except if things in his knowledge; in Allah do we trust: Our Lord, decide between us and our people, and You are the best of deciders* And the chiefs of those who disbelieved from among his people said: If you follow Shu'ayb, you shall then most surely be losers*
Then the earthquake overtook them, so they became motionless bodies in their abode* Those who called Shu'ayb a liar were as though they had never dwelt therein; those who called Shu'ayb a liar, they were the losers* So he turned away from them and said: O my people, certainly I delivered to you the messages of my Lord and I gave you good advice; how shall I then be sorry for an unbelieving people? (Holy Qur'an, 7,85-93)

Prophet Musa
Now, dear ones, let's go together to the land of Egypt, the ancient Egypt. Let's go tothe land of the Nile thousands of years ago.
In that land thousands of slaves spent their lives in carrying huge rocks to the island (al-Jazira) to build the graves of the pharaohs. Those pyramids, which are still the foremost of scientific monuments, are the graves of the pharaohs.
The pharaohs thought that life would return to them. For this reason they prepared all means of power and authority. They thought that if they came back to life or life rerurned to them, they would find everything prepared.
The bare-footed workers built the pyramids, and then they consider carfully the things below them. They saw boats floating on the calm waves of the Nile. They considered the date-palms about the banks of the Nile, which flowed into the Mediterranean Sea.
The workers were forced to work hard day and night; nevertheless they were lashed across their backs with whips.

The Gift of the Nile
Hirodayt, the Greek historian, called Egypt the gift of the Nile. Were it not for the Nile, there would be nothing called Egypt. Ice melted and flowed into the Nile. The Nile flowed over its banks. It made the land of Egypt fertile, thus agriculture spread throughout Egypt.
Wheat was the main crop in Egypt. The Egyptians made bread from wheat. Their bread was similar to our present bread.
The farming of grapes spread in the delta of the Nile. There were big farms of grapes. At that time the Egyptians grew vegetables such as broad beans and chick-pea. They liked onions, leek, garlic, cucumber, lettuce, etc.
They also used honey to sweeten some foodstuffs. They were very fond of growing flowers. They used them as decorations on occasions and festivals.
The Means of Transport
There were yearly floods. The Nile was the main link between the Southern and Northern Egypt.
For this reason the Egyptians made boats from the wood of some trees. The boats had one rudder and sails made of woven cloth.
During the floods the cities turned into small islands in the middle of a wide area of water.

The Animals
At that time the Egyptians were familiar with many animals such as cats and dogs. They used dogs for hunting, oxen for plowing the land, and donkeys for carrying loads.
They grazed goats and sheep on their lands. They regarded the pig as an impure animal, for its meat rotted quickly.
The Egyptians were very fond of eating fish, which was plentiful in the Nile.
The Egyptians thought that crocodiles and river horses were dangerous animals, so they worshipped them. They worshipped lions for the same reason. They also worshipped jackals that walked about the grave-yards.
Writing
The Egyptians knew how to read and write. Their language was hieroglyphic, which was engraved signs.
For example, the sign, 'O' meant the sun. It also meant the word 'day'. There were other signs meaning other words.
The History of Egypt
The history of Egypt is divided into three periods:
The first period is called the Ancient Kingdom (2600-2280 BC).
The second period is called the Middle Kingdom (2100-1800 BC).
The third period is called the Modern Kingdom (1500-1000 BC).
Our prophet Musa b. 'Umran (A.S.) was born in the third period.
In the years 1500-1200 the Egyptians had a powerful state. Their empire was so big that is extended to the countries of al-Nubia (Sudan) and Palestine.
The Egyptians knew that their enemies had many horses, thus they used as many horses as their enemies used.
In this periods of time, the pharaohs became tyrannical. They made themselves gods for people. Among them were Tahtamis and Ramsis II.
When Ramsis the Second died, his son Minfitah succeeded him. Musa appeared at the time of Minfitah.
The Children of Israel
Dear ones, in the story of our Prophet Yousuf, you have read that Yousuf was thrown into the well, and then he was taken to Egypt. You have read that he lived in Egypt for twenty years. You have also read that Ya'qub, his wife, and his children went to Egypt to meet Yousuf.
The children of Ya'qub, namely the children of Israel, remained in Egypt, and after ten years they became a great nation.
Yousuf died and hundreds of years passed, so the people forgot that Yousuf had made Egypt a favor.
Again the pharaohs ruled Egypt. They persecuted the people. The children of Israel had the greatest share of torture and oppression.
The men from among the children of Israel had to work from morning to evening. They had to be satistied with a life of slavery and abasement. They had to worship the pharaoh, for he was the god of the people. For this reason, the children of Israel waited for someone to save them from the oppression of the pharaoh.
The children of Israel inherited good news from the time of Yousuf and Ya'qub(A.S.). Then waited for the birth of the person who would save them from torture.
The children of Israel faced increasing torture and oppression, so they talked very much about the savior. The Pharaoh heard the oppressed people talking of the savior. The fortune-tellers also confirmed this fact.
They told him that a baby-boy would be born, and that the baby would grow up and kill him.
The Pharaoh was afraid of this prophecy, thus he thought of a way to destroy the children of Israel.
The Pharaoh decided to kill all the baby-boys who would be born at that time. He appointed some women to spy on pregnant women.
The Holy Qur'an has described that black period, saying: "And We saved you from Pharaoh's people, who tortured you severely, killed your sons, and spared your women."
The Pharaoh was wicked. He wanted to impose his authority on the people of Egypt, so he spared no effort to divide them. He made them quarrel with each other in order to control them.
The Egyptains regarded the children of Israel as strangers and slaves. They punished them severely. When they heard that one of the children of Israel would kill the Pharaoh, they treated them as prisoners of war of another state.
On the account of this, the children of Israel witnessed the worst period in their life. The police of the Pharaoh took male babies. They killed them or threw them into the Nile. Thus, mothers wept for their babies.
The Pharaoh killed those babies who were as pretty as flowers. He showed no mercy towards them. He was tyrannical and self-conceited.

The Promised Baby-Boy
Allah wanted Musa to be born. Yokabid, the righteous woman, was sad because she was about to give birth to a baby.Meanwhile, the Egyptian tribe visited her frequently to know the gender of her baby.
In those critical conditions Yokabid gave birth to a boy-baby. The baby was very lovely. Those who saw him adored him.
Allah, the Glorified, made people love Musa. For this reason the midwife said its mother: "Yokabid, don't be anxious. I will never say anything."
Allah inspired Yokabid to suckle Musa.The mother's heart was full of love for this baby whose face was bright and innocent. She asked herself: "Is Musa the promised boy?"
Days passed. The Pharaoh's spies looked for boy-babies. The Pharaoh thought in a wicked way. He wanted some agents to work for him without any wage. Thus, he decided: "I will kill boy-babies year by year!"
In the year before the birth of Musa, Yokabid gave birth to a -baby-boy called Harun.
Harun was still a baby when Musa was born. Harun and Musa had a sister some years older than them. The sister was good and clever. She loved her brothers, was kind to them, and took care of them.
Some days passed and Yokabid was still suckling her baby. However, she was anxious. She thought that the spies would know that she had given birth to a baby-boy.
Thus, she asked herself: "What will I do? How can I protect Musa from the danger of the Pharaoh? How can I save him from being killed? How can I rescue him from the daggers that have killed tens of innocent children and pained their mothers?"
Allah, the Glorified, inspired Musa's mother to make a small box to put Musa into it. He also inspired her to put the box on the water of the Nile.
The brave mother did this and her daughter helped her.
One night Musa's mother felt danger. She knew that the spies were looking for suckling babies. So Yokabid and her daughter went to the Nile in the dark.
The sad mother looked at the waves of the Nile. She looked at her little baby. Musa was asleep. She wanted to return home, but the inspiration urged her to hand the box to the waves of the Nile.
Yokabid looked at the sky full of stars, so she felt peace.
Yokabid believed in Allah. She was confident that Allah would protect her baby from all dangers such as crocodiles and river horses.
She was confident thatAllah would return her baby to her.
In that moment, full of fear, faith, and love, Yokabid put the box on the water of the Nile.
The waves were bright because of the moonlight. They had mercy on the innocent, lonely baby. So the carried him far away.
Yokabid was looking at the box till it disappeared in the darkness. She was about to cry, but she looked at the stars, the moon, and the wide sky. She glorified Allah. She felt peace, so she and her daughter returned home. She felt that she would embrace her little baby again.

The Pharaoh's Palace
Yokabid did not sleep even a wink that night. She thought of Musa. She thought of that box tossed about by the waves of the Nile.
The sun rose. The people woke up. The fishermen went to the Nile. The farmers went to their fields. The shepherds went to the meadows.
The box was tottering among the waves of the Nile. A babyish voice came out of the box. The voice of the innocent baby who looked for a warm lap.
Asiya, the Pharaoh's wife, was a good woman. She, unlike her husband, a humble woman. She loved people. She loved good and hated oppressoin.
She was displeased with her husband's wicked deeds.
In that lovely morning, Asiya was sitting by the Nile looking at the boats.
Suddenly, she saw a small box heading for the green bank.
The small box anchored as a beautiful boat did. Asya heard a babyish voice. She rose and ordered her guard to bring her the box. There were slave girls with her. The guard brought the box. He greeted Asiya, put the box in front of her, and then he walked backwards.
In the meantime the Pharaoh came. He was walking haughtily. In his hand was a rod made of ebony, set with pearls and gold.
When he pointed to something with his rod, his men should carry out his orders.
The Pharaoh was frightened to see a baby-boy in the box. He looked at the baby with malice. He said to himself: "I myself will kill this baby! Perhaps, he'll be the one who will kill me and destroy my kingdom!"
The Phararoh pointed to the neck of the innocent baby with his black rod. The soldiers obeyed his order. They took the baby to kill him.
Asiya was a good woman. She had no children. When she saw the baby, she became attached to it. At that terrrible moment, she walked quickly to her husband, the Phararoh, and said to him: "A refreshment of the eye to me and to you; do not slay him; maybe he will be useful to us, of we may take him for a son."
He knew that his wife was firm in her attitude. He said to himself: She has no baby. Why don't I overlook this baby? Haven't I killed tens of babies? Wasn't the promised baby among them?" The Pharaoh turned his back and went away.
Asiya hastened to embrace the innocent baby, Musa.
Musa's bright face was looking for love in the hearts. Its clear eyes were searching for a familiar face. However, the baby did not fine that bright face. It was looking for a warm chest to have milk peacefully, but it did not find that.
Musa wept loudly, so Asiya sent for some women to suckle him.
One woman came. The woman put Musa on her lap, but the baby went on weeping. The baby was hungry, but refused to suck at the breast of any woman.
Musa wept loudly, so Asiya sent for some women to suckle him.
One woman came. The woman put Musa on her lap, but the baby went on weeping. The baby was hungry, but it refused to suck at the breast of any woman.
Musa went on weeping. Though he was very hungry, an astonishing ability prevented him from sucking.

The Divine Promise
Yokabid had faith in Allah. Her heart told her that Musa would come to her. What did that miserable mother do?
She said to her daughter: "Go and look for your brother. Let's know what has happened to him."
The sister went to the Nile looking for the box. She did not find it. She did not ask anybody about it, for no one knew its secret except her, her mother, and Allah.
The sister saw everything.
In that moving morning, she saw what was happening on the green bank in front of the Pharaoh's house surrounded by trees.
From behind a tree, she was looking at what was occurring. She listened with pain to the crying of her brother, who was looking for the breast of its mother.
Many women came to suckle Musa. Musa's sister came with them. She pretended she was a stranger.
When she saw Musa, she wanted to embrace him. However, she pretended she did not know the baby.
Asiya was looking for a woman to nurse the lovely baby. For this reason, Musa's sister said: "Shall I point out to you the people of a house who will take care of him for you, and they will be benevolent to him?"
Asiya rejoiced at that, and then she said: "Yes, bring her soon! The baby will die of crying!"
The young girl ran very quickly. She was very happy. She went to her mother to give her good news about what had happened.
Yokabid came. She pretended she did not know the baby. She was a little late, for she did not want the people to doubt her.
When Yokabid came, she waw Asiya waiting for her eagerly.
She took Musa, and did her best to hide her feelings. She pretended she was not his mother.
Suddenly, Musa kept silent on the lap of his mother. Asiya was happy when she saw him sucking milk.
Asiya thought that she had to hire Yokabid to suckle the baby. Yokabid did not want the people to doubt her, so she said: "I'm nursing my son, Harun."
Asiya said: "You're a strong woman. You've the ability to suckle two babies at one time. I will reward you well."
Yokabid pretended she would agree to nurse Musa for the reward. Thus, Musa came back to his mother, and Allah's promise became true.
The faith of Musa's mother in Allah doubled. She understood that Allah had power over all things, and that no one had the ability to change his decree.

Mumfis
Mumfis was the capital of the Pharaohs at that time. It was on the bank of the Nile. The Pharaoh ordered his palace to be built to the north of this city.
The Pharaoh's palace was on the left bank of the Nile. In a desert area, to the west of the city, the Pharaohs ordered their graves to be built. Their graves are called pyramids. They are still standing in the area of al-Jazira.
Musa finished the period of nursing on his mother lap. He was then moved to live in the Pharaoh's palace, which was outside the city to the north.
Musa grew up. He was a wise young man. He wore a uniform similar to that of the Eygptian noblemen. All the people looked at him and regarded him as the Pharaoh's son.
However, Musa was not as they imagined. He was a good young man. He loved the weak and had mercy on them. He hated the Pharaoh's manners.
Musa grew up and his intellect grew, also. He was a young man with srtong muscles, so all the people respected him.
However, Musa was not deceived by his strength. Rather he increased in humbleness. He did not believe in the Pharaoh as the god of the people.He thought that the Pharaoh was a false, tyrannical god. That is because he thought that it was impossible for man to be a god.
During that period, which lasted for eighteen years, Musa knew many facts: He knew that he was not the son of the Pharaoh, that he was not an Egyptian, that he was the son of 'Umran, who belonged to the children of Israel.
Musa knew that the children of Ya'qub (Israel) emigrated from Palestine to Egypt. He knew that they came to Egypt after Yousuf, son of Ya'qub, had become a great leader there.
Moreover, he knew that Yousuf had saved Egypt from famine hundreds of years before.
Now the children of Israel or of Ya'qub became the slaves of the Pharaoh. Thus, the Pharaoh punished them severely. He killed their babies and enslaved their men. He ordered all the people to worship him only.
Musa went to the city frequently. He sometimes did not go the Pharaoh's palace. He hated his soft linen clotes. So he wore coarse woollen clothes.
Musa thought of the final result of the children of Ya'qub (Israel), for they became a great nation.
However, the children of Ya'qub led a life full of fear and abasement. They were afraid of the Pharaoh, so they waited for someone to save them. They had nothing to do except wait.

The Story of Taloot and Jaloot
Our prophet Harun(A.S.) died, and then our prophet Musa(A.S.) died. They left behind them the inheritance of the Divine Message.
Musa(A.S.) left the children of Israel the Torah and Holy tablets.
Our prophet Musa put into a box the Torah and the tablets, and then he gave them to his successor Youshi' bin Noon, the young man Musa(A.S.) took with him when he went to Majjma' al-Bahrain.
Forty years passed; nevertheless the children of Israel walked about the Desert of Sina'. They were afraid of waging war against the pagan giants, who ruled the Sacred Land.
When Youshi' bin Noon became a prophet, many of the children of Israel had died. A new generation came. The generation was not afraid of war nor was it afraid of the giants.
For this reason, Youshi' bin Noon summoned this generation to liberate the Holy land and they responded to him.
Youshi' bin Noon led the believers to wage war against the unbelievers. He defeated the unbelievers and entered the Holy land.
The Children of Israel establishd their state, but this state did not last for a long time. After the death of Youshi' bin Noon, the children of Israel returned to crimes and disdained the Testament.
When the faith of the children of Israel became weak, they became a weak nation, so they were unable to resist the attacks of the Egyptians, who overthrew their state and enslaved them.
Jaloot ruled the Holy Land. He killed the children of Israel and enslaved their women, Then he banished them from their land and took the Box of Testament from them.
In that period of time, Allah appointed Armiya (A.S.) as prophet and sent him to the children of Israel. Thus, Armiya preached to the children of Israel and reminded them of the teachings in the Torah.
He said to them: "You have become weak because the faith in your hearts had become weak. You love gold more than you love Allah, the Lord of the worlds. You are afraid of the pagans, but you are not afraid of Allah, the Glorified."
The children of Israel turned in repentance to Allah, and they returned to the teachings of their religion, so faith returned to their hearts.
One day some believers came to Armiya (A.S.) and said to him: "Jaloot has defeated us and humbled us with his oppression. So ask Allah to send us a leader and king to fight under him in the way of Allah."
The Prophet (A.S.) said; "If Allah orders you to fight, will you obey Him?"
"Yes," they replied, "We will fight. Why won't we fight in the way of Allah and we have been banished from our houses?
The Prophet Armiya (A.S.) said: "I will pray to Allah for you."
A period of time passed; nevertheless the children of Israel waited for the order of Allah, the Glorified.
One day the prophet Armiya came and announced good news, saying: "Indeed Allah has sent you Taloot as a king."
Who was Taloot? What was his story with the children of Israel?

Taloot
Taloot was a poor young man. He was one of the children of Benyamin, Yousif's brother.
Taloot worked on the farm with his father. One day their two donkeys run away, so Taloot looked for them.
He walked along the bank of the river. He walked for miles and miles till he arrived at another village. At that village lived the prophet Armiya (A.S.).
For this reason, Taloot went to the Prophet (A.S.) to listen to his teachings.
The Prophet gave good news to the children of Israel that Allah had sent them Taloot as a king.
In the distance, the children of Israel saw a tall man walking towards them, and they knew that the man was Taloot.
Taloot was a muscular man, but he was not deceived by his muscles. His eyes blazed with heavenly light. Their light reflected the faith and humbleness in his heart.
Greeting Taloot, the Prophet Armiya said: "You are welcome, Taloot, Allah has sent you to us to save the believers from oppression."
Taloot explained: "Allah's prophet, I have come to look for my donkey."
The prophet Armiya said: "Allah has wanted you to come here. Indeed Allah has appointed you a king over the children of Israel to rescue them from the oppression of the enemies."
Taloot said : "As you see, I am a poor young man. The people do not listen to the poor; they obey only the rich."
The Prophet Armiya said: "There is no relationship between money and leadership. Indeed Allah has given you a strong body and great knowledge, and He has chosen you for this task."
Taloot kept silent, for he thought that Allah had inspired the Prophet Armiya to say those words.
Some of the children of Israel were pleased with Taloot; some of them bore malice against him.
Taloot was a poor young man, and only the rich had the right to rule.
The rich asked: "How will he be a king over us? We are worthier in authority than him."
Armiya (A.S.) replied: "Allah has chosen him for authority, for he is stronger and more knowledgeable than you."
They said: "If Allah has chosen him for this task, we want a sign for that."
The propet Armiya(A.S.) said: "His sign is that he will bring you the Box of Testament in which there is the inheritance of Musa and Harun."
They said: "How?"
The prophet Armiya said: "Go to the desert and you will see that with your own eyes."
The children of Israel kept silent. They had to submit to Allah's will, nevertheless they asked each other: "How will the Box of Testament come?"
The Prophet said: "The angels will come to you carrying the Box. Will you want a sign greater than that?"
The children of Israel went to the desert to see the exciting coming of the Box.
The awaited moment came, and the children of Israel saw the Box of Testament reflecting the light of the angels.
The angels put the Holy Box on the ground with care, so the children of Israel felt that tranquillity and faith entered their hearts, The Box of Testament, the sign of their glory, returned to them again.
Thus, Taloot became a king over the children of Israel, and the regulation prevailed their life.

The Test
Taloot announced that he prepared himself to struggle in the way of Allah, and that the children of Israel had to get ready to wage war against Jaloot, the oppressive one.
Again the children of Israel broke their promise. They had asked the prophet Armiya to ask Allah to send them a king to fight under him in the way of Allah, and Allah the Glorified, responded to them and chose for them Taloot.
When Taloot announced that he would struggle in the way of Allah, the children of Israel withdrew and broke their promise.
Only few people responded to Taloot, for they believed in Allah and obeyed their prophet and king.
As for the majority, they inclined to the life of abasement and slavery; nevertheless Taloot and the believers were able to form an army from the children of Israel.
Taloot declared that he would lead the army in the morning. When the sun rose, they soldiers got ready to advance towards the enemy. They firmly believed that they would defeat the unbelievers and recapture their land from them.
On his way to the enemy, Taloot said: "Soldiers, we will arrive at a river. Allah, the Glorified, wants to test you.
One of the soldiers asked: "Commander, what is the test?"
Taloot answered: "Do not drink from the river. Those who drink from it do not belong to me: those who do not drink from it belong to me except those who take a handful of it."
The army carried on walking till it arrived at the river.
Many soldiers ran towards the river. Some of them took a handful from it; some threw themselves into it and drank from it till they became full. Only few soldiers remained with Taloot and did not taste the water.
Taloot led them and they crossed the river.
The soldiers saw the army of Jaloot in the distance.
They saw Jaloot riding a big elephant and saw hundreds of soldiers walking in well-organized ranks.
Jaloot's Army was great and was supplied with the best weapons.
Jaloot was a fearful sight, for he wore an iron breastplate, and there was a helmet on his head, so he looked like a piece of iron.
Those who drank from the river said in fear: "Today, we are unable to fight against Jaloot and his soldiers."
As for those who did not drink from the river, they said in confidence: "How many a small group defeats a big group with Allah's permission, and Allah is with the patient."
All the children of Israel knew that Allah had tested their will with the river.
Those with weak will drank from the river, so their morale became weak. As for those with strong will and faith, they did not drink from the river, so their morale was strong.
The two armies met each other. As for Jaloot, he thought that he would defeat Taloot's Army. What happened?

The Stone of Victory
An old man and his four sons lived at the village of Bayt Lahm.
When Taloot announced the struggle in the way of Allah, the old man sent his elder sons to take part in the struggle, and he said to his young son: "As for you Dauwud, you must stay with me."
Dauwud asked his father: "Why? Father do you not know that I love the struggle in the way of Allah?"
The father said: "You have no experience in war. However, I will permit you to carry food to your brothers and bring me news about the battle."
Dauwud rejoiced at that, thanked Allah for that, and then he followed Taloot's army.

Musa's Brestplate
Allah inspired Taloot that the one who would kill Jaloot would wear Musa's brestplate.
Taloot announced that, so many soldiers came and wore Musa's breastplate, but no one was appropriate for it. In the meantime, Dauwud, the young boy, arrived.
He saw Taloot's believing Army fighting against Jaloot's unbelieving Army.
Jaloot was deceived by his forces; he had killed many heroes.
He asked Taloot's Army to advance against him, but no one did.
Dauwud asked the soldiers about Jaloot and they said to him: "Look, he's over there."
Dauwud saw a tall man wearing an iron breastplate and helmet covering all his head and his face except his eyes. A spear and a sword were in his hands.
Dausud said: "If Taloot permit me to take part in the battle, I will kill Jaloot, the unbelieving one."
Some soldiers smiled at him and asked him: "How will you kill him while you have no weapon? Will you, the young boy, kill him?"
Dauwud replied: "I fear no one except Allah, the glorified; I believe in Him."
Jaloot mocked Taloot and his soldiers, for no one advanced against him.
At that moment, Dauwud walked forward Taloot and said to him: "I'm ready to fight with Jaloot!"
Taloot said: "You are still young and have no experience in war!"
Dauwud said: "I killed the wolf that wanted to attack my sheep and I had no weapon. Now, let me wear Musa's breastplate."
Taloot admired Dauwud's bravery and faith, so he took Musa's breastplate out of the Box of Testament and let Dauwud wear it.
Taloot was astonished to see that the breastplate was fully appropriate for Dauwud. Thus, he knew that Allah had chosen Dauwud, the young boy, to fight against Jaloot, the unbelieving one.
Dauwud advanced against Jaloot with a heart full of faith and bravery. He took nothing with him except a sling and a stone.
Jaloot was surprised to the see the young boy advancing against him without a sword or a spear.
Jaloot said: "Without doubt, you want to die, young boy! Do you think that we play with young boys?"
Dauwud answered: "Who said that? I have come to kill you!"
Jaloot asked Dauwud: "Where are your spear, sword, and weapons?"
Dauwud replied: "My weapon is faith and I fight against you in Allah's name."
Dauwud put a stone in the sling and got ready to fight against Jaloot.
Jaloot was covered with iron. When he moved, the ground under his feet shook.
Dauwud was not afraid of him; he was as hard as the mountain. Jaloot walked toward Dauwud. Dauwud got ready to throw the stone at Jaloot. All Jaloot's body was covered with iron except his eyes and forehead.
The soldiers watched a moving fight. The believers prayed to Allah for granting Dauwud a victory over Jaloot.
Dauwud threw the stone at Jaloot. No one saw the stone when it made its way through the air, but all the soldiers heard a wonderful sound. The stone hit Jaloot in the head.
Terrible moments passed, Jaloot was unable to walk forward. He staggered and fell on the ground.
The unbelievers were filled with terror when they saw Jaloot falling to the ground, so their spirits failed. Thus, The believing young defeated the great military commander. It was the power of faith that defeated the manufactured weapons.
Thus, Jaloot's army was defeated, and Taloot and his soldiers won.
Peace prevailed and spread its white wings over the land, and faith returned to the hearts.
When Taloot felt that he was about to die, he appointed Dauwud (A.S.) as a king after him.
Now, lets read the following book to see what has happened.

The Story of Our Prophets

Dauwad and Sulayman
Taloot died, and Dauwud became king. He was not deceived by kingdom. Rather he thanked Allah. Allah, the Glorified, sent down the Zabur to him as a book after the Torah. He taught him many things; He taught him the language of birds and endowed him with effective and beautiful voice. When people heard Dauwud's voice, faith entered their hearts. His voice was like a pretty brook, the murmur of brooks, and the singing of birds in spring.
Allah, the Glorified, also softened iron for him. Iron, the solid metal, became soft at Dauwud's hand. Dauwud made breastplates from iron for those who struggled in the way of Allah.
Dauwud bred horses. The horse was a strong weapon, for the knights used it to struggle in the way of Allah and the truth.
When Dauwud recited the Zabur, birds responded to him and glorified Allah, and the mountains also responded to him.
Dauwud was a just king; he ruled his people according to Allah's law. He supported the oppressed, so the people led a happy life during his rule.
Dauwud devoted one-third of the night to serving Allah. He loved allah, and Allah loved him.
He fasted day by day and always glorified Allah.
When he woke in the morning, he glorified Allah, and the mountains repeated his glorification. When he recited the Zabur, the birds sang with him.
Dauwud founded a strong state for those who believed in Allah and his Law. He was a king and prophet. He regulated his time, life, and works; he divided his time into four parts:
1. The first part was for fulfilling his personal needs.
2. The second part was for serving Allah.
3. The third part was for deciding on complaints.
4.The fourth part was for educating his children.

The Test
Dauwud lived in his palace. The guards stood by the door. They allowed no body to meet Dauwud during the time of his worship.
At the time Dauwud was sitting at his mihrab. Suddenly, two men appeared before him.
Dauwud was afraid ot them, for they came to him at the time of his prayers, not at the time of deciding complaints.
For this reason, one of them said: "Don't be afraid. We've come to you to decide our case."
When Dauwud was sure of the two men, he asked them: "What's your case?"
One of the two men said: "This brother of mine has 99 sheep, and I have one sheep. He has taken my sheep: nevertheless his proof is strong."
Dauwud was moved, so he said with anger: "Your brother has wronged you. Why does he want to take your only sheep and he has 99 sheep?"
Dauwud made a quick decision, for he did not ask the other brother about his proof. He had to ask him about his proof.
The two brothers disappeared suddenly. Dauwud minded his own mistake. That was a divine test, he had to listen to the two quarreling sides.
Dauwud knew that Allah, the Glorified, wanted to test him, so he asked Allah to forgive him for his quick decision.

The New Judgment
Allah, the Glorified, gave Dauwud a boy-baby. Dauwud called the baby Sulayman. Sulayman grew up under the care of his father.
The father taught his son noble manners. He taught him how to serve Allah, to do good, and to thank Allah.
Sulayman grew up; he became a clever, believing young man.
Allah, the Glorified, wanted to show the people Sulayman's outstanding qualities. He wanted to make the people know that Sulayman was the successor of his father, Dauwud.
One night, while the people, the farmers, and the shepherds were sleeping, the sheep went out of their yards and headed for the vineyards. They ate the bunches of grapes and destroyed the plants.
In the morning, when the owner of the vineyards woke, he went to his vineyards. There heard he the sheep bleating. When he entered his vineyards, he saw the sheep eating the bunch of grapes and destroying the plants.
The man became angry, so he went to the owner of the sheep and accused him of grazing his sheep in the vineyards.
A quarrel took place between the two men.
The owner of the sheep said: "Let's go to the prophet to decide this suit. On their way to the Prophet, the owner of the vineyards said to the owner of the sheep: "You must keep our sheep; don't let them graze wherever they want."
The owner of the sheep answered: "You must also keep your vineyards."
The owner of the vineyards said: "I guard them by day only; I think that there is nobody who grazes his sheep at night."
At that moment they arrived at king Dauwud's palace. They found him deciding the complaints of the people.
When the turn of the owner of the vineyards came, he walked toward Dauwud(A.S.) and explained his case before him.
Dauwud heard the case in detail, so he gave his judgment concerning this case, saying: "The owner of the sheep should give his sheep to the owner of the vineyards, for the sheep have destroyed the plants."
Allah, the Glorified, wanted to show the people the excellent qualities of Sulayman, son of Dauwud. He also wanted them to know that Sulayman was the successor of Dauwud, the prophet. Thus, he inspried Sulayman with a new judgment, so Sulayman said: "Allah's Prophet, there is a better judgment."
"What is it, my son?"
Sulayman answered" "The owner of the sheep should give his sheep to the owner of vineyards for one year, so that the latter will benefit from the wool and milk of the sheep and take what the sheep breed. Then the owner of the sheep should take the vineyards to recultivate the plants his sheep have destroyed."
Dauwud rejoiced at Sulayman's judgment. He understood that Allah, the Glorified, wanted to show the people Sulayman's outstanding qualities and to make them know that he would be the successor after his father. For this reason, Dauwud adopted Sulayman's judgment, and people have respected his judgment from that time on.
Dauwud's rule lasted for forty years. Throughout those years, Dauwud ruled according to what Allah had sent down to him. So good and security prevailed the lands Dauwud ruled.
When Dauwud felt that his death was approaching, he appointed his son Sulayman as a successor after him. That is because Sulayman was similar to his father in behavior, morals, and kindness to people.

Sulayman, the Wise man
Sulayman was a young, believing man when he shouldered the responsibility of ruling and managing the affairs of the country.
Sulayman strengthened the abilities of his army. He did not want to occupy and control the countries of others, but he wanted to spread the word of Islam all over the earth.
Sulayman was a prophet, wise man, and king. When Allah, the Glorified, saw that Sulayman was humble and grateful, He doubled his kingdom and blessed his country, so blessings prevailed Sulayman's country.
Allah, the Glorified, endowed Sulayman unique with qualities, for Sulayman always thanked him.
Allah ordered the stormy winds to obey Sulayman. So Sulayman commanded them to blow and they blew. He ordered them to stop and they stopped.
Allah, the Glorified, ordered Jinns to obey Sulayman. Jinns carried out Sulayman's orders; they dived into the deep seas and brought out treasures, pearls, and corals. They made him pretty statues and mihrabs.
Sulayman wanted to establish a strong state to protect those who believed in Allah, so he prayed to Allah to reach him the secrets of science.
Allah, the Glorified, taught him many secrets of sciences, and He taught him the language of birds and animals.
For this reason, Sulayman ordered agriculture to be developed and dams to be built. Besides, he formed a big army from both the jinn and men.
To make the enemies take care of faith, Sulayman ordered the jinn and men to build him a unique throne.
Thus, the jinn and men carried out Sulayman's orders; they brought ebony wood, gold, ivory, and thousands of precious stones.
They made a throne decorated with gold and ivory and set with precious stones such as corundum and emerald.
They made two statues of two fearful lions and put them by both sides of the throne, and they also made two statues of two terrible eagles spreading their wings over the throne.

The Ant of Sulayman
Allah, the Glorified, is the Creator of man and animal; He is the Creator of all things. When we look at the world around us, we find many creatures.
There are small creatures living close to us. We do not notice these creatures when they pass by us, and we do not see them except when we look at them carefully.
These creatures are called ants. Ants live in societies; they work and wage war and defend themselves against their enemies.
Their life is highly organized; it is full of work and activity. Ants collect food in summer to eat it in winter.
An amusing story took place between this small creature and Sulayman (A.S.).
One day Sulayman led his army to struggle in the way of Allah.
Sulayman and his army passed through a valley where ants lived. The hooves of the horses shook the ground. As usual, the ants worked in the valley. Some ants collected food: some worked in their houses.
There was a small ant working out of its house. The small ant felt the ground shaking. She knew that Sulayman and his army were coming to the valley, so she stood and warned her mates, saying: "Ants, Sulayman's Army is on its way to the valley! Come on, return to your houses; otherwise the soldiers will crush you while they do not know." The ant was in a tree looking at the horizon. Then Sulayman and his soldiers appeared.
Sulayman looked at the ant, who was still warning her mates against him and his soldiers.
Allah, the Glorified, taught Sulayman the lansuage, so he smiled at the ant.
Sulayman dismounted his horse and prostrated himself to Allah, and then he raised his head, looked at the sky, and said: "My Lord, grant me that I should be gratedul for Your favor which You have bestowed on me and on my parents, and that I should do good such as You are pleased with, and make me enter into your good servants by Your mercy."
Sulayman prevented his soldiers from entering the valley, so they followed another way.
Many ants were afraid that Sulayman and his soldiers would destroy their houses.
However, the ant told them about what had happened and they rejoiced at it, so they asked Allah to grant Sulayman and his soldiers a victory over their enemies.
Sulayman's Army went on marching to struggle in the way of Allah, and the ants came back to the valley to work peacefully.
News from Saba'
Sulayman's Army consisted of men, the jinn, and birds, For example, the hoopoe helped the army look for water.
The hoopoe sat on the place under which water flowed, so the workers came and dug that place and brought out water.
One day Sulayman ordered his army to gather, so the believing soldiers, the jinn, and the birds attended.
Sulayman talked about his great kingdom. He said: "All this knigdom is a gift from Allah, the Glorified. Whoever thanks Allah, Allah, the Glorified, bestows on him. Allah has taught me the language of birds and given me all things."
In the meantime, Sulayman remembered the hoopoe. He did not find him among the birds. All the birds had attended except the hoopoe.
The Prophet(A.S.) asked: "Where is the hoopoe? Is he absent."
The birds looked at each other and said to one another: "The hoopoe has made a great mistake!"
Sulayman said: "I will punish the hoopoe severely. I will kill him if he does not give me a good excuse to justify his aim."
Some days passed, and then the hoopoe came. The birds told him about Sulayman's threat, so he was afraid of the wise king's punishment.
The hoopoe knew that this life was in danger, and that he would be killed if he did not give an acceptable excuse to the Prophet.
The hoopoe flew to the palace and sat at the gate. He asked the guards for permission and entered.
He walked on the royal, marble court bowing his head to show his regret.
The Prophet (A.S.) asked the hoopoe: "Hoopoe, where have you been?"
The hoopoe raised his head and talked to the Prophet about his moving travel. He answered: "I have been in the Kingdom of Saba'. I have brought you important news. I have seen a large country and a great nation. I have seen that a queen ruling them. I have seen her sitting on a great throne."
Sulayman listened attentively to the exiting news. The hoopoe said: "I saw the Queen, whose neme is Balqis, prostrating herself to the sun, and not to Allah. All the people there worship the sun. Satan deceived them when he told them that the sun was the source of existence."
Sulayman was sad when he heard the hoopoe's words, so he said" Why they do not prostrate to Allah, Who brings forth what is hidden in the heavens and the earth and knows what you hide and what you make open. Allah, there is no god but He; He is the Lord of mighty power."
The hoopoe went on talking about what he had seen in that country, so Sulayman looked at him and said: "We will see whether you are truthful or untruthful."
Sulayman said that and rose to write a letter to the Queen of Saba'. As for the hoopoe he was sure that Sulayman would not punish him for what he had done. Then he asked king Sulayman to permit him to take a rest after that long travel. He promised him that he would come on the following day to carry the letter to the Queen.
All the birds talked about what the hoopoe had seen. He made an exciting travel which no one made except the men and the Jinn. Sulayman himself did not know that there was a kingdom nor did he know that there was a nation worshipping the sun, and not Allah.

His Travel to Yemen
In the morning, the hoopoe came to Sulayman's palace to carry the letter to Yemen. Sulayman had put the letter into a gold envelope and sealed it.
The hoopoe flew high in the sky to cover that long distance between Palestine and Yemen.
If we look at the map, we will wonder at this long journey. How did the hoopoe make that long journey? How did he cover those deserts? How did he cross those high mountains?
The hoopoe covered that long distance and bore the hardships of that long journey to make the people there worship Allah, the One and Only.
The hoopoe arrived in the Kingdom of Saba', in Yemen. When the sun rose, he went to the palace of Balqis, the strong Queen of Yemen.
Balqis woke and looked at the sun through the window. Then she prostrated herself to the sun.
At that moment, the hoopoe entered the royal court through the window and put the letter on the Queen's throne.
Balqis saw something glittering on her throne. She took the gold envelope and opened it. She was surprised to see the beautiful letter.
The hoopoe watched the Queen as she read the letter. The Queen looked at the hoopoe with astonishment and asked herself: "How did that hoopoe cover that long distance to achieve this important task?"
Balqis sent for her ministers and military commanders.
When they came and met the Queen, The Queen rose from her throne holding the letter and said: "Chiefs, an honorable letter has been delivered to me. The letter is from Sulayman. It reads: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful: Do not exalt your self against me and come to me in submission."
Fearful silence prevailed the royal court. The king of Palestine threatened them and ordered them to refrain from worshipping the sun and to serve Allah the One and Only.
Balqis said: "Chiefs, give me advice concerning my affair. I never decide an affair unless you are in my presence."
Balqis asked the military commanders for advice. She said to them: "I am not stubborn.The fate of the country stands on your answer. For this reason, we must make a reasonable choice."
The milirary commanders were eager to wage war against Sulayman, so they said with enthusiasm: "We are powerful; our army is strong; we are able to defend our country; nevertheless you are free to take any attitude."
Queen Balqis was a wise woman. She thought before she decided, so she said: "When the kings enter a town, they ruin the town and make its people low, and thus they (always) do. We must know who Sulayman is. Is he an oppressive king? Is he really a prophet? Does he want to occupy our country or to do good for us?"
One of the ministers answered: "Her Majesty, the Queen, how shall we know that?"
The Queen said: "I am ready to establish good links with king Sulayman and to send him gifts every year. Now, I will send him gifts with some envoys. I want to test him with the gifts. If he accepts them, then he is a king like other kings, and we will be able to disobey him in refraining from worshipping the sun. If he refuses to accept them, then he is not a king; he is a real prophet. Therefore, we are not afraid of the prophets because they do not oppress anybody. I will order the envoys to see his kingdom with there own eyes and to understand fully his aims, so we must wait till our envoys return."
The statesmen approved of the Queen's view, so the Queen sent Sulayman gifts."
The hoopoe watched closely the meeting of the statesmen, and he understood the Queen's decision, so he flew back to Palestine.
The hoopoe flew and flew; he covered a long distance. He stopped only to take a little rest.
At last, the hoopoe arrived in Palestine and soon went to Sulayman to inform him of the latest news.
The hoopoe said to Sulayman: "Some envoys from the Kingdom of Saba' are on their way to here."
Sulayman said to himself: "I must think of a way to convince the envoys to believe in Allah and to refrain from worshipping the sun.
"The bestway is that I must show them the greatness of my kingdom and the authority Allah has endowed me with. I must say to them: People worship Allah. Wild animals obey me. Birds fly around me. The jinn works day and night; they build houses and dive into the deep seas to bring out pearls."
Sulayman knew that the envoys would come to him carrying expensive gifts to convince him to keep silent.

Threat with War
The envoys of Saba' arrived in Palestine. They were a group of kinghts carrying the most expensive gifts to sulayman.
To make the envoys understand that his kingdom was divine and greater than theirs, Allah's Prophet Sulayman, received them in a highly impressive way.
The envoys were astounded to see the lions and tigers standing beside Sulayman, the birds flying close to him, and the armed soldiers standing in neat lines.
Sulayman sat on the throne. In spite of his magnificent royal court, Sulayman was humble; his eyes blazed with faith and love.
The envoys walked toward Sulayman to give him the gifts.They were ashamed of their gifts which loked worthless in Sulayman's high ranking presence. There an unexpected thing happened.
Sulayman refused to accept the gifts, for he understood that they were sent not to establish good ties between the two kingdoms, but they were sent as a bribe to make him overlook the pagan rites of Saba'.
Sulayman said with anger: "Will you help me with wealth? What Allah has given me is better than what He has given you. Rather you rejoice at your gift."
Then Sulayman addressed the head of the envoys, saying: "Go back to them, We will come to them with soldiers whom they are unable to resist, and We will expel them from it (Saba'), and they are humble."
Now, Sulayman threatened them with war. He did not want gold and silver from the people of Saba'; he wanted them to believe in Allah the One and Only. He was not a king to accept gold and silver; he was a prophet. The Prophets wanted the people to believe in Allah and to refrain from worshipping idols.
Sulayman said to the envoys, who were astonished to see his greatness, humbleness, and prostration to Allah: "Allah, the Glorified, created man and made him honorable, so why does man prostrate himself to idols? Why does he worship the sun and the moon? Does he not know that he is most honorable of all Allah's creatures? Does he not know that Allah wants him to be free and to fear no one except Him?"

Queen Balqis's Decision
The envoys returned to Yemen and told the Queen about Sulayman's attitude.
The Queen of Saba' said to herself: "If I insist on my attitude, war will certainly take place. Sulayman is not a king. Perhaps, he is prophet. Therefore, I myself must go to him."
Queen Balqis thought that it would be better for her to see closely what had happened there. She thought that she would be able to establish good links between the two kingdoms to avoid the war that was about to break out between them.
Thus, the Queen decided to go to Sulayman's kingdom. Many statesmen warned her from this decision or hers, but their efforts were useless.
Balqis was a brave and wise Queen. She thought very much of the affair, fo she found nothing better than going to king Sulayman.
The Queen took baggage, slave girls, and soldiers, and she left her kingdom quickly.
As for the wise King, Allah's Prophet Sulayman, he met the men of his state. His aim was to convince the Queen of Saba' to believe in Allah, the Glorified, and to refrain from worshipping idols. Thus, he thought about a way to make her give up her wrong thought.
At last, he concluded a wonderful idea: "I must bring Queen Balqis's throne from Yemen, before she arrives in Palestine!"

The Believing Person's Ability
Sulayman's gathered the men, the jinn, and the birds, and then he asked them: "Who can bring the throne of the Queen of Saba'?"
It was a difficult task; the hoopoes were unable to do it.
One of the jinn rose and said: "My lord, I will bring it before you leave this place of yours!"
Sulayman's wanted the believing person to show his ability, so he turned to a person called Asif bin Barkhiya and said to him: "Asif, what is your opinion?"
"I can bring it," answered Asif.
"When?" asked Sulayman.
"I will bring it to you in the twinkling of an eye; you will see the throne within moments!"
Asif was full of faith and will.
All the people knew Asif bin Barkhiya; they knew his faith and loyalty to Allah.
Allah, the Glorified, honored his believing servant. The surprise occurred. All the attendants saw the throne of the kingdom of Saba' in the royal court.
The Queen's throne was magnificent. It was made of black wood decorated with gold, silver, and precious stones. Onyxes glittered all over it. The sunshine that came through the colored roof increased it in beauty.
Sulayman's ordered his men to make some change on Balqis's throne to test her. He wanted to know how she would behave towards that miracle.

The Meeting
The birds announced: "Queen Balqis is close to Palestine. She will arrive in the Holy Land within hours."
The Queen's throne, the royal court, and the palace were all decorated in a highly impressive way.
Sulayman's throne was near the Queen's. Balqis entered the magnificent, royal palace.
She entered the royal court and saw Sulayman sitting on his throne. She saw him surrounded by lions, birds, and soldiers.
Referring to her throne, one of the soldiers asked: "Is that your throne?"
When the Queen saw her throne, she was about to cry. However, she thought before she answered: "It looks like my throne!"
Her heart was filled with faith and submission to Allah. She looked at Sulayman and understood that he was polite, humble, and believing. When Sulayman talked, she felt love and peace in his words.

The Glass Basin
The reception was over, so the bodyguards took Queen Balqis to the palace Sulayman built for her stay.
The Queen, surrounded by her bodyguards, went to the palace. Some guards stood by both sides of the gate of the palace. Balqis entered the big hall.
Some believing young girls accompanied the Queen to the palace, but they walked behind her to show respect.
When the Queen entered the hall, she saw a wide glass basin between the gate of the hall and her room. She imagined that the basin was filled with water, so she bared her legs.
One of the young girls smiled and said: "It is a mere glass palace!"
Balqis saw another sign for Sulayman's greatness.
The reflection of light and the tracing glass made the Queen think that there was a basin full of water.
The Queen asked: "Can man build such a palace?"
The young girl: "No, the jinn have built it."
Balqis murmured: "Surely, the jinn have built it."
The belief in Allah increased in her heart. She had already discussed her own religion. She was not satisfied with the sun as a god.
She thought that the real god should not set, and that he should always be present. However, she was unable to announce her thought, for all the people of her kingdom who worshipped the sun. If she had said that the sun was not a god, they would have killed her.
Now, the Queen knew the truth. She saw Allah, the Glorified, with her own heart. She knew that Allah loved people. She saw how Allah ordered all things to obey man. Therefore, she said: "Man should not prostrate himself to anyone except Allah."
The believing person ruled the existence! The believing person was Sulayman, who ordered the wind to blow, who ordered the jinn, the bird, and the animals to obey him; nevertheless he prostrated him to Allah to show gratefulness and humbleness.
Thus, Balqis looked at the sky and said humbly: "My Lord, I have wronged myself, and I have submitted with Sulayman to Allah, the Lord of the worlds."
Queen Balqis prostrated herself to Allah for the first time, so all her soldiers also prostrated themselves to Him.
Thus, Sulayman prostrated himself to Allah to thank Him. He succeeded in convincing the Queen to believe in Allah.

The End
The jinn were afraid of Sulayman, for he was the only one who forced them to serve the Kingdom of Faith.
For long years, they made mihrabs and statues, and they dived into the deep seas to bring out pearls and corals. They thought that they were stronger than man.
However, when the competition for bringing the throne took place, the believing person won it; he was able to bring it from Yemen to Palestine within the twinkling of an eye.
Still, the jinn thought that they were better than all Allah's creatures. They thought that they were more knowledgeable than them.
Allah, the Glorified, wanted to show the jinn that they knew nothing except what He had taught them.

The Woodworm
Sulayman leaned on his rod in his palace. The jinn worked and worked. When they looked at Sulayman, they increased their work because they were afraid of him.
Sulayman had finished his prayers and went to watch work of the jinn.
He leaned on his rod and looked at the jinn who were working. At that time Allah, the Glorified, made Sulayman die. Thus, Sulayman's soul traveled to the Heavens.
Sulayman remained leaning on his rod for days.
The jinn came and saw him standing, so they went about their different tasks.
No one knew the truth; all the jinn looked at Sulayman and saw him standing.
Allah wanted to make his servants, the men and the jinn, understand that they did not know the unseen.
The woodworm crept on the marble royal court; nevertheless nobody felt it.
Allah, the Glorified, wanted to show the truth through the smallest one of His creatures.
The woodworm walked forward Sulayman's rod and began eating it.
Sulayman was still leaning on his rod. Meanwhile, the woodworm was busy eating the rod, and the jinn were busy working.
After long weeks, when the woodworm ate part of the rod, a surprising thing took place.
Sulayman fell on the ground; he fell on the marble royal court. Both the men and the jinn understood that Sulayman died.
The jinn understood that they did not know the unseen for they did not know that Sulayman had died.
Were it not for that woodworm, the jinn would go on working for a long time.
The believers were sad at Sulayman's death. As for the jinn, they rejoiced at his death, for they felt that they would no longer work for man.
Such ended Sulayman's kingdom. It was a wonderful kingdom. They men, the jinn, and the animals took part in building it.
Peace be on Sulayman, the grateful, the wise prophet, the king of the kingdom of faith!

The Return of the Soul

The Story of Our Prophet 'Uzayr
Sulayman (A.S.) died, many prophets came after him, but the Jews turned away from Allah's religion.
They loved gold and silver very much, turned to worship idols again, and distorted the Torah.
For this reason, their spirit became weak. The Jews were afraid of death and clung to life.
About 550 years before the birth of our prophet Jesus Christ (A.S.), there was an oppressive king called Bakht Nasr, who ruled Babylon.
Bakht Nasr attacked the Jews and occupied their capital Jerusalem. He killed the Jews, destoryed their country, and burnt their holy books such as the Torah. He also destroyed their temples.
When Bakht Nasr returned to Babylon, he brought the Jews with him as prisoners of war.
The Jews lived in Babylon for about a hundred years. Our prophet 'Uzayr was born in that period of time.
War broke out between Babylon and Iran. Cyrus, the King of Iran, won a victory in the war and entered Babylon as a conqueror.
Cyrus made friends with our prophet 'Uzayr and loved him because of his good manners. One day 'Uzayr went to Cyrus and asked him to let the Jews rerutn to their homeland and to permit him to rewrite the Torah which had been destroyed.
Thus, the Jews returned to their homeland, so they loved 'Uzayr very much.
Our prophet 'Uzayr spent many years in rewriting the Torah.

To the Garden
Our prophet 'Uzayr had a garden outside the village. He worked with his own hand as the prophets did.
He worked on his farm, plowed his land, watered his plants, gathered fruit, watched his trees and trim their branches.
Our prophet 'Uzayr (A.S.) had a donkey. He used the donkey to go to the garden and to return home.
He grazed his animals and had mercy on them; he did not lashed them with a whip or a stick. He loved people and was kind to them. He advised them, preached to them, and taught them religious law, the Torah, and how to live their lives.
It was very hot when our prophet 'Uzayr rode his donkey and went to his farm. The farm was distant. When 'Uzayr went to his farm, he passed through the ruins of a forgotten city and ancient scattered cemeteries. In the morning fresh breezes blew over 'Uzayr from the green farms.
The donkey made its way through the green fields, and then it passed through the ruins of the forgotten city and the ancient graveyards.
The sun rose high in the sky and sent its hot rays to the earth. The ruins of the city appeared. The houses were mere ruins. The stones were scattered here and there. The cemetery was also in ruins; some bones were scattered.
Out prophet 'Uzayr dismounted his donkey and sat in the shade of a wild tree. He was tired and hungry, so he brought out crumbs of bread and a bunch of grapes. He pressed the bunch of grapes into a small bowl; he plunged the crumbs of bread into it. He wanted to soften the crumbs of bread, so he could eat them easily.
Our prophet 'Uzayr considered carefully the graves, the ruins of the city, and the decayed bones.
Tens of years passed while the wind blew over those ruins and graves. The sun sent its hot rays to them in summer. The rain and snow destroyed them more in winter.
Our prophet 'Uzayr asked himself: "How will life return to those who died hundreds of years ago? How will Allah give them life after their death?"
'Uzayr became sleepy and had closed his eyes before he ate his food.
The donkey also ate some grass and slept.
A wonderful thing happened. 'Uzayr did not wake. The evening came while he did not wake. He died, and his donkey also died!

The Days Passed
Days and week passed, but 'Uzayr did not return to his village. His sons went out to look for him, but they did not find him. Then went to the farm, but they also did not find him there.
As time advanced, the people forgot; no one remembered him. Months and years passed while 'Uzayr was at his place; he and his donkey were dead in the shade of the tree.
The donkey became a skeleton; the bones scattered and some of them turned in to earth.
The wonderful thing was that the grape juice was still as it was before; the passing of the years did not affect it.
'Uzayr's sons died, and his grandsons grew up.
A hundred years passed after 'Uzayr's death.
No one of those who knoew 'Uzayr remained alive except an old woman. When 'Uzayr disappeared, the woman was twenty years old. Now, she became one hundred and twenty years old.

Return of the Soul
One day clouds gathered in the sky; lightning flashed; thunder boomed, and then it rained.
At a moment which Allah chose as mercy for His servants, the angel Gabrael came down from the sky and stood by the tree between the ruins of the forgotten city and the ancient graveyard.
The soul returned to 'Uzayr. He woke and began breathing after his death which lasted for one hundred years.
'Uzayr woke from his sleeping. He found the place full of light and heard the voice of the angel asking him. " 'Uzayr, how long did you sleep?"
'Uzayr rubbed his eyes and answered: "I slept for a day and part of a day."
The angel explained: "You slept for one hundred years."
"One hundred years?" asked 'Uzayr.
"Yes," replied the angel, "Allah wanted to bring back life to you; He wanted to make you a sign for the people who denied the raising of the dead. 'Uzayr, look at your food; it has not spoiled for a hundred years. Your body has not decayed for one hundred years; Allah has kept it."
Then the angel said to 'Uzayr : " 'Uzayr, look at your donkey."
'Uzayr looked at his donkey that had become decayed, scattered bones.
Then the angel said to 'Uzayr : " 'Uzayr, look how Allah will give live to your donkey."
'Uzayr looked with astonishment at what had happened. The decayed bones came together to form the skeleton of the donkey, flesh grew, and veins appeared.
The skin grew, and the hair returned. The donkey was dead some moments before, but its breath returned again.
Suddenly, the donkey rose, brayed loudly, and started looking for grass.
Thus, 'Uzayr said from the bottom of his heart: "Allah is Great! I know that Allah has power over all things! All things happened with Allah's order! Allah has power over all things!" 'Uzayr prayed to Allah and wept out of love and longing for Him.
'Uzayr ate some of his food that remained fresh throughout those years: its taste did not change. Grape juice, which spoils with in hours in the intense heat, resisted the changes of time for one whole century!

The Return
'Uzayr rose, mounted his donkey, and went back to his village.
Without doubt, the donkey did not know what had happened, so it did not forget the way that led to the village.
'Uzayr saw his village in the distance, but he thought that it was another village. The people's faces, clothes, and houses had changed.
'Uzayr had no house to go to.
'Uzayr had turned into a story which fathers related to sons:
"'Uzayr, the good person, the pious prophet, went to his farm on a hot day, but he did not return to his house, No one found him. Perhaps the earth has swallowed him up.
"Only 'Uzayr knew the Torah. The Torah had been lost, but it was he who re-gathered it. He had copies of the original Torah, which Allah revealed to Musa."
'Uzayr stood in the middle of the village and called loudly: "People of my village, I am 'Uzayr! I am 'Uzayr who disappeared for one hundred years!"
The people of the village gathered around 'Uzayr. They saw his face blazing with light.
Some villagers said to each other: "This is a mad person. If 'Uzayr returned to life, he would be one hundred and fifty years old. As for this person, he is about fifty years old."
'Uzayr said: "Show me my sons!"
One of the villagers said: "'Uzayr's sons died many years ago."
Then 'Uzayr asked them: "What about my grandsons? Show me my garndsons!"
A villager, aged seventy, answered: "There is one of "Uzayr's grandsons, he is about sixty years of age."
'Uzayr said: "Take me to him."
Thus, the grandfather and the grandson met each other with astonishment.
"Are you my grandfather? you look younger than me in age!"
'Uzayr replied: "It's Allah's miracle! He wanted to show people that He was able to give life to man after he has died."
'Uzayr lived in his grandson's house and related his moving story to his grandson. He said to him: "I went to a farm outside the village, filled my two baskets with grapes, went to that ruins of the ancient city, pressed the grapes, and then I slept for a hundred years. I and my donkey died, then Allah raised me and my donkey from the dead to make us a sign for everyone."
In the meantime an old woman, aged one hundred and twenty, came to 'Uzayr; she was twenty years of age then. She came leaning on a stick and saying: "Who has mentioned 'Uzayr the people have forgotten?"
She heard 'Uzayr speaking; she remembered his accent, but she did not see his face because she had lost her sight. She said: "If I could see, I would know this person.
Allah loved 'Uzayr, so 'Uzayr asked Allah to heal the old woman to bear witness for him.
Allah the Glorified, healed the old woman and she opened her eyes. She saw 'Uzayr and said: "Oh! He is 'Uzayr; Uzayr who disappeared a hundred years ago!"
The grandson said: [My father said:] "We looked for the Torah everywhere, but we did not find it. Only 'Uzayr knew where it was."
'Uzayr said: "I will show you where Musa's Book is; it is in the trunk of an olive-tree. let's go there."
They all went to tha place; they saw an old olive tree.
Many plants grew and covered the place, but 'Uzayr went to a place between the tree and the nearby brook. He dug and dug till he found the wooden box.
The box was very decayed, but the copy of the Torah was still sound.
Everyone believed in the miracle. 'Uzayr himself came back after he had disappeared and turned into a story.
He died for a hundred years, and then Allah raised him from the dead to make him a sign for His servants.
Some people believed in the miracle; they knew that death was true, the raising of the dead was true, and Allah had powers over all things.
However, some people said: "'Uzayr is God's son."
Some people believed in the miracle; they knew that death was true, the raising of the dead was true, and Allah had power over all things.
However, some people said: "'Uzayr is God's son."
Some people believed in that; some kept silent to show satisfaction.
Refusing this idea, 'Uzayr said: "I am Allah's servant and apostle!"
Nevertheless, the Jews went on saying. "'Uzayr is God's son."
They said that because they wanted to worship something material.
Then 'Uzayr died; he departed from this world, but the Jews adopted the idea: "'Uzayr is God's son."
Then Allah, the Glorified, appointed Mohammed (S.A.W) a prophet and he announced the truth: "'Uzayr died for a hundred years, and then Allah raised him from the dead."
'Uzayr was one of Allah's prophets; Allah, the Glorified, raised him from the dead to make mankind believe in the Day of Judgment.
The Jews did not keep the Torah; they deviated from the right path; they deviated from faith. So their hearts became as sold as rocks.
In 161 B.C., Antokius, the ruler of Syria, attacked the land of the Jews and ordered the copies of the Torah to be burnt.
Thus, the real Torah, Musa's Torah, became lost. 'Uzayr had done his best to collect the Torah and to prevent the Jews from distorting it.
Peace be on 'Uzayr, Allah's prophet, apostle, and miracle!

The Miracle of Creation

The Story of Al 'Umran
'Umran Became a very old man, but Allah did not give him a child.
His wife, Hanna, was barren. She wished that Allah had given her a child.
Allah, the Glorified, inspired 'Umran: "I will give you a blessed child." Thus, 'Umran rejoiced at that and gave good news to his wife, saying: "Allah has accepted our prayers, and He will give us a blessed child."
The good woman, Hanna, rejoiced when she became pregnant.
One morning she went to the temple and vowed to Allah, saying: "My Lord, I vow to You that what is in my womb is devoted (to Your service); therefore accept (it) from me, surely You are the Hearing, the Knowing."

The Vow
Zakariya, the Prophet (A.S.), was in the temple. He rejoiced when he heard of that, saying: "Allah has power over all things; He gives whomever He wills."
He entered the mihrab and prayed to Allah, and then he went to his shop in the market.
Days, weeks, and months passed, 'Umran died before he saw the child's face. Hanna thought that Allah would give her a boy-baby, so she was surprised when she gave birth to a pretty girl-baby.
How did Hanna fulfill her vow? Was it possible for the girl to serve in the temple?
Hanna looked at the sky and said: "My Lord, I have given birth to a female, and the male is not like the female!"
Allah, the Glorified, inspired her that the girl would occupy an important position, and that she would serve the mihrab and temple. So Hanna said humbly: "I have called it Maryam, and I ask You to protect her and her children from the cursed Satan."
Hanna, the good woman, named her daughter Maryam, namely the worshipper or the servant of the temple.
Maryam grew up and it was time for her to go to the temple to serve Allah.
Who looked after Maryam? All the fortune-tellers wanted to take care of her, for she was the daughter of 'Umran, the good man, and the daughter of Hanna, the pious woman.
All the fortune-tellers agreed on drawing lots, and the lot came to Zakariya (A.S.).
Zakariya was a pious person. He loved Maryam, for he thought that she would be good and blessed.
Zakariya, Maryam's uncle, looked after Maryam and brought her up.

The Virgin
Maryam lived in small room in the highest story of the Sacred House; she isolated herself from the world.
No one entered her room except Zakariya.
Maryam grew up in her isolation; She was like a pure dew drop, a sun behind clouds, and a bright moon,"
Maryam grew up; she was like a wet rose or a violet flower. Her scent traveled in space, but nobody saw her.

Ripe Dates in Winter
On a cold winter day, Zakariya climbed the ladder to go to the Maryam's room. He wanted to carry food, which was some crumbs of bread and some yogurt, to Maryam.
Zakariya heard a voice like the murmur of brooks. There was no one except Maryam, who prayed to her Lord, Who chose and purified her.
Zakariya entered the room quietly. He saw a wonderful thing. He saw a plate full of ripe dates. The dates filled the room with their scent.
Zakariya was astonished to see that, so he asked Maryam: "From where have you brought these ripe dates?"
Maryam answered and her angelic face blazed with humbleness: "They are from Allah, surely Allah gives without reckoning!"
Zakariya's soul became filled with faith, and he talked to himself: "Allah gives the believer summer fruit in the middle of winter!"
Days passed and the summer came. On a summer day Zakariya came to Maryam; he saw her prostrating herself to Allah and saw a plate full of oranges, so he admired that young lady, who had a great position with Allah.
Allah, the Glorified, honored Maryam; He gave her without reckoning. She found her food in her room, for she devoted herself to Allah. She did not leave her room on any condition, for she wanted to fulfill her mother's vow.

Zakariya prayed to his Lord
Zakariya talked to himself: "Allah, the Glorified, has honored Maryam; He give her summer fruit in winter, and winter fruit in summer. Indeed Allah has power over all things; He gives whomever He wills without reckoning."
Zakariya, the good old man stood to pray to Allah humbly, saying: "My Lord, give me good children!"
Suddenly, the mihrab was full of heavenly light. Zakariya heard the angel saying to him: "Zakariya surely We give you good news of a boy whose name shall be Yahya. We have not made before anyone his equal."
Zakariya's wish became true.Zakariya wished that he had a boy like Maryam in purity, truthfulness, and faith.
However, Zakariya asked th angel: "How shall I have a boy when my wife is barren and I myself have become very old?"
The angel replied: "So shall it be; your Lord says: It is easy for me."
Then Zakariya asked the angel: "How will I know that Allah has given me Yahya?"
The angel answered: "The sign for that is that you will be unable to speak for three nights."
The evening came and it got dark. Zakariya felt that his tongue was as dried as wood; he was unable to speak, so he prostrated himself to Allah, the Glorified.
Allah, the Glorified, gave Zakariya a boy who would be of great importance.Zakariya went out of the mihrab; he wanted to preach to people; he wanted to say to them: "Do not forget Allah. Prostrate yourselves to Him. Mention His name frequently."
Zakariya was unable to speak, so he pointed to the sky. He wanted to say: "Children of Israel, Allah, the Glorified, watches you. My people, glorify Allah and mention His name."
Three nights passed, but Zakariya was unable to speak. On the fourth day, he said to his wife, Ilisabat: "Allah, the Glorified, has given me good news of a boy whose name is Yahya."
The good woman said: "Oh! Yahya! What a wonderful name!" Then she asked Zakariya: "How will I give birth to a boy-baby while I am barren?"
Zakariya replied: "Allah has power over all things. He, the Glorified, has power over the laws of creation. He has power over the sky and the earth. He created our father Adam from earth.

The Miracle
The Jews of that time were stubborn. They believed in magic; some traded in gold. However, they all loved money more than anything else.
They frequently deviated from Musa's teachings.
For this reason, Allah, The Glorified, wanted to wake them from their heedlessness, so he gave Zakariya a boy. Zakariya's barren wife became pregnant and gave birth to a boy-baby whose face balzed with faith and love. Hanna gave birth to a girl-baby whose name was Maryam.
Allah, the Glorified, promised 'Umran that He would give him a child, but 'Umran had died before he saw his daughter Maryam.
Allah, the Glorified, purified Maryam to make her a sign for people, and He made her another sign.

The Good News
Maryam worshipped Allah in her isolation. Her face blazed with light. Her pure heart traveled through the stars and the skies.
The young lady was as bright as a morning dewdrop.
Her heart was bright and her soul was pure. She was about to fly high in worlds full of light.
Maryam isolated herself from the world. There was nothing between her and the world except a small window overlooking the blue horizon touching the green hills.
Suddenly her room became filled with light. In the middle of the light, she saw a young man. She was afraid of the young man, so she said to him: "I seek refuge with Allah from you if you are pious!"
The young man explained: "Maryam, don't be afraid. "I am only a messenger of your Lord, so that I may give you a pure boy.'"
Bowing her head out of bashfulness, Maryam asked the young man: "How will I give brith to a baby-boy while I am not married?"
Maryam was a miracle, and she became the mother of a miracle when she gave birth to a baby-boy while she was still virgin.
The angel said: "Your Lord says: It is easy for Me; We will make him a sign to men and a mercy from Us, and it is decreed matter."
Then the angel walked toward Maryam and blew into her shirt, so Maryam felt that a great soul entered her body.
The angel disappeared. Maryam understood that she would face difficult days, and that she would shoulder a great responsibility.
She bore the Spirit and Word of Allah in her body, but she was anxious because no one would believe her blessed baby-boy, so she asked herself: "How will the people belive that a baby is born without a father?"
One lovely morning, Maryam went to the near-by hills. She was anxious, but her faith in Allah strengthen her determination and will.
Maryam was so tired that she sat by the trunk. She felt the severe pain of childbirth, so she said: "Oh, would that I had died before this, and had a thing quite forgotten!"
Maryam heard the baby saying to her: "Mother, do not grieve. Allah has created a brook for you, so drink from it, and shake the trunk of the date-palm and it will drop on you fresh ripe dates. So eat and drink and refresh the eye."
Maryam became calm, but she asked her baby: "My little son, what about the people? What will say to them, Spirit of Allah?"
"Isa, the miracle, was born without father to be a sign and mercy to people.
The pure baby smiled at his mother. His mother put him on her lap, and then she carried him and went to her people.
Maryam descended from the hills and went to the temple. The people saw a wonderful sight. They saw Maryam carrying a baby and going to her room. One person said: "Oh, look! That is Maryam, daughter of 'Umran, carrying a baby!"
Another person asked: "What? What? How? Where is she?"
The first person replied: "That is Maryam going to her room in the temple!"
The moving news spread everywhere, so everyone talked about it.
Everyone wondered, but the believers kept silent. As for the bad people, they said obscene words.
Zakariya and the fortune-tellers heard of the rumors, so they went to the temple to see Maryam.
He said: "I am the Servant of Allah."
While Maryam was praying and 'Isa was sleeping in the cradle, Zakariya and the fortune-tellers entered the room.
One of the fortune-tellers said to Maryam rudely: "Maryam, you have done a strange thing!"
Another said: "Harun's sister, your father was not a bad man, nor was your mother an unchaste woman!"
Maryam stood up looking at her people and her face blazed with heavenly light. She said nothing, but she pointed with her finger to the baby.
The people wondered and said: "How will we speak to the one who is a child in the cradle?"
While the people were looking at the baby with astonishment, the miracle occurred. The baby answered them, saying: "I am the servant of Allah; He has given me the Book and made me a prophet. Allah is my and your Lord, so serve Him.
"Allah has made me blessed; he has ordered me to pray and pay the poor-rate as long as I live.
"He has ordered me to be kind to my mother, and He has not made me insolent. unblessed.
"So peace be on me on the day I was born, on the day I am raised from the dead!"
When Zakariya heard these words, he believed in 'Isa, son of Maryam, and prostrated himself to Allah, the Glorified.
Some people believed in this miracle; some disbelieved in it.

The Sacred House
Allah, the Glorified, promised Zakariya to give him a boy. The miracle occurred when Yahya was born while his mother was barren. Allah created 'Isa without a father, so He was able to give a baby to the barren woman. Thus, Zakariya rejoiced at the baby.
Yahya was born; he was a believing, pure child. He loved Allah, and Allah loved him. Zakariya's family was noble.The father was righteous, the mother was believing, and the child was kind to his parents and people.
'Isa was born in that society. His birth was a miracle and proof of Allah's power over all things.
Yahya's birth was a miracle and proof of Allah's power over all things.
They both were two proofs of Allah's power over all things. So what happened when they became youn men.

Tenderness From Us

The Story of Our Prophet Yahya
Our prophet 'Isa was born. He was Allah's word and mercy. His birth was miraculous.
The people knew of Maryam's chastity. Meanwhile they heard the baby speaking in the cradle and giving god news of Allah's mercy, so they believed in Allah and prostrated themselves to Him.
At that time the Jewish society led a life full of corruption and lying, and were very materialistic people. No part of the Torah remained correct except few words.
They Jews distorted Allah's words. They did that to achieve their interests and ambitions.
The Jewish society became materialistc; it did not believe in anything except the worldly things.
The poor increased in poverty, and the rich increased in riches. There was nothing sacred except gold.

To Egypt
The country was full of chaos when the baby spoke from the cradle.
Some statesmen came to ask about the baby who spoke from the cradle and gave good news to people of prophecy and salvation.
The people in the capital, Rome, were anxious and wanted to know what had happened in their homeland.
No one was safe from the planning of the Jews even Zakariya. The Jews plotted against Zakariya and provoke the Roman Emperor to kill him.
The Jews bore malice against all the people; they loved no one except themselves. They plotted against the prophets who came to lead them to the right path.
Bakht Nasr, the King of Babylon, occupied Palestine and took the Jews as prisoners of war. So the Jews have bore malice against mankind and have planned to control the world since then.
They wrote a book and called the book the Talmud. They said that was more sacred than the Torah. They distorted Allah's words and the law of Musa, Allah's messenger.
For this reason, 'Isa was born without a father to be a miracle and to guide the children of Israel to the right path.
However, the Jews accused the Prophets of lying, for the Prophets asked mankind to follow the right path.
Maryam feared for the safety of her baby; she was afraid of the planning of the Jews. The Roman official came to Maryam to ask her about her baby, so Maryam decided to go to Egypt.
Thus, one night, Maryam carried the Spirit and Word of Allah ('Isa) and left her homeland for Egypt. She lived there for many years.

Yahya, take the Book!
Yahya was a wonderful child. His face blazed with light and the solemnity of the Prophets.
The children came to Yahya and said him: "Let's play."
Yahya answered them politely: "I have not been created for playing!"
Yahya realized many things when he was child. Thus, he asked himself: "Why has Maryam taken her baby and escaped? Why do he Jews lead a life full of ignorance, deviation from the truth, and corruption? Why have the unbelieving Romans controlled my people?"
Yahya answered all these questions saying: "All that has happened because the children of Israel have turned away from the true religion, because they way of Allah is clear and strait, so do not make it crooked!"

Hirodus
At that time a Roman King called Hirodus ruled Syria. The king was a wicked pagan.
Hirodus's brother had a beautiful woman, so Hirodus took his brother's wife by force to be his wife.
No one opposed Hirodus except our Prophet Yahya, who said to him: "You have no right to marry your brother's wife!"
Yahya did not keep silent. He blamed Hirodus for his wicked deeds.
Thus, Hirodus ordered the police to arrest Yahya and they arrested him.
When they put Yahya in prison, Yahya was not afraid of them; he did not beg them for release. Yahya was brave in prison, so he said loudly: "The one who is stronger than me will come after me! Mercy will prevail.
Yahya grew up and became a strong young man, so he said openly: "Those who have garments should give to those who have no garments!
"Those who have food should give the poor!
"Do not oppress anyone! Do not slander anyone!
The path country! The lilies will bloom! The eyes will see the daylight, and the deaf ears will open!"

The Celebration
Hirodus held a great celebration. During the celebration the women danced and the men drank wine, while the poor outside the palace were hungry, felt oppression, and shook with cold.
The poor were naked; they had no garments to cover their bodies, while Hirodus, the king, wore silk clothes and sat on his throne decorated with gold, silver, and precious stones.
Yahya's voice echoed through the walls of the prison: "Hirodus, the oppressive one, you have no right to marry the woman with a husband!"
The celebration hall was full of young girls and young men. Then the musicians began playing on their instruments.
Hirodus sat on his throne and drank wine, and his new wife sat beside him. Her eyes blazed with wickedness.
A charming young girl dressed in silk entered the celebration hall.
Hirodus stood and addressed his new wife, saying: "Your daughter is very beautiful!"
The woman said with malice: "Saloomi will dance for you!"
The king asked with happiness: "For me?"
"Yes, for you," answered the woman.
Saloomi approached the king and said to him with coquetry: "I will dance for you!"
The king said: "I will give you a half of my kingdom.
"Grant me whatever I want." requested Saloomi.
"Yes, I will grant you whatever you want!" answered the king.
Thus, Saloomi began dancing with two naked feet.
She charmed Hirodus and he drank wine.
The Jewish woman said: "I will carry her home in procession for you."
Hirodus was filled with happiness.
Saloomi drew nearer and said: "Grant me whatever I want!"
Hirodus said; "Ask me for whatever you want! I will give you a half of my kingdom!"
Saloomi twisted like a snake and said: "I want the head of Yahya, son of Zakariya!"
The king said: "No! No! Ask me for whatever you want! I will give you my throne!"
The mother said with evil: "Yahya won't allow you to marry Saloomi!"
"Yes, Yahya!" stressed the mother.
Saloomi said: "I want you to offer me Yahya's head on a silver plate. "Hirodus clapped and his eyes blazed with wickedness, so the music ceased.
Hirodus shouted: "Bring me the prisoner! Bring me Yahya!"
The young girls escaped from the celebration hall.
The celebration hall turned into a fearful court.
The police brought Yahya, who was chained and his face blazed with heavenly light. His face was like a white cloud.
Hirodus shouted: "I have married this woman! I am the ruler of this land!"
Yahya said angrily: "It is unlawful for you to do that!"
Hirodus shouted: "I will marry her daughter! I will marry Saloomi!"
Yahya burst into anger: "It is unlawful for you to do that! It is unlawful for the person to marry a woman with a husband! It is unlawful for the person to marry his stepdaughter!"
Hirodus shouted at Yahya with malice: "I will cut off your head, so your voice will die forever!"
Yahya said with a voice that shook the walls of the palace: "It is unlawful for you! It is unlawful for you!"
Hirodus shouted: "Headsman, cut off his head!"
Thus, the headsman cut off the Prophet's head. A wonderful thing happened: Yahya's head rolled over the marble royal court, and there was a voice saying: "It is unlawful for you! It is unlawful for you!"
Hirodus was frightened, so he ordered his men to put out the torches and to follow him.
Yahya died a martyr, but his words went on echoing in the palace and the city.
Yahya gave good news to the people of the Prophets who came after him. He was the first to believe in 'Isa's prophecy, and he gave good news to the people of 'Isa's coming.
Allah, the Glorified, said in the Koran: "Peace be on him on the day he was born, on the day he will die, and on the day he will be raised from the dead."
Our prophet Mohammed (S.A.W.) said: "Everyone will have sins when they will meet Allah on the Day of Judgment, except Yahya, son of Zakariya."
He also said concerning him: "All the children of Adam commit sins and they are anxious of their sins except Yahya, son of Zakariya."
When our prophet 'Isa heard of the murder of Yahya, he became very sad and said: "Women will not bear a baby-boy who is greater than Yahya."

The Return of 'Isa
Hirodus died, but wickedness lasted, and the Jews went on leading a life full of ignorance.
Thus, 'Isa, son of Maryam, decided to return to Plaestine. He and his mother lived at a village called al-Nasirah among Mount al-Jalil. There came the angel to him and ordered him to announce Allah's message.

The Spirit of Allah

The Story of Our Prophet 'Isa
'Isa sat in the temple, in Jerusalem. He was thirty years of age. He was tall and thin. He was bare-footed and wore a woolen shirt. He thought about the fate of his people.
'Isa left the temple and headed for the hills. The shepherds took their sheep and returned home. The sun was about to set. 'Isa thought about the children of Israel and asked himself: "How can I guide the children of Israel to the Light? How can guide them to the right path?"
The sun set, so the shepherds returned to their houses, the sheep to their yards, birds to their nests, and children to their mothers' laps.
As for 'Isa, he did not return to his house. Why? Because he had no house.
He slept in the wilderness. He went to the caves in the mountains when it rained or snowed. When he became hungry, he ate wild plants.
Thus, 'Isa led a life of freedom and asceticism. He feared no one except Allah. He lived honorable, for he had no ambition in this world.
When the evening came and it was time to sleep, 'Isa put a stone under his head, lay on his back, and looked at the sky full of stars.
Suddenly, the angel appeared and filled the place with light. He said to 'Isa: "Allah order you to annouce His message.
Thus, 'Isa assumed the responsiblility of spreading Allah's message. Allah Almighty supported him.

The Heavenly Announcement
The market was full of people. 'Isa stood up to announce the news of the Sky. He said bravely: "Children of Israel, I am Allah's apostle to you. I will verify what is before me of the Torah and give good news of an Apostle who will come after me, his name is Ahmed."
At that time Fontius Flatos was the ruler of Palestine.
The Caesar ordered the rulers to fulfill the demands of the people in the occupied regions if they did not harm the security of the Roman Empire.
The ruler watched closely what was happening in his country.
One day he received reports about what had happened in his country. It had been mentioned in the reports: "A young man called 'Isa says that he is Allah's apostle, and that he summons people to follow Allah's religion and to refrain from corruption.
The Jewish clergymen were displeased with 'Isa's message. Why were they displeased with 'Isa's message? They were displeased with it because it summoned people to help the poor and to give food to the hungry, and because 'Isa said that the Jewish clergymen had distorted the Torah, and because the Jewish clergy men deceived the poor and took their belongings as gifts for gods.
At that time some Jews disbelieved in the Day of Judgment and life after death. They did not believe in reckoning. punishment, and reward. They did not say that openly. They acted religiously but in reality they deviated from religion. They showed belief and concealed unbelief.

The Struggle
The Jewish clergymen started their war against 'Isa; they spread rumors against him and accused him of unbelief. They said with malice: "If 'Isa is a prophet, then where are his miracles?
Musa had many miracles, then what has 'Isa brought?"
They said obscene words against Maryam.
They accused her while she was chaste.
In the wilderness, 'Isa summoned the children of Israel to believe in the spirit and to refrain being materialistic.
A Jewish clergy man said: "The spirit is the material that circulates through our veins."
'Isa, son of Maryam said: "The spirit is Allah's word."
"I do not know what you say," commented the Jewish clergy man.
'Isa bent and took a handful of clay, and then he sked the Jewish clergyman: "What is this?"
"A handful of clay," answered the Jewish clergyman.
"Does it have spirit?" asked 'Isa.
"No," replied the Jewish clergyman.
"I will make of it a shape like a bird, and then I will blow into it and it will become a bird with Allah's permission.
The Jewish clergyman said with astonishment: "What do you mean?"
'Isa replied: "I mean that I am able to blow into it and it will turn into a bird with Allah's permission. That is because Allah gives life to all creatures, and He has power over all things.
At that moment, 'Isa created a shape like a bird and blew into it.
Suddenly, the handful of clay turned into a white pigeon. The pigeon clapped its wing and flew away in the blue sky.
'Isa was filled with humbleness for Allah, the Almighty, the Creator.

The Disciples
Did the children of Israel believe in 'Isa? Did they prostrate themselves to Allah? The answer is certainly 'no'. The Jewish clergymen increased their malice against 'Isa, and they rumored among the simple people: "'Isa is an unbelieving young man!"
They plotted to kill him. 'Isa saw unbelief in their eyes, so he said: "Who will be my helpers in Allah's way?"
So twelve men rose and said: "We are helpers (in the way) of Allah."
Then they looked at the sky and said: Our Lord, we have believed in what you have revealed and we followed the apostle, so write us down with those who bear witness."

Azir
Our prophet 'Isa had a friend called 'Azir. 'Azir was a believing young man, so 'Isa loved him very much.
One day 'Isa went to 'Azir's house and asked about him. A woman came out weeping and saying: "'Azir died and was buried three days ago!"
Our prophet 'Isa asked the woman: "Do you want to see 'Azir?"
The believing mother answered: "Yes, Allah's Spirit!"
'Isa said: "Tomorrow, I will come and give him life with Allah's permisison.
In the early morning, 'Isa came and said to the mother: "Come with me to his grave."
'Isa stood by the grave, looked at the sky, begged Allah, and said with firm faith: "'Azir, wake up!"
Suddenly, the dust moved aside, the grave split open, and 'Azir came out of it.
The mother embraced her son with tears rolling down her cheeks.
Our prophet 'Isa asked 'Azir: "Do you want to stay with your mother?"
'Azir replied: "Yes, Allah's Word!"
'Isa explained: "Allah has given you a new life. You will marry, and Allah will grant you good children."

The Heavenly Food
Allah inspired the disciples to believe in Him and His apostle, and they said: "We have believed, and bear witness that we have submitted (to You)."
The disciples followed 'Isa, son of Maryam. They believed in him and supported him. They were a small army, but they were strong.
'Isa was notable here and in the hereafter. He was so believing that Allah accepted all his supplications.
'Isa asked Allah for miracles to make people believe in Him.
'Isa was like a good shepherd who took care of his sheep and protected them from wolves. The poor from among the children of Israel were like lost sheep. The hypocrites were like wolves; they took the poor and taught them to disbelieve in the message of 'Isa (A.S.).
One day 'Isa and his disciples went to the nearby hills. They wanted to spread faith among the people of the villages.
They sat by a fountain. 'Isa began washing the disciples feet. So the disciples asked him: "Why are you washing our feet, Allah's apostle?"
'Isa said humbly: "I want you to treat people as I treat you; I want you to serve them as I serve you."
The disciples became hungry. 'Isa satisfied his hunger with some wild plants, but the disciples were unable to do that. 'Isa renounced this world, he taught himself how to control his stomach.
The disciples said to each other: "'Isa created a bird from the clay with Allah's permission. He gave life to 'Azir with Allah's permission, so he is able to ask Allah to send us food from the sky."
For this reason, they asked him: "'Isa, son of Maryam, can your lord send us food from the sky?"
For this reason, they asked him: "'Isa, son of Maryam, can your Lord send us food from the sky?"
'Isa was moved, so he asked himself: "Do they doubt Allah's power?" Then he said to them: "Fear Allah if you are believers!"
They said: "We desire that we should eat of it, and that our hearts should be at rest, and that we may know that you have spoken the truth to us and that we may be of the witnesses to it."
They wanted to say: "We want food from the sky so that our hearts are sure of it, and we will bear witness to this miracle before all the people. Therefore, the food will be another proof of truthfulness for you, 'Isa. Moreover, we want to get the blessing of heavenly food."
'Isa(A.S.) kept silent, his bright face became sad, and his eyes blazed with heavenly light.
'Isa prostrated himself to Allah, the Lord of heavens, and then he looked at the blue sky and said from the bottom of his heart:
"Our Lord, send down to us food from heaven, which should be an ever recurring happiness to the first of us and the last of us, and a sign from You, and grant us means of subsistence, and You are the best of the providers."
Heavenly light blazed and covered the place. 'Isa (A.S.) and the disciples heard Allah's voice saying to them: "Surely, I will sent it down to you, but whoever shall disbelieve afterwards from among you surely I will chastise him with a chastisement with which I will not chastise any one among the nations."
Excellent food came down from heaven. It had bread and meat. Its flavor traveled through space, so the hungry and the poor came to 'Isa. They found with him excellent food, so they ate and drank and went away.

At the Beach
Our prophet 'Isa (A.S.) went to the beach to visit the fishermen. Seeing 'Isa, the fishermen cheered: "The teacher has come!"
They were sad because they threw their nets into the see, but all their attempts came to nothing.
Some fishermaen sat at the beach; some sat on their boats and looked at 'Isa with sadness; so they folded their sails and were hopeless.
'Isa embarked a boat and ordered the fishermaen to go fishing.
The fishermen raised their sails and followed the boat of 'Isa (A.S.).
'Isa ordered the fishermen to stop at a certain place in the Blue Sea and to throw their nets into the water. A surprising thing occurred! The fishermen drew their nets and they were full of fish. They went on fishing till their boats were full of fish.
The fishermen thanked Allah for that and returned to the beach.

The Healing
One day one of the disciples asked our prophet 'Isa to go with him to his house. 'Isa accepted and went with the disciple.
On his way there, 'Isa saw a young man wailing and some people mocking him. The young man was dumb and deaf. He did not hear anything, so he was not able to speak. However, he looked at the people with perplexity when the laughed at him.
'Isa put the palm of his hand on the young man's ear and he was able to hear. The people were astonished when they knew that the youne man was able to hear, so some of them believed in 'Isa and followed him.
Then 'Isa went to his friend's house.
In the morning, 'Isa heard some people hitting the door with stones, so he went out to see what was happening.
When 'Isa went out, he saw a leprous person walking and some people hitting him with stones to force him to leave the village.
The people hit the leprous person with stones from far and felt disgust at seeing him.
'Isa put the palm of his hand on the leprous person's face and healed him of his disease.
As for the people, they pushed one another to touch 'Isa's hand to be blessed by it.

The Plot
'Isa devoted his life to helping the poor, the miserable, and the needy. He guided the people to the right path and gave them good news of the most honorable Prophet, Mohammed (S.A.W.), whom he called the Comforter. He said to them: "As for the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom Father will send in my name, he will teach you everything and remind you of what I have said to you."(John's Gospel).
'Isa read to the people what had been mentioned in the Torah; he read to them what Allah, the Glorified, said to Musa (A.S.): "I will appoint to them a prophet like you from among their brothers, and I will put my words in his mouth, so he will tell them about all what I will entrust to him."(Torah,the Deuteronomy).
For this reason, the Jewish soothsayers bore malice agaist 'Isa and provoked the people to kill him. They rumored that 'Isa was a magician, and that he turned away from Musa's religion.
One day, while 'Isa and his disciples were sitting in the temple, the Jews rushed to kill him. Thus, Filatos, the ruler, ordered the police to arrest him to protect him from the wickedness of the Jews and to know his view and message.
'Isa was taken to the palace, and the mob followed him, so Filatos came out of his palace to ask them about the reason why they were indignant with 'Isa.
The mob shouted everywhere: "'Isa is an unbeliever, apostate, and a traitor!"
Thus, the bodyguards closed the gate of the palace. Then Filatos consider carefully 'Isa's face. He saw his eyes blazing with love and peace, so he said to himself: "Surely, this young man has sincere views."
Then Filatos asked 'Isa: "Do you provoke people against my government?"
'Isa answered with confidence: "No, I don't. I ask them to think about the Creator of the world, to treat each other kindly, and to serve Allah, the One and Only."
Filatos had read the Greek philosophers' views, so he understood that 'Isa's views would not endanger Rome.
For this reason, the bodyguards opened the gate of the palace and released 'Isa.
As for the Jews, they rumored that 'Isa had impressed his views on the ruler, and that the ruler wanted to betray the Caesar.
The Jews were wicked; they were not satisfied with spreading rumors, so they sent letters t the Caeaar to remove the ruler from office.
Thus, the country was full of chaos. He was afraid that the Jews would overthrow his government, so he let them behave as they pleased towards 'Isa.
The Jews were filled with malice against 'Isa. They were as wild as wolves, so they tried to cut him into pieces with their own teeth. They wanted to kill him because he brought them humane views and the true religion Allah revealed to our prophet Musa (A.S.).
The Jewish clergymen held a noisy meeting. In the meeting they discussed how to arrest 'Isa, son of Maryam, (A.S.).
Thus, the spies went everywhere to look for him, but they did not find him. The Jewish clergymen were anxious because 'Isa had hidden himself.
They thought that 'Isa would endanger their interests, so they allotted expensive prizes to those who would capture him or give information about him.

Isa's Hardships
'Isa and his mother faced many hardships in this world.
The Jews persecuted Maryam from the day when 'Isa (A.S.) was born. They did not believe in this miracle, and, besides, they accused Maryam of corruption when they said: "'Isa's father is a person called Yousif al-Najjar.
When 'Isa grew up and assumed Allah's message, the Jews persecuted him everywhere. Now, they provoked the government to kill him, and they accused the ruler of betraying the Caesar.
The Jews succeeded in getting a green light to kill 'Isa, so they searched for him everywhere. Meanwhile the Roman ruler ordered his soldiers to arrest him.
Where did 'Isa go?
'Isa moved secretly from one place to another. He and his followers spent each night at a different place. One night 'Isa (A.S.) and his disciples hid in a farm. When they had eaten their food, 'Isa rose to teach his followers a lesson in humbleness. He washed their hands and said: "I've done that to be an example to all of you; therefore behave humbly and modestly towards people."
On that night 'Isa felt treason, so he said: "I want to tell you that the shepherd will go, the sheep will stay by themselves, and one of you will disbelieve in me before the rooster crows three times."
Thus, the disciples looked at each other; they saw the eyes of Yahudha al-Askharyuti blazing with treason.
On that cold winter night, 'Isa and his followers slept except Yahudha, who went out of the farm.
Yahudha thought of gold and the expensive prizes, so he went to the temple where the Jewish clergy men sat waiting for news of 'Isa.
Yahudha tole the chief Jewish clergyman about 'Isa and in turn he took gold.
When the rooster crowed three times, the Jewish clergy men ordered the Roman soldiers to accompany Yahudha. Yahudha did not want anyone to recognize him, so he veiled his face.
He walked and the soldiers walked behind him. The people woke when they hears the soldiers' noise. Tens of soldiers broke into the farm, and the disciples escaped in all directions.
Allah wanted to punish Yahudha, so he made his face look like 'Isa's.
As for 'Isa, Allah lifted him to the sky and saved him from the Jews' ugly plot.

The Cross
The Roman soldiers did not find 'Isa. They did not recognized him because they had not seen him before. During that chaos, they looked at Yahudha's face which looked like 'Isa's, so they captured Yahudha and went away.
The Jews want to get rid of 'Isa quickly, so they ordered the Romans soldiers to crucify Yahudha at the Hill of al-Jaljala and they took him there and crucified him. Thus, the Jews imagined that the story of 'Isa was over.
Did the story of 'Isa end?
The asnwer is 'no', for many rumors about his coming were spread. Perhaps, the rumors were spread by the poor, who loved 'Isa.
However, the Jews were afraid of those rumors because they were not sure of murdering 'Isa, so they rumored that they had crucified him.
As for the truth, it is what Allah, the Glorified, has mentioned in the Qur'an:
"And they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but it appeared to them so (like 'Isa..., and they killed him without certainty. Rather, Allah took him up to himself; and Allah is Mighty, Wise."(The Holy Qur'an,4,157-158)
'Isa will come someday, When will he come?
He will come on the promised day when the twelfth Imam of the holy Ahl al-Bayt, Imam al-Mahdi (A.S.), of whose coming our prophet Mohammed (S.A.W.) gave good news, comes.
'Isa will support al-Mahdi, the truth will defeat falsehood, and love and peace will prevail on earth.

The Companions of the Cave(Ashab i-Kahf)
In the year 106 A.D., Roman armies occupied the land of Jordan, where the Kingdom of the Nabataeans was standing.
The Roman Emperor, Trojan, was a fanatic pagan, so he chased the believers, especially the followers of 'Isa (A.S.).
Before this military expedition, Syria, Palestine, and Jordan had enjoyed a kind of self-rule, and the capital Rome was satisfied with taking taxes from these countries. That is because the Roman forces were few in number.
Thus, the Romans organized such a military expedition to completely occupy these countries and to subject them to the direct rule of Rome.
In the year 112 A.D., Emperor Trojan gave an order: "Those who follow 'Isa and refuse to worship the idols gods are disloyal to the state, so we will sentence them to death!"

Philadelphia
At that time, the people called Amman Philadelphia because it was a beautiful city. They decorated it with statues, but they did not use the statues for decoration only. Rather they worshipped them as gods instead of Allah, the Glorified.
There was the statue of Athina, the god of war. There was a sword in the right hand of the statue, and a shield in its lert hand. There is also the statue of Taiki, the god of luck and guard of the city. It is now in the Amman Museum.
Philadelphia was to the southeast of Amman; it witnessed the greatest civilization at that time. As for the believers, they led a life of fear, especially when the Roman forces occupied the city at the time of Trojan and subjected it to the direct rule of Rome.
In the year 112 A.D., Trojan regarded all the Christians as disloyal to his government, and he made them choose between worshipping gods and death.

The Seven Youths
Many people of the city led a life of terror, so they pretended that they worshipped the gods of Romans. Meanwhile the government committees checked the people's beliefs, so the people were anxious. However, seven youths lived in that city. History has mentioned thier names as follows:
1. Maximinyanius.
2. Amlikhius.
3. Motyanius.
4. Danius.
5. Yanius.
6. Aksa Kadtho Niyanius.
7. Antonius.
Those believing youths were perplexed, not knowing what to do.
They had two choices: they had to choose between death and unbelief.
At those critical moments, they decided to escape from the city. How did they escape?
In the early morning of that day, while the investigating committees were chasing the believers, the guards saw seven youths and a dog leaving the city, so they asked them. "Where are you going?"
One of the seven youths answered: "We're going hunting?"
The guards explained: "Well, you must go back to take part in the official celebrations!"

To the Cave
The seven youths took their dog and went to a cave. The cave was seven kilometers from the city; it was near-by a village called al-Raqim.
The youths arrived in the mountainous area, and then they climbed the mountains to go to a cave they had chosen before.
The cave was in the southern foot of the mountain. It had a unique situation: it was moderate because there were two openings in its right and left sides. As for its entrance, it was facing the South Pole. The ground in the cave was 7.5 m wide; it was the place the youths chose to hide.
The youths decided to isolate themselves from people, to hide in this place, and to wait for Allah's mercy.
They had no hope in winning a victory over the Romans.
They also adamantly refused to worship idols. They thought that Allah was the Lord of the heavens and the earth, and that worshipping idols was opposite to the Greatest Truth in the existence.
The people of that time did not believed in the Day of Judgment. They thought that when a perosn died, his soul moved to another person or animal.

The Long Sleep
The youths were tired when they entered the cave.
Meanwhile, they were anxious, for they thought that the Romans soldiers would chase them and discover their hiding-place.
They were tired because they did not sleep for a day, so they felt drowsiness playing with their eyelids; therefore they slept while they were dreaming about a happy future.
To show His power in raising mankind from the dead, Allah, the Glorified, made the seven youths sleep deeply and prevented them from hearing.
How long did the seven youths sleep? They slept for many years. The sun rose and set while they were sleeping.
The Roman soldiers looked for the seven youth everwhere,but all their attempts came to nothing.
The people of the country talked about the seven youths, saying: "The seven youths went hunting. They have disappeared and no one have found them yet."
Many years passed, but nobody knew what had happened in that cave.
The dog stretched its paws at the entrance of the cave and slept deeply.
The air in the cave was moderate, for the entrance of the cave was facing the South Pole, and the two openings in both side of the cave let the sunshine enter in the morning and afternoon.
The seven youths slept and did not know what had happened. Tens of years passed while they were sleeping.
If a shepherd had found the cave or a passer-by had gone to it during a rainfall, he would have escaped from that fearful sight. Why? Because he would have seen some persons with open eyes and a motionless hunting dog at the entrance of the cave.
The seven youths slept deeply, but they had no dream.
What had happened around the cave? What had happened at the towns and villages of the country?

The Death of Trojan
Emperor Trojan died. Many emperors succeeded him, and then they died. Diqyanius, who ruled from the Year 285 to the year 305 A.D., died too.
Tadmor lost her glory in the year 110 A.D., and then she regained it. However, in 272 A.D., she lost her glory completely when the Romans attacked her and took her Queen, Zenobia, prisoner.

The Righteous Emperor
The Emperor Thiodusius ascended the throne of Rome in 408 A.D., and then he embraced the Christian religion, so the Roman Empire became Christian.
In the year 412, Allah wanted the truth to apperar and to show His power to all mankind, as mercy from Him.
Now, the seven youths slept for three centuries.
What had happened in the cave?
Kotmirun, the dog, barked, so the youths woke from the longest sleep in history.
One of the seven youths thought that he slept some hours, so he asked his fellows: "How long did you sleep?"
The seven youths were still sleepy. The sun was about to set, but it was still sending its golden rays into the cave through the opening in it.
Thus, the seven youths thought that they slept for one full day. They imagined that then spent all the night sleeping, and that they did not feel the setting and rising of the sun. The sun was now setting, so they said: "We slept for a day and part of a day."
One of them said: "Your Lord knows best how long you had slept."
Only Allah knows how long their sleep lasted. Only He knows the unseen. When man sleeps, he does not know what happens in the world around him.
Suppose that a person slept in the beginning of Autumn and woke to see snow and leafless trees. He would understand that he slept for more than three months. Why did this person understand that? He understood that because he spent Autumn sleeping and now was in winter.
The seven youths woke and saw the sun setting. They did not know whether they slept some hours or more. That is because they did not know whether the sun set, and then it rose on the following day. They did not know whether the sun set again or not.
They firmly believed in Allah, so they said: "Only Allah knows how long we had slept." They only thought that they slept for a day and part of a day.

The Dangerous Task
In the following morning, the seven youths became hungry, and they wanted to buy some food. So one of them brought out some gold coins and said: "Let one of us take these gold coins and buy for us some delicious food, but he must be very careful of the people. He must not let them know him. If they knew out hiding-place, they would capture and kill us."
Another youth said: "Indeed, they will stone those who refuse to worship their gods."
Another youth said: "Perhaps, they'll force us to prostrate ourselves to their gods."
Another youth said: "Therefore, what a miserable fate this is!'

In the Market
One of the seven youths volunteered to go to the town to buy some food from the market.
He left the cave and descended from the mountain. He thought about how to enter the town and to answer the Roman guards and soldiers when they asked him.
He did not see the changes rain, floods, and the wind made for three centuries.
He was anxious, for he did not go for hunting or a walk when he escaped with his fellows to the cafe.
He was now coming back to buy some food, but he was still afraid.
He thought that affairs were as they had been before. He arrived at the town and looked at its walls and buildings. He walked with perplexity and astonishmanet; he thought that he arrived at another town.
No one hindered him when he entered the town. In the meantime he did not find the statues of gods, but he found himself strange in the town.
The people looked at his clothes with astonishment because they did not wear such clothes at that time.
He saw the people of the town wearing new clothes, but he did not see the Roman soldiers who persecuted and punished them because of their beliefs.
He saw the people of the town live, work, and plant peacefully. Meanwhile, he did not see the marks of anxiety on their faces.
The youth went on walking to the market. He asked a person about the market and the person directed him to it. He was astonished to hear the accent of the people because their accent was different from his. They talked with a new accent.
"A wonderful thing!" said the youth.
Then he asked himself: "Have I lost the way and arrived at another town.?"

The Great Truth
The youth paid attention to his behavior. He thought that he had to buy food and to return to the hiding-place in the mountain.
Thus, he behaved in a usual manner, as if he was one of the people of the town.
The people regarded the youth as a stranger who came from a distant village among the mountains.
The youth looked for a good man who could sell food to him, but he did not find him. However, he found many good people who sold food.
The youth chose some food and paid the gold coins for them. Now, what he had anticipated had happened.
When the seller received the gold coins, he looked at them with astonishment. Then he said to himself: "These coins date back to the time of Emperor Trojan. They were minted three centuries ago."
The seller looked at the youth with astonishment. He thought that the youth had found a treasure, so he said to him: "Have you found a treasure?"
"What do you mean?" asked the youth.
The seller replied: "I mean that these coins date back to tens of years."
"They are my coins, and I have come to buy food," explained the youth."
"Look! We deal with these coins!" said the seller.
The youth looked at the seller's coins. He had not seen them before, so he asked: "My Lord, what has happerned?"
The seller said: "If you give me a share of the treasure, I will not tell anyone."
"Which treasure?" asked the youth, "I have nothing except these coins."
"Therefore, I will tell the police!" said the seller.
The seller seized the youth by the hand and shouted loudly, so the people gathered about them.
The youth turned to the left and right and said: "Please, leave me! The soldiers of Trojan will kill me if they capture me! They will have no mercy on me!"
"Trojan!" exclaimed the seller.
The people looked at the youth with astonishment, and then they laughed. One person said: "Trojan died many years ago. Are you mad, youth?"
"Who is ruling the Emperor now?" asked the youth.
"Tiudius is ruling the Emperor. He is a good Emperor. He embraced the religion of 'Isa two or three days ago," replied the person.
The youth asked: "Do you mean that they do not kill the Christians?"
"What do you say?" asked the person, "The people have believed in the religion of Allah. The time of oppression and torture is over."
An old man rubbed his forhead and said: "My Lord! When I was a child, my grandmother told me that some pious youths feared for their religion, so they escaped, and no one found them."
The youth was about to faint. He was about to fall on the ground because of what he had heard. Then he asked himself: "Is it right that we slept throughout these long years? Is it possible for man to sleep three centuries?"
The youth did not remember anything. He thought that he slept a day and part of day.
He rubbed his eyes. He thought that he had a dream. Then he said: "No! No! It's the great turth!"
The ruler of the town heard of the moving news. He heard that there was a believing youth, so he ordered the youth to be summoned. The ruler understood that he would face a great truth, and that Allah, the Glorified, wanted to show mankind a sign of His power in raising them from the dead.
The ruler asked the youth to dierct them to the cave. Thus, the youth walked, and the believing ruler and his soldiers followed him.
The youths in the cave were anxious because their fellow was late.
One of them said: "Perhaps, he has been arrested!"
Another said: "Perhaps, he was late in entering the town! You know that the guards are merciless!"
At those exciting moments, one of them went out of the cave and climbed to the top of the mountain. From there he looked at the roads leading to the town.
He saw with his own eyes what he was afraid of. Then he shouted: "The Roman soldiers are coming towards us!"
Then he returned quickly to his fellows and said to them: "I have seen the soldiers coming towards us! They have captured our fellow and he is directing them to us."
One of the youths said: "I don't think so! Let's wait! Perhaps, the soldiers want to go to another place!"
The exciting moments passed quickly. Suddenly, their fellow entered the cave and told them about the great truth, saying: "You did not sleep a day or part of a day. You slept for three centuries.
Allah has made you a sign that He is able to raise mankind from the dead, and that He will return spirits to their bodies again."
At that time some people said: "When the spirit comes out of the body, it does not return to it; it goes to another body!"
As for the believers, they said: "Allah has power over all things. It is He Who creates man, makes him die, and raises him from the dead."
The youth had asked the ruler to go to the cave by himself, saying: "My fellows are afraid of oppression, and they do not know what has happened."
When the youths discovered this fact, they wept because of fear of Allah and longing for Him. Then they begged Allah to make them die because they belonged to a past time that dated back to three centuries.
Thus Allah, the Glorified, accepted their supplication and made them die, so their souls flew high and went to a world full of good and peace.
The ruler and his soldiers waited outside the cave. When the waiting became long, they decided to enter the cave. When they entered it, they saw a wonderful sight. They saw seven youths and their dog dead. They understood that the youths had just died because their bodies were still warm.
So the ruler and the believers prostrated themselves to Allah.
The people at that time discussed with one another on the spirit. Some of them said that the spirit would return to the body on the Judgment Day; some said that it would go to another body.
When they saw the Companions of the Cave with their own eyes, they believed in Allah's power.
The polytheists doubted this fact, so they said: "Erect an edifice over them - their Lord knows them best."
As for the believers, they said:"We will certainly raise a masjid over them." They added: "Let's get the blessing of this place where Allah has shown His power."
Thus, the believers won a victory over the polytheists, and then they raised a masjid over the seven youths, where they served Allah, the One and only.

Nine Years added to them
When a person visits the capital of Jordan today, he can see the Companions of the Cave. It is worth mentioning that the cave is eight km from Amman. It is between the village of al-Raqim and the Village of Abu 'Alanda.
The person will see seven stone coffins. Besides, he will see a small stone coffin. Perhaps, this small stone coffin is the gave of the dog ot the Companions of the Cave.
Thanks to the archeologist, Raffeq Wafa al-Dajjani, who published the results of his excavations in the year 1964 A.D. He has proved that the cave is the one the Koran has mentioned, and not the one in the city of Afsus, in Turkey, as the European historians claim.
The commentators asked: "How long did the Companions of the Cave sleep?"
In this connection, the Holy Koran says: "And they remained in their cave three hundred years and (some) add (another) nine."
The answer is: The period of their sleep is 300 calendar years, which equal 309 lunar years. Now, let's answer this problem:
The calendar year = 365 days
The lunar year =354 daysof
300×365=109500 days
309×354=109386 day
As the lunar year = 354 days, eight hours, and 48 minutes.
Therefore hours and 48 minutes =528
Day = 24 hours = 1440 minutes
528/1440 =11/30 of one day
300×11/30 = 110 days
As the second, the fifth, the seventh, and the tenth are leap years.
Therefore 309-300=9=10, because the ninth year is close to the tenth year.
Therefore 109386+110+4=109500 days, which equal the days of 300 calendar years.
Therefore 300 calendar years = 309 lunar years.

The Attack of the Ababil
In the year 535 A.D., Ibraha, the Abyssinian, the ruler of Yemen, became independent of the Abyssinian Empire.
Ibraha behaved as an emperor, he wanted to widen the area of his country by occupying the lands others.
In that period of time there was a severe conflict between the Empire of Persia and the Empire of Rome.
The Romans encouraged Ibraha to gain his independence, and they strengthened their links with him. As for the Persians, they supported the Christians who opposed Ibraha's rule, they also backed the Jews in Yemen.
The Jews supported the Abyssinians occupying Yemen. They provoked Dhu Nu'as to persecute the Christians of Najran, so the Abyssinians came and occupied Yemen.

Al-Qalees
Ibraha thought that he would be able to enter al-Hijaz to control the land route of trade, and then he would be able to communicate with the Empire of the Romans.
The Romans encouraged Ibraha to achieve this aim, for they would be able to strengthen their influence in the areas neighboring the Empire of the Persians.
So they sent preachers to spread Christianity in those areas. Ibraha, the Abyssinian, thought of building the biggest church in the region, for he wanted to prevent the Arabs from performing the hajj to the kaaba and to make them Christians.
When the biggest church was finished, Ibraha invited the Arabs to visit it, but the Arab trade caravans insisted on going to the Sacred Kaaba.
Ibraha, the Abyssinian, decided to destroy the Kaaba, so he formed a big army and prepared a well trained African elephants.
Ibraha headed his colossal army and left San'a.
Some Arab tribes tried to hinder the advance of the army, but Ibraha was able to defeat them, so he advanced towards Mecca to occupy it and to destroy the Kaaba.
The Abyssinian army occupied all the lands through which it passed. When the army was close to Mecca, it found the camels of "Abd al-Muttalib bin Hashim and took them.
The people of Mecca heard of the news of the military expedition, so they left the city and went to the tops of the mountains. There was no person in the city except "Abd al-Muttalib, the grandfather of our Holy Prophet Mohammed (S.A.W.).

Lord will protect His House
'Abd al-Muttalib, the Leader of Mecca, advised the people to leave the city to save them from the Abyssinian soldiers.
'Abd al-Muttalib was a notable figure. It was he who dug the Well of Zamzam in 540 A.D. So the people respected him and supported him leadership.
'Abd al-Muttalib went to the Kaaba and begged Allah, the Glorified, to protect his House, saying: "My Lord, the person defends his house, so defend Your House!" The person defends his house when he is attacked, so, my Lord, defend Your House against the aggression of the Abyssinians.
The troops of the Abyssinians arrived at the outskirts of Mecca and camped there to get ready to attack Mecca.
Ibraha asked someone: "Who is the leader of Mecca?" The person answered: "Its leader is an old man called 'Abd al-Muttalib, who belongs to Ibrahim's children."
Ibraha wanted to meet "Abd al-Muttalib, so he ordered a person from Himyar to go to him. The Himyari came to 'Abd al-Muttalib and said to him: [The king said]:"I have come not to wage war against you. I have come to demolish the Kaaba only. If you do not resist my soldiers, we will not attack the people of Mecca.
In this respect 'Abd al-Muttalib explained: "We also do not want to wage war against you, and we are unable to resist the army of Abyssinia."
Then 'Abd al-Muttalib referred to the Kaaba and said: "That is the Sacred House of Allah, and of His friend Ibrahim. Only Allah has the power to defend His House. We have no army."
The Himyari said: "If you do not intend to wage war against us, then come with me because the King wants to meet you." Thus, 'Abd al-Muttalib went out of Mecca to meet Ibraham the Abyssinian.
Ibraha was sitting on his royal throne in a tent furnished with costly carpets. When he saw 'Abd al-Muttalib, he rose and received him warmly. Then he sat him on his royal throne and said to him: "Our only aim is to demolish the Kaaba."
Ibraha turned to the translator and said to him: "Ask 'Abd al-Muttalib about his need."
'Abd al-Muttalib said: "The army has taken my two hundred camels, so I ask it to bring them back to me."
When Ibraha heard the translation, he looked at 'Abd al-Muttalib with astonishment and said: "When I saw you, I respected you. When you talked, I turned away from you. Why do you ask me to bring back your camels and leave the House you and your fathers adore?"
'Abd al-Muttalib looked at Ibraha and answered: "I defend my camels, and my Lord defends His House!"
Ibraha said with mockery: "I do not think so."
'Abd al-Muttalib said with firm faith" "We'll see!"
Ibraha was bothered when he heard these words of 'Abd al-Muttalib, so he rose to end the meeting.
As for 'Abd al-Muttalib, he rose and returned to the Kaaba. When he arrived at the Holy Gate of the Kaaba, he caught its ring, shook it strongly, wept, and said: "My Lord, the person defends his house against aggression, so defend Your House against the aggression!"

The Attack
In the early hours of that morning, the Abyssinian army put the white elephant in front of it and advanced towards the Kaaba to destroy it.
Ibraha stood at the hills and looked at his army that advanced towards the Kaaba, which the Arabs adored, to demolish it.
Ibraha had said to his fighters: "Let the elephant shake the walls of the Kaaba, and then demolish them with your hoes and spears."
The people of Mecca stood on the tops of the mountains and looked at what was happening in the valley.
They looked with sorrow at the House Ibrahim had built. 'Abd al-Muttalib was more sorrowful than them.
The merchants of Mecca were also sad, but they feared for their personal interests, for Mecca was an important trade center.
'Abd Allah, son of 'Abd al-Muttalib, had gone to Syria and left his wife in 'Abd al-Muttalib's house. She was with the people of Mecca and thought about her blessed baby.

The Elephant disobeyed
When the elephant was close to the Kaaba, it stopped and disobeyed its driver.
The diver lashed the elephant across the back with his whip, but all his attempts came to nothing, for the elephant tried to retreat.
Ibraha, the commander-in-chief, was astonished to see the elephant refuse to advance towards the Kaaba, so he shouted with anger.
The elephant driver did his best to force the elephant to advance towards the Kaaba, but the elephant did not advane towards it even a step.
A wonderful thing happened. The elephant kneeled down. Thus, the driver's task became very difficult. The elephant disobeyed the driver and he was unable to control it.
If Ibraha had had an atom of faith, he would have asked himself: "Why does the elephant refuse to advance towards the Kaaba in spite of the strong whips?"
However, Ibraha was self-conceited; he thought about nothing except his ambitions.

The Hellish Attack
Suddenly, somthing like black clouds appeared in the horizon. The thing was not clouds; it was flocks of birds called Ababil carrying burning stones in their beaks.
The birds hovered over the Abyssinian army and attacked it with the burning stones. The birds went away, and then other flocks of birds came and attacked the army, so the members of the army were in chaos and fell on the ground like flies.
'Abd al-Muttalib watched what had happened, so he was full of humbleness, and his eyes blazed with faith. He said to himself: "This is Allah's power!"
Ibraha lashed his horse across the back with his whip, but the birds followed him and attacked him with their burning stones.
Ibraha arrived in his capital San'a', but he fell off his horse at the gate of the capital. His eyes were wide with terror.

The Eaten Straw
'Abd al-Muttalib went to the Kaaba and considered carefully the area around it, which had turned into a battle field full of burned corpses.

The Birth of the Holy Prophet(S.A.W.)
'Abd al-Muttalib gave good news to the people of Mecca, saying: "Allah has destroyed the aggressors and saved the Kaaba from them." When he gave good news to them, a person came and gave him good news of the birth of a blessed baby-boy. The person said to him: "Amina has given birth to a baby-boy!"
'Abd al-Muttalib took his grandson into his arms and said: "I have named him Mohammed(S.A.W.)."
The people wondered and said: "Why have you given him this name?"
'Abd al-Muttalib answered: "I have given him this name because I want him to be praised in heaven and on earth."

The Year of the Elephant
The people of Mecca returned to their homes and were full of happiness. As for 'Abd al-Muttalib, he went to the Kaaba to clean from it the filth of the aggressors.
The news spread through the Arab tribes and they respected the Kaaba very often.
The people called that year 'the Year of the Elepahnt. Our Holy Prophet Mohammed (S.A.W.) was born in that year.
When our Holy Prophet Mohammed (S.A.W) became forty years old, Jabrael came down to him and gave him good news of the Message. The Sura of the Feel (Elephant) was among the early suras that reminded the people of Mecca of the Year of the Elephant:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Have you not considered how your Lord dealt with the companions of the elephant?
Did he not cause their war to end in confusion,
And send down (to prey) upon them birds in Flocks,
Casting against them stones of baked clay,
So He rendered them like straw eaten up?

The Hanafites
'Abd al-Muttalib believed in the religion of the Hanafites, which was the religion of his grandfather Ibrahim, Allah's friend.
When Allah, the Glorified, saved the Kaaba from the aggression of the Abyssinians, the people knew 'Abd al-Muttalib's high position with Him.
'Abd al-Muttalib did not pray to the idols for saving the Kaaba; he prayed to Allah, the Glorified, for saving it.
So Allah, the Glorified, accepted 'Abd al-Muttalib's prayers and destroyed the aggressors.

The Trade
Mecca became an important trade cenrer, so the trade caravans of Quraysh went to Syria in summer and the Yemen in winter.
The traders of Quraysh were safe from the assaults of the tribes, for all the Arabs circled the Kaaba.
When Allah, the Glorified, appointed Mohammed (S.A.W.) a prophet, He reminded the Quraysh of His favor in saving the Kaaba from the aggression and destruction. He also reminded them of His favor in making their trade caravans safe from the assaults of the tribes. In this connection, Allah, the Most High, Said:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
For the protection of Quraysh -
Their protection during their trading caravans in winter and summer -
So let them serve the Lord of this House,
Who feeds them against hunger and gives them security against fear."
Today, the Kaaba has become a symbol for the Oneness of Allah and the unity of Moslems all over the world.
When we perform our daily prayers, we must remember the Kaaba, the Sacred House of Allah, the House Ibrahim and Isma'il built.
We must know that the Kaaba is the symbol of our power and glory.
The Kaaba is the pearl of Islam.
The Kaaba is the core of the Islamic world and the qibla (direction) of all Moslems everywhere.