In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum
Dear Friends
I pray that you are well.
When Allah tells us stories of the Prophets in the Qur'an, it is neither a story to entertain us, nor they are meant to be bedtime stories that we read to our children and they fall asleep with it. It is meant to guide us in our journey to Him. If we want to take a straight path, then we should reflect on these stories and learn from them.
Allah granted the du'a of Prophet Sulayman (King Solomon), peace be upon him, for a kingdom that none after him would have. Besides wisdom, Allah had blessed Prophet Sulayman with many abilities. He could command the winds and understand and talk to birds and animals.
One day Prophet Sulayman gathered his army, which comprised of different battalions of men, jinns, birds, and animals. He marched them towards a country.
حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَتَوْا۟ عَلَىٰ وَادِ ٱلنَّمْلِ قَالَتْ نَمْلَةٌۭ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّمْلُ ٱدْخُلُوا۟ مَسَٰكِنَكُمْ لَا يَحْطِمَنَّكُمْ سُلَيْمَٰنُ وَجُنُودُهُۥ وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ[Qur'an,The Ant 27:18]
Till, when they came to the valley of the ants, one of the ants said: "O Ants! Enter your dwellings, lest Sulayman and his hosts should crush you, while they perceive not."
The ant, which saw the army approaching, did not run away to save her life but warn the other ants about them because she had concerned for her colony. Even if she escapes the danger, she is going to perish because she cannot survive alone.
Learn from the ant. We should have concern for the Ummah like this ant did for her colony. If we don't care about the Ummah, we are dead before we even die. Don't let minor things to cause relationships to drift apart. We should realize we need to stick together and take care of each other or we will perish. We cannot standalone.
We should find excuses (70 excuses) for our fellow Muslims, including family members, for their bad actions, not quick to accuse them. Learn from the ant. Even while facing this huge danger of being crushed by Prophet Sulayman and his army, this ant gave Prophet Sulayman and his army an excuse. She said, "they don't know," instead of accusing them of intentionally wanting to harm them. Prophet Sulayman heard this tiny creation's speech and he was amused by it.
Allah Almighty says,
فَتَبَسَّمَ ضَاحِكًۭا مِّن قَوْلِهَا وَقَالَ رَبِّ أَوْزِعْنِىٓ أَنْ أَشْكُرَ نِعْمَتَكَ ٱلَّتِىٓ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَىَّ وَعَلَىٰ وَٰلِدَىَّ وَأَنْ أَعْمَلَ صَٰلِحًۭا تَرْضَىٰهُ وَأَدْخِلْنِى بِرَحْمَتِكَ فِى عِبَادِكَ ٱلصَّٰلِحِينَ[Qur'an, The Ant 27:18]
So he (Prophet Sulayman) smiled, amused at her speech and said: "My Lord! Grant me the power and ability that I may be grateful for Your Favors which You have bestowed on me and on my parents, and that I may do righteous good deeds that will please You, and admit me by Your Mercy among Your righteous slaves."
He remembered Allah's bounties bestowed on him and offered his gratitude to Allah. Whenever Allah gives us something good or a blessing, our first reaction should not be jumping up and down but thank Allah, say "Alhamdulillah", and follow it up with a good deed.
We should always be cognizant about other creation around us especially the animals, so we don't accidentally cause them harm. If we could hear the animals talking, we would be more careful about destroying their habitat or spraying them with deadly chemicals. But even if we don't understand their speech, Allah tells us that there is no creature on the earth or bird that flies with its wings except that they are communities like us.
وَمَا مِن دَآبَّةٍ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَا طَـٰٓئِرٍ يَطِيرُ بِجَنَاحَيْهِ إِلَّآ أُمَمٌ أَمْثَالُكُم ۚ مَّا فَرَّطْنَا فِى ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ مِن شَىْءٍ ۚ ثُمَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّهِمْ يُحْشَرُونَ ﴿٣٨[Qur’an, An'Am 6:38]
And there is no creature on [or within] the earth or bird that flies with its wings except [that they are] communities like you. We have not neglected in the Register a thing. Then unto their Lord they will be gathered. (38)
As signs and worshippers of the Almighty, animals are worthy of great respect. Animals, unlike people, submit naturally to God: “Each [of them] has known his [means of] prayer and exalting [Him], and Allah is Knowing of what they do. ” [Qur'an, An-Nur 24:41] and they, together with nature, constitute signs through which humans might come to know the Creator.
وَمَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّـهُ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مِن مَّآءٍ فَأَحْيَا بِهِ ٱلْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا وَبَثَّ فِيهَا مِن كُلِّ دَآبَّةٍ وَتَصْرِيفِ ٱلرِّيَـٰحِ وَٱلسَّحَابِ ٱلْمُسَخَّرِ بَيْنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ لَـَٔايَـٰتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَعْقِلُونَ ﴿١٦٤ ...[Qur'an, Al-Baqarah 2:164]
...and what Allah has sent down from the heavens of rain, giving life thereby to the earth after its lifelessness and dispersing therein every [kind of] moving creature, and [His] directing of the winds and the clouds controlled between the heaven and the earth are signs for a people who use reason. (164)
Many Prophetic sayings encapsulate the respect for animals. Such compassion is at the core of many laws concerning treatment of animals. Their slaughter, for instance, must follow a strict set of requirements (halal) to ensure that the animal is killed with minimal pain.
May Allah make us of those who are grateful to Him and merciful to others and to animals. Ameen.
Please don't forget us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.
And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam
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