Story :- A Thousand Camels

In the times of Umar (Radiallahu Anhu) there was a severe famine. All
the people of Madinah were suffering due to the shortage of food. A
caravan made up of a thousand camels loaded with a large stock of food
grains belonging to Uthman (Radiallahu Anhu) arrived from Shaam
(Syria). Several merchants offered to buy all of it. He asked them
what profit they would pay. "Five per cent," they said. He answered
that he could get higher profit than that.They began to argue with
him, saying that they did not know of any merchantwho would offer him
more than their quote. He said to them, "I know of one who repays a
profit ofmore than seven hundred to a dirham (Arabian currency)." He
then recitedthe verse of the Noble Quran in which Allah Ta'ala
mentioned this profit. "The likeness of those who spend their wealth
in the Way of Allah, is as the likeness of a grain (of corn); it grows
seven ears, and each ear has a hundred grains. Allah gives manifold
increase to whom He pleases. And Allah is All-Sufficient for His
creatures' needs, All-Knower." (2:261).
"O traders! Bear witness with me that I donate all this to the poor
people of Madinah!" said Uthman (Radiallahu Anhu).
Source: Related by Shaikh Habibullah Mukhtaar in hisbook "Bringing Up
Children in Islaam" in the chapter of Generosity.
Dear readers, what ever we give for the sake of Allah is really ours
and whatever we keep with uswill one day be someone else's. Let us
follow the footsteps of our Prophet and the pious Sahabah, with whom
Allah was pleased with, by helping the needy ones in this blessed
month of Ramadan.

--
- - - - - - -

Secrets intended for believers alone are hidden in the Qur’an

When we read the Qur'an we see that the most fundamental matters that
Muslims have to know and understand are set out quite explicitly.
Allah describes His creation in the Qur'an. He describes satan,
reveals what is lawful and unlawful and tells us of the lives of the
prophets. It is revealed how the life of this world is a test and how
our true homes are inthe Hereafter. Paradise and Hell are described in
the Qur'an and people are warned against the torments in the latter.
In addition to all these basic issues, the Qur'an also contains
special signs that Allah has deliberately concealed in it for
believers. Through these signs, our Lord tells believers how they
shouldbehave toward deniers, the best way of preaching the word and
what they must do if the moral values of the Qur'an are torule the
world. These signsare only, of course, comprehensible to those
servants who can look at the Qur'an with the eyes of the heart and
good conscience, who can grasp the radiance and message of the Qur'an,
and with whom Allah is well pleased. This is just one of the hundreds
of miracles of the Qur'an.
Our Almighty Lord Makes Science Obligatory for Believers in the Qur'an
The presence in the Qur'anof scientific and mathematical miracles is
itself a miracle that confirms the sublime nature of the Qur'an, its
miraculous aspect and the fact that it is a divine scripture. But in
addition to that specific miracle, when we look at the verses of the
Qur'an we see that Allah makes science obligatory for believers. Allah
advises believers to reflect on the extraordinary creation they
witness and to learn the knowledge of the creation of the Earth and
sky. In Surah Al 'Imran our Lord says:
Those who remember Allah, standing, sitting and lying on their sides,
and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the Earth: "Our Lord,
You have not created this for nothing. Glory beto You! So safeguard us
from the punishment of the Fire." (Surah Al 'Imran, 191)
Scientific development and progress proves the sublime and
extraordinarynature of Allah's creation in the most perfect way. The
more that people of good conscience possessed of this knowledge deepen
in science, the more amazed they are by Allah's sublimeartistry. Just
a single cell, the glorious DNA within a single cell or a single
protein is enough to see the power and might of Allah. Almighty Allah
is powerful enough to createworlds within worlds, to create all things
from nothing, and gloriously shows His sublime omniscience by creating
atoms in tiny specks of space and making atoms, which themselves
consist of 99% empty space, the natural causes of matter itself.
Almighty Allah is powerful enough to bring the Earth and sky into
being through a single explosion, out of nothing, out of emptiness.
Almighty Allah reveals thissublime creation, the Big Bang miracle in
other words, in this verse:
As for heaven – We built it with great power and gave it its vast
expanse. (Surat adh-Dhariyat, 47)
Almighty Allah has made scienceessential for Muslims in order for them
to comprehend andsee His matchlessartistry and the glories in the
entities He creates. Those who deepen in science with the knowledge of
the Qur'an will also grow in faith since they will witness His
omniscience. Allah tells us in another verse:
But those of them who are firmly rooted in knowledge, and the
believers, believe in what has been sent down to you and what was sent
down before you: those who establishprayer and pay alms, and believe
in Allah and the Last Day – We will pay such people an immense wage.
(Surat an-Nisa', 162)
For that reason, Allah advises true Muslims to learn and research the
scientific facts and to become aware of what is all around them:
Have they not looked at the sky above them: how We structured it and
made it beautiful and how there are no fissures in it? And the
Earth: how We stretched it out and cast firmly embedded mountains onto
it and caused luxuriant plants of every kind to grow in it, an
instruction and a reminder for every penitent human being. (Surah Qaf,
6-8)
Have they not looked at the camel – how it was created? And at the sky
–how it was raised up? And at the mountains – how they were embedded?
And at the Earth – how it was smoothed out? So remind them! You are
only a reminder. (Surat al-Ghashiyya, 17-21)
Do they not see the things Allah has created, casting their shadows
tothe right and to the left, prostrating themselves before Allah in
complete humility? (Surat an-Nahl,48)

--
- - - - - - -

There is a great secret in the difficulttests undergone by the Prophets

Almighty Allah of course knows that all the prophets He created were
pure believers possessed of lofty moral values; it is He Who created
them with a true depth and pure faith. Yet despite being our Lord's
chosen, superior and honored servants, the prophets were still
subjected to difficult tests all through their lives. Difficulties are
agreat means whereby people could witness theirhonesty and adopt their
moral values as role models, for the prophets to improve their
closeness to and love of Allah, and for their goodness to increase
many times over in the Hereafter.
This climate of testing is described by means of the stories related
in the Qur'an. When he came to the sea, pursued by Pharaoh's army, the
Prophet Moses (as) saw no apparent way of escape. Those who failed to
properly appreciate the infinite might of Allah said,"We are trapped,"
but as revealed in verses the Prophet Moses (as) said "Never! My Lord
is with me and He will guide me." (Surat ash-Shuara', 62)
Throughout that difficult time when he was imprisoned in the belly of
the fish, the Prophet Jonah (as) constantly turned to Allah and, as
revealed in a verse, "...called out (to the Lord) in absolute
despair." (Surat al-Qalam, 47) The Prophet Jonah (as), who sincerely
turned to Allah during this difficult test, was rescued from the belly
of the fish through our Lord's mercy and compassion, and was then sent
to a community as their prophet. This difficult test of the Prophet
Jonah is describedas follows in the Qur'an:
Jonah too was one of the Messengers.
When he ran away to the fully laden ship
and cast lots and lost.
Then the fish devoured him and he was to blame.
Had it not been that he was a man who glorifiedAllah,
he would have remainedinside its belly until the Day they are raised again.
So We cast him up onto the beach and he was sick;
and We caused a gourd tree to grow over him.
We sent him to a hundred thousand or even more.
They believed and so Wegave them enjoyment for a time.
(Surat as-Saffat, 139-148)
When our holy Prophet (saas) was attacked by thepagans on two sides
together with his community there appeared to be no escape. This was
the day of a mostdifficult test. At the same time, it was a very
special test in which true believers with a genuine faith in Allah,
Who trusted in Allah's help with all their hearts, and who trusted in
and embraced Him, could remain strong and expect His help. As ordained
by Allah, those who were unable to properly appreciate Him and the
hypocrites lost hope of His mercy and began dreaming up false ideas of
their own. Our All-Mighty Lord described this difficult climate in
another verse:
When they came at you from above you and below you, when your eyes
rolled and your hearts rose to your throats, and you thoughtunworthy
thoughts about Allah, at that pointthe believers were tested and
severely shaken.
When hypocrites and people with sickness in their hearts said, 'What
Allah and His Messenger promised us was mere delusion.' and a group
ofthem said, 'People of Yathrib, Your position is untenable so
return!' some of them asked the Prophet to excuse them, saying, 'Our
houses are exposed,' when they were not exposed; it was merely that
they wanted to run away. (Surat al-Ahzab, 10-13)
In this difficult climate, ourProphet (saas) and the pure believers
with him hoped for Allah's help and support and placed their trust in
Him, saw that this had been promised by ourAlmighty Lord and gave
thanks. Almighty Allah reveals in a verse:
When the believers saw the Confederates they said: 'This is what Allah
and His Messenger promised us. Allah and His Messenger told us the
truth.' It only increased them in faith and in submission. (Surat
al-Ahzab, 22)
As our Lord reveals in a later verse; "Allah made itunnecessary for
the believers to fight. Allah is Most Strong, Almighty." (Surat
al-Ahzab, 25)

--
- - - - - - -

The way that unbelievers strive to struggle against Allah is a miracle created by him

If someone denies Allah, if he does not believe in Creation and is
reluctant to believe that this world will come to an end and that he
will be recreated with death and exist for all eternity, if he thinks
that all he has belongs to this world, then this person will have a
frightening and terrifying wait. He seeks to give the impression he is
unaware of this. He will maintain that his purpose is to enjoy the
things of this world. He will say he never thinks about tomorrow and
lives only for the moment. Yet subconsciously he is still worried
about "ceasing to exist." The life of this world, which he believes in
as an absolute entity, will increasingly abandon him. Death is
approaching.And after death, according to his own superstitious
belief, there is only non-existence. This really terrifies that
person.
The terror of someone who denies Allah is not limited to the fear of
ceasing to exist. Everything is equally terrifying for someone who
denies Creation, imagines that everything came into being
spontaneously and that the universe and he himself are both entirely
haphazard. Under his feet there is a thin crust over boiling magma,
while the Earth revolves at great speed in the vastness of space. If
everything were acoincidence, as he believes, then a meteor would
inevitably one day collide with the Earth, and the Earth would be
shattered in a moment with gigantic tremors. Anyof the billions of
delicate balances that make the Earth hospitable to life could
similarly be eliminated. Therefore, just about everything represents a
threat and source of anxiety for such a person. The heart he believes
beats by chance, the veins he believes carrynutrients to the body by
chance and the eyes he believes see by chance are all in danger at
every moment.
These are the people who,as stated in a verse, believe that the life
of this world is all they possess: "What is there but our life in the
dunya? We dieand we live and we will not be raised again." (Surat
al-Muminun, 37)
The aim behind such people's denial is to make the greatest use of the
life of this world, no matter how great their fear and terror.
Therefore, one would expect such a person to do all he can and use all
the means at his disposal to remain, in his own eyes at least, in this
world he imagines to be a random one, to striveto that end alone. But
thatis not what happens. The great majority of such people MOBILIZE
ALL THEIRMEANS TO OPPOSE MUSLIMS, and not to stay alive or to enjoy
earthly pleasures. This is an astonishing state of affairs.It is
amazing how they expend all the power, money and means they would
appear to acquire in the life of this world, in short, everything
given them by Allah, SOLELY in order to oppose Him and His religion
and to weakenand inflict suffering on Muslims, in their own eyesat
least.
Our Almighty Lord has revealed this in verses:
When We let people taste mercy after hardship has afflicted them,
immediately they plot against Our signs. Say: "Allah is swifter at
plotting." Your plotting is recorded by Our Messengers. (Surah Yunus,
21)
When unbelievers, who see and appreciate the might of Allah in times
of difficulty, attain well-being they imagine that the mercy bestowed
on them from His own Grace by Allah is actually theirs, and they then
stupidly direct all their energies to striving against Muslims in the
belief that their power and well-being belong to them. Allah creates
these people specially in order to test Muslims. Their Creation in
this way is one of the greatest proofs of the existence of Allah.
Almighty Allah Has Spoken of this Attitude of Unbelievers in Verses
Almighty Allah reveals in the Qur'an how some unbelievers unwilling to
live by the moral values ofthe Qur'an will use all theirpower to
strive against Him and Muslims. Some of these verses read:
When those who are unbelievers were plotting against you to imprison
you or kill you or expel you: they were plotting and Allah was
plotting, but Allah is the Best of Plotters. (Surat al-Anfal, 30)
Allah desires to turn towards you, but those who pursue their lower
appetites desire to makeyou deviate completely. (Surat an-Nisa', 27)
Those who prefer the lifeof this world to the Hereafter, and bar
accessto the way of Allah, wanting to make it crooked; they are
greatlymisguided. (Surah Ibrahim, 3)

--
- - - - - - -