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Islamic stories:

1. Did you thank Allah for yor eyesight?

2. Reward for helping others.

3. Army of Elephants

4. The man who made a promise to tell the truth.

1). Did You Thank Allah for Your Eyesight?

A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: “I am blind, please help.” There were only a few coins in the hat.

A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.

Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, “Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?”

The man said, “I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way.”

What he had written was: “Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it.”

Do you think the first sign and the second sign were saying the same thing?

Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first sign simply said the boy was blind. The second sign told people they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective?

“It is He, Who has created for you (the sense of) hearing (ears), sight (eyes), and hearts (understanding). Little thanks you give.” [surah Al-Mu’minun; 78]

2). Reward for Helping Others

Ibn Abbas narrated, Once I was in a state of itikaaf in the Prophet’s Mosque (Medina). A certain person came to me and sat down. I said to him, ‘O so and so, you look sad’. He said, ‘Yes of course, o fraternal brother of the Prophet. So-and-so has his due on me, and by the one who lies in eternal peace in the grave (i.e. Prophet Muhammad), I am not able to pay the debt’ I said, ‘Should I not talk to him about your debt?’ He said, ‘You can do so if you like’ There upon I put my shoes on and went out of the mosque. The person asked him, ‘Have you forgotten the state you were in (i.e. itikaaf)?’ I replied, ‘Not at all, but I have heard rom the one who lies in eternal peace in the grave [saying this his eyes became filled with tears], said:

“One who moves to fulfill any need of his brother, and makes effort for it, will find it better than itikaaf of ten years; and one who performs itikaaf for one day for the pleasure of Allah, he will create a distance of three ditches between him and the hell – and each ditch has a width which lies between East and West, or between the heaven and earth.”

Source: Al Targhib Vol II p 272.

By the blessings of Allah, we are approaching another Ramadan. For most of us, we feel a little taste of hunger during this month only. But there are billions for whom it is a matter of daily life. Let us get immense rewards by helping our needy brothers and sisters around the world during this month of generosity.

3). Army of Elephants

The following incident is mentioned in Surah Feel of the Holy Quran and it happened during the period of the birth-year of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Abraha Al-Ashram was the governor of Yemen on behalf of the king of Ethiopia. He (Abrahah) thought to build a house (like the Kabah at Makkah) in Sana (the capital of Yemen) and call the Arabs to perform the pilgrimage there in Sana instead of the Kabah in Makkah, with the intention of diverting the trade and benefits from Makkah to Yemen. He presented his idea to the king of Ethiopia who agreed to it. So the house (church) was built and he named it Al-Qullais; there was no church of its like at that time. Then a man from the Quraish tribe of Makkah came there and was infuriated by it, so he relieved his nature (stools and urine) in it, soiled its walls and went away. When Abrahah Al-Ashram saw that, he could not control his anger and raised an army to invade Makkah and demolish the Kabah. He had in that army thirteen elephants and amongst them was an elephant called Mahmud which was the biggest of them. So that army proceeded and none amongst the Arab tribes that faced them (fought against them) but was killed and defeated, till it approached near Makkah. Then there took place negotiations between Abrahah Al-Ashram and the chief of Makkah (Abdul Muttalib bin Hashim, the grandfather of the Prophet), and it was concluded that Abrahah would restore the camels of Abdul Muttalib which he had taken away, and then he (Abrahah) would decide himself as regards the Kabah. Abdul Muttalib ordered the men of Makkah to evacuate the city and go to the top of the mountains along with their wives and children in case some harm should come to them from the invading oppressors. Then that army moved towards Makkah till they reached valley Muhassir. While the army was marching towards Makkah, in the middle of the valley, suddenly it was overtaken by flocks of birds, flocks after flocks, air-raiding that army with small stones slightly bigger than a lentil seed. There never fell a stone on a soldier except it dissolved his flesh and burst it into pieces. So they perished with a total destruction. Abrahah Al-Ashram fled away while his flesh was bursting into pieces till he died on the way (back to Yemen). Such was the victory bestowed by Allah, (the All-Majestic, All-Powerful) to the people of Makkah and such was the protection provided by Him for His House (Kabah in Makkah).

Source: Extracted from Tafsir of Surah Feel (Surah 105) by Ibn Kathir as found in Translation of the Noble Quran by Muhammad Muhsin Khan.

4). The man who made a promise to tell the truth

Telling the truth is a very good habit. If you always speak the truth, you can save yourself from a lot of trouble! Here is a story of a man who did a lot of bad things, but his promise to tell the truth saved him.

Once a man came to the prophet Muhammad (S) and said, “Oh prophet of Allah, I have many bad habits. Which one of them should I give up first?” The prophet said, “Give up telling lies first and always speak the truth.” The man promised to do so and went home.

At night the man was about to go out to steal. Before setting out, he thought for a moment about the promise he made with the prophet. “If tomorrow the prophet asks me where have I been, what shall I say? Shall I say that I went out stealing? No, I cannot say that. But nor can I lie. If I tell the truth, everyone will start hating me and call me a thief. I would be punished for stealing.”

So the man decided not to steal that night, and gave up this bad habit.

Next day, he felt like drinking wine, when he was about to do so, he said to himself, “What shall I say to the prophet if he asks me what did I do during the day? I cannot tell a lie, and if I speak the truth people will hate me, because a Muslim is not allowed to drink wine.” And so he gave up the idea of drinking wine.

In this way, whenever the man thought of doing something bad, he remembered his promise to tell the truth at all times. One by one, he gave up all his bad habits and became a good Muslim and a very good person.

If you always speak the truth, you can be a good person, a good Muslim whom Allah likes and favors. If Allah – our Creator – is pleased with us, He will reward us with HEAVEN, which is a place of happiness and joy.