Long post - @MODS this post is religious but the message is one that should resonate with the suffering of the people of Palestine so I think it is pertinent to post it here. I would be obliged if you would allow me this indulgence.
Looking at this image I am reminded of a story of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) may his guiding light grant us the taufeeq to follow the righteous path.
The Hadith and Dua of Taif
"Oh Allah I am complaining about my current state of helplessness". "About the fact that my resources are now completely exhausted and that I am perceived as worthless before the people.
"You are the most merciful of those who show mercy, you are the lord of the weak and helpless and you are my lord"
Into whose hands would you leave me? Into the hands of the unsympathetic distant relative who frowns at me?
Or to the enemy who has been given control of my affairs?
Oh Allah!
If you are not angry with me...Then there is nothing for me to worry about
I seek protection in the light of your face, which illuminates the heavens and casts away the darkness and controls all affairs in this world and hereafter.
May it never be that I should warrant your anger, or that you should become upset with me. And there is NO POWER nor STRENGTH except YOURS!
It is important to examine this beautiful and powerful prayer of our beloved Prophet and the situation in his life which would inspired such words.
It was in the 10th year of his Prophet-hood / 619 C.E. commonly referred to as the year of grief/mourning.
The prophet had lost his beloved uncle...Abu Talib as well as the love of his life... Khadijah(ra), and he lost them one right after the other.
Abu Talib had raised Mohammed(SAW) the orphan as if he were his very own son. And Khadijah is the woman about whom the prophet had once remarked "she believed in me when no one else did, she embraced Islam when others rejected me, and she helped me and comforted me - in her person and with her wealth.".
When there was no one else to lend me a helping hand and I had children from her only.
(So it is very easy to see that after losing his biggest supporters and the closest loved ones our beloved prophet (SAW) was dealing with an almost unbearable sadness.)
And to add insult to injury, he was also now expelled from Mecca. His home and the other love of his life.
The prophet's love for Mecca was not the standard affection for one's hometown. But it was deeper for separating him from Mecca was like separating twins.
Yet he moved on - struggling, to the city of Taif. Hoping to find that his message would be received there, but he found nothing.
Nothing except the same ill-treatment if not worse than from his own people. And at that point he began to wonder...
He was at that very difficult place in life - where everything that could possibly go wrong, had gone wrong.
And you can't help but wonder sometimes "is this my fault?" "am I responsible for my condition in any way?"
So Mohammed (SAW) began to wonder about his condition, and he was concerned about his relationship with Allah. Could it be that Allah was angry with him? For he would never wish to displease his lord, and so he prayed this dua;
This is the Prophet Mohammed (SAW) the jewel of humanity who's every action was deemed acceptable by Allah.
And he (Mohammed-(SAW) wanted to know if Allah was displeased with him...
SubanAllah, imagine what he must have been going through to come to such a place as to wonder if perhaps he had inadvertently done something to cause Allah to become upset with him.
So he turns to Allah, utterly heart broken - he came into the town and he tried to give them the message - and they were pelting him with stones.
He had reached such a low point, that while he was making this dua, they (people of Taif) were throwing rocks in his face.
So he had one hand stretched forth to Allah and the other was covering his face to protect himself from the brutalization.
And even so, what is his response?
He didn't ask "why did you take Khadijah?" and "why did you take Abu Talib?" and "why didn't you guide him to be a Muslim before his death?" and "why are there strangers beating me with stones".
No! He didn't say any of these things...
He said; oh Allah! if you are not angry with me, then there is nothing else in the entire world that concerns me, if me and you are okay, then everything is okay, and if you're happy with me, then I am happy!
Look at this shining example between the servant and his lord. And because of his devotion for the pleasure of Allah - please give me a moment to provide you with Allah's response as noted in
Sahih al-Bukhari 3231, Shahi Muslim 1795.
So what is so powerful about this dua is that the Prophet Mohammed (SAW) leaves his affairs in Allah's hands, for Allah is the provider and if provision is to come it will come from Allah. He states his complaint to Allah and Allah answers:
Allah (SWT) wants to let the prophet know something... Allah was to reassure the prophet about whether or not he is angry with him.
Allah (The Lord of the Worlds) the one who chose Mohammed (SAW) - is not going to leave his rasool with nothing.
Allah (SWT) answered this dua in stages. The first step in the answer from Allah - the angel of the mountains appeared before the prophet.
The Angel came before the Prophet "ya rasool-Allah (SAW) if you say so, the people in this valley of Taif - I will raise the mountain and land it on them. I will crush them in the mountain, I will bury them under the mountain, I will smash them with this mountain."
Allah's first response to the Prophet's dua was "if they break your heart - I will cut them off.".
Allah is well aware of all affairs and knows how much the Rasool misses Khadijah(ra) and Allah knew how much he missed Abu-Talib.
And even more than that, even more than just missing Abu Talib - Allah understood the heart of Mohammed for he created him, and in the prophet's heart the biggest hurt about Abu-Talib was not that Abu Talib was a big supporter and now he's gone, is not that Abu-Talib raised him like his own son and now he's missing his father figure.
The biggest part of the broken heart of the prophet concerning Abu-Talib is that Abu-Talib died rejecting Islam - Abu-Talib died without having said the Kalma.
And Allah (SWT) in his infinite wisdom understood that. If Allah (SWT) wanted to answer the prophet's dua the mere presence of the arc angle would have been sufficient, but Allah knows the prophets heart and wants to give him a present.
So whilst the Prophet is reciting the Quran in the valley, it is said that some of Al-Jinn appear before him and what did they do? They embraced Islam.
Not only that, these were the leaders of a nation of Jinn and so they went back to their home and said to their kin "understand us - we have just heard some reading - a recitation that we have not heard since moses (PBUH)."
"We have just heard a book so beautiful, we haven't' heard anything like this since the time of the prophet Moses(PBUH).".
And these jinn invited their kin to come embrace Islam.
Allah wants to answer the Prophets dua on many levels, his most immediate need was that he was being pelted with stones by the people of Taif - and the angel came and said I will destroy these people - if you say so, just on your command Mohammed (SAW)- I will destroy them.
But after that we have to realize that part of the heartache of the prophet is that he has been chose as the messenger of Allah and no one will accept his message.
Most of his own people including Abu Talib rejected him and the people who were embracing Islam were the lowly - the women, the slaves, not the most prominent and powerful people from among his own people.
And then from his neighboring people in Taif - nobody would accept. But Allah wants to say "Ya Mohammed (SAW) you are indeed my messenger - and if the people of Mecca will not embrace Islam, if no one among them will embrace Islam and if the people from Taif will not embrace Islam, if not one of them will embrace Islam and if the people around the whole entire globe - will not embrace Islam, if not one human being will embrace Islam - I will send you another creature who will hear your message, because you are my messenger.
I have chosen you to give this message, and if the people reject, you and the men reject you, if the women reject you, I will get the spirits that will not reject you and if they reject you, I will create another who will accept you.
Because this is my message and it will prevail and I have chosen you to deliver it.
Subhanallah. The Jinn accepted the message of Mohammed (SAW). This was the second stage of Allah's answer to the prophet's dua.
One thing you have to understand - the reason why Khadijah(ra) died during this time was because they were being banned and exiled and at this time this was a very difficult time for Fatima, her physical body never recovered for the rest of her life.
She was about nine years old or so at that time - and because they had starved and they were eating leaves and sometimes nothing - this is a very young age and so her physical appearance and body was never able to recover fully from that.
It was a matter of some years that there were wandering exiled from Mecca. But even now Allah (SWT) was answering every part of the longing of Mohammed (SAW).
Mohammed (SAW) sent a message into Mecca - and so a man by the name of Mut'im ibn Adi - he's not a muslim - he was not even sympathetic to the Muslim - he was not compassionate - he was not a sympathizer - he was not anything like that.
But the way of the Arabs was hospitality. And so he made an invitation to Mohammed (SAW) - to come back under his protection and he (Mut'im ibn Adi) had 10 sons.
And this man, again who was not a Muslim - not even a Muslim sympathizer - invited Mohammed (SAW) back into Mecca - to live in peace under his own protection.
And Mut'im made a comment in the market of Mecca - "Anyone, any man who wishes for his to miss her son and long for him - let him lay a hand on Mohammed (SAW).".
In this stage of the response to the prophet's dua - Allah's response was that Abu-Talib is gone and he was your biggest protector, and Khadijah(ra) is gone, she is with me. When the prophet was all alone -
Allah's response was clear not just for the prophet but for all Muslims that he is the provider, if in your eyes you had no help - Allah' can help Mohammed (SAW) from within his own enemies.
Remember that Mut'im was not a Muslim and not sympathetic to Islam, but Allah brought Mohammed (SAW) back into his home town, back into his very own house, under the protection of someone who was not even a friend so to speak.
Allahu Akbar.
The lesson in this is Allah (SWT) is going to help those who believe in ways they cannot foresee.
The people of Gaza and Occupied Palestine will have the highest place in the afterlife, of this there can be no doubt. Even with no running water, mosques blown to smithereens, to place to perform ablutions, not enough food for one square meal a day these people hold strong to their faith.
If you want to see what true faith looks like look no further than the people of Palestine.
