The Destroyer of Idols - The Story of Our Prophet Ibrahim
When spring came, water flew in the Tigris and the Euphrates. People were delighted, so they held celebrations in the city of Urr and other cities Of Babylon.
When spring came and level of water rose in rivers, the farmers were glad, for their crops would increase.
The people of the city of Urr went to Zaqqura, which was a pyramidal temple. They took with them gifts to offer them to the gods, especially the god Mardukh.
The people of Babylon held celebrations outside their cities. They chose pretty places to dance, to eat, and to drink. When the celebrations were over, they came back to their the city and went to the temple.
The temple was on the top of Zaqqura in the city of Urr. There was a row of numerous gods made of stone.
The people of Babylon worshipped the sun, the moon, the stars, Venus, and the King.
At that time, over four thousand years ago, Namrud b. Kan'an was the king. He imprisoned and killed people. He took whatever he wanted of their crops. So some people worshipped him because they were afraid of his power.
In spring people went to the temple carrying gifts such as goats and wheat. They offered them to their gods so that they might be pleased with them and to bless them.
Some people were fortune?tellers and astrologers, so the King himself asked them for advice, and people gave them gifts, for they were afraid of them.
The Birth Of Prophet Ibrahim
One day the fortune?tellers of the temple came to Namrud and said to him: "The stars have told us that a baby boy will be born. He will end your kingdom."
Namrud asked with anxiety: "When will he be born?"
The fortune?tellers replied: "He will be born in this year."
In that year Namrud ordered all the male babies to be killed.
Our Prophet Ibrahim, Allah's friend, was born in that year.
His mother feared for his safety, so she took him and went to a cave. She put him in the cave and went home.
No one knew what had happened. Namrud killed many male babies in that year. The mothers wept over their babies. Some babies were only a few months old; some were only a few days old; some were only a few hours old.
Namrud was afraid of the foretold baby. The year passed, so Namrud became calm, for he had killed all the male babies.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was born in the city of Kawthariya, near Urr and Babylon. He grew up in the cave.
Allah, our Lord took care of him. He taught him how to suckle his fingers in order to survive.
Namrud wanted to kill Ibrahim, but Allah wanted him to live. Allah wanted Ibrahim to guide the pagan people so that they would worship Him.
Ibrahim grew up in the cave. One day his mother came to the cave. She embraced, kissed, and took him home. The soldiers of Namrud thought that Ibrahim was two or three years old. They did not realize that he was only a few weeks old, so did not take him away.
Idols
At that time, people worshipped idols. They worshipped Mardukh? the God of Gods?, Ay?the God of Justice and Law?, Seen?the God of Heaven?, Ishtar, and many others. Many people worshipped Venus, the moon, and the sun. At that time, no one worshipped Allah, the Glorified. Our Prophet Ibrahim was born and grew up at that time.
Azar
Azar was an astrologer. He made idols that represented different gods. Namrud himself consulted him.
Our Prophet Ibrahim lived in Azar's house, for Azar was his uncle. For this reason, our Prophet Ibrahim called Azar: "My father."
When Ibrahim grew up into a young man, Allah, the Glorified, blessed him with great intelligence. As he had a clean and pure heart, he did not believe in idols nor did he prostrate himself to them. He was amazed to find the people worshipping the very idols that they had made with their own hands! He knew that Allah was greater than those idols.
When it got dark, Ibrahim went to the city to look for the truth.
There was light only in the temple. The people who worshipped Venus looked at the sky humbly. They thought that Venus was their god, and that it supplied them with their livelihood and gave them blessings.
Ibrahim stood up with them looking at the sky. He was looking for the truth. He was searching for the true Creator of the world. In the meantime, the moon shone. It appeared in the sky sending its silvery light.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was a wise young man. He wanted the people to correct their corrupt beliefs. He wanted to say to them that Allah was greater than their idols. Therefore, he said to them: "The moon is my lord!
The people who worshipped Venus turned to him and asked him: "Why have you chosen the moon as your lord?"
Ibrahim answered: "Venus has set, so it is not a true god; the true god should not set!"
Time passed, and the moon passed through the sky until it disappeared.
After an hour, the sun shone, so Ibrahim said: "That is my lord! That is greater!"
Some people believed in Ibrahim's words when they said to each other: "Perhaps, he is right because the sun gives us light and warmth only."
When the sunset and it got dark, Ibrahim looked at the sky and said: "I am going to refrain from worshipping the sun, for it sets and the true god should not set! Now, I am going to worship Allah, Who has created Venus, the moon, the sun, the earth, and all of us."
The Believing Young Man
Ibrahim said: "I am not afraid of the idol gods nor am I afraid of Namrud." These words of his spread through the city, so all the people knew that he mocked their gods.
When Ibrahim was 16 years of age, all the people of Babylon knew that he did not worship their gods, and that he mocked them.
One day, Azar, Abraham's uncle, saw Ibrahim making an idol more beautiful than those he made. In the beginning, he was glad, for he thought that Ibrahim would take care of the idols in the temple, but, at last, he was sad when he saw him breaking the idol into pieces.
Azar was angry with Ibrahim, so he said to him: "Ibrahim, why have you broken the god into pieces? Are you not afraid of the anger of the gods?"
Ibrahim politely answered: "Father, why do you worship what neither hears nor sees nor avails you in the least? Father, do not worship Satan. Surely, Satan is disobedient to the Most Merciful (Allah)."
Azar said angrily: "Do you dislike my gods, Ibrahim? If you do not desist, I will certainly revile you. And leave me for a time."
Ibrahim greeted Azar before leaving his house, saying: "Peace be on you. I will pray to my Lord to forgive you. Surely, He is ever Affectionate to me."
Ibrahim prayed to his Lord to guide Azar into the light and faith.
He separated himself from people to worship Allah, the One and Only. People went to their temples all the time. They bowed to idols and gave them gifts, but Ibrahim did not bend to idols nor did he give them gifts.
Spring
All the people worshipped idols, the stars, the sun, and the moon. They also worshipped Namrud, the King. Thus, our Prophet Ibrahim thought of a way to guide them to worship Allah, the One and Only.
Spring came, so flowers opened, and the river was full of water.
People rejoiced at spring; they celebrated the arrival of spring, fertility, and growth.
At that time people went outside the city to hold their celebrations. They ate, danced, and played. Then they returned to the city to give gifts to their gods and fortune-tellers.
When people got ready to go outside the city, our Prophet Ibrahim did not go with them, so they asked him: "Ibrahim, why do you not go with us?"
"I'm ill," replied our Prophet Ibrahim.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was sad for his people, for they did not know the right path.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was different from his people, for his clothes were clean, and he cut his nails and hair.
All the people, including Namrud and the fortune-tellers, went outside the city to celebrate spring.
Our Prophet Ibrahim stayed in the city. He took an axe and went to the great temple. There were many idols in the temple. Some of them were small; some were big
There was a very big idol. People called the idol Mardukh, the God of Gods.
The temple was completely empty when our Prophet Ibrahim entered it. There was nothing inside it except idols and the bad smell of blood and meat.
Our Prophet Ibrahim looked at idols, and then he asked himself: "Why do my people worship idols that do not help them?"
The idols were motionless at their places. They did not move or speak or do anything.
Our Prophet Ibrahim asked the idols angrily: "Why don't you eat?"
There was no answer except his words that echoed in the empty temple.
Our Prophet Ibrahim wanted to destroy the idols to show the people that their idols were mere stones.
So he drew his axe and began destroying the faces of the idol gods, and then he broke the idols into pieces.
When he reached the biggest of the gods, he did not destroy it. He only hung his axe on its shoulder and left the temple.
He looked at the sky and saw white pigeons flying peacefully in the sky.
When the spring celebrations had ended, the people of Babylon came back to the city.
The dark night had covered the city, so it was time for the people to give their gods gifts.
They went to the Great Temple in a long procession carrying torches, and gifts.
The fortune-tellers led the procession.
The fortune-tellers and the people were astonished to see their gods destroyed.
The gods had been broken into pieces. All the gods had become ruins except the biggest one.
The biggest of the gods had been motionless in its place for many years. However, it now carried an axe on one of its shoulders.
No one walked towards the biggest of the gods to ask it what had happened.
The biggest of the gods was also silent as usual, for it was a mere stone.
Noise broke out when the fortune-tellers asked each other: "Who has destroyed our sacred gods?"
One of them answered: "I always hear a young man called Ibrahim mock the gods. He says that they are useless. So I think that he has broken them." Accordingly, the fortune-tellers were very angry with Ibrahim.
The Trial
Namrud came to the temple because something dangerous had happened. He feared for his throne, so he ordered Ibrahim to be arrested. He ordered him to be tried in the temple.
The judge sat beside Namrud in the temple, which was full of people.
The soldiers brought the young man, Ibrahim. They made him stop before Namrud and the judge.
The trial started with the judge's questions.
The judge asked Ibrahim: "We know that you mock our gods. We also know that you don't celebrate the arrival of spring as the people of Babylon do.
"Now, tell us who has broken our gods. Have you broken them, Ibrahim?"
Ibrahim replied calmly: "No, the biggest one has broken them. Ask it if it can speak."
All the people looked at the biggest of the gods, which was carrying an axe on one of its shoulders. They knew that it did not speak
The judge asked Ibrahim: "You know that the gods cannot speak, and that they cannot answer."
Thus, Ibrahim asked: "So why do you worship what you have made with your own hands?
"Why do you worship idols that do not harm nor avail anyone nor speak nor receive your gifts?"
All the people bowed their heads. The judge also bowed his head. They asked each other: " Ibrahim's right. Gods shouldn't be made of stone. Why do we worship idols that have neither soul nor life?"
The fortune?tellers were angry with Ibrahim. They did not want people to follow the right path, for their power would come to an end.
Thus, they shouted: "Don't forgive Ibrahim, for he's destroyed the sacred gods! Don't forgive him, he's destroyed our gods that give us blessings and fertility!"
Namrud supported the fortune?tellers. He remembered their previous prophecy: "A person will be born, and he will destroy your kingdom."
Thus, he said with anger: " Ibrahim has committed a crime! Judge you must punish him!"
All the people stood up for Namrud and supported him.
Then Namrud said: "We must protect our sacred gods! We must punish Ibrahim by throwing him into the fire!"
Very few people felt sad for Ibrahim. Among them were Sarah, Ibrahim 's cousin, and Lot.
Sarah was a wise young lady. She believed Ibrahim's words. Lot was also a wise man. He believed in Allah, the One and Only, and the message of our Prophet Ibrahim.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was imprisoned until the people gathered a lot of wood and made a big fire to throw him into it.
At that time Namrud wanted to discuss with Ibrahim about Allah the One and Only.
Ibrahim came to Namrud's palace, He stopped before him. He neither bowed nor prostrated to him.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was afraid of no one except Allah. He worshipped nobody except Allah, the Glorified
Namrud asked Ibrahim "Ibrahim who is the God you worship?
Our Prophet Ibrahim replied: "I worship Allah Who gives life to the dead and brings death the living."
Again with haughtiness Namrud said: "I also enliven people and make them die!"
He clapped his hand and commanded his guards: "Bring me two prisoners? one who has been sentenced to imprisonment and the other has been sentenced to death "
The guards brought him two chained prisoners.
Namrud commanded the swordsman: "Cut off the head of this prisoner. Then release the one who has sentenced to death."
Namrud turned to Ibrahim and asked him: "Did you see what I did. I brought death to the prisoner who was only sentenced to imprisonment and gave life to the one sentenced to death."
Our Prophet Ibrahim refrained from discussing with Namrud on such a matter, for what Namrud had done was incorrect. For this reason he asked him: "I worship my Lord, for He makes the sun rise in the east. Can you make it rise in the west?"
Namrud was astonished at Abraham's question, for no one had asked him such question before.
However, Namrud kept silent. He was unable to answer.
The Four Birds
Once again Namrud discussed with Ibrahim on the matter of life and death.
He said to him: "I can give life to people and bring death to them. However, your Lord is unable to do that. You only claim that."
Again the guards brought Ibrahim out of prison. They made him stop before Namrud, who asked him: "Don't you say that your Lord give life to people and bring death to them die? Come on, show me that!"
Our Prophet Ibrahim looked at the sky and said: "My Lord's power is over all things!"
Then Ibrahim raised his hands towards the sky and said: "My Lord, show me how You give life to the dead."
Allah, our Lord, asked: "What! Do you not believe?"
Our Prophet Ibrahim replied: "Yes, but in order that my heart may be at ease."
Then Allah, the Most High, ordered Ibrahim to take four birds, slaughter them, and then to put parts of their bodies on four mountains.
No one was able to give life to the four dead birds except Allah, Who created all things and gives life to man, animals, and plants.
Our Prophet Ibrahim stood on one of the mountains and shouted at the top of his voice: "Slaughtered birds, come to me with the permission of Allah!"
Then a wonderful thing happened. The heads of the birds returned to their bodies. Then their wings and their souls came back.
The birds' hearts began beating. Their wings began flapping. Then the birds flew high in the sky. They quickly sat at the feet of our Prophet Ibrahim and he prostrated to Allah, the Almighty Creator. However, Namrud disbelieved in this sign and commanded his guards to take Ibrahim to prison.
The Great Fire
The people of Babylon had a lot of oil, tar, and sulfur. They therefore decided to make the greatest fire in their country in order to punish our Prophet Ibrahim, who destroyed their gods.
Thus, they gathered wood outside the city for over a month and poured tar and oil on it.
The day of carrying out the punishment of Ibrahim came, so the people of Babylon went to see his punishment.
Namrud's soldiers brought our Prophet Ibrahim, and then the fortune?tellers came and made a great fire. The wood burnt quickly because it had been soaked with oil and tar.
The flames of the fire were tens of meters high.
The people of Babylon retreated so that the fire would not burn them. As for our Prophet Ibrahim, he looked calmly at the fire, for he believed in Allah and was not afraid of anybody or anything except Him.
Ibrahim's hands were tied. The fortune?tellers thought that he would be afraid of the fire, and that he would apologize to them for destroying their gods. However, Ibrahim was waiting calmly for his fate.
Then a problem arose, for no one was able to approach that great and furious fire.
The fortune?tellers asked each other: "How can we throw Ibrahim into the fire?" So they held a meeting and thought about a way to solve the problem. One of them suggested a satanic idea: "We must put Ibrahim in a catapult."
The fortune?teller drew a picture of the catapult on the ground. The picture was Satanic, for the catapult would be able to throw Ibrahim in the fire from far away.
The workers started building the catapult. Once it was ready, the soldiers brought Ibrahim and put him in it, but he was still very calm.
The people were looking at the young man, Ibrahim. They were astonished at his patience and firmness.
At that critical moment an angel came to Ibrahim and asked him: "Do you need any help?" Namrud's soldiers brought our Prophet Ibrahim, and then the fortune?tellers came and made a great fire.
Ibrahim thought of nothing except Allah, the Glorified. He only asked Him for help.
He asked Allah, the Great and Almighty, to fulfill his need when he said to the angel: "I don't need anyone except Allah. I won't ask anybody to meet my need except Him."
Ibrahim was loyal to Allah and believed in Him. So Allah, the Most High, examined his faith and loyalty.
The soldiers drew back the ropes of the catapult. All of a sudden, Ibrahim was flying into the air and moving to the center of that great fire.
As Allah the Glorified, created fire and gave it the ability to bum, He was able to take that ability away from it.
Thus, He, the Glorified, ordered the fire: "O Fire! Be comfort and peace for Ibrahim."
The flames went on roaring but amazingly?they did not bum Ibrahim.
The fire did not harm Ibrahim. It only burnt the ropes with which the soldiers had tied him.
The area on which Ibrahim fell became a beautiful garden of flowers, but the fire surrounded the garden.
The flames of the fire went on burning in space, but they were comfort and peace for Ibrahim.
Allah, the Glorified, tested Ibrahim. He knew his loyalty. So He honored him, saved him from the fire, and supported him against his enemies.
Namrud waited for the fire to die out. He wanted to know the fate of Ibrahim in order to celebrate his victory over him.
The fire was very great, so it went on burning for days and nights. Then it gradually abated and died out.
Namrud went to the fire to see what had happened to Ibrahim. He wanted to know whether Ibrahim had turned into ashes or not
Namrud and the people of Babylon were astonished at seeing Ibrahim alive. They understood that the Lord of Ibrahim was Powerful, Great, and Almighty. So they left Ibrahim to lead a peaceful life.
The Migration
After some years, our Prophet Ibrahim married his believing cousin, Sarah.
Sarah was a rich young lady; she owned land and cattle, so she gave everything to her husband Ibrahim.
Our Prophet Ibrahim worked on his farms and grazed cattle. Allah blessed him, so his land bloomed, and his cattle increased.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was generous; he entertained his guests and loved the poor. In this manner, he lived among his people, so he was able to summon them to worship Allah and to refrain from worshipping idols.
The fortune?tellers hated our Prophet Ibrahim. Namrud feared for his kingdom. He therefore decided to banish him from Babylon and to confiscate his property, saying it belonged to Babylon.
Our Prophet Ibrahim said to Namrud: "If you want to take my property, then return the years I've spent in this country."
The complaint was submitted to the judge of Babylon. The judge decided that Ibrahim should give all his property to the King of Babylon. In turn the King should return to Ibrahim the years he spent in their land.
So Namrud permitted our Prophet Ibrahim to take his belongings and to emigrate.
On leaving Babylon, our Prophet Ibrahim said: "I'm going to my Lord, Who will guide me.
Ibrahim went to another land. There he summoned people to worship Allah and to refrain from worshipping idols.
Harr
Our Prophet Ibrahim, his wife Sarah, and Lot arrived in the kingdom of the Egyptians.
Our Prophet Ibrahim had to pay 10% of his property to the King of Egypt. After paying this, al-Ashir, permitted him to enter Egypt.
Al-Ashir saw the beauty of Sarah and wanted to take her to the King.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was angry at al-Ashir, so he said to him: "I'll give you all my belongings but I won't allow you to take Sarah."
Our Prophet Ibrahim said to Al-Ashir: "I'll fight against you in order to protect my wife!"
Al-Ashir informed the King of Egypt of this.
Therefore, the King of Egypt summoned Sarah and Ibrahim.
When the King of Egypt saw Sarah, he wanted to touch her.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was alone and very sad at this.
He turned his face away in order that he would not see someone touching his wife.
Our Prophet Ibrahim asked Allah to protect Sarah from the wicked King. Allah, the Glorified accepted his prayer. He supported His Prophet Ibrahim and paralyzed the King's hand.
The King of Egypt was unable to touch Sarah. He knew that the Lord of Ibrahim prevented him from doing that. Thus, he asked Ibrahim: "Has your Lord prevented me from doing this?"
Ibrahim replied: "Yes. Indeed my Lord is Merciful."
The King of Egypt explained: "Your Lord is Merciful. You are also merciful, so ask your lord to heal my hand, and I'll never do anything like that again.
Our Prophet Ibrahim asked Allah to heal the King's hand and He, the Glorified, healed his hand.
The King of Egypt looked at Ibrahim and his wife with respect, and then he gave Sarah a young lady to serve her. The young lady's name was Hajir.
Palestine
Ibrahim went to the land of Palestine. When he arrived at the coast of the Dead Sea, he left his cousin Lot at the land of Sadum to summon its people to believe in Allah and to do good. As for Ibrahim, he went to the city of al?Khalil in Palestine.
Our Prophet Ibrahim lived in that city for many years.
Isma'il
Allah, the Exalted, did not give Ibrahim a child. As Sarah, Ibrahim's wife, was a barren woman, she decided to give her slave girl to Ibrahim to marry and to bear him children.
Our Prophet Ibrahim was seventy years of age; nevertheless he married Hajir, and she bore him Isma'il.
Allah, the Most High, ordered our Prophet Ibrahim to take Hajir and Isma'il to the land of Hijaz (Saudi Arabia).
Our Prophet Ibrahim obeyed Allah's order. He took his wife Hajir and Isma'il and headed for the south.
He traveled barren, wide deserts. He always looked at the sky, but the angel told him that he had not reached the land of Hijaz yet.
After many long days and nights, our Prophet Ibrahim arrived in a barren land.
The land was a dry valley. It had neither trees nor water. It was full of sand and stones. Waste mountains surrounded the valley.
The angel came down to our Prophet Ibrahim and said to him: "You have arrived in the Sacred Land. You should leave Hajir and Isma'il here. Return to Palestine."
Our Prophet Ibrahim knew nothing except obedience to Allah. The sight of Hajir and Isma'il all alone in that wild place was moving.
Ibrahim saw off his wife. Then he kissed his baby Isma'il and went away.
Hajir asked her husband: "Why do you leave us in this wild place?"
Our Prophet Ibrahim answered with sadness "Surely, Allah has ordered me to do this."
Hajir believed in Allah and the message of her husband, so she said in confidence: "As Allah has ordered you to do this, He will not forget us!"
Our Prophet Ibrahim went away. He went back to Palestine. As for Hajir and her baby Isma'il they were alone in that wild valley'.
Is'haq
Our Prophet Ibrahim became an old man, and his wife Sarah became an old woman.
Our Prophet Ibrahim did not have food for himself. As he loved guests, he served them himself and offered them delicious food.
One day three guests came to Ibrahim and greeted him politely.
Our Prophet Ibrahim went quickly to his cattle and brought back a fat ram. He slaughtered the ram and made a good meal for his guests. Now, a wonderful thing happened. Our Prophet Ibrahim saw that his guests did not eat the food.
When the guests understood that our Prophet Ibrahim became worried, they said to him: "Ibrahim, don't worry. We are Allah's messengers to the land of Sadum. We are His angels. He has sent us to punish the people of Sadum."
Our Prophet Ibrahim felt tranquility. However, he thought about the fate of the people of Sadum. So be disputed with the angels, saying: "Lot is in the land of Sadum.
The angels explained: "We know the people of Sadum. Allah has ordered us to destroy this village and its people, except Lot and his daughters."
Our Prophet Ibrahim wanted to guide his people to the right path, so he asked the angels to delay their punishment, but they insisted on carrying out Allah's order, for they were His messengers.
The people of Sadum were unbelievers and behaved badly. They attacked travelers and they hurt their Prophet, Lot (A.S.).
Therefore, the angels said to Ibrahim: "Ibrahim, turn away from this. The order of your Lord has come.
Our Prophet Ibrahim asked himself. "Why have the angels come here?"
The angels gave good news to our Prophet Ibrahim. They said to him: "Your old wife, Sarah, will bear you a son."
Sarah heard the good news of the angels, so she wondered at that and said: "Shall I bear a son when I am such an old woman and when my husband is such an old man? Most surely this is a wonderful thing."
The angel said: "Do you wonder at Allah's order? The mercy of Allah and His blessings are on you, O people of the house. Surely He is Praised, Glorious."
Sarah and our Prophet Ibrahim rejoiced at the good news of the angels. However, our Prophet Ibrahim was sad for the people of Lot. He wanted to turn away Allah's wrath from them, but the angels told him that Allah's wrath would befall them, for they were bad and stubborn people. Moreover, they hurt their Prophet Lot.
The angels left the house of our Prophet Ibrahim and went away to carry out their task in the land of Sadum.
Building The House
Our Prophet Ibrahim went to the land of Hijaz to visit his son Isma'il.
Isma'il was a young man now, and he lived with the Arab tribe of Juhrum in the land of Hijaz. There our Prophet Ibrahim and Isma'il built the Sacred House of Allah to be the mark of Allah's Oneness in the world.
Thus, the Kaaba was the first house to be built for people according to Allah's order. In it there are clear signs such as the standing place of Ibrahim. Whoever enters it is safe.
Our Prophet Ibrahim and Isma'il finished building the House, and then they said: "Our Lord, accept (this) from us. Surely, You are the Most Hearing, the Most Knowledgeable."
Allah, the Most High, chose a barren land for building His House.
When the House had been built, Allah, the Glorified, sent the Black Stone from the heavenly garden to the Kaaba, which has been the symbol of Allah's oneness since then.
The Final Test
Our Prophet Ibrahim and his son Isma'il performed the hajj. When our Prophet Ibrahim was running between the al?Safa and al?Marwa Mountains, he remembered the sufferings of his wife Hajir, who was running between the two mountains looking for water for her baby Isma'il He also remembered how water miraculously gushed out from the ground for his son.
When he remembered all those sufferings, be felt sad. Besides, he remembered the dream he saw a few days ago. He saw himself slaying his son and offering him as sacrifice to Allah, the Glorified.
As the dreams of Prophets were true, Ibrahim decided to sacrifice his son Isma'il to be a clear proof for his strong faith in Allah.
However, was Isma'il ready to sacrifice himself for Allah? This made our Prophet Ibrahim sad. When Isma'il saw his father sad, he asked him: "Father, why are you sad?"
Ibrahim turned to his obedient, pious, and good son, and said to him: "I'm sad because I saw in a dream that I behead you. You know the meaning of that. "
"Do you want to slay me?" asked Isma'il
"Yes," replied Ibrahim.
Ibrahim had no time to think, for Allah had ordered him to sacrifice his son Isma'il.
Allah, the Glorified, wanted to test Ibrahim again. He wanted to know the extent of Ibrahim's loyalty and submission to Him.
The believing young man Isma'il said: "Father, do it. As long as Allah wants it, I'll bear the pain of being slain."
Our Prophet Ibrahim loved his son Isma'il very much. However, he loved Allah even more.
He loved his obedient, believing son Isma'il. However, believed Allah even more.
Our Prophet Ibrahim kissed his son Isma'il. He had prepared a knife. Isma'il submitted to Allah's orders. He was so brave that he was ready to sacrifice himself for Allah. Only one thing worried Isma'il. He thought that the pain of being slain would make him struggle and resist. He thought that such struggle and resistance would hurt his father, who was an old man with a kind heart.
Thus, Isma'il said to his father: "Father, tie my hands and legs strongly! Slay me quickly!"
Our Prophet Ibrahim wept for his son. He kissed him as if to say the final farewell to him.
Isma'il was ready to be killed at that moment. Our Prophet Ibrahim held the knife. Isma'il raked his head towards the sky, so his white neck appeared in the rays of the sun. At that critical moment, a wonderful thing happened
Ibrahim heard a heavenly call saying: "Ibrahim, your dream was true. Allah orders you to slay a ram instead of Isma'il."
Our Prophet Ibrahim saw the ram descending from the mountain.
He sacrificed the ram. Then he and his son Isma'il completed the hajj.
It was our Prophet Ibrahim who taught us to do all these things. He also taught us to believe in the Oneness of Allah.
Now, Jews, Christians, and Muslims believe in Allah. This is one of the favors of our Prophet Ibrahim. Allah, the Glorified, chose our Prophet Ibrahim as a Prophet, messenger, and an Imam. Our Prophet Moses (AS) was from the progeny of Is'haq, son of Ibrahim (AS). Our Prophet Isa (Jesus Christ), son of Mary (AS) was from the progeny of Is'haq (AS). Our Prophet Mohammed (p.b.u.h) was from the progeny of Isma'il, son of Ibrahim. The Imams, from the members of the House (ahl al?Bayt), also belonged to the progeny of Isma'il, (AS).
For this reason we sometimes say: "O Allah bless Mohammed and the family of Mohammed as YOU blessed Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim. Surely Your Praised, Glorious.
The Friend Of Allah
Allah, the Glorified, had known that Ibrahim was loyal, obedient, and submissive to His orders. He had also known that Ibrahim was not afraid of anybody except Him. So he chose him as a friend.
Since then Ibrahim has been known as the Friend of the Merciful Allah.
Our Prophet Ibrahim lived for many years. Perhaps he lived for more than 120 years. Then he became a very old man.
So he was unable to go to Hijaz again to visit Allah's House and to meet his son Isma'il
For this reason Isma'il went to Palestine to visit his father Ibrahim, the Friend of the Merciful (Allah).
During that period of time, our Prophet Ibrahim became sick. Having spent his long life struggling for Allah and summoning people to believe in Him, Ibrahim closed his eyes and to took a rest. He passed away. He departed to Allah, his Friend and Creator.
Our Prophet Ibrahim ordered his two sons, Isma'il and Is'haq, to summon people to believe in Allah, the One and Only. Then he joined the Most High Friend.
We ask Allah, the Glorified, to help Muslims free the land of Palestine, and the Mosque of Jerusalem. Then we will be able to visit the Holy Shrine of our father Ibrahim in the city of al-Khalil.
O Allah, bless Mohammed and the family of Mohammed as you blessed Ibrahim and the family of Ibrahim. Surely Your Praised, Glorious!
source : sibtayn
