BELIEF IN ALLAH || How Allah guides the hoopoe, and the wonders of its creation
How Allah guides the hoopoe, and the wonders of its creation
Ibn al-Qayyim tells us, in his eloquent manner, of another of Allah's creatures which is mentioned in the Book of Allah, the hoopoe. Ibn al-Qayyim speaks of how Allah (SWT), guides and inspires it:
"The hoopoe is one of the most guided of animals, and the most able to see where water is located beneath the ground, which others cannot see. One of the ways in which it is guided is what Allah tells us in the Qur'an, where He tells us what the hoopoe said to the Prophet of Allah Sulaymaan (Solomon) (), who had threatened him when he could not find him. When the hoopoe came, he immediately gave his excuse, before Sulaymaan could threaten him with the punishment. He addressed him in a manner that encouraged him to listen and accept what he said. He said:
... فَقَالَ أَحَطتُ بِمَا لَمْ تُحِطْ بِهِ».... I have grasped [the knowledge of a thing] which you have not grasped..." (Qur'an 27: 22),
- which implied: I have brought you (news of) something which I know very well, and it is important and serious. Hence he said:
... وَجِبْتُكَ مِن سَمَام بِنَبَار يقي...And I have come to you from Saba' [Sheba] with true news. (Qur'an 27: 22).
This was important news, which was worth knowing. Then he described it as true news, with no element of doubt. This was his preamble to his telling the Prophet of Allah the news, so that he would forget everything else and focus only on this news. It made him eager to hear it and find out what it was. This is an eloquent way of introducing something and making people listen.
Then he (hoopoe - hud hud) started to tell him the news in an affirmative manner, and said:
الله إني وَجَدتُ امْرَأَةَ تَمْلِكُهُمْ ...I found a woman ruling over them...(Qur'an 27: 23).
Then he described the status of that queen, and that she was one of the greatest monarchs because she had been given everything that is fit for rulers. Then he added further detail of her high status by describing the throne on which she sat, which was a mighty throne. Then he told him why he should go and deal with these people and attack them in their own land after calling them to Allah. He said:
وَجَدتُّهَا وَقَوْمَهَا يَسْجُدُونَ لِلشَّمْسِ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ .I found her and her people worshipping the sun instead of Allah,... (Qur'an 27: 24).
The conjunction wa ("and") is omitted here; this sentence is made independent and is not connected to the previous sentence, in order to indicate that this is the main point and that what was said before was merely an introduction. Then he pointed out what had tempted and motivated them to do that, which was the way in which the Shaytaan (Satan) had made their deeds fair-seeing to them and had barred them from the right way, prostrate to Allah Alone, for none is deserving of prostration except Him.
Then he mentioned that one of the things which Allah (SWT) does is to bring to light what is hidden in the heavens and the earth, i.e., things which are concealed such as rain, plants, minerals and other kinds of things that come down from the sky or come forth from the earth. When the hoopoe mentioned that Allah Alone does these things, he was also referring to the special talent which Allah (SWT) had bestowed upon him, which was the ability to detect water below the ground.
The author of Al-Kashshaaf said: The phrase 'bringing to light what is hidden' indicates that this is part of what the hoopoe said, because of his skill in knowing where water is hidden beneath the ground, which is due to the inspiration of the One Who brings to light what is hidden in the heavens and the earth, Glorified be He. The one who has insight and is guided by the light of Allah can hardly miss the fact that each person is influenced by his particular craft or branch of knowledge, which affects the way he speaks and thinks. No human does any kind of work, but Allah clothes him in the dress of that work (i.e., it shows in his features and characteristics)."
How pigeons are guided, and the wonders of their creation
When Ibn al-Qayyim describes the wonders of the pigeon's creation and how Allah (SWT), inspires it, he speaks at length in the most fascinating manner, which indicates that pondering Allah's creation is a method which the scholars take upon themselves in order to fulfil Allah's command to His slaves.
Concerning this Ibn al-Qayyim said:
"The pigeon is one of the most amazingly guided animals. Ash- Shaafa'i said: the wisest of birds is the pigeon, and the carrier pigeon is the one which brings messages and letters and may be worth more than a slave, for the service that it provides cannot be carried out by slaves, or by any other kinds of creature. It travels huge distances and brings news and other things which states and kingdoms need.
Those who care for and breed pigeons pay a great deal of attention to their bloodlines. They separate males and females during the mating season, taking the males to different females and vice versa, and fearing that their bloodlines may become corrupted. They are always afraid that the females may attract males of the common type of pigeon, thus corrupting the bloodline. Those who care for pigeons do not pay as much attention to the conduct of their own womenfolk or take as many precautions to protect them as they do for their pigeons.
Their carers have rules and methods to which they pay a great deal of attention, so that if a pigeon suddenly lands, there will be no mystery as to its pedigree and country of origin. They respect the person who has experience and knowledge in this field, and they treat him very generously indeed.
Only males are selected for carrying letters and messages, and they say that he longs more for his home because his mate is there, and he is physically stronger and has a better sense of direction. Others prefer females for this task, and say that if a male is kept away for too long, he will long for a mate, so he might see a female on his route and not be able to keep away from her, so he will forget about travelling and will want to stay with his new mate.
Pigeons can be trained, and they are regarded as a good omen and are used to people. They like people and people like them. When they get used to a place, they will stay there and remain loyal to their owner, even if he mistreats them. They will return there from long distances, and if they are prevented from doing so, they will remain loyal even if ten years have passed since they left their homeland, and as soon as the opportunity arises and they are able to do so, they will return.
When the male pigeon wants to mate, he approaches the female with the utmost gentleness. Once he realizes that the female may have conceived, he and his mate look for straw, grass and small twigs, with which they build a nest, by weaving together these materials. They give the nest a raised edge, so that the eggs will not roll out, and so it will provide a safe place for the young. Then they take turns sitting on the nest, to keep it warm and to replace its original smell with a new, pleasant smell which is derived from their own bodies and scents, so that when the eggs are laid they will be in a place that is similar to the womb, and there will be the right balance between heat and cold, softness and hardness.
Then when "labour" starts, the bird hastens to that place (the nest) and lays its eggs in it. If it is startled by thunder, it throws the egg out of the nest that it has prepared, just like when a woman miscarries out of fright.
When the eggs are laid, the pair keep on taking turns sitting on the nest, until the time for brooding is over and the chick starts to break out of the egg. The parents help it to emerge, then they blow air into its throat so that its crop will become bigger, because they know that the crop is too small for food until it has been widened in this manner.
But they also know that even after the crop has been widened, it is still too small for food, so they feed it with saliva mixed with food, which has a strong taste.
They also know that the crop cannot continually take in food, and that it needs to gain strength, so they pick up soft grains from ponds and feed them to the chick, then they move on to giving it stronger food.
They keep on feeding it with grains and water in stages, according to the chick's strength, and demands food from them, until they know that he is able to pick up food by itself. Then they gradually stop feeding it so that he gets used to picking up food. When they know that its lungs have developed and grown strong, they wean it so that it can fend for himself, and they hit it if it asks for food after that.
Then they no longer feel that amazing compassion, once they know that it is able to fend by itself.
Among the wonders of the way in which the pigeon is inspired is that when it is carrying a message, it follows remote routes, far from cities where people are to be found, so that no one will be able to detain it. It does not look for water among people, rather it seeks out water where people do not go.
Male and female pigeons share out their duties towards the chicks. Caring for and raising the chick is done by the female, and bringing food and feeding it to the chick are done by the male. The father is the head of the family who provides for them, and the mother is the one who gives birth and nurses the young.
Among the wonders of pigeons is that which was mentioned by Al- Jaaḥiz, who said: a man had a pair of pigeons whose wings had been clipped, and another pair which could fly. The pair which could fly had chicks. He said: I made a hole for them at the top of their coop so that they could go out and come in and feed their chicks. I was detained unexpectedly by some government officials, and I became very concerned about the birds whose wings were clipped. I was certain that they would have died, because they could not get out of the hole, and they had nothing to eat or drink. When I was let go, I did not care about anything except (these birds). I opened the door and found that the chicks had matured, and the pair with clipped wings were in the best of health. I was amazed. It was not long before the pair who could fly came back and came to the pair who could not fly; the latter were asking for food like chicks, and the former fed them.
Look at the way they are guided. The pair who could not fly saw how the chicks asked their parents for food when they became hungry and thirsty, so they did the same as the chicks did. The pair who could fly took pity on them and fed them as they fed their own chicks.
Another amazing thing about pigeons is that when they are flying and they see people from the air, they know which type of people they want to go to, and they know which is the opposite type. When pigeons first begin to fly, they are heedless and they will fly among vultures, eagles, falcons, crows and hawks, and they know which ones will pursue them and which will not. But if a pigeon sees an Indian falcon (shaheen), it is as if it has seen a lethal poison; it starts to panic like a sheep when it sees a wolf, or a donkey when it sees a lion.
More about the wonders of Allah's creation
Ibn al-Qayyim also tells us about other wonders of Allah's creation and how He inspires His creatures which the scholars of his time had noted, such as the following:
A dog which nursed a child whose family had died
Al-Jaaḥiz said: When the plague had killed the members of a household, the people of that area were certain that no one was left alive among them, so they went and sealed the door of the house. But there was an infant boy left who was still suckling, and they overlooked him. After a while, some of the heirs went to that house and opened the door. When they entered the middle of the house, they were astounded to see a young boy playing with some pups belonging to the dog that had lived with the family. It was not long before they saw the dog that had belonged to the family. When the child saw her, he crawled over to her and she let him suckle from her. When the child had gotten hungry and had seen the pups suckling, he had crawled over to them. The mother dog had taken pity on him and let him suckle, and when she had done that once, she continued to let him suckle, and he had kept asking for it.
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