Quran Garden

Session 427

Chapter 3

Verse 97

A continuation

In it are clear signs – the standing place of Abraham.  Whoever enters it is safe.  Pilgrimage to the House is a duty owed to God by all who can afford a way to it.  And whoever rejects, God is independent of all creation.  (Chapter 3: Verse 97)

On a scorching hot summer day, our beloved Abraham arrived at the empty valley of Mecca with his wife Hajar carrying her infant Ishmael.  Abraham found a place to settle his family near the location of God's Sacred House, and planned to return to the area of modern-day Jerusalem the next day.  With the sun beating down on their heads, Hajar looked around and saw nothing but sand.  There was no water, plants, or people.  As Abraham got ready to leave, she stopped him and asked him to stay.  He, peace be upon him, said nothing.  Hajar, may God be please with her, grabbed his clothes and pulled him back.  She pointed out that there wasn't any food or water for them!  Abraham, again, was silent.  Finally, Hajar asked, "How can you leave us here?  Is this your decision, or did God instruct you to leave us here?" Abraham answered, "My Lord directed me to this place," to which she replied, "Feel free to leave, Abraham.  God will never abandon us."

Hajar let go of all her worries because she knew that Abraham obeyed God's command.  This is faith at its summit and a conviction more powerful than a mother's instinct.  Hajar, through her faith, felt at peace as the father of her child traveled, leaving her in the barren desert.  She did not believe in Abraham, but she believed in the Lord of Abraham.

Now that she was alone with her Infant, Hajar left the location of the Ka'aba to look for food and water.  She looked to the sky: maybe she could spot some birds to guide her to water.  But there were none.  Nearby, she saw two hills, Al-Safa and Al-Marwa.  She put Ishmael down and rushed to Al-Safa, climbed to the top, then looked around, hoping to spot a caravan or water.  When she saw nothing, she ran towards the Marwa hill and did the same.  Hajar knew that there was not much as her son was crying louder out of thirst.  She completed seven rounds between the two hills in the hopes of finding a bird, a person…  anything!  She was becoming desperate.  When she climbed Al-Marwa for the fourth time, a sound grabbed her attention.  Hajar fell silent and listened closer: Ishmael's cry had changed!  His hunger and thirst were so severe that he began to squirm.  Panicked, she ran down to Ishmael's side and was shocked to find water seeping from the sands where he was kicking his feet.  She pooled some of the water with her hands and drank.  Water kept seeping, then gushing out.  Hajar drank her fill, then breastfed her son. 

Here we ask, had she found water on the Al-Safa or Al-Marwa in the first round, would that have been a confirmation of her statement to Abraham, "God will not abandon us"?  Probably not.  Allah wants to teach you a fundamental lesson: you have to work hard to earn a living, but do not, for one minute, think that earning money and provision is the result of your effort.  Provision comes from Allah.  Hajar had to strive and run seven times between the two hills, but that did not produce any water.  Allah granted her water from under Ishmael's feet.  She believed with all her heart that "God will not abandon us," yet God made her complete seven rounds, a feat not easy for a woman of her age who recently gave birth.  Allah wants you to utilize all the means at your disposal to earn a living, but your heart must remain connected to the Lord of the means.  In this manner, Allah extinguishes greed and desperation from our hearts.  Zamzam, the spring which is still found in the bosom of the Kaaba, is the spring of Hajar and Ishmael.  Are these not clear signs for humankind?

Here we should take a moment to address a common problem.  Placing your trust in God to provide you with money and provision is very different from laziness and stupid dependency.  Reliance on God, also known as Tawakul, means to work hard with your hands while your heart is at peace that whatever provision Allah has decreed for you will reach you in time.  But laziness and neglect, also known as Tawaakul, is to sit around doing nothing while declaring your trust that God will provide for you.  We say to such a person, "If you truly believe that God will provide you with food while you do no work on your part, then do not even extend your hand to eat when people place food in front of you.  Wait for God to make that food jump into your mouth.  Do you even need to chew, or should God do that for you too?"

Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said, "If you genuinely rely on God, He will provide for you as He provides for a bird.  It leaves its nest hungry and comes back full." We know that the vast majority of bird species do not store any food.  Every day, each bird wakes up hungry and has to find food, and Allah provides for each of them.  There are many fascinating stories among the scholars regarding this beautiful Hadeeth.  Let's consider two of them.

Imam Malik disagreed with Imam Al-Shafi'i, may God be pleased with them, on the issue of sustenance.  The first saw that sustenance could come to you with no effort on your part because God can provide for you as he provides for birds.  While Imam Al-Shafi'i argued, "Had the bird not left its nest, it would have stayed hungry." Al-Shafi'i wanted to prove this to his teacher, so he left the mosque and found an old man struggling with a heavy bag of dates.  He said to him, "Let me help you carry this." When he reached the house, the old man thanked him and gave him a few dates as a token of appreciation.  Al-Shafi'i went back to Malik, put the dates in his hands, and said, "See!  If I did not go out and help the old man, I would not have earned these dates." Malik smiled, took a date and put it in his mouth, and said, "And you brought my provision to me, and I did not lift a finger!"

I also recall the story of Ibrahim bin Adham who was a very successful merchant.  On one of his journeys, he found a bird flapping on the ground with a broken wing.  He remembered that our beloved Muhammad told us that "If you genuinely rely on God, He will provide for you as He provides for a bird.  It leaves its nest hungry and comes back full."  So he stopped the caravan and said, "By God, I will wait here and see how God provides for this bird." After a while, he saw a healthy bird fly down and put a few seeds in the sick bird's mouth." At that point, Ibrahim decided to leave his business and seclude himself for worship, fully trusting in God's generosity.  When his friend Al-Shibli heard the story, he visited Ibrahim and asked, "Why would you choose to leave your business and sit in your house like this?  Wouldn't it be better for you to be the strong, healthy bird, not the sick one with the broken wing?"