The Destruction of Nations Part 3 - Thamud

THAMUD PART 1

The destruction of ‘Aad is something we ourselves cannot comprehend but we see in a hadith related by ‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) the distress it would cause the Messenger of Allah (may peace and blessings be upon him). She mentions that whenever the sky was covered (with clouds), his face would change, he would come in and out (of the house) and he would pace up and down. Being the caring and loving wife she was, ‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) asked him as to why he does this to which the Messenger of Allah (may peace and blessings be upon him) would reply and say,

“It could be what ‘Aad have faced: “So, when they saw it as a cloud proceeding towards their valleys, they said, ‘This is a cloud that will bring us rain!’” (Surah Ahqaf)

And so the people of ‘Aad were destroyed and Allah replaced them with another tribe upon whom He bestowed countless bounties but they to forgot their transgressed. They were the tribe of Thamud and there are two opinions as to why they were labelled with this name. The first opinion is because of the vicinity in which they lived in. In Arabic, the word ‘Thamad’ means a lack of water and the area which was inhabited by the people of Saleh (peace be upon him) had a deficiency in water. The opinion of Ibn Katheer is that the nation were named after their forefather whose name was Thamud.

Like the people of ‘Aad forgot about the punishment suffered by the people of Nuh (peace be upon him), Thamud too forgot about their predecessors (‘Aad) and they too followed in the footsteps of their accursed ancestors. The people of Thamud were similar to the people of ‘Aad in their strength, abilities and arrogance. Allah the Almighty had given them bounty upon bounty and like ‘Aad, Thamud became poisoned by the beauty of this world. They began to feel as if they would never die and they started with the words that brought destruction upon ‘Aad. They would say,

“Who is stronger than us?”

And so they began to make huge palaces (pictured) upon the earth and in the mountains. Their disobedience had no bounds and they would happily work contrary towards the way of Allah. Thus they forgot about Allah and Allah caused them to forget about themselves. They began to oppress themselves in ways their eyes did not perceive and such is the statement of Allah in the Qur’an:

إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَظۡلِمُ ٱلنَّاسَ شَيۡـًٔ۬ا وَلَـٰكِنَّ ٱلنَّاسَ أَنفُسَہُمۡ يَظۡلِمُونَ ٤٤

"Surely, Allah does not wrong people at all, but the people do wrong their own selves."

It was then that Allah decided to send a mercy to them, a messenger from amongst themselves to guide them towards the truth. Verily, Allah is not pleased by those who spread trouble upon the earth. From amongst the community, He erected a prophet by the name of Saleh (peace be upon him). Saleh (peace be upon him) was a man of a noble lineage, piety, intelligence and when he grew up, Allah blessed him with the wisdom that was needed for Saleh (peace be upon him) to carry out his mission. Prior to becoming a prophet, Saleh (peace be upon him) was a very popular figure in society. He was considered by many as being a luminary, a man who was more articulate and upright in his conduct than any other man from amongst them. When he would walk past people, they would whisper,

“That is Saleh! That is Saleh!”

His people and in particular his father had high aspirations of him and they all dreamt that he would grow up to own palaces with large, beautiful gardens. They envisaged him having servants running back and forth for him but Saleh (peace be upon him) had no interest in the materialistic society he was living in. On the contrary, he was selected to convey the message of His Lord, a status far loftier than anything anybody else could have perceived. He (Saleh (peace be upon him)) then stood up in the midst of his people and said the words which brought all of the Prophets (peace be upon them all) so much anguish, he said,

يَـٰقَوۡمِ ٱعۡبُدُواْ ٱللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنۡ إِلَـٰهٍ غَيۡرُهُ ۥ‌ۖ هُوَ أَنشَأَكُم مِّنَ ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَٱسۡتَعۡمَرَكُمۡ فِيہَا فَٱسۡتَغۡفِرُوهُ ثُمَّ تُوبُوٓاْ إِلَيۡهِ‌ۚ إِنَّ رَبِّى قَرِيبٌ۬ مُّجِيبٌ۬ ٦١

"And to (the people of) Thamud (We sent) their brother, Saleh. He said, 'O my people, worship Allah. You have no god other than Him. He has created you from earth and made you settle therein. So, seek His forgiveness, then turn to Him in repentance. Surely, my Lord is near, responsive to the prayers.'"

And they replied to him,

يَـٰصَـٰلِحُ قَدۡ كُنتَ فِينَا مَرۡجُوًّ۬ا قَبۡلَ هَـٰذَآ‌ۖ أَتَنۡهَٮٰنَآ أَن نَّعۡبُدَ مَا يَعۡبُدُ ءَابَآؤُنَا وَإِنَّنَا لَفِى شَكٍّ۬ مِّمَّا تَدۡعُونَآ إِلَيۡهِ مُرِيبٍ۬ ٦٢

“O Saleh, we had hopes in you before this. Do you ask us not to worship what our fathers used to worship? We have serious doubts that have disturbed us about the faith to which you are calling us.”

After this encounter, the people Saleh (peace be upon him) would socialise with became hugely disrespectful to him. The rich who were in power knew for sure that if Saleh (peace be upon him) would prevail with his mission then they would no longer remain in power and so they launched a scathing attack on Saleh (peace be upon him). They began to defame him amongst his own people and removed their high aspirations of him. This is recorded in the Qur’an, they said,

وَقَالَ ٱلۡمَلَأُ مِن قَوۡمِهِ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ وَكَذَّبُواْ بِلِقَآءِ ٱلۡأَخِرَةِ وَأَتۡرَفۡنَـٰهُمۡ فِى ٱلۡحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنۡيَا مَا هَـٰذَآ إِلَّا بَشَرٌ۬ مِّثۡلُكُمۡ يَأۡكُلُ مِمَّا تَأۡكُلُونَ مِنۡهُ وَيَشۡرَبُ مِمَّا تَشۡرَبُونَ (٣٣) وَلَٮِٕنۡ أَطَعۡتُم بَشَرً۬ا مِّثۡلَكُمۡ إِنَّكُمۡ إِذً۬ا لَّخَـٰسِرُونَ (٣٤) أَيَعِدُكُمۡ أَنَّكُمۡ إِذَا مِتُّمۡ وَكُنتُمۡ تُرَابً۬ا وَعِظَـٰمًا أَنَّكُم مُّخۡرَجُونَ (٣٥) ۞ هَيۡہَاتَ هَيۡہَاتَ لِمَا تُوعَدُونَ (٣٦) إِنۡ هِىَ إِلَّا حَيَاتُنَا ٱلدُّنۡيَا نَمُوتُ وَنَحۡيَا وَمَا نَحۡنُ بِمَبۡعُوثِينَ (٣٧) إِنۡ هُوَ إِلَّا رَجُلٌ ٱفۡتَرَىٰ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ڪَذِبً۬ا وَمَا نَحۡنُ لَهُ ۥ بِمُؤۡمِنِينَ ٣٨

“Then said the chiefs of his nation who were disbelievers and who denied facing the Hereafter and whom We made affluent in the worldly life, ‘This (man) is nothing but a human being. He eats from what you eat from, and drinks from what you drink. If you obey a human like yourselves, then you will be absolute losers. Does he promise you that, when you die and are turned into dust and bones, you are to be brought forth? Far too improbable is what you are being promised. There is nothing but our worldly life. We die and we live, and we are not to be raised again. He is nothing but a man who has forged a lie against Allah, and we are not going to believe in him.’”

They had really abused Saleh (peace be upon him). They attached many vulgar lies against Saleh (peace be upon him) and they would taunt his family and his father in particular. They targeted his father because they knew of the high hopes he kept with regards to the future of Saleh (peace be upon him) and then they would tell the father that his previously successful son had become of the fruitless. This would truly hurt the feelings of Saleh’s (peace be upon him) mother, father and family. Despite these hardships, Saleh (peace be upon him) would continue to proclaim Monotheism out aloud but the people would look at him and merely say,

إِنَّمَآ أَنتَ مِنَ ٱلۡمُسَحَّرِينَ (١٥٣) مَآ أَنتَ إِلَّا بَشَرٌ۬ مِّثۡلُنَا فَأۡتِ بِـَٔايَةٍ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ ٱلصَّـٰدِقِينَ ١٥٤

“You are merely one of those bewitched. You are nothing but a human like us. So, bring a sign if you are one of the truthful.”

The Mufassireen mention that during this assembly Saleh (peace be upon him) admonished his people and warned them of a painful torment. They said to him,

“If you could produce from this rock a she-camel with these qualities (they then mentioned what it should be like.”

Hazrat Saleh (peace be upon him) enquired,

“Tell me, if I responded to your requirement would you believe in what I am asking you to believe and regard me as the Messenger of Allah?”

The people of Thamud replied in the affirmative and so Hazrat Saleh (peace be upon him) offered prayers and then asked Allah to respond to their demand. Thereafter a she-camel came out of the mountain and the people became bewildered and dumbstruck. However, despite the various emotions felt, one emotion that was prevalent that day was arrogance. Even though they witnessed a sign from Allah with their own eyes, they still rejected it and did not believe and Saleh (peace be upon him) would say,

يَـٰقَوۡمِ ٱعۡبُدُواْ ٱللَّهَ مَا لَڪُم مِّنۡ إِلَـٰهٍ غَيۡرُهُ ۥ‌ۖ قَدۡ جَآءَتۡڪُم بَيِّنَةٌ۬ مِّن رَّبِّكُمۡ‌ۖ هَـٰذِهِۦ نَاقَةُ ٱللَّهِ لَڪُمۡ ءَايَةً۬‌ۖ فَذَرُوهَا تَأۡڪُلۡ فِىٓ أَرۡضِ ٱللَّهِ‌ۖ وَلَا تَمَسُّوهَا بِسُوٓءٍ۬ فَيَأۡخُذَكُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ۬ ٧٣

“O my people, worship Allah. You have no god other than Him. There has come to you a clear sign from your Lord. This is the she-camel of Allah, a sign for you. So, leave her to eat on the earth of Allah, and do not touch her with mischief, lest a painful punishment should seize you.”

The threat was put forth by Hazrat Saleh (peace be upon him). Nobody was to harm this she-camel and if they did, there punishment of Allah would be let loose upon them. The people understood this until the emergence of Qudar bin Salif...

In the next post we shall discuss how Qudar bin Salif attempted to slaughter the sign of Allah because of his love for a woman... Next Thamud Part 2

The Destruction of Nations (part 2) 'Aad

The Sublime had fulfilled His promise to Nuh (peace be upon him) and once again the world renounced polytheism. Then the people of ‘Aad came into being. They were the first people to worship idols after the punishment faced by the people of Nuh (peace be upon him). They had three main idols: Samd, Samud and Hara (Qasas al Anbiya). The people of ‘Aad were given immense favours by Allah. They were huge in their stature and their bodies were like steel. They lived a life of great splendour and pomp and would rejoice in their own evil doings. They would put terror into the hearts of others and would do things which are against the essence of humanity. Allah had blessed them with beautiful lands, lush with greenery and he had placed them in an area (Yemen) which had great, natural bounties. They had mass cattle and due to their huge figures, they would construct houses in the mountains (top right)! It was a great display of strength and might but these houses would be left empty. It was then when this nation steeped into complete disobedience that Allah sent a messenger among them by the name of Hud (peace be upon him).

Hud (peace be upon him) said to his people,

قَالَ يَـٰقَوۡمِ ٱعۡبُدُواْ ٱللَّهَ مَا لَڪُم مِّنۡ إِلَـٰهٍ غَيۡرُهُ ۥۤ‌ۖ إِنۡ أَنتُمۡ إِلَّا مُفۡتَرُونَ (٥٠) يَـٰقَوۡمِ لَآ أَسۡـَٔلُكُمۡ عَلَيۡهِ أَجۡرًا‌ۖ إِنۡ أَجۡرِىَ إِلَّا عَلَى ٱلَّذِى فَطَرَنِىٓ‌ۚ أَفَلَا تَعۡقِلُونَ (٥١) وَيَـٰقَوۡمِ ٱسۡتَغۡفِرُواْ رَبَّكُمۡ ثُمَّ تُوبُوٓاْ إِلَيۡهِ يُرۡسِلِ ٱلسَّمَآءَ عَلَيۡڪُم مِّدۡرَارً۬ا وَيَزِدۡڪُمۡ قُوَّةً إِلَىٰ قُوَّتِكُمۡ وَلَا تَتَوَلَّوۡاْ مُجۡرِمِينَ (٥٢)

“He (Hud) said, ‘O my people, worship Allah. You have no god other than Him. You are nothing but fabricators. O my people, I ask you no reward for it. My reward is only on the One who created me. Do you, then, not understand? O my people, seek forgiveness from your Lord, then turn to Him in repentance, and He will release the heavens pouring upon you, and will add strength to your strength, and do not turn away like sinners.’”

The people of ‘Aad were indulged in eating, drinking, fun and games; they had no reason to stop this ‘lavish’ style of living. Thus they turned to Hud (peace be upon him) and said,

قَالَ ٱلۡمَلَأُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ مِن قَوۡمِهِۦۤ إِنَّا لَنَرَٮٰكَ فِى سَفَاهَةٍ۬ وَإِنَّا لَنَظُنُّكَ مِنَ ٱلۡكَـٰذِبِينَ (٦٦

“Said the chiefs of his (Hud's) people who disbelieved, ‘Indeed, we see you in folly, and we believe you are one of the liars.’”

After a lengthy encounter which is mentioned in Surah Hud and Surah A’araf. Allah had stopped giving the people of ‘Aad bounties and had stopped the rain from falling upon their lands. Consequently, the people of ‘Aad suffered from poor harvest and became in dire need of rainfall but their arrogance prevailed and they did not place belief in Allah.

Hazrat Mufti Ahmad Sa’eed Palanpoori Saheb damat barkatuh mentions in his tafseer, ‘Hidayatul Qur’an’ the following:

“In the beginning of this Surah, Rasulullah's (may peace and blessings be upon him) blessed tongue is made to emphasise the very same message, ‘Turn towards your Lord in repentance and attend to Him. He will give you a good, blissful life.’ Hazrat Hud (peace be upon him) informed his tribe that if they inclined towards Allah, He would remove all their problems away from them; and that Allah will increase them in their property and their strength. He advised them that Allah would bless their offspring and that their harvest will also improve. However they will only attain this once they stop their ignorance.”

And so a long commentary can be written about the arrogance and pride of the people of ‘Aad but the outstanding issue is this that they did not take heed of the punishment of the people that came before them and they too were on the brink of being destroyed. The people of ‘Aad would continue to build their extravagant houses up in the mountains and Hud (peace be upon him) would continue to admonish them and say,

أَتَبۡنُونَ بِكُلِّ رِيعٍ ءَايَةً۬ تَعۡبَثُونَ (١٢٨) وَتَتَّخِذُونَ مَصَانِعَ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَخۡلُدُونَ (١٢٩) وَإِذَا بَطَشۡتُم بَطَشۡتُمۡ جَبَّارِينَ (١٣٠) فَٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُونِ (١٣١) وَٱتَّقُواْ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَمَدَّكُم بِمَا تَعۡلَمُونَ (١٣٢) أَمَدَّكُم بِأَنۡعَـٰمٍ۬ وَبَنِينَ (١٣٣) وَجَنَّـٰتٍ۬ وَعُيُونٍ (١٣٤) إِنِّىٓ أَخَافُ عَلَيۡكُمۡ عَذَابَ يَوۡمٍ عَظِيمٍ۬ (١٣٥

“Do you erect on every height a monument, having no sound purpose, and take the objects of architecture as if you are going to live forever, and when you seize (someone) you seize as tyrants? So fear Allah and obey me. And fear the One who has supported you with what you know. He has supported you with cattle and sons, and with gardens and springs. In fact I fear for you the punishment of a horrible day.”

This wisdom encapsulated in the speech of Hud (peace be upon him) is a lesson for us today. We find ourselves adhering to the same principles of the people of ‘Aad. We are never satisfied with what we have and we always want to have more. My beloved Shaykh mentions all the time, “When you are not satisfied with a Ni’mat (bounty) that Allah has given to you and you keep on trying to get more and more... Allah will remove that Ni’mat altogether and you will be left with nothing.” We like ‘Aad oppress people like tyrants; forget the sustenance and family we are blessed with along with our properties and wealth. Soon the punishment of Allah may come upon us the way it came upon the people of ‘Aad. As it is mentioned...

One day, the people of ‘Aad looked towards the sky and saw clouds materialising. The people had an intense need for rain and the people began to scream and dance chanting,
ﺮﻄﻤ ﺔﺒﺎﺤﺳﻩﺬﻫﺮﻄﻤ ﺔﺒﺎﺤ

“THESE ARE CLOUDS OF RAIN!”

And like Nuh (peace be upon him), Hud (peace be upon him) called out to his Lord and said,

قَالَ رَبِّ ٱنصُرۡنِى بِمَا كَذَّبُونِ (٣٩) قَالَ عَمَّا قَلِيلٍ۬ لَّيُصۡبِحُنَّ نَـٰدِمِينَ (٤٠) فَأَخَذَتۡہُمُ ٱلصَّيۡحَةُ بِٱلۡحَقِّ فَجَعَلۡنَـٰهُمۡ غُثَآءً۬‌ۚ فَبُعۡدً۬ا لِّلۡقَوۡمِ ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ (٤١)

“He (Hud) said, ‘My Lord, help me, for they have rejected me.’ He (Allah) said, ‘In a little while they will have to be remorseful.’ So the Cry seized them according to the true (promise), and We turned them in to scum. So, away with the wrongdoers.”

The people began to taunt Hud (peace be upon him) and say, “Where is the punishment of your Lord? We await it with great eagerness!” and they began to deride him to a great degree. They were not just taunting a prophet...they were challenging the Creator of Mankind. They had now pronounced imminent, inevitable destruction upon themselves...

Allah’s punishment upon these people began by stopping their bounties and then placing drought and famine upon them as well as the intense desire for rain. This proved to be a mental block for the people of ‘Aad for when they saw the clouds form they began to scream and dance with a lot of joy, however this was not a cloud of mercy but a cloud of immense torment. It was contrary to their desire and hope... it was a rain of destruction, punishment and death! A flurry of fire balls came crashing down upon them. Ibn Kathir mentions,

“This is why Allah has said: ‘Now this is that you were asking to be hastened!’”

A huge wind overtook them and the world became darkened and gloomy. Children began to hold onto their mothers and men began to hold onto the mountains that served them so well. The mountains they used to make a show out of were being held onto as they themselves were becoming the 'show'. This wind raged against them for seven nights and eight days continuously. Allah says,

وَأَمَّا عَادٌ۬ فَأُهۡلِڪُواْ بِرِيحٍ۬ صَرۡصَرٍ عَاتِيَةٍ۬ (٦) سَخَّرَهَا عَلَيۡہِمۡ سَبۡعَ لَيَالٍ۬ وَثَمَـٰنِيَةَ أَيَّامٍ حُسُومً۬ا فَتَرَى ٱلۡقَوۡمَ فِيہَا صَرۡعَىٰ كَأَنَّہُمۡ أَعۡجَازُ نَخۡلٍ خَاوِيَةٍ۬ (٧)

“And as for Ad, they were destroyed by a violent windstorm that He imposed on them for seven nights and eight consecutive days; so you could see them thrown on the ground, as if they were trunks of hollow palm-trees.”

In this verse the people of ‘Aad are compared with the stumps of palm trees. The wind was so severe that it would seize them and then hurl them so that they land with their heads downwards. When they eventually landed, these huge people with bodies likened to steel would have their heads smashed into pieces and their bodies left with no heads. Thus they would resemble the stumps of palm trees and this is why Allah gives this analogy.

These people had proclaimed, “Who is the mightier than us?”... He who is in the heavens duly replied.

Next up in part 3, the people of Saleh (peace be upon him).

The Destruction of Nations (Part 1)

There is not a day that the sea does not question Allah, 'O Allah! Let us destroy mankind, for he has transgressed.' And there is not a day that that the earth does not question Allah, "O Allah! Let me swallow mankind for he has transgressed.'"In recent years, the world has seen the prophecies of the Messenger of Allah (may peace and blessings be upon him) come to pass. A new calamity strikes man and each time he says, "It cannot get more severe than this" and then he is struck by something even worse. Every day, elements of this world (sea, wind, earth etc) ask Allah for permission to destroy the inhabitants of this earth. We have seen from the people of the past that when Fitna and Fasad (mischief, corruption) become rife in a community, Allah lets loose upon them the crushing waves and devastating destruction.

And one day in the time of the prophet Nuh (peace be upon him), the sea was granted permission to destroy those who opposed the call of monotheism. Allah sent Nuh (peace be upon him) with His message and he would say to his people,

قَالَ يَـٰقَوۡمِ إِنِّى لَكُمۡ نَذِيرٌ۬ مُّبِينٌ (٢) أَنِ ٱعۡبُدُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱتَّقُوهُ وَأَطِيعُونِ (٣) يَغۡفِرۡ لَكُم مِّن ذُنُوبِكُمۡ وَيُؤَخِّرۡكُمۡ إِلَىٰٓ أَجَلٍ۬ مُّسَمًّى‌ۚ إِنَّ أَجَلَ ٱللَّهِ إِذَا جَآءَ لَا يُؤَخَّرُ‌ۖ لَوۡ كُنتُمۡ تَعۡلَمُونَ (٤) قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّى دَعَوۡتُ قَوۡمِى لَيۡلاً۬ وَنَهَارً۬ا (٥) فَلَمۡ يَزِدۡهُمۡ دُعَآءِىٓ إِلَّا فِرَارً۬ا (٦) وَإِنِّى ڪُلَّمَا دَعَوۡتُهُمۡ لِتَغۡفِرَ لَهُمۡ جَعَلُوٓاْ أَصَـٰبِعَهُمۡ فِىٓ ءَاذَانِہِمۡ وَٱسۡتَغۡشَوۡاْ ثِيَابَہُمۡ وَأَصَرُّواْ وَٱسۡتَكۡبَرُواْ ٱسۡتِكۡبَارً۬ا (٧) ثُمَّ إِنِّى دَعَوۡتُہُمۡ جِهَارً۬ا (٨

“He said, ‘O my people, I openly warn you that you must worship Allah, and fear Him, and obey me, and Allah will forgive you your sins, and will respite you to an appointed term. Indeed when Allah‘s term comes, it is not deferred, if you only know!’ He said (to Allah), ‘My Lord, I have called my people night and day, but my call added only to their flight (from the truth). Whenever I called them, so that You might forgive them, they put their fingers into their ears, and wrapped their clothes around themselves, and grew obstinate, and waxed proud in extreme arrogance.’”

The people of Nuh (peace be upon him) would humiliate him so much, they would accuse him of every wrong. When he received the order from Allah to make an Ark, the people began to deride him further and said,

ﺐﺟﻋ ﻪﻠﻛ ﻙﺮﻣﺍﺎﻧﺇإِنَّٱ أَمرَك ڪله عَجَب
“Your business is totally bizarre!”

Nuh (peace be upon him) preached for about 900 years and had to suffer huge amounts of pathos. Tafseer Mazhari mentions that the people around him would die and their progeny would then come and they too would die. Nuh (peace be upon him) would approach these new offspring carrying the perception that perhaps they may accept Allah unlike their parents. These people would be just the same and after preaching for so many years, only 83 people became Muslim and that is when Nuh (peace be upon him) cursed his people.


وَقَالَ نُوحٌ۬ رَّبِّ لَا تَذَرۡ عَلَى ٱلۡأَرۡضِ مِنَ ٱلۡكَـٰفِرِينَ دَيَّارًا (٢٦) إِنَّكَ إِن تَذَرۡهُمۡ يُضِلُّواْ عِبَادَكَ وَلَا يَلِدُوٓاْ إِلَّا فَاجِرً۬ا ڪَفَّارً۬ا (٢٧

“And said Nuh, ‘My Lord, do not leave on earth even a single inhabitant (surviving) out of the disbelievers If You leave them (surviving), they will lead Your servants astray, and will beget none but a sinful disbeliever.’”

Thus the promise of Allah came to pass and he answered to the distress of Nuh (peace be upon him) but this came at a cost. As Nuh (peace be upon him) climbed onto his ship, Allah sent the rain pouring down upon the earth. The people (there are two opinions here: some are of the opinion that the flood was universal, others say it was regional) of Nuh (peace be upon him) began to climb onto high ground expecting the rainfall to stop but this was the punishment of Allah and the curse of His prophet. The people began to climb up the mountains but the rainfall had turned into an ocean and was bent on punishing the transgressors. Nobody except the believers were saved from the wrath of Allah. Men, women and children all began to drown and in the middle of this destruction there was the Ark of Nuh (peace be upon him) which was treated with a huge degree of veneration by the punishment of Allah. As this ark began to set sail for its next destination, Nuh (peace be upon him) saw his son on the tip of a mountain. Amid the chaos, Nuh (peace be upon him) urged his son to forsake disbelief and accept Allah. It was truly a sight of immense anguish; the Prophet of Allah was beseeching his son, urging him to become Muslim. The son however was of immense arrogance and as the conversation between the two grew, so did the waves until one came crashing down upon the son of Nuh (peace be upon) and in the process, wiped him from the mountain and the life of Nuh (peace be upon him). Allah mentions this in the Qur’an in Surah Hud, He says,

وَهِىَ تَجۡرِى بِهِمۡ فِى مَوۡجٍ۬ كَٱلۡجِبَالِ وَنَادَىٰ نُوحٌ ٱبۡنَهُ ۥ وَڪَانَ فِى مَعۡزِلٍ۬ يَـٰبُنَىَّ ٱرۡڪَب مَّعَنَا وَلَا تَكُن مَّعَ ٱلۡكَـٰفِرِينَ (٤٢) قَالَ سَـَٔاوِىٓ إِلَىٰ جَبَلٍ۬ يَعۡصِمُنِى مِنَ ٱلۡمَآءِ‌ۚ قَالَ لَا عَاصِمَ ٱلۡيَوۡمَ مِنۡ أَمۡرِ ٱللَّهِ إِلَّا مَن رَّحِمَ‌ۚ وَحَالَ بَيۡنَہُمَا ٱلۡمَوۡجُ فَكَانَ مِنَ ٱلۡمُغۡرَقِينَ (٤٣)

“And it was sailing with them amidst the waves like mountains. And Nuh called out to his son, who was at an isolated place, ‘O my child, come on board with us, and do not be in the company of the disbelievers.’
He (Nuh’s son) said, ‘I shall take shelter on a mountain which will save me from the water.’ He (Nuh) said, ‘There is no saver today from the command of Allah, except the one to whom He shows mercy.’ And the waves rose high between the two, and he was among those who were drowned.”


Whomsoever Allah guides, none can misguide and whomsoever Allah leaves to go astray, none can guide.

Thus Nuh (peace be upon him) became extremely sad and made Dua to Allah that Allah saves his son from the fire as He was not saved from the waves. He called out to Allah,

وَنَادَىٰ نُوحٌ۬ رَّبَّهُ ۥ فَقَالَ رَبِّ إِنَّ ٱبۡنِى مِنۡ أَهۡلِى وَإِنَّ وَعۡدَكَ ٱلۡحَقُّ وَأَنتَ أَحۡكَمُ ٱلۡحَـٰكِمِينَ

“Nuh called unto his Lord and said, ‘My Lord, my son is a part of my family, and surely Your promise is true, and You are the greatest of all judges.’”

However Allah reprimanded Nuh (peace be upon him) said,

قَالَ يَـٰنُوحُ إِنَّهُ ۥ لَيۡسَ مِنۡ أَهۡلِكَ‌ۖ إِنَّهُ ۥ عَمَلٌ غَيۡرُ صَـٰلِحٍ۬‌ۖ فَلَا تَسۡـَٔلۡنِ مَا لَيۡسَ لَكَ بِهِۦ عِلۡمٌ‌ۖ إِنِّىٓ أَعِظُكَ أَن تَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلۡجَـٰهِلِينَ

“He said, ‘O Nuh, in fact, he is not a part of your family. Indeed, he is (a man of) bad deeds. So do not ask Me something of which you have no knowledge. I exhort you not to be among the ignorant.’”

Nuh (peace be upon him) travelled with the believers until they landed on Mount Judi. The mountain still has the print of Nuh’s (peace be upon him) Ark (above and right).

Next up in Part 2 the people of Aad.