As-salaamu Alaikum,
Just wanted to share with you all 3 very short stories I read recently, rich in
wisdom and lessons.
The stories are about an apple, a pomegranate, and milk. No – it’s not a recipe
for some funky milkshake; rather it’s a recipe for Allah’s Barakah in your life
and in your offspring. Read on to see how …
Story One – Tales of The Sour Pomegranate
Once upon a time the guard of a garden was asked by his master (the owner of the
garden) to go and pick out for him a pomegranate that is sweet in taste.
The guard went away and came back with one which then turned out to be sour. The
master frowned upon his guard and said, “This was sour, I want a sweet one!” The
guards ventures off and again returns with one that is sour. The scenario
repeats itself three times until the master exclaims in disappointment, “you
have been guarding my gardens for an entire year now. Have you still not learnt
to differentiate between a sweet and sour pomegranate?” The guard replies, “when
you hired me, you instructed me to guard your fruits, but you gave me no
permission to taste them… how then do you expect me to learn how they taste?”
The master was astonished by this simple man’s conduct and trustworthiness, and
offered to marry him to his daughter, and the guard accepted very happily.
The fruit of this marriage was the birth of no other than the great tabi’i
(second generation of Muslims, who met the Sahabah but not Rasul Allah),
Abdullah ibn Al Mubarak, one of the earliest scholars of this Ummah.
Story Two – The Apple on The Walk Path
As he walked by the garden, he saw an apple on the walk path. It had fallen off
the tree whose branch extends beyond the fences to shade the way. He picked it
up and ate it. Shortly thereafter, he was struck by guilt, thinking he had
consumed an apple that didn’t belong to him. He set out to find the owner of the
garden to inform him that he ate one of his apples without permission, in order
to pay the monetary value of it, or be forgiven for this sinful deed, and he
did! The owner was amazed and cleverly responded, “I will not forgive you unless
you accept my one stipulation: that you marry my daughter. But she is deaf,
blind, mute and paralysed”. The man was gobsmacked, and juggled his thoughts in
his head for a moment He then surrendered to the stipulation, knowing that
persevering with such a misfortunate wife is less horrific than the torment of
Allah for ‘stealing’ an apple. The night of the marriage came, and the groom
walks in to his brides room with deep sorrow feelings, only to find a woman of
magical beauty awaiting him; she speaks, hears, see’s and walks. Moreover, she
was very well learned in Islam, exceptional in piety. She said to her now
husband, “I know you are surprised. My father described me as blind, and that is
because I have blinded my eyes away from any sight which displeases Allah; he
said I’m mute, because I’ve muted my tongue from all speech but that which is
remembrance of Allah I’m paralysed because I indulge in no forbidden activity;
and I am deaf because I refrain from hearing all vein speech. My father wanted
to ensure my husband is a very pious man, one whom deserves me”
The pious couple brought a gift to the Ummah; their child was the great Imam Abu
Hanifa Rahimahullah.
Story Three – The Milky Water drink
The famous story of the woman who sold milk during the era of Omar Ibn Al
Khattab Radhi Allahu anhu. The woman would mix the milk with water at night to
increase it’s volume and generate greater revenues from her trade in the morning
As Omar Radhi Allahu anhu walked by her home during his routine night
inspections, he overheard the daughter of this woman proclaim, “O mother! If
you’re assured that Omar does not see you cheating in the secrecy of your home,
in the middle of the night, then be certain that the Lord and Creator of Omar
sees and records all actions.” Omar Radhi Allahu anhu heard the words of this
god-fearing young woman, and asked his son [Asim] to marry her.
Their child was Layla, mother of Ameer-ul Mu’mineen Omar ibn Abdul-Aziz, the
Umayyad caliph described by most Islamic historians as the 5th of the 4 rightly
guided caliph’s, due to his exceptional knowledge, conduct, justice and piety.
End of stories.
Comment: Every Muslim wishes for a god-fearing spouse and righteous offspring.
This is indeed a noble ends to pursue, for the pious family is the bedrock of a
healthy Muslim community. The moral is: fear Allah truly, and Allah will open up
doors of success before you in this world and bless you with pious offspring who
will continue to generate you reward, by their good deeds and supplications,
even after you're long gone.