The Stone Moved

The Stone Moved

1991 5-6 May-June 24-25 The Stone Moved (898) A telling episode in the history of the Israelites was once narrated by the Prophet of Islam to his companions, one of whom was Abdullah ibn Umar. The latter recorded it as follows:

“Three of those who have passed before you set forth on a journey. When night approached, they entered a cave in which to pass the night. Landslides often take place in the mountains, and at night, a large rock hurtled from above and came to rest right at the opening to the cave, completely blocking it. The three travellers then said that since there was no way they could move the rock, they should pray to God, calling upon Him to help them by virtue of the good deeds they had performed in their lives.

“The first of the three began to pray. He said “0 God, when my parents had grown very old, I would come home every day after grazing the cattle, and would first give them milk to drink. It was only after they had their milk, that my children and I would have some. One day I wandered off so far in search of fodder that, when I returned home, my parents had already gone to bed. When I brought them their milk, they were already fast asleep. Now I hesitated either to waken them, or to drink milk and give it to the rest of the family before giving it to my parents. So I stood before their bed, holding the cup of milk in my hand, so that I could offer it to them as they awakened. In this way, the whole night passed and then daylight appeared. All this time, the children had kept sobbing and whimpering at my feet. Only when my parents had got up in the morning and drunk their milk did we slake our thirst. My God, if this act of mine was only to please you, then may this rock be moved, and may we be saved from this calamity which has befallen us.’ Then the rock moved a little but the opening was not wide enough to let them out.

“Now the second man started praying. He said, ‘O God. I had a cousin, my uncle’s daughter. I loved her very much. But whenever, I wanted to be intimate with her, she forbade it. Then, after some time, when she was starving because of a famine, she came to me for help. I gave her 120 dinars on the condition that she would surrender herself to me. She was ready for this, but the moment I had her completely in my power and had come very close to her, she said, “Fear God, and do not break the bonds of mahr (marriage bonds) without fulfilling its conditions.” At this I let her go, even although I loved her more than anyone in the world. And I did not even take back the money I had given her. 0, my God, If this action of mine was for your sake, then please, God, rescue us from this predicament.’ Then again the rock moved a little, but it was still not enough for them to walk out.

“Then the third man began to pray. He said, ‘My God, I used to employ a few men on daily wages. I would pay them all when the day’s work was done, but, one day, one of the labourers went away without collecting his wages. I took this amount and invested it in my business where it yielded a large profit. After some time, the labourer reappeared and demanded his wages. I said, ‘These camels, cows, goats and slaves that stand before you are your wages.’ ‘You must be joking,’ he replied. ‘No,’ I said, ‘I am not joking. It is all yours.’ He thereupon took away all the men and animals without leaving a single one for me. 0 God, if this act of mine was for your sake alone, then please avert this calamity we are facing.’ Then the rock moved far enough for them all to walk out.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

This being one of the best authenticated of the Prophet’s traditions, there is no cause to doubt its veracity. It proves not only that prayer is something which can even move mountains, but also that prayer is not just a matter of mere words which fall from the lips without bearing any relation to one’s real life.

This incident shows that a prayer that can move rocks can be made only by those who have surrendered themselves totally to God, who have made God their judge, who stand firmly on God’s chosen path, whom neither thirst, hunger nor family ties can divert from this path, who, even on the most emotional, sensitive issues, are open to God’s words, who defer immediately to His wishes, even at highly charged moments, who so fear the Day of Reckoning that they do not hesitate even to hand over all their acquired wealth to its real owner, who readily acknowledge a just demand, even if the supplicant is powerless in comparison to themselves.

God’s true servants are those who opt for God by making a psychological surrender and by sacrificing worldly interests. Men may pray to God to move rocks, but it is only those who have found God on this plane, who will have their prayers answered.