Lives Of The Prophets

To Live

The palaces of the Pharaoh towered above Egypt, magnificent in their glory. The people of the city had grown up under their shadows, the darkness looming over them, inescapable and deadly. Always watching. They were the symbol of the wealth and luxury of Egypt. The symbol of prosperity. But their beauty served to be of no comfort to the citizens. They were only a reminder. Of the Pharaoh's absolute rule. Of the notion that he was above them in every way- that he was god.

But they knew little of the insurmountable heights Allah resided in, if they were so easily made to be fools. It was not a notion they could easily comprehend, so consumed with this measly world.

The fact to be noted was that the palaces, in all their grandeur, never seemed to be alive. Despite all the wealth they held, they felt like cages. Stuffed cages suspended in time, with air thick enough to drown in. Suffocating.

But it was not as if there was no laughter to be heard there. The luxuries provided to the Coptic Egyptians were plenty, providing ample cause for laughter. The court ladies giggled in delight at their beautiful new dresses, bought with the price of Bani Israel's suffering. There was also much fun to be had at every new rumor, because shaming and lowering others has always been enjoyable. The visors and noblemen laughed after a challenging game.

They laughed as the schemed. They laughed as they butchered and stole and ridiculed. They laughed as they partied and danced, because they were the ones that deserved that. Because they knew that Bani Israel were starving and suffering. It is an ugly part of a human's nature, to feel superior by hurting others.

But that can only be accomplished by the people who believe that superiority is possible among human beings. But the people that believe in Allah know that it is nothing but an illusion. A very powerful one. But not as strong as the reality of لآ اِلَهَ اِلّا اللّهُ.

They laughed, but they could never make it seem as though they were truly alive. For an unbeliever is not. But as a maid rushed in to work one day, it seemed as though a barrier had been lifted from the palace. It was quite hard to believe, but the Pharaoh's palace was alive. Alive with whispers, speculation and shocked delight. The noble court ladies were gossiping, and the servants moved with an energy that hadn't been there before. There was something incredibly different.

And at the center of all that was a child as beautiful as the moon. He had caught the High Queen's heart, and the court ladies all fawned over him, hoping to earn her favor. He became the toy of the palace, adorable and lovely. The servants gushed over him, the child that the Nile had gifted them with.

It wasn't just the baby's cuteness hat captured the hearts of people and led them towards him. There was a certain light in him. And to the Pharaoh's people, it was as if they had been blind all their lives. The presence of that boy felt like spring after a life lived in cold and harsh winter.

But people don't always realize the feelings of their heart. They didn't truly understand what that boy meant to them. They had become so accustomed to the cold that the warmth of spring would feel far too uncomfortable now. 

There wasn't something out-worldly extraordinary about that baby. He just had something very simple and beautiful. He had the power of Iman. Belief in Allah. And that is the only thing that any of us ever need to have.

It was as if there was a single beating heart among ice cold stones. Warm and bright, beating louder with every moment until the only sound that could be heard was its thumping. Beating. Shouting the name of its Creator, Allah.

The Queen had sensed that in him, although unknowingly. Out of all those people, the light of Iman had touched her heart. And Allah had rewarded her with the upbringing of a prophet (peace be upon him).

The preparations to accommodate the baby began immediately. Everyone rushed and readied, eager to please the Great Queen. But the foremost concern wasn't readying a room for the baby, or buying new clothes for him. The matter that demanded the most attention was that of hiring a wet nurse.

A wet nurse was presented before the Queen, one deemed worthy to feed a child of Egypt's Great Queen. But as that nurse held on to the baby and began to feed him, he started crying, and refused to drink. It was not uncommon for a baby to reject a nurse, not liking the smell or something likewise. So the Queen called for a second nurse, because the baby had to be fed in order to live.

But even though it had been a long time since the baby had last been fed- having traveled the Nile towards the Pharaoh and his wife- he still cried and refused to be fed. This is where the concerns started. A third nurse was arranged for immediately, supposedly better than the last two. But the matter of the baby was very strange.

He cried, and refused. Again and again, until five nurses had tried and given up on him. 

The whispers about the baby started from the palace and spread through the land. The Great Queen had adopted a very strange child. Why does he cry and refuse? The nurses had tried very hard, having walked into the palace expecting the Queen's pleasure and a reward. But the plans of the Creator cannot be understood by mere creations such as us. 

"Have you seen, my lady, the new child in the palace?"

"Of course I have! He is incredibly beautiful- perhaps the most in Egypt. But he is very strange. Not like normal babies, I say. He simply refuses to get nursed!"

"I heard that he cries whenever a nurse tries to feed him! Whatever is the matter with him?"

"If this goes on, the poor child will meet his end. The most capable nurse needs to be arranged immediately!"

The noble ladies were not wrong. It had been three days since the baby had last been fed. If he did not drink still, he would die.

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