The story of Prophet Nooh - part 1

Prophet Nooh (Noah)  was one of the prominent Prophets whom Allaah Almighty sent to guide people to His Path - that of Monotheism. Ibn 'Abbaas narrated that Prophet Muhammad  said: "The period between Aadam and Nooh was ten centuries." [Al-Bukhaari]

Nooh  was therefore born some one thousand years after Aadam's creation, or after he left the Garden of Eden. For many generations, the people of Nooh  had been worshipping statues that they called gods. They believed that these gods would bring them good, protect them from evil and provide all their needs. They gave their idols names such as Wadd, Suwaa', Yaghooth, Ya'ooq, and Nasr.

Allaah Almighty revealed in the Noble Quran (what means): "And [the idolaters] said: 'Never leave your gods and never leave Wadd, nor Suwaa' or Yaghooth and Ya'ooq and Nasr [i.e., the names of their idols]." [Quran: 71:23] Originally, these were the names of good people who had lived among them. After their deaths, statues of them were erected to keep their memories alive. After some time, however, people began to worship these statues. Later generations did not even know why they had been erected; they only knew their parents had prayed to them. That is how idol worshipping developed. Since they had no understanding of Allaah Almighty who would punish them for their evil deeds, they became cruel and immoral.

Ibn 'Abbaas  explained: "Following the death of those righteous men, Satan inspired their people to erect statues in the places where they used to sit. They did this, but these statues were not worshiped until the coming generations deviated from the right way of life. Then they worshipped them as their idols."

In his description of this story, Imaam Ibn Jareer  narrated: "There were righteous people who lived in the period between Aadam and Nooh, may Allaah exalt their mention, and who had followers who held them as models. After their death, their friends who used to emulate them said: 'If we make statues of them, it will be more pleasing to us in our worship and will remind us of them.' So they built statues of them and, after they had died and others came after them, Iblees (Satan) crept into their minds saying: 'Your forefathers used to worship them, and through that worship they got rain.' So they worshipped them."

Imaam Ibn Abu Haatim  related the following story: "Wadd was a righteous man who was loved by his people. When he died, they withdrew to his grave in the land of Babylonia and were overwhelmed by sadness. When Iblees saw their sorrow caused by his death, he disguised himself in the form of a man saying: 'I have seen your sorrow because of this man's death; can I make a statue like him which could be put in your meeting place to make you remember him?' They said: 'Yes.' So he made the statue like him. They put it in their meeting place in order to be reminded of him. When Iblees saw their interest in remembering him, he said: 'Can I build a statue of him in the home of each one of you so that he would be in everyone's house and you could thereby remember him?' They agreed. Their children learned about and saw what they were doing. They also learned about their remembrance of him instead of Allaah. So the first to be worshipped instead of Allaah was Wadd, the idol which they named thus."

The essence of this point is that every idol from those earlier mentioned was worshipped by a certain group of people. It was mentioned that people made pictures and, as the ages passed, they made these pictures into statues, so that their forms could be fully recognised; afterwards they were worshipped instead of Allaah.

It was narrated that Umm Salamah and Umm Habeebah  who were two of the wives of the Prophet  informed him  about the church named 'Maria' that they had seen in the land of Abyssinia. They described its beauty and the pictures therein. He  said: "Those are the people who build places of worship on the grave of every dead man who was righteous and then make therein those pictures. Those are the worst of creation in the sight of Allaah." [Al-Bukhaari]

Worshipping anything other than Allaah is a tragedy that results not only in the loss of freedom; its serious effect reaches man's mind and destroys it as well. Almighty Allaah created man and his mind with its purpose set on achieving knowledge, the most important of which is that Allaah alone is the Creator and all the rest are worshippers (slaves). Therefore, disbelief in Allaah, or polytheism, results in the loss of freedom, the destruction of the mind, and the absence of a noble target in life. By worshipping anything other than Allaah, man becomes enslaved to Satan, who is himself a creature, and becomes harnessed to his own baser qualities.

Into that environment, Allaah sent Nooh  with His message to his people. Nooh  was the only intellectual not caught in the whirlpool of man's destruction which was caused by polytheism.

Allaah, out of His Mercy, sent His messenger Nooh  to guide his people. Nooh  was an excellent speaker and a very patient man. He pointed out to his people the mysteries of life and the wonders of the universe. He pointed out how the night is regularly followed by the day and that the balance between these opposites was designed by Allaah Almighty for our good. The night gives coolness and rest while the day gives warmth and awakens activity. The sun encourages growth, keeping all plants and animals alive, while the moon and stars assist in the reckoning of time, direction and seasons. He pointed out that the ownership of the heavens and the earth belongs only to the Divine Creator.

Therefore, he explained to this people, there cannot have been more than one deity. He clarified to them how the devil had deceived them for so long and that the time had come for this deceit to stop. Nooh  spoke to them of Allaah's glorification of man, how He had created him and provided him with sustenance and the blessings of the mind. He told them that idol-worshipping was a suffocating injustice to the mind. He warned them not to worship anyone but Allaah and described the terrible punishment Allaah would mete out if they continued in their evil ways.

The people listened to him in silence. His words were a shock to their stagnating minds as it is a shock to a person who is asleep under a wall which is about to fall and who is vigorously awakened. This person may be alarmed and may even become angry, although the aim was only to save him.

The people of Nooh  were divided into two groups after his warning. His words touched the hearts of the weak, the poor, and the miserable, and soothed their wounds with its mercy. As for the rich, the strong, the mighty and the rulers, they looked upon the warning with cold distrust. They believed they would be better off if things stayed as they were. Therefore, they started their war of words against Nooh .

First they accused Nooh  of being a mere  human, just like themselves, as the verse states (what means): "So the eminent among those who disbelieved from his people said: 'We do not see you but as a man like ourselves'…." [Quran: 11:27]

He, however, had never said anything other than that. He asserted that, indeed, he was only a human being; Allaah had sent a human messenger because the earth was inhabited by humans. If it had been inhabited by angels, Allaah would have sent an angelic messenger.

The contest between the polytheists and Nooh  continued. The rulers had thought at first that Nooh's call would soon fade on its own. When they found that his call attracted the poor, the helpless and common labourers, they started to verbally attack and taunt him: 'You are only followed by the poor, the meek and the worthless.'

Allaah the Almighty tells us in the Quran (what means): "And We had certainly sent Nooh to his people, [saying]: 'Indeed, I am to you a clear warner. That you not worship except Allaah. Indeed, I fear for you the punishment of a painful day.' So the eminent among those who disbelieved from his people said: 'We do not see you but as a man like ourselves, and we do not see you followed except by those who are the lowest of us [and] at first suggestion. And we do not see in you over us any merit; rather, we think you are a liar.'" [Quran: 11:25-27]

Thus, the conflict between Nooh  and the heads of his people intensified. The disbelievers tried to bargain: "Listen Nooh! If you want us to believe in you, then dismiss your believers. They are meek and poor, while we are elite and rich; no faith can include us both." Nooh listened to the heathens of his community and realised they were obstinate. However, he was gentle in his response. He explained to his people that he could not dismiss the believers as they were not his guests but Allaah's.

Nooh  appealed to them saying (what means): "O my people! I ask not of you for it any wealth. My reward is not but from Allaah. And I am not one to drive away those who have believed. Indeed, they will meet their Lord, but I see that you are a people behaving ignorantly. And O my people! Who would protect me from Allaah if I drove them away? Then will you not be reminded? And I do not tell you that I have the depositories [containing the provision] of Allaah or that I know the unseen, nor do I tell you that I am an angel, nor do I say of those upon whom your eyes look down that Allaah will never grant them any good. Allaah is most knowing of what is within their souls. Indeed, I would then be among the wrongdoers [i.e., the unjust].'" [Quran: 11:29-31]

Nooh  refuted the arguments of the disbelievers with the noble knowledge of the prophets. It is the logic of intellect that rids itself of personal pride and interests.