|
By:
Dr. `Abd Al-Hakam `Abd Al-Latif As-Sa`idi
Lecturer of Entomology – Faculty of Agriculture – Al-Azhar
University
Plover
is one of wading and migrating birds. Canada is its homeland and
it usually emigrates from Canada to America doing a long and
arduous journey. Actually, flocks of plover cover this journey
incessantly; the thing which makes this journey of more than 3000
miles more difficult, in addition to passing through the Pacific
Ocean; this makes the journey more arduous. Naturally, men or
animals, when travelling long distances, are obliged to take a
rest and get their breath back. Moreover, they can have some food
and drink or light meals fitting to such circumstances. In
contrast to that, we find these birds enter some kind of
obligatory and incessant fasting by Day and Night, for they have
no way but continuing the journey incessantly along with fasting.
This reminds us of the saying of a Muslim leader to his soldiers
when they got in confrontation with the enemy: "The enemy is
before you and the sea is behind you (meaning that they have no
way but to confront the enemy seriously until they achieve
victory; otherwise they will be defeated or drowned in the sea to
the last man)."
Likewise,
these birds have no way but to gird their loins for continuing the
journey because if they intend to take rest they will inevitably
perish in the Ocean's water. So, we see these birds beseeching
Allah's help to grant them success to continue the journey as if
they look at their images on the surface of water from the horizon
thinking that they are birds overtaken by drowning. Accordingly,
they think that their case is better off and are motivated by this
scene to fly higher than the surface of water. Actually, they
continue fasting and flying for thirteen days which means that
they observe non-stop fasting, the thing that’s prohibited for
Muslims, save the Prophet, blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him, who said in this regard, "… As for me, I sleep in the
presence of my Lord enjoying food and drink by a butler."
Thus, although Allah, Most High, has predestined this arduous
journey on these birds, He provides them with the necessary energy
that will enable them to carry out this hard mission.
No doubt, these birds’ form of fasting gives us great
indications on the Omnipotence of Allah, Exalted and Glorified be
He. It, moreover, adds another dimension of the forms of asting
adopted by people and living species. We have previously mentioned
that eels observe fasting for two or three years whether it be the
first fasting which is the fasting of the young or the latter
fasting which is the fasting of the old. Likewise, plover observes
fasting but while flying in the sky. The moment it reaches its
resting location, it reposes for some time and then proceeds to
have food delightfully in larger amounts than its needs to save
some food in the form of fatty substances, taking into
consideration the returning journey in the same road.
|
