Hunting an Antelope | English Story for Kids

One Account, One Miracle

Hunting an antelope

Mawlana Haydar Ali Madani

“But Grandad,” cried Suhayb. “The zoo was big but there were no elephants in it! Uncle said that one named Suzi lived there, though.”

Suhayb and Khubayb would visit Uncle in Lahore during the summer holidays. Although it had been one week since they returned, Khubayb’s mind was still there. Day and night, he spoke only about Lahore, visiting Lahore Fort, seeing the Tower of Pakistan, and going to Badshahi Masjid to see the relics there. After Asr, Grandad sat on the lawn. Khubayb had joined him, and they both were now speaking of the zoo they had visited during their time in Lahore.

Suhayb then arrived with a glass of water in one hand, and something else in the other. “Grandad, you must be tired of hearing about Lahore every minute, so have some of these mulberries and get some energy back in you!” He put them in front of Grandad and asked Khubayb to bring a chair.

“You guys eat,” Khubayb said, “I don’t like mulberries at all.”

“What do you mean?” Grandad asked. “Yesterday, you were talking about the healthy foods we should eat, but you do not have any mulberries? They help with controlling blood pressure and improve eyesight. I will tell you something else; eating them keeps your mind healthy and can help you avoid things like Alzheimer’s disease.”

Suhayb added, “I even saw someone on Madani Channel saying that mulberries can help someone control their sugar levels if they have diabetes and help protect from cancer!”

“Alright alright, bro”, Khubayb smiled, “I’ll never say no to mulberries again.” Grandad and Suhayb smiled in return.

“Grandad, let me tell you something else,” Khubayb said. “I’ve been thinking about an interesting animal we saw yesterday. It’s called an antelope.”

Suhayb sighed, “Grandad, he cannot stop talking about Lahore! We have spoken about that a lot, but we have not heard about a miracle from you in quite a while.”

Grandad then disclosed, “This reminds me of a miracle of our beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم. Let me share it with you. 1400 years ago, the Roman empire was a superpower, and their rulers were called Caesar. In the 9^th year after the migration from Makkah to Madinah, news reached the beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم that Caesar planned to send armed forces to invade Madinah. In response, the beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم led an army of 30,000 and stationed it at Tabuk.^[1]  However, the awe-inspiring status of Allah’s beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم was such that Caesar and his army did not come out.”

Grandad paused to take a sip of water, when Khubayb began to chuckle. “It seems like the so-called superpower was not so super after all,” he said. Grandad and Suhayb both laughed with him.

Picking up where he left off, Grandad continued, “The army sent to Tabuk stayed there for 20 days. The fearful Romans refused to engage in battle, so no fighting occurred.^[2] Then one day, the beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم had a small force put together under the command of Sayyidunā Khālid b. Walīd رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ. They were dispatched to capture the ruler of Dumat al-Jandal. Before they left, the Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم said, ‘He (the ruler) will be hunting antelopes at night. Do not kill him when you encounter him. He should be captured alive and brought to me.’”

The smile on Suhayb’s face beamed. “Allah Almighty gave our beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم knowledge of the future.”

“Yes indeed,” said Grandad. Resuming, he mentioned, “When the Sword of Allah, Sayyidunā Khālid b. Walīd رَضِىَ الـلّٰـهُ عَـنْهُ reached Dumat al-Jandal, he found everything exactly in accordance with what the beloved Prophet صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم had described. The ruler was hunting antelopes on the night of a full moon. He was easily captured and then brought to Allah’s Messenger صَلَّى الـلّٰـهُ عَلَيْهِ وَاٰلِهٖ وَسَلَّم.”^[3]

Grandad stood up from his chair when he finished explaining this. “Go and get ready!” he exclaimed, “The azan for Maghrib prayer is about to begin.”