The Crying Camel

Camel  

Since September 11 their has been many slanderous remarks towards Mohammad (PBUH) and I thought of one his views towards animal rights would be a good example of who he was:

The city of Medina where the Prophet lived was a beautiful city. There were many gardens around the city. In the gardens, there were many trees. When the sun shone brightly, during the daytime, the trees gave cool shade and the people used to sit in the shade.

One day, the Prophet walked through a garden. He saw a camel standing in one corner of the garden. The camel was tied to a post and was making howling sound. The Prophet walked close to the camel. Big tears were rolling down its cheeks making the fur of its face wet. The prophet felt pity for the camel and stroked its fur, and wiped away its tears. The camel gave as snort as camels so when they are pleased. The Prophet saw that the camel was very thin and turned to the people sitting in the garden.

“Who is the owner of this camel?” He asked. A man stepped forward and said, “I am the owner of the camel. O Prophet of Allah!”

The Prophet told him he had been very cruel to the camel by not giving him enough food and drink. The animal was howling and crying because he had also made him do hard work. The Prophet (saw) explained that if people keep animals they have duties towards them; they should give the animal enough food and drink and not make them do too much hard work.

The owner of the camel was ashamed and said, “I have done wrong. The camel is one of Allah’s living creatures I am sorry for my cruelty.”

All living must be treated kindly. The Prophet (saw) taught that if people treated their animals in a kind manner, Allah will be happy, with them. But if they treat animals badly, Allah will be angry.

The camel owner never forgot what the Prophet had told him and after that he always took care of his camel.


Note:

Father & Son

British singer-songwriter Cat Stevens was born Stephen Demetre Georgiou in London on 21st July 21 1948. He sold 40 million albums, mostly in the 1960s and 1970s. He converted to Islam and changed his name to Yusuf Islam. Father & Son was one of his greatest hits - he re-recorded it with Ronan Keating in 2004 and the proceeds were donated to the Band Aid charity.