Part 6: The Story of Ibrahim (AS)

After Ibrahim (AS) had done whatever work he felt he could do in his original area, where he grew up, he felt that he should now leave. So, he announced, “Innee muhaajirun ilaa rabbee”—”I’m going towards my Lord.” In other words, “I’m going to spend the rest of my life obeying Allah (SWT) and carrying out the work that Allah (SWT) has created me for.”

So, he left his hometown and went into the area that, at that time, was called Caledonia. He then travelled westward along the Euphrates, continued into Syria—Harran—from there into Palestine, passed Nablus, and at one point, he continued travelling all the way into Egypt.

At that time, Egypt was ruled by the Pharaohs, and the Pharaoh had a law that anyone travelling with his wife would have his wife kidnapped. So, when Ibrahim (AS) was passing by, he was asked and questioned while travelling with his wife, Sarah (AR). He said, “This is my sister,” meaning in faith—she believes as I do. But they captured her anyway.

Every time the king tried to get close to her, she would make du’a to Allah (SWT). Some narrations mention that the king would freeze or start sinking into the ground. He would then become desperate, yelling, screaming, and begging her, “Please get me out of this! I’ll let you go.” So, she would make du’a, and he would be released. But his intention wasn’t pure. Again, he would attempt to get close to her, and again, Allah (SWT) would stop him, and he would start sinking into the ground.

This happened three times, and each time, he was released because she made du’a to Allah to let him go. When he realised that this was something very serious and completely out of his control—and since Egyptians at that time were very superstitious and feared jinn—they thought that this might be the work of a jinn. So, he said, “We better let this lady go.”

As he let her go, he gave her a whole bunch of gifts and also gave Ibrahim (AS) many gifts. In fact, because that king could trace his origin back to the same family that Ibrahim (AS) was originally from, he understood that Ibrahim (AS) was a very noble man. As a result, he also married his own daughter to Ibrahim (AS).

Now, Ibrahim (AS) left. Originally, when he started his journey, he had only his wife and his nephew with him—his nephew being his brother’s son, Lut (AS). Lut (AS) was the nephew of Ibrahim (AS). Both uncle and nephew, when they went back towards Palestine, decided to settle in different areas.

At that time, there wasn’t much greenery or grass, which animals needed. Their intention was to raise animals—sheep, goats, and so on. If they all gathered in one place, it would be difficult for their animals. So, Ibrahim (AS) settled further down, and Lut (AS) settled a little closer. In this way, they started their lives as residents of a completely new part of the world.

However, Ibrahim (AS) continued his message. One of the interesting aspects of his story is the number of du’as that are mentioned. We have already spoken about some of them.

Another prayer that Ibrahim (AS) made was:

“Rabbanaa laa taj‘alnaa fitnatan lil-qawmi az-zaalimeen”
“O our Lord, do not make us a trial for the wrongdoing people.

And also:

“Laa taj‘alnaa fitnatan lilladheena kafaroo.”
“Do not make us a test for the disbelievers.”

What does this mean? “Don’t make us a test for the disbelievers” has a couple of meanings. One is:

“O Allah, don’t put animosity in their hearts against us so that they start torturing us and inflicting pain upon us, making us the target of their aggression. In this way, we become a test for them—Allah (SWT) tests them through us—and at the same time, we also get tested by enduring hardships.”

These tests are of two different kinds. One is when those people are put in charge over you, constantly pushing you away from your faith, applying pressure, and trying to convince you otherwise. The other test is when they start inflicting all kinds of hardships upon you.

So, one of the things Ibrahim (AS) asked Allah’s protection from was:

“O Allah, I don’t want to be the one who becomes a target of abuse, aggression, oppression, or injustice, so that You test them through us, and then You also test us with all these hardships because of them.”

The other meaning of this du’a is:

“O Allah, make us such that we become a good example for disbelievers. So when they see us, they see in us the kind of people they aspire to be—the kind of people they wish they could be. Don’t make us from those who cause others to go astray.”

Because if someone sees us doing the wrong thing and follows it—taking it as their model and example—then, on the Day of Judgment, they will stand up and speak against us in the court of Allah, saying:

“Rabbanaa innaa ata‘naa saadatanaa wa kubaraa’anaa fa-adalloona as-sabeela.”
“Our Lord, indeed we obeyed our leaders and our great men, and they led us astray from the [right] way.”

This du’a is very powerful and comprehensive, just like all the other du’as of Ibrahim (AS). InshaAllah, we’ll continue the narrative of Ibrahim (AS).