I am a wood-eating ant. Some people call me a termite. People call our kind white ants in order to distinguish us from the ordinary ants. But in fact we are not white ants. We only consent to it because many people know us as such. We are of a slightly higher rank than normal ants. I am called an earth ant. We are pale colored and our way of life is somewhat strange. Sometimes we dig in the earth and build houses that can hold six hundred thousand ants. Even though we live underground we have an airing system and we sometimes build parallel tunnels under the ground. Each tunnel is located directly under the other.
Moreover, we fix the pebbles of sand and dust with our saliva so that these barriers become like human cement as they are so solid. The king of the white ants lives long, and the queen is responsible for laying eggs. During her life span, the queen lays around ten million eggs and then these eggs hatch to become soldiers and workers, both males and females. The white ant soldiers are bigger in size than the workers and their heads are large and solid.
When we, white ants, attack another ant city, the soldiers are in the lead of the army but in front of them stand the commandos. The commando ants have long noses that resemble a beak and when ordinary ants attack these beaked-ants they secrete a sticky liquid that sticks to the neck of the enemy soldier ant like glue. In this way we paralyze our enemies and win. We feed mainly on wood. Our stomach contains certain kinds of bacteria that help us digest wood and make it tasty, just like the most delicious food of the humans.
White ants have special migrations where we go out in large numbers once in a lifetime. We fly in huge swarms of males and females in search of new homes. Most of us fall prey to birds and animals or we die because of other reasons. Then a male and female survive from this group and instantly start digging a new home after they get rid of their wings that they now have no use for. After that, they get married in their underground house and start establishing a new colony. In this way it takes only two of us to produce a whole new generation.
That's my social life. But, let me tell you about something! While we were just tiny ants that live in our houses, we used to hear many different stories about the relationships between Jinn and people. In spite of our tiny size we realized that these relationships were really a weapon for the Jinn. Allah 'azza wa-jall had subjected the Jinn to Prophet Sulaiman (Solomon), peace be upon him, in order to serve him. The Jinn could dive deep into the seas, they could build whatever Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, wanted, like castles and houses within days, they could pave roads in just hours.
This subjection happened only in the time of Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, to go against an old law that had separated the Jinn from the humans. This subjection of the Jinn was one of Prophet Sulaiman's miracles that Allah 'azza wa-jall granted him. And people witnessed many supernatural things that the Jinn could do while human beings could not. Therefore, people's belief in Allah 'azza wa-jall was supposed to increase. Moreover, their realization of Allah's Infinite Power was supposed also to increase.
But what happened was that myths and illusions started to spread. People started to believe in the ability of the Jinn without attributing the miracle to Allah 'azza wa-jall. Ignorant people went so far as to say that the jinn know the Ghayb, all that is hidden. Being an ant, I do not know who spread this ridiculous rumor. For none knows the Ghayb save Allah 'azza wa-jall, not the jinn, not the humans, not the Prophets, and not the angels.
I know that the Jinn do not know the Ghayb. My great-great grandfather to be the sole evidence of proof in the case that the Jinn do not know the Ghayb. Let me tell you what happened.
When my great-great grandfather was flying with a thousand of my kind, he suddenly fell. One of his wings had come off while he was flying. Where do you think he landed? In the mihrab of Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, where he used to worship Allah 'azza wa-jall. As soon as he had fallen, he got rid of his other wing and started exploring the place. He felt a little bit dizzy after his fall but, he felt even dizzier when he started walking about the mihrab.
The greatness of the mihrab surpassed the ability of an ant's mind to even comprehend. The floors were made of marble covered with carpets; the walls were made of pure crystal, there was no ceiling and Prophet Sulaiman's chair was made of gold. Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, was sitting on his chair and was supporting his chin with a staff he was holding in his hand. No one dared to barge in on the mihrab while Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, was in a state of worship.
He realized that he had made a fatal mistake for he was the only creature that had dared to enter Prophet Sulaiman's mihrab. What would happen if he were to raise his head and see my great-great grandfather? He told himself that he should greet him so he would not be surprised by his presence. He whispered, "Greetings upon the Prophet king Sulaiman the wise. Sir, I am an ant that has fallen here by mistake. I seek your forgiveness. If you would show me the door, I will leave." Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, did not answer.
He raised his voice higher but Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, remained silent. He came closer to him and raised his head to look at the Prophet Sulaiman's reverent, beautiful and graceful face. His eyes were open and staring at the space of ground before him. He was not blinking. My great-great grandfather said to himself that Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, might be absorbed in his prayer and so my great-great grandfather stood still. A long time passed and he did not move.
He came closer to Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, and said in a weak voice, "Sir King Sulaiman! I am hungry. It is my mealtime and there is not even one piece of wood in the whole room except for the staff you are leaning on. What should I do?" Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, did not answer, so my great-great grandfather came closer to him and repeated a new petition. He explained that he was hungry and that the staff Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, was leaning on was his only food. Despite all this, my great-great grandfather remained silent.
The night passed and morning came and Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, still did not move. The realization suddenly hit my great-great grandfather that Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, was dead. The whiteness of his lips; the grayness of his face and his still silence, were things that told him that Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, was dead. My great-great grandfather prayed long for his pure soul and then advanced towards the staff. It was sustenance provided by Allah 'azza wa-jall.
He started eating the staff. Ah! It was made out of the wood of carob. "This staff reminds me of the destruction that will befall Prophet Sulaiman's house," my great-great grandfather thought while eating. "O generous Prophet, peace and blessings be upon you, you are kind whether dead or alive, for even though you are dead you feed me your staff. How noble you are!" he said to himself. He started eating again. It took him days to eat a part of it. Then the body suddenly became unbalanced and Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, fell to the ground. My great-great grandfather did not mean to do that. As soon as Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, fell to the ground, my great-great grandfather felt his whole body shaking.
The Jinn were passing by the mihrab and when they saw Prophet Sulaiman's body sprawled on the ground, they began to spread the news. Prophet Sulaiman's ministers entered the mihrab and found him dead. The Jinn stopped working after learning of Prophet Sulaiman's death because they realized that they were now free from their subjection to Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him. It took a while for the people to discover that Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, had died a long time ago and all this while the jinn were working oblivious to everything. His death was from the Ghayb and so the jinn did not know about it. The proof was made clear.
My great-great grandfather, the small ant, uncovered what he uncovered and dispelled the lie of the Jinn knowing the Ghayb. He was the means to exposing the truth when he let the staff fall. Even though his mouth can hardly be seen, he let the curtain fall on the wide reign of Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him. It was a reign in which both the biggest and smallest creatures took part. Surprisingly, the smallest and most simple creature was the one that let the curtains fall on it.
Praise be to He Who gives and takes, and gives reign and takes it again. Praise be to He Who made a beginning and an ending for every thing. Praise be to Allah 'Azza wa-Jalla for the beginning and the end.
Reference :أَفَلَمْ يَرَوْا إِلَى مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالأرْضِ إِنْ نَشَأْ نَخْسِفْ بِهِمُ الأرْضَ أَوْ نُسْقِطْ عَلَيْهِمْ كِسَفًا مِنَ السَّمَاءِ إِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لآيَةً لِكُلِّ عَبْدٍ مُنِيبٍ
"Then, do they not look at what is before them and what is behind them of the heaven and earth? If We should will, We could cause the earth to swallow them or [could] let fall upon them fragments from the sky. Indeed in that is a sign for every servant turning back [to Allah ]." - [QS.34:9]
- Ahmad Bahjat, Animals in The Glorious Qur'an, Islamic e-Books
