It is an interesting story of the prophet Yonus. The unbelievers can learn a big lesson from this story of prophet Yonus. There you can learn how the prophet of Allah kept his struggle to guide the nation. Apart from this, it is the only prophet of Allah who prostrate Allah in the stomach of a big whale.
Hazrat Yunus, the Prophet for the Nation of Nineveh
Hazrat Yunus Ibn Matta was the messenger of Allah. He was sent to convey Allah’s message to the people of Nineveh, a city in the northern area of Iraq. Prophet Yunus was handed over to rule over a population of over a hundred thousand. Almighty Allah selected Yunus Ibn Matta for his message to the people of Nineveh. He was the simple man who grew among the citizens of Nineveh.
There in Nineveh, people had ignored the real message of Allah, and they started themselves to involve in worshiping the idols and in illegal activities. Therefore, Almighty Allah sent prophet Yunus, a messenger, to guide the people the actual path of their creator.
In this manner, ALLAH’s messenger quickly followed what ALLAH (SWT) asked him to do. Therefore, he initiated to invite people to turn towards ALLAH, the real creator of this universe, and stop to worship the idols and fake gods. However, the people of Nineveh became harsh and rejected the message of the prophet Yunus.
The nation rejected his invitation as similar to the previous nations that rejected their messengers. However, the prophet Yunus didn’t give up and continued his struggle to bring back the nation to the right path. Similarly, he reminded the nation regarding the previous nations who rejected the message of their messenger for the real creator. So, he reminded the nation of Nuh, Thamud, etc.
The People of Nineveh Rejected the Message of Prophet Yunus
Unfortunately, the people continuously rejected his message of the real creator. The people said that they and their forefather had worshiped these idols, and they did not face any harm at all. On the other hand, the prophet Yunus did not leave them, and he was continuously informing them regarding the punishment of old nations who neglected the real message of Islam.
Apart from this, one person said the prophet Yunus let it happen, and he started laughing insanely. Similarly, he said that they were not afraid of their empty threats. In this manner, prophet Yunus was disappointed in the nation’s response, and he gave up the non-believers. So, without the revelation of Allah, he decided to leave the community and the city. Similarly, he would join people who would believe him for the message of Allah. Thus, he left the Nineveh and moved in a ship for the sailing without Allah’s permission.
On the other hand, the sky above the Nineveh turned into an unpleasant color i.e., red. In this way, the men, women, and children gathered at a point on the top of the mountain. Therefore, people got worried, and the fear started boiling in their hearts. Apart from this, they reminded all the punishment which prophet Yunus reminded them.
Thus, they turned their hands for forgiveness and mercy. In this manner, Almighty Allah forgave them because of their sincere prayers at that time. Similarly, a blessed shower was poured by Almighty Allah over them. Later on, they prayed for the returning of their prophet Yunus. In this way, they could get guidance regarding the path of Allah.
The Prophet Yonus Left the Nation
On the other hand, the prophet Yunus came to move as far away from the nation of Nineveh as possible. Therefore, he boarded in a small passenger ship. However, the ship initiated its path for its destiny. Once the night time closed, a strong storm hit the ship. The crew started worried because the level of water was increasing in the sea. In this manner, the ship started sinking slowly.
After throwing the extra luggage of the people, the Captain of the boat said one person is extra in this ship, so they needed to throw that person from the ship. Therefore, the crew and captain decided to draw lots so that the passenger name could come exactly. In this way, the name of the prophet Yonus came, and people refused this decision. So, people asked captain to repeat it two times more. However, the name of prophet Yonus came thrice, so the prophet jumped in deep water.
Once he jumped in the deep water, Almighty Allah asked the largest to swallow Yunus. When he awakened, then he thought he came in the darkest area. At first, he thought he has come to his grave. Later on, he realized that he was in the big stomach of the largest fish.
However, prophet Yonus prostrated to Allah, and he said that ‘O Allah, the creator, I am bowing to you in a place where no one ever prostrated you before. Similarly, he said that no one is right to be worshiped but You Allah only. I was among the wrongdoers.
Fish Swallowing the Prophet Yonus
Therefore, Allah SWT asked the whale to spit out Yunus, his messenger, to the nearest shore. In this manner, the whale followed the instruction and command of Almighty Allah and ejected Yunus to the nearest shore. However, the prophet Yunus was inflamed due to acids in the stomach of the whale.
Similarly, Almighty Allah asked the tree to grow for Yonus and provide shade and food to him. Thus, Allah forgave him and informed him that if he were not sincere, he would have been there in the stomach of fish until the Day of Judgment.
Once the messenger of Allah completely recovered, he traveled back to the city Nineveh for the sake of completing his mission. When he reached his hometown, he got an amazing look at the area because the entire population of the Nineveh had accepted Islam. They were all waiting for the arrival of the prophet Yunus.
Therefore, the people, along with Yonus prostrated to Allah Almighty, and all thanked Allah for His blessing. It is interesting to note that the prophet Yonus population was the only population that accepted Islam in total.
Conclusion
It was the story of prophet Yunus who survived in the stomach of the whale for three days. Thus, it is one of the memorable stories in the history of Islam that other unbelievers can get a lesson. Similarly, the citizens of Nineveh are the only people who entirely accepted Islam.
