Part of The story of the Queen of Sheba (series completed)
· Lesson 2 of 15
The story of the Queen of Sheba | Episode (2) | The hoopoe was absent from the military parade
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Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
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The Story of the Queen of Sheba
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The hoopoe was absent from the military parade.
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The story of the Queen of Sheba begins when the Prophet of Allah, Solomon (peace be upon him), was inspecting his troops from among the birds,
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and he noticed the hoopoe's disappearance from among the birds in the army.
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The Prophet of Allah, Solomon (peace be upon him), became angry at the hoopoe's absence,
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and he swore to punish him severely unless he had a valid excuse for his absence.
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Almighty Allah says:
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“And he sought among the birds and said: How is it that I see not the hoopoe, or is he among the absent?” (27:20)
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﴿I will surely punish him with a severe punishment or slaughter him unless he brings me a clear authorization.﴾
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Al-Sa'di (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "This demonstrates the perfection of his resolve and firmness,
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his good organization of his troops, and his personal management of both minor and major affairs,
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to the extent that he did not neglect even this matter—inspecting the birds and checking whether they were all present or if any were missing."
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This is the mark of a resolute man regarding his charge; so do not feel aggrieved, my noble sister, if you are blessed with a resolute husband
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who checks on you and checks on your offspring, for if he does not do so, the family will be ruined.
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This is his duty, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
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"Every one of you is a guardian and every one of you is responsible for his charge.
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The ruler is a guardian and responsible for his charge;
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the man is a guardian over his family and is responsible for his charge;
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and the woman is a guardian in her husband's home and is responsible for her charge."
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Narrative by al-Bukhari.
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In another narration in al-Bukhari:
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"And the woman is a guardian over the household of her husband and his children, and she is responsible for them."
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Inspecting one's charge is a praiseworthy quality that shows the guardian's care for them,
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monitoring their affairs, taking care of their needs, and resolving their problems.
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Al-Tahir Ibn 'Ashur (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
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"Inspecting the troops is one of the hallmarks of kings and commanders,
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and it is one of the objectives of assembling and deploying armies.
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The meaning is that he inspected the birds among all the other things he inspected,
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and he said to those in charge of the birds: 'Why do I not see the hoopoe?'"
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Among the duties of rulers is inspecting the condition of their subjects,
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and personally checking on officials and the like—
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as 'Umar did when he set out for the Levant in the year 17 AH—
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or delegating it to someone he trusts,
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for 'Umar assigned Muhammad ibn Maslamah al-Ansari to inspect the officials.
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The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), in the aforementioned hadith,
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distributed the responsibility of the family between the husband and the wife,
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describing each of them as a guardian with a charge.
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Thus, it is not fitting for a guardian to neglect inspecting his charge.
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The entire family is the man's charge,
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and it is his responsibility to check on his wife's state:
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whom she befriends, with whom she goes out, where she goes,
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and how she spends her day and night;
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to check on her health
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and what medication or treatment she needs;
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and to check on her emotional well-being—
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what distresses her about his actions and what she likes—
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so that he can bestow happiness upon her
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and upon himself within the marital home.
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A husband needs firmness in his decisions when taking care of his home,
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and this is what a wife needs and looks for in her husband;
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in fact, it brings her joy coming from him.
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An intelligent woman becomes distressed if her husband lacks firmness in household and family matters
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and fails to monitor her well-being.
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Firmness does not mean harshness;
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rather, it means avoiding laxity and not backing down from stances if they are correct.
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The finest firmness is that which is tempered with gentleness.
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You have an excellent example in the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him),
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and in his wives, the Mothers of the Believers, a role model.
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The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to check on his wives,
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and they never felt aggrieved by that.
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On the authority of 'A'ishah, the wife of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who said:
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"I was delayed during the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) one night after the 'Isha' prayer,
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then I came, and he said, 'Where were you?'
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I said, 'I was listening to the recitation of a man among your Companions;
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I have never heard a recitation or a voice like his from anyone.'
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She said: So he stood up and I stood with him until he listened to him,
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then he turned to me and said:
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'This is Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hudhayfah.
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Praise be to Allah who has placed the likes of this man in my Ummah.'"
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Narrated by Ibn Majah.
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The Prophet's saying to 'A'ishah,
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"Where were you?"
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is a form of questioning the wife about her late return home
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and the reason for this delay.
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This implies
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that a husband has the right to ask such questions when checking on his wife's situation,
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especially if he harbors suspicion regarding any of her actions.
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Consider how the Prophet (peace be upon him) stood with her to listen to this man's recitation,
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recognizing and engaging with what she mentioned—
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not to disbelieve her or doubt what she said,
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for there was nothing in her words or actions to arouse suspicion or doubt about her,
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far be it from her (may Allah be pleased with her).
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However, a man might doubt his wife's word or an action of hers,
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and thus wish to verify the truth of what she said.
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This is his right if he has a Islamically valid justification.
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On the authority of Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), he said:
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The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
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"If I were to stone anyone without clear proof, I would have stoned such-and-such a woman,"
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for suspicion was evident in her speech, her appearance, and those who visited her.
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Narrated by Ibn Majah.
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Thus, regarding this woman, there appeared from her speech, her clothing, her appearance,
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and the men who visited her that which raised suspicion of her committing adultery;
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yet, the proof ordained by Allah to establish that—namely, four witnesses—was absent.
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Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not apply the prescribed legal punishment to her.
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Ibn Battal (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
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"Meaning: If I were to surpass the right of Allah regarding her based on the indications that arose against her,
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I would have stoned this woman due to the evident indications of her immorality."
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Likewise, part of the wife's care for her husband is checking on his well-being.
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A husband's condition may change from one state to another,
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and the wife may notice certain signs indicating his change in any matter,
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whether in his relationship with her, his relationship with his Lord, or otherwise.
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It is essential to recognize this change and its cause, and to address it promptly before it worsens.
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Here is 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) noticing a change in the supplication of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
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and his frequent repetition of a specific supplication, so she inquired from him to know the reason.
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'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said:
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"The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) used to seek refuge most frequently from debt and sin.
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I said, 'O Messenger of Allah, how frequently you seek refuge from debt!'
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He said, 'If a man incurs debt, he speaks and lies, and he makes a promise and breaks it.'"
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Narrated by al-Bukhari.
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And here is Maymunah noticing a change in the face of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him),
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so she asks him and makes him aware of her observation of his changed state.
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This reflects the acumen of Maymunah (may Allah be pleased with her).
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On the authority of 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), he said:
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Maymunah (may Allah be pleased with her) informed me
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that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) woke up one morning silent and sorrowful.
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Maymunah said, "O Messenger of Allah, I have noticed a change in your appearance today."
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The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:
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"Gabriel had promised to meet me last night, but he did not meet me.
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By Allah, he has never broken a promise to me."
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He said: So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) spent that day in that state.
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Then it occurred to him that a puppy had crawled under a tent of ours.
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He ordered that it be taken out,
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then he took water in his hand and sprinkled the spot.
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When evening came, Gabriel met him.
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The Prophet said to him, "You promised to meet me last night."
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He replied, "Yes,
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but we do not enter a house in which there is a dog or a picture."
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The next morning, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
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ordered the killing of dogs,
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to the point that he ordered the killing of a small garden's watch dog
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and spared a large garden's watch dog.
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Narrated by Muslim.
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So check on your husband's state before he changes toward you without you realizing it.
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Checking on the children is a joint responsibility of both spouses,
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even if the mother is closer to her children than the father,
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which is a natural matter,
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especially if she stays settled in her home,
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dedicated to taking care of her family.
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Therefore, the responsibility for the children was explicitly assigned to her,
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as in the narration of al-Bukhari:
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"And the woman is a guardian over the household of her husband and his children,
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and she is responsible for them."
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You are responsible for your children,
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for checking on their state, knowing whom they accompany
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and where they go;
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if they are late in returning home,
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you ask about them and the reason for their delay.
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If the mother senses any shortcoming or corruption in her children's lives,
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the advice for her is to inform her husband of it,
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and to avoid addressing the matter alone without consulting the husband.
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For such an action on her part
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may lead to the escalation of the issue beyond her control;
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furthermore, the father's delayed intervention in resolving the problem
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might create a new conflict between the father and his children,
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for which you would be the cause.
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You are likewise responsible for your home.
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Checking on the state of the home is an important issue in your marital life,
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for this inspection
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helps you identify deficiencies in the home,
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what needs repair or cleaning,
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or adding beauty to it,
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which brings joy to your husband and children.
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So ponder, my noble sister,
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this great lesson from the Prophet of Allah, Solomon (peace be upon him),
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in his inspection of the birds,
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and benefit from it in fulfilling your responsibilities
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toward those under your care.
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But what did the Prophet of Allah, Solomon (peace be upon him), do with the hoopoe after that?
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And how did the Prophet of Allah, Solomon (peace be upon him), govern his kingdom and his troops?
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We will continue in an upcoming gathering, Allah willing.
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Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
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The Story of the Queen of Sheba
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with the Prophet of Allah, Solomon (peace be upon him).