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Nor had he numbers to help him against Allah, nor was he able
to deliver himself.
I thought about this story. The attitude of the proud
man was so common in the world that it had led mankind to
many trials. I thought farther about the main disasters in the
world. In only a few years, the Rain Forest has been cut in
half, and with it, many sources of medicines that come from
the Rain Forest, medicines that cannot be found elsewhere.
Also many species of plants and animals have completely
disappeared from the surface of the earth.
When he finished, Waali looked around him. It was
said that the temperature of the desert had risen over the years,
and the deserts had become dryer. This was known as the
‘green-house effect'. The nomads lived on little, finding their
food with each season, and not dwelling very long in the same
area. Consequently, they used their natural resources
sparingly, giving the earth time to replenish itself. Now, the
governments encouraged nomads to settle down, causing the
soil to be overused and the cattle to eat all vegetation around
the settlements, turning complete areas into deserts.
"Is there any solution?" asked Waali. He stretched on the litter
and drank a few drops of water, precious as gold in the desert.
Then he recited:
"By the token of time through the ages
Verily man is in loss
Except such as have faith, and do righteous deeds, and
join together in the mutual teaching of truth, and of
patience and constancy "
[Qur’an, Surah 103]
Photo courtesy of: http://community.webshots.com/user/aziz36
Then he said:
"Men of faith are always the winners. But how much faith
do we have left?"
Suddenly, a man riding a white horse appeared over the
swaying, tormented dunes. The heat made the land look like a
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furnace with only spots of herbs marking the limit between the
earth and the sky. The horse was restive and its rider turned it
rather roughly. It was not a verdant land, so we could not go
slowly and let the animals graze. On the contrary, we passed
through an arid area even more barren that the one that we had
been riding through all day. As a result, the riders had
quickened the pace of the horses and hunger had enfeebled the
animals. Waali’s grandfather made the man dismount, wiped
the face of his horse with his gown, and said:
“Fear Allah, it behooves you to treat the animals gently.
See here, my brother, do not clip the forelock of the horse as
you did, for decency is attached to its forelock. Do not clip its
mane, for it protects it; nor its tail, for it is its fly-flap! See, my
brother, Allah is Who made us vicegerents on earth. There is a
reward for acts of charity to every beast alive. A good deed
done to a beast is as well as doing good to a human being
while an act of cruelty to a beast is as bad as an act of cruelty
to a human being. Kindness to animals was promised by
rewards in the Hereafter.” [A Haadith]
The man apologized and turned his face down out of
shame. Nevertheless, he told his matter, and Waali’s
grandfather and the mysterious rider disappeared into the
wilderness in a flash. We made camp, waiting for his return,
which would certainly be prompt.
Photo courtesy of: http://www.habluetzel.com/
Waali was teaching me the basics of making camp in a
no man's land as the night was covering us.
He was himself about to enter the circle he had made on the
ground to mark the place where he was about to pray to Allah
when his grandfather reappeared from the veils of the night.
He approached, extinguished the small fire, and dragged Waali
by the sleeve out of the tracks.
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