Nūḥ and His Son

To go quickly through some of these stories, which may be read for oneself. The story of Nūḥ (peace be upon him) is given in several places, but here it is probably the most detailed. Nūḥ (peace be upon him) is a prophet of great interest, for he lived the longest, and yet had very few followers. One of his sons was not among his followers.

The story is deeply moving, in that Allah (swt) says, quoting him, that he should make the boat, since everyone is to be destroyed, and that he must take with him all the believers, and the animals, and everything. And then comes the part where he says:

Wa nādā Nūḥun rabbahu fa-qāla rabbi inna bnī min ahlī. His son is his family in the sense that he is biologically related to him; but he is not a good man, and he has not followed. And he sees that his son does not wish to come aboard the boat with them either. He has every kind of excuse. He thinks — he has seen floods before — and says: I shall go to the highest mountain; no flood has ever gone so high; so I shall escape it; I shall simply live through it, batten down and survive.

And so Nūḥ (peace be upon him) — and at the end of this there is the whole tension between one's religion, at times, and one's beloved, which may be a fitnah for a man — Nūḥ (peace be upon him) calls upon his Lord and says: my Lord, my son is of my family, and Your promise is the truth, and You are the best of judges.

And subḥānAllāh, Allah (swt) turns to him and says: he is not of your family. He may be so biologically; but your true family is your religious family. His deeds are not good. Do not ask of Me that of which you have no knowledge; and I warn you, lest you become of the unaware.

So immediately Nūḥ (peace be upon him) — and this is the believer. A man may be pulled by his emotions. Human beings are pulled by their emotions; one only does not let them get out of hand, and there is a boundary set to them. So yes, a man is pulled by his emotions; his heart will go out to his children, or to whoever it may be; but in the end the commands of Allah must reign supreme.

So immediately Nūḥ (peace be upon him) says: my Lord, I seek refuge with You from asking You of that of which I have no knowledge; I seek Your refuge from asking You about something of which I have no knowledge. And if You do not forgive me and have mercy upon me, I shall be among the losers. A great lesson for all of us.