Long ages ago, in a land far away,
Lived a chosen messenger of Almighty Allaah,
Who steadfastly prayed and called to the Truth;
So true was the man whose name was Noah.
He spent all his days in praying to Him
And guiding his nation through the mazes of Life,
And thankful to Allaah did Noah remain
In sorrow and joy, in happiness and in strife.
One day to Noah a woman did come.
Something or the other was troubling her mind.
She saw the blessed prophet and walked up to him:
Listen to me, O Noah just and kind.
I am a mother but mother of none
For all my children die in their youth,
Some live to be fifty and quarter or hundred
But none have lived long to tell you the truth.
Thus I am a mother many times bereaved,
Much is my sorrow and much do I grieve.
So pray for me Noah, O prophet on Truth,
Pray to Allaah in whom we believe.
The prophet on hearing the distressed mother's tale
Prayed to Allaah that her children live long,
The mother thanked Noah for the kindness in him
The kindness that made Noah just and strong.
Then asked her this Noah: O mother you know,
We live nine hundred, eight hundred or so;
But in later ages on this very earth
The lifespan of people shall be very low.
How much O Prophet will they live to see?
The average O mother shall just be fifty!
The mother, stunned, listened to Noah said this
And then stood amazed as to how could this be!
So short a lifespan on this very earth
The troubled mother with wonder was filled.
Then gathered her senses, a thought crossed her mind:
O Prophet of Allaah, Will houses they build?
O yes, O lady, houses and much more,
And not only one but ten, fifteen or score.
Big mansions, huge castles, palaces for kings,
The wealth that they don't need, even that they will store.
If life is so small, what's the purpose of this?
If I lived in that age, this is all I shall do;
Live under that tree my entire short life
And take my Lord's name, Allaahu, Allaahu.
The said time has come when we don't live long lives,
But build lofty houses, beautiful and strong,
And sing on with
Life its so called merry tune
But soon shall get over this
Life's heartless song.
Let us in our hearts build a tree, a tree with a shade,
And under that tree our short life reside,
Even as our bodies are spent for this world
For the sake of Allaah our hearts cast aside.
[Allaah refers to God in Arabic used by Muslims; This is a narration from Islamic texts.]
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