Reflection on Allah’s Creation of Insects
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : Then look at another thing among the insects. Among the insects, there is nothing of significance like the ant. The ant is one of the most intelligent insects. Allah mentioned in the story of Sulayman that when he came to the valley of the ants, meaning the village of the ants, the gathering of the ants, one of them stood up as an orator and said: [An-Naml 27:18] Look! As if she were raising her voice to call them, a call from afar: [An-Naml 27:18] This is guidance, a command: [An-Naml 27:18] This is a warning: [Al-A'raf 7:95] This is an apology. An apology to whom? To Sulayman and his soldiers, because he is unaware of the ants, and they are his soldiers, a vast army, and he is unaware of them. So reflect on the command, the explanation, and the third, the apology.
And it is one of the most intelligent insects in gathering food. It gathers food from wild grain seeds, from the flowers of herbs, and from other things. But when it brings in the grain, it eats the tip of the seed, eating it so that it does not sprout, because if the head of the seed remained, it would sprout, so it eats it so that it does not sprout. When the rain comes and moisture reaches the grain, it does not leave it, because if it remained, it would rot and stink. So it takes it out and spreads it in the sun, spreading it in the sun until it dries. Then it returns and brings it in. Subhan Allah! This is one of the most intelligent things, one of the most intelligent of all creatures. A questioner asked and said: Is it permissible for me to take the grain that the ant has spread to dry it? What do we say? Is it permissible for him to take it, or do we say: Do not take it, this is its provision? But if it were your property, take it, because you have more right to it than it does. If it is the property of someone else, seek permission from the other person. Do you want to take the grain that the ants brought, or not? Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned a story in his book *Miftah Dar al-Sa'adah* (The Key to the Abode of Happiness), saying: "A man placed bait for an ant" You know the ant, the small ants. "He placed bait, so it came to him, but it was unable to carry it because it was large. It was unable to carry it, so it went to its sisters and called them. They came. When they turned to this bait, he removed it, taking it from the ground. It searched for it, and its sisters searched, but they did not find it. They returned to their homes, except this one, which remained searching for where it had gone. He said: So he placed the bait for it. When she was certain that this was her owner, that this was the bait, she went and called her companions. They came. When they turned to the bait, he removed it. When the ants, the small ants, arrived, they searched but found nothing, so they returned to their homes."
And I think, and Allah knows best, he returned and was angry in his heart. Yes. "He returned, and she remained searching. So he placed the bait for her. When she was certain, she went to her companions and called out to them. They came. When they turned to it, the bait was removed. Yes. He said: They began to search for it but did not find it. So they gathered against her and cut her into pieces." Subhan Allah! They were angry, there was nothing there. Yes. He said: "So he presented this to our Shaykh, the Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, and he said: Even the insects dislike the liar." Why? Because he said: This one lied to us three times. She called out to us, and yet we found nothing. Subhan Allah.
So the result is that when a person reflects on these creatures, he finds that they indicate the Creator (Exalted and Majestic is He) with a clear indication. And I saw with my own eyes the ants when water comes for watering the tree. When it comes to their homes, they begin to carry the white eggs that develop into an ant, carrying them quickly so that they can get rid of the water. So the rational person, may Allah make us and you among the rational ones, when he reflects on the universe, knows that this universe has a wise Manager, and that He (Glorified and Exalted is He) has perfected everything He has made[An-Naml 27:88].
O ants, enter your dwellings
يا أيها النمل ادخلوا مساكنكمO ants
يا أيها النملO ants, enter your dwellings
يا أيها النمل ادخلوا مساكنكمthat you not be crushed by Solomon and his soldiers
لا يحطمنكم سليمان وجنودهwhile they did not perceive.
وهم لا يشعرونAnd it is one of the most intelligent insects in gathering food. It gathers food from wild grain seeds, from the flowers of herbs, and from other things. But when it brings in the grain, it eats the tip of the seed, eating it so that it does not sprout, because if the head of the seed remained, it would sprout, so it eats it so that it does not sprout. When the rain comes and moisture reaches the grain, it does not leave it, because if it remained, it would rot and stink. So it takes it out and spreads it in the sun, spreading it in the sun until it dries. Then it returns and brings it in. Subhan Allah! This is one of the most intelligent things, one of the most intelligent of all creatures. A questioner asked and said: Is it permissible for me to take the grain that the ant has spread to dry it? What do we say? Is it permissible for him to take it, or do we say: Do not take it, this is its provision? But if it were your property, take it, because you have more right to it than it does. If it is the property of someone else, seek permission from the other person. Do you want to take the grain that the ants brought, or not? Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) mentioned a story in his book *Miftah Dar al-Sa'adah* (The Key to the Abode of Happiness), saying: "A man placed bait for an ant" You know the ant, the small ants. "He placed bait, so it came to him, but it was unable to carry it because it was large. It was unable to carry it, so it went to its sisters and called them. They came. When they turned to this bait, he removed it, taking it from the ground. It searched for it, and its sisters searched, but they did not find it. They returned to their homes, except this one, which remained searching for where it had gone. He said: So he placed the bait for it. When she was certain that this was her owner, that this was the bait, she went and called her companions. They came. When they turned to the bait, he removed it. When the ants, the small ants, arrived, they searched but found nothing, so they returned to their homes."
And I think, and Allah knows best, he returned and was angry in his heart. Yes. "He returned, and she remained searching. So he placed the bait for her. When she was certain, she went to her companions and called out to them. They came. When they turned to it, the bait was removed. Yes. He said: They began to search for it but did not find it. So they gathered against her and cut her into pieces." Subhan Allah! They were angry, there was nothing there. Yes. He said: "So he presented this to our Shaykh, the Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, and he said: Even the insects dislike the liar." Why? Because he said: This one lied to us three times. She called out to us, and yet we found nothing. Subhan Allah.
So the result is that when a person reflects on these creatures, he finds that they indicate the Creator (Exalted and Majestic is He) with a clear indication. And I saw with my own eyes the ants when water comes for watering the tree. When it comes to their homes, they begin to carry the white eggs that develop into an ant, carrying them quickly so that they can get rid of the water. So the rational person, may Allah make us and you among the rational ones, when he reflects on the universe, knows that this universe has a wise Manager, and that He (Glorified and Exalted is He) has perfected everything He has made