Glorification: The Story of Yunus

Shaykh Ahmad El Azhary explores the Lessons from the Live of the Prophets in the Quran. He unlocks their aim, which is to direct us towards Allah Almighty and the Day of Judgement. This is the eighth article in the series.

Prophet Yunus (upon him be peace) is sometimes referred to as Dhu al-Nun (Man of the Whale). In the Quran he is referred to as Sahib al-Hut (Man of the Whale).  

His story is mentioned in four places in the Quran. One of these is a chapter named after him: Sura Yunus. In verse number 98 his people have been mentioned. He appears in verses 87-88 of Sura al-Anbiya. In Sura al-Saffat there is a brief account of what happened to him in the belly of the whale. Finally, in Sura al-Qalam (also known as Sura Nun) he appears in three verses. 

One of The Messengers

Allah says:

وَإِنَّ یُونُسَ لَمِنَ ٱلۡمُرۡسَلِینَ

“And verily Jonah was of the messengers sent” [Keller, The Quran Beheld 37:139]

This is a striking introduction. It is a nominal sentence with a particle (إنَّ) of confirmation. Furthermore, there is another confirmation particle and that is the laam (ل). Yunus (upon him be peace) is definitely of the Prophets. No one can approach this story with doubt in Prophet Yunus (upon him be peace).

Rejection

Yunus (upon him be peace) was sent to a village in northern Iraq. The village of Nineveh, in the governorate of Mosul. The people worshipped idols. He informed them that they should worship Allah. They didn’t listen to him. 

The number of the people to whom Prophet Yunus (upon him be peace) was sent to was a hundred thousand people or more. None of them listened to Yunus (upon him be peace). 

For a good number of years he continually reminded these people. No one ever listened to him. Young, old, men, women or children. No one.

The prophet Yunus (upon him be peace) then said to them: “If you do not listen to me, Allah will punish you.” Then he prayed that Allah punish them.

Leaving His People

They were to get ready in three days. Prophet Yunus (upon him be peace) left Nineveh. He did not stay with them for these final three days to see what they were going to do.

Three days later, the wind started to blow furiously and the signs of punishment began to appear. Yunus (upon him be peace) was already out of the city. The people could see the coming punishment. As soon as they saw the signs they raised their hands and repented to Allah. 

They got their children and animals out of their houses and they prayed to Allah. Allah did not punish them. They were looking for the Prophet but he had already left. 

Yunus (upon him be peace) left but this was not a type of sinful mistake. Prophets do not commit sins. However, they might do something which is not a priority. Since they are the best human beings and are leading examples, Allah teaches us through that.

We learn to not leave till the last minute. 

The Ship

Prophet Yunus (upon him be peace) left looking for another land. Another group of good people who could be taught. He found a ship and got on. The ship sailed to sea. When it was in the middle of the sea, there was a lot of disturbance. The Quran even describes that ship, it says:

إِذۡ أَبَقَ إِلَى ٱلۡفُلۡكِ ٱلۡمَشۡحُونِ

“When he fled his task, to the ship overladen with people.” [Keller, The Quran Behel 37:140]

The Arabic word فُلْك is something that is used to load goods, commodities and the like.  مَشْحُون means laden. It is laden with goods and humans. 

They wanted to offload some people to make it easier for the ship. The crew asked people to volunteer. This did not meant that they were to die. Rather the volunteers had to jump into the sea and swim to shore. No one wanted to volunteer. 

They drew lots to see who had to go. The first time, Yunus (upon him be peace). The second time, Yunus (upon him be peace). The third time, Yunus (upon him be peace). He jumped.

The Whale

There was a whale waiting for him. Allah says:

فَٱلْتَقَمَهُ ٱلْحُوتُ وَهُوَ مُلِيمٌۭ

“And the great whale swallowed him whole, while he was to blame.” [Keller, The Quran Beheld 37:142]

The word اِلتَقَمَ means to swallow whole without chewing. The whale did not eat Yunus (upon him be peace).

The Experience 

As ordered, the whale did not scratch his skin or break his bones. It swam to the depths of the sea. Inside the whale, Yunus (upon him be peace) could hear noises. He (upon him be peace) thought that he was dead. After some time, he started moving his limbs.

Allah revealed to him that the noises or sounds he heard were the praise of the beasts of the sea. These beasts in the depths of the sea inspired Yunus (upon him be peace). He decided to praise Allah. 

Leaving the Whale

He (upon him be peace) did not remain in the belly of the whale forever. Allah commanded the whale to throw him out. Yunus (upon him be peace) came out of the whale. 

When he (upon him be peace) came ashore a squash or gourd tree was waiting for him. Scholars have spoken extensively about the benefits of this tree.  Allah says:

فَنَبَذْنَـٰهُ بِٱلْعَرَآءِ وَهُوَ سَقِيمٌۭ

“So We flung him on the naked desert shore, utterly ill.” [Keller, The Quran Beheld 37:145]

He was very sick. In our day, we use gourd and squash for dry and sensitive skin. It is also a fly and insect repellent. On top of that, the leaves of that tree are huge. They cover and protect a person and unlike many other leaves they are soft. 

He can eat the fruit cooked or uncooked with and without the seeds. The seeds are very beneficial. Allah produced this fruit for him to eat. It was a treatment or cure. The shell can function as a container. Allah also gave him a gazelle that used to come to him. He would then drink its milk and then it would leave. 

From the reflections of this story is turning to Allah in all states. To end this article, ponder the speech of Allah:

وَذَا ٱلنُّونِ إِذ ذَّهَبَ مُغَـٰضِبًۭا فَظَنَّ أَن لَّن نَّقْدِرَ عَلَيْهِ فَنَادَىٰ فِى ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتِ أَن لَّآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّآ أَنتَ سُبْحَـٰنَكَ إِنِّى كُنتُ مِنَ ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ

“And make mention of him of the great whale; When he left his people, wroth at their rank refusal, sure that We would not bear down on him for it; And finally he cried out in the depths of darkness: ‘No god is there but You; Gloriously exalted are You above all; Verily I was of the utter wrongdoers.’” [Keller, The Quran Beheld 21:87]