This excerpt is taken from Sheikh Abu Hamza Abdul Khaliq Siddiqi's book Sahi Fazail-e-Amaal.
Among the children of Our Master David (peace be upon him), the youngest was Our Master Solomon (peace be upon him). Allah Almighty made Solomon (peace be upon him) the inheritor of the knowledge and prophethood of David (peace be upon him). He was one who frequently obeyed and worshipped Allah and turned to Him:
﴿وَوَهَبْنَا لِدَاوُودَ سُلَيْمَانَ ۚ نِعْمَ الْعَبْدُ ۖ إِنَّهُ أَوَّابٌ﴾
"And We gave Solomon to David. He was a good servant; indeed he was one who repeatedly turned back [to Allah]."
Reference: (38-S:30)
◈ Thanking Allah Almighty:
Allah Almighty also granted them kingship. Their rule was not only over humans but also over birds, animals, and jinn. Thanking Allah Almighty for His blessings, they told people that they were given the knowledge of the languages of birds, and they were given everything by their Lord; there is no deficiency in anything. Indeed, Allah's clear grace and mercy are upon us:
وَلَقَدْ آتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ وَسُلَيْمَانَ عِلْمًا ۖ وَقَالَا الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي فَضَّلَنَا عَلَىٰ كَثِيرٍ مِّنْ عِبَادِهِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ ﴿١٥﴾ وَوَرِثَ سُلَيْمَانُ دَاوُودَ ۖ وَقَالَ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ عُلِّمْنَا مَنطِقَ الطَّيْرِ وَأُوتِينَا مِن كُلِّ شَيْءٍ ۖ إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَهُوَ الْفَضْلُ الْمُبِينُ ﴿١٦﴾
"And both (David and Solomon) said: All praise is due to Allah, who has favored us over many of His believing servants. And Solomon inherited David. He said: O people! We have been taught the language of birds, and we have been given everything. Indeed, this is Allah's evident grace."
Reference: (27-An-Naml:15,16)
◈ Construction of Masjid Al-Aqsa:
You are also the architect of Al-Quds. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "When our master Solomon, son of David (peace be upon them), had completed the construction of Al-Quds, he asked Allah for three things: (1) O Allah! Let my judgment be in accordance with Your judgment. (2) Grant me a kingdom that no one after me is worthy of (meaning, do not grant such a kingdom to anyone after me). Both of these prayers were accepted, and the third prayer he made was that if any person comes to this mosque I have built solely for the purpose of prayer, then forgive all his sins and make him as if he has just been born (the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said) I hope that Allah has also granted him this."
Reference: Sunan Ibn Majah, Book of Establishing Prayer, Hadith No: 1408.
Al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) declared it authentic.◈ Observance of Prayer:
Once, you were so engrossed in observing war horses that the time for Asr prayer passed. Then you said:
إِذْ عُرِضَ عَلَيْهِ بِالْعَشِيِّ الصَّافِنَاتُ الْجِيَادُ ﴿٣١﴾ فَقَالَ إِنِّي أَحْبَبْتُ حُبَّ الْخَيْرِ عَن ذِكْرِ رَبِّي حَتَّىٰ تَوَارَتْ بِالْحِجَابِ ﴿٣٢﴾ رُدُّوهَا عَلَيَّ ۖ فَطَفِقَ مَسْحًا بِالسُّوقِ وَالْأَعْنَاقِ ﴿٣٣﴾
Reference: (38-Sa:31 to 33)
"When the swift horses were presented before him at sunset, he said: Indeed, I have preferred the love of wealth over the remembrance of my Lord, until it (the sun) disappeared behind the veil. He said: Bring them to me, then he began to stroke their legs and necks."
For more details see:
Reference: Tafsir al-Tabari: 23/185 - Tafsir Ibn Kathir: 5/196.
◈ Seeking the Pleasure of Allah:
Once it is narrated that Sayyiduna Sulaiman (peace be upon him) set out with his well-organized and arranged army consisting of jinn, humans, and birds. On the way, they passed through a valley where ants were found. One ant, upon seeing this mighty army, said to the other ants, "All of you quickly enter your burrows, lest Sulaiman and his army unknowingly crush you." Sayyiduna Sulaiman (peace be upon him) smiled upon hearing this and, thanking Allah, began to pray:
﴿رَبِّ أَوْزِعْنِي أَنْ أَشْكُرَ نِعْمَتَكَ الَّتِي أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيَّ وَعَلَىٰ وَالِدَيَّ وَأَنْ أَعْمَلَ صَالِحًا تَرْضَاهُ وَأَدْخِلْنِي بِرَحْمَتِكَ فِي عِبَادِكَ الصَّالِحِينَ﴾
"O my Lord! Grant me the ability to be grateful for the blessings You have bestowed upon me and my parents, and to do righteous deeds that please You, and include me by Your mercy among Your righteous servants."
Reference: (27-An-Naml:19)
Allama Shawkani (may Allah have mercy on him) writes: "Being grateful to parents is like being grateful to a person, so he also sought the ability to thank Allah for them, and wished that along with worldly blessings, Allah would grant them religious blessings, so he sought the ability to perform righteous deeds. And since the ultimate goal of a believing man is success in the Hereafter, he prayed at the end that Allah include them among His righteous servants on the Day of Judgment."
Here, Allama Shawkani (may Allah have mercy on him) prayed for himself, saying: "O Allah! I also ask You for what Your noble Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) asked from You, so accept my prayer and bestow Your grace upon me, even though I am deficient in deeds, but the reason for attaining Paradise is solely Your grace and mercy."
Reference: Fath al-Qadeer: 2/295
O Generous Lord! We also ask You, like Your noble Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him), for Your pleasure and the ability to perform righteous deeds, and our Noble Master! With utmost humility and submission, we prostrate before You and pray that on the Day of Judgment, You include us among Your righteous servants by Your mercy and grace, even though we are deficient in deeds, and also grant a place under Your grace and mercy to our parents, our brothers and sisters, our spouses and children, and our respected teachers. آمين يا ارحم الراحمين.
◈ Patience in Trials:
Allah Almighty tested Sayyiduna Sulaiman (peace be upon him) by granting him governance and kingship, and once He tested him by placing a corpse on his throne. He then turned to Allah Almighty, sought forgiveness, and prayed: O my Lord! Grant me such a kingdom that no one after me will have:
وَلَقَدْ فَتَنَّا سُلَيْمَانَ وَأَلْقَيْنَا عَلَىٰ كُرْسِيِّهِ جَسَدًا ثُمَّ أَنَابَ ﴿٣٤﴾ قَالَ رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَهَبْ لِي مُلْكًا لَّا يَنبَغِي لِأَحَدٍ مِّن بَعْدِي ۖ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْوَهَّابُ ﴿٣٥﴾
And We tested Solomon, and placed a body on his throne; then he turned to his Lord and said: My Lord! Forgive me, and grant me a kingdom such as will not belong to anyone after me. Indeed, You are the Bestower.
Reference: (38-Surah:34, 35)
Hafiz Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) writes: "Allah Almighty did not explain the reality of that corpse which He placed on the throne of Sayyiduna Sulaiman (peace be upon him). Therefore, our belief is that Allah Almighty tested him by placing a corpse on his throne, but we do not know what that corpse was. Everything said about it is derived from Isra'iliyat (Jewish traditions), and we do not know what in it is true and what is false. And Allah knows best."
Reference: Tafsir Ibn Kathir: 5/198 — Dar-us-Salam Publication, Lahore.
◈ Forgiveness and Additional Divine Rewards:
Allah Almighty forgave them, accepted their prayer, and made the wind subservient to them, which, according to their command, would carry their throne or their ship sailing in the air wherever they wished. The speed of this sailing ship was such that it would cover the distance of a month in the morning and a month in the evening.
Similarly, Allah Almighty had also made the jinn devils subservient to them, who used to perform various tasks according to their command. Among them, some were builders, some would dive into the sea to bring out pearls, and those who disobeyed were chained and bound by their necks.
Prophet Solomon (peace be upon him) was granted whatever he asked from his Lord, and he said to them: Now give to whoever you want and as much as you want, and to whoever you do not want, do not give; you will not be held accountable for it. Besides these apparent blessings, he also had closeness to Allah Almighty, and on the Day of Judgment, his end will be good:
وَالشَّيَاطِينَ كُلَّ بَنَّاءٍ وَغَوَّاصٍ ﴿٣٧﴾ وَآخَرِينَ مُقَرَّنِينَ فِي الْأَصْفَادِ ﴿٣٨﴾ هَٰذَا عَطَاؤُنَا فَامْنُنْ أَوْ أَمْسِكْ بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍ ﴿٣٩﴾ وَإِنَّ لَهُ عِندَنَا لَزُلْفَىٰ وَحُسْنَ مَآبٍ ﴿٤٠﴾
So We made the wind subservient to him, gently blowing at his command wherever he wished to go. And We made every builder and diver among the devils subservient to him. And others who were chained in fetters. (We said) This is Our gift; you may give it to whomever you wish or withhold it; there will be no reckoning for you. And indeed, they had nearness to Us, and their final abode is good.
Reference: (38-Surah:37 to 40)
◈ The Faith-Inspiring Advice of Sayyiduna Sulaiman (peace be upon him):
Sayyiduna Sulaiman (peace be upon him) was once going somewhere on his throne. Humans and jinn were sitting on his right and left. A devout man from Bani Israel saw this and said: O Sulaiman, by Allah! You have been given a great kingdom. Upon hearing this, he said: The one tasbih (glorification) recorded in the record of a believing servant’s deeds is better than my entire kingdom because all of this is perishable, but tasbih is everlasting."
Reference: Mukashafat al-Quloob, p. 146.
Sayyiduna Uzair (peace be upon him) was one of the prophets among Bani Israel. His time of prophethood was after Sayyiduna Dawood and Sulaiman (peace be upon them) and before Sayyiduna Zakariya and Yahya (peace be upon them). There was no one left among Bani Israel who memorized the Torah. Allah Almighty inspired the Torah to him, and he had the complete Torah written for Bani Israel.
Reference: Qasas al-Anbiya, p. 635 – Islamic Academy Lahore edition.
◈ The Incident of Complete Belief in Divine Power:
You passed by a town that had been completely overturned, and its inhabitants had also died. The thought came to their mind: how will Allah bring these people back to life now? So Allah, out of mercy for their condition and that of others, caused them to die for one hundred years. Their donkey also died, and the food and drink they had remained in their original state, without any change. When Allah revived them, He asked how long they had remained in that state. They said one day or even less. Then Allah informed them that they had been dead for one hundred years. Then Allah said, look at your food and drink; they have not spoiled, and look at your donkey; its skin has decayed and its bones have rotted. After that, Allah brought their donkey back to life before their eyes, and they said, "I believe that Allah is capable of all things," and indeed every human being will be resurrected on the Day of Judgment. It is stated:
﴿أَوْ كَالَّذِي مَرَّ عَلَىٰ قَرْيَةٍ وَهِيَ خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَىٰ عُرُوشِهَا قَالَ أَنَّىٰ يُحْيِي هَٰذِهِ اللَّهُ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا ۖ فَأَمَاتَهُ اللَّهُ مِائَةَ عَامٍ ثُمَّ بَعَثَهُ ۖ قَالَ كَمْ لَبِثْتَ ۖ قَالَ لَبِثْتُ يَوْمًا أَوْ بَعْضَ يَوْمٍ ۖ قَالَ بَل لَّبِثْتَ مِائَةَ عَامٍ فَانظُرْ إِلَىٰ طَعَامِكَ وَشَرَابِكَ لَمْ يَتَسَنَّهْ ۖ وَانظُرْ إِلَىٰ حِمَارِكَ وَلِنَجْعَلَكَ آيَةً لِّلنَّاسِ ۖ وَانظُرْ إِلَى الْعِظَامِ كَيْفَ نُنشِزُهَا ثُمَّ نَكْسُوهَا لَحْمًا ۚ فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ قَالَ أَعْلَمُ أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ﴾
"Or [consider] the one who passed by a town which had fallen into ruin. He said, 'How will Allah bring this to life after its death?' So Allah caused him to die for a hundred years; then He revived him. He said, 'How long have you remained [dead]?' The man said, 'I have remained a day or part of a day.' He said, 'Rather, you have remained one hundred years. Look at your food and your drink; it has not changed with time. And look at your donkey; and thus We make you a sign for the people. And look at the bones [of this donkey] - how We raise them and then We cover them with flesh.' And when it became clear to him, he said, 'I know that Allah is over all things competent.'"
Reference: (2-Al-Baqarah:259)
Prophet Yaqub (peace be upon him) is also a messenger of Allah Almighty. Allah Almighty had given the good news of Yaqub, the grandson, along with his son Ishaq to Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him).
Among his children, Prophet Yusuf (peace be upon him) was honored by Allah Almighty with the knowledge of prophethood.
When Prophet Yusuf went missing, Prophet Yaqub (peace be upon him) expressed deep sorrow and grief over Yusuf’s disappearance, because the beginning of his troubles started with his disappearance. He was lost, later Benjamin was taken as a slave, and then the elder son, affected by Benjamin’s incident, adopted a life of exile in Egypt.
◈ Expression of sorrow:
After Prophet Yusuf (peace be upon him) went missing, Prophet Yaqub (peace be upon him) wept so much that his eyes became white from continuous tears. Allah, the Glorious and Honorable, said:
﴿وَابْيَضَّتْ عَيْنَاهُ مِنَ الْحُزْنِ فَهُوَ كَظِيمٌ﴾
"And his eyes became white from grief, and he concealed his sorrow and grief within himself."
Reference: (12-Yusuf:84)
◈ Sons expressing sympathy to their father:
Seeing the miserable condition of Sayyiduna Yaqub (peace be upon him), his sons felt compassion for him, and his condition worsened day by day. They feared that the grief of Yusuf might consume his heart and cause his death. So they said to him:
﴿تَاللَّهِ تَفْتَأُ تَذْكُرُ يُوسُفَ حَتَّىٰ تَكُونَ حَرَضًا أَوْ تَكُونَ مِنَ الْهَالِكِينَ﴾
"By Allah! You will keep remembering Yusuf in this way until you melt away and come close to death, or perish."
Reference: (12-يوسف:85)
◈ Sayyiduna Yaqub (peace be upon him) in his miserable state relies only on Allah:
Hearing this from his sons, he said:
﴿إِنَّمَا أَشْكُو بَثِّي وَحُزْنِي إِلَى اللَّهِ﴾
"I only express my pain, sorrow, and grief to Allah."
Reference: (12-يوسف:86)
And I pray to Him, I beseech Him, not to any human being, so leave me to my condition.
