Animals and Insects Are Communities Like Us & 

We Know It in Our Heart

 

“But when Our enlightening signs came to them, they said, ‘This is clearly [just] sorcery!’  They denied them, in their wickedness and their pride, even though their souls acknowledged them as true.  See how those who spread corruption met their end!” (27:13-14)

“We gave knowledge to David and Solomon, and they both said, ‘Praise be to God, who has favored us over many of His believing servants.’  Solomon succeeded David. He said, ‘People, we have been taught the speech of birds, and we have been given a share of everything: this is a clearly a great favor.’ Solomon’s hosts of jinn, men, and birds were marshalled in ordered ranks before him, and when they came to the Valley of the Ants, one ant said, ‘Ants! Go into your homes, in case Solomon and his hosts unwittingly crush you.’  Solomon smiled broadly at her words and said, ‘Lord, inspire me to be thankful for the blessings You have granted me and my parents, and to do good deeds that please You; admit me by Your grace into the ranks of Your righteous servants.’” (27:15-19)

From the above verses, I want to highlight two of them:

1)      “They denied them, in their wickedness and their pride, even though their souls acknowledged them as true.” (14)

The first one drew my attention to the split of our knowing in heart of something and doing it otherwise because we become blind by our justifications and rationalizations for our ego and pride, for our addictions, for losing ourselves in desire for pleasure, for the will to power and domination, for our arrogance, for keeping our face, for our defensiveness, insecurities, and fears.  Indeed, meeting oneself is the most difficult venture and the most essential step for love and cultivation of the soul—that which we already know in our heart.

2)     The second passage is: “Solomon’s hosts of jinn, men, and birds were marshalled in ordered ranks before him, and when they came to the Valley of the Ants, one ant said, ‘Ants! Go into your homes, in case Solomon and his hosts unwittingly crush you.’” (17).

If I read this before the change of my heart, or even in believing in the Quran but not as insightful as now, as God guides me to see things, I would say talking about ants and birds here is just a myth.  But there is a point here as well as in other places about animals (bird) and insects (ant) and our relations with them (22:18, 17:44, 24:41, 16:68, 6:38).  The Quran declares that animals and insects are communities like ours and all pray to God in their own ways.  Even though, the Quran express our obvious domination over them, but depicts a different picture of animals and insects, their intelligence and even spiritual dimension.  So, we should be utterly carfull when we walk… because even one ant has a soul, in its own way, connected to God.