Story Stories of the prophets

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The Prophet Solomon (Sulaymân), son of David, had received from God an extraordinary power: he understood the language of birds and commanded an army made up of jinn, men, and birds. One day, as he was reviewing his winged troops, he noticed the absence of one particular bird: the hoopoe (al-Hudhud).

The missing hoopoe

Solomon questioned this and threatened to punish this bird severely for its absence without valid excuse, or even to slaughter it, unless it brought him a clear reason. This passage is related in the Quran, in Surah An-Naml ("The Ants").

﴿ وَتَفَقَّدَ الطَّيْرَ فَقَالَ مَا لِيَ لَا أَرَى الْهُدْهُدَ أَمْ كَانَ مِنَ الْغَائِبِينَ ﴾

"He reviewed the birds and said: Why do I not see the hoopoe? Or is it among the absent?"

(Surah An-Naml, verse 20)

A message from Saba

The hoopoe finally returned, and not empty-handed: it brought Solomon precious information he had not known. It had flown over the kingdom of Saba (Sabaʾ) and discovered there a queen reigning over a prosperous people, but worshipping the sun instead of God. It described what it had seen with precision, reporting the facts as a true messenger:

﴿ وَجِئْتُكَ مِن سَبَإٍ بِنَبَإٍ يَقِينٍ ﴾

"And I come to you from Saba with a message certain."

(Surah An-Naml, verse 22)

Solomon did not reject this testimony coming from a simple bird. He verified the information before acting: he drafted a letter addressed to the queen of Saba and entrusted the hoopoe itself to deliver it to her, then to observe her reaction. Thus began, according to the Quranic account, the exchange that was to lead the queen of Saba to acknowledge the existence of one God.

What this episode teaches us

This account clearly answers the question posed: yes, a bird can deliver a message to a prophet, if God wills it so. The Quran shows here that knowledge and the ability to bear a message are not reserved for human beings alone. Solomon, despite his immense wisdom and his authority over creatures, took the word of the hoopoe seriously, verified what it said, and acted accordingly, without disdain or haste.

• The hoopoe acted with responsibility, aware of the gravity of its mission.
• Solomon, despite his rank, listened to a small bird and did not overlook its testimony.
• The episode illustrates the diversity of creatures whom God may entrust with a specific role in His design.

This story reminds us that every animal, however humble it may seem, holds a place willed by God in creation, and may contain a usefulness or wisdom that escapes us. It invites the faithful to pay attentive and benevolent regard to birds and to all the animals around us, to respect their life and their role, rather than to consider them as insignificant.