We've explored various aspects of Islam and other religions here on FTD Facts. And for this episode,
we're looking at some surprising stories found in the Quran, which is the Holy book of Muslims. What's
going on everybody? My name is Leroy Kenton, and I have a very interesting episode coming up right
now. Definitely, this is one that you got to watch all the way until the end. But, before I begin, leave
a like on this episode if you just love learning about various different religions. And also, if this
is your first time here to FTD Facts, hit that subscribe button and ring that Bell. That way,
you'll be notified of our daily episodes. Okay, so let's jump right in. Starting with the first story
at number 10 - "The People of the Cave." So, The People of the Cave, is a story of a group of young people
who hid inside of a cave, outside of the city of Ephesus, and this was around the Year 250 CE,
to escape religious persecution. But here's the thing - they got out of the cave about 300
years later. But at the time, they didn't even know that. They thought that they just went to
sleep and boom - next morning, or next day, whatever. But no. The whole world had changed. Now, this story,
"Ashab-al-Kahf," as it's called in Arabic, is referred to in the Quran in Surah 18, Verse 9-26.
But regarding the exact time period that they stayed in the cave, as well as a total number of
people that were in the cave, the Quran says that people guess that there were maybe 3, 5, or 7 people
in the cave, plus their dog. And specifically, the Quran says, "They remained in the cave for 300 years
and 9 added." And then after that, it states that, "God knows best how long they remained there." And
the Quran says that, "The sleepers included a dog who sat at the entrance of the cave." And that's
found in Verse 18. So, yeah, 300 years. Was that the exact time that they stayed in the cave? I
guess nobody really knows though. So next up, we have "The Prophet Sulaiman and the Jinn." Now, the
prophet Sulaiman or Solomon, as it's translated in English, was the youngest son of the Prophet Dawud,
which is translated to David in English. Now, he was born in Jerusalem and the name of his mother
was Saba. And he was a very talented person. He had a lot of different gifts, and his father made him
his heir. Now, after the death of the Prophet Dawud, Sulaiman ascended the throne of Judea because he
had great judgment, right understanding, and a lot of spiritual insight. Now, the Quran says this, "And
we verily gave knowledge to Dawud and Sulaiman, and they said: Praise Be to Allah who has preferred
us above many of His believing servants." And that's found in Surah 27, Verse 15. Sulaiman was also
given power over the Jinn, which are supernatural creatures that are unseen to us humans, but they
can shape-shift into human form. And he utilized them in his service, and he was endowed again with
special gifts. Even the wind obeyed Solomon when he spoke. Next up, we have the story of "The Prophet
Yusuf," or Joseph, as it's translated in English. Now, the Prophet Yusuf's brothers were deeply resentful
of his father's love towards him, and his brothers then plotted to have him removed. Now, after a lot
of planning, and scheming, and conspiring, they took him and they threw him in a well. Then what they
did was, they took his robe and then they put some sheep's blood all over it. And they brought it
back to the father, who was Prophet Yaqoob. And they told him that he was actually eaten by an animal.
And this was very heartbreaking for Yaqoob because, when he got this news, he cried so much that you
know, he actually lost his eyesight because of this. So, fast forward several years now. Yusuf is in
Egypt. Now, he's in the house of the Aziz, who is the Governor of Egypt, as well as the Chief Officer of
the king. Now, the Aziz bought Yusuf, and he brought Yusuf home and told his wife that they would adopt
him as their son. But then his wife was like, Wow! You know, this guy is really good-looking. He's a
handsome man. So, she was so attracted to him that she wanted to sleep with him. But, Yusuf refused her
advances and so, she had him thrown in prison because he refused her. So, when he's thrown in
prison, he's such a good prisoner that he becomes somehow promoted as the new Aziz of Egypt, and he
gets reunited with his brothers that threw him in the well, as well as his father, who thought he was
dead. And you know when she was so awestruck and smitten by the beauty of Yusuf, she told all
her housemaids all about this handsome young man. But they didn't actually believe her how handsome
he was. So, she's like, I'm gonna prove it. So, she called Yusuf in. So, these ladies now are all
sitting there. Yusuf walks in and they have some fruits in their hand and knives. They're cutting into
fruits and everything. But accidentally, they didn't even realize it, they cut themselves on their fingers
by accident. But they didn't even realize. They were just like, oh my God, who is this guy? So it's believed
that the Prophet Yusuf had half of the beauty of all of creation. Next up, we have the story of "The
Guide." So, one day Moses delivered such a very impressive sermon that all of the people who heard
it, were actually very moved. And then, someone in the congregation asked, "Oh Messenger of Allah,
is there another man on Earth more learnt than you?" and Moses replied, "No," believing so, as Allah
has given him the power of miracles, as well as, he honored him with the Torah. However, Allah revealed
to Moses that, no man could actually really know everything that there is to know. There would
always be somebody a little bit wiser, a little bit more knowledgeable. So, Moses was like, okay well can
I find such a person then? So, Moses ends up meeting a man known by the title, "al-Khidr," also known as
The Duide. So, as Moses follows this man, they come across three separate events that Moses didn't
fully understand. At one of the events the Guide made a hole in a ship that they were traveling in, and
the Guide also ended the life of a young boy. And the Guide also helped fix a wall in a town where
people refused to provide food for himself and Moses, when they asked. So, all of these events were
happening and Moses was really uncertain why they happened. But the guide ended up explaining
each of these events to Moses so he can get a better understanding of them. So, the reason why the Guide
put the hole in the ship was because he knew that there was this king that stole people's ships if
they were in good condition. And, of course, having a hole in your ship, no one's gonna want to take it.
And, when comes to the story of the kid, well, his life was taken because it was known that he was
gonna cause a lot of evil on the planet, and Allah was gonna bless his parents with another righteous
son. And, as for the wall, well the Guide helped them build the wall because it actually kept secret, a
treasure that belonged to these two orphan boys, and the Guide wanted to keep the treasure safe
because that was their inheritance. And in this way, it ensured that nobody would ever steal it,
and the boys would get their inheritance when the time was right. Prophet Yunus is next, also known
as Jonah. Now, he was swallowed by the whale that Almighty Allah sent. So, Allah called the Prophet
Yunus, to preach to these people that live the city called Nineveh. Now, Nineveh was a very great city.
It was the capital of Assyria. But the only thing though, it had become a very evil, and wicked, and terrible
place. Now, Yunus went to the people there and told them to stop doing the bad things, turn to God, be
good, live good lives. But they didn't listen to him. So, Jonah was so upset. He was so angry that
he just left. He said, forget them. I'm gone. So, he went and boarded a ship. And as they began to set
sail on the ship, they didn't reach far because the storm started to become worse, and worse, and worse.
And the people on the ship, the crew members and everybody, started getting so scared. And now, they
were Pagan sailors. So, they thought that they did something to the Sea Gods. So, what they did, they cast
lots to see what they needed to do, what they needed to throw overboard, maybe if they did anything
wrong. So, the lots kept falling on Yunus. So, they decided to throw him overboard into the water, let
him drown, who cares? As long as we're alive - that's what they thought. So, Yunus is in the water and he
thinks this is it. But luckily, Allah sends a great fish that often is described as a massive whale,
to swallow Yunus completely whole. And eventually spits him out on dry land. But, this was only after
he stayed in the belly of this fish for quite some time. And Yunas kept praying and asking God for
forgiveness, and forgiveness. And Allah heard his prayers, and he was given another chance at life.
The story of "Ayyoob" is next. And that translates to "Job" in English. So, after failing to make Ayyoob
give up worshiping Allah, after destroying all of his wealth, taking the lives of his children,
and a whole lot of other evil things, "Iblees," or Satan, called on Allah and said, "Oh my Lord, Ayyoob's
wealth is gone, and his children are dead. But he is still healthy in body. And, as long as he enjoys
good health, he will continue to worship you in the hope of regaining his wealth and producing
more children. Grant me authority over his body so that I may weaken it. He will surely neglect
worshiping you, and will thus become disobedient." So, Allah wanted to teach Iblees a lesson. That
Ayyoob was a very devout person. So, he went ahead and he allowed Iblees to weaken his health. But, Allah
put a condition on it. He said, "I give you authority over his body, but not over his soul, intellect, or
heart, for in these places resides of knowledge of me and my religion." So, Iblees was ready to go.
He unleashed all of his force on Prophet Ayyoob and Iblees filled Ayyoob's body with disease until it
was reduced to mere skin and bone. And he suffered severe pain. But, through all of the suffering, get
this - Ayyoob continued to remain strong in his faith and he patiently took all of the hardships without
complaining once. He did not despair or turn to others for help, but he remained hopeful of Allah's
mercy. Even the close relatives of Ayyoob, and friends, they just completely abandoned him. Only his kind and
loving wife stayed by his side. And, when he needed it the most, she showered him with kindness and she
remained his sole companion and comforter throughout the many years of his suffering.
But you see, it wasn't all fine and dandy with their relationship, right? Because Iblees ended
up manipulating Ayyoob's wife, where she even started to doubt at one point, because of these suggestions
that Iblees was feeding her. So then, Ayyoob was like, I know what's happening. Iblees is
manipulating you. Stay away. So after all of this, Ayyoob decides to talk to Allah and just share his
heart with God. And Allah decides, okay, now this is enough. And he blesses Ayyoob with health, and wealth,
and more kids. The story at number 4, is "A Hamlet in Ruins." so the Quran narrates in Surah 2, Verse
259, that a man passed by a hamlet in ruins where the people who lived there had died generations
earlier. And then he asked himself how God will be able to resurrect the dead people on the day
of judgment. Now, the Quran goes on to say that, God then, caused the man to die for 100 years, and
then raised him to life again. So, then God asked the man, how long he felt he was asleep.
So, the man replied, maybe a day or half a day. And at that point, God told the trut - Actually it's
been 100 years. So, on the other hand, the food as well as a drink that the man had with him were
actually still preserved. Like, they were perfectly fine. They didn't perish at all. And this was all
to show God's power over all things, and how God controls time for all things. Now, the man's donkey
however was not only dead, but it was reduced to pure skeleton, And then, by God's power, the bones
and joints started fitting together right before the man's eyes. And then the body was clothed with
skin, and flesh, and blood, right in front of this guy. So, the donkey was brought back to life and this
man is sitting there going speechless. He can't even say anything! Story number 3, involves baby
Jesus. Now, the Quran says, "Speaking about his mother Maryam, "who guarded her chastity. So, He breathed a
spirit into her through our angel, and we made her a son, "Isa," or Jesus, a sign for the world." And
that's found in the Quran, Surah 21, Verse 91. Now, the Quran also talks about how Jesus spoke in the
cradle. It says, "Then she, Mary or Maryam pointed to him. And they said, how can we talk to one who
is a child in the cradle. And then he, Jesus said, verily I am a servant of God. He has given me the
scripture and made me a prophet." And you can find that in the Quran, Surah 19, verses 29 - 30. So, the
story coming up next involves the Prophet "Ibrahim" and his son, "Ismail." So, how the story goes, is that
the Prophet Ibrahim kept having these nightmares, these terrible dreams. And in the dreams, he kept
seeing himself killing his son Ismail. So, he's confused and he's wondering, like what is this all
about? So, he ends up eventually telling Ismail. He says, son, you know I've been having these terrible
dreams. And what I see in these dreams is that I'm killing you. But you see, I believe that these are
visions from God, not just terrible dreams. So, his son Ismail gives an amazing response. And he says
this, pretty much that, okay father, like, I hear you. I understand, I trust you. If this is Allah's will,
then let it happen. It's okay just go ahead, you know, tie my hands, tie my feet, so I won't resist.
And also, make sure that you wear a blindfold so you don't see me suffering. And if this is Allah's
will, then let it be done. So, they both decide to continue with this because they see it as Allah's
will. But, before Ibrahim is about to sacrifice Ismail, Allah reveals and brings to him this sheep.
So, they end up sacrificing the sheep instead. And, you know, really this whole thing showed and proved
that Ibrahim was absolutely faithful to Allah. And, he ended up being blessed as well as his
son Ismail. And because of this, Muslims celebrate "Eid al-Adha," which comes after "Eid al-Fitr." And finally,
the number 1 story I'm gonna be sharing in this episode, is about the "Gold Cow." And, this is found
in the second Surah of the Quran. And, actually, this surah is named "Al baqara," which means The
Cow. So, as the story goes, there's a wealthy man that passed away and he left behind his only son
who inherited his father's wealth. Now, his cousins envied his good fortune, and they secretly killed
him so that they could inherit it. Now, the dead boy's other relatives came to Prophet "Musa," which
is Moses in English, and asked for his help in tracing who murdered this boy. Now, Moses instructed
them to go and slaughter a cow, remove its tongue, and place it on the corpse, and this would reveal
the one who committed this crime. But they accused Moses of just making this big joke. What are you
crazy Moses? There's a whole long conversation that goes on between the Jews and Moses about this
whole thing. And they kept asking him questions about the cow, and what kind of cow, how old is the
cow gonna be, what color... all sorts of questions. And Moses tells them that they need to find a middle-aged
cow that has no marks, and doesn't water the fields. And also, he says to make sure that the cow
is gold. So, after they go and find the cow, Moses told them that they need to slaughter the cow and
strike the dead man with a piece of it. And when this happens, like a miracle takes place. So, Allah
brings this dead guy back to life. And then, when he comes back to life, he literally points out exactly
who took his life and then he dies again. Alright guys, so those were 1O surprising stories that you
can find in the Quran. It's always very interesting to explore another religion, and the stories, and
how the details are described and linked together and everything. And even some of these stories have
like amazing morals inside of them. So, definitely, I want to hear your thoughts and comments about
any or all of these stories that I shared in this episode, down below in the comments. Alright guys,
so that's it for me. I believe I've said a lot. If you enjoyed this video, definitely, you want
to check out the video at the end screen. I definitely don't want you to miss that one.
Thanks for hanging out with me in this episode of FTD Facts, and I'll see you real soon.
you