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Request: Sura 105 Aya 1 to 1

أَلَمْ تَرَ كَيْفَ فَعَلَ رَبُّكَ بِأَصْحَابِ الْفِيلِ {1}
[Pooya/Ali Commentary 105:1]

This surah refers to an incident in the history of Makka, as an example of how Allah deals with those who oppose His will. About fifty days before the birth of the Holy Prophet, Abraha, the Abyssinia's viceroy of Yemen, Christian by religion, proceeded against Makka, as the head of a large army, with the object of destroying the Ka-bah, because he wanted that there should be no place or structure more glorious than the church he was building at Sana. He had with him elephants. Therefore he and his army is known as ashab al fil, those who brought elephants. At the outskirts of Makka he captured a large number of camels belonging to the chief of Makka, Abd al Muttalib, the grandfather of the Holy Prophet. After receiving the information that Abraha was coming to destroy the holy Ka-bah, Abd al Muttalib went to see him and said:

"I have come to collect my camels. The Ka-bah belongs to God. He will surely protect it from your evil design."

Abraha gave the captured camels to Abd al Muttalib He returned to the city and asked the people to retire to the neighbouring hills, leaving the Lord of Ka-bah to protect it. When Abraha entered Makka, suddenly a large flock of birds, like swallows, came flying from the sea-coast and pelted the invading army with pebbles of baked clay. They all died. They were like a dead and useless field from which all the produce is eaten up and only straw with stubble is left. Abraha escaped and went directly to the king in Abyssinia. All the way a bird with a stone in her beak followed him. When the king asked Abraha as to what kind of birds they were, Abraha looked to the sky and the bird at once dropped stone in her beak and killed him on the spot.

The lesson to be drawn is twofold. The pagans of Makka were forewarned that as the Holy Prophet was superior to the Ka-bah, Allah, who protects whatever is His own, shall protect him from all their evil schemes. It is also a warning to men in all ages that "if a man intoxicated with power comes out to defeat Allah's holy plan, he cannot prevail against Allah, but his plan will fail and destroy him as well."

Aqa Mahdi Puya says:

The event narrated in this surah is a miracle. It proves the sanctity of the Ka-bah and the strong faith of Abd al Muttalib, the grandfather of the Holy Prophet, in Allah. When this chapter of the Quran was recited by the Holy Prophet before the Quraysh unbelievers no one raised any voice to belie him.

Refer to the commentary of chapters ad Duha and al Inshirah for the inter-relation of those two chapters and of al Fil and al Quraysh, the next chapter.

The faith of Abd al Muttalib in the oneness of Allah is proved by his following supplication:

O Lord, there is no hope (of receiving help from any quarter) to stop them (Abraha's army) save from You,

O Lord, therefore do not let them have Your protection because he who is the enemy of Your house is Your enemy,

Verily they (the enemies whoever they are) cannot defeat Your power.