A Prayer in the Middle of the Flood: The Prayer of Noah

In Surah Nuh 71:28, Noah asks God to forgive him, his parents, whoever enters his house as a believer, and all believing men and women. Imad sets the prayer of Noah inside the flood itself and reads it as a sign of a prophet's mercy: he prays for others as well as himself while the water rises around him.

وقف نوح عليه السلامNoah, peace be upon him, stood

أمام عالمٍ يسخر منه.before a world that mocked him.

كانت السماء تمطر ماءً بلا توقف،The sky was pouring water without end,

والأرض تتحول إلى بحرٍ هائج.and the earth was turning into a raging sea.

لكن قلبهYet his heart

لم يكن مليئًا بالغضب.was not filled with anger.

بل كان ممتلئًا بالرحمة.It was filled with mercy.

The Prayer

الدعاء

فقال نوح عليه السلام:Then Noah, peace be upon him, said:

﴿رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَلِوَالِدَيَّMy Lord, forgive me and my parents,

وَلِمَنْ دَخَلَ بَيْتِيَ مُؤْمِنًاand whoever enters my house as a believer,

وَلِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتِ﴾and the believing men and the believing women.

سورة نوح 28Qur'an | Noah 71:28

The Heart of a Prophet

قلب النبي

لم يدعُ لنفسه فقط،He did not pray only for himself,

ولم يطلب النجاة لنفسه وحده،nor did he ask salvation only for himself,

بل فتح دعاءه للعالم كله.but opened his prayer to the whole world.

لأبويه،For his parents,

وللمؤمنين،for the believers,

وللمؤمنات،for the believing women,

لكل قلبٍ يؤمن بالله.for every heart that believes in God.

The Lesson of the Flood

درس الطوفان

كان الطوفان عظيماً،The flood was immense,

والأمواج كالجبال،and the waves were like mountains,

لكن رحمة النبيbut the mercy of a prophet

كانت أعظم من البحر.was greater than the sea.

The Conclusion

الخاتمة

هكذا يكون قلب النبي.This is how the heart of a prophet is.

قلبٌ واسع،A vast heart,

قلبٌ لا يضيق بالبشر،a heart that never narrows toward humanity,

بل يتسع لهم جميعًا.but expands to embrace them all.

Noah's story returns, beside those of Moses, Joseph and Abraham, in An Epic of Artistic Imagery in the Qur'an: Poems, Images, and Readings, an architect's reading of the Qur'an's images, in the faith and spirit collection.