The Essence of Islam – Volume III — Page 220
Essence of Islam-III 220 whereby the Queen of Sheba was blessed with faith. It appears that this miracle of Jesus was purely intellec- tual like the miracle of Solomon. History reveals that in those days people were inclined towards the useless pur- suit of sleight of hand, which astonished the common people. People like those who, in the time of the Pharaoh, used to manipulate the forms of serpents and other ani- mals and made them move like living animals, had by the time of Jesus spread into the land of the Jews who had learnt magical tricks from them as is also indicated in the Holy Qur'an. It is, therefore, not a matter of surprise that God Almighty may have instructed Jesus in some method whereby a toy fashioned out of clay could be manipulated by pressing a spring or breathing upon it so as to fly like a bird or to move on its feet. Jesus had worked with his father Joseph for twenty-two years as a carpenter, and carpentry stimulates a man's mind to- wards inventing different kinds of machines and me- chanical instruments. Miracles are granted to a person in accord with the facul- ties that he possesses. As the spiritual faculties of our lord and master, the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) were well developed in the appre- ciation of spiritual verities, he was accordingly bestowed the miracle of the Holy Qur'an, which is comprehensive of all verities and understandings of the Divine. It should, therefore, not be a matter of surprise if Jesus displayed an intellectual miracle to his opponents, like the one dis- played by his ancestor, Solomonas. Such a miracle is not beyond the reach of the intellect inasmuch as in our own time many mechanical experts are able to fashion birds that speak and move and wag their tails. I have also heard that some mechanical birds can even fly. Many