The family story nights at Andalus present the lives of the prophets in an interactive, fun and educational way for all to enjoy together and discuss afterwards; they are catered towards children and young people with food for thought for adults.

On this occasion, the story was about the Prophet Yunus عليه السلام, who after giving up on his people and losing patience with them, he reached his final straw and thus abandoned them and set out on a voyage across the sea; leaving them with no one to guide them to the straight path and the good and right things. 

Whilst in the midst of the ocean, Yunus suffered a great and terrible misfortune, namely that he ended up being thrown overboard and swallowed by an enormous fish.

Three layers of darkness had enveloped him, one above the other: the darkness of the belly of this big fish, the darkness of the deep abyss of the sea and the darkness of the night sky above. He was in much distress knowing that he was imprisoned within this big fish and he quickly realised that he should not have forsaken his people.

In his great despair, he prayed and prayed to God with all his heart. God heard Yunus’s prayers and the sincerity of his repentance and so He commanded the fish to cast Yunus ashore; ultimately saving him. If it was not for his patient supplications, it is said in the Qur’an that Yunus would have stayed there till the day of judgement.

The story night was truly brought to life as the scene was set within a seafaring ambience with a whole array of sound effects and other sensory stimuli that really captivated the young audience and made them feel a real part of the story. The children were then each given their own colourful whale with which to write the dua on and take home as a keepsake. The evening drew to an end with the inculcation of the prophetic supplication:

لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي كُنْتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ

'There is no God but You, praise be to You, indeed I was among the wrongdoers'.

The quintessential aspect of the story, a supplication said to be heard by the angels in the highest heaven from the darkest depths of the fish's belly; a palpable metaphor for the infinite compassion of the almighty whose omniscient awareness and unbounded compassion reaches the supplicants call in their darkest hour. A reminder for us all to take onboard as we too sail through the storms of this life finding ourselves in the belly of the dunya; a place where we should never forget the power of dua.

A special thank you to MIRAJ AUDIO for contributing their excellent audio effects, we pray that Allah makes their initiative successful.

Miraj Audio specialises in the production of high-quality English-language audio books for children with stories about Islam, its history and culture. They are dedicated to producing stories that nourish children's imagination, stimulate their curiosity about their religion and inspire love for knowledge. Building on the great oral tradition of Islam, they use the power of storytelling to help children experience the beauty of Islam and engage with its values and tradition.

Please check them out and support the work that they do.http://www.mirajproductions.com/

We would also like to thank all those who volunteered and helped out; we pray that Allah blesses you all with much goodness.