Stories form Qur'an - A brief compilation

Sabath Breakers

Once there was a fishermen village of Israelite, where almost everyone has their livelihood depended on fishing. This village was in the outskirts of Madina, someplace may be near red sea. It is stated that they were living near to sea.

These villagers were transgressors; not all of them but there was a substantial percentage of people that were defying decrees of Allah (SWT) for a long time; for this Allah (SWT) put them on test; A trail that they cannot go for fishing on Saturday.

Throughout six days of week, from Sunday to Friday they can go and cast a line and whatever they caught, they can eat it or sell it, as up to their requirement; but on Saturdays the were not allow to put their nets in the water. On Sabbath (Saturday) they have to stay in their homes and prey to Allah.

Fishermen observed that throughout the week the quantity of fish in the water was marginal, like fishing became hand to mouth; they don't have enough to keep them for their self and sell to market as well; and on Saturdays there were so many fishes that they can see them jumping on the surface of water.

One of the fishermen came with an idea to trick this trail from Allah; he set his net in the water on Friday night before going to home and when he came back on Sunday morning, he finds out that net was swamped with fishes. He takes all catch to home. He began to cook some of these fishes, when the neighbors find out that he is having fishes for himself rather then he was selling in market, curiosity strikes them.

A group of fishermen living near his house came to him and asked him, where he caught those fishes from, because he had so many fishes that he even can sold half of them in market. He told those men about his trick. Progressively this trick became practice amongst almost all fisher men.

Few from the Israelite came to these fishermen and tried to preach them that they shouldn't do this. Allah will bring his rage upon you and you will be punished if you keep doing this. The fishermen were overlooking these preachers. Some of the Israelite told these preachers, do not address them, leave them with their conducts; just concentrate on your own work and prayers.

At that time they were separated into 3 groups, the transgressors (who were fishing on Saturdays), preachers (who were reminding about wrath of Allah) and watchers (who were minding their own business). The differences amongst these groups grown considerably enough that they decided to live separately from each other.

The fishermen build there fortification near to the sea and start living there as a separate group; others made their own boundaries around there part of town, they don't want to live with these sinners. They have relations with each other, like some of them were cousins, brothers and siblings or other family members; but even though they settled to live separately.

One day when they (preacher and watchers) wake up, they were waiting for the fisher men to come out of there fortress. Half day passed and still they can't see a single boat in the water, because fishermen usually go for fishing on sun rise. Few of the preachers became curious about fishermen that, why there is no boats in water.

Some of the preachers and neighboring people made a group and decide to visit the fishermen, as they were cousins and from same families, they have their concerns. When they enter into the fort, they find out that Allah (SWT) turned all the transgressors into Apes and chimpanzees.

Some interpretation says; they were apes and pigs, but the punishment was to convert the human being into a primitive life form; Allah converted all the fishermen into apes within one night, they didn't have any progeny, and don't have any relation left. These apse lives for three days so that everyone can saw them, that this was a punishment for those who break the trail of Sabbath.

This was the lesson for those who fear Allah(SWT); and Allah (SWT) save the other group from this curse. Islam revived inthat group, and they told this story to their generation as the lesson.