Messenger
THERE is a folktale that supposedly dates back to the era of Prophet Suleiman (Solomon) (PBUH). One day, a bird went to a pool of water to quench its thirst, but found some children near it. Fearing for its life, the bird decided to wait until the children left in order to drink water from that pool.
By chance, a man with a long beard came to the pool. Seeing the man, the bird thought, “This is a dignified man who cannot harm me.” It then went down to the pool to drink. But the man threw a stone at it, which hit its eyes. The bird then reported the incident to Prophet Suleiman (PBUH), who summoned the man and asked him if the bird owed him anything that allowed him to hit it with a stone.