An ordinary son

A good way to understand others is to find common ground – and it is not a difficult thing to do because we share humanity even if our cultures, languages, and religions may be different.

A person walking on the street suddenly knelt in front of a grave and started to cry. People were confused. He got up and stayed silent for a while. His face was pale, and his eyes were filled with tears. He cried for two reasons. First, he finally found the grave of his mother who passed away 50 years ago. Fifty years after her death, he stood in front of her grave at the age of 56. “This is my mother’s grave. I prayed to find it. Allah allowed it for me,” he said. Second, he thought his mother must be in hell for having worshipping idols. “I asked for forgiveness for my mother’s countless sins. However, Allah does not wish to answer my prayer. That is why I am crying.” He was tortured by the fact that his mother died as an idol worshipper.

　

The guy who cried in front of his mother’s grave was Muhammad, an Islamic prophet. His mother worshipped idols as many people did in Mecca. Idolatry was considered blasphemy, a sin that cannot be forgiven even if your son is a prophet. According to a legend, Allah who pitied Muhammad’s suffering briefly revived his parents. They converted to Islam before returning to the afterlife.

This story movingly depicts Muhammad’s crying in front of the grave of his mother who passed away when he was six. He could not help but cry thinking about his mother suffering after death. He was an ordinary son who only wished peace for his mother. Once it was understood that he was just an ordinary human like we are, biases and prejudices toward him start to clear away.