The Call of the Minaret

The early sun had just started to rise from behind the house tops of Medina when Bilal woke up. The air was still cool and heavy with the smell of sand and date palms. For a moment, he listened to the faint sounds of the city waking -- the distant bleating of goats, the clatter of water pots and the quiet hum of life returning after the silence of the night.

But for Bilal, the mornings were not the beginning of another day. They were a reminder - of pain, of mercy, of the voice of Allah, which He had given him.

He rose slowly his body still showing the faint scars of chains that once bound him in the markets of Makkah. He could still remember the sting of the whip, the laughter of his master and the burning stones pressed against his back as he lay on the burning sand.

"Say the name of our gods, Bilal!" they had shouted.

But he had only answered one word, over and over, despite the crack in his voice and the quiver in his body:

"Ahad... Ahad."

One. One God.

One word had changed his life forever.

Now, years later, Bilal was free -- not only of his body, but his soul. The Prophet {Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam} had set him free with his own hands calling him a man of Paradise. Yet Bilal never felt pride out of that honor; only humility.

This morning when he climbed the narrow steps leading to the top of the minaret of the mosque, the sky was blushing pink with dawn. The Prophet {Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam} had requested him to make the adhan call of prayer again. And every time Bilal called it his heart was overcome with gratitude and awe.

When he arrived at the top, he looked out upon the city of Medina. The date palms swayed gently and their leaves were glistening with dew. Men and women and children stirred from their homes in anticipation of his voice.

He took a deep breath.

"Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar..."

His voice rang through the still air rising falling like the rhythm of the wind. The sound traveled throughout the rooftops echoing into the desert beyond. Birds flew from the palm trees, as if attracted by the sacred melody.

Down below, the Prophet {Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam} was listening and his eyes were glinting. "This voice," he one time said, "is beloved to Allah."

Bilal after the prayer sat quietly near the mosque of the Prophet. He saw the people scatter, traders erecting their stalls, children laughing and running in the streets, the holy men reciting verses of the Koran. It was a peaceful morning and his heart was heavy.

Later on that day, he came close to the Prophet {Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam}. Salih ibn 'Abi Sarah said: 'Ya RasulAllah, sometimes I wonder why Allah gave me this honor. I am but a slave tamed by humiliated by men."

The Prophet (Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam) smiled at him that well-known soft smile. "Bilal," he said, "Allah is not concerned with your form and your lineage. He looks in the heart and in the deeds. And when others were terrified, your heart was firm,

Those words remained with him for years.

But as always, change came through the passage of time.

When the Prophet {Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam} passed away, Medina was covered with silence. Even the birds seemed to stop singing on that day. The companions were weeping open-heartedly, their hearts were broken by loss. Bilal could not take the pain and refused to call the adhan again.

Ashhadu anna Muhammadan RasulAllah" when he is no longer among us?" he cried.

He left Medina shortly after, joining the armies of Islam spreading the message of Islam in the lands. But wherever he went -- Syria, Damascus, the far deserts -- his heart was in Medina, beside the grave of the man who had freed him, had changed his destiny.

Years later in Damascus, Bilal saw the Prophet {Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam} in a dream. The Prophet gave a smile on his face and said, "Bilal, why have you not visited me, my brother?"

He woke up in tears. The following morning, he mounted his horse and was on his way to Medina.

When he entered into the city, the companions met him, and their eyes were full of memories. 'Bilal' they cried out to him 'give the adhan again as you used to in the days of the Prophet.'

He resisted at first. His voice vibrated, and his heart was aching. But when they demanded it, he ascended the same minaret for the last time.

"Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar..."

The sound was heard in Medina again. People were running out of their houses, with tears streaming down their faces. It was as though time had turned back -- as though the Prophet {Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam} would come out of the mosque any moment.

When Bilal came to the words, "Ashhadu anna Muhammadan RasulAllah," his voice was broken. His words choked him as they got stuck in his throat. The entire city wept.

That was the last adhan he uttered ever.

Shortly afterwards Bilal died a peaceful death at Damascus. It was said that before his last breath, he smiled and whispered "Tomorrow, I will meet my beloved, Muhammad {Salla Llahu Alayhi WaSallam} and his companions."

And somewhere, in the unseen world, perhaps the angels paused to listen -- as the voice that once called believers to prayer came to call his soul home.