Page 111 - Devotion Among Animals Revealing the Work of God
P. 111
Selfless Devotion of Creatures Within the Family
parents provide for these tiny creatures and in the Qur'an, He reveals
that it is He Who sustains every living thing:
How many creatures do not carry their provision with them! God
provides for them and He will for you. He is the All-Hearing, the
All-Knowing. (Qur'an, 29: 60)
Transporting Offspring
Newborn animals, generally weak and clumsy, need their par-
ents to carry them away in case of danger or if they need to be moved
elsewhere. Each species has a different method of transporting its
young. Some carry them on their backs, others in their mouths and
still others in special pouches under their wings. While being trans-
ported, the young are not harmed in any way and are quickly taken
to a safe environment.
Transporting the young out of harm's way is an important ex-
ample of parental devotion, because carrying the young considerably
reduces the parent animals' speed and mobility. Despite this, animals
never desert their young in the face of danger.
Most commonly, animals transport their young on their backs.
Monkeys, for example, can carry their young everywhere they go. The
mother can move around unhindered with her baby because it grips the
mother's back or belly fur with its hands and feet. With her baby on her
back, the mother can easily climb up a tree, run along a branch, and
jump to the next tree.
"God is the Creator of everything and He is
Guardian over everything." (Qur'an, 39: 62)
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