دُعاءُ الأُمِّ

The Mother's Prayer

فِي قَرْيَةٍ صَغِيرَةٍ قُرْبَ صُحارَ، عاشَتْ أُمٌّ تُدْعَى فاطِمَةَ. كانَ لَها ابْنٌ وَحِيدٌ يُدْعَى يُوسُفَ، نُورُ عَيْنَيْها وَفَرْحَةُ قَلْبِها.

In a small village near Sohar, there lived a mother called Fatima. She had an only son named Yusuf, the light of her eyes and the joy of her heart.

حِينَ بَلَغَ يُوسُفُ العِشْرِينَ، قَرَّرَ السَّفَرَ لِلتِّجارَةِ. قالَ: «يا أُمِّي، سَأَذْهَبُ إِلى الهِنْدِ. سَأَعُودُ غَنِيًّا!»

When Yusuf reached twenty, he decided to travel for trade. He said: "O Mother, I will go to India. I shall return wealthy!"

بَكَتْ فاطِمَةُ وَقالَتْ: «يا بُنَيَّ، احْذَرْ! البَحْرُ خَطِيرٌ!»

Fatima wept and said: "O my son, be careful! The sea is dangerous!"

قالَ: «لا تَقْلَقِي. دُعاؤُكِ سَيَحْمِينِي.»

He said: "Do not worry. Your prayer will protect me."

سافَرَ يُوسُفُ، وَفِي مُنْتَصَفِ الطَّرِيقِ، ضَرَبَتْهُمْ عاصِفَةٌ هائِلَةٌ. تَحَطَّمَتِ السَّفِينَةُ، وَماتَ أَكْثَرُ البَحَّارَةِ.

Yusuf traveled, and midway, a huge storm struck them. The ship was wrecked, and most sailors died.

تَمَسَّكَ يُوسُفُ بِلَوْحٍ خَشَبِيٍّ، وَظَلَّ يَطْفُو فِي البَحْرِ أَيَّامًا. كانَ عَلى وَشْكِ المَوْتِ مِنَ العَطَشِ وَالإِرْهاقِ.

Yusuf clung to a wooden plank and floated in the sea for days. He was on the verge of death from thirst and exhaustion.

فِي تِلْكَ اللَّحْظَةِ، فِي عُمانَ البَعِيدَةِ، اسْتَيْقَظَتْ فاطِمَةُ مِنْ نَوْمِها مَذْعُورَةً. شَعَرَتْ أَنَّ ابْنَها فِي خَطَرٍ!

At that moment, in faraway Oman, Fatima awoke from her sleep terrified. She felt her son was in danger!

رَكَعَتْ فاطِمَةُ وَرَفَعَتْ يَدَيْها إِلى السَّماءِ. صَلَّتْ وَدَعَتْ بِكُلِّ قُوَّتِها: «يا اللهُ، احْفَظِ ابْنِي! يا اللهُ، أَنْقِذْهُ!»

Fatima knelt and raised her hands to the sky. She prayed and supplicated with all her strength: "O God, protect my son! O God, save him!"

وَفِي البَحْرِ، حَدَثَتْ مُعْجِزَةٌ: ظَهَرَتْ سَفِينَةٌ مِنَ العَدَمِ! كانَتْ سَفِينَةً عُمانِيَّةً تائِهَةً أَيْضًا، لَكِنَّها وَجَدَتْ يُوسُفَ!

And in the sea, a miracle happened: a ship appeared from nowhere! It was an Omani ship also lost, but it found Yusuf!

أَنْقَذُوهُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَغْرَقَ بِلَحَظاتٍ.

They saved him moments before he would drown.

بَعْدَ شُهُورٍ، عادَ يُوسُفُ إِلى قَرْيَتِهِ. رَكَضَتْ فاطِمَةُ إِلَيْهِ وَعانَقَتْهُ وَهِيَ تَبْكِي.

After months, Yusuf returned to his village. Fatima ran to him and embraced him, weeping.

قالَ يُوسُفُ: «يا أُمِّي، كِدْتُ أَمُوتُ. لَكِنَّنِي شَعَرْتُ بِقُوَّةٍ غَرِيبَةٍ تَحْمِينِي. كَأَنَّ يَدًا خَفِيَّةً أَمْسَكَتْنِي!»

Yusuf said: "O Mother, I nearly died. But I felt a strange power protecting me. As if an invisible hand held me!"

قالَتْ فاطِمَةُ: «كانَتْ يَدُ اللهِ يا بُنَيَّ. وَكانَ دُعائِي هُوَ الطَّرِيقُ إِلَيْهِ.»

Fatima said: "It was the hand of God, my son. And my prayer was the path to Him."

لَمْ يُسافِرْ يُوسُفُ بَعْدَها أَبَدًا. بَقِيَ مَعَ أُمِّهِ حَتَّى آخِرِ يَوْمٍ فِي حَياتِها.

Yusuf never traveled again after that. He stayed with his mother until the last day of her life.

تَمَّتِ القِصَّةُ | The End