If you don't stop rustling those feathers, I'll start sleep flying just to get away from the noise. Sorry.

I just can't sleep. What if something huge happens tomorrow? Then ye greet it like a storm at sea, head high, wings tucked and hope it's not full of eels. But what if I'm not ready? What if I freeze?

What if I mess everything up?

That's a lot of what ifs for midnight. Here's one more. What if you just closed your beak and slept?

Yeah. Yeah. You're right. I just don't you ever feel like something big is coming? Like the world might change when you wake up?

Only change I care for in the morning is wind direction and breakfast location. If fate comes knocking, tell it to wait till sunrise.

Alright. But if the sky opens and a mountain starts talking, I'm waking you up first.

Unless the mountain brings coffee, keep it to yourself.

Meraj Digital presents The Amazing Stories with Zaki the Hoopoe. Season two, episode 11, The Dawn of Islam.

Salam, my brave friends. Did you sleep well? I tried, really.

I did. But sometimes when something big is coming, you just feel it in your feathers. Today's story. Oh, today's story is the kind that makes your heart beat faster and your soul sit up straight. It's about a quiet cave, a sacred mountain, and a voice, a voice from the heavens.

Did the cave talk back or did the rocks just a lullaby?

Not this time captain Suhail, but something even more incredible happened. This is the story of a man alone in the dark and how one moment changed the world forever. This is the story of the first revelation of a man named Muhammad, peace be upon him, seeking answers in a world gone quiet, and the moment Allah answered with words that would light the path for all of us.

I once got a revelation at dawn myself. Turned out I'd slept in a fisherman's net. Quite enlightening. Come close, my friends. This is

a night that echoes through time. Let me tell you what happened when the sky spoke. Long ago in this very city lived a man, but not just any man. His name was Muhammad, Peace be upon him. He was kind when others were cruel, honest when others lied.

He never raised his voice or heard a soul. The people of Makkah called him Al Amin,

the trustworthy. Ay. And he wasn't just trustworthy with gold or goats. Folk trusted him with their

hearts. That's rarer than a dry storm at sea. He cared deeply about justice, about truth, about the weak and the voiceless. But something in his heart told him, the world was broken.

I made it. Sorry I'm late. My map had no actual directions.

Nora, just in time. I'm so glad you can make it.

Ahoy there, young scribbler. Come to add a few flutters to the facts.

I'm here to take notes. Also, I have three questions already.

Then follow along closely, Nunu, because this story begins not with thunder or swords, but with silence and one man, one heart, one search for the truth.

So what did he do when he saw all the wrong stuff around him?

He turned away from it. He walked up into the mountains, into the quiet, looking for answers. And that, my friends, is where we're heading next. Makkah was busy, loud, powerful, but also lost. The poor were ignored.

The strong made the rules. Truth was buried beneath idols of stone and hearts of pride. And then, there was Him. A man who walked among them. A man who listened more than he spoke.

A man whose face was gentle and whose eyes were full of something this city hadn't seen in a long time.

Mercy. Muhammad ibn Abdullah, peace be upon him. A tradesman, yes. But more than that, a man of silence, of thought. He could pass him on the street and feel like your heart stood still.

He never raised his voice, never lied. He helped widows carry firewood. He played with children in the alleys. Even when people were cruel, he answered with kindness.

Folk called him Al Amin, the trustworthy, not because he asked them to, but because he simply was.

Wait. We're talking about him, aren't we? The prophet. I've heard stories, but what was he like before? Before everything happened?

He was a man who saw pain and couldn't ignore it. Who saw injustice and wouldn't accept it. Who knew? There had to be more.

So, what do you do when everyone around you is okay with wrong things but your heart isn't?

You listen to that heart even when it's lonely, especially then.

That's what he did. He left the noise behind. He climbed up to find truth, to find Allah. Every few weeks, Muhammad, peace be upon him, would leave the world behind and climb, not to escape, but to seek.

Didn't people wonder why he kept going? Why he didn't stay in the city like everyone else?

He wasn't like everyone else, little one. He saw a world that had forgotten its soul, so he went looking for the one who gave it.

The Cave Of Hera, where the earth touched the heavens and one man sat night after night in prayer.

So he didn't know what was coming?

It's hard to tell exactly. Maybe he did a little, but Allah knows all. The wind died. Even the air inside the cave seemed to pause. And then, without warning, it came.

The presence, like the mountain itself had filled with light, like the sky had cracked open and poured something into the earth. A voice, not harsh, not loud, but so full, so powerful it pressed against every stone, every breath, every thought.

Who was it uncle Zaki?

Don't worry, Nora, dear. It was angel Jibril, the one we talked about in the stories about prophet Ibrahim and prophet Idris. Jibril continued in the silence. He said, Ikra. Ikra.

Read. Read. A single word, but it carried the weight of the heavens.

But did the prophet know what it meant?

He understood deeply. But this wasn't reading with eyes. It was reading with the soul. A divine unveiling, not from a scroll, but straight from the source. Not words on paper,

but truth written into the fabric of the universe.

And again, the angel said it, ikra, not a command of letters, but a call to awaken, to receive, to begin the message that would change the world. And then again, each time, like a wave through the soul, not cruel, not angry, but immense. Like the entire sky had been waiting to say these words since the beginning of time. And then the words came, the first words of the Quran. Read in the name of your Lord who created, created man from a clinging form.

And your Lord is most generous who taught by the pen taught man what he did not know. That moment, a door opened and the world would never be the same.

That must have felt huge, like the whole universe opened up at once.

It did, but the prophet, peace be upon him, didn't doubt. He didn't panic. He embraced the moment with a heart already prepared by Allah.

Aye. He stood at the edge of something infinite. And instead of turning away, he stepped forward, calm, chosen, ready.

And that's how it began. Not with a sword, not with an army, but with a man, a cave, and a single word. The stars still blinked over Makkah. The city slept, and down the mountain walked the messenger of Allah, changed not by fear, but by revelation.

He had gone up in silence and come down carrying the word of the heavens.

His steps were steady, his heart full, not with panic, but with the weight of a trust only he had been chosen to bear.

So he knew exactly what had happened.

He did. He didn't doubt it for a moment because when the truth comes from a law, the heart heart recognizes it and his heart was ready.

He didn't run through the streets. He didn't cry out.

He walked home with dignity, with purpose, like a captain bringing news of a new world. He reached his home, the door opened, and there she was, Khadija.

Did she know something big had happened?

She didn't know the details yet. But when she saw him, she could tell. She saw his face, full of light and awe. And she didn't panic.

He said to her, Cover me, cover me. And without a blink, she did, No fear, just love.

Then he told her everything: the cave, the angel, the words sent from Allah, words that felt heavier than the mountains. And do you know what she said?

What did she say?

She said, by Allah, he will never disgrace you. You take care of your family. You help people who need it. You always tell the truth, and you carry the weight of others.

She didn't just believe the story, she believed him every word, every heartbeat.

That's right. And in that moment, in that quiet little home, she became the first. The first to say, I believe you.

She was the first?

Yes. The first believer in the final message. The first follower of the final prophet. It all started with her. She was the very first Muslim.

A woman of strength, of trust, of faith that could anchor a ship in a storm.

And with that faith, Islam began. Not in a palace, not with a crowd, but with one man and one woman who believed in him.

So the first moment of Islam wasn't loud.

Exactly. Love, trust, and a heart that knew the truth when it heard it. And that's when the journey truly began. The message had come, the world had turned, and nothing would ever be the same again. From that night on, Muhammad, peace be upon him, was no longer just a man of Makkah.

He was the messenger of Allah.

And he wasn't alone anymore.

Never, Nunu. Allah was with him, and now so were we. So, my dear friends, what did we learn from that night? From the silence of a cave, to the warmth of a home, to the very first yes?

That being brave doesn't always mean doing something big. Sometimes it just means trusting something true.

Exactly, Nunu. The prophet, peace be upon him, was afraid, but he still carried the message. And Khadija, she didn't need proof. She just believed.

I Sometimes truth doesn't come with fireworks. It knocks quiet on your heart. And if you listen, really listen, it changes everything.

Even if you're scared?

Especially then. Being scared doesn't mean you're weak. It means you're standing at the edge of something meaningful. Just like the prophet did.

And like Khadija, sometimes the bravest thing ye can do is believe in someone.

So the next time you feel nervous or like something is just too big, remember that the greatest message in history began with a whisper in the dark. What a beginning, One night in a cave, one heart full of light, and the first drop of revelation that would one day fill oceans.

And one brave woman who said yes before anyone else did.

That's right, Nunu. And now the prophet, peace be upon him, is no longer searching. He knows his mission, but not everyone will accept it.

Storm's brewing, clouds are coming, and Macao's about to get a wake up call they didn't order.

Next time, we'll see what happens when the prophet begins to share what he was given, but not in the streets, not just yet.

Oh, is this the secret prayer part? I love secret missions.

Exactly. Quiet footsteps, whispered words, the very first Muslims learning how to pray, hidden from a world not yet ready to hear the truth.

Secret prayers, Just like how I whisper to my breakfast so no one steals it.

Until then, my curious crew, may your hearts be open, your questions be loud, and your faith be full of light.

And may your caves be cozy and angel free unless you're ready.

And if any glowing figures ask you to read, just pretend you're asleep. Works every time.

This story was produced by Meraj Digital. Voices provided by Wayne Holland as Zucky and Curtis Fletcher as captain Sohail. Episode written, directed, and edited by Syed Kashef and Atef Hussein. For more content by Meraj Digital, please visit our site at www.meraj.digital.

Content copyright and production copyright 2025 by Meraj Digital.