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Introducing "Amazing Stories with Zaki the Hoopoe!" 🎉
Get ready for a storytelling adventure that’s not just for kids, but for the whole family—including parents! Zaki, the lively and clever hoopoe bird, invites everyone to explore the wonders of ancient tales, where prophets, brave animals, and magical moments come to life. 🌟 Tailored for kids aged 5-8, but with plenty of fun, humor, and fascinating lessons to keep parents entertained, too!
Zaki's adventures take you to deserts, seas, and enchanted forests, where you’ll meet the brave ant that stood up to Prophet Sulaiman 🐜, Prophet Ibrahim standing up against the evil King Nimrod, Prophet Nuh and his legendary Ark, and many more legendary Prophets. With a sprinkle of jokes, interactive questions, and exciting sound effects, each episode is an engaging experience for all ages!
Parents, you’ll love the way Zaki weaves timeless lessons with humor and charm, making this the perfect family bonding time. Whether in the car, during bedtime, or just for fun, Amazing Stories with Zaki is your go-to source for entertaining, educational stories that spark curiosity and values in kids—and even surprise grown-ups!
So, gather around, sit back, and let Zaki take you on a magical journey that everyone will enjoy. Ready? Let’s fly into adventure! ✨
Up, up, and up. Higher, my fine feathers. Higher. The sky is mine.
Captain Suhail:You flap like a panicked pigeon lad. Watch a real master of the winds. By the barnacles of Bahrain, these clouds are slipperier than sea foam.
Zaki:Oh, dear. Oh, dear. You're tumbling. Careful. You look like like a falling feather duster.
Noora:He's spinning round and round. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, like a noisy top.
Captain Suhail:I that was a flawless Landon. I meant every twist.
Zaki:Flawless indeed. If the goal was to scare the reeds.
Noora:Imagine if you could keep flying. Not just above the trees, but way, way past the clouds. I wonder what's up there.
Captain Suhail:Aye, lass, I once flew so high, I had to duck to avoid the moon. But that my fine feathers is a tale for another tide.
Zaki:It wasn't the moon so hail, it was a fishmonger's lantern on a rooftop.
Noora:You thought a lantern was the moon? That's the funniest thing ever.
Captain Suhail:I well, it was Avery bright lantern nearly blinded me.
Zaki:Meraj Digital presents The Amazing Stories with Zaki the Hoopoe. Season two, episode 23, The Journey of the Night.
Zaki:Salam, my amazing friends. It's me, Zaki the Hoopoe, fluttering back with another wondrous tale from our history. And oh, today's story is unlike any other.
Zaki:It's about a journey no bird, no man, no creature has ever taken before.
Captain Suhail:Bah, I've taken plenty of journeys, young feathers, across oceans, through storms, once even into a fisherman's picnic basket.
Noora:That's not the same, Uncle Sohail. This story's about flying so high, higher than clouds, higher than stars.
Zaki:Higher than any seagull could dream, higher than any hoopoe could flap. A journey chosen by Allah for his beloved prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. It's called Al Isra wal Mi'raj, the night journey, a journey that began one night in Makkah and reached the very heavens themselves.
Captain Suhail:Aye, heavens themselves. I'll believe it when I hear it, lad.
Noora:You will hear it, captain. Oh, can I do the sound for zooming up through the sky?
Zaki:Perfect, Nunu. Keep that ready, because in this story, we'll need it. One quiet night in Makkah, the Kaaba stood under the stars. The prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, was resting nearby.
Noora:Was everyone asleep?
Zaki:Yes, little Nunu. The whole city was fast asleep, but something very special was about to happen. Angel Jibril came down from the sky, and with him was the most amazing creature. Kids, have you ever heard of a Barak?
Captain Suhail:Oi. That's just a Pegasus lad. Wings, horsey face, all the same thing. I've raced one before.
Zaki:No. No. No, Sohail. Not a Pegasus. This is different.
Zaki:Kids, can you say Barak? Repeat after me. Boo. Rock. Barak.
Zaki:The Barak was bright white, bigger than a donkey, smaller than a horse. It had wings on its sides, and with one step, it could leap farther than your eyes can see.
Noora:Like whoosh. One big step and zoom. It's already far away.
Zaki:Yes. Allah sent the barak to carry the prophet on a very, very special journey. Angel Jibril said, come o messenger of Allah, tonight you will travel by Allah's command.
Captain Suhail:Sounds like a flying donkey to me.
Zaki:You thought a lantern was the moon, captain. So forgive me if I don't trust your eyes. The prophet mounted the barak. Angel Jibril stood by his side, and together they set out into the night sky. The barak leapt forward.
Zaki:Whoosh. Faster than the wind, faster than the blink of an eye. The prophet, peace be upon him, flew through the night with angel Jibril by his side.
Noora:Was he flying past stars? Past clouds? Past the moon?
Zaki:Yes. Past clouds and stars soaring through the sky so quickly, like lightning racing across the night.
Captain Suhail:I once flew faster than lightning myself. Beat a thunderstorm across the Red Sea, I did.
Zaki:You barely beat a rain puddle, captain. At last, the prophet arrived in Jerusalem at a sacred place called Masjid Al Aqsa. It was a beautiful mosque standing tall and strong.
Noora:Why there uncle Zaki? Why not stay in Makkah?
Zaki:Because Masjid Al Aqsa is very special. It is one of Allah's holy mosques, a place where many prophets prayed. And that night, something amazing happened. All of the prophets, prophet Ibrahim, prophet Musa, prophet Isa, and many more, they all gathered there. All the prophets from all the stories we've covered so far.
Zaki:All of your favorite prophets were there in Masjid Al Aqsa. And who led them in prayer? Prophet Muhammad.
Noora:He led all the prophets?
Zaki:Yes, Nunu. Allah honored him to be their leader. It showed that the prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, was the final messenger, carrying the same light and truth that every prophet before him had carried.
Captain Suhail:So you're telling me he led a prayer with prophets from hundreds of years ago. Sounds like the biggest captain's meeting I
Zaki:ever heard. Yes, captain. Except this was no sea captain's meeting. This was the leaders of faith all standing together united. But the journey wasn't finished.
Zaki:Masjid Al Aqsa was only the beginning. From there, the Prophet would rise even higher. From Masjid Al Aqsa, Angel Jibril guided the Prophet upwards, higher than any bird had flown, higher than the stars in the sky. This was the Mirage, the ascension to the heavens.
Captain Suhail:I thought Mirage were the two brothers who helped you make this. What was it again? Yes. Pod quest. No, captain.
Captain Suhail:Mirage is
Zaki:the prophet Muhammad's journey into the heavens. They just named it after this story.
Captain Suhail:Right. I knew that.
Noora:The heavens? Like space?
Zaki:Yes, Nunu. Well, kind of. I mean, not exactly like space, even more wondrous. At each level of heaven, a great prophet stood to greet him. They welcomed him because they knew the last messenger had come, the one who carried Allah's final message for all people.
Captain Suhail:Like a captain welcomed aboard by other captains, aye, a fine ceremony indeed.
Zaki:At the first heaven, prophet Adam, the very first human, greeted him. He welcomed the prophet Muhammad with love as if welcoming all of his children too.
Noora:Like a grandparent hugging the whole family.
Zaki:Exactly, Noradir. At other heavens, more prophets greeted him. Prophet Isa, prophet Yusuf, prophet Idris, prophet Haroun, each welcomed him with kindness saying, welcome, oh righteous prophet. Then came prophet Musa. He cried, but not because he was sad.
Zaki:Prophet Musa knew how much love prophet Muhammad's followers would show him more than Musa's own people had.
Noora:He wanted his people to listen too.
Zaki:At the highest heaven was prophet Ibrahim sitting near a house of light, the heavenly Kaaba. He smiled and welcomed the prophet Muhammad peace be upon them both as if to say, you carry the same faith I carried, the same truth, the same call to Allah. And then higher still. Beyond all heavens, prophet Muhammad came to a place that even angel Jibril wasn't allowed to go. Muhammad was alone.
Zaki:He stood in a place no one had ever reached before. There Allah gave him a gift. The gift of Salah. You know prayers.
Captain Suhail:50 prayers a day by the selfie spray of Salahuddin, I can barely take 50 naps. At first,
Zaki:it was 50. But the prophet, with love for his people, asked Allah to make it less. And Allah, being so nice and kind, made it only five, just five prayers each day.
Noora:So we can pray to Allah every day, but not too many that it's too hard.
Zaki:Five prayers, but each one as powerful as 50. A gift for every believer. A way for us to rise too, not with wings, not in a barak, but with our hearts, reaching Allah through prayer.
Noora:Uncle Zaki, the prophet went up so high, all the way to Allah, And Allah gave him a gift, Salah.
Zaki:Salah means prayer. Some people call it namaz. We do it five times every day. Morning, noon, afternoon, evening, and night.
Noora:And we face the Kaaba in Mecca. Right?
Zaki:Yes. We turn our bodies to the Kaaba, but really it's our hearts that turn to Allah.
Noora:So when I pray, even though I'm little, it's like I'm flying too?
Zaki:Exactly, my dear. Salah is how we fly without wings. It's how we rise to Allah. Every time we pray, we are close to him, closer than the stars, closer than the sky.
Captain Suhail:Five times a day. I'll need to up my snack game then. I'll need to ration some for, reserves.
Noora:That's because you're a greedy seagull, Uncle Sohail.
Captain Suhail:Greedy? Nay, I'm nutritionally prepared. A noble sea captain must keep his strength. I'll pray for a bigger fish. Thank you very much.
Zaki:Only you, captain Sohail, could turn Sala into supper. And so, my amazing friends, that was the night journey. Al Israel wal Mi'raj. A journey higher than the stars, a gift for us all, and the reason we pray five times a day. Isn't it wondrous that each prayer is like our own little journey to Allah?
Noora:I'm going to think of flying every time I pray now. Whoosh.
Captain Suhail:Just don't knock over my fish basket when you do that, Les.
Zaki:Before captain Sohail gets any hungrier, let me tell you what's next. Our next story is full of courage and danger. It's about brave people meeting the prophet in secret at night, the pledge of Aqaba, and about the Quraysh making a terrible plan to harm him.
Noora:Secret meetings? Like spies?
Zaki:Almost Nunu, but these weren't spies. They were believers ready to protect the prophet even if it meant great danger.
Captain Suhail:I I love a tale of plots and peril. Assassins lurking in shadows. Blades glinting like shark teeth in the dark.
Zaki:Yes. Yes, captain. But remember, this is a story of Allah's protection, not just danger. Until next time, my fine feathered friends. Keep your hearts lifted, your prayers strong, and your courage ready.
Zaki:Salam and goodbye for now.
Captain Suhail:I'd fight off 10 assassins with me beak. But truth be told, prayer's the sharper blade.
Zaki:This story was produced by Meraj Digital. Voices provided by Wayne Holland as Zaki 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.
Copyright:Content copyright and production copyright 2025 by Meraj Digital.