Prophet Yunus

Yunus عليه السلام is known by three names in the Quran: Yunus, Dhul-Nun — the Companion of the Whale — and Sahib al-Hut. His story is unlike any other Prophet's: it is the story of a man who left his mission without Allah's permission, was swallowed by a whale in the depths of the ocean, and then called out to Allah from inside three layers of darkness — and was answered.

He had been sent to the people of Nineveh, and after years of calling them with no response, he departed before receiving Allah's command to do so. A whale swallowed him in the deep sea. There, in the belly of the whale, in the darkness of the ocean, under the darkness of the night — three darknesses layered upon one another — Yunus عليه السلام made the most famous tasbeeh in the Quran. He did not ask for rescue directly. He glorified Allah, declared His perfection, and admitted his own shortcoming. That was enough.

Allah tells us that had he not been among those who glorify Allah, he would have remained in the whale's belly until the Day of Resurrection. But because of his tasbeeh, Allah commanded the whale to cast him onto the shore. He emerged weak and ill, and Allah caused a gourd plant to grow over him for shade and healing. He returned to Nineveh — and this time, his entire people, one hundred thousand or more, believed all at once. No other Prophet in the Quran had such a complete national acceptance. Yunus teaches that no depth is too deep for Allah's mercy, and that glorification of Allah — even from the darkest place — is the greatest key to relief.