Umm Jamil Machine
Islamic Stories
This story took place in Syria. A tailor shop owner narrates it, saying: "I owned a tailor shop, and I had a neighbor whose husband had passed away, leaving her with three orphans. One day, she came to my shop and said to me, 'So-and-so, I have a serger machine' (by serger machine, she meant a sewing machine used to finish fabric edges, prevent fraying, trim excess material, and stitch the edge simultaneously). My husband used to work on it, but we do not know how to operate it. I want to provide for these orphans. Could I bring the machine to your shop and rent it out to you, so that I can earn an income to support myself and my family?"
I felt shy for her, and shyness brings only good. I said to her, "With pleasure, send it to me." When she brought the machine, I found it to be an extremely old model, completely unusable. However, I did not want to break her heart. So I asked her, "Sister, how much do you want to rent this machine for?"
Cultural News
Research Services
Seasonal Holidays and Occasions
She said, "Three thousand lira." I took the deal and said to her, "May God reward you with goodness, sister" (comforting her heart), and gave her the three thousand lira. I took the machine and placed it in a corner of the shop, as it was impossible to use it for any work.
We remained in this state for ten years. Umm Jamil would come every month to collect the rent for the machine, which sat idle in the corner of the shop, meaning we derived no benefit from it.
After ten years, we moved from the small shop to a new one on the outskirts of the town. When moving our belongings, I told them, "Move Umm Jamil’s machine with us." The shop manager said, "Sir, we have no use for Umm Jamil’s machine. Why should we move it?"
I told her, "That is not your concern. Just move it!"
Days and years passed. Then, ten more years later, the war broke out, and the entire area where the shop was located was destroyed, except for my shop. Due to the war, contact with Umm Jamil was lost, and we could not find her address. Whenever we tried to call her phone, it was switched off.
The shop manager left me and traveled to Europe. Two months after her departure, she called me and said, "I have seen a dream, and I would like you to hear it from me." I asked her, "What is this dream?" She said, "In the dream, a phone told me to say to So-and-so: 'By the blessing of Umm Jamil’s machine, God has preserved your shop.'"
The narrator of the story said: "My skin bristled, and tears streamed down my face. I said, 'Praise be to God.' By God, not a single needle was stolen from my shop, even though the entire area where the shop was located was destroyed in the war."
From Abu Umamah (may God be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Acts of kindness ward off evil fates, secret charity extinguishes the Lord’s wrath, and maintaining family ties increase one’s lifespan."
Among the most beautiful things said regarding this meaning is: "Those who are people of kindness in this world are the people of kindness in the Hereafter." That is, whoever is accustomed to doing good to others in this world will be among those honored and rewarded generously by God Almighty.
Examples of acts of kindness include: feeding the hungry, supporting an orphan, settling the debt of the insolvent, relieving a Muslim’s distress, teaching beneficial knowledge, reconciling disputing parties, speaking kindly, and smiling.
Summary of the meaning: Acts of kindness are every beneficial deed performed with the intention of seeking God’s pleasure, from which people benefit. They are among the greatest causes for attaining reward, blessing, God’s love, and His protection.
Perhaps by caring for a weak neighbor among your neighbors, or a weak female relative who needs someone to serve her, and who is elderly, you will become the cause of your happiness, and the cause of God’s care, protection, and preservation for you, your wife, your children, and your children’s children after you.
$ Imam and Preacher
