#ILOVE$TRUMPOne day, a sorceress came seeking the jinn to know hidden matters that humans cannot perceive, and she said to the king:
"Indeed, the dam of Ma'rib will collapse!"
The king was astonished and said to her:
"If you tell the truth, I will grant you gifts and all that you ask for, and if you lie, I will sever your head from your body!"
The king sent engineers to verify the matter, and they came with the certain news: the dam would indeed collapse! At that point, the king decided to flee with his wealth, children, and entourage to a safe place without informing his people of the catastrophe that would befall them, leaving them to their inevitable fate!
But his daughter Bilqis refused to flee with him, and was astonished by her father's conduct in abandoning his people. After his departure, she warned the people of the impending disaster and offered them a plan for salvation, saying:
"Take your belongings, your wealth, and your children, and all that you can carry, and move to high places on the mountains!"
She warned them not to delay, and stayed with them until the end. The dam indeed collapsed and swept everything in its path, but the people were saved thanks to the wisdom and courage of Bilqis.
After saving her people, the people loved her and appointed her as their queen, and they obeyed her blindly. But she ruled a people who worshipped the sun instead of Allah.
When the hoopoe learned of this, he informed the Prophet of God, Solomon, peace be upon him, who commanded the hoopoe to deliver a message to Bilqis. The queen was astonished when she found the message starting with "In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful," as this was the first time she had seen such a thing.
Despite her astonishment, she did not rush to make a decision, but gathered the elders of the people for consultation, as stated in the Holy Quran:
(She said: "O assembly, indeed, a noble book has been thrown to me. Indeed, it is from Solomon, and indeed, it is in the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Do not be arrogant against me and come to me in submission.")
The leaders said to her:
"We are a people of great strength and might, but the decision is yours, so see what you command!"
If Bilqis had been arrogant or reckless, she would have commanded war, but with her wisdom, she wanted to test the Prophet of God, Solomon, to know whether he was an ordinary king or a prophet sent by God.
She said:
(Indeed, when kings enter a village, they corrupt it and make the honorable among its people humiliated. Thus do they do. And indeed, I am sending to them with a gift, and I will wait to see what the messengers return with.)
When the gift reached Solomon, peace be upon him, he said, as stated in the Holy Quran:
(When Solomon came, he said: "Will you aid me with wealth? What Allah has given me is better than what He has given you. Rather, it is you who rejoice in your gift. Return to them, and we will come to them with armies they will not be able to withstand, and we will drive them out from there humiliated while they are subdued.")
When Bilqis read this message, she realized that Solomon was a prophet and not an ordinary king, and she decided to go to him herself.
In the meantime, Solomon wanted to bring her throne before she arrived, so he said:
(He said: "O assembly, which of you will bring me her throne before they come to me in submission?")
Then a jinn said:
"I will bring it to you before you rise from your place!"
But a man with knowledge from the Book said:
"I will bring it to you before your glance returns to you!"
And indeed, Solomon found the throne before him in the blink of an eye! He said:
(This is from the grace of my Lord, to test me whether I give thanks or act with disbelief.)
Then Solomon ordered to change the appearance of the throne to test Bilqis's intelligence.
When Bilqis arrived, Solomon, peace be upon him, asked her about the throne, and she said:
(It was said to her: "Is this your throne?" She replied: "It is as if it is him.")
Observe her diplomacy! She did not assert that it was her throne, nor did she deny it, but she answered intelligently.
Then Solomon invited her to Islam, and it was said to her:
(Enter the palace.)
And when she saw him, she thought he was water, so she uncovered her legs, and Solomon said to her:
(Indeed, it is a magnificent palace made of glass.)
At that point, she realized the greatness of Allah and believed, saying:
(My Lord, indeed I have wronged myself and I have surrendered with Solomon to Allah, Lord of the worlds.)
Here, we observe the pride of Bilqis even when she announced her Islam, as she said:
"I have surrendered with Solomon," meaning that she placed herself in the same rank as him, which indicates her great intelligence!
This was the great story of Bilqis, in which she demonstrated wisdom, intelligence, and unique coura