Glorification of Allah Photo Contest

The Clouds – They speak in the most beautiful voice and laugh in the most
beautiful manner!

Speech of the Lord of the World – The Creator of the Clouds about the
Clouds:

As-Saffat - 37:2
By those (angels) who drive the clouds in a good way.

An-Nur - 24:43
See you not that Allâh drives the clouds gently, then joins them together, then makes
them into a heap of layers, and you see the rain comes forth from between them. And He
sends down from the sky hail (like) mountains, (or there are in the heaven mountains of
 hail from where He sends down hail), and strike therewith whom He will, and averts it
from whom He wills. The vivid flash of its (clouds) lightning nearly blinds the sight.

Al-Baqarah - 2:164
Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and
day, and the ships which sail through the sea with that which is of use to mankind, and
the water (rain) which Allâh sends down from the sky and makes the earth alive
therewith after its death, and the moving (living) creatures of all kinds that He has
scattered therein, and in the veering of winds and clouds which are held between the sky
and the earth, are indeed Ayât (proofs, evidences, signs, etc.) for people of understanding.

Ar-Rum - 30:48
Allâh is He Who sends the winds, so they raise clouds, and spread them along the sky as
He wills, and then break them into fragments, until you see rain drops come forth from
their midst! Then when He has made them fall on whom of His slaves as He will, lo! they
rejoice!

Al-Waqi'ah - 56:69
Is it you who cause it from the rain clouds to come down, or are We the Causer of it to
come down? (Al-Waqi'ah 56:69)

Fatir - 35:9
And it is Allâh Who sends the winds, so that they raise up the clouds, and We drive them
to a dead land, and revive therewith the earth after its death. As such (will be) the
Resurrection! (Fatir 35:9)

Al-Baqarah - 2:210
Do they then wait for anything other than that Allâh should come to them in the shadows
of the clouds and the angels? (Then) the case would be already judged. And to Allâh
return all matters (for decision).

Al-Furqan - 25:25
And (remember) the Day when the heaven shall be rent asunder with clouds, and the
angels will be sent down, with a grand descending.

Ra'd - 13:12
It is He who shows you the lightning, as a fear (for travellers) and as a hope (for those
who wait for rain). And it is He Who brings up (or originates) the clouds, heavy (with
water).
Speech of Allah, His Messengers and the Imams of Islam About Clouds –
Taken from Tafsir Ibn Katheer:

First Piece: Clouds –They speak in the most beautiful voice and laugh in the most beautiful
manner!

(And there is not a thing but glorifies His praise.) ;17:44<

Imam Ahmad recorded that: Ibrahim bin Sa`d said, "My father told me that he was sitting
next to Hamid bin `Abdur Rahman in the Masjid. A man from the tribe of Ghifar passed
and Hamid sent someone to him to please come to them. When he came, Hamid said to
me, `My nephew! Make space for him between me and you, for he had accompanied
Allah's Messenger .' When that man came, he sat between me and Hamid and Hamid said
to him, `What was the Hadith that you narrated to me from the Messenger of Allah ' He
said, `A man from Ghifar said that he heard the Prophet say, (Verily, Allah originates the
clouds, and they speak in the most beautiful voice and laugh in the most beautiful
manner.)

It appears, and Allah has the best knowledge, that the cloud's voice is in reference to
thunder and its laughter is the lightning. Musa bin `Ubaydah narrated that Sa`d bin
Ibrahim said, "Allah sends the rain and indeed, none has a better smile than it, nor more
comforting voice. Its smile is lightning and its voice is thunder.''

Second Piece: Clouds – A Form of Punishment!

(Then, when they saw it as a dense cloud approaching their valleys,) meaning, when they
saw the punishment coming towards them, they thought it to be clouds full of rain. That
made them happy and joyful, because they had a drought and needed rain. Allah then
said, (Nay, but it is that which you were asking to be hastened -- a wind wherein is
painful torment!) meaning, this is the torment that you called for saying, "Bring to us
what you promise us if you should be of the truthful.'' (Destroying every thing) meaning,
destroying every part of their land that could normally be destroyed. (by the command of
its Lord!) meaning, it had Allah's permission to do that.

Imam Ahmad recorded from `A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, that she said, "I
never saw Allah's Messenger fully laughing so that I would see his uvula. He would only
smile.'' She added that when Allah's Messenger saw clouds or wind, that would reflect on
his face (as discomfort). She asked him: "O Allah's Messenger! When the people see
 clouds, they become happy, hoping that they bring them rain. But I notice that when you
see them, displeasure appears on your face.'' Allah's Messenger replied, (O `A'ishah!
What would guarantee to me that they do not bring punishment Some nations had been
punished with wind. On seeing the punishment approaching them, a nation once said:
"This is a cloud bringing us rain.'') This is also recorded by Al-Bukhari and Muslim.

Imam Ahmad recorded that `A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said that when
Allah's Messenger saw clouds on any of the horizons, he would leave whatever he was
doing -- even if he was in prayer -- and say: (O Allah! I seek refuge with you from any
harm that it (the cloud) contains.) If Allah removed those clouds, the Prophet would
praise Allah, and if rain fell, he would say: (O Allah! Make it pouring and beneficent.)

Last Piece: Clouds – The Sign of Ressurection!

Here Allah explains how He creates the clouds that rain the water. (Allah is He Who
sends the winds, so that they raise clouds) either from the sea, as was mentioned by more
than one (of the scholars), or from whatever Allah wills.

(and spread them along the sky as He wills,) means, He spreads them and causes them to
increase and grow. From a little He makes a lot, and creates the clouds that look like
shields. Then He spreads them out until they fill the horizon. Sometimes the clouds come
from the sea, heavy and full, as Allah says: (And it is He Who sends the winds as heralds
of glad tidings, going before His mercy. Till when they have carried a heavy-laden cloud,
We drive it to a land that is dead) until: (Similarly, We shall raise up the dead, so that you
may remember or take heed.) (7:57)

Allah says here: (Allah is He Who sends the winds, so that they raise clouds and spread
them along the sky as He wills, and then break them into fragments) Mujahid, Abu `Amr
bin Al-`Ala', Matar Al-Warraq and Qatadah said, "This means pieces.'' Others said that it
means `piled up,' as Ad-Dahhak said. Others said that it means black, because they
contained so much water, and sometimes they are heavy and close to the earth. His
saying: (until you see rain drops come forth from their midst!) means, `so you see the
drops, i.e., the rain, which come from the midst of those clouds.'

(Then when He has made them fall on whom of His servants as He wills, lo, they
rejoice!) They rejoice at the rain when it comes to them because of their need for it.
(And verily, before that -- just before it was sent down upon them -- they were in
despair!) The people to whom this rain came were in despair, thinking that it rain would
never fall, just before it came to them. When it came to them, it came at the time of
greatest need, so it was a tremendous event for them What this means is that they were in
need of it before it fell, and there had been no rainfall for a long time, so they were
waiting for it at the time when it was due, but it did not come to them at that time. The
rain was late, and a long time passed. Then the rain came to them suddenly, after they
began to despair, and after their land became dry and barren, it was stirred to life, and it
swelled and produced every lovely kind of growth. Allah says:

(Look then at the effects of Allah's mercy,) meaning, the rain.

(how He revives the earth after its death.) Thus Allah draws attention to the revival of
people's bodies after they have died and disintegrated into nothing.

(Verily, that (Allah) shall indeed raise the dead.) means, the One Who does that is able to
raise the dead.

(and He is able to do all things.)