The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:
There lived a king before your time, and he had a magician (court sorcerer). When the magician grew old, he said to the king, “I have grown old. This art of magic must not perish with me. Therefore, send me a young boy so that I may teach him magic.” The king accordingly sent a boy to him to learn that knowledge.
On his way to the magician, the boy passed by a monk (who worshipped Allah alone). The boy sat with him and listened to his advice, which deeply attracted him.
Thus, whenever the boy went to the magician, he would also sit with the monk. As a result, he would arrive late to the magician, and the magician would beat him. The boy complained about this to the monk.
The monk advised him, “If you fear the magician, tell him, ‘My family detained me, which caused the delay.’ And if you fear your family, tell them, ‘The magician detained me, which caused the delay.'” The boy continued to do this for some time.
One day, while the boy was on his way, he encountered a massive beast blocking the path of the people, preventing them from passing. The boy thought to himself, “Today I shall find out whether the magician is better or the monk is better.”
He picked up a stone and prayed, “O Allah! If the way of the monk is more pleasing to You than the way of the magician, then kill this beast so that the people can move freely.” He then threw the stone at the beast and killed it. The people passed by without fear.
Afterwards, he went to the monk and told him what had happened. The monk said, “O my dear son! Today you have become better than me. You have reached a stage where I can witness your high status. Now, you will soon be put to trial. If you are tested, do not reveal my identity.”
The boy then began to cure the blind and the lepers, and he brought relief to people suffering from all kinds of illnesses.
A courtier of the king, who had lost his eyesight, heard about this. He went to the boy with numerous gifts and said, “If you cure me of this ailment, all these riches will belong to you.”
The boy replied, “I do not cure anyone. It is Allah alone Who cures. If you believe in Allah, I will pray to Allah for you, and He will cure you.”
When the blind man believed in Allah, Allah restored his sight. Later, he went back to sit with the king as usual. The king asked him, “Who restored your sight?”
He replied, “My Lord.”
The king asked, “Do you have a lord other than me?”
He replied, “My Lord and your Lord is Allah.”
The king seized him and tortured him relentlessly until he revealed the identity of the boy. The boy was then brought before the king.
The king said, “O boy! Has your magic reached such a level that you can now cure the blind and the lepers, and do such things?”
The boy replied, “I do not cure anyone. It is Allah alone Who cures.”
The king then tortured the boy until he revealed the identity of the monk.
The monk was then brought forward. He was told, “Turn back from your religion!” But he refused. So, the king ordered a saw to be brought. It was placed on the middle of his head, and his body was sawn into two halves until they fell apart.
Next, the courtier of the king was brought forward, and he was told, “Turn back from your religion!” He too refused. So, the saw was placed on the middle of his head, and he was sawn into two halves until they fell apart.
Then the boy was brought forward, and he was told, “Turn back from your religion!” He refused.
The king then handed him over to a group of his men and ordered, “Take him to such-and-such mountain. When you reach its peak, ask him to renounce his monotheistic faith. If he turns back from his religion, well and good; otherwise, throw him down from the mountain.”
They took him up to the top of the mountain. The boy then prayed, “O Allah! Save me from them in any manner You wish.”
The mountain began to shake violently, and all the men fell down. The boy then walked back to the king. The king asked him, “What happened to those who were with you?”
The boy replied, “Allah saved me from them.”
The king then handed him over to another group of men and ordered, “Take him in a boat to the middle of the sea. If he turns back from his monotheistic faith, well and good; otherwise, throw him into the sea.”
When they took him out, the boy prayed, “O Allah! Save me from them in any manner You wish.”
The boat capsized with everyone on board, and they all drowned. The boy alone walked back to the king.
Seeing him, the king asked, “What happened to those who were with you?”
The boy replied, “Allah saved me from them,” and then looking at the king, he added, “You will not be able to kill me unless you do exactly as I tell you.”
“What is that?” the king asked.
The boy said, “Gather all the people in an open field. Crucify me on a tree trunk. Then, take an arrow from my quiver, place it in the bow, and say: ‘In the name of Allah, the Lord of this boy,’ and then shoot the arrow at me. Only if you do this will you be able to kill me.”
The king complied. He gathered the people in an open field and crucified the boy. Then, he took an arrow from the boy’s quiver, placed it in the bow, and said, “In the name of Allah, the Lord of this boy,” and shot the arrow. The arrow struck the boy’s temple. The boy placed his hand on his temple where the arrow hit and died.
Seeing this, the people exclaimed, “We believe in the Lord of this boy! We believe in the Lord of this boy! We believe in the Lord of this boy!”
The people then went to the king and said, “O King! Have you seen what you feared? By Allah! What you feared has come to pass. All the people have believed in the Lord of this boy.”
Thereupon, the king ordered ditches to be dug at the mouths of the streets. When they were dug, he lit fires in them and ordered, “Whoever does not renounce this monotheistic faith, burn them in it, or throw them into it.” The soldiers did exactly that.
Finally, a woman came along with her infant child. She hesitated to jump into the pit of fire. At that moment, the infant spoke up and said, “O mother! Remain patient, for you are on the path of truth!”
Regarding this event, Allah revealed the following verses in the Qur’an:
قُتِلَ أَصْحَابُ الْأُخْدُودِ النَّارِ ذَاتِ الْوَقُودِ إِذْ هُمْ عَلَيْهَا قُعُودٌ وَهُمْ عَلَىٰ مَا يَفْعَلُونَ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ شُهُودٌ وَمَا نَقَمُوا مِنْهُمْ إِلَّا أَن يُؤْمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْحَمِيدِ
“Destroyed were the companions of the trench. [Containing] the fire full of fuel, when they were sitting near it. And they were, to what they were doing against the believers, witnesses. And they resented them not except because they believed in Allah, the Exalted in Might, the Praiseworthy.”
— Surah Al-Buruj: 4-8
Those who believed in Allah were tested in the past. They chose to die to protect their faith (Iman) rather than abandon their monotheistic beliefs.
Truth will always be put to the test!
This (Hadith) known as “The Story of the Boy and the King” (Ashab al-Ukhdud).