Amar and the Tortoise by Harun Yahya Books

Amar and the Tortoise
by Harun Yahya

One day, Amar was reading one of his favorite stories, "The Hare
and the Tortoise." He laughed at what happened to the hare and
learned from the tortoise how important it is to use one's head and that
cleverness is more than a match for physical superiority. While he was
thinking about these things, he suddenly realized that the tortoise in the
book had come alive on the page and had started talking to him:
The tortoise began by saying: "Hi Amar! It's great that you are so
young and clever enough to learn a lesson from the story about the hare
and me."Amar asked "How old are you?"
The tortoise replied: "I'm not as young as I look; I am actually 45 years
old. Tortoises live for about 60 years; and there's even one kind of tortoise
called the 'Testudo' that can live as long as 189 years."
"What's your favorite season?" asked Amar.
The tortoise replied: "Warm weather is very important for our survival.
Our body temperature changes with the temperature of the air around
us and is usually between 32.2 and 32.4 Fahrenheit (0.1 and 0.2 degrees
Celcius) lower than that of the air. Our digestive system speeds up
as the temperature becomes hotter. When Allah created us, He
gave us this characteristic to make it easier for us to survive when it is
very hot. We need all the gifts that Allah gives us, but He is Rich Beyond
Need."
Amar then wondered: "What's your favorite food?"
"We love yellow squash. Our eyes are very sharp, and they see yellows
best. That means we can easily find our favorite food," responded the tortoise.
Amar had another question for the tortoise:
"Do you hibernate in winter?"
The tortoise explained: "Yes. When the weather gets colder, from October on, and food becomes harder to find, our bodies slow down and we protect ourselves by going to sleep for several months. Our heartbeat and our
breathing slow down. We hibernate between October and March. Because Allah created us in this way, we don't have to stay awake in winter with nothing
to eat, which would be fatal to us.Allah has protected
Everything in the heavens
and everything in the
Ear th belongs t o Him.
Al lah is the Rich Beyond
Ne ed, the Praise worthy.
(Surat al -Haj j : 64)
us for generations by sending us to sleep at just the right time."
Amar had more to ask: "I know you live on dry land, but I also think
some of you live in the water. Can you tell me about them?"
The tortoise smiled: "You're right, Amar. There are tortoises, fresh
water turtles and sea turtles among us. I live on dry land, for example. I
prefer fields, soft soil and grapevines. Fresh water turtles, the kind you
keep in aquariums, like lakes and river banks. Sea turtles live in the warm
seas and come onto land to lay their eggs. Let me tell you something interesting
about the Caretta sea turtle:
Caretta carettas go to warm beaches to lay their eggs. Allah inspires
the young turtles that hatch from the eggs to head toward the light reflected
off the sea, in other words, to go straight toward where they will
live. How do these baby turtles know that the sea is the best place for
them to live in? It must be because our Lord inspires that knowledge in
them."Amar said: "You're right. Everyone with a mind to think with must
know that the world is full of Allah's wonders. We must always remember
that you and I, all animals and trees and everything else are a sign
of Him. It was nice to talk to you. Thanks for telling me so much. Byebye."
"Good-bye, you clever boy," said the tortoise.