The Prophet stayed on that mountain for days, meditating with the stone. In the silence, he heard its sobs shift — no longer heavy with terror, but soft with longing. “O Prophet,” the stone said, “I now weep not because I fear the Hellfire, but because I long to be near the Light of Allah’s face.”

The Prophet smiled. This was the path of the awliya (friends of Allah) — to begin with fear and end in love. “This is the way of sincere servants,” he said. “Fear awakens the soul, but love carries it to Allah.” He recalled a hadith qudsi: “My servant continues to draw near to Me with voluntary deeds until I love him…” The stone was no longer a symbol of dread, but of devotion. Even a stone, hardened by nature, could become a mirror to divine love when exposed to the light of the Qur’an.