Yunus (as) was from Bani Israel, who was sent to the people of Nineveh to invite them to Tawheed, but they rejected. As a result, he left them before Allah instructed him to do so, and ran away to a heavily laden ship.
وَإِنَّ يُونُسَ لَمِنَ ٱلْمُرْسَلِينَ ﴿١٣٩﴾ إِذْ أَبَقَ إِلَى ٱلْفُلْكِ ٱلْمَشْحُونِ ﴿١٤٠﴾ فَسَاهَمَ فَكَانَ مِنَ ٱلْمُدْحَضِينَ ﴿١٤١﴾ فَٱلْتَقَمَهُ ٱلْحُوتُ وَهُوَ مُلِيمٌ ﴿١٤٢﴾ فَلَوْلَآ أَنَّهُۥ كَانَ مِنَ ٱلْمُسَبِّحِينَ ﴿١٤٣﴾ لَلَبِثَ فِى بَطْنِهِۦٓ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ ﴿١٤٤﴾ فَنَبَذْنَـٰهُ بِٱلْعَرَآءِ وَهُوَ سَقِيمٌ ﴿١٤٥﴾ وَأَنۢبَتْنَا عَلَيْهِ شَجَرَةً مِّن يَقْطِينٍ ﴿١٤٦﴾ وَأَرْسَلْنَـٰهُ إِلَىٰ مِا۟ئَةِ أَلْفٍ أَوْ يَزِيدُونَ ﴿١٤٧﴾ فَـَٔامَنُوا۟ فَمَتَّعْنَـٰهُمْ إِلَىٰ حِينٍ ﴿ ١٤٨
And indeed, Jonah was among the messengers. (139) [Mention] when he ran away to the laden ship. (140) And he drew lots and was among the losers. (141) Then the fish swallowed him, while he was blameworthy. (142) And had he not been of those who exalt Allah, (143) He would have remained inside its belly until the Day they are resurrected. (144) But We threw him onto the open shore while he was ill. (145) And We caused to grow over him a gourd vine. (146) And We sent him to [his people of] a hundred thousand or more. (147) And they believed, so We gave them enjoyment [of life] for a time. (148) (Al-Saffaat 139-148)
During the journey, they encountered a storm and so they decided to throw someone off the ship, to avoid being capsized. They drew lots to determine who it was going to be, and it was Allah’s Will that Yunus (as) was selected to be thrown overboard. Eventually a big fish (most like a whale) swallowed him and took him to the deepest, darkest depths of the ocean.
And as the whale swam deeper and deeper, there was only darkness upon darkness. Darkness of the ocean, darkness of the interior of the whale, darkness of regret and darkness of the unknown. And it was in this moment that Yunus (as) called out to Allah using words of Tasbeeh in full humility!
And he called out within the darknesses, “There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers.” [al-Anbiya:87]
And had it not been for the Tasbeeh he did, there would have been no escape. He would have been trapped in the belly of the whale until the Day of Judgment.
But that’s not what happened, because Yunus (as) was someone who was in the habit of remembering Allah all the time, even when life was easy! And because he remembered Allah in times of ease, he was helped in this difficult time as well. As a result, Allah answered his du’a and rescued him from the belly of the whale.
فَاسْتَجَبْنَا لَهُ وَنَجَّيْنَاهُ مِنَ الْغَمِّ وَكَذَٰلِكَ نُنجِي الْمُؤْمِنِينَ
So We responded to him and saved him from the distress. And thus do We save the believers. [al-Anbiya:88]
So if a person turns to Allah with Iman, calls upon Him for help, know that Allah will respond. He will grant him relief and alleviate his distress, as he did in the case of Yunus (as).
The Prophet (saw) said, “The supplication of Dhun-Nun when he supplicated, while in the belly of the whale was,
لَّا إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا أَنتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي كُنتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ
‘There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers.’ Indeed, no Muslim supplicates with it for anything, ever, except Allah responds to him.” [al-Tirmidhi]
This du’a is for every distressed person. When a person is in hardship and difficulty and the darkness of grief begins to envelop him, and he knows that what he is going through is a result of his own actions, then he should implore Allah’s mercy with such words. Because Tasbeeh is a means of removal of problems. It is a means of removing grief. And it is a means of averting calamities as well.
We should always maintain the greatest hope in Allah, because there’s no loss when you raise your hands to Him in sincere supplication! So when you make du’a, have this level of conviction that Allah is listening to you and that He will respond to your request. Because nothing is impossible for Allah and nothing is difficult for Him either. If He can cool the fire for Ibrahim (as) and deliver Yunus (as) from the whale, then He can answer your du’as as well. So trust Allah and call upon Him. And never underestimate the power of du’a.
And like Yunus (as) it is also important that we remember Allah at times of ease and not just at times of distress. This is what true Imaan necessitates. Otherwise, many people find it hard to cope in the face of hardships, because they only try to know Allah during difficulty. What must be done is to know Him in times of ease as well. Our hearts should be fully inclined towards Him. We need to love Him, venerate Him and worship Him at all times.
And remember, whoever knocks continuously, will eventually be let in!
The Prophet (saw) said, “Know Allah during times of prosperity, He will know you in times of adversity.” [Jaami’ al-‘Uloom wal Hikam]
The Prophet (saw) said, “Whoever wishes that Allah responds to his du’a at time of hardship, then let him increase his du’a at times of ease!” [al-Tirmidhi]
