Maulana Wahiduddin Khan I The Sunday Guardian I 16th June 2013 I Page 12

There is a verse in the Quran, which says: "Do they never reflect on the camels and how they were created" (88:17).

The camel is one of the unique creations of God. A camel is endowed with some unique characteristics, hence its title, "Ship of the Desert". It escorts man on his unbearably harsh journey through the barrenness of the hot, dry deserts of sand.

Water resources, in the desert, are very few and far between. Camels can go for about 25 days in winter and about five days in summer without water. They can travel, carrying their master, for 400 kilometres at a stretch, without receiving so much as a drop of water. And when it arrives at an oasis, it stores water in vast quantities as though its hump were a water tank.

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In a short span of 10 minutes, it can take in about 100 litres of water, which keeps it going for several weeks.

In times of scarcity of water, during a journey, it can live on its own resources. Very astonishing indeed. Recent researches have shown that camels' humps are like generators of water. In adverse conditions, it draws on this reserve by converting the stored fat into water through some mysterious chemistry. The camel loses its body water slowly, and can regain lost weight in ten minutes by drinking as many as 25 gallons of water.

When kneeling, they are supported by horny pads on the chest and knees. Their long limbs and soft, wide-spreading two-toed feet enable them to walk on sand or snow. In spite of being a wild animal, it is docile when properly trained. Man can see in everyday life signs like these, which are full of meaning, high design, and the goodness of God to man.