Bilqis, Queen of Sheba

Bilqis, the Queen of Saba (Sheba), is one of the most fascinating figures in the Quran (Surah al-Naml 27:22-44). She ruled a magnificent kingdom in Yemen and was initially a sun-worshipper along with her people. Prophet Sulayman AS learned of her through the hoopoe bird (hudhud), which had traveled to her land and returned with news of a queen who ruled a great kingdom but whose people worshipped the sun. Sulayman sent her a letter beginning with 'Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim,' calling her to submit to Allah. Her response was measured and politically wise: she consulted her ministers, who offered to fight, but she herself reasoned that when kings enter a city they destroy it — she preferred a diplomatic approach. She sent Sulayman gifts to test whether he was a king or a prophet. Sulayman rejected the gifts: 'Do you think you can aid me with wealth? What Allah has given me is better than what He has given you.' He invited her to come to him. When she arrived, Sulayman had already had her massive throne transported to his palace instantaneously through the miracle of Asif ibn Barkhiya. When she saw the throne slightly altered, she acknowledged: 'It is as though it were the very one.' She was then shown into the glass-floored palace, and believing it to be water, she lifted her skirt. When she realized it was smooth glass, the moment became one of profound realization. She declared: 'My Lord, I have wronged myself, and I submit with Sulayman to Allah, Lord of the worlds.' Her submission is one of the Quran's most powerful accounts of a ruler choosing truth over pride.