Aboard Noah's Ark - 2

It is interesting that in the Quran, there is almost no mentioning of the situation of the people aboard the ark during the flood. The two exceptions to this are the communication between Noah (pbuh) and his son and the prayer taught by God to the believers, both of which are linked to the beginning of the voyage. Following these, we are only told that the ark was cruising under the supervision of God Almighty. Then we are provided with a conversation between Noah and God after the flood, in which a message of blessing is given.

And when you have boarded the ship, you and those with you, then say, 'Praise to Allah who has saved us form the wrongdoing people.' Say, "Lord, grant us a blessed landing from the Ark; You are the One who provides the safest landing". (23/28-29)

Sailing under Our observation as reward for he who had been denied. (54/14)

It was said, "O Noah, disembark in security from Us and blessings upon you and upon nations [descending] from those with you... (11/48)

A rather plausible idea about what happened while on the ark during the flood is that the passengers all slept. If you read through the Quran, you see that sleep is a blessing that has been given to the servants of God on special occasions. The first of these cases is that of prophet Joshua pbuh. We are told that God made him sleep for hundred years, and then woke him to show a sign about how He is going to resurrect the dead (2/259). The second case of sleep is that of the Seven Sleepers, who were among the believers to the message of Jesus pbuh and who were made by God sleep for three centuries (18/25). Their sleep was a protection from the oppression of their people who were pushing them to revert to idolatry. Their awakening generations later was a sign of resurrection both for themselves and for the people living at the time.

The third example of sleep as a blessing is that before the battle of Badr between the first Muslims and the Meccan disbelievers. It was a situation where the intention of the believers was nothing more than retrieving their belongings and goods that were plundered by the disbelievers and were being sent to the markets of Damascus. So, the believers were not really there for a war, but God's plan was different. All-Seeing God descended upon them serenity and they couldn't help sleeping, whereas the opponents were overstressed. When the war broke out, with the help of angels sent by God, it didn't take too long for the believers to defeat the disbelievers.

When He made the slumber fall upon you as a reassurance from him and sent down water from the sky upon you, that thereby He might purify you, and remove from you the fear of Satan, and make strong your hearts and firm (your) feet thereby. (8/11)

When your Lord revealed to the angels: I am with you, therefore make firm those who believe. I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Therefore strike above their necks and strike every fingertip of them. (8/12)

With all these in mind, if we return to the believers on the ark during the flood, the fact that nothing mentioned about them on the ark could be a sign that there actually was nothing to be mentioned after all, because they were sleeping all along the journey, which was overseen and guided by God. Furthermore, when they woke up with all the serenity from the sleep, which probably happened shortly before they came out, they were mentally and bodily ready to tackle with everything else. 

At this point, it is noteworthy to remember that sleep is an essential part of brain operations. During the sleep, unlike what we suppose, brain is very active; especially during the deep sleep that is referred to as REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. It has been scientifically proven that sleeping is an integral part of memory consolidation and the ability to perceive. In other words, thinking critically and deeply and making thoughtful decisions require a brain that has had its proper sleep.

Having had their deep sleep and a good rest, what were they thinking before they fell asleep: Why did all this happen and how to prevent a replay? Now, they can analyze things better and arrive at more objective conclusions thereof. Thanks to the events they have witnessed within their own lifetime, they can more wisely establish whys, what fors and hows. And in fact, this is a must on them, because they have the duty of starting a new line on a clean page that is going to trace a picture pleasing to their beloved Lord.