“So see what was the outcome of the plan they made: We utterly destroyed them and their people, all of them. Now behold their houses that lie in utter ruins because of their wrong-doing. Verily there is a Sign in this for the people who know. And We delivered those who believed and were wont to avoid disobeying [Allah].”
(Al Qur’ān – 27:51-53)
The ignorant would say there is no relationship between Ṣāliḥ, the she-camel, and the earthquake which destroyed Thamūd. They say earthquakes are a natural phenomenon that has nothing to do with levels of piety, virtue and justice obtaining in a nation. They argue it is merely the trickery of preachers to say that a certain nation had become so sinful that a flood or earthquake or other such calamity destroyed them.
Contrary to this is the view of those who truly know the reality of things. They know that it is not a deaf and blind God Who rules over this universe; rather, He Who decides the fate of individuals and nations is One Who is Wise and All-Knowing. His decisions are not bound by natural laws; rather, the laws of nature are under His command. He doesn’t decide the fates of nations blindly: instead, He decides on grounds of justice and wisdom.
Furthermore, there is a Law of Retribution that operates at all levels. Those who are aware of this law will not dismiss earthquakes as merely the result of certain physical laws; they will take them as a warning and learn lessons from them.