Al-Aswānī—meaning Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān—narrated from Yaʿqūb al-Qummī (1):
Abū Mālik told me:
Solomon son of David once passed by a male sparrow circling around a female sparrow. He said to his companions, “Do you know what he is saying?”
They replied, “And what is he saying, O Prophet of Allah?”
He said, “He is proposing to her, saying: ‘Marry me and I will settle you in whichever chamber of Damascus you wish.’”
Solomon عليه السلام then remarked, “The chambers of Damascus are built of stone; no sparrow could live in them. Rather, every suitor is a liar.”
Ibn ʿAsākir likewise transmitted it from Abū al-Qāsim Zāhir ibn Ṭāhir, from al-Bayhaqī, with this same chain (2).

The same holds true for every other animal and for all kinds of created beings.
The proof is His statement that follows:
“We have been given of all things,”
meaning everything a king needs—equipment and armaments, soldiers and armies, hosts of jinn and humankind, birds and grazing beasts (3), knowledge and understanding, and the ability to express the inner thoughts of creatures, both those that speak and those that are mute.
Then He said,
“Indeed, this is manifest favor,”
i.e., from the Originator of beings and the Creator of the earth and the heavens.

He, Exalted is He, also said:
“And Solomon’s hosts of jinn, men, and birds were mustered before him, and they were kept in order. Until, when they came upon the Valley of the Ants, an ant said, ‘O ants, enter your dwellings lest Solomon and his armies crush you while they are unaware.’ So he smiled, amused at her words, and said, ‘My Lord, inspire me to be grateful for Your favor which You have bestowed upon me and upon my parents, and enable me to do righteous deeds that please You, and admit me, by Your mercy, among Your righteous servants.’” (al-Naml 27:17–19).

Allah, Glorified be He, informs us about His servant, His prophet, and the son of His prophet—Solomon son of David, peace be upon them both—that on one occasion he set out accompanied by his entire army of jinn, men, and birds. The jinn and humans marched with him, while the birds flew overhead, shading him with their wings from the sun and other hardships. Each of these three divisions had wardens (wazaʿah)—captains who kept the vanguard connected with the rearguard so that no one advanced beyond or lagged behind his assigned position.

Allah the Exalted said:
“Until, when they came upon the Valley of the Ants…”
Thus the ant issued a command and a warning, and she excused Solomon and his troops by attributing any harm to their lack of awareness.

Wahb has mentioned that, while Solomon was on the carpet, he passed a valley in al-Ṭāʾif and that the ant’s name was Jars (4); she belonged to a tribe called Banū al-Shayṣabān, was lame, and was the size of a wolf (5). All of this, however, is open to scrutiny, for the context here clearly indicates that he was in procession, riding among his horses and cavalry, not—as some have claimed—that at that time he was