Tafsir of Surah al-Kahf Ayah 71-78
They set out; when they found a ship, they boarded it. He made a hole therein. He said, ‘Have you made a hole therein to drown its people? Indeed, you have committed a grave thing.’
He said, ‘Did I not say that you would never be able to bear with me patiently.’
He said, ‘Do not blame me for what I forgot and do not make me suffer difficulty in my affair.’
Then they set out; when they met a boy, he killed him. Moses said, ‘Have you killed an innocent soul unlawfully? Indeed, you have committed a grave matter.’
He said, ‘Did I not say to you, Moses, would never be able to bear with me patiently.’
He said, ‘If I ask you about anything after this, do not keep me in your company. Indeed, you have a sufficient excuse to part with me.’
Then they set out; when they reached a village, they asked its inhabitants for food, but they refused to entertain them. They found therein a wall that was about to fall, and he repaired it. Moses said, ‘If you wished you could ask for some wage for doing so.’
He said, ‘This is the time of parting between you and me. I will inform you about the interpretation of what you could not have patience with.’ [Surah al-Kahf: 71-78]
Tafsir
The Story of Moses and al-Khidr (2)
The surah then narrates the three things that al-Khidr did and Moses could not have patience with them.
The First Incident
They set out; when they found a ship, they boarded it. He made a hole therein. He said, ‘Have you made a hole therein to drown its people? Indeed, you have committed a grave thing.’ [71]
He said, ‘Did I not say that you would never be able to bear with me patiently.’ [72]
He said, ‘Do not blame me for what I forgot and do not make me suffer difficulty in my affair.’ [73]
Moses and al-Khidr set out along the seashore, looking for a ship. When they found one, they boarded it. Then al-Khidr made a hole in the ship. Moses disapprovingly said, ‘Have you made a hole in it to drown its passengers. Indeed you have committed a grave matter.’
Moses meant that making a hole in the ship would endanger the lives of its passengers, which is a grave act.
Al-Khidr replied, ‘Did I not say that you would never be able to bear with me patiently.’
Al-Khidr said so because he knew that Moses could not remain silent if he saw him doing things that he did not know the wisdom behind them.
Apologizing for his disapproval of what al-Khidr did, Moses said, ‘Do not blame me for what I forgot and do not make me suffer difficulty in my affair.’
Moses apologized for forgetting that al-Khidr told him not to ask about things that he would do and that might appear blameworthy.
Moses said to al-Khidr: ‘Do not blame me for forgetting your condition, and do not be so hard on me.’
Moses acknowledged his mistake, as he objected to what al-Khidr did and that he did not wait until al-Khidr would tell him clarification about it.
Thus, He asked al-Khidr to forgive him, and not to be hard on him.
Though Moses was determined to be patient and accepted the condition of al-Khidr, he was unable to remain silent when he saw the strange thing that al-Khidr did, for which there was no acceptable interpretation. His behavior agreed with human nature that reacts differently with what it perceived theoretically in real-life experience. He promised to be patient and not ask about what he would see, but when the matter became a reality, he could not fulfill his promise and expressed objection.
The Second Incident
Then they set out; when they met a boy, he killed him. Moses said, ‘Have you killed an innocent soul unlawfully? Indeed, you have committed a grave matter.’ [74]
He said, ‘Did I not say to you, Moses, would never be able to bear with me patiently.’ [75]
He said, ‘If I ask you about anything after this, do not keep me in your company. Indeed, you have a sufficient excuse to part with me.’ [76]
After Moses and al-Khidr left the ship, and al-Khidr accepted Moses' apology, they went on their journey. Then they met a boy and Al-Khidr killed him. At such a moment, Moses could not bear with what he saw, or restrain his anger. Disapprovingly and angrily, Moses said, ‘Have you killed an innocent soul unlawfully? Indeed, you have committed a grave matter.’
Al-Khidr reminded Moses of his promise that he would not ask about anything until things would be clarified to him.
Al-Khidr said, ‘Did I not say to you, Moses, would never be able to bear with me patiently?’
In the Arabic version the word ‘laka i.e. you’, which is translated as ‘Moses’ was used. It was added for emphasis. It is as if al-Khidr was saying to Moses, ‘O Moses! Indeed, I told you…’
At this point, Moses reconsidered his position. He realized that he did not comply with the terms of his agreement with al-Khidr two times. Therefore, he willingly asked him to give him a final opportunity, after which al-Khidr will be absolved from his promise to Moses to accompany him.
He said, ‘If I ask you about anything after this, do not keep me in your company. Indeed, you have a sufficient excuse to part with me.’
Moses said to al-Khidr, ‘If I ask you about anything after this time, do not keep me in your company. Indeed, you have reached the highest degree of excuse, after which you will have the right not to accompany me as I violated your instructions twice.’
The reaction of Moses indicates how deeply he regretted his behavior with al-Khidr.
Messenger Muhammad said, ‘We wished that Moses was patient so that Allah would tell us more about their story.’
The Third and Final Incident
Then they set out; when they reached a village, they asked its inhabitants for food, but they refused to entertain them. They found therein a wall that was about to fall, and he repaired it. Moses said, ‘If you wished you could ask for some wage for doing so.’ [77]
He said, ‘This is the time of parting between you and me. I will inform you about the interpretation of what you could not have patience with.’ [78]
Moses and al-Khidr went on walking and reached a village. They asked its inhabitants for food, but they refused to entertain them.
While Moses and al-Khidr were going about in the village, they found a wall that was about to fall. Al-Khidr repaired it, but he did not ask for a wage from the villagers for doing so. Moses could not bear with this situation because the villagers were stingy and refused to accommodate them, but al-Khidr helped them without asking for compensation. The conduct of al-Khidr was strange and perplexing.
Moses said to al-Khidr, ‘If you wished, you could ask for some wage for repairing the wall.’ He said so because they were hungry and the villagers refused to entertain them. Asking for compensation was natural conduct in such a situation.
However, this request was the end of the companionship between al-Khidr and Moses. Al-Khidr said to Moses,
He said, ‘This is the time of parting between you and me. I will inform you about the interpretation of what you could not have patience with.’
Al-Khidr told Moses that the time for separation came as Moses told him earlier ‘If I ask you about anything after this, do not keep me in your company.’
However, al-Khidr told Moses that he would inform him about the interpretation of the things that he could not bear patiently.
Mention when Moses said to his servant, ‘I shall not give up walking until I reach the junction of the two seas, or go on walking for ages.’
When they reached the junction of the two seas, they forgot their fish, and it swiftly made its way into the sea.
When they passed the place, he said to his servant, ‘Bring us our morning meal. Indeed, we have suffered fatigue in our journey.’
He said, ‘Do you remember when we rested by the rock? I forgot the fish there. None made me forget to mention it but Satan, and it made its way into the sea amazingly.’
He said, ‘That is what we were seeking.’ And they returned retracing their footsteps.
Then they found one of Our slaves whom We granted mercy from Us, and whom We taught knowledge from Us.
Moses said to him, ‘May I follow you provided that you teach me some of the right guidance you have been taught?’
He said, ‘Indeed, you will never be able to bear with me patiently.’
How can you have patience with what you do not know about?
He said, ‘God willing, you will find me patient and I will not disobey any of your orders.’
He said, ‘If you follow me, do not ask me about anything until I clarify it for you.’ [Surah al-Kahf: 60-70]
The Story of Prophet Moses and al-Khadr (1)
Relationship
After Allah mentioned the story of the youth of the cave, confirming His ability to resurrect the dead on the Day of Judgment, He mentioned examples demonstrating that real power does not come from great wealth and authority but belief in Him.
In the following ayat, Allah mentions the story of Prophet Moses and the righteous man, al-Khadr, aiming to give an example of humility materialized in the fact that Moses, as a prophet of Allah, had great knowledge but sought to have al-Khadr as a tutor, which shows that humbleness is better than haughtiness.
Imam ar-Razy said,
Note that this is the third story Allah mentions in this surah. It states that Moses went to al-Khadr to learn from him. Though is an independent subject, it establishes the aim of the two previous stories. The benefit of this story concerning refuting the claims of the disbelievers of Mecca, who were proud of their wealth and supporters, was that though Moses had great knowledge, performed many righteous deeds, had a great rank, and characterized by traits of perfect nobility, he went to al-Khadr to learn from him, showing humbleness. This denotes that humbleness is better than haughtiness. As for the benefit of the story in light of the story of the youth of the cave is that the Jews said to the disbelievers of Mecca, ‘If Muhammad tells you about this story, he is a prophet; otherwise, he is not.’ Their statement is invalid because it is not necessary that Messenger Muhammad should know all stories and events even if he was a prophet of Allah. Being a truthful prophet sent by Allah, Moses did not refuse to obey the command of Allah and went to al-Khadr to learn from him. Accordingly, this story is an independent story, but it is beneficial in establishing the aims of the two previous stories.
The Story of Prophet Moses and al-Khadr in the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad
Ubayy bin Ka’b narrated that Messenger Muhammad said, ‘Once Moses stood up, addressing the children of Israel. He was asked ‘Who is the most knowledgeable person?’ He said, ‘I am.’ Allah reproached him as he did not attribute absolute knowledge to Him, Exalted is He. Allah told Moses that there was a man who was more knowledgeable than he was. ‘There is one of My slaves at the junction of the two seas, who is more knowledgeable than you are.’ Moses said, ‘O Allah! How can I meet him?’ Allah said, ‘Take a fish, put it in a basket, and you will find him where you would lose the fish.’ Moses took a fish, put it in a basket, and proceeded with his servant, Joshua. They reached a rock and slept. Then the fish went out of the basket. It made its way into the sea. Allah stopped the flow of water over the fish, and it became like an arch. They traveled the rest of the night and the following day. On that day, Moses said to his servant, ‘Bring us our morning meal. Indeed, we have suffered fatigue in our journey.’ Moses did not feel tired until he passed the place that Allah commanded him to head. His servant said, ‘Do you remember when we rested by the rock? I forgot to tell you about the fish. It had made its way into the sea amazingly.’ Moses said, ‘That is what we were seeking.’ Then they returned retracing their footsteps until they reached the rock. They found a man lying and covered with a garment. Moses greeted him. The man said, ‘How peace will be in this land where there is no peace?’ Moses said, ‘I am Moses.’ The man said, ‘Moses of the Children of Israel.’ Moses said, ‘Yes. I have come to you so that you may teach me knowledge guiding to the truth.’ The man said, ‘O Moses! I have knowledge that Allah taught me, which you do not know, and you have knowledge that Allah taught you, which I do not know.’ Moses said, ‘May I accompany you?’ The man said, ‘You will be unable to bear patiently with me. How can you have patience with what you do not know about?’ Moses said, ‘You will find me patient and I will not disobey any of your orders.’ Then, they set out, walking along the seashore. A ship passed by them, and they asked the crew of the ship to take them on board. The crew recognized al-Khadr so they took them on board without a fare. When they were on board, a bird came, stood on the edge of the ship, and dipped its beak once or twice in the sea. Al-Khadr said, ‘O Moses! My knowledge and that of yours have not decreased the knowledge of Allah but as much as this bird has decreased the water of the sea with its beak.’ Then al-Khadr took an ax and plucked out a board from the ship. Moses did not notice what happened until the board was plucked out. Moses said, ‘What have you done? Those people took us on board without fare. You have intentionally made a hole in their ship to drown its passengers. Indeed, you have committed a grave matter.’ Al-Khadr said, ‘Have I not told you that you would not be able to bear patiently with me?’ Moses said, ‘Do not blame me for what I have forgotten, and do not be hard on me.’ Moses forgetfully did this first objection. When they left the sea, they passed by a boy playing with other boys. Al-Khadr took hold of the boy’s head and plucked it with his hands (Just as if he were plucking something). Moses said, ‘Have you killed an innocent soul that did not kill anyone. Indeed, you have committed a horrible thing.’ Al-Khadr said, ‘Have I not told you that you would not be able to bear patiently with me?’ Moses said, ‘If I ask you about anything after this, do not accompany me. Indeed, you have a justifiable reason for not accompanying me.’ Then they both went on until they came across some villagers. They asked them to give them some food, but they refused to entertain them. Moses and al-Khadr found a wall that was about to fall. Al-Khadr mended the wall. Moses said, ‘We asked these people to entertain us, and they refused, and then you mended their wall. If you will, you can ask them to give you a wage for repairing it.’ Al-Khadr said, ‘This is the time for parting between you and me. I will tell you about what you were unable to bear patiently.’ Messenger Muhammad said, ‘We wished that Moses was patient so that Allah would tell us more about their story.’
Tafsir
Mention when Moses said to his servant, ‘I shall not give up walking until I reach the junction of the two seas, or go on walking for ages.’ [60]
Moses is the son of Imran. He is one of the Messengers of Allah, who was characterized by a strong will. He was a descendent of Prophet Jacob.
The servant of Moses was Joshua son of Nun.
O Messenger! Mention to your people when Moses said to his boy-servant Joshua, ‘Accompany me in my journey. I will not give up walking until I reach the junction of the two seas and achieve my goal, or keep on walking for ages.’
The ayah indicates that Moses was determined to reach the junction of two seas no matter what difficulty he might encounter, and no matter how long it would take him to reach it.
Apparently, the cause of Moses’ determination was what was narrated that once Moses stood up, addressing the children of Israel. He was asked ‘Who is the most knowledgeable person?’ He said, ‘I am.’ Allah reproached him, as he did not attribute absolute knowledge to Him, Exalted is He. Allah told Moses that there was a man who was more knowledgeable than he was.
When they reached the junction of the two seas, they forgot their fish, and it swiftly made its way into the sea. [61]
After Moses set out to the junction of the two seas with Joshua and reached it, they forgot their fish in that place. The fish came back to life and made its way into the sea.
Moses was commanded to carry salted fish with him. He was told that where he would lose the fish, he would meet al-Khadr. When Moses and his servant reached the junction of the two seas, the fish, which was in a basket, jumped into the sea and made its way into the sea as if it was swimming through a tunnel.
When they passed the place, he said to his servant, ‘Bring us our morning meal. Indeed, we have suffered fatigue in our journey.’ [62]
When Moses and his servant passed the junction of the two seas, Moses said to his servant, ‘Bring us our morning meal, i.e. the slated fish, which was in the basket.’ Moses gave the reason for his request saying that they were very tired.
He said, ‘Do you remember when we rested by the rock? I forgot the fish there. None made me forget to mention it but Satan, and it made its way into the sea amazingly.’ [63]
The servant astonishingly said to Moses, ‘Do you remember when we rested by the rock at night at the junction of the two seas. I forgot to tell you a strange thing that happened to the fish. The fish came back to life. It jumped into the sea, and made its way into the sea amazingly.’
(None made me forget to mention it but Satan.)
The servant mentioned the reason why he forgot to tell Moses about the fish. He said, ‘None caused me to tell you what happened to the fish but Satan. He makes people forget important things.’
He said, ‘That is what we were seeking.’ And they returned retracing their footsteps. [64]
Moses realized that they passed the place where he would meet the righteous man.
Moses said, ‘What you mentioned regarding forgetting the fish is what we were seeking. The righteous man that we wanted to meet is where we lost the fish.’
They returned retracing their footsteps to the place where they came from.
Then the Quran narrates what happened after Moses and his servant returned to the place from which they came.
Then they found one of Our slaves whom We granted mercy from Us, and whom We taught knowledge from Us. [65]
They found at the junction of the two seas a righteous man, whom Allah gave great mercy and knowledge. The righteous man was al-Khadr as authentic prophetic narrations mention.
(Then they found one of Our slaves…)
Allah, Exalted is He, described the man whom Moses met as ‘one of Our slaves’, i.e. being a slave of Allah. Being slaves of Allah is the greatest rank and the noblest goal for which human beings have been created. It indicates that al-Khadr was a diligent worshipper of Allah, which is an essential characteristic of scholars.
The scholars differ about the identity al-Khadr. Some scholars believe that he was a prophet, and some believe that he was a righteous man, whom Allah granted special knowledge. Imam ar-Razy said that most scholars believed that he was a prophet.
After a lengthy discussion of the issue, Sheik Muhammad al-Ameen ash-Shanqyty said, ‘… killing of the child and making a hole in the ship by al-Khadr, and his statement ‘I did not do that of my accord…’ give clear evidence of his prophet-hood. One of the things supporting this opinion is that Moses was humble with him, and requested to accompany him so that he would learn from him.’
Then the ayat narrate what happened between Moses and al-Khadr.
Moses said to him, ‘May I follow you provided that you teach me some of the right guidance you have been taught?’ [66]
Moses said to al-Khadr, ‘May I accompany you so that you teach me some of the knowledge that Allah taught you. I hope that it will guide me in my life, and help me to attain beneficial religious knowledge.’
We notice that Moses talked respectfully with al-Khadr when he asked for permission for companionship, put himself in the position of a learner, and request to follow him to attain guidance.
Some scholars say that this ayah indicates that the student follows the teacher even if they have different ranks.
No one should think that when Moses learned from al-Khadr, that al-Khadr was better than Moses. Rather, the scholar sometimes may learn from someone who has less knowledge than that he has if Allah gives one of them knowledge that the other does not have.
He said, ‘Indeed, you will never be able to bear with me patiently.’ [67]
Al-Khadr said to Moses, ‘You will never be able to bear with me patiently if you accompany me.’
You will not be able to accompany me because you will see me do things disagreeing with your law. I have knowledge that Allah taught me, and you have knowledge that Allah taught you. Each one of us is required to do certain things, which the other is not required.
How can you have patience with what you do not know about? [68]
Al-Khadr gave the reason why Moses would not be able to accompany him.
O Moses! How can you have patience with what I will do that appears to be unacceptable, but in reality, you do not know their real objective as Allah has not informed you about them.
In other words, al-Khadr was saying to Moses that he was certain that Moses would not be able to patiently remain with him since he would see things that could not logically be accepted. However, he was commanded to do them because there were real benefits behind doing them, which Moses did not know.
He said, ‘God willing, you will find me patient and I will not disobey any of your orders.’ [69]
Moses was insistently eager to learn beneficial knowledge. Thus, he politely said to al-Khadr, ‘God willing, you will find me patient and I will not disobey any of your orders.’
First, Moses mentioned that the matter depended on Allah’s Will. Then he promised that he would be patient when accompanying al-Khadr.
He said, ‘If you follow me, do not ask me about anything until I clarify it for you.’ [70]
To emphasize the matter, al-Khadr said to Moses, ‘If you follow me, and then you see me doing things that you disapprove as they appear to contradict justice, do not protest, nor discuss the matter with me; rather, do not do anything until I tell the matter in the appropriate time.’
English Translation of Surah al-Kahf
