'People of the Cave'

Published by You on 12 November, 2005 - 23:09
Submitted by You on 12 November, 2005 - 23:14

Quote:
10. Behold, the youths betook themselves to the Cave: they said, "Our Lord! bestow on us Mercy from Thyself, and dispose of our affair for us in the right way!"

11. Then We draw (a veil) over their ears, for a number of years, in the Cave, (so that they heard not):

12. Then We roused them, in order to test which of the two parties was best at calculating the term of years they had tarried!

13. We relate to thee their story in truth: they were youths who believed in their Lord, and We advanced them in guidance:

14. We gave strength to their hearts: Behold, they stood up and said: "Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and of the earth: never shall we call upon any god other than Him: if we did, we should indeed have uttered an enormity!

15. "These our people have taken for worship gods other than Him: why do they not bring forward an authority clear (and convincing) for what they do? Who doth more wrong than such as invent a falsehood against Allah?

16. "When ye turn away from them and the things they worship other than Allah, betake yourselves to the Cave: Your Lord will shower His mercies on you and disposes of your affair towards comfort and ease."

17. Thou wouldst have seen the sun, when it rose, declining to the right from their Cave, and when it set, turning away from them to the left, while they lay in the open space in the midst of the Cave. Such are among the Signs of Allah. He whom Allah, guides is rightly guided; but he whom Allah leaves to stray,- for him wilt thou find no protector to lead him to the Right Way.

18. Thou wouldst have thought them, whilst they were asleep, and We turned them on their right and on their left sides: their dog stretching forth his two fore-legs on the threshold: if thou hadst looked at them, thou wouldst have certainly turned back from them in flight, and wouldst certainly have been filled with terror of them.

19. Such (being their state), We raised them up (from sleep), that they might question each other. Said one of them, "How long have ye stayed (here)?" They said, "We have stayed (perhaps) a day, or part of a day." (At length) they (all) said, "(Allah) (alone) knows best how long ye have stayed here.... Now send ye then one of you with this money of yours to the town: let him find out which is the best food (to be had) and bring some to you, (that ye may satisfy your hunger therewith): And let him behave with care and courtesy, and let him not inform any one about you.

20. "For if they should come upon you, they would stone you or force you to return to their religion, and in that case ye would never attain prosperity."

21. Thus did We make their case known to the people, that they might know that the promise of Allah is true, and that there can be no doubt about the Hour of Judgment. Behold, they dispute among themselves as to their affair. (Some) said, "Construct a building over them": Their Lord knows best about them: those who prevailed over their affair said, "Let us surely build a place of worship over them."

22. (Some) say they were three, the dog being the fourth among them; (others) say they were five, the dog being the sixth,- doubtfully guessing at the unknown; (yet others) say they were seven, the dog being the eighth. Say thou: "My Lord knoweth best their number; It is but few that know their (real case)." Enter not, therefore, into controversies concerning them, except on a matter that is clear, nor consult any of them about (the affair of) the Sleepers.

23. Nor say of anything, "I shall be sure to do so and so tomorrow"-

24. Except "If Allah so wills," and remember thy Lord when thou forgettest, and say, "I hope that my Lord will guide me ever closer (even) than this to the right course."

25. So they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and nine (more).

26. Say: "Allah knows best how long they stayed: with Him is (the knowledge of) the secrets of the heavens and the earth: how clearly He sees, how finely He hears (everything)! They have no protector other than Him; nor does He share His Command with any person whatsoever.

...

From above link.

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"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone'" - David Cameron, UK Prime Minister. 13 May 2015.

Submitted by You on 12 November, 2005 - 23:16

I think they were christians fleeing persecution. They asked Allah (swt) for help, and were granted it.

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"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone'" - David Cameron, UK Prime Minister. 13 May 2015.

Submitted by Dave on 12 November, 2005 - 23:21

"Admin" wrote:
I think they were christians fleeing persecution. They asked Allah (swt) for help, and were granted it.

I've never heard this story before - but I dunno much about the Nestorian church so that's not terribly surprising

Submitted by You on 12 November, 2005 - 23:44

Quote:
According to widespread belief, the Companions of the Cave who are praised both by the Islamic and Christian sources, were subjected to the cruel tyranny of the Roman Emperor, Decius. Meeting the oppression and injustice of Decius, these young people warned their own people many times not to abandon the religion of Allah. The indifference of their people to their communication of the message, the increase in oppression of the emperor and their being threatened with death, caused them to leave their homes.

Quote:
Almost all the Christian sources show Ephesus as the location of the Cave where these young believers took shelter. Some Muslim researchers and the Qur'anic commentators agree with the Christians regarding Ephesus. Some others, explained in detail that Ephesus was not the place, and then tried to prove that the event took place in Tarsus. In this study, both of these alternatives will be dealt with. Yet, all those researchers and commentators - including the Christians - said that the event took place at the time of Roman Emperor Decius (also called as Decianus), around 250 AD.

Just looking into nestoriianism now...

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"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone'" - David Cameron, UK Prime Minister. 13 May 2015.

Submitted by Dave on 12 November, 2005 - 23:55

Interesting i've never heard of them before.

Decius was a real psycho... one of the more brutal Emperors.

Submitted by laila on 13 November, 2005 - 01:38

surat Kahf - what a beautiful surat - what a wonderous message to our youth today

right from early childhood this surat amazed me to such an extent i've never forgotten it

its difference yet familiarity stayed with me and we find that its story /parts of it seems to be repeated in many fictional work

Submitted by MuslimSister on 14 November, 2005 - 14:54

Salaam

I loved the explanation that Sheikh Tahir ul Qadri gave regarding the dog that sat with the Awliya’s in the cave in one of his lectures.

He said that there are some people who are extremely fond of their dogs, some people keep dogs for hunting whilst others keep them as guard dogs. However, there is no individual who loves his dog to such an extreme that as a result he would describe to others the way his dog sits. However, Allah (swt) described the mannerism of the dog in his Holy Book, simply and only because he was sitting with his favoured people.

The Holy Qur’an substantiates this fact in the following words ‘their dog stretching forth his two forelegs at the entrance’.

He also said that there are some people who object to the special status of Awliya’s (friend of Allah); they become uneasy when they listen to the merits and virtues of Awliya’s (friends of Allah). However, as demonstrated by the above verse Allah (swt) Himself, described the actions and mannerism of a mere dog and elevated its status, simply and only because of its close association and link with His Awliya’s (friends of Allah).

He pointed that that naturally, most people clearly differentiate between themselves and animals. However due to the faithfulness, and obedience of the dogs character, Allah (swt) himself linked the dog with His Awliya’s (friends of Allah). The Holy Qur’an substantiates this fact in the following words ‘Some say they were three, the dog being the fourth amongst them; and some say they were five, the dog being the sixth’…

And that was a mere dog….imagine how much we could benefit if we sincerely attached ourselves with the friends of Allah (swt)..

Wasalaam

Submitted by Angel on 14 November, 2005 - 17:44

"MuslimSister" wrote:
Salaam

I loved the explanation that Sheikh Tahir ul Qadri gave regarding the dog that sat with the Awliya’s in the cave in one of his lectures.

He said that there are some people who are extremely fond of their dogs, some people keep dogs for hunting whilst others keep them as guard dogs. However, there is no individual who loves his dog to such an extreme that as a result he would describe to others the way his dog sits. However, Allah (swt) described the mannerism of the dog in his Holy Book, simply and only because he was sitting with his favoured people.

The Holy Qur’an substantiates this fact in the following words ‘their dog stretching forth his two forelegs at the entrance’.

He also said that there are some people who object to the special status of Awliya’s (friend of Allah); they become uneasy when they listen to the merits and virtues of Awliya’s (friends of Allah). However, as demonstrated by the above verse Allah (swt) Himself, described the actions and mannerism of a mere dog and elevated its status, simply and only because of its close association and link with His Awliya’s (friends of Allah).

He pointed that that naturally, most people clearly differentiate between themselves and animals. However due to the faithfulness, and obedience of the dogs character, Allah (swt) himself linked the dog with His Awliya’s (friends of Allah). The Holy Qur’an substantiates this fact in the following words ‘Some say they were three, the dog being the fourth amongst them; and some say they were five, the dog being the sixth’…

And that was a mere dog….imagine how much we could benefit if we sincerely attached ourselves with the friends of Allah (swt)..

Wasalaam

Yeh that explanation was amazin and made you realy think, its just a dog yet it knows an Awliyah Allah and can recognise them, yet we are so blinded by the world and arrogance that we wudnt even know!

Submitted by TPOS on 21 January, 2011 - 18:34

There is a lot of reward in reciting Surah Kahf either before the jumu'ah salaat or after it. Rasulullah (Allah bless him & give him peace) said: "The person who recites Surah Kahf on Fridays, a nur will appear for him from below the arsh as high as the skies. This light will help him in the darkness of the day of resurrection . And all the sins which he may have committed from the last Friday till this Friday will be forgiven . " (Sharh Sifrus-Sa'aadah) The ulama have written that this Hadith refers to minor sins because major sins are not forgiven without making taubah.

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"How many people find fault in what they're reading and the fault is in their own understanding" Al Mutanabbi

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