Study Notes on Soorah al Kahf 13-17

13. I will relate their true story to you. They were youths who believed in their Lord and I increased their level of guidance.

According to the Arabic idiom, whenever a single person refers to himself using a plural form, it indicates that he is great. Nothing is greater than Allah…Therefore the intent of every plural pronoun referring to Allah is praise. It's equivalent in English language is the "royal" we or "majestic" we.

"I will relate their true story to you"…there is a disagreements around the length of stay in the cave. This story is a legend according to Christian and Western historians except the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches believe it as a miracle. Circulated as oral tradition for centuries and eventually reduced to writing by a Syriac historian in 6th century.

These youths are the true followers of Jesus from the Unitarian tradition of James the first bishop of Jerusalem and not from the Greek and Roman Trinitarian tradition.

Whoever believes in His Lord and Obeys Him, He will increase his state of guidance because obedience is a cause for the increase of guidance and faith. [Ash-Shanqeeti]. See (47:17) (9:124).

Faith (Iman) increases with obedience and decreases with disobedience.

The Murji'ites (Murjiah) those who don't believe that faith increases or decreases.
Jahmite Murji'ism: Iman is merely knowledge alone. Attributed to Jahm Ibn Safwan. Implies that Pharaoh and his people were believers since they know that Moses and Aaron were true prophets; including Iblees who knew Allah well.

The Karramites: Iman is restricted to the profession on the tongue without including the [affirmation of the] heart. Therefore the hypocrites were perfect believers though they believe that the hypocrites will suffer the punishment that Allah promised them. They contradict themselves.

Murji'ite Legists: Iman is belief in the heart and profession on the tongue but not including the deeds. They regarded works parts of Iman in a figurative way, for a work is the fruit and requirement of Iman.

Similarity between the Murji'ites beliefs some Christians of today that nothing can affect faith. It is claim that once a person has accepted Jesus Christ as his personal savior, he is guaranteed paradise no matter what sins he may commit.
The Key to paradise is Lailaha illallah. But every key has teeth (ridges) for it to open locks. Similarly saying Lailaha illallah has to be accompanied by knowledge, certainty, sincerely, and truthfully.

Faith increases by patience. Patience comes from trust in Allah. Allah said that in every difficulty comes ease. We should not act irrationally during calamities.
Once we know that Faith may decrease then we should be vigilant because Satan is very busy trying to make us fall into sins. It is important to take account of one's self. Umar Ibn Al Khattab said “Take account of yourselves before your account is taken”.


Verse 14. And I strengthened their hearts when they stood up and said, “Our Lord is the Lord of the heaven the earth. We will never call on any god besides Him; if we did, we would indeed have uttered an enormous deviance.”

Allah made their hearts steady, strengthened them and bound them because their people opposed them. [Ibn Uthaimeen].

So that they wold not panic and become fearful to openly declare the truth. [Ash-Shanqeetee].

Whoever is obedient to his Lord, He will strengthen his heart and make him steady to handle difficult times patiently. (8:11-12) (28:10)

“They stood up” means they stood up among their people and announced their Tawheed.

“And I strengthened their hearts when they stood up...” Is it possible to have additional understanding of this verse from its medical aspect being that when a person spent a long time in the supine lying position – his heart – and the whole cardiovascular system adapts to that position so that when a person suddenly stands up he would faint because his weak heart is not immediately able to pump blood to his brain? This phenomenon is called Orthostatic Hypotension. [Abu Khalid]

Affirmation of Tawheed Ruboobeeyah “Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth”...and Tawheed Ulooheeyah/Ibaadah “We will never call on any god besides Him”. Worshiping God is the result of His Lordship. The right of worship only belongs to the Creator / Lord.

Whoever attributes another god as a partner to the Creator of the heavens and earth has come with something far deviated from the truth; something involving the ultimate in falsehood beyond acceptable bounds. Because the one who deserves worship is the One who brought creation into existence from non-existence, because one unable to create others besides itself is itself created and in need of a creator to create it, nourish it and run its affairs. (2;22) (16:17) (13:16) (7:191) (25:3).

TRUTH TO POWER – These young men boldly challenged the false beliefs of their people. “The greatest Jihad is speaking the truth in front of tyrant” (Sunan Abi Dawud). But if the harm is greater than the good, it should be hated in the hearts. Muslims must oppose the evil forces trying to eradicate the Sharee'ah but at the same time oppose excessive unislamic methods used by some Muslims in their resistance who claim to defend the Ummah.

Verse 15. “These people of ours have adopted other gods besides Him. Why do they not bring authority for what they have done? And who does a greater wrong than the one who invents a lie against Allah.”

A challenge from Allah. A challenge to do the impossible – the challenge to produce evidence for their idolatry. (6:148) (46:4).

Reconciled with (2;114) [“And who are more wrong...”] Ibn Uthaimeen: this verse addresses the worst wrong in the category of prevention of remembrance of Allah's name while the previous verse refers to the worst wrong in Lying.

If one lied about someone it would be wrong, and if one lied about someone of greater stature it would be greater wrong. Thus, a lie about Allah becomes the greatest possible lie. [Ibn Uthaimeen].

Early Hindu scriptures rejects idol worship; Buddha's writing does not endorsed worshiping him; Christian worship of Jesus goes against Jesus' own teachings and practice. (Jesus worshiping God on a number of occasions, clearly indicating that he was not God).

Theory of Evolution by Charles Darwin is one of the biggest lie against Allah in the 19th century claiming that life in this world was not created but evolved. Removing God from human society removes the basis of morality and definition of right and wrong.

Verse 16. “And when you turn away from them and the things that they worship besides Allah, take yourselves to the cage. Your Lord will shower His mercies on you and dispose of your affairs in comfort and ease.”

Giving up something for the sake of Allah: The youth gave up everything and went into the cave. “Whoever gives up something for the sake of Allah, He will replace it with something better” (Hadeeth not referenced in the original text. No time to consult Maktabah ash-Shamilah – Abu Khalid). See also (4:100) (19:48-50).

HIJRAH – abandoning an idolatrous and oppressive society and hiding in order to practice the true religion. (4:97).

Hijrah to Madeenah was made obligatory during the Prophet's lifetime but once Makkah was liberated, migration to Madeenah was no longer obligatory. This is the context of this hadeeth: “There is no hijrah after Conquest of Makkah. Instead, there remains Jihad and intention. If you are called to arms, respond”. (Sahih Al Bukhari). Compare with hadeeth: “Hijrah will not end until repentance ends, and repentance will not end until the sun rises in the west”. (Sunan At Tirmidhee)

The essence of Hijrah is abandonment of evil in all its forms. Thus even if one lives with Muslims, the principle of Hijrah is still applicable. “The Muslim is one from who tonque and hand Muslims are sage, and the true emigrant is one who abandons what Allah has forbidden.” (Bukhari)

Instead of emigration from regions controlled by disbelievers, most Muslims have become immigrants to the lands of the disbelievers. Even more so, they choose to live scattered amongst the disbelievers instead of congregating in religious communities as other immigrants do based on ethnic consideration.
Allah concealed them in the cave just as He concealed Prophet Muhammad and his Companion Abu Bakr as Siddeeq in the Cave of Thawr. (9;40).

Verse 17. You could see the sun declining to the right of their cave when it rose and touching their left sides when it set, while they lay in the middle of the cave. That was among Allah's signs. Whoever Allah guides is rightly guided and whoever He sends astray will not find any guiding friend to lead him to the right path.

Allah has told us this because it is important to ponder upon its meanins. He did not inform us about the location of the Cave because there is no benefit in knowing that. “I have not left anything that will bring you closer to Paradise and keep you further away from Hell but I have certainly taught you about it.” (At Tabaraani – Silsilah al Ahaadeeth as Saheehah).

The obvious meaning of this verse is that it is the sun that revolves around the earth and bring about its rising and setting. However Ibn Uthaimeen said: If it becomes established for us by certain evidence that the changing of the night and day is a result of the earth's revolution, it then become obligatory on us to interpret the verse according to the meaning which agrees with reality. For others, Saudi Prince Salmaan's trip on the space shuttle and his observations were sufficient observable evidence that the sun does not rotate around the earth.

Church history is full of this quagmire and conflict between Science and Religion. The Copernican Revolution; Galileo rotting in prison and eventual triumphs of Galileo's ideas.

“Whoever Allah guides”. Allah divided the people into two groups: guided and astray. This is Allah's decree. You must be pleased with Allah's Destiny under all circumstances. It is obligatory on us, in spite of that , to strive to guide people.
Allah does not guide the rebellious disobedient people. (61:5).

“Whoever Allah allows to go astray none can guide” is a better translation.
This verse and others like it are proofs of the falsity of the Qadariyyah (Qadarite school) which claims that humans are independent in their god and evil actions. (Ash Shanqeetee).

From Tafseer Soorah al Kahf by Dr Bilal Philips