Yasir Qadhi - Lessons from Surah al-Kahf

Lessons from Surah al-Kahf

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PEARLS FROM THE QURAN

Copyright Dr Yasir Qadhi 2020
All rights reserved.
4th impression, 2021

The right of Dr Yasir Qadhi to be identified as the author and translator of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.

cip data for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN: 978-1-84774-132-5 casebound
ISBN: 978-1-84774-131-2 paperback
ISBN: 978-1-84774-133-2 ebook

Cover Design by: Jannah Haque
Typesetting by:
Printed by:: Mega Basim, Turkey

Contents

Arabic Consonants

Initial, unexpressed medial and final:

With a shaddah, both medial and final consonants are doubled.

Vowels, diphthongs, etc.

The Virtues of Surah al-Kahf

Surah al-Kahf is among the earliest revelations received by our Prophet f . In a hadith narrated by Abdullh ibn Masd, the Prophet f states: Surah Ban Isrl, al-Kahf, Maryam, H and al-Anbiy are amongst my first earnings and my old property, and (in fact) they are my old property.

The surah summarizes for us the gist of Islam; its main theme is that Allah S will protect us from all trials. Told through a series of stories that illustrate specific trials, it teaches that Allah S will protect the believer at times of severity. Here we will focus on four stories detailed in al-Kahf that represent the crux of the surah:

T HE P EOPLE OF THE C AVE : The first of the stories is that of the young men who sought refuge in the cave, and it is from this story that Surah al-Kahf derives its name. The trial illustrated in this surah is that of the fitnah (trial or testing) of religion; when people persecute others because of their belief in Allah S . The People of the Cave were one such group of young men who believed in Allah S , for which the king of the land wanted to kill them. As a result, they fled and sought protection in a cave and Allah S protected them.

T HE M AN WITH T WO G ARDENS : This second story illustrates the fitnah of money and the consequences of being mentally consumed by it. The story explores what happens when money causes one to become arrogant, and the solution presented for this trial is to realize that the duny is temporary, that Allah S gives and we do not give, and that all we have will eventually be taken away.

M S AND K HI R : The third story is the famous account of Ms a and Khir a . The main fitnah here is that of false knowledge. If knowledge does not lead to humility, then it too can become a fitnah. Knowledge can lead to arrogance if it is misused or abused. Of course, Ms a overcomes this fitnah and, in his humility and humbleness, he learns from somebody other than himself and rises because of it.

D H A L -Q ARNAYN : The final story is that of Dh al-Qarnayn, and in this story is illustrated the fitnah of power, including the fitnah of kingship and the control of people. Allah S mentions that He tested Dh al-Qarnayn with this fitnah, who overcame it by being aware that Allah S is Malik al-Mulk; the One who is the ultimate king.

It is these four major fitans, detailed through the four major stories in Surah al-Kahf, that we will study and learn from.

The Blessings of Surah al-Kahf

There are numerous hadiths that detail the blessings of Surah al-Kahf, and here we will explore a few of them. Prominent among them is the hadith of the famous companion, al-Bar ibn zib, who narrates:

A man was reciting Surah al-Kahf and his horse was tied with two ropes beside him. A cloud came down and spread over that man, and it kept on coming closer and closer to him till his horse started jumping (as if afraid of something). When it was morning, the man came to the Prophet f , and told him of that experience. The Prophet f said, That was al-saknah (tranquillity), which descended because of (the recitation of) the Quran.

Ibn ajar al-Asqaln explains that al-saknah referred to here are the angels, because wherever angels go, peace and tranquillity descend. Such is the beauty of Surah al-Kahf that it is this peace and tranquillity that descended upon its recitation.

It has been previously mentioned that Surah al-Kahf is one of the earliest revelations, revealed in the first or second year of the Prophets f dawah. The reason for this early revelation is that this surah fortifies the believer with mn. It teaches that no matter what is happening, Allah S will take care of you.

Another blessing of Surah al-Kahf is that it protects against the fitnah of Dajjl. As reported in the hadith of Ab al-Dard t , the Prophet f said: He who memorizes the first ten verses of Surah al-Kahf will be protected from the trial of the Dajjl. In another narration, it is the last ten verses of Surah al-Kahf. In another lengthy hadith on the authority of al-Nawws ibn Samn, the Prophet f mentioned the fitnah of Dajjl and stated:

If he comes forth while I am among you I shall be the one who will dispute with him on your behalf, but if he comes forth when I am not among you, then every man must dispute on his own behalf, and Allah will take my place in looking after every Muslim. Those of you who live up to his time should recite over him the opening verses of Surah al-Kahf, for they are your protection from his trial.

We asked: How long will he remain on the Earth?

He replied: Forty days, one like a year, one like a month, one like a week, and rest of his days like yours.

We asked: Messenger of Allah, will one days prayer suffice us in this day which will be like a year?

He replied: No, you must make an estimate of its extent. Then Jesus son of Mary will descend at the white minaret to the east of Damascus. He will then catch him up at the gate of Lud and kill him.

We learn, therefore, that the beginning of Surah al-Kahfand in another hadith the first ten verses of the surahis a protection from the fitnah of Dajjl.

A further blessing of Surah al-Kahf is that our Prophet f has taught us that: Whoever reads Surah al-Kahf