Surat al-Kahf, 22
They will say: "There were three of them, their dog being the fourth." They will say: "There were five of them, their dog being the sixth," guessing at the Unseen. And they will say: "There were seven of them, their dog being the eighth." Say: "My Lord knows best their number. Those who know about them are very few." So do not enter into any argument concerning them, except in relation to what is clearly known. And do not seek the opinion of any of them regarding them.
(Surat al-Kahf, 22)
As this verse states, some people speculated about how many Companions of the Cave there actually were. However, the verse states that their actual number is known only to our Lord, for only He knows the Unseen and can reveal part of it to His chosen few.
The continuation of the verse stipulates that such speculation is wrong. Such disputes are termed "guessing at the Unseen" and are referred to in other verses as well:
They will say: "We believe in it," but how can they reach out for it from a distant place, when beforehand they had rejected it, shooting forth about the Unseen from a distant place? A barrier will be set up between them and the thing that they desire, just as was done with their kind before. They too were in a state of crippling doubt. (Surah Saba', 52-54)
All Muslims ought to refrain from such useless arguments and just say: "Allah knows best." They should respond in the following terms: "You know what is in my self but I do not know what is in Your Self. You are the Knower of all unseen things" (Surat al-Ma'ida, 116), because many verses state that only Allah knows the Unseen. One such verse is as follows:
The keys of the Unseen are in His possession. No one knows them but Him. He knows everything in the land and sea. No leaf falls without His knowing it. There is no seed in the darkness of the ground, and nothing moist or dry, which is not in a Clear Book. (Surat al-An`am, 59)
In these types of arguments, people's views usually are based upon hearsay. Obviously, there is no point in listening to arguments based solely upon conjecture and ignorance. As "Do not pursue what you have no knowledge of. Hearing, sight and hearts will all be questioned" (Surat al-Isra', 36) makes clear, people should avoid any talk based upon hearsay.
"Those who know about them are very few" also indicates that a few people could have this knowledge. For instance, one such person could be Khidhr (as), whose miraculous circumstances we will explore shortly. It is also possible that Khidhr's disciples might have this knowledge, with Allah's will and revelation. The Qur'an reveals that Allah reveals some of the Unseen to His Messengers.
He is the Knower of the Unseen, and does not divulge His Unseen to anyone—except a Messenger with whom He is well pleased, and then He posts sentinels before him and behind him. (Surat al-Jinn, 26-27)
Allah revealed some knowledge of the Unseen to our Prophet (saas) and then told him that:
This is news of the Unseen that We reveal to you [OMuhammad]. You were not with them when they decided what to do and devised their scheme. (Surah Yusuf, 102)
Allah informed Prophet Nuh (as) about some of the future events that he would experience:
It was said: "Nuh, descend with peace from Us and with blessings on you and on the nations that will issue from those who are with you. But there are nations to whom we will give enjoyment, and then a painful punishment from Us will afflict them." That is some of the news of the Unseen that We reveal to you. Neither you nor your people knew it before this time. So be steadfast. The best end-result is for those who do their duty. (Surah Hud, 48-49)
Surat al-Kahf 22 reveals the appropriate methods of argument: "… do not enter into any argument concerning them, except in relation to what is clearly known." When arguing with others, believers must provide evidence that is compatible with the Qur'an, whereas those who reject religion do the contrary, for they seek to create disputes in order to display their hostility to the believers and their religion. Allah states in "just for argument's sake…" (Surat az-Zukhruf, 58), that the deniers use blasphemous arguments because they are "a disputatious people" who have an argumentative and hostile nature. This is why people living the Qur'an's morality must distance themselves from all of this and behave in the way that earns Allah's good pleasure. Allah provides an example as to how they should speak with the unbelievers:
So call and go straight, as you have been ordered to. Do not follow their whims and desires, but say: "I believe in a Book sent down by Allah and am ordered to be just between you. Allah is our Lord and your Lord. We have our actions and you have your actions. There is no debate between us and you. Allah will gather us all together. He is our final destination." (Surat ash-Shura, 15)
The phrase "do not seek the opinion of any of them regarding them" at the end of Surat al-Kahf 22 advises all believers to refrain from seeking views other than that of Revelation, because only Allah knows the Unseen. Thus, believers believe that arguments based only upon people's faulty speculation, knowledge, presumptions, and interpretations are worthless. Therefore, giving any credence to such "information" is forbidden.
Posted by rajahamza
|
at
7:03 AM
0 comments:
Post a Comment