Surah al-Kahf

It is called "Surat Ashab al-Kahf" (The Chapter of the Companions of the Cave), as in a Hadith recorded by Ibn Marduyah. Al-Bayhaqi narrated from Ibn Abbas as a marfu’ (elevated) Hadith that it is called "al-Ha’ilah" (the Barrier) in the Torah, because it acts as a barrier between its reader and the Fire; however, he noted that the narration is munkar (rejected).

The entire Surah is Meccan, according to the well-known opinion, which was chosen by al-Dani. It is also narrated from Ibn Abbas and Ibn al-Zubayr (may Allah be pleased with them). Some counted it among the Surahs that were revealed in their entirety, based on what al-Daylami recorded in Musnad al-Firdaws from Anas, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who said: "Surat al-Kahf was revealed in its entirety, accompanied by seventy thousand angels."

In another narration from Ibn Abbas, it is Meccan except for His saying, "And keep yourself patient..." (18:28), which is Medinan. Qatadah narrated the same. Muqatil said: It is Meccan except for its beginning up to "...barren ground" (18:8), and His saying, "Indeed, those who have believed..." (18:107) until the end, which are Medinan.

It contains 111 verses according to the Basrans, 110 according to the Kufans, 106 according to the Syrians, and 105 according to the Hijazis.

As for the appropriateness of its placement after [Surat] al-Isra’, it is said that the latter begins with glorification (tasbih) and this one begins with praise (tahmid), and both are joined in the scale; and similar expressions appear throughout the speech, such as "And glorify with the praise of your Lord," and "Glory be to Allah and His praise." Furthermore, there is a resemblance between the conclusion of the former and the opening of this one, as both contain praise. Yes, they differ in that the first praise manifests intrinsic praise (al-hamd al-dhati), whereas the praise with which this one opens indicates merit that is not intrinsic (al-istihqaq ghayr al-dhati).

Jalal al-Suyuti said regarding this: The Jews commanded the polytheists to ask the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) about three things: the Spirit, the story of the Companions of the Cave, and the story of Dhu al-Qarnayn. The answer to the first question was mentioned at the end of the previous Surah, and the answers to the other two questions are in this one; thus, their connection is appropriate. The three answers were not gathered in one Surah because the answer to the first was not provided with [full] clarification, so it was appropriate for it to be mentioned alone in a Surah. Surat al-Isra’ was chosen because of the shared aspect between the Spirit and the Night Journey (al-Isra’), in that the reality of both is almost beyond the reach of human intellect.

It is also said: It was mentioned there because the Night Journey includes the ascension to the highest realm, and the Spirit is characterized by descending from that realm—hence why Ibn Sina said regarding it: "It descended upon you from the highest realm, a dove of pride and majesty."

Then, a different aspect appeared to me: When the Almighty said in that [Surah], "And you have not been given of knowledge except a little" (17:85)—and the address is to the Jews—He substantiated this with the story of Musa, the prophet of the Children of Israel, with al-Khidr (peace be upon them both). This story was the cause for mentioning knowledge and the "one who is more knowledgeable," and it points to the vastness of Allah’s infinite knowledge; thus, this Surah serves as the provision of proof for the ruling mentioned in that Surah.

Furthermore, it is reported in a Hadith that when "And you have not been given of knowledge except a little" was revealed, the Jews said: "We have been given the Torah, in which is the knowledge of everything." Then, "Say: If the sea were ink for the words of my Lord..." (18:109) was revealed. From this perspective, this Surah serves as an answer to the opponents' doubt regarding what was established in the former.

Also, when the Almighty said there, "And when the promise of the Hereafter comes, We will bring you forth in a crowd" (17:104), He explained and elaborated upon it here by His saying, "And when the promise of my Lord comes, He will make it level with the ground" (18:98), up to His saying, "And the Horn will be blown, and We will gather them in groups. And We will present Hell, that Day, to the disbelievers, entirely exposed" (18:99-100). There are other aspects of appropriateness that become apparent with the slightest reflection.

As for its virtue, it is well-known. Ibn Marduyah recorded from Ibn Umar as a marfu’ narration: "Whoever reads Surat al-Kahf on the day of Jumu’ah (Friday), a light will shine for him from beneath his feet to the clouds of the sky, which will light up for him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will be forgiven for what is between the two Fridays."

More than one narrated from Abu Sa’id al-Khudri: "Whoever reads Surat al-Kahf on the day of Jumu’ah, a light will shine for him between him and the Ancient House (the Ka’bah)." Hassan ibn Ali (may Allah be pleased with them both), as recorded by Abu Ubayd and al-Bayhaqi from Umm Musa, used to read it every night.

Ibn Marduyah recorded from Abdullah ibn Mughaffal as a marfu’ narration: "The house in which Surat al-Kahf is read, the Devil will not enter it that night." Many of the Imams held the view that it is recommended to read it on Friday and its night, and they suggested the recommendation of repeating its recitation.

Ahmad, Muslim, Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa’i, Ibn Hibban, and a group recorded from Abu al-Darda’, from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "Whoever memorizes ten verses from the beginning of Surat al-Kahf will be protected from the trial of the Dajjal." In another narration from him, also recorded by Ahmad, Muslim, al-Nasa’i, and Ibn Hibban, he said: "The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: 'Whoever reads the last ten verses of Surat al-Kahf will be protected from the trial of the Dajjal.'"

Al-Tirmidhi recorded, and authenticated, from him as a marfu’ narration: "Whoever reads three verses from the beginning of al-Kahf will be protected..." and so on. It came in a Hadith recorded by Ibn Marduyah from Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) as a marfu’ narration: "Whoever reads the last five verses of it when he goes to sleep, Allah will wake him up at whatever time of the night he wishes." I have tested this multiple times, so keep it in mind. And Allah the Almighty is the Grantor of success.

Al-Kahf: (1) All praise is due to Allah who...

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise is due to Allah who has revealed to His servant (Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace) the Book—the complete [Book], which is beyond description in its perfection, known as such among all other books, and worthy of the name "the Book" being uniquely attributed to it. It is either an expression for the entire Quran—in which case the existing is given precedence over the anticipated—or an expression for the entirety revealed at that time, in which case the matter is clear.

Describing Allah with a relative pronoun (al-ladhi) signifies that the content within the relative clause (silah) is the cause for the entitlement to praise, which the lam indicates, as explicitly stated by Ibn Hisham and others. It is an indication of the magnitude of this glorious revelation. The Book is that which guides to perfection, which is denied in the aspects of both knowledge and action.

Expressing the Messenger—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—as "the servant" (al-'abd), appended to His pronoun—may He be exalted—contains an indication of his exaltation, peace be upon him, and likewise the exaltation of that which was revealed to him. There is also in this an intimation that the status of the Messenger is to be a servant to the Sender, unlike what the Christians claimed regarding Jesus, peace be upon him.

The explicit object is placed after the prepositional phrase, even though its proper place is before it, so that the words of the Exalted, "and has not placed in it (i.e., in the Book) any crookedness," may be connected to it. This means: nothing of crookedness, neither through a disturbance in wording in terms of syntax, nor through a contradiction of eloquence, nor a contradiction in meaning, nor through its containing that which is not true, nor through it calling to anyone other than Allah, the Exalted.

‘Iwaj (crookedness)—and likewise ‘awaj—is a deviation and leaning away from straightness. However, it has been said that with a kasrah on the ‘ayn (‘iwaj), it refers to what is perceived by the ‘ayn (insight/intellect), and with a fathah on the ‘ayn (‘awaj), it refers to what is perceived by the ‘ayn (eye). The former is a deviation from intellectual straightness perceived by insight, such as the crookedness of a religion or speech. The latter is a deviation from physical straightness perceived by the sight, such as the crookedness of a wall or a wooden stick.

It was objected against this with the words of the Exalted regarding the earth: "You will not see therein any crookedness or unevenness," for the earth is a perceptible thing, and its crookedness—as well as its straightness—is something perceived by the sight; thus, it should have been with a fathah on the ‘ayn according to what was mentioned. The response given was that because what was intended here is the crookedness that is hidden—to the point that its proof requires geometric measurements necessitating the use of insight—it was treated like that which is purely intellectual, and thus it was termed as such for that reason. This was challenged by the fact that "you will not see" clearly indicates that what is being negated is that which is perceived by the sight, so it requires that the perception be intended. Ibn al-Sikkit says that the form with the kasrah is more general than the one with the fathah, and al-Marzuqi chose in his Sharh al-Fasih that there is no difference between them.