Simple
translation:
And they question you (Oh Muhammad)
about Dhul-Qarnain. Say: “I will narrate to you something of his history.”
(18:83)
Commentary:
Dhul Qarnain literally means someone who possesses
two Qarns. Qarn can mean ‘horn’. But it can also mean ‘epoch’ or
‘age’. Whenever the word occurs in the Qur’an, however, it is always
used in the latter sense. The implication is that Surah al-Kahf has
presented a narration that applies to two ages – and in our view they are an
age in the past and a second in the future. That future age, we firmly believe
is the present age, or the age of Dajjal as well as of Gog and Magog.
And that is why this book ‘Surah al-Kahf and the Modern Age’ could not
have been written before now.
The Jewish Rabbis in Yathrib
(now renamed Madinah al-Nabi) had posed the question concerning the
great traveler who had traveled to the two ends of the earth, and it is to this
question that the Qur’an has responded.
Simple
translation:
“Behold, We gave him power in the earth, and
thus endowed him with (the capacity to do whatever he wanted to do);”
(18:84)
Commentary:
He was a man of faith. And so his
political and military power in his world-order rested on the foundations of
faith.
What is the most essential aspect of
the relationship that should exist between politics and morality? When power in
a world-order rests on the foundations of faith what kind of a world-order
would it establish and sustain? Surah al-Kahf now proceeds to teach a
tremendous lesson which makes it possible for us to recognize the reality of
today’s Euro world-order and to understand how we should respond to it.
Simple
translation:
“and so he followed a way (or chose the right means to follow
that way);”
(18:85)
Explanatory
translation:
(Here is an instance of how he used
his power). “He followed a way (by marching westwards and by
choosing the right means to achieve a right end),”
Simple
translation:
until, when he came to the setting
sun, and he found it setting in a dark, turbid sea; and nearby he found a people.
We said: “O Dhul-Qarnain! either punish them, or to treat them
kindly.”
(18:86)
Explanatory
translation:
until, when he came to the (land of the) setting sun, (since
there was no land beyond, it appeared like the end of the earth) and he
found it setting in a dark, turbid sea; and nearby he found a people. We said:
“O Dhul-Qarnain! (you have authority), either to punish them, or
to treat them kindly.”
Commentary:
The link between morality and politics
can best be determined through the use of power. Power can be used to reward and
assist, or to punish, and in so doing it can also be used justly or unjustly.
The purpose of the story of this journey is to elicit a demonstration of how
power is used by Dhul Qarnain when it rests on the foundations of
faith!
Simple
translation:
He answered: “In time, (we will use our power) to punish
he who is guilty of oppression, injustice, wrongdoing etc., and when he returns
to his Lord-God then He (Allah) would also punish him with indescribable
punishment.”
(18:87)
Commentary:
And so, when power rests on the
foundations of faith it first waits to ensure that when it is finally used, it
would be used justly to punish the oppressor and those guilty of unjust
conduct. Peace and happiness are not possible in an unjust world. In
establishing justice, Dhul Qarnain’s world-order would have made peace
and happiness on earth possible.
This is how the world could have been
if mankind had accepted Prophet Muhammad (sallalahu ‘alaihi wa
sallam) and
followed him. This is how it can be even now if mankind accepts the Qur’an
as Truth and follows its guidance.
When the Last Age, or the Age of Fitan,
comes upon mankind, the world which had rejected Prophet Muhammad and did not
follow his way of life would experience the opposite of Dhul Qarnain’s
world-order. Power in that age would rest on foundations which would be godless
(otherwise known as secular) and power would be used unjustly to oppress,
rather than to punish the oppressor. Peace and happiness would disappear in
such a world-order. Surah alKahf here
explains the reality of today’s world.
Simple
translation:
“But as for him who has faith and
whose conduct is righteous - he will have the ultimate good (of the life to come) as his
reward; and we will use our power to ensure that he has ease (here in his
life on earth).”
(18:88)
Commentary:
When power rests on the foundations of
faith it is used to support and reward those who lead lives of faith and of righteous
conduct. That would be the best of all worlds, and it would deliver maximum
peace and happiness to people who live in it.
Secondly, when he uses power to punish
the unjust and the oppressor, and to reward and support those who lead lives of
faith and righteous conduct, Dhul Qarnain points to the essential
harmony that would then exist between his world order here-below and the
heavenly world-order above.
Surah al-Kahf here delivers an
ominous warning that the Last Age would witness the emergence of a world-order
in which power would rest on foundations which would be essentially godless and
devoid of values. Expediency, opportunism, a cynical disregard for the godly
life of faith, piety and righteous conduct, oppression, etc., would characterize
politics and the use of power in such a world-order. In consequence such a
world-order would be characterized by disharmony and warfare between the world
here-under and the heavenly world above. That is precisely the world in which
we now live.
Simple
translation:
“then
again he chose the right means;”
(18:89)
Commentary:
(Here is another instance of how he
used his power. He marched eastwards) and (once again) he
chose the right means
(to achieve a right
end),
Simple
translation:
“until when he came to the sun rising
and he found it rising on a people for whom We had provided no covering from
the sun (other than the natural covering).”
(18:90)
Explanatory
translation:
“until when he (eventually) came to (a land
which was the farthest point eastwards that he could go since there was no land
beyond, and it appeared like the end of the earth) and that the sun was
rising from beyond that land, he found it rising on a people for whom We had
provided no covering (protection against the sun other than the natural
covering).”
Commentary:
Surah
al-Kahf now delivers a second lesson on the use of power, and in
doing so it helps us to recognize the reality of the present age.
Simple
translation:
“Thus (did he meet them and thus did he
leave them); and We did encompass with Our knowledge his grasp of the situation.”
(18:91)
Explanatory
translation:
“Thus (We had made them, and thus did he
meet them and thus did he leave them undisturbed in their natural way of life);
and We did encompass with Our knowledge his grasp of the situation (and his
response to it).”
Commentary:
When
power rests on the foundations of faith, it has the good sense, wisdom and
sense of compassion to allow those who live a primitive way of life to continue
to do so undisturbed by so-called progress of the world.
The
verse of the Qur’an may
also refer to those who live contentedly in a state of bare subsistence, and Dhul
Qarnain had the good sense and wisdom to leave them undisturbed.
Surah
al-Kahf here delivers a profound warning of an age which is to
come when those who wield power in the world would be essentially godless and
would act in a manner completely opposite to that of Dhul Qarnain. The
primitive way of life will be mercilessly attacked and destroyed in the name of
godless modernity and globalization.
That age has already come to the world.
In
addition, those who live contentedly in a subsistence economy would have their
way of life attacked and destroyed and they would be reduced to unimaginable
suffering. That is the fate which has already overtaken most of Africa.
That
age, of which Surah
al-Kahf has warned, is here and now!
Simple
translation:
“Then again he chose the right
means;”
(18:92)
Explanatory
translation:
(Finally
here is the third instance of how he used his power. He marched in a third
direction and once again) he chose the right means (to achieve a right
end).
Simple
translation:
“(And he marched on) till, when he
reached (a pass) between the two mountain-barriers, he found betwixt
them a people who could scarcely understand a word (of his language).”
(18:93)
Commentary:
The implication of coming upon a
people who could not understand anything of the language spoken by the ruler of
the world is that they lived in a state of isolation from the stage of the
world. They could have had no trade with the outside world, nor could they have
traveled in it. Only a people who lived, perhaps, as wild tribes, would qualify
as such an isolated people.
This is a very important matter indeed
to which Surah al-Kahf is directing our attention. We must make every
effort to identify these people since that knowledge is crucially important for
us if we are to recognize and understand the grave warnings just delivered
concerning a world-order of awesome evil which is to come, and which would
witness power being constituted and used in exactly the opposite way to that of
the world-order of Dhul Qarnain.
Simple
translation:
they said: "O Dhul Qarnain!
Behold, Gog and Magog are corrupting the land. May we offer you tribute on the condition
that you build a barrier between us and them?”
(18:94)
Explanatory
translation:
(Eventually, when they were able to
communicate with each other) they said: “O Dhul Qarnain! Behold, Gog and
Magog are corrupting (and destroying) this land. May we offer (to
pay) you tribute on the condition that you build a barrier between us and
them (to protect us from them)?”
Commentary:
When once the last Prophet had come to
the world the implication was that the Last Age could now commence. In that Last
Age one of the most momentous of all the Signs of Allah Most High to appear in
the world would be the advent of Gog and Magog. This verse must qualify as one
of the most important verses of Surah al-Kahf in so far as the Surah
explains the modern age. Who are Gog and Magog - the two tribes that have
descended from Father Adam (‘alaihi al-Salam) through Nabi Nuh (‘alaihi
al-Salam)?
Whoever they were, Gog and Magog were
people who had awesome power. This is clear from the fact that the people who
were under attack from Gog and Magog requested Dhul Qarnain to build a
barrier to protect them. This awesome power which they possessed was confirmed
in a Hadith al-Qudsi transmitted in the Sahih of Imam Muslim
in which Allah Most High is reported to have said,
“I
have created creatures of mine (i.e., Gog and Magog) so powerful that none but
I can destroy them.”
But Surah al-Kahf also
delivered the extraordinary news that Gog and Magog used their power in exactly
the opposite way from that of Dhul Qarnain. They created Fasad fil
Ard, i.e., their conduct was the worst that was possible. They corrupted
and destroyed everything that they targeted with their indestructible
oppressive power. Acts of terrorism are also recognized as Fasad fil Ard.
Those convicted of Fasad fil Ard are to be punished, in accordance with
Allah’s decree, either by “being
put to death, or crucified, or by
cutting
off his hand and foot on opposite sides, or by banishment from his society”.
(Qur’an, al-Maidah, 5:36)
This is by far the most severe of all
divinely-ordained punishments.
The amazing implication of the above
is that when Gog and Magog are finally released into the world mankind would be
subjected to a world-order that would be the opposite of that of Dhul Qarnain.
This book demonstrates that we now live in the world-order of Gog and Magog!
Simple
translation:
He answered: “That wherein my Lord-God
has so securely established me is better (than any tribute that you could offer me); hence, do
but help me with (your) manpower, (and) I shall erect a barrier
between you and them!”
(18:95)
Commentary:
In agreeing to build a barrier which
would contain Gog and Magog and so protect the people from their evil, Dhul Qarnain
provided further evidence confirming that they (i.e., Gog and Magog) were
people with awesome indestructible power which he could only endeavor to
contain since even he could not destroy them.
Simple
translation:
Bring me ingots of iron! Then, after
he had filled the gap between the two mountainsides, he said: “ply your bellows!”
At length, when he had made it a fire, he commanded: “Bring me molten copper
which I may pour upon it.”
(18:96)
Explanatory
translation:
Bring me ingots of iron! Then, after
he had (piled up the
iron and) filled the gap between the two mountainsides, he said: “(Light
a fire and) ply your bellows!” At length, when he had made it (glow
like) fire, he commanded: “(Now place the copper in the fire and then)
bring me molten copper which I may pour upon it.”
Commentary:
Only a barrier built of the strongest
possible metal could contain Gog and Magog. The Qur’an confirmed (in Surah
alHadid) that iron was precisely such a metal that possessed awesome strength.
After Dhul Qarnain had built that iron barrier he then poured molten copper
on the iron in order to prevent rust.
The awesomely important implication of
the above is that when Gog and Magog are released by Allah Most High into the
world, and they commence their evil reign of terror, believers would have to
seek protection from them by placing a very strong barrier to keep them out,
rather than a bridge to keep them connected.
Simple
translation:
“And they were unable to scale it, and
neither were they able to penetrate it.”
(18:97)
Explanatory
translation:
“And thus (the barrier was built, and Gog and
Magog) were unable to scale it, and neither were they able to penetrate it (by
digging through it and, as a consequence, mankind was safe from the attacks of
Gog and Magog).”
Commentary:
So long as that barrier (built by Dhul
Qarnain) remained intact, mankind remained safe from the ravages of Gog and
Magog.
Simple
translation:
He said, “This is mercy from my
Lord-God! Yet when the time appointed by my Sustainer comes, He will reduce it
to ruins: and my Lord-God’s promise always comes true!”
(18:98)
Explanatory
translation:
Said (Dhul Qarnain): “(Our success in constructing this
barrier) is mercy from my Lord-God! Yet when the time appointed by my
Lord-God comes (i.e., Youm al-Qiyamah or the Last Age), He will
reduce this (barrier) to ruins: and my Lord-God’s promise always comes
true!”
Commentary:
Surah al-Kahf has here delivered the momentous
warning that Allah Himself would one day destroy the barrier and so release Gog
and Magog into the world. When Allah Most High does so the implication would be
that power in the world would eventually rest on godless foundations and that
power would be used to oppress, corrupt, destroy, and to wage war on Islam.
To Be Continued....
Surah Kahf Unveiling The End Time By Sheikh Imran Hosein
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