The Assumption of Moses

 بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

والصلاة والسلام على خاتم النبيين

The beautiful story of Prophet Moses’s encounter with Khidr عليهما السلام as mentioned in the Eighteenth Surah of the Quran has many lessons and mystical secrets contained within it. However, in this article I want to discuss my belief that this entire episode transpired not in this world but in another dimension—the world of spirits or the realm of similitude.

Firstly, this story of Moses and Khidr عليهما السلام is nowhere mentioned in the scriptures or literature of the Jews and Christians that preceded the revelation of the Quran, including in the holy Torah.

Secondly, there are strong indications within the story itself that this episode did not occur in this world, for example:

وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِفَتَاهُ لَا أَبْرَحُ حَتَّىٰ أَبْلُغَ مَجْمَعَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ أَوْ أَمْضِيَ حُقُبًا

And when Moses said to his young companion, ‘I will not stop until I reach the junction of the two seas, or I will journey on for ages.’

(Surah 18:60)

This is the Ayah that starts the story of Moses and Khidr عليهما السلام. We begin with Prophet Moses explaining that his destination in a travel is the juncture of two seas, and he will not cease trying to reach there even if it takes ages upon ages. Right here is an indication that this was not a worldly travel but a travel occurring in another plane of existence where it might take ages to reach the destination. The juncture of two seas is a similitude which symbolizes the place or person in which the two seas of knowledge are combined, these being the sea of the knowledge of the exoteric and the sea of the knowledge of the esoteric. By exoteric is meant the knowledge of the outer aspects of the divine Law and by esoteric is meant the knowledge of the inner aspects of the Path, also known as mysticism.

The story goes on to mention that when Prophet Moses عليه السلام discovered that the fish they were carrying had slipped out back into the sea that he realized he needed to retrace his steps back to the point, the rock, where the fish had slipped away because that is the location of the junction of the two seas. How is it that the fish was suppose to slip away at that point to indicate their arrival at their destination if it was a worldly journey?

And when they retraced their steps back to the rock they found a man regarding whom Allah says He gave him knowledge from Himself, and Prophet Moses requested that he should be allowed to follow him. This is another indication that it was not a journey in this world, for in the time of Prophet Moses عليه السلام there was no other man who was superior to him including in terms of knowledge.

Next, the various acts of the man, who is identified as Khidr according to the Prophetic tradition, are at face value contrary to the divine Law. For example, making a hole in a ship which would cause it to sink and drown its crew and passengers and killing a young boy without due cause. However, as symbolic lessons and secrets pointing to the esoteric meaning it makes sense that these acts transpire in another plane of existence.

Finally, I shall quote a statement of the Prophet’s companion and second successor, sayyidina Umar al-Faruq رضى الله عنه which appears to indicate that this journey of the Prophet Moses عليه السلام was a spiritual ascension:

When the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم died, some of the people began saying:

إِنَّمَا عُرِجَ بِرُوحِهِ ‌كَمَا ‌عُرِجَ ‌بِرُوحِ ‌مُوسَى

Verily, he has ascended in his spirit like how Moses ascended in his spirit

Sayyidina Umar رضى الله عنه likewise began repeating this statement and declaring it to be true:

وَقَامَ عُمَرُ خَطِيبًا يُوعِدُ الْمُنَافِقِينَ قَالَ وَقَالَ إِنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ لَمْ يَمُتْ وَلَكِنْ إِنَّمَا عُرِجَ بِرُوحِهِ ‌كَمَا ‌عُرِجَ ‌بِرُوحِ ‌مُوسَى

Umar stood up, addressing and threatening the hypocrites, saying, ‘the Apostle of Allah peace be upon him has not died, rather he has ascended with his spirit like how Moses ascended in his spirit’ (Tabaqat al-Kubra; v.2 p.204; Sunan ad-Darimi #90):

Although sayyidina Umar رضى الله عنه and some of the other companions were wrong to initially deny the death of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, the pertinent question arises that what exactly were they referring to when they said that the spirit of Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم ascended like the ascension of the spirit of Prophet Moses عليه السلام and that he will return?

This statement of sayyidina Umar رضى الله عنه is usually interpreted as a reference to the journey of Prophet Moses to Mount Sinai to receive the Tablets, in which he was absent from his people for forty nights. During his absence the hypocrites and perhaps some others from the Israelites began thinking that Prophet Moses had died and would not return. However, the difficulty with this interpretation is that Prophet Moses عليه السلام ascended Mount Sinai physically, in his corporal body. It was not a spiritual ascension. Therefore, the only other possible event in the life of Prophet Moses where he was absent from his people and on a journey was during his encounter with Khidr. Therefore, we can deduce that it was that journey which sayyidina Umar رضى الله عنه was referring to when he said Prophet Moses ascended with his spirit, and not his corporal body.

According to another version of sayyidina Umar’s statement:

لا أَسْمَعَنَّ أَحَدًا يَقُولُ إِنَّ مُحَمَّدًا قَدْ مَاتَ وَلَكِنَّهُ أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْهِ كَمَا أُرْسِلَ إِلَى مُوسَى بْنِ عِمْرَانَ فَلَبِثَ عَنْ قَوْمِهِ أَرْبَعِينَ لَيْلَةً

I don’t want to heard any of you saying ‘indeed, Muhammad has died’ rather he was sent unto Him like how Moses son of Amram was sent for, and stayed away from his people for forty nights (Tabaqat al-Kubra v.2, p.204)

Although this version mentions forty nights which matches the duration of Prophet Moses’s stay on Mount Sinai, it does not make sense to compare that to the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم, because the body of the Prophet Muhammad was present and observed by sayyidina Umar and the other Companions, so as the previous version indicates, they believed the absence of Prophet Moses from his people that is being compared to the absence of the Prophet Muhammad was an absence of his spirit and not corporal body.

Vision of the Coming Messiah

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

اللهم صلى على محمد وآل محمد

The Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم met the Messiah of Nazareth على نبينا وعليه السلام in the Heavens during the incident of the Mi’raj—the spiritual ascension. While this was an event that occurred in the spirit realm and was not a corporal ascension, the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم saw various other Prophets and was able to inform us of some of their physical descriptions. Regarding the Messiah of Nazareth على نبينا وعليه السلام he صلى الله عليه وسلم said:

فَأَمَّا عِيسَى فَأَحْمَرُ جَعْدٌ عَرِيضُ الصَّدْرِ

As for Jesus he was reddish [complexion], curly haired and broad chested

(Sahih al-Bukhari)

However, in a separate vision, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم saw himself circulating the Ka’ba and in that state he beheld Jesus, and described him:

فَإِذَا رَجُلٌ آدَمُ كَأَحْسَنِ مَا يُرَى مِنْ أُدْمِ الرِّجَالِ تَضْرِبُ لِمَّتُهُ بَيْنَ مَنْكِبَيْهِ رَجِلُ الشَّعَرِ يَقْطُرُ رَأْسُهُ مَاءً وَاضِعًا يَدَيْهِ عَلَى مَنْكِبَىْ رَجُلَيْنِ وَهْوَ يَطُوفُ بِالْبَيْتِ‏ فَقُلْتُ مَنْ هَذَا فَقَالُوا هَذَا الْمَسِيحُ ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ‏

I saw a brown men like the best of brown men you can see. His hair touched down to between his shoulders and was straight with water dripping from his head. He placed his hands upon the shoulders of two men while circulating the House [Ka’ba]. I said ‘Who is this?’ They answered: ‘the Messiah, Son of Mary’

فَإِذَا رَجُلٌ آدَمُ سَبْطُ الشَّعَرِ يُهَادَى بَيْنَ رَجُلَيْنِ يَنْطِفُ رَأْسُهُ مَاءً أَوْ يُهَرَاقُ رَأْسُهُ مَاءً فَقُلْتُ مَنْ هَذَا قَالُوا ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ

I saw a man of brownish [complexion] with straight hair, walking between two men, water was dripping from his head. So I asked ‘Who is this?’ and they replied: ‘the Son of Mary’

(Sahih al-Bukhari)

What explains this apparent and major discrepancy in the physical appearance of Jesus son of Mary from two separate visions of the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم? The simple and likely explanation is that in the vision of the Mi’raj the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم beheld the original Jesus son of Mary—that ancient Israelite Prophet. While in his vision of circulating the Ka’ba the Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم beheld the coming Messiah of the future who is called ‘Son of Mary’ due to resemblance and fulfilling the prophecy of the Second Advent. This is indicated by the fact that in the same vision the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم beheld the Antichrist, described as a reddish man, burly, curly-haired, and with a deformity in his right eye resembling a floating grape. Seeing Jesus son of Mary with his hands placed on the shoulders of two men is indicative of the Prophet Muhammad’s prophecy:

وَاضِعًا كَفَّيْهِ عَلَى أَجْنِحَةِ مَلَكَيْنِ

Placing his palms upon the wings of two Angels

(Sahih Muslim)

In the vision the two Angels are beheld as two men and their wings are their shoulders upon which the Messiah places his hands.

Monarchy and Mercy

 بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

اللهم صلى على سيدنا ومولانا محمد وبارك وسلم وصلى عليه

Among the signs of the veracity of the Prophesy of our master Muhammad صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم was his accurate prediction about the sequence of rule that would materialize subsequent to his passing away from this world. He صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم said:

أَوَّلُ هَذَا الْأَمْرِ نُبُوَّةٌ وَرَحْمَةٌ، ثُمَّ يَكُونُ خِلَافَةً وَرَحْمَةً، ثُمَّ ‌يَكُونُ ‌مُلْكًا ‌وَرَحْمَةً، ثُمَّ يَكُونُ إِمَارَةً وَرَحْمَةً، ثُمَّ يَتَكادَمُونَ عَلَيْهِ تَكادُمَ الْحُمُرِ فَعَلَيْكُمْ بِالْجِهَادِ، وَإِنَّ أَفْضَلَ جهادِكُمُ الرِّبَاطُ، وَإِنَّ أَفْضَلَ رباطِكُمْ عَسْقَلَانُ

The first of this affair is Prophesy and mercy, then there shall be Caliphate and mercy, then there shall be Kingship and mercy, then there shall be Emirate and mercy. Then they shall scramble for it like donkeys. So upon you is Jihad, and the best of your Jihad is Ribat [guarding the border] and the best of your Ribat is in Ashkelon. (Mu’jam al-Kabir; v.11, p.88, #11138):

al-Haythami said that all of the narrators of this Hadith are thiqāt (Majma az-Zawa’id).

According to this prophecy when kingship or monarchy first appears in this Ummah it shall be a manifestation of mercy for it, just as the institutions of Prophesy and Caliphate prior to it were manifestations of Allah’s mercy upon the Ummah. Of course, the degree of mercy is not as great as that which was associated with Prophesy and with Caliphate. Mu’awiya bin Abi Sufyan رضى الله عنه was the first king or monarch to rule the entire Umma. The Negus رضى الله عنه who cnoverted to Islam was a monarch over Ethiopia and likewise Badhan رضى الله عنه , the king of Yemen, whose seating on the throne was confirmed by the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم himself. However, those two kings رضى الله عنهما were not kings for the Umma collectively, therefore, Mu’awiya رضى الله عنه was technically the first king of the Muslims. And his kingship was certainly a manifestation of mercy for the Umma, as per the prophecy from the Hadith I have quoted. The appearance of ‘Emirate’ within the Umma refers to the breakup of the political unity of the Umma during the later phase of the Abbasid dynasty. Powerful emirates emerged in various lands exercising a degree of independence from the supposed caliphate in Baghdad. The righteous emirs and rulers from among them were certainly a continued manifestation of mercy from Allah, albeit to a lesser degree. However, in modern times we have entered a phase in which the rule over the Muslims is, generally speaking, not to be understood as a mercy from Allah, which is why the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم compared it to the scrambling of donkeys. The second great prophecy of this Hadith is that the best Jihad in the latter days shall be the defense of the borders in the region of Ashkelon, which is today situated in the Israel/Palestine area near the Gaza strip. Historically, the Muslims faught here against the Crusaders, and in present times or in the near future it may refer to a Jihad or armed conflict against the Zionists.

Concerning the prophecy of monarchy being a manifestation of Allah’s mercy for this Umma, some individuals I have come across object to it on the basis of another Hadith which states:

تَكُونُ النُّبُوَّةُ فِيكُمْ مَا شَاءَ اللهُ أَنْ تَكُونَ، ثُمَّ يَرْفَعُهَا إِذَا شَاءَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهَا، ثُمَّ تَكُونُ ‌خِلَافَةٌ ‌عَلَى ‌مِنْهَاجِ النُّبُوَّةِ، فَتَكُونُ مَا شَاءَ اللهُ أَنْ تَكُونَ، ثُمَّ يَرْفَعُهَا إِذَا شَاءَ اللهُ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهَا، ثُمَّ تَكُونُ مُلْكًا عَاضًّا، فَيَكُونُ مَا شَاءَ اللهُ أَنْ يَكُونَ، ثُمَّ يَرْفَعُهَا إِذَا شَاءَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهَا، ثُمَّ تَكُونُ مُلْكًا جَبْرِيَّةً، فَتَكُونُ مَا شَاءَ اللهُ أَنْ تَكُونَ، ثُمَّ يَرْفَعُهَا إِذَا شَاءَ أَنْ يَرْفَعَهَا، ثُمَّ تَكُونُ ‌خِلَافَةً ‌عَلَى ‌مِنْهَاجِ نُبُوَّةٍ ثُمَّ سَكَتَ

“Prophesy shall remain among you as long as Allah shall will. He will bring about its end and follow it with Caliphate on the precepts of Prophesy for as long as He shall will and then bring about its end. A biting monarchy will then follow and will remain as long as Allah shall will and then come to an end. There will follow thereafter monarchial despotism to last as long as Allah shall will and come to an end upon His decree. There will then emerge Caliphate on precept of Prophesy.” Then he [the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم] became silent. (Musnad Ahmad)

The objection is that in this latter Hadith the monarchy that emerges after the Caliphate is described as a ‘biting’ monarchy whereas in the former Hadith it is described as ‘monarchy and mercy’. The answer to this apparent confusion is that monarchy by its nature is ‘biting’ meaning that it is an institution that seeks to subsist above all else, yet that is not necessarily a dispraise of it, not does it necessarily mean that such monarchy cannot be a manifestation of Allah’s mercy. A proof for this is the fact that monarchy was established by Allah Himself among the nation of Israel. Their first king Talut [Saul] was appointed directly by Allah through the agency of the Prophet Samuel على نبينا وعليه السلام. Subsequently, two of the Israelite kings, David and Solomon على نبينا وعليهما السلام were Prophets themselves. With respect to King Solomon in particular, the Queen of Sheba said about him and other kings:

قَالَتۡ اِنَّ الۡمُلُوۡکَ اِذَا دَخَلُوۡا قَرۡیَۃً اَفۡسَدُوۡہَا وَ جَعَلُوۡۤا اَعِزَّۃَ اَہۡلِہَاۤ اَذِلَّۃً ۚ وَ کَذٰلِکَ یَفۡعَلُوۡنَ

She said, ‘Surely, kings, when they enter a country, despoil it, and turn the highest of its people into the lowest.’ And thus will they do

(Sura 27:34)

Even the righteous kings like Solomon عليه السلام were no exception to the general rule that when kings enter a country they despoil it and humiliate those of that country who are considered high and honored. This too is not necessarily a dispraise or condemnation of monarchy but only a description of its reality.