Prophet Elijah was Raised up to Heaven and Lives

 بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

الصلاة والسلام عليك يا رسول الله

The belief that the Prophet Elijah is alive is held by many Christians and Jews, and stems from the following passage in the Bible: And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven (2 Kings 2:11). Incidentally, many non-Muslims, including Christians and Jews, ridicule the Islamic belief that the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, ascended to Heaven seated on the Buraq, a celestial white creature whose size is described as larger than a donkey but smaller than a mule. Yet they conveniently overlook that according to the Bible, the Prophet Elijah ascended to Heaven on a chariot of fire driven by horses of fire. The Bible also teaches that the Prophet Elijah will return before the Final Judgment: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord” (Malachi 4:5). Jewish folklore is filled with legends of the Prophet Elijah appearing to certain rabbis especially. There is the tradition of Elijah’s Chair, when an empty chair is set aside for Elijah to sit upon and witness the rite of circumcision, and during the Passover Seder it is customary to set aside an extra cup for Elijah and leave the door open for him hoping he may appear.

But what does Islam teach about this subject? There isn’t any explicit, unambiguous proof in Islam that the Prophet Elijah ascended to Heaven physically and is alive till this day. However, the Ayah in the Quran:

وَّرَفَعۡنٰہُ مَکَانًا عَلِیًّا

And We raised him to a high place

(Surah 19, Ayah 57)

This Ayah is in reference to a Prophet called Idris, whom some identify as Elias (Elijah):

يُذْكَرُ عَنْ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ وَابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ أَنَّ إِلْيَاسَ ‌هُوَ ‌إِدْرِيسُ

It was mentioned from Ibn Mas’ud and Ibn Abbas that Elias is Idris (Sahih al-Bukhari)

If indeed Idris and Elias are one and the same then Surah 19:57 is likely a reference to Elijah’s ascension to Heaven as described in 2 Kings 2:11.

Ka’b al-Ahbar said:

‌أَرْبَعَة ‌أَنْبيَاء ‌الْيَوْم أَحيَاء اثْنَان فِي الدُّنْيَا إلْيَاس وَالْخضر وَاثْنَانِ فِي السَّمَاء عِيسَى وَإِدْرِيس

Four Prophets are alive today, two in the world, Elias and Khidr, and two in Heaven, Jesus and Idris (Tarikh Dimashq; v.9, p.207)

Now if Elias is Idris then this reduces the number to Prophets who are said to be alive down to three. Even then, there isn’t any strong evidence to prove a worldly life for Khidr, whose status as a Prophet is disputed as many believe he was a saintly non-Prophet, and some even say he may have been an Angel. Furthermore, when the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said:

أَرَأَيْتَكُمْ لَيْلَتَكُمْ هَذِهِ فَإِنَّ عَلَى رَأْسِ مِائَةِ سَنَةٍ مِنْهَا لاَ يَبْقَى مِمَّنْ هُوَ عَلَى ظَهْرِ الأَرْضِ أَحَدٌ

Do you see this night of yours? No one who is on the surface of the Earth shall remain at the head of a century from it (Sahih Muslim)

The apparent meaning of the Hadith would discount any notion of a Prophet being alive, in the apparent sense, who was upon the Earth on that night. So we are left with Jesus and Idris, who is identified as Elijah, being alive in Heaven. I strongly believe that of the Prophets these two are for sure alive without having tasted death yet, though they reside in Heaven for Allah physically raised them up.