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Prophets

What did Ibn Kathir say about Prophet Hūd and ʿĀd?

The people of ʿĀd — tall, mighty, cultured — rejected Hūd and were destroyed by a wind that lasted seven nights. Ibn Kathir traces the story and the lessons the Qur'an draws from it.

10 passages from 6 books in the library

Ibn Kathir relates that the people of ʿĀd were tall, mighty, and cultured, the builders of Iram of the pillars "the like of which was never created in the lands." In his Stories of the Prophets, he recounts that Allah sent them their brother Hūd, as stated in Surah Hūd, but they denied him and were destroyed. He situates ʿĀd in the sands of al-Aḥqāf, drawing the Qur'an's lessons from their rejection and ruin.

Drawn from the classical sources below — in the scholars' own words.

Where the answer comes from

The classical approach.

These passages are drawn from 6 books by Ibn Kathir, Ibn Battuta, and Imam al-Ghazali — part of the classical Sunni tradition that carries over a thousand years of reflection on the Qurʾān, the authentic Sunnah, and the consensus of the early community. Nothing below is a paraphrase. The words are the scholars' own, translated from the original Arabic manuscripts.

Read them closely. If a passage doesn't sit right, open the full book in the library and listen to the chapter around it. Context in the classical tradition is everything.

Cover of Hud, Salih & the Destroyed Nations
Hud, Salih & the Destroyed Nations
Ibn Kathir · Stories of the Prophets

14th century · Bosra, Syria
Monumental history Al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, the world's most widely read Qurʾanic commentary, and the classical Stories of the Prophets.
More on Ibn Kathir → · Provenance →

  1. "and Allah knows best. Now the story of Hud, peace be upon him. Hud was from the tribe of Ad Arabs"

  2. "The story mentioned in Surat al-Ahqaf refers to the second people of Ad, while other narratives"

  3. "And Allah the Exalted said in Surah Hud, And to the people of Wad We sent their brother Hud."

  4. "dealt with Ad-Iram of the pillars, the like of which was never created in the lands? Ad-Iram"

Cover of The Destroyed Nations & Yunus
The Destroyed Nations & Yunus
Ibn Kathir · Stories of the Prophets

14th century · Bosra, Syria
Monumental history Al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah, the world's most widely read Qurʾanic commentary, and the classical Stories of the Prophets.
More on Ibn Kathir → · Provenance →

  1. "Allah sent Hud to the people of Barakah and Al-Ahqaf, but they denied him, so Allah destroyed"

  2. "Then Ad bin Az and his descendants journeyed from Al-Ras and settled in Al-Ahqaf."

Cover of Book 36: The Book of Love, Longing, Intimacy, and Contentment
Book 36: The Book of Love, Longing, Intimacy, and Contentment
Imam al-Ghazali · Ihya' 'Ulum al-Din

11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali → · Provenance →

  1. "hadith of Ubay ibn Kab, Abu Sa'id and Abu Ad-Darda. This hadith highlights the pinnacle of sanctification,"

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