Al-Hudhud
Definition
Al-hudhud — the hoopoe — is the bird that brought Sulayman intelligence about the Queen of Sheba and her kingdom of sun-worshippers, initiating one of the Quran's most diplomatically sophisticated episodes. The hoopoe's report — 'I found a woman ruling them, who has been given everything, and she has a magnificent throne; I found her and her people prostrating to the sun rather than Allah' — reflects the kind of theological perception that Ibn Kathir finds remarkable in a bird: the hoopoe recognized the error of sun-worship and felt the need to report it to a prophet who could address it. Sulayman's response — first threatening the hoopoe for its absence, then taking its intelligence seriously — models the balance of prophetic authority and openness to unexpected sources of truth.
As understood in the classical tradition of Ibn Kathir and the scholars of his school.
Appears in
1 book in the library
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