Al-Khidr
Definition
Al-Khidr — literally 'the green one,' named for the tradition that greenery sprang up wherever he walked or sat — is the mysterious servant of Allah who possessed a form of divinely-granted knowledge described as 'mercy from Allah' and 'knowledge from Our presence.' Ibn Kathir presents al-Khidr with characteristic scholarly care: was he a prophet? Was he an angel? Was he a long-lived righteous man? Different scholars held different positions, and Ibn Kathir presents them without forcing a definitive answer. What is uncontested is the nature of his knowledge: it was not acquired through learning or prophetic revelation but given directly, enabling him to see the hidden divine wisdom in events that appeared, to ordinary moral perception, as harm or injustice.
As understood in the classical tradition of Ibn Kathir and the scholars of his school.
How the scholars use Al-Khidr.
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"required every prophet to believe in and support the prophets who followed them. If al-Khidr were alive during Muhammad's time, it would have been incumbent upon him to follow and support him. The utmost for al-Khidr, peace be upon him, is to be a prophet or a messenger, or as some say, an angel. Gabriel is the leader of the angels and Moses is more noble than al-Khidr. If al-Khidr were alive, he would have been obligated to believe in and support Muhammad. No reliable hadith mentions that al-Khidr met the messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. The condolence hadith reported by al-Hakim has a weak chain of transmission. Allah"
— Ibn Kathir, Volume 1 — From Creation to Mūsā
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"There are stories used as evidence for his continued existence, and we will relate them, God willing. This is his advice to Moses when he said, Many incomplete narrations were related about this. It is narrated that when Moses wanted to part with Al-Khidr, Moses asked him for advice. Al-Khidr said, In another narration, an addition is included, Wab ibn Munabi said that Al-Khidr advised, Bishr ibn al-Harith al-Hafi narrated that Moses asked Al-Khidr for advice, and Al-Khidr said, There is an elevated hadith about this, but it is noted that the narrator is among the great liars."
— Ibn Kathir, Volume 1 — From Creation to Mūsā
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"narrated by Ibn al-Jawzi in his book Ajala al-Muntarir fi Sharhal al-Khidr through the chain of Abdu'l-Wahhab bin al-Dhahak who is abandoned from Bakiya. Al-Hafiz Ibn Asakir narrated that Al-Khidr and Elias were brothers and their father was a king. Elias suggested to his father that if Al-Khidr were married he might have offspring to whom the kingdom would belong. So his father married him to a beautiful virgin woman. Al-Khidr told her, I have no need for women. If you wish I will release you or if you wish you may stay with me worship God Almighty and keep my secret. She agreed and stayed with him for a year."
— Ibn Kathir, Yusha, al-Khidr & Ilyas
Appears in
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