Al-Tabut
Definition
Al-tabut — the chest or container — refers to the basket in which Musa's mother placed her infant at divine inspiration and cast into the Nile when she could no longer conceal him from Pharaoh's soldiers. The extraordinary nature of this command — 'Cast him into the river and do not fear and do not grieve; indeed, We will return him to you' — is that it required a mother to put her child into danger on the basis of a promise. Ibn Kathir uses the tabut as one of the clearest examples of tawakkul in the Quran: an act that appears to be abandonment but is actually the most profound possible trust in the One who sustains all things, including infants in rivers and mothers in anguish.
As understood in the classical tradition of Ibn Kathir and the scholars of his school.
How the scholars use Al-Tabut.
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"Abi Azhar. Additionally, Rafi ibn Harithah, Rafi ibn Huraimila, Rafi ibn Karija, Malik ibn Auf, Rifa'a ibn Zayd ibn Al-Tabut, and Abdullah ibn Salam are mentioned. His conversion to Islam has already been mentioned. May Allah be pleased with him. Ibn Ishaq noted that he was their scholar and the most knowledgeable among them, originally named Al-Husayn. When he embraced Islam, the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, named him Abdullah. Among the Banu Qurayza were notable figures such as Al-Zubayr ibn Bada ibn Wab, Azal ibn Shumayl, and Kab ibn Asad, who was responsible for their treaty violation during the Battle of the Confederates."
— Ibn Kathir, Volume 3 — The Sīrah: From the First Revelation to Badr
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"It is narrated that when Rafi died, the Prophet, peace be upon him, remarked, Today, a great man among the hypocrites has died. Rifa'a ibn Zayd ibn al-Tabut also made a comment when a strong wind blew on the day of his death, as the Prophet was returning from Tabuk, saying, This wind has blown for the death of a great man among the disbelievers."
— Ibn Kathir, Volume 3 — The Sīrah: From the First Revelation to Badr
Appears in
1 book in the library
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