Have you not considered how Allah presents an example, making a good word like a good tree, whose root is firmly fixed and its branches high in the sky? It produces its fruit all the time, by permission of its Lord. And Allah presents examples for the people that perhaps they will be reminded.
I'm just a tree, created by Allah with a purpose, to worship Him and to serve humans. Every human being and, of course, birds, must be happy and entertained to see the beautiful view of the tree. Such as to shelter under it, enjoying the delicious fruit, make use of the oxygen it produces and absorb the carbon dioxide they release. Trees are the lungs of the world. Even using each leaf, fiber roots and wood for various purposes. And also, my trunks and branchs, can be used as sticks or staff. When a branch of a tree dies, it is turned into a staff and a staff does not gain its solidity unless it is completely dead. Do you know there was a staff that, by Allah's will, transformed from an inanimate object, into an animal?" said the Almond tree to the birds. Bulbul said, "I know, that was the staff of prophet Moses, alayhissalam, and also by the will of Allah, it caused the ocean split in two!" Almond said, "Yes, the staff of Moses, but it was not me, because it was said that the staff of Moses, given by an angel in the form of a man to an oldman, then the oldman gave it to Moses. But, do you know, there is another story about Moses?" Bulbul said, "No. So, tell us!"
Almond said, ""Once, Moses rose to preach among the Israelites. Someone said, 'Who of the people knows best?' and he replied, 'I do. 'Allah reproved him when he did not attribute knowledge to Him, so He said, 'Nay, but I have a servant at the meeting place of the two seas. Moses said, 'O Rabb! How can I find him?' He replied, 'Take a fish and put it in a basket. When you miss it, he will be there.'
Then Moses departed with his boy servant named Yusha ibn Nun. Moses took a salted fish and put it in a basket. Then he said to his boy servant, 'If you miss this fish, tell me.' They set out walking along the shore of the river until they reached a large stone, where Moses went to sleep. There was a spring called ‘Ayn Al-Hayat (the Spring of Life).
The fish stirred in the basket, got out, and fell into the sea. Allah held the flow of the water so that it became like an openingand a tunnel for the fish. It was a wonder to both Moses and his servant, and then they set out.
When it was time for breakfast, Moses said to his boy servant, ‘Bring us our breakfast Verily we have become weary from our journey.’ Moses did not become weary until he went beyond where Allah had commanded him. Moses said, 'Did you see that,when we took refuge on the rock, I forgot the fish— and none but Satan caused me to forget it— and it found its way into the water by a marvelt.’ He said,‘This is what wehave been seeking.’ So they retraced their steps.”
They came to the rock and “ behold! there was a man sleeping, covered with a green garment. Moses greeted him with peace, and the man said, 'Whence does this greeting come in our land? He said, '1 am Moses.' The man responded, 'Moses of the Israelites?' Moses replied,'Yes.'The man continued,'O Moses! I possess what Allah taught me of Hisknowledge that you donot know, while you possess what Allah taught you of His knowledge that I do not know.' Moses said,'May I follow you,sothat you may teachme theright conduct which youhave been taught. Hesaid, 'If you go with me, do not ask meanything until Imyself mention it to you.’
So they set off, walking on the shore and lo! there was a sailor in a ship who knew al-Khidr, so he carried him without charge. A bird came and alighted on the ship's edge and picked at the water. Al-Khidr said toMoses, 'My knowledge and yours are not less than Allah's knowledge, except for the amount that this bird pecks or picks at in the sea.'
While they were on the ship, Moses was startled when al-Khidr drove a peg or pulled out a board. Moses said to him, 'He carried us without charge. Did you make a hole in this ship to drown the people? You have indeed done a dreadful thing.' Al-Khidr replied, ‘Did I not tell you that you could not bear with me?’ Moses said, ‘Do not be angry withme that I forgot.' This was the first instance of Moses' forgetting.
Then the two of them got off the ship and went walking. When they saw a boy playing with other boys, al-Khidr took him by the head and slew him. Moses said to him, ‘What! Have you slain an innocent soul who has slain no one! Verily you have done a horrid thing.' Al-Khidr replied, ‘Did I not tell you that you could not bear with me!' Moses said, ‘If I ask you about anything after this, do not keep company with me. You have received an excuse from me.'
They continued their journey until they reached a town where they asked the people to feed them, and found no one who would feed them or give them anything to drink. They found there a wall about
to fall into ruin and al-Khidr repaired it with his hand." He touched it with his hand. Moses said to him, "They showed us no hospitality, nor did they give us shelter. If you had wished, you could have taken payment for it.' He said, ‘This is the parting between me and you! I will give you the interpretation of those events that you could not bear with patience.
Then he related to him, “ As for the ship, it belonged to poor people working on the river. I wished to mar it because there was a king behind them who is taking every ship by force. And as for the lad, his parents were believers, and we feared that he would oppress them by rebellion and disbelief. And we intended that their Lord should change him for than for one better in purity and closer to mercy. And as for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the city. There was a treasure beneath it belonging to than, and their father had been pious, and your Lord intended that they should come to their full strength and should bring forth their treasure as a mercy from their Rabb; and I did not do it on my own command. Such is the interpretation of what you could not bear."
Moses had thought to himself that there was no one wiser than this man or who had uttered anything like this, and for that reason he had been commanded to go to al-Khidr.If you take care of Allah, Allah will take care of you by keeping you away from vain desires and doubts in Iman, just as Al-Khidr said to Moses, "...and I did not do it on my own command."
If you take care of the commands of Allah when you are young, Allah will take care of you in you old age; If you take care of the commands of Allah, Allah will take care of your children. Al-Khidr explains why he fixed the wall for free. Allah took care of the orphans because their father were righteous. These orphans were not old enough to be held accountable, so we could not have known if they were going to be righteous or not, but the reason why Allah put the treasure there was because their father was a righteous man. And the father had already passed away, so Allah was taking care of that mans kids. And Allah sent al-Khidr all the way just to fix that wall. So, Allah will not only taking care of them when you are alive, but he will take care of them after you pass away, what's better then that?! Therefore we need to be taking care of the Commands of Allah.
Bulbul asked, "Was Al-Khidr a Prophet?" Almond said, "Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah, radhiyallahu 'anhu, said that the Prophet (ﷺ) said concerning Al-Khidr, "He was called Al-Khidr because he sat on a barren Farwah that turned white, then it turned green ( Khadraa') beneath him."
According to Ibn Kathir, al-Khidr is a prophet. The proof is the words when Al-Khidr said, "as a mercy from your Lord. And I did them not of my own accord" and in the verse 65 of Surah Al-Kahf, Allah says, "And they found a servant from among Our servants to whom we had given mercy from us and had taught him from Us a [certain] knowledge."
Bulbul asked again, "Is Al-Khadir still Alive?" Almond said, "According to Ibn Kathir, Imam Al-Bukhari, Abu Al-Husain Ibn Al-Munadi and sheik Abu Al-Faraj Ibn Al-Jawzi, hold that Al-Khidr to be dead. Ibn 'Abbas, radhiyallahu 'anhu, said, "Allah took the Covenant of all the Prophets to believe in Muhammad (ﷺ) and support him if he appears during their lifetimes. In addition, they should take the Covenant of all their own nations to believe in him and support him in the same way. Thereupon, were Al-Khadir a Prophet or a Wali (protector or guardian), he would be involved in that Covenant and that were he alive during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), he would follow him and present himself before him paying allegiance and absolute faith.
Thereupon, if Al-Khidr were alive, he would be joining forces with Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), and he would follow his religion in every minute detail. This is Prophet `Isa, alayhissalam, when he will descends by the end of time, he will rule over the whole world in accordance with this honorable legislation of Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). However, there is nothing to certify that Al-Khidi has met together with Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) in a single day or even witnessed any fight with him against the polytheists.
Woodpecker asked, "Where can I find this story?" Almond said, "You can find it in the Quran, Surah Al-Kahf. The main theme of Surat al-kahf is that Allah Subhana wa Ta'ala will protect you against all trials. Surah al-Kahf is a sort of full of stories and in every story there is a trial. If you look at Surah al-Kahf, there are four stories that are the essence of the surah.
The first of them is the story of the young men, they go and seek shelter in the cave and that's where the surah gets his name. This is a story about the trials of religion, when people persecute others because they believe in Allah. There were a group of young men, they believed in Allah but the King wanted to kill them. Do they go and they seek protection in a cave and Allah protected them.
The second story is the story of the men with the two gardens. This is the story that is the ftrials of money, fitnatul maal. What happens when money gets to your head. What happens when money causes you to be arrogant, and the solution here is to realize that this dunya is temporary, that Allah gives and you didn't give, that all that you have will eventual be taken away.
The third story is the story of Moses and al-Khidr, and the main tribulation here is the trials of false knowledge. If that knowledge does not lead to humility. That it is possible that even knowledge can become a trials, even knowledge can lead to arrogance, if it is misused and abused. But of course Moses overcomes that, and in his humbleness, he learns from somebody other than himself and he rises because of it. In His Book, Allah sometimes mentions knowledge in a praiseworthy way; referring to beneficial knowledge, and at other times in a blameworthy way; referring to knowledge that is not beneficial. As for the first category, it was mentioned in Allah recounts of the story of Moses who asked Al-Khidr, "May I follow you so you may teach me the rightguidance which you have been taught?" This being none other than beneficial knowledge. It also lies in what Allah, Glorious is He, recounts of the story of Adam. He taught him the names of all things.
Furthermore, it was mentioned about, there was a people who were recipients of knowledge, but their knowledge was of no avail. This knowledge, in and of itself, is beneficial, but the one to whom it was granted was not benefited by it, Allah sent them astray in spite of his knowledge. In Surah Al-A'raf [7]:185-186], Allah says, "And recite to them, [O Muhammad], the news of him to whom we gave [knowledge of] Our signs, but he detached himself from them; so Satan pursued him, and he became of the deviators. And if We had willed, we could have elevated him thereby, but he adhered [instead] to the earth and followed his own desire. So his example is like that of the dog: if you chase him, he pants, or if you leave him, he [still] pants. That is the example of the people who denied Our signs. So relate the stories that perhaps they will give thought."
As for the second category of knowledge, the category that Allah mentioned by way of censure, examples of it can be found in His mention of magic (sihr)."
The final story is the story of Dhulqarnain, and the story is the trials of power, the fitna of mulkan mulkiyya, the fitna of controlling other people. Allah Subhana wa Ta'ala mentions, He tested Dhulqarnain with that trials. But how did Dhulqarnain overcome it? By constantly being aware that Allah is Malikul-Mulk. He might be Dhulqarnain, but Allah is Dhul Jalali wal Ikram. That allah Subhanhu wa Ta'ala, the One Who is the King of all kings."
Almond said, "O my brothers and sisters, the founders of this Kampong Bayan had taken care of Allah and Allah is taking care of them and their next generations. It is our turn to taking care of Allah, so that He, Subhanahu wa Ta'ala, may taking care of us and our next generations. Allah tells us that He has made this world a temporary abode, adorned with transient beauty, and He made it a place of trial, not a place of settlement. Imam Ahmad recorded, Abu Maslamah narrated from Abu Nadrah, from Abu Said that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "This world is sweet and green, and Allah makes you generations succeeding one another, so He is watching what you will do." Then Allah tells us that this world will pass away and come to an end. And Allah know best."
Reference :"Say, 'If the sea were ink for [writing] the words of my Rabb, the sea would be exhausted before the words of my Rabb were exhausted, even if We brought the like of it as a supplement'. - [QS.18:109]
- The History of al-Tabari, The Children of Israel, Volume III, Translated by William M. Brinner, SUNY Press.
- Ibn Kathir, Stories of The Qur'an, Dar Al-Manarah
- Ibn Kathir, Stories of The Prophets, Darussalam
- Syaikh Safiurrahman Al-Mubarakpuri, Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Abridged) Volume VI, Darussalam
- Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali, The Excellence of Knowledge, Daar Us-Sunnah
