Tafseer Surah Al-Kahf by Sheikh Yasir Qadhi Part 1

Part 1: Intro and Blessings

Main Themes of Surah Al-Kahf

Surah Al-Kahf is one of the earliest surah revealed.

Narrated 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud: Surat Bani-lsrael, Al-Kahf (The Cave), Maryam, Taha, Al-Anbiya' (The prophets) are amongst my first earnings and my old property, and (in fact) they are my old property. (Sahih Bukhari, Book #61, Hadith #516).

These surahs are among the first revelation that came down to Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu 'alahi wassalam).

Main theme of Surah Al-Kahf is that Allah will protect you against all trials. It is a surah full of stories and every story there’s a trial.

The four stories are:-

1. Young men that went to seek shelter in the cave –

This is where the surah gets its name – Surah al-Kahf (The Cave). This story is about the fitnah of religion – when people persecute others because they believe in Allah. It is about a group of young men who believed in Allah, but the king wanted to kill them because they were believers. So they went and seek protection in the cave

2. The story of two men in the garden –

This story is about the fitnah of money. It tells us what happens when money gets into your head. And it tells us what happens when money gets you to be arrogant. The solution here is to realize that this dunya is temporary – that Allah gives and you didn’t give. That what you have will be taken away.

3. The story of Musa and Khidr –

The main fitnah is the fitnah of knowledge if the knowledge does not lead to humility. Even knowledge can leads to arrogance if it is misused and abused but Musa overcame that and that humility and humbleness was that he learned from somebody other than himself and he rises because of it.

4. The story of Zulkarnain –

The story is about the fitnah of power. Allah mentioned that Allah tested Zulkarnain with that fitnah and Zulkarnain overcame it by constantly being aware that Allah is al-Malik ul-Mulk. Allah is the Ultimate King.

The Blessings of Surah Al-Kahf

1. Peace and tranquility will be brought down to those who recite Surah Al-Kahf

Narrated Al-Bara' bin 'Azib: A man recited Surah al-Kahf (in his prayer) and in the house there was a (riding) animal which got frightened and started jumping. The man finished his prayer with Taslim, but behold! A mist or a cloud hovered over him. He informed the Prophet of that and the Prophet said, "O so-and-so! Recite, for this (mist or cloud) was a sign of peace descending for the recitation of Quran." (Sahih Bukhari, Book #56, Hadith #811)

Narrated Al-Bara': A man was reciting Surah Al-Kahf and his horse was tied with two ropes beside him. A cloud came down and spread over that man, and it kept on coming closer and closer to him till his horse started jumping (as if afraid of something). When it was morning, the man came to the Prophet, and told him of that experience. The Prophet said, "That was As-Sakina (tranquility) which descended because of (the recitation of) the Qur'an." (Sahih Bukhari, Book #61, Hadith #531)

2. It increase you in your iman

Prophet (sallallahu ‘alaihi wassalam) explained that Surah Al- Kahf is of the earliest revelation that has been given to him because it fortifies in your Iman. It tells you that whatever is happening Allah will take care of you. Surah Al-Kahf was revealed in the first or second year of years of da’wah.

3. Memorize the first 10 verse of Surah Al-Kahf, he will be protected from Dajjal.

Abu Darda' reported Allah's Apostle (sallallahu ‘alaihi wassalam) as saying: If anyone learns by heart the first ten verses of the Surah al-Kahf, he will be protected from the dajjal. (Sahih Muslim, Book #004, Hadith #1766)

4. Recites on every Friday

“Whoever reads Surah al-Kahf on the day of Jumu’ah, will have a light that will shine from him from one Friday to the next.”(Narrated by al-Haakim, 2/399; al-Bayhaqi, 3/249. Ibn Hajar said in Takhreej al-Adhkaar that this is a hasan hadeeth, and he said, this is the strongest report that has been narrated concerning reading Soorat al-Kahf. See: Fayd al-Qadeer, 6/198. It was classed as saheeh by Shaykh al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami’, 6470)

From Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri, who said: “Whoever reads Surah al-Kahf on the night of Jumu’ah, will have a light that will stretch between him and the Ancient House (the Ka’bah).” (Narrated by al-Daarimi, 3407. This hadeeth was classed as saheeh by Shaykh al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami, 6471)

Why is Surah Al-Kahf link with the protection from dajjal?

The fitnah of dajjal is the worst fitnah that mankind has ever seen.

Imran bin Hussain narrated that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wassalam) said, " There would be no creation (creating more trouble) than the dajjal right from the creation of Adam to the Last Hour. (Sahih Muslim, Book #041, Hadith #7037)

There is no fitnah that would cause more destruction, kill more people, cause more bloodshed than the fitnah of dajjal. Dajjal will come and he will claim to be the god on earth. He will be given a certain miracle that would fool mankind into thinking that this man is a god. He shall be able to stop the rain from flowing, and whoever rejects him, he will perish or die, and whoever believes in him, dajjal will snap his finger and the water will fall. The plants will flourish and the people will be able to eat. So whoever rejects dajjal will be tested and tried, and whoever accepts dajjal and claims that he is god will flourish on earth. People will be tested and tried through him like no other fitnah.

What does Surah Al-Kahf has to do with this?

Look at the beginning of Surah Al-Kahf – the very first story set up in the first 10 verses is about those young men who believed in Allah (SubhanAllahu wa Taa’la) and the King was trying to kill them. So they fled seeking Allah’s protection and Allah gave them that protection.

In the time of dajjal, dajjal will be that King and he will be that person who will kill everybody who believes in Allah (SubhanAllahu wa Taa’la). So we need to become like those young men who fled away seeking for Allah’s protection. Prophet (sallallahu ‘alaihi wassalam) said that a time will come when the dajjal is here the believers will run to the mountains running away from the dajjal. This is what the young men did when they fled to the mountain and they sought refuge in cave and this is exactly what the Muslims will do later during the time of dajjal.

One of the biggest trials of dajjal will be that he will be able to control food and water. Allah gives him that water. So what will you do when you don’t have water to drink or food to eat? If you believe in dajjal you will get the water and food. And if you don’t believe in dajjal, he will cause the water to stop from getting to you. He will cause the earth to go dry.

What does Surah Al-Kahf say? Allah explicitly says,

 

“And indeed, We will make that which is upon it (into) a barren ground." (18:8)

Allah is the One who makes upon this earth barren and dry. So if you want to be fed, turn to Allah and not the dajjal. So the beginning of Surah Al-Kahf mentions that it is Allah’s power that dry up the earth and not the power of dajjal.

We also learn that at the end of the first 10 verses, Allah taught us that those who sought refuge in Allah, Allah will pave a way out for them when Allah says,

[Mention] when the youths retreated to the cave and said, "Our Lord, grant us from Yourself mercy and prepare for us from our affair right guidance." (18:10)

This is exactly where the 10 verses stop, and it is an optimistic verse.

Notice what the eleventh verse is where we don’t recite to seek protection from dajjal. The eleventh verse is that Allah saved them by causing them to go to sleep.

So We cast [a cover of sleep] over their ears within the cave for a number of years. (18:11)

We don’t want to be saved by dajjal by going to sleep, that’s not how we are going to be saved. The Prophet (sallallahu ‘alaihi wassalam) told us that we will be saved when Isa ibn Maryam comes. Our saving from dajjal will not be through sleep so we don’t recite the eleventh verse and we stop right at the tenth verse. And the tenth verse tells us that they made the du’a to Allah and Allah answers their du’a.

These are some of the blessings and the wisdom behind the memorization of the first 10 verses of Surah Al-Kahf in order to seek protection to Allah from the dajjal. Let us strive to memorize Surah Al-Kahf and make it a routine to recite it on every Friday. May Allah accepts from us and ease us from difficulties to memorize Surah Al-Kahf. Ameen.