"And they question thee about Dhu'l-Qarnayn. Say, 'I shall recite unto you a remembrance of him.' Truly We established him in the land, and gave him the means to all things."
Quran 18:83-84
We're continuing our discussion of al-Kahf, the 18th surah, and the appearnace of Dhu'l-Qarnayn, usually interpreted by Islamic scholars as Alexander the Great.
Here's more on the backstory, as usual from Seyyed Nasr's commentary in his Study Quran:
"The story of Dhu'l-Qarnayn, 'the man whose travels encompassed the east and the west,' is one of the matters about which the Makkans questioned the Prophet on the advice of some Jewish scholars, who counsel the Makkans had sought in trying to determine the truth Muhammad's prophethood . . ."
As we discussed yesterday, Alexander casts a very long shadow and he appears in the Persian epic the Shahnameh and is referenced in the west African epic the Sunjiata. As we'll see, his adventures here parallel the story that one would read in the Persian epic. Again, referencing Nasr:
"A hadith identifies Dhu'l-Qarnayn as a youth from Rum (i.e. from the western lands) who built the Egyptian city of Alexandria, in other words, the Greek Alexander son of Philip, widely known as Alexander the Great. Although he is most widely identified with Alexander in traditional Muslim commentaries, some Islamic scholars of the modern period have identified him with the ancient Persian king Cyrus the Great. According to a hadith, Dhu'l-Qarnayn was visited by an angel who ascended with him through the sky until he could see the whole of the earth and the fathomless sea that surrounds the world. Some consider him to be simply a righteous servant of God to whom God granted sovereignty over the world along with knowledge and wisdom. Others suggest that he was a prophet or an angel. He is described as one who loved God and whom God loved. The clouds, and even light and darkness themselves, were said to have been placed at his service, so that if he traveled by night, a guiding light would illuminate the path before him, while darkness would protect him from behind."
Anyone who knows the true story of Alexander, who probably did not truly find anything sacred than himself, would be amazed/amused by this description. That said, Alexander receives similar treatment in the Shahnameh, so this is hardly an isolated view. That said, and if you were going to pick a metaphor to represent the liminal spaces between worlds it would be difficult to imagine a better one than Alexander. More on this later.
Quran 18:83-84
We're continuing our discussion of al-Kahf, the 18th surah, and the appearnace of Dhu'l-Qarnayn, usually interpreted by Islamic scholars as Alexander the Great.
Here's more on the backstory, as usual from Seyyed Nasr's commentary in his Study Quran:
"The story of Dhu'l-Qarnayn, 'the man whose travels encompassed the east and the west,' is one of the matters about which the Makkans questioned the Prophet on the advice of some Jewish scholars, who counsel the Makkans had sought in trying to determine the truth Muhammad's prophethood . . ."
As we discussed yesterday, Alexander casts a very long shadow and he appears in the Persian epic the Shahnameh and is referenced in the west African epic the Sunjiata. As we'll see, his adventures here parallel the story that one would read in the Persian epic. Again, referencing Nasr:
"A hadith identifies Dhu'l-Qarnayn as a youth from Rum (i.e. from the western lands) who built the Egyptian city of Alexandria, in other words, the Greek Alexander son of Philip, widely known as Alexander the Great. Although he is most widely identified with Alexander in traditional Muslim commentaries, some Islamic scholars of the modern period have identified him with the ancient Persian king Cyrus the Great. According to a hadith, Dhu'l-Qarnayn was visited by an angel who ascended with him through the sky until he could see the whole of the earth and the fathomless sea that surrounds the world. Some consider him to be simply a righteous servant of God to whom God granted sovereignty over the world along with knowledge and wisdom. Others suggest that he was a prophet or an angel. He is described as one who loved God and whom God loved. The clouds, and even light and darkness themselves, were said to have been placed at his service, so that if he traveled by night, a guiding light would illuminate the path before him, while darkness would protect him from behind."
Anyone who knows the true story of Alexander, who probably did not truly find anything sacred than himself, would be amazed/amused by this description. That said, Alexander receives similar treatment in the Shahnameh, so this is hardly an isolated view. That said, and if you were going to pick a metaphor to represent the liminal spaces between worlds it would be difficult to imagine a better one than Alexander. More on this later.
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