The Prophet Elijah in Islam
In the Koran, Elijah (usually called Ilyas or Idris) is at first mentioned briefly, together with Zechariah, John and Jesus: ‘and all these We exalted above Our creatures’.¹ A more detailed account of him is given in a later sura (chapter): ‘We also sent forth Elias, who said to his people: “Have you no fear of Allah? Would you invoke Baal and forsake the Most Gracious Creator? Allah is your Lord and the Lord of your forefathers.” But they denied him, and thus incurred Our punishment, except Allah’s true servants. We bestowed on him the praise of later generations: “Peace on Elias!” Thus We reward the righteous. He was one of Our believing servants.’²
The traditional commentators on the Koran, especially al-Tabari and al-Thalibi, relate to these verses several versions of the biblical Elijah stories, some with elaborations and additions, some inexactly and incompletely, but in essentials keeping to the original biblical source. They conclude with Elijah’s ascent and mention also his transfiguration, emphasised in Jewish Aggadic literature, into a partly divine, partly human being who is capable of appearing on earth.³
Sura 18 includes a legend in which there appears a favoured wise servant of God who is not called Elijah in the text but is identified with him in the whole Islamic tradition. The Koran account says:⁴
Moses said to his servant: ‘I will journey on until I reach the land where the two seas meet, though I may march for ages.’
But when they at last came to the land where the two seas met, they forgot their fish, which made its way into the water, swimming at will. And when they had journeyed farther on, Moses said to his servant: ‘Bring us some food; we are worn out with travelling.’ ‘Know,’ replied the other, ‘that I forgot the fish when we were resting on the rock. Thanks to Satan, I forgot to mention this. The fish made its way into the sea in a miraculous fashion.’ ‘This is what we have been seeking,’ said Moses.
They went back the way they came and found one of Our servants to whom We had vouchsafed Our mercy and whom We had endowed with knowledge of Our own. Moses said to him: ‘May I follow you so that you may guide me by that which you have been taught?’ ‘You will not bear with me,’ replied the other. ‘For how can you bear with that which is beyond your knowledge?’ Moses said: ‘If Allah wills, you shall find me patient: I shall not in anything disobey you.’ He said: ‘If you are bent on following me, you must ask no question about anything till I myself speak to you concerning it.’
The next verses relate that this servant commits on the journey with Moses several extremely cruel and seemingly pointless acts, so that Moses cannot refrain from asking reproachful questions about them. The guide thereupon explains to him the true content of the events he has just seen, and says, before leaving him: ‘That is the meaning of what you could not bear to watch with patience.’
The unnamed servant in this Koran story is regarded as al-Khadir (‘the Verdant One’) by the earliest canonists Buchari and Sigistani (c. 850), Tabari and Kastellani (c. 900) as well as by all later commentators on the Koran.⁵ His family tree is traced back to Noah or Cain, and he is almost unanimously identified with the biblical Elijah. He is the great sage and prophet favoured by God, and as such plays a prominent part in the entire literature of Islam—in the theologically-philosophically orientated as well as in the mystic, legendary and folk writings.
The commentators relate, as antecedent to Moses’ encounter with al-Khadir, that Moses once answered ‘No’ to the question put to him by his people, whether there existed on earth any man wiser than he. Thereupon God had made known to him that he was surpassed in wisdom by God’s devout servant al-Khadir, who dwelt ‘at the junction of the waters’. He should look for him there and take with him a dried fish as food for the journey and to show him the way. Wherever the fish was revived by contact with water and swam away, there would be the source of life by which he would find al-Khadir.
Further, the commentators relate that after the fish swam away the water was blocked in this place by a rock, and an island was formed there, where al-Khadir sits on a white hide, representing allegorically the bare surface of the earth on which, through contact with his body—according to another version, through his prayer—vegetation sprouts and everything becomes green. Here is the source of life and whoever drinks from it acquires eternal life. Here Moses’ encounter with al-Khadir took place.
The site of the meeting of the two seas is usually defined geographically by the commentators as the junction of the eastern and western seas, the Straits of Suez; and is by some also interpreted allegorically as Moses’ encounter with al-Khadir, the ‘two seas of wisdom’. Moses represents the theological, and al-Khadir the esoterically orientated, mystic wisdom.⁶
While the commentators of the Koran essentially enlarge and elaborate the Moses/al-Khadir legend of sura 18, regarding al-Khadir as the prophet and sage, he is described and venerated as Weli (saint) and mystagogue by the Sufi, the Islamic mystics (Ibn al-Arabi, c. 600, al-Damari, c. 800, Ibn Hagar, c. 850 (years AH), and others)—some regard him as an angel in human shape.⁷
The story of al-Khadir’s childhood is described in Sufi literature in the manner of the typical heroic myth: the child of a royal couple, he is born in a cave, suckled by a ewe and later found and raised by a shepherd. It then so happens that as a young man he becomes private secretary at the court of the king, his father. In view of the outstanding abilities of the young man, the king finds out his true origins and appoints his son co-regent. But al-Khadir runs away and wanders about the world until he finds the source of life.⁸
The drinking from the source of life as well as the reviving of the fish signifies in Islamic mysticism the spiritual awakening of the new Adam from the old: ‘The members and parts of the human body are in fear and trembling, until the heart is awakened to the real life through the mystic pronunciation of and appeal to the divine name; from the heart there then flows into all parts of the body the sense of security and peace.’
Al-Khadir drinks from the source of life and thus acquires eternal life until the end of days.⁹ He sits on a throne consisting of light, between the upper and the lower seas.¹⁰ According to some Islamic mystics, he also appears on earth at the time of the apocalypse, is killed by the Antichrist but revived by God.¹¹
Generally, al-Khadir is identified by the mystics with the Elijah figure of Jewish tradition and, like him, is not limited in time and place. Just as he was alive at the time of Moses—according to some authors even at the time of Abraham and subsequently at that of Isaiah—he was also alive at the time of Mohammed; he was present at his funeral and comforted the people over his death.¹²
It is recorded that he appeared as Elijah himself to Mohammed on one of his campaigns, as a tall old man with a shining face and wearing glowing white robes. Sharing a meal at a table giving off a green light, bearing an abundance of vegetables, the two prophets had talked to each other. Finally, Elijah had returned to heaven on the wings of angels or on a cloud.¹³ The caliphs Omar and Ali had also met al-Khadir, and been taught particularly efficacious prayers by him.¹⁴
In the same spirit, al-Khadir continues to be represented in Islamic literature as Allah’s ambassador. It is his task to initiate and to spread the worship of the true God. Al-Khadir usually dwells, concealed from profane gaze, in holy places, especially in the mosques of Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem and Syria. He does allow himself to be found by pious men striving towards God, listens to their questions and gives them religious instruction. Although he generally appears in the guise of an old man, occasionally he seems to be mature, or a young man. He frequently appears to mystics in visions. The esoteric masterpiece ‘Saravis’ (c. 1500) is said to have been directly inspired by him.¹⁵
In the folk literature of Islam, al-Khadir has been wandering about the earth for centuries. He is the counsellor of the pious, teacher of the ignorant, comforter of the unfortunate. He feeds the hungry, protects the persecuted, heals the sick and shows the way to those who are lost.
In most Islamic countries, especially in Iraq, Syria and Egypt, there are mosques and holy places dedicated to al-Khadir where on special days of the year a service in his honour is held and sura 18 is recited. The unshakeable trust in al-Khadir is maintained to the present day by the ordinary man and finds expression in various popular customs intended to enlist his help.¹⁶
While the Islamic literature of the middle ages in general either points out or assumes that al-Khadir is identical with Elijah, some Koran commentators as well as some mystics mention traditions according to which the figures of the two prophets are not completely identical: they maintain that al-Khadir was an Arab or a Persian, Elijah an Israelite. Both had drunk from the source of eternal life.¹⁷
As one text says: ‘Four prophets are alive eternally, two in heaven, Jesus and Idris [Enoch], two on earth, al-Khadir and Elijah, as Lords of water and land.’¹⁸ Mohammed had appointed Elijah as Lord of the land and the desert, al-Khadir as Lord of the sea.¹⁹
The two are such close friends that at times they are called twin brothers on account of their similar activity and because they frequently appear together. They often meet at the border between the world of man and the realm of Gog and Magog.²⁰ On the Day of Arafa, the great festival of sacrifice, they meet annually in Mecca—according to another version in the month of Ramadan in Jerusalem—where they share a meal at the end of the fast.²¹
The name ‘al-Khadir’ is regarded in Islamic literature as a surname; the hero’s real name is said to have been Balya ben Malkan or, according to another reading, Ilya (Elijah) ben Malkan.²² Maracci, one of the first Christian scholars of the Mohammedan tradition, remarks: ‘Alchedrus [al-Khadir] quem fabulantur Moslemi eundem fuisse, ac Phinehas filium Eleaziri, filii Aaron, cuius anima per metempsychosin emigravit primo in Eliam, deinde ex Elia in S. Gregorium, quem propterea Mahumetani omnes summo honore prosequentur.’*²³
* “Al Khadir, about whom the Moslems say that he is exactly the same as Phinehas, son of Eleazar who was son of Aaron whose soul through metempsychosis first passed to Elijah and then from Elijah entered into Saint Gregory, and the Moslems therefore accord him the greatest honour”. The name ‘Gregory’ ought obviously to be corrected to Saint George, who, as the dragon-killer, is also a prototype of the hero-archetype.
According to some Arabic authors, ‘al-Khadir’ was originally the name of an immortal green sea-demon of pre-Islamic Arabian mythology, regarded as the patron of sailors.²⁴ Later his name was transferred to the immortal Islamic prophet and guardian of the pious who also ruled the seas. His name, ‘the Verdant One’, meant not only ‘eternally living’ but also ‘animating the world’.
According to Omara, as quoted by Friedlander, al-Khadir had been told by Allah at the source of life: ‘You are al-Khadir [“the Verdant one”] and wherever you set foot on earth it will become green… You will become green when you are thus called. Allah gave you immortality’.²⁵ Wensinck draws attention²⁶ to the remarkable parallel between this saying and the words of the prophet Zechariah (6: 12):
‘Behold, a man [will come] whose name is the Shoot, and who shall shoot up out of his place, and build the temple of the Lord’. Thus the Islamic servant of God is, like the Jewish redeemer, symbolised by newly flourishing life. And Omara’s words, which mean that ‘the Verdant One’ will be verdant only when so recognised by man, correspond to the Jewish attitude that the possibility of redemption must actually become a reality in man.
Islamic literature unequivocally shows that the identification of al-Khadir with Elijah—they are at times called twin brothers—is derived in the first instance from the Koran story of Moses’ encounter with the pious servant of Allah. Now it is apparent that the second part of this story, the experiences on the journey Moses took with the servant of God,²⁷ resembles in almost every detail the Jewish Aggadah about the journey of R.
Joshua ben Levi with his friend the prophet Elijah. And here as there it is shown that even the personality of a religious leader who is close to God is not capable of understanding completely the divine conduct of world events. This can be done only by one who has transcended his human boundaries and become the messenger and mouthpiece of God.
That this second part of the Koran story is identical with the rabbinic Aggadah has been pointed out by I. Goldziher,²⁸ M. Lidzbarski,²⁹ K. Vollers,³⁰ I. Friedlander,³¹ and A. J. Wensinck.³² Beyond this, they have compared this [the search for the junction of the seas, the miracle of the fish, the source of life and the figure of the servant of God] to themes from the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Greek legend of Glaucus and the so-called Roman d’Alexandre.³³
They examined the motifs, their transformations and migrations and the change of the hero’s name to which these lead. Although the results of their researches differ in details, they are in complete agreement in maintaining that the Islamic al-Khadir corresponds in every respect to the Jewish Elijah. Thus for instance Vollers says:³⁴
If we examine the Jewish [rabbinic] tradition about the biblical Elijah, we notice with surprise that almost all the statements made about the Elijah of the Hagadah [Aggadah] are those familiar to us in the Islamic tradition from Chidher [al-Khadir]. As Elijah is to this day simply called the prophet, Chidher is also the prophet to the Moslems… Like Chidher, Elijah is not confined within the limits of the human lifespan, but survives all generations and ends only with the end of the world and the coming of the Messiah, or his annunciation through the Antichrist.
As the Jews discuss whether Elijah is to be regarded as a human being or as an angel, so do the Moslems debate about Chidher. As Elijah is the patron of the mystics and Kabbalists, so Chidher has an equally high position with the Islamic mystics, which is already known to us. Elijah’s encounters with pious men, scholars, the oppressed and the persecuted are as numerous as Chidher’s appearances. We are unlikely to find it difficult to decide which has to be regarded as the original and which as the derivation. We may thus state without hesitation that the Islamic Chidher is to a large extent the Elijah of the Jewish tradition under a new name. Compare Friedlander:³⁵
Not only can the various Khadir anecdotes be traced back to precisely corresponding Elijah legends, but the basic conception of Khadir as an omnipresent counsellor and helper in need is an exact counterpart of the rabbinic conception. The Mohammedan scholars are quite aware of this identification when they repeatedly state that Khadir is like Elijah.
It is particularly remarkable that some Islamic commentators and mystics not only identify al-Khadir with the biblical and Aggadic Elijah, but beyond this speculate about the mystery of this immortal. Ibn Hagar’s comments: ‘al-Khadir whom Moses met was only the al-Khadir of that period…’ and ‘every period has its al-Khadir’,³⁶ implies an acknowledgment of the archetypal meaning of the al-Khadir-Elijah figure. The legend cited above about his childhood and youth also characterises al-Khadir plainly as a prototype of the hero-archetype. The interpretation of the fish revived at the meeting of the seas as ‘the awakening of the new Adam from the old’³⁷ corresponds to the symbolism of human transformation and transcendence represented in detail by depth psychology.
Sura 18 has been extensively analysed by C. G. Jung. He sees Moses as ‘the man on the quest’ for ‘the place of the middle’, in which transformation takes place; Joshua as Moses’ ‘shadow’ who fails ‘to recognize a moment of crucial importance’. The fish, ‘their nourishment’, represents ‘a content of the unconscious’ which has to be assimilated and ‘by connection with its origin, the water of life, becomes revived.’
The sea, turned to solid ground as an island, is the place of the middle personified by al-Khadir. ‘He is the “Long-lived-One” who continually renews himself, like Elijah.’ Al-Khadir symbolises ‘not only the higher wisdom but also a way of acting which is in accord with this wisdom and transcends reason.’ Moses looks up to him as such and accepts his instructions.³⁸
Questioned by the editor of Elie le prophète about the significance of Elijah, Jung emphasised in his answer that Elijah is a living archetype. If constellated it may raise a new religious attitude, an immediate relationship with God. And in his Civilization in Transition, Jung calls Elijah a ‘divine-human personality… or Anthropos… the dogmatized figure of Christ, as well as of Khidr, the Verdant One’.⁴⁰ ~AHARON WIENER, The Prophet Elijah in the Development of Judaism, Page 152-159
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