Cain and Abel illustration depicting
Cain and Abel offering up their sacrifices
Cain and Abel (
Arabic:
هابيل,
قابيل;
Qābīl and Hābīl) are believed by
Muslims to have been the first two sons of
Adam and
Eve. The story in the
Qur'an is virtually the same as the
Hebrew Bible narrative, saying that both the brothers were asked to offer up individual sacrifices to
God. God accepted Abel's sacrifice because of Abel's righteousness and Cain, out of jealousy, slew Abel. This was the first ever sin committed upon Earth but Abel was chronicled in history as one of the first believers and as the first ever
martyr. A handful of Muslim sources have identified Abel as a prophet like his father, but this identification is not traditional.
Story of Cain and Abel Of Adam's first children, Cain was the elder son and Abel the younger. Each of them presented a sacrifice to
God but it was accepted only from Abel, because of the latter's righteous attitude and his faith and firm belief in
Allah.
Cain speaks to Abel After the offering of their sacrifices, Cain, the wicked sibling, taunted Abel out of envy and told him that he would surely slay him. Abel justly warned Cain that
God only accepted the sacrifice of those that are righteous in their doings. He further went onto tell Cain that if Cain did indeed try to slay him, Abel would not retaliate and slay him because the God-fearing would never murder for the sake of envy. Abel then told Cain that in murdering him, he would carry the weight not only of his sin but also of the sins of his victim The victim, as a result, in suffering the injustice, would be forgiven his own sins and the murderer, while being warned, would consequently increase his own sin. Abel preached powerfully and reminded Cain that the punishment for murder would be that he would spend the afterlife in the fires of
Hell.
Cain slays Abel The innocent pleading and preaching of Abel had no effect upon Cain, for he was full of arrogance, pride and jealousy. He subsequently slew the righteous Abel, but in doing so, he ruined himself and became of those who remain lost. This would be the earliest example of the murder of a righteous man taking place upon the earth. In the future, many other evildoers would slay the wise and pious believers.
Shame of Cain Right after the murder took place,
God sent a raven who scratched the ground to show Cain how to bury the bodies of the deceased. Cain, in his shame, began to curse himself and became full of guilt. He at last realized how dreadful it was to slay anyone, the more so as the victim was an innocent and righteous man, as well as his brother. Full of regrets, Cain was marked with deep sorrow. This was, however, no true repentance.
Message and moral God makes it clear in the
Qur'an that the story of Cain and Abel was a message for the Children of Israel (who habitually murdered their prophets as stated in ), as it had told them about the consequences of murder and that the killing of one person would be as if they had slain the whole of mankind. But still people rejected the message of the story and continued to commit grave sins, slaying prophets and messengers as well as the righteous people. All the prophets who preached since the time of
Adam were persecuted, insulted or reviled in one way or another. With some righteous men, however, the evildoers went one step further, in attempting to slay them or indeed slaying them. The Qur'an itself mentions the slaying of the righteous, saying in "As to those who deny the Signs of Allah and in defiance of right, slay the prophets, and slay those who teach just dealing with mankind, announce to them a grievous penalty". Historical examples of the righteous being slain include
Zakariyya (Zechariah) and his son
Yahya (John).
Sarah '' by
Guillaume Rouillé Sarah (
Arabic:
سارة,
Sāra), the wife of the
patriarch and
Islamic prophet Ibrāhīm (
Abraham) and the mother of the
prophet Ishaq (
Isaac) is an honoured woman in the
Islamic faith. According to
Muslim belief, she was Abraham's first wife. Although not mentioned by name in the
Qur'an, she is referenced and alluded to via the story of her husband. She lived with Abraham throughout her life and, although she was barren,
God promised her the birth of a prophetic son and a prophetic grandson by the name of
Ya`qūb (
Jacob).
Story of Sarah Sarah and Abraham had no children. Abraham, however, prayed constantly to God for a son. Sarah, being barren, subsequently gave him her
Egyptian handmaiden,
Hājar (
Hagar), to wed as his second wife. Hagar bore
Ismā'īl (
Ishmael), when Abraham was 86, who too would become a prophet of God like his father.
The birth of Isaac Thirteen years later, God announced to Abraham, now a hundred, that the barren Sarah would give birth to his second son, Isaac, who would also be a prophet of the Lord. Although the Qur'an does not mention Sarah by name, it vividly mentions the annunciation of the birth of Isaac. The Qur'an mentions that Sarah laughed when the angels gave her the glad tidings of Isaac, which is perhaps why the name Isaac (in Arabic
Ishaq) has the root meaning of 'laughter'.
Tomb of Sarah Sarah is believed by Muslims to be buried in the
Cave of the Patriarchs (known by Muslims as the
Sanctuary of Abraham). The compound, located in the ancient city of
Hebron, is the second holiest site for
Jews (after the
Temple Mount in
Jerusalem), and is also venerated by
Christians and Muslims, both of whom have traditions which maintain that the site is the burial place of three Biblical couples: Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and
Rebecca, and Jacob and
Leah. Although Jews alternatively also believe this to be the burial place for
Adam and
Eve, this is a view not usually adopted by Muslims. ===
Balaam=== 's
Balaam and the Ass In regards to
Balaam in Islam, it is very doubtful whether there is any reference to Balaam in the
Qur'an. Old classical commentators applied to him, but with reservations: Many modern commentators, including
Abdullah Yusuf Ali, however, feel that the tale of Balaam was different and unrelated. ===
Jeremiah=== Ibn Kathir considers
Jeremiah (
Arabic:
أرميا,
Armaya) to be a prophet of
Islam, though he is not mentioned in the Qur'an; in his book
Stories Of The Prophets, places Jeremiah in the prophetic pantheon, alongside fellow
Old Testament prophets
Daniel,
Ezekiel and
Isaiah. Scholars believe that Jeremiah was a descendant of
Levi, son of
Jacob, and lived at a troubled time when there were many false prophets spreading false messages. ===
Daniel===
Danyal (
Arabic:
دانيال), known as Daniel in the
Bible, is traditionally considered by
Ibn Kathirs to be a
prophet, alongside the other
major prophets of the
Old Testament, namely
Isaiah,
Jeremiah and
Ezekiel. Although he is not mentioned in the
Qur'an, there are a few
Hadith which bear his name and which refer to his time spent in the den of the lions. There are debates, however, that go on about Daniel's time of preaching and some Muslims believe that he was not a prophet but instead a saintly man.
Story of Daniel It was he who preached in Babylonian 'Iraq, exhorting the people to return to
God. He lived during the reign of
Cyrus, and taught this prince the unity of God and the true religion.
Al-Tabari says ("Chronique," French translation of
Zotenberg, i. 44) that thousands of people who had died in a certain town from an epidemic were resuscitated a thousand years later by the prayer of Daniel. When Daniel had become a noted prophet, Cyrus made him the chief of all his kingdom in order that he might teach his people the true religion. Daniel asked the king to let him go back to
Israel and re-build the
Temple or
Bayt Ha-Mikdash in Hebrew. Cyrus consented to the
reconstruction of the sanctuary, but refused to let him go, saying, "If I had a thousand prophets like thee, I should have them all stay with me". There is another tradition, to the effect that Daniel was king of the
Israelites after their return from captivity. ==References==