In the Qissat al-Iskandar,
Alexander the Great is depicted as a civilizing hero and monotheist that travels across the world, builds the Wall against
Gog and Magog, searches for the
Water of Life (Fountain of Youth), and encounters angels who give him a "wonder-stone" that both weighs more than any other stone but is also as light as dust. This text contains the core traditions of the
Alexander Romance including Alexander's campaigns against
Persia,
India, the
Amazon women, etc.; 'Umara follows the Greek tradition closely on these narratives, though he also provides extensive glosses to the Quranic account. However, it excludes the initial parts of the Romance and, like many later Islamic renditions of Alexander legends, begins with Alexander's confrontations with Darius of Persia. The text also contains uniquely Arabic and Islamic material, including an identification of the protagonist, Alexander, with the figure named
Dhu'l-Qarnayn whom appears in
Surat al-Kahf in the
Quran. The people who live where the sun sets described in the Quran are identified by 'Umara as the Jābalqā people. Then, Alexander appears in the place of the rising sun, where he meets the people known as Jābarsā. The people who barely communicate between two mountains are identified as the Hāwīl, whose counterpart is the Tāwīl. The story describes the construction of the iron and clad wall at this location in detail. On these journeys encountering many groups of people, God grants Alexander proficiency in all languages. The story continues and speaks of a great number of more tales. == Manuscripts ==