Adam and Eve

From Adam until Muhammad : The `Twenty-Eight' pre-Islamic Prophets

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Some Bibliographical Notes

 

01  Adam = Arabic Ādam =  

03. Idrīs  إِدْرِيسN  (= ? Heb. חֲנוֹךְ, ḥānōk),

Enoch (Gen 4:17f; Q.x 2 = 19:57; 21:85) the biblical  son of Jared   who "walked with God" (Gen. 5:21‑4) an  "upright man  and a prophet" (Q.19:57‑8; 21:85). Numerous legends are related of Enoch (Vajda, EI2 III:1030‑1; Fraade, `Enoch’ Enc. Rel.5:116‑118). Numerous legends about Idrīs exist in Islamic sources. He is  "said to have introduced several sciences and arts, practised ascetic piety, received revelation, and entered paradise while still alive" (Fraade, `Enoch’ Enc. Rel. 5:116‑118).  Enoch is occasionally mentioned in Bābī‑Bahā’ī sources as the father of ḥikmat  (wisdom‑philosophy, etc) and, as in Islamic sources,  is  equated with the first of the thrice born Hermes’ (Martin, `Hermes’ DDD:771‑783; `Hirmis’, EI2 III:463; BA* L.‑Ḥikmat, tr.148; Ma’idih 7:143)

04. Nūḥ,   نُوحٍ R+N+M* (= Heb. נֹחַ, nōaḥ),

Noah (fl. [trad.] fl. 3000 BCE??) the biblical son of Lamech who in both the Bible and the Q. is reckoned to have lived at least 950 years (Gen. 9:29; Q. 29:13‑14) and to have survived the flood along with his family (Q.  x 43 in 28 suras). As an prototype of Muhammad and one blessed with  waḥy  (divine inspiration, Q. 11:36) the legend of Noah and  the associated story of the all‑encompassing  "flood" and salvific "ark",  is important in  the Q., one sura of which is named after Noah (Q. 71 [title]). He is mentioned 43 times in 28 suras of the Q. his story being repeated around ten times.  The Noah story is frequently told in Qiṣaṣ al‑anbiyā’  and other post‑qur’ānic literatures.

Three pre‑Islamic Arabian prophets

Islamic traditions reckon Hūd (=05), Ṣāliḥ (=06), Shu`ayb (=07), Ibrāhīm (=08) and

 Muhammad (=028),  the five Arabian prophets..

06. Ṣāliḥ,  صَالِح    R+N is mentioned x 9 in 6 sūras of the Q.

He was a (pre‑Abrahamic?) prophet sent to the tribe of Thamūd (Q. 7:73‑9, etc). He came with the "sign", "proof" or "test" of  the nāqa (`[she‑] camel’) but was rejected. His mocking audience were all destroyed by a storm or earthquake. BA* explained (the tribe of) "Thamud" allegorically as opponents of truth in any    age (BA* T‑Shams, 15‑16; cf. S‑Nuṣḥ, 246; KI 7‑8/7). He quite frequently utilized the motif of the "she‑camel" (L‑Dhi`b/ESW, index) On one occasion AB* explained that the nāqa indicates Ṣālīḥ’s "sanctified self" (nafs‑i muqaddas).  Being "hamstrung" indicated an event within Ṣālīḥ precipitated by his enemies which prevented him from proffering the "milk" of spiritual beatitude to his people (AB* Ma’idih 2:99). 

07. Shu`ayb, شُعَيْب   R+N,

Perhaps to be identified with the the biblical [uncle of ?] Jethro (Heb.  יִתְרֹו Yitrô,) priest of Midian and father of Zipporah the wife of  Moses, the father‑in‑law of Moses (Exod. 3:1; 4:18; 18:1ff; Qx11 in 3 Sūrahs). A messenger‑prophet sent with risālāt   ("messages") to the people of Madyan (Midian, NW Arabia? cf. Q. 20:40; 28:22f) or the aṣḥāb al‑ayka ("people of the thicket"; Q. 7:83‑91, etc).1  In his  EI2 article` Shu`ayb’, (IX:491+see refs. and bib.) Rippin notes that it was on the basis of Q. 9:91 that he was "understood to have come after Ḥūd, Ṣālīḥ and Lot (Lūṭ )."A qur’ānic rasūl   though not a Bābī‑Bahā’ī maẓhar‑i ilāhī, Shu`ayb is infrequently mentioned in  Bābī‑ Bahā’ī sources (BA* KI:7‑8 /7).

Abrahamic patriarchs and associated figures

08. Ibrāhīm, إِبْرَاهِيم  N+M* (= Heb. אַבְרָהָם,`abrāhām) 

Abraham (fl.19th cent. BCE?). Frequently mentioned in the Q. (Q14 [title] x 69 in 245 verses within 25 sūras) Abraham in the Q. is a son of Āzar (Q. 6:74 cf. the Eliezer of Gen. 15:2f and  Gen.11:26 where the father is Teraḥ). He is the khalīl‑Allāh (`the friend of God’, Q.4:125; 6:125) and scriptural father of monotheism. For Muslims Abraham became a proto‑Muslim proponent of primordial Islām, the millat Ibrāhīm ( "religion of Abraham", Q. 2:130 etc.). Neither genealogically a Jew nor a Christian (Q. 3:67) Abraham is several times accorded the epithet ḥanīf , loosely, `pure monotheist’ (cf. Syr. ḥanpo  pl. ḥanpe , Q. 2:135; etc). According to Q. 29:27 God established nubuwwa  (`prophethood’) and al‑kitāb  (`The Book’ , `Scripture’) "among his progeny" (‑‑> 09 &10).

            In Bābī‑ Bahā’ī sources Abraham is a centrally important maẓhar‑i ilāhī.  (BA* S‑Nuṣḥ, 246‑7; KI:8/7‑8). Several legendary episodes within Abraham’s life are given a spiritual interpretation, including his being cast into the "fire" (al‑nār) which became "light" (al‑nūr)  and his unfulfilled sacrifice of [Isaac] Ishmael (BA* S.Nuṣḥ, 247‑8, etc. ). For AB* his exiles prefigured those of BA* (AB*, SAQ : IV).

 09. Isḥāq,  إِسْحَاقَ   N ( = Heb.  יִצְחָק), Yiṣḥāq),  

Isaac  (Q. x17  in 12 sūras) according to Gen. 22:1f  the son of Abraham. In the biblical tradition he was the one bound for sacrifice (akedat Yiṣḥāq,  cf. Gen 22:9). Linked (among others)  with Jacob and  his half‑brother Ishmael (Q. 9:71; 19:39; cf.10 below) most of the qur’anic references to  Isḥāq, occur in miscellaneous lists of prophets and associated  figures. (Alexander, DBI:44‑7+ bib.; Montgomery Watt `Isḥaq’ EI2 IV:109‑110; Naudé, 1971).

Though this is not explicit in the Q.  some early Persian and other  Muslim sources  supported his status as dhabīḥ  (`the one [well‑nigh] sacrificed’).1  Isaac is rarely mentioned in Bābī‑ Bahā’ī primary sources. BA* and AB* have commented upon the meaning and discrepancy between the biblical (Isaac) and qur’ānic exegetical (Ishmā’īl) references to different sons of Abraham involved in the near  sacrifice (Māzandarānī, AK 3:196‑201). They held that both narratives enshrine the same "spiritual" truth.

 10. Ismā`īl,    إِسْمَاعِيل R+N (= Heb  יִשְׁמָעֵאל yišmā˓ēl),

Ishmael  (Qx12 in 8  sūras) the biblical eldest son of Abraham  and Hagar   (Gen. 16:11ff) said in the Q. to have received divine revelations (Q. 2:136; 4:163).  In the Q. he (or a second Ismā’īl) is explicitly named a prophet‑Messenger (rasūl  an nabīyy an ,  Q.19:54b) though little concrete information is given about him. He most probably was the one who (it is implied) among other things assisted his father in establishing the Meccan Ka`bah as the centre of pilgrimage (Q. 2:125f) (Paret, `Ismā’īl’ EI2 IV:184‑185+bib., Firestone, 1988;1990).  Some Muslims hold that he was the ghulām al‑ḥalīm ("the wise youth") whom Abraham prepared as the dhabīḥ (`one [well‑nigh] sacrificed’, Q. 37:101‑7).

11. Lūṭ  لُوط   R+N (= Heb. לֹוט Lôṭ)

Lot the biblical son of Haran and nephew  of Abraham (Gen 11:27f;13:5‑13,7f)  In the Q.  Lot is an envoy‑prophet mentioned 27 times in 14 sūras. He is said to have survived the catastrophic, meteor‑like stoning (with sījill) of "upturned" (mu’takifa) ,`vice‑ridden’  cities such as (the unnamed) Sodom. Lot is seldom mentioned in Bābī‑ Bahā’ī primary sources though aspects of his biblical‑qur’ānic story are non‑literally interpreted. In a letter dating to 1938, for example, SE* defended the integrity of Lot relative to the incestuous episode narrated in Gen.19:29‑38 (SE* Dawn: 201).

Jacob Wrestling with God

14. Yūsuf  يُوسُف     M [=R]+N+M* (= Heb.  יֹוסֵף, Yôsêp), 

Joseph after whom Sūrah 12 is named, is mentioned  27 times in the Q., twice outside Q. 12  (Q. 6:84 and 40:34). He is the biblical eleventh son of Jacob (= Israel) and Rachel. Though according to the Q. he came with "clear proofs" (Q.6:85b; 40:34b) he was doubted as a prophet. In Islam Joseph is an important messenger‑prophet of  God. His story is the longest continuous prophetological narrative in the Q. (111 verses) mirroring the extended biblical narrative (Gen 37‑50). The Sūrat Yūsuf   (Q.12)  is reckoned the  aḥsan al‑qaṣaṣ, the "most beauteous of narratives" (Q.12:3). It contains dimensions of the extended biblical story (Gen. 37‑50) with supplementary haggadic‑rooted and other unique features. In Islamic tradition Joseph is reckoned a paragon of handsome beauty (ḥusn / jamāl)  and one eminently righteous (al‑ṣiddiq).  

See Coats, `Joseph...’, ABD 3:976ff; Dijkstra, `Joseph..’ DDD:895‑8; Enc.Jud. X:202‑217; Heller, `Yūsuf b. Ya`kūb’, EI VIII:1178‑9+bib.; MacDonald,  MW 46 (1956), 113ff+207ff; etc.

15. Mūsā  مُوسَى  R+N+M* (= Heb.   מֹשֶׁה, mōšeh), 

 Moses (13th cent. BCE?) in the Bible is the son of the Levites Amram and Yochebed (Exod. 2:1ff). The central lawgiver and prophet figure in biblical Judaism, Moses is also a key prophet‑messenger of the Q. A major prototype and annunciator of Muhammad (Q.7:156), Moses is mentioned in the Q more frequently than any other prophet figure (Q. x 137 in 502 verses within 36 sūras).

            Many of the biblical episodes associated with Moses have qur’ānic counterparts; examples are the Sinaitic call, theophany (Q.7:142‑3) and revelation of the Torah (tawrāt); Pharoah and the exodus and various miracles associated therewith (Q.20:12; 7:143f; etc). As in the Q. Moses the exalted divine manifestation is very frequently mentioned in Shaykhī and in Bābī‑ Bahā’ī literatures. The interpretation of the theophany on Sinai was foundational for the self‑understanding and claims of the Bāb and BA*. This especially as it is mentioned in the semi‑ghuluww  (“extremist”), Shī`ī khuṭba al‑ṭutunjiyya  (loosely, `"Sermon of the Gulf") ascribed to Imam `Alī (Lambden, 1986:84‑5).

Elijah (fl. mid. 9th cent. BCE.,1 Kings 17ff; 2 Kings 1‑2)  is three times mentioned in two surahs of the Q. He is referred to as a sent messenger and a prophet. Ilyās is reckoned "among the righteous" (Q.6:85) having been a staunch opponent of the cult of Baal (Q. 37:123ff).  

20. Alyasa`    َالْيَسَعَ (N) (=? Heb. אֱלִישָׁע, `ēlīšâ`)

Elisha, most likely the biblical prophet Elisha son of Shaphat (? 9^th cent. BCE), the (Heb.) `īsh `ēlōhîm  ("man of God")  commissioned by Elijah (no.19) whom he succeeded  (1 Kings 19:16f; 2 Kings 2f). In the Q.  Alyasa` is only mentioned in two lists of prophet figures, "Ishmael, Alyasa` [Elisha], Jonah and Lot / Dhu’l‑Kifl" (Q. 6:86; 38:48). He is only very rarely mentioned in Bābī‑ Bahā’ī sacred writings (cf. AB* in PP:12).  

21.  Dhū’l‑Kifl  ذَوالْكِفْلِ    (trad. N?), `The twice recompensed’ (Q.x 2 = 21:85; 38:48)

An unknown figure, thought by al‑Ṭabarī to be a pious nabī  (prophet) named Bishr (or Bashīr), allegedly a   son  of Job (Tārīkh, 1:195,). Cf.  Walker, (MW 16 [1926]:399‑400) where it is argued on the basis of Job 42:10 that this title indicates Job himself who received "twice as much as he had before".Other Islamic sources variously, for example, reckon that he was Joshua, Ezekiel, Elijah, a cousin of Elisha  or Zacharias (Tha`labī, `Arā’is, 144‑5, 231‑2; Kisā’ī, Qiṣ aṣ, trans. Thackston, 204,  351 n. 97; 399‑400). He remains an obscure figure and is very rarely named in Bābī‑ Bahā’ī primary sources.

 23. `Uzair, عُزَيْرٌ N (=? Heb. עֶזְרָא, `ezrā’),

Ezra, (N) the biblical sage and scribal priest of  the Archaemenian monarch Artaxerxes I (fl. late 5th cent. BCE? early 2nd Temple Period). He led some exiled Jews from Babylon back to Jerusalem and is believed to have been the post‑exilic restorer of the Mosaic Law (Ezra; 4 Ezra). Ezra is only mentioned in  Q. 9:30 (cf. Q. 2:259) which probably records the opinion of Medinan Jews that he was the ibn Allāh  (Son of God; so Ayoub, 1986). The issue of Ezra’s "sonship"  is several times mentioned and contested by the Bāb.  BA* and AB* rarely refer to Ezra save in connection with his role as restorer of the text of the Torah.

24. Luqmān      لُقْمَن (N) an unknown figure (Q. 31 [title]; 31:12‑13 [x2]).

Traditionally a son of Ād, a wise and pious sage and one al‑mu`ammar, ("one long‑lived"), a venerable Aesop‑like teller of fables. Associated with the Islamic wisdom tradition, he occasionally figures in this role in Bābī‑ Bahā’ī primary sources. In the Valley of ḥayra   ("Wonderment ")  of  his mystical Haft Vadī  (Seven Valleys, 1858 CE), BA* cites a saying of Luqman  whom he says had "drunk from the wellspring of ḥikmat   and tasted of the waters of mercy"  (SV: 34-35). As far as I am aware this is the only substantial reference to Luqman in Bābī‑ Bahā’ī primary sources.

ALEXANDER THE GREAT