Prophets Stories In Islam

Prophet Khidr (as)

It has been already discussed how Musa (as) set out on a journey to seek the special kind of knowledge that Khidr (as) was known to possess. Allah (ﷻ) has narrated this story in Quran, and the hadith wherein the name of Khidr (as) is clearly mentioned. We also confirmed that it was Musa ibn Imran, the Prophet of the children of Israel to whom the Torah was revealed, who had gone to him to seek the knowledge.
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It was narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira (ra) that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: "Khidr was called Khidr because he once sat on a white fur which started shaking from behind him and turned green." (Bukhari)
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As stated earlier, when Musa (as) and Yoosha (as) retracted their footsteps, they found Khidr (as), sitting on a Velvet-like green carpet. He had covered himself with a cloth by putting both its ends under his head and feet. When Musa (as) greeted him, he uncovered his face, returned the greeting and asked, "Who are you?"
He replied: "I am Musa."
He inquired: "Are you the Prophet of the children of Israel?"
He answered: "Yes."
Allah (ﷻ) has then narrated the rest of the story in the Qur’an.
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There are many facts evident in the story which prove that  Khidr (as) himself was a Prophet. First and foremost, Allah (ﷻ) has described him as follows:
"Then, they found one of our slaves, unto whom we had bestowed mercy from us and whom we had taught knowledge from us." (18:65)
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Secondly Musa (as) asked him:
"Musa said to him: "May I attend upon you that you may instruct me in the knowledge you have been taught of the right way?"
He said: "You will not be able to bear with me.
"How can you bear that which is beyond your comprehension?"
"You will find me patient if Allah wills," said Musa; "and I will not disobey you in any thing."
"If you must follow me," he said, "do not ask me any thing until I speak of it to you myself." (18:66-70)
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If Khidr (as) was only a pious man and not a Prophet, Musa (as) wouldn't have addressed him in this manner and Khidr (as) wouldn't have answered him this way. In fact, it was Musa (as) who requested to accompany him in order to benefit from the knowledge which Allah (ﷻ) had granted him only. If He was not a Prophet, he would not have possessed reliable knowledge, and thus Musa (as) wouldn't have had a great desire to learn from him, especially since he himself was a great Prophet and infallible. How could he have acquired knowledge from someone who was not infallible? Similarly, Musa (as) wouldn't have gone in search for him, nor would he have shown such humility when he first met him. This clearly indicates that Khidr (as) was a Prophet too. The difference between the two was that Allah (ﷻ) had  granted Khidr (as) special knowledge which He had not bestowed on Musa (as).
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Thirdly, it is known from the incident that Khidr (as) killed a boy. He would never have done so on his own accord. This act was done only to obey a specific revelation sent to him by Allah (ﷻ). This, by itself, is a very clear proof of him being a Prophet and infallible because it is not permissible, even for a pious person, to kill anyone of his own accord, no matter how justified his reasoning is. A pious person is not infallible and, thus, is prone to commit errors. Khidr (as) knew that when this boy reached puberty, he would become a disbeliever and his parents would follow him out of their strong love. The benefit of killing him (that is, protecting his parents' faith) outweighed the benefit of letting him live. Again, this was a clear sign of his Prophethood.
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Abu al-Faraj ibn al-Jawzi used the aforementioned reasoning as concrete proof of Khidr's (as) Prophethood. Similarly, it has been reported that ar-Rummani also used this as evidence.
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Fourthly, when Khidr (as) informed Musa (as) about the reasoning behind his actions, he said: ".......a mercy from your Lord. And I did it not for my own accord......" (18:82)
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What he meant by this was that whatever he had done was an order, revealed to him by Allah (ﷻ). He did none of the actions of his own free-will.
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It can be concluded from all the aforementioned points that Khidr (as) indeed was a Prophet. This doesn't necessarily mean that he was not a messenger as well. Some suggest that he was an angel, which seems to be a very strange opinion. Since we have already established that he was a Prophet, there is no need for us to discuss whether he was a pious person or not.
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A majority of the scholars hold the opinion that Khidr (as) is still alive. They say that He buried his father Adam (as) when they were recovering from the plague. Thus, the supplication of Adam (as) for a long life was answered for him. Others suggest that he is alive because he drank from the spring of life. These scholars have cited many hadiths as evidence.
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Ibn al-Jawzi has analyzed these hadiths in his book titled: 'Ijalah al-Muntadhir fee Sharh Hala al-Khidr'.
He has clearly proven that all these cited hadiths were fabricated. Similarly, the reports of the sayings of the companions and those who came after them on this issue have also been classified by him as weak.
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Another opinion concerning Khidr (as) is that he has died. This opinion is held by such prominent scholars as Imam Bukhari and Ibn al-Jawzi. The latter, in his aforementioned book, has put forward many arguments to support his opinion.
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Among these proofs is the statement of Allah (ﷻ):
"And we granted not to any human being immortality." (21:34)
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Since Khidr (as) was an ordinary human being, this verse applies to him as well. It isn't permissible to anyone to make him an exception to it without authentic proof. So far, there is no authentic proof to state conclusively that Khidr (as) is exempted from this verse.
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Another argument is the following saying of Allah (ﷻ):
"Remember when Allah covenanted the prophets (and said): "If after I have given you the Law and the judgement there comes an apostle to you who confirms the truth already with you, you will surely believe him and help him;" and asked: "Do you accept and agree to the terms of My covenant?" They said: "We accept." "Then you be witness," said Allah, "and I shall be witness with you." (3:81)
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Ibn Abbas (ra) said regarding this: Allah (ﷻ) took a covenant from every Prophet that he sent, that if Muhammed (ﷺ) is sent during his lifetime, he should believe in him and help him. He further ordered every Prophet to take this covenant from his people, that if Muhammed (ﷺ) is sent while they are alive, they should believe in him and help him. (Recorded by Bukhari)
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This essentially means that Khidr (as) had taken the same covenant as a Prophet. Therefore, if he had been alive during the time of our Prophet Muhammed (ﷺ), he would have had to keep his pledge, come to him and help him against his enemies. If he were only a pious person, Abu Bakr (ra) would be better than him. If he were a Prophet, Musa (as) would be better than him.
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Imam Ahmad reported in his Musnad on the authority of Jabir ibn Abdullah (ra) that Prophet (ﷺ) said: "By him in whose hand is my soul, if Musa was alive, he wouldn't have done anything but follow me."
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This is one of the fundamental beliefs of this religion, evident from the aforementioned verse. If all the Prophets were alive during the time of our Prophet (ﷺ), they would have been among his followers. His Sharia would have applied to them also.
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This is also evident from the night journey, when Our Prophet (ﷺ) was given the highest position among all the Prophets. Also, while He was at Bayt al-Maqdis and it was time for prayer. Allah (ﷻ) ordered him through Jibraeel (as) to lead all the Prophets in prayer. In fact, he led the prayer in the very place, which had been their home during their life. This show that our Prophet Muhammed (ﷺ) is  their leader and the seal of Prophethood. May the peace and blessings of Allah (ﷻ)  be upon him.
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Hence, it can be concluded that if Khidr (as) was alive during the time of our Prophet (ﷺ), he would have been one of his Ummah and a follower of his Sharia.
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Even Eesa, son of Maryam, will rule by the Sharia of our Prophet (ﷺ) when he returns to the earth close to the day of Judgment, in spite of being one of the five great Prophets and the last one to be sent to the children of Israel.
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We know for sure, in the absence of any authentic or sound hadith, that Khidr (as) never met our Prophet (ﷺ) and he certainly never participated in any of the battles against his enemy.
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On the day of battle of Badr, our Prophet (ﷺ) supplicated to Allah (ﷻ) for help and victory against his enemies by saying: "O Allah, if these believers are destroyed, you will not be worshipped on this earth again."
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These believers included our Prophet (ﷺ), the best of the Prophets and Jibraeel (as), the best of the Angels. If Khidr (as) was alive, it would have been the noblest act on his part to be present in that battle.
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Ibn al-Jawzi reported in his book 'Ijalah that Qadi Abu Yala al-Hanbali' said: One of our scholars was asked concerning Khidr, whether he was alive or dead.
He said: He is dead.
Then he said: A similar view has reached me from Abu Tahir al-Ghubari. They all argued that if he were alive, he would have come to the Prophet (ﷺ).
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It can be argued that maybe he was present, but the people couldn't see him. The answer to this is: this is a very remote possibility and very difficult to prove. We can only ask the following question: why did he choose to hide from people? It would have been more rewarding for him to come out and meet the Prophet (ﷺ). Moreover, it would have made the miracle of his living for such a long time more prominent.
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Furthermore, if he were to outlive the Prophet (ﷺ), it would have been better for him to convey the Quranic teaching and the hadiths to people. Similarly, he could have exposed the forged hadiths and fought against the heretics. He could have benefited the people in the matters pertaining to their life and death. Anyone who considers these points will realize what the truth is. However, it is Allah (ﷻ) who guides whomever He wishes to the straight path.
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Among other evidences which support the view that Khidr (as) has died is a hadith reported by Imams Bukhari and Muslim on the authority of Abdullah ibn Umar (ra).
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He related that that the Prophet (ﷺ) finished praying his evening prayer one night and then said: "Can you see this night? Verily, no one who currently exists on this earth will be alive umtil the end of the next century."
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Imam Ahmad reported a similar narration on the authority of Abdullah ibn Umar (ra) that the Prophet (ﷺ) finished praying his evening prayer one night during the last days of his life. After saying Salam, he stood up and said: "Can you see this night? Verily, no one who is currently alive on the earth will be here at the end of one hundred years from now."
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In another narration reported by Imam Ahmad on the authority of Jabeer ibn Abdullah (ra), the Prophet (ﷺ) said about a month, or less before his death: "No living soul (or no living soul from among you today) will be alive when the next century arrives."
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Ibn al-Jawzi has said that all these authentic hadiths clearly negate the claim that Khidr (as) is still alive.