This final passage of the sūrah is mainly concerned with Dhu’l-Qarnayn and his three journeys, to the east, west and the central areas, as well as his erection of a strong barrier to prevent Gog and Magog from getting through. The sūrah tells us that after he had erected the barrier, Dhu’l-Qarnayn said: “This is a mercy from my Lord. Yet when the time appointed by my Lord shall come, He will make this [rampart] level with the ground. My Lord’s promise always comes true.” (Verse 98)

The reference to the ‘true promise’ is followed with the blowing of the trumpet and a scene of the resurrection before the sūrah concludes with three short sections, each of which starts with the command, ‘Say’. These three sections sum up all the main topics of the sūrah and follow its drift. They serve as the final strong beats of an evenly flowing tune.

The story of Dhu’l-Qarnayn begins as follows: “They will ask you about Dhu’l- Qarnayn. Say: I will give you an account of him.’” (Verse 83) Speaking about the reasons that led to the revelation of this sūrah, Muĥammad ibn Isĥāq mentions a report attributed to Ibn `Abbās, the Prophet’s cousin and Companion. The report mentions that the Quraysh sent al-Nađr ibn al-Ĥārith and `Uqbah ibn Abī Mu`ayţ to ask the Jewish rabbis in Madinah about Muĥammad, outlining for them their terms of reference. The Quraysh elders told the two men to describe Muĥammad in detail to the Jewish rabbis and to report to them truthfully what he advocated. “The Jews,” said the Quraysh elders, “are the people of early Scriptures and they have a wealth of knowledge about prophets which is not available to us.” In Madinah, the two men from the Quraysh put their questions to the rabbis and solicited their honest opinion about Muĥammad. The rabbis told them to ask Muĥammad three questions. “If he gives you satisfactory answers, then he is a prophet and messenger of God. If he has no answer to give, then he is fabricating whatever he says. You may do what you like with him. Ask him about a group of young people about whom there was a strange story in ancient times, and let him tell you what happened to them. Ask him also about a man who travelled all over the place and went to the far east and far west. The third question you should ask him is to tell you about the spirit.” Al-Nađr and `Uqbah travelled back to Makkah and told their tribesmen that they had brought the answer to their problem with Muĥammad. When they told them of the advice of the Jewish rabbis, they went to the Prophet and put the three questions to him. The Prophet told them that he would answer them the following day.

Apparently he did not qualify the promise by saying, ‘God willing’, as he should have done and as Muslims should always do. As a result nothing was revealed to him for fifteen days, nor did the angel Gabriel meet him during this period. The people of Makkah began to spread a fresh propaganda campaign, saying:

‘Muĥammad has promised to give us an answer on the morrow, and now it has been fifteen days since we asked him, without him giving us any reply to our questions.’ The Prophet was very sad at this delay in revelation and he was much distressed by what the people of Makkah said about him. Then the angel Gabriel came down revealing this sūrah, The Cave, which tells him in its early verses not to grieve too much for his people if they refuse to listen to him. It then proceeds to answer the questions put to him, relating the stories of the young men and the traveller of old times. He also gave the Prophet the answer to the third question about the spirit, which occurs in Sūrah 17, The Night Journey.

Another report by Ibn `Abbās tells of the reason for the revelation of the verse giving the reply to the question about the spirit. This mentions that the Jews themselves put the question to the Prophet: “Tell us about the spirit, and how the spirit inside the body can be tortured, when the spirit belongs to God?” As nothing about the spirit had been revealed to him, he could not answer them. Gabriel then came down to him with the verse stating: “Say: The [knowledge of the nature of the] spirit belongs to my Lord alone. You [mankind] have been granted but little knowledge.” (17:

Some people, then, asked God’s Messenger about Dhu’l-Qarnayn, and God revealed to him what this sūrah contains about his history and actions. We have no source other than the Qur’ān to give us further information. Hence, we will not try to expand or elaborate, because that would not be based on any accurate information.

Commentaries on the Qur’ān provide many accounts and plenty of information, but none of these has any reliable basis. Hence, they should be approached very cautiously, particularly because they include Israelite reports and other legends.

Of the history of Dhu’l-Qarnayn the Qur’ān mentions three journeys, one to the west, one to the east and the third to a place described as an area ‘between two mountains’. Let us now consider this Qur’ānic account.

The story of Dhu’l-Qarnayn, as given in this sūrah, begins with a brief introduction of the man himself: “We established his power on earth, and gave him means to achieve anything.” (Verse 84) God then has established his power on earth, giving him uncontested authority. He has also given him the means of government and victory, the facilities to build civilization, enjoy the blessings God has made available to mankind, and all that make human life on earth steady and prosperous.

So he followed a certain way.” (Verse 85) Thus, he went along one way which was made easy for him, aiming westwards: “When he came to the setting of the sun, it appeared to him that it was setting in dark, turbid waters; and nearby he found a certain people. Dhu’l-Qarnayn,’ We said, you may either punish them or treat them with kindness.

‘He replied: ‘The one who does wrong we shall punish. Then he will return to his Lord and be sternly punished by Him. But the one who believes and does righteous deeds shall have a goodly reward, and we shall assign to him a task that is easy to fulfil.’ (Verses 86-88)

Reaching the setting of the sun means the place where a person feels that the sun sets beyond the horizon. This varies according to geographic location. In some places we may feel that the sun sets beyond a mountain, while in others we feel that it goes down into the water, as is the case when we look at the sea or ocean. In other places still, the sun seems to set in the sand, as when we are in a desert with no hills or mountains around.

It appears from the text that Dhu’l-Qarnayn went westwards until he reached a point on the Atlantic coast which people believed to be at the end of dry land. He saw the sun setting in the sea. It is even more likely that this was at a river mouth, where there would be plenty of weeds and the area muddy. Little lakes form in such situations and may look like water springs. He saw the sun setting there, going down in a spring of murky water. But it is impossible for us to define the area, because the sūrah does not give us any clue. We have no other reliable source. Hence, every view other than this cannot be considered accurate because it has no reliable basis.

At this lake of turbid and murky waters, Dhu’I-Qarnayn found a community and God gave him a choice: “Dhu’l-Qarnayn, We said, you may either punish them or treat them with kindness.” (Verse 86) Now, how did God say this to Dhu’l-Qarnayn? Was it revelation, or a mere statement of the situation, resulting from the fact that God had given him power over those people, so that he could determine whatever he wished to do with them. In this case, it would be just as if it was said to him: Here they are at your command: you may choose to punish them or to follow a lenient course of action. Both are possible. There is nothing to stop us understanding the text in either way. What is important to realize is that Dhu’l-Qarnayn declared his policy in the areas that came under his rule and their population became subject to his authority.

Then he followed yet another way and [marched on] till, when he reached a place between the two mountain-barriers he found beneath them a people who could scarcely understand a word. Dhu’l- Qarnayn,’ they said, ‘Cog and Magog are ravaging this land. May we pay you a tribute so that you erect a barrier between us and them?’ He answered: ‘That with which my Lord has established me is better [than any tribute].

Hence, do but help me with strength, and I shall erect a rampart between you and them! Bring me blocks of iron!’ At length, when he had filled up the gap between the two mountain-sides, he said: ‘Ply your bellows!’ Then, when he made [the iron glow like] fire, he said: ‘Bring me molten copper which I will pour over it.’ And thus their enemies were unable to scale [the rampart], nor could they dig their way through it.

He said: ‘This is a mercy from my Lord. Yet when the time appointed by my Lord shall come, He will make this [rampart] level with the ground. My Lord’s promise always comes true.’ (Verses 92-98)

Now we come to the third of Dhu’l-Qarnayn’s journeys which took him to a place between the two mountain-barriers.’ We cannot make any definite suggestion as to the exact location of this place, nor do we have any information about the nature of these barriers. All that we can understand from the text is that he reached a place lying in between two natural or man-made barriers, separated by a gap or low passage.

Down there he found some backward people, whom the Qur’ān describes as could scarcely understand a word.’ These people realized that Dhu’l-Qarnayn was both powerful and able. They also discovered that he was pious and God-fearing. Hence, they offered him payment in return for erecting a barrier to stop Gog and Magog, who frequently attacked them from beyond the mountain barriers and used the passage in between, from wreaking havoc in their land. These people had exhausted all the means available to them, yet still they could not repel those evil forces. Hence they were prepared to pay for a solution to their problem utilizing Dhu’l-Qarnayn’s power.

Following the policy declared by that pious ruler, which was based on resisting all evil and corruption on earth, he declined to take their money, and offered instead to erect the barrier without charge. He judged that the easiest way to do so was to close the passage between the two mountain-barriers. However, he asked the backward people to help him by employing their physical strength: “Help me with strength, and I shall erect a rampart between you and them! Bring me blocks of iron!” (Verses 95-96) They began to gather whatever blocks of iron were available. He put all these blocks in a heap to close the gap between the two barriers, so that the two mountain-sides became like two crusts covering a heap of iron articles in between.

“At length, when he had filled up the gap between the two mountainsides,” (Verse 96)

and the heap of iron was as high as the top of the two barriers, “he said: Ply your bellows!” (Verse 96) They were to generate air to increase the fire which heated the iron. “Then, when he made [the iron glow like] fire, he said: ‘Bring me molten copper which I will pour over it.’” (Verse 96) The molten copper thus filled the gaps between the iron blocks, making the new barrier impregnable.

Now who were Gog and Magog? Where are they now? What did they do and what will happen to them? Such questions are very difficult to answer with any degree of accuracy. Our knowledge of them is limited to what is mentioned specifically in the Qur’ān and in authentic aĥādīth. The Qur’ān includes here a quotation of what Dhu’l-Qarnayn says: “Yet when the time appointed by my Lord shall come, He will make this [rampart] level with the ground. My Lord’s promise always comes true.” (Verse 98) This statement does not specify a time. God’s promise to destroy the rampart may already have occurred when the Tatars swept across huge areas, destroying whole kingdoms.

Another mention of them is found in Sūrah 21, The Prophets, where it is stated:

“When Gog and Magog are let loose and swarm down from every corner, when the true promise draws close [to its fulfilment], staring in horror shall be the eyes of the unbelievers.” (21: 96-97) Again this statement does not specify a time for the promised appearance of Gog and Magog. That God’s promise has come near to fulfilment, in the sense that the Last Hour or the Day of Judgement is soon to come, is an accomplished fact ever since the time of the Prophet. In the Qur’ān we read: “The Hour has drawn near, and the moon was cleft asunder.” (54: 1) In God’s reckoning, time has a totally different perspective from that of human reckoning. The time gap between the moment when the Hour becomes near and its actual occurrence may stretch to millions of years or centuries. Thus human beings may see this as a very long period of time, while, by God’s standards, it may signify nothing more than a blink of an eye.

This means that the rampart built by Dhu’l-Qarnayn might have been penetrated in the period that has lapsed between the revelation of the verse stating, ‘the Hour has drawn near,’ and our present day. This suggests that the conquests of the Tatars in the eastern provinces might have represented a sort of fulfilment of the warning which tells of Gog and Magog forging ahead and sweeping across the earth. An authentic ĥadīth related by Imām Aĥmad ibn Ĥanbal on the authority of Zainab bint Jaĥsh, the Prophet’s wife, mentions that the Prophet woke up once, red in the face, saying:

“Woe to the Arabs! A calamitous event is drawing near. The rampart of Gog and Magog has been breached today by as much as this, [rounding his thumb with his first finger].” I said, “Messenger of God! Would we be destroyed when righteous people are living among us?” He said: “Yes, if evil becomes widespread.” The Prophet’s dream occurred more than thirteen and a half centuries ago. The conquests of the Tatars took place subsequently, destroying the `Abbāsid Caliphate.

It was Hülegü who destroyed it, ending the reign of al-Musta`şim, the last `Abbāsid Caliph. This might have been the realization of the Prophet’s dream. But true knowledge belongs to God. All that we say in this respect is by way of probability, not certainty.

The sūrah follows the reference by Dhu’l-Qarnayn to God’s true promise with a scene from the Day of Judgement:

On that day We shall leave them to surge like waves dashing against one another. The trumpet will be blown, and We shall gather them all together. And We shall, on that day, present hell, all spread out, for the unbelievers, who have turned a blind eye to My admonition and a deaf ear to My warning. (Verses 99-101)

This is a scene showing the movement of huge masses of people of all colours, races and geographical areas, belonging to all generations and times, after they have been resurrected and brought back to life. They move across in a chaotic way, unaware of what is around them. They push each other like waves in the sea and mix like the surf raised by the waves. Then suddenly a trumpet is blown and they are gathered according to a specific order: “The trumpet will be blown, and We shall gather them all together.” (Verse 99)

We see also the unbelievers who turned away from remembrance of God as though their eyes were covered and their ears deaf. Now we see them with hell brought before them and they cannot turn away from it as they used to turn away from God’s guidance. On that day, the option of turning away is not within their power. The cover over their eyes has been drawn, and they now see clearly the consequence of their deliberate turning away. This is a fair recompense.

The sūrah provides symmetry between their turning away and their vision of hell as it is brought before them. The two actions are shown in contrast both in scene and movement.

This contrast is followed by a comment full of derision: “Do the unbelievers think that they could take My creatures for patrons against Me? We have indeed readied hell as a dwelling place for the unbelievers.” (Verse 102) Do these unbelievers think that they can choose from among God’s creatures which fully submit to Him some who could support them against God? Can these give them help or grant them protection against God’s might? If such thoughts are entertained by them, then let them experience the results of such self-delusion: “We have indeed readied hell as a dwelling place for the unbelievers.” (Verse 102) This is an evil abode already prepared to receive them. There is no need for waiting. It is all ready to receive its unbelieving dwellers.

The sūrah concludes with a few verses that bring together its many different lines of discussion in harmonious tone and rhythm. We have here three different aspects which, together, sum up the whole theme of the sūrah. The first of these revolves around values and standards as they are reflected in deviant societies and as they truly are. These relate to both actions and people.

Say: ‘Shall we tell you who are the greatest losers in whatever they may do? It is they whose labour in this world has been misguided, and who nonetheless think that what they do is right. It is they who have chosen to disbelieve in their Lord’s revelations and deny the truth that they will meet Him. Vain will be their works. No weight shall We assign to them on Resurrection Day.’ (Verses 103-105)

“Shall we tell you who are the greatest losers in whatever they may do?” (Verse 103)

These are the ones whose loss cannot be exceeded by any human being in history.

The answer to this question comes very quickly. “It is they whose labour in this world has been misguided.” (Verse 104) It did not lead them to follow any proper guidance. It did not yield any real fruit, nor did it achieve any objective. But these people “nonetheless think that what they do is right.” (Verse 104) This tells how misguided these people are. They have no inclination that whatever they do in this world takes them further into error and is thus completely wasted. Hence, they continue spending their whole lives in such vain pursuits.

Now the listeners are asked whether they want to know who these people are. The question heightens their curiosity, holding the attentions of everyone within hearing range. Then when everyone eagerly anticipates the information, the identity of these unrivalled losers is revealed: “It is they who have chosen to disbelieve in their Lord’s revelations and deny the truth that they will meet Him. Vain will be their works.” (Verse 105) The linguistic sense imparted by the Arabic term, habitat, describing their actions as ‘vain’ is derived from a very special case. It is that of an animal feeding on poisonous grass. Its belly is swollen before it dies. The same is the case with the actions of those who are misguided. They grow and seem fair and rewarding, but the fact is that they come to nothing whatsoever.

“No weight shall We assign to them on Resurrection Day.” (Verse 105) Thus they are shown to be worthless, having no value in the scale of true standards and principles.

This is their condition ‘on Resurrection Day’. But they only have the requital they deserve. “That will be their reward, hell, for having rejected the faith, and made My revelations and My messengers a target of their mockery.” (Verse 106)

Contrast in the scene is given by showing how the believers fare and what their value score is on the true scales used on the Day of Judgement. “But those who have faith and do righteous deeds shall have the gardens of paradise as their dwelling place. Therein they will abide, and never will they desire any change to befall them.” (Verses 107-108) This abode in the gardens of paradise is contrasted here with the other abode in hell. The gulf between the two is colossal.

The second concluding element shows the limits of human knowledge when compared with God’s infinite knowledge. As our imagination cannot reach the absolute, the Qur’ān gives us a simple analogy which we can easily comprehend, using its method of image drawing: “Say: If the sea were ink for my Lord’s words, the sea would surely dry up before my Lord’s words are exhausted, even though we were to add to it another sea to replenish it.” (Verse 109) The sea is the largest and richest thing known to mankind. People use ink to write down whatever they want to record. This is how they document their knowledge which they imagine to be great. Hence the Qur’ān puts forward the image of the sea with all its vast expanse, but which is now made of ink with which to write down God’s words that indicate His knowledge. Even though the whole sea is used, God’s words are not finished. At this point another sea of similar magnitude is brought forward, but it too is used in full while God’s words are far from finished.

It is with such a clear image and movement that the concept of the infinite is placed before the finite human intellect. A universal and abstract concept remains beyond human conception until it is described in specific terms. No matter how powerful a human being’s ability to understand the abstract is, he needs to relate an abstract concept to images and shapes, types and characteristics. This applies to abstract concepts of what is limited or tangible. How then can it fathom what is unlimited and intangible?

Hence, the Qur’ān gives analogies and draws on similarities in order to give people images and scenes that describe the great concepts it wants them to understand. It often uses what is tangible, and what has shape and definite characteristics and recognizable features in the same way as is employed here. In this example, the sea represents human knowledge which people imagine to be great. But huge and rich as the seas and the oceans may be, they remain limited. God’s words, on the other hand, represent His infinite knowledge for which people cannot set any limit. Indeed they cannot receive or record it all, let alone comprehend it.

Conceit may creep into the human soul as people are able to make new discoveries about themselves or about the universe. They are elated with these scientific discoveries feeling that they have achieved what there is to achieve, or at least are on the way to it. But when they look at the areas which remain unknown, they realize that they have only taken a few steps into the sea which remains so vast, stretching beyond the horizon. The fact remains that man’s ability to receive and record God’s knowledge is very limited indeed, because it represents a relationship of what is finite and what is infinite.

Man may gain as much knowledge as he can, and he may discover much of the secrets of the universe, but he must never arrogantly boast about his knowledge. For the utmost that he can achieve is to transform the seas and oceans into ink, yet all that ink is insufficient to record God’s words.