But, they struck him on his qarn and he died.

But, they struck him on his qarn and he died. Then, Allah resurrected him, and he was thereby named Dhu al-Qarnayn.[^3] Then, our professor says: (المختارة 2/175 ح 555) وصححه الحافظ ابن حجر بعد عزوه للمختارة للحافظ الضياء (الفتح 6/383).

( Al-Mukhtarat 2/175, # 555) and al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar declared it sahih after attributing it to al-Mukhtarat of al-Hafiz al-Dhiya ( al-Fath 6/383) ^4 The exact words of al-Hafiz in his Fath are these: أخرجه سفيان بن عيينة في جامعه عن ابن أبي حسين عن أبي الطفيل نحوه وزاد وناصح الله فناصحه وفيه لم يكن نبيا ولا ملكا وسنده صحيح سمعناه في الأحاديث المختارة للحافظ الضياء Sufyan b.

‘Uyaynah recorded it in his Jami’ from Ibn Abi Husayn from Abu al-Tufayl, and he added: “He sought the guidance of Allah; and so, He guided him” and in it is “He was not a prophet, and he was not an angel”. Its chain is sahih .

We heard it in al-Ahadith al-Mukhtarat of al-Hafiz al-Dhiya.[^5] Thus, al-Hafiz authenticates the much shorter chain of Sufyan in his Jami’ , but further confirms that what we find in al-Ahadith al-Mukhtarat of al-Dhiya is the same as that which was recorded by Sufyan in his book. Dhu al-Qarnayn, ‘alaihi al-salam , was not a prophet – and therefore not a messenger as well[^6]. Nonetheless, our Lord “sent” him to his people. Interestingly, Amir al-Muminin ‘Ali b.

Abi Talib, ‘alaihi al-salam , proclaimed that he was a “likeness” of him. Imam al-Tabari (d. 310 H) records: حدثنا محمد بن المثنى، قال: ثنا محمد بن جعفر، قال: ثنا شعبة، عن القاسم بن أبي بزة، عن أبي الطفيل، قال: سمعت عليا وسألوه عن ذي القرنين أنبيا كان؟ قال: كان عبدا صالحا، أحب الله فأحبه، وناصح الله فنصحه، فبعثه الله إلى قومه، فضربوه ضربتين في رأسه، فسمي ذا القرنين، وفيكم اليوم مثله. Muhammad b. al-Muthanna – Muhammad b. Ja’far – Shu’bah – al-Qasim b.

Abi Bazzah – Abu al-Tufayl: I heard ‘Ali while they asked him about Dhu al-Qarnayn: “Was he a prophet?” He replied, “He was a righteous servant. He loved Allah and Allah loved him. He sought the guidance of Allah and He guided him. Then, Allah SENT him to his people . But, they struck him twice on his head. As a result, he was named Dhu al-Qarnayn. And among you TODAY is an example of him .[^7] Concerning this athar , Prof.

Ibn Yasin states: وسنده صحيح Its chain is sahih .[^8] And Imam Ibn Salam (d. 224 H) also explains it in this manner: وإنما اخترت هذا التفسير على الأول لحديث عن علي نفسه هو عندي مفسر له ولنا وذلك أنه ذكر ذا القرنين فقال: دعا قومه إلى عبادة الله فضربوه على قرنيه ضربتين وفيكم مثله.