The Story of Prophet Adam AS

I try to collect all the accounts regarding Nabi Adam AS.

There is an excellent book by Sheikh Abdul-Sahib Al-‘ameli called “The life and tales of Prophet Adam AS”. It can be downloaded and read here.

Nabi is an Arabic word for “prophet”. AS is an abbreviation for “alayhi salam” meaning “on him be peace”.

We can break the events of Nabi Adam AS into the following sections:

There is a small short handout of the relevant Quranic verses for this topic here.

The World Prior to the creation of Nabi Adam AS

ۚ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ الَّذِي تَسَاءَلُونَ بِهِ وَالْأَرْحَامَ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيبًا 1 يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُم مِّن نَّفْسٍ وَاحِدَةٍ وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَبَثَّ مِنْهُمَا رِجَالًا كَثِيرًا وَنِسَاءًوَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ الَّذِي تَسَاءَلُونَ بِهِ وَالْأَرْحَامَإِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيبًا 4|1|O people! Fear your Lord, who created you from a single soul, and created from it its mate, and propagated from them many men and women. And revere God whom you ask about, and the parents. Surely, God is Watchful over you.

It would seem that Nabi Adam AS is the first of the humans as we know them. So prior to Nabi Adam AS, there was no humanity.

26 وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا الْإِنسَانَ مِن صَلْصَالٍ مِّنْ حَمَإٍ مَّسْنُونٍ 15|26|We created the human being from clay, from moulded mud.

27 وَالْجَانَّ خَلَقْنَاهُ مِن قَبْلُ مِن نَّارِ السَّمُومِ 15|27|And the jinn We created before, from piercing fire.

28 وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ إِنِّي خَالِقٌ بَشَرًا مِّن صَلْصَالٍ مِّنْ حَمَإٍ مَّسْنُونٍ 15|28|Your Lord said to the angels, “I am creating a human being from clay, from moulded mud.” We can see that prior to humanity, the Jinn existed and the angels, and the universe itself. The first verse above says we created “the human”, referring to Nabi Adam AS, from clay. Therefore clay must have existed prior to humanity.

Creation of Nabi Adam AS

38|71|Your Lord said to the angels, “I am creating a human being from clay. 38|72|When I have formed him, and breathed into him of My spirit, fall prostrate before him. 15|29|“When I have formed him, and breathed into him of My spirit, fall down prostrating before him.”

As said in the verses above, Allah created a single human being from Clay. He then “breathed” into him a spirit. The spirit is not part of God, but rather belongs to God. The spirit (ruh) was created by Him, and Allah had breathed of it into Adam and Jesus. He only said: “My ruh” just like He said: “My house”, “My slave”, “My garden”. “My fire”, and “My earth” (From Sheikh Sudaq Shiite Creed). This view of the Spirit is confirmed by the saying of Imam Jafar Al Sadiq AS in Al Kafi :

H 338, Ch. 21, h1 A number of our people have narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Isa from ibn abu ‘Umayr from ’Udhayna from al-Ahwal who said the following: “Once I asked (Imam) abu ‘Abd Allah, about the spirit (Ruh) which was in Adam as mentioned in the Holy Quran, ‘. . . when it was properly shaped and I blew My Spirit into it’ (15:29). (Imam) abu ‘Abd Allah replied, ‘This is a created spirit and the spirit in Jesus is created.’” H 340, Ch. 21, h3 Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from Muhammad ibn Khalid from Qasim ibn ‘Urwa from ‘Abd al-Hamid al- Ta’i from Muhammad ibn Muslim who said the following: “I asked (Imam) abu ‘Abd Allah, about the words of Allah, the Most Holy, the Most High, ‘I have blown My Spirit into it.’ (15:29) “The Imam replied, ‘The spirit has motion like winds. It is called spirit (Ruh) because the word is a derivative of Rih (wind). This derivative is selected because the spirits are similar or are of the genus of the Rih (wind). He has spoken about it in a possessive case that refers to His Own Self; He selected it from among the other spirits just as He has said about a house from among the houses ‘My house’ and to a messenger from among the messengers ‘My friend’ and so on. All such things are created, invented, newly produced and are cherished by the Lord.’”

It would seem that God had designed and created everything, and God then informed the Angels and others around them that He was going to put an authority structure on Earth. So the Earth already existed by this point and the Angels and others are also aware of the short comings in human like behaviour.

2|30|When your Lord said to the angels, “I am placing a successor on earth.” They said, “Will You place in it someone who will cause corruption in it and shed blood, while we declare Your praises and sanctify You?” He said, “I know what you do not know.”

By successor it is meant authority figure, the angels were surprised that Allah would choose man, as they seemed to know that their behaviour can be awful. The angels were thinking it should be one of them, as they are dedicated worshippers.

The Commander of the Faithful Ali Ibn Abu Talib [AS] said,

“Allah wanted to create a creature by His hand, and that was after the jinn and the Nasnaas (a half-human half-beast species) remained in the Earth for thousands of years. And it was His will to create Adam beyond the confines of the heavens.

Allah said to the angels, ‘Look at the inhabitants of the Earth, My creatures, the jinn and the Nasnaas.’

So when they saw what they were doing in acts of disobedience, the shedding of blood, and unjustly spreading corruption in the Earth, that became significant to the angels. They became angry at the inhabitants of the Earth, and they could not control their anger.

They said, ‘Our Lord, You are the Almighty, the Able, the Powerful, the Supreme, the One of Great Consequence. These are your weak, primitive creatures. They tumble within Your grasp, they live within Your sustenance, they enjoy Your pardon, and they disobey You with these great sins that You do not make them regretful for, nor do you get angry, nor do You seek vengeance for Yourself when You hear from them or when You see. But this has become significant to us.’

So when He heard that from the angels, He said, ‘Surely, I will establish a vicegerent upon the Earth (2:30) who will be My authority on the Earth upon My creation.’

The angels said, ‘May You be glorified.’ ‘Will You place upon it one who will cause corruption therein (2:30) just as the children of the jinn caused corruption, and shed blood just as the jinn shed, and be envious and disobedient? Appoint that vicegerent from us, for we are not envious, nor are we disobedient, nor do we shed blood.’ ‘And we will declare Your praise and sanctify You’ (2:30)

Allah said, ‘I know what you know not’ (2:30). ‘I want to create a creation with My two hands, and make from his progeny prophets, messengers, and righteous servants who are guided Imams, and I will make them vicegerents upon My creation in My Earth. They will prohibit them from disobeying Me, and warn them of My punishment, and guide them to My obedience, and put them upon the path of My cause, and be My Proof upon them. I will remove the Nasnaas from My Earth and purify it from them, and I will move the evil, disobedient jinn away from My goodly, preferred creatures and settle them in the space beyond the Earth so that they do not tyrannise this race of My creatures. I will put a barrier between the jinn and My creatures so that this race of My creatures will not see the jinn, nor sit with them, nor mix with them.’”

فحدثني أبي عن الحسن بن محبوب عن عمرو بن (أبى ط) مقدام عن ثابت الحذاء عن جابر بن يزيد الجعفي عن أبي جعفر محمد بن علي بن الحسين عن أبيه عن آبائه عليهم السلام عن أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام قال إن الله تبارك وتعالى أراد ان يخلق خلقا بيده وذلك بعد ما مضى من الجن والنسناس في الأرض سبعة آلاف سنة وكان من شأنه خلق آدم كشط(2) عن اطباق السماوات قال للملائكة انظروا إلى أهل الأرض من خلقي من الجن والنسناس فلما رأوا ما يعملون فيها من المعاصي وسفك الدماء والفساد في الأرض بغير الحق عظم ذلك عليهم وغضبوا وتأسنوا على أهل الأرض ولم يملكوا غضبهم قالوا ربنا إنك أنت العزيز القادر الجبار القاهر العظيم الشأن وهذا خلقك الضعيف الذليل يتقلبون في قبضتك ويعيشون برزقك ويتمتعون بعافيتك وهم يعصونك بمثل هذه الذنوب العظام لا تأسف عليهم ولا تغضب ولا تنتقم لنفسك لما تسمع منهم وترى وقد عظم ذلك علينا وأكبرناه فيك قال فلما سمع ذلك من الملائكة قال “إِنِّي جَاعِلٌ فِي الأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً” يكون حجة لي في الأرض على خلقي فقالت الملائكة سبحانك “أَتَجْعَلُ فِيهَا مَن يُفْسِدُ فِيهَا” كما أفسد بنو الجان ويسفكون الدماء كما سفك بنو الجان ويتحاسدون ويتباغضون فاجعل ذلك الخليفة منا فانا لا نتحاسد ولا نتباغض ولا نسفك الدماء ونسبح بحمدك ونقدس لك قال عز وجل “إِنِّي أَعْلَمُ مَا لاَ تَعْلَمُونَ” اني أريد ان أخلق خلقا بيدي واجعل من ذريته أنبياء ومرسلين وعبادا صالحين أئمة مهتدين واجعلهم خلفاء على خلقي في أرضي ينهونهم عن معصيتي وينذرونهم من عذابي ويهدونهم إلى طاعتي ويسلكون بهم طريق سبيلي وأجعلهم لي حجة عليهم وأبيد النساس من ارضي وأطهرها منهم وانقل مردة الجن العصاة من بريتي وخلقي وخيرتي واسكنهم في الهواء في أقطار الأرض فلا يجاورون نسل خلقي وأجعل بين الجن وبين خلقي حجابا فلا يرى نسل خلقي الجن ولا يجالسونهم ولا يخالطونهم

(Tafsir al-Qummi, Surat al-Baqara, verse 34)

31وَعَلَّمَ آدَمَ الْأَسْمَاءَ كُلَّهَا ثُمَّ عَرَضَهُمْ عَلَى الْمَلَائِكَةِ فَقَالَ أَنبِئُونِي بِأَسْمَاءِ هَٰؤُلَاءِ إِن كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ 2|31|And He taught Adam the names, all of them; then he presented them to the angels, and said, “Tell Me the names of these, if you are sincere.”

Nabi Adam AS has been given a gift of knowledge. The origin of knowledge is Allah. This is in preparation for him being Allah’s representative on Earth.

32قَالُوا سُبْحَانَكَ لَا عِلْمَ لَنَا إِلَّا مَا عَلَّمْتَنَا ۖ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَلِيمُ الْحَكِيمُ 2|32|They said, “Glory be to You! We have no knowledge except what You have taught us. It is you who are the Knowledgeable, the Wise.” 33قَالَ يَا آدَمُ أَنبِئْهُم بِأَسْمَائِهِمْ ۖ فَلَمَّا أَنبَأَهُم بِأَسْمَائِهِمْ قَالَ أَلَمْ أَقُل لَّكُمْ إِنِّي أَعْلَمُ غَيْبَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَأَعْلَمُ مَا تُبْدُونَ وَمَا كُنتُمْ تَكْتُمُونَ 2|33|He said, “O Adam, tell them their names.” And when he told them their names, He said, “Did I not tell you that I know the secrets of the heavens and the earth, and that I know what you reveal and what you conceal?”

Nabi Adam AS had been prepared in terms of his knowledge for the challenge of being Allah’s representative.

The prostration of everything to Nabi Adam AS

34وَإِذْ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ أَبَىٰ وَاسْتَكْبَرَ وَكَانَ مِنَ الْكَافِرِينَ 2|34|And We said to the angels, “Bow down to Adam.” They bowed down, except for Satan. He refused, was arrogant, and was one of the disbelievers. 11 وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ صَوَّرْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ لَمْ يَكُن مِّنَ السَّاجِدِينَ 7|11|We created you, then We shaped you, then We said to the angels, “Bow down before Adam;” so they bowed down, except for Satan; he was not of those who bowed down. ۖ قَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِّنْهُ خَلَقْتَنِي مِن نَّارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِن طِينٍ 12 قَالَ مَا مَنَعَكَ أَلَّا تَسْجُدَ إِذْ أَمَرْتُكَقَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِّنْهُ خَلَقْتَنِي مِن نَّارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِن طِينٍ 7|12|He said, “What prevented you from bowing down when I have commanded you?” He said, “I am better than he; You created me from fire, and You created him from mud.” 13 قَالَ فَاهْبِطْ مِنْهَا فَمَا يَكُونُ لَكَ أَن تَتَكَبَّرَ فِيهَا فَاخْرُجْ إِنَّكَ مِنَ الصَّاغِرِينَ 7|13|He said, “Get down from it! It is not for you to act arrogantly in it. Get out! You are one of the lowly!” 14 قَالَ أَنظِرْنِي إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ 7|14|He said, “Give me respite, until the Day they are resurrected.” 15 قَالَ إِنَّكَ مِنَ الْمُنظَرِينَ 7|15|He said, “You are of those given respite.” 16 قَالَ فَبِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأَقْعُدَنَّ لَهُمْ صِرَاطَكَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ 7|16|He said, “Because you have lured me, I will ambush them on Your straight path. ۖ وَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمْ شَاكِرِينَ 17 ثُمَّ لَآتِيَنَّهُم مِّن بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ وَعَنْ أَيْمَانِهِمْ وَعَن شَمَائِلِهِمْوَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمْ شَاكِرِينَ 7|17|Then I will come at them from before them, and from behind them, and from their right, and from their left; and you will not find most of them appreciative.” ۖ لَّمَن تَبِعَكَ مِنْهُمْ لَأَمْلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ 18 قَالَ اخْرُجْ مِنْهَا مَذْءُومًا مَّدْحُورًالَّمَن تَبِعَكَ مِنْهُمْ لَأَمْلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ 7|18|He said, “Get out of it, despised and vanquished. Whoever among them follows you—I will fill up Hell with you all. 19 وَيَا آدَمُ اسْكُنْ أَنتَ وَزَوْجُكَ الْجَنَّةَ فَكُلَا مِنْ حَيْثُ شِئْتُمَا وَلَا تَقْرَبَا هَٰذِهِ الشَّجَرَةَ فَتَكُونَا مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ

30 فَسَجَدَ الْمَلَائِكَةُ كُلُّهُمْ أَجْمَعُونَ 15|30|So the angels prostrated themselves, all together. 31 إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ أَبَىٰ أَن يَكُونَ مَعَ السَّاجِدِينَ 15|31|Except for Satan. He refused to be among those who prostrated themselves. 32 قَالَ يَا إِبْلِيسُ مَا لَكَ أَلَّا تَكُونَ مَعَ السَّاجِدِينَ 15|32|He said, “O Satan, what kept you from being among those who prostrated themselves?” 33 قَالَ لَمْ أَكُن لِّأَسْجُدَ لِبَشَرٍ خَلَقْتَهُ مِن صَلْصَالٍ مِّنْ حَمَإٍ مَّسْنُونٍ 15|33|He said, “I am not about to prostrate myself before a human being, whom You created from clay, from molded mud.” 34 قَالَ فَاخْرُجْ مِنْهَا فَإِنَّكَ رَجِيمٌ 15|34|He said, “Then get out of here, for you are an outcast”. 35 وَإِنَّ عَلَيْكَ اللَّعْنَةَ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ 15|35|“And the curse will be upon you until the Day of Judgment.” 36 قَالَ رَبِّ فَأَنظِرْنِي إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ 15|36|He said, “My Lord, reprieve me until the Day they are resurrected.” 37 قَالَ فَإِنَّكَ مِنَ الْمُنظَرِينَ 15|37|He said, “You are of those reprieved.” 38 إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ الْوَقْتِ الْمَعْلُومِ 15|38|“Until the Day of the time appointed.” 39 قَالَ رَبِّ بِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأُزَيِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ 15|39|He said, “My Lord, since You have lured me away, I will glamorize for them on earth, and I will lure them all away.” 40 إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ الْمُخْلَصِينَ 15|40|“Except for Your sincere servants among them.” 41 قَالَ هَٰذَا صِرَاطٌ عَلَيَّ مُسْتَقِيمٌ 15|41|He said, “This is a right way with Me.” 42 إِنَّ عِبَادِي لَيْسَ لَكَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُلْطَانٌ إِلَّا مَنِ اتَّبَعَكَ مِنَ الْغَاوِينَ 15|42|“Over My servants you have no authority, except for the sinners who follow you.” 43 وَإِنَّ جَهَنَّمَ لَمَوْعِدُهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ 15|43|And Hell is the meeting-place for them all.

73. فَسَجَدَ الْمَلَائِكَةُ كُلُّهُمْ أَجْمَعُونَ 38|73|So the angels fell prostrate, all of them. 74. إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ اسْتَكْبَرَ وَكَانَ مِنَ الْكَافِرِينَ 38|74|Except for Satan. He was too proud, and one of the faithless. 75. قَالَ يَا إِبْلِيسُ مَا مَنَعَكَ أَن تَسْجُدَ لِمَا خَلَقْتُ بِيَدَيَّ ۖ أَسْتَكْبَرْتَ أَمْ كُنتَ مِنَ الْعَالِينَ 38|75|He said, “O Satan, what prevented you from prostrating before what I created with My Own hands? Are you too proud, or were you one of the exalted?” 76. قَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِّنْهُ ۖ خَلَقْتَنِي مِن نَّارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِن طِينٍ 38|76|He said, “I am better than he; You created me from fire, and You created him from clay.” 77. قَالَ فَاخْرُجْ مِنْهَا فَإِنَّكَ رَجِيمٌ 38|77|He said, “Then get out of here! You are an outcast! 78. وَإِنَّ عَلَيْكَ لَعْنَتِي إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ 38|78|And My curse will be upon you until the Day of Judgement.” 79. قَالَ رَبِّ فَأَنظِرْنِي إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ 38|79|He said, “Lord, defer me until the Day they are resurrected.” 80. قَالَ فَإِنَّكَ مِنَ الْمُنظَرِينَ 38|80|He said, “You are one of those deferred. 81. إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ الْوَقْتِ الْمَعْلُومِ 38|81|Until the Day of the Time Appointed.” 82. قَالَ فَبِعِزَّتِكَ لَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ 38|82|He said, “By Your majesty, I will seduce them all. 83. إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ الْمُخْلَصِينَ 38|83|Except for your loyal servants among them.” 84. قَالَ فَالْحَقُّ وَالْحَقَّ أَقُولُ 38|84|He said, “The truth is, and I say the truth. 85. لَأَمْلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنكَ وَمِمَّن تَبِعَكَ مِنْهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ 38|85|I will fill Hell with you, and with every one of them who follows you.”

116 وَإِذْ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ أَبَىٰ 20|116|And when We said to the angels, “Bow down to Adam.” They bowed down, except for Satan; he refused.

The Test of the Tree

35وَقُلْنَا يَا آدَمُ اسْكُنْ أَنتَ وَزَوْجُكَ الْجَنَّةَ وَكُلَا مِنْهَا رَغَدًا حَيْثُ شِئْتُمَا وَلَا تَقْرَبَا هَٰذِهِ الشَّجَرَةَ فَتَكُونَا مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ 2|35|We said, “O Adam, inhabit the Garden, you and your spouse, and eat from it freely as you please, but do not approach this tree, lest you become wrongdoers.”

7|19|And you, Adam, inhabit the Garden, you and your wife, and eat whatever you wish; but do not approach this tree, lest you become sinners.”

117 فَقُلْنَا يَا آدَمُ إِنَّ هَٰذَا عَدُوٌّ لَّكَ وَلِزَوْجِكَ فَلَا يُخْرِجَنَّكُمَا مِنَ الْجَنَّةِ فَتَشْقَىٰ 20|117|We said, “O Adam, this is an enemy to you and to your wife. So do not let him make you leave the Garden, for then you will suffer.

118 إِنَّ لَكَ أَلَّا تَجُوعَ فِيهَا وَلَا تَعْرَىٰ 20|118|In it you will never go hungry, nor be naked. 119 وَأَنَّكَ لَا تَظْمَأُ فِيهَا وَلَا تَضْحَىٰ 20|119|Nor will you be thirsty in it, nor will you swelter.”

So at this point, the universe is created, and Allah has decided to establish a representative on Earth. Allah has taught and prepared this representative and created him. Nabi Adam AS exists within a garden, a type of paradise. It is not this planet, nor is it the paradise of the afterlife. It is like a training ground to prepare him for the challenges that await him on Earth. The garden appears to have everything they need. It is important to remember that Allah has already said He wanted Nabi Adam AS to be a representative on Earth, so his fate was never to stay in this garden.

H 4707, Ch. 91, h 2 Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn abu Nasr from al-Husayn ibn Muyassir who has said the following: “I asked abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, about the garden of Adam, ‘Alayhi al-Salam. He said, ‘It was a garden of the gardens of the world on which the sun and moon rise. Had it been of the gardens of the hereafter, he would have never been expelled there from.’”

When Allah commanded everyone to bow to Nabi Adam AS, He knew that Satan would not. He knew that he should not. Satan has a character and features that meant it would not be just or right for him to be at the same level as the angels and others who followed Allah’s command. The only way to expose this reality to us is via these commands and subsequent obedience and disobedience. H 381, Ch. 26, h4 Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from al-Mukhtar ibn Muhammad al-Hamadani and Muhammad ibn al-Hassan from ‘Abd Allah ibn al-Hassan al-‘Alawi both from al-Fath ibn Yazid al-Jurjani from abu al-Hassan, recipient of divine supreme covenant, who said the following: “Allah has two kinds of will and wish. He has a definite will and an intended will. He prohibits but He wants it. He commands but He does not want it. Consider that He prohibited Adam and his spouse from eating of the tree but He wanted them to eat. Had He not wanted their wish would not have materialized against Allah’s wish. He commanded Ibrahim to slaughter Ishaq (Isaac) but He did not want it to happen. Had He wanted it the wish of Ibrahim would not have materialized against the wish of Allah, the Most High.” H 380, Ch. 26, h3 Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from Ali ibn Ma‘bad from Wasil ibn Sulayman from ‘Abd Allah ibn Sinan who said the following: “I heard (Imam) abu ‘Abd Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant, saying, ‘Allah commanded but did not want. He wanted but did not command. He commanded Satan to prostrate but He did not want it (Satan to prostrate). If He wanted Satan would have prostrated. He prohibited Adam from eating of the tree and wanted him to eat. Had He not wanted he would not eat.’”

So in this garden we have Satan, Nabi Adam AS and Lady Eve. Satan reverts to his true nature and tries to deceive Nabi Adam AS in order to prove himself right that humans are innately evil and he is better for not bowing to them.

7|20|But Satan whispered to them, to reveal to them their nakedness, which was invisible to them. He said, “Your Lord has only forbidden you this tree, lest you become angels, or become immortals.” 21 وَقَاسَمَهُمَا إِنِّي لَكُمَا لَمِنَ النَّاصِحِينَ 7|21|And he swore to them, “I am a sincere adviser to you.” ۚ فَلَمَّا ذَاقَا الشَّجَرَةَ بَدَتْ لَهُمَا سَوْآتُهُمَا وَطَفِقَا يَخْصِفَانِ عَلَيْهِمَا مِن وَرَقِ الْجَنَّةِ ۖ وَنَادَاهُمَا رَبُّهُمَا أَلَمْ أَنْهَكُمَا عَن تِلْكُمَا الشَّجَرَةِ وَأَقُل لَّكُمَا إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لَكُمَا عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ 22 فَدَلَّاهُمَا بِغُرُورٍفَلَمَّا ذَاقَا الشَّجَرَةَ بَدَتْ لَهُمَا سَوْآتُهُمَا وَطَفِقَا يَخْصِفَانِ عَلَيْهِمَا مِن وَرَقِ الْجَنَّةِوَنَادَاهُمَا رَبُّهُمَا أَلَمْ أَنْهَكُمَا عَن تِلْكُمَا الشَّجَرَةِ وَأَقُل لَّكُمَا إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لَكُمَا عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ 7|22|So he lured them with deceit. And when they tasted the tree, their nakedness became evident to them, and they began covering themselves with the leaves of the Garden. And their Lord called out to them, “Did I not forbid you from this tree, and say to you that Satan is a sworn enemy to you?” 23 قَالَا رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَا أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ 7|23|They said, “Our Lord, we have done wrong to ourselves. Unless You forgive us, and have mercy on us, we will be among the losers.” ۖ وَلَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ مُسْتَقَرٌّ وَمَتَاعٌ إِلَىٰ حِينٍ 24 قَالَ اهْبِطُوا بَعْضُكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ عَدُوٌّوَلَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ مُسْتَقَرٌّ وَمَتَاعٌ إِلَىٰ حِينٍ

20|120|But Satan whispered to him. He said, “O Adam, shall I show you the Tree of Immortality, and a kingdom that never decays?”

ۚ وَعَصَىٰ آدَمُ رَبَّهُ فَغَوَىٰ 121 فَأَكَلَا مِنْهَا فَبَدَتْ لَهُمَا سَوْآتُهُمَا وَطَفِقَا يَخْصِفَانِ عَلَيْهِمَا مِن وَرَقِ الْجَنَّةِوَعَصَىٰ آدَمُ رَبَّهُ فَغَوَىٰ 20|121|And so they ate from it; whereupon their bodies became visible to them, and they started covering themselves with the leaves of the Garden. Thus Adam disobeyed his Lord, and fell. 122 ثُمَّ اجْتَبَاهُ رَبُّهُ فَتَابَ عَلَيْهِ وَهَدَىٰ 20|122|But then his Lord recalled him, and pardoned him, and guided him.

1. According to the experts of Islamic jurisprudence, the orders given by Allah are of two types:

Al-amr al-mawlawi, a legislative command. Such orders must be implemented; and, if someone disobeys such a command, then he is committing a sin and is liable to be punished. For example, the command to “say the daily prayers” or “do not eat the pork” is of such nature. Neglecting the daily prayers or eating of the pork is a sin and Allah can rightly punish the sinner.

Al-amr al-irshadi, an advisory command. Such orders are of advisory nature; their purpose is to inform the people about its consequences. However, if someone disobeys such an order, then he is not committing a sin; of course, he will have to face the consequences of not following the advice. For example, the command to “say bismillah when you slaughter the chicken” is of advisory nature.

Now, if someone slaughters the chicken and neglects the saying of “bismillah,” then has he committed a sin? No, he has not committed a sin nor is he liable for a punishment for not saying the “bismillah”at that time. However, he will lose the right to eat that chicken; that chicken cannot be eaten by a Muslim.

Another example: a person comes to his doctor complaining of cough. The doctor advises his patient to drink a certain medicine, a cough syrup. Now if the patient ignores that advice, then he is not committing a sin or a crime; but he will surely suffer the consequence — his illness will be prolonged and his health might deteriorate.

Conclusion: not all commands of Allah are of obligatory or prohibitive nature. The advice given to Adam and Hawwa was not of the legislative nature. It was not that that particular tree and its fruit themselves were forbidden. The prohibition of going near that tree and eating its fruit was al-amr al-irshadi. And going against such an order is not a sin; at most, the doer will have to face the consequences of ignoring that advice. In case of Adam and his wife, the consequence they faced was cancellation of their tenure as guests of Allah in the Paradise and its comforts. Remember that they were not supposed to stay in the Paradise forever; they were created for the earth, and their stay in the Paradise was meant to be temporary.

2. The Garden/Paradise is not the place for test and trial. It is this earth on which human beings have been destined to go through test and trial by obeying the commands of Allah. The concept of sinning in case of human beings is connected to the worldly life.

In the story of Adam itself, Allah makes this point clear when He orders Adam to go to the earth—He said,

“You both get down from this [Garden], some of you being the enemies of the other. [On the earth], a guidance will certainly come to you from Me, and then whosoever follows My guidance, he shall not go astray nor will he be unhappy. But whosoever turns away from My reminder, then he shall surely have a wretched life and we shall resurrect him blind.” (20:126)

The order given to Adam in Heaven is not same as the orders given to human beings in this world—it is disobedience of the orders given on this earth that constitutes sin.

Finally, the Shaytan himself knows that he does not have the power to mislead the prophets, the messengers, and those who are graced with purity by Almighty Himself. When he was given respite by Allah, he declared the following:

“So I swear by Your Might (O Lord) that I will surely mislead them all together except the devoted servants of Yours from among them.” (38:82-3; 15:39-40)

And Allah responds to him by saying,

“…As for my servants, you have no power over them except those who follow you from among the misled people…” (15:41)

The Satan himself knew the limitation of his influence upon the chosen servants of Allah in this world.

3. Those who believe that Adam committed a sin, describe the eating of the forbidden fruit as the “sin” and Adam’s expulsion from the heaven as the “punishment”. However, this relationship between the sin and its punishment is not valid because of two reasons:

Firstly, Adam was destined to come to the earth anyway. Allah had declared even before creating Adam that “I want to place a vicegerent on the earth.” So coming of Adam to the earth is not apunishment; whether or not he ate the forbidden fruit, Adam would have come to the earth anyway. So that was not a punishment.

Secondly, if coming of Adam to the earth was a “punishment” of eating the forbidden fruit, then he should have been returned to the paradise after Allah “forgave” him. Forgiveness means “canceling the punishment”—Adam should have been taken back to the paradise. This did not happen, which proves that Adam’s coming to the earth was not a “punishment”; and eating was not a “sin”.

4. What about the words in the story Adam that imply that he committed sin?

After studying the issue of ‘ismah from the Qur’anic point of view, if we come across such words we have to interpret them in a way that they are in harmony with the other verses of the Qur’an. Now let us look at three such words that have occurred in the story of Adam.

First: the word ”¨alimeen الظالمين” is from ¨ulm ظلم. This word has four meanings: (a) to put something in a wrong place; (b) to oppress; (c) to make haste; and (d) to come to harm.

We see that the last two meanings of the word are in harmony with what we explained about ‘ismah. For example, verse 2:35 would read like this:

We said, “O Adam, Dwell you and your wife in the Garden and eat from it [freely] as many [things] as you wish; but do not approach this tree, otherwise you will be one of those who put themselves into harm.”

Here, “harm” would mean facing the difficulties of the earthly life and losing the comforts of the heaven.

or

“…otherwise, you will be one of those who make haste.” Here, “making haste” would mean that they were eventually to go to the earth but by eating from the forbidden tree they hastened their departure to a place where they will lose the comforts of the Garden.

This meaning of the word ¨alimeen الظالمين is supported by the next verse that says that the Shaytan “got them out from the state [of comfort] in which they had been.” Also the verse 20:117 supports this interpretation: “O Adam! this [Shaytan] is an enemy to you and your wife. So do not let him expel you from the Garden, otherwise you will be uncomfortable: in it [i.e., the Garden] you shall neither be hungry nor naked, and you shall neither be thirsty therein nor struck by the sun’s rays.” In other words, here food,clothing and shelter are readily provided for you; you will lose these comforts on the earth. Here everything is provided but there you will have to work for yourselves.

Second: the word عَصَى means “disobeyed”. This does not necessarily imply sin because disobedience can be attributed to two types of commands: al- amr al-mawlawi (a legislative command) or al-amr al-irshadi (an advisory command). If a person goes against the advisory command, then he has “disobeyed” but not “sinned”. We have already explained that commands of Allah do not always have the force of obligation or prohibition. And, by keeping in mind those verses which prove the ‘ismah, we have no choice but to interpret this word as “disobeyed the advisory command”.

Third: Similarly, the word غَوَى means “he erred”. But this does not necessarily mean sin. It can easily be applied to at-tarku ‘l-awlawhich is possible for a prophet to do. At-tarku ‘l-awla (ترك الأولى) means “leaving the more appropriate behaviour”. “Adam erred” would mean that even if the command of Allah did not carry the force of legislative prohibition, still Adam should have obeyed it. In disregarding the advisory command of Allah, Adam is guilty not of a sin but of not living up to the appropriate behaviour which is expected from a prophet or messenger of God.

5. If Adam did not commit a sin, then why does Allah talk about repentance for Adam and forgiveness from Himself, and uses so strong words as

الظالمين and عصى etc?

Firstly, When a prophet like Adam commits at-tarku ‘l-awla, it is quite appropriate for him to ask Allah for pardon—not necessarily for a sin but for an inappropriate behaviour. So “repenting” does not necessarily mean that Adam must have committed a sin; it is quite appropriate rather advisable even after committing at-tarku ‘l-awla.

Secondly, the use of harsh words by Allah in describing the story of Adam is acceptable by keeping in mind the status of Adam. Although Adam did not commit a sin, it was improper for him to adopt an inappropriate behaviour. The people with high ranks are expected to live by the standard that is higher than that of the normal human beings. As the saying goes: the virtuous deeds of the pious are considered ‘sins’ by those who are nearest to God — hasanâtu ‘l-abrâr sayyi’âtu ‘l-muqarrabin.

The expulsion to this planet

36فَأَزَلَّهُمَا الشَّيْطَانُ عَنْهَا فَأَخْرَجَهُمَا مِمَّا كَانَا فِيهِ ۖ وَقُلْنَا اهْبِطُوا بَعْضُكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ عَدُوٌّ ۖ وَلَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ مُسْتَقَرٌّ وَمَتَاعٌ إِلَىٰ حِينٍ 2|36|But Satan caused them to slip from it, and caused them to depart the state they were in. We said, “Go down, some of you enemies of one another. And you will have residence on earth, and enjoyment for a while.” 37فَتَلَقَّىٰ آدَمُ مِن رَّبِّهِ كَلِمَاتٍ فَتَابَ عَلَيْهِ ۚ إِنَّهُ هُوَ التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ 2|37|Then Adam received words from his Lord, so He relented towards him. He is the Relenting, the Merciful. 38قُلْنَا اهْبِطُوا مِنْهَا جَمِيعًا ۖ فَإِمَّا يَأْتِيَنَّكُم مِّنِّي هُدًى فَمَن تَبِعَ هُدَايَ فَلَا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ 2|38|We said, “Go down from it, all of you. Yet whenever guidance comes to you from Me, then whoever follows My guidance—they have nothing to fear, nor shall they grieve.

7|24|He said, “Fall, some of you enemies to one another. On earth you will have residence and livelihood for a while.”

25 قَالَ فِيهَا تَحْيَوْنَ وَفِيهَا تَمُوتُونَ وَمِنْهَا تُخْرَجُونَ 7|25|He said, “In it you will live, and in it you will die, and from it you will be brought out.”

ۖ بَعْضُكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ عَدُوٌّ ۖ فَإِمَّا يَأْتِيَنَّكُم مِّنِّي هُدًى فَمَنِ اتَّبَعَ هُدَايَ فَلَا يَضِلُّ وَلَا يَشْقَىٰ 123 قَالَ اهْبِطَا مِنْهَا جَمِيعًابَعْضُكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ عَدُوٌّفَإِمَّا يَأْتِيَنَّكُم مِّنِّي هُدًى فَمَنِ اتَّبَعَ هُدَايَ فَلَا يَضِلُّ وَلَا يَشْقَىٰ 20|123|He said, “Go down from it, altogether; some of you enemies of some others. But whenever guidance comes to you from Me, whoever follows My guidance, will not go astray, nor suffer. In the final part of the story, Nabi Adam AS, lady Eve and Satan are all expelled from that paradise like garden to this Earth. That previous state can be seen as the last phase of teaching and a trial or example for Nabi Adam AS. 6. Nabi Adam AS Children

5|27|And relate to them the true story of Adam’s two sons: when they offered an offering, and it was accepted from one of them, but it was not accepted from the other. He Said, “I will kill you.” He Said, “God accepts only from the righteous.” 5|28|“If you extend your hand to kill me, I will not extend my hand to kill you; for I fear God, Lord of the Worlds.”

There seems to be a moral message here. Firstly that self preservation is not the be all and end all. The highest priority for an individual is not long life, but rather a life of making the right decisions. It is also better to be oppressed, than be the oppressor.

5|29|“I would rather you bear my sin and your sin, and you become among the inmates of the Fire. Such is the reward for the evildoers.”

5|30|Then His soul prompted him to kill his brother, so he killed him, and became one of the losers.

5|31|Then God sent a raven digging the ground, to show him how to cover his brother’s corpse. He said, “Woe to me! I was unable to be like this raven, and bury my brother’s corpse.” So he became full of regrets.

5|32|Because of that We ordained for the Children of Israel: that whoever kills a person—unless it is for murder or corruption on earth—it is as if he killed the whole of mankind; and whoever saves it, it is as if he saved the whole of mankind. Our messengers came to them with clarifications, but even after that, many of them continue to commit excesses in the land.

Nabi Adam AS had several children, Cain (Qabel), Abel (Habil), Seth. We have reports that Allah sent down wives for each of the sons of Nabi Adam AS. We do not accept the theory that they had incestuous relationships.

According to Zurarah people asked Imam Ja‘far as-Sadiq, “How did the lineage of Adam come into being because those who live with us (Sunnis) say that Allah commanded Adam to marry his sons to his daughters.

Thus, humanity has descended from brothers and sisters. Imam said, “Allah is Purified and Highly Elevated from such kind of action. Those who say this have blamed Allah for the unlawful origin of His exalted creation like His friends, Prophets, Mu’mins and Muslims. This implies that Allah was unable to create through lawful ways although He had taken oath from them that they would be lawful, clean and purified. I swear by Allah news reached me of some animal that did not recognize their sisters and had intercourse with them. When later they came to know they bit their own sexual organs and died. In the same way, a person unknowingly committed incest with his mother. When later he realized his mistake, he killed himself. So how could one accept it when one is aware of the reality?

But there is a group, as you know, that has left the knowledge of Prophet and his Ahl al-Bayt, and they learn from those who have not been appointed by Allah, nor do have any divine knowledge. These people are ignorant and have deviated. They have no idea of the initialization of creation and subsequent developments. It is a pity they are ignorant of something regarding which there is no difference of opinion between the scholars of hijaz and Iraq.

Two thousand years before the creation of Adam Allah ordered the Pen (Qalam) to inscribe on al-Lawh al-Mahfu¨ (the protected tablet) all that was going to occur until the Day of Judgment. It included all the divine books. And in the books, Allah has made unlawful the sisters for their brothers. And at present all the four books. We see in Torah, Injeel, Zabur and Qur’an that were revealed by Allah to His Prophets through al-Lawh al-Mahfuz that nowhere has Allah made the sisters lawful for her brother. Whosoever says so supports the arguments of Magians. What is basis of their argument? May Allah destroys them.

Adam had 70 twins. Every twin consisted of a boy and a girl. When Qabil killed Habil, Adam was so much shocked that he cried for five hundred years and did not touch his wife. When he overcame his sorrow he cohabited and Allah gave him a son, Shith who was born a single child. Shith was named Hibtullah. He was the first successor to whom a will was made. After Shith, Yaafith was also born singly. When both grew up and Allah wanted to multiply human beings and as the Qalam had made the sisters unlawful for their brothers Allah on a Thursday after Asr sent a huri, Nazala and ordered Adam to marry Shith to her.

Next day another huri, Mauzela was sent and Allah ordered that Yafith be married to her. Adam did as was told. Shith got a son and Yafith a daughter. When both attained maturity Allah ordered Adam to marry them and Adam obeyed. Thus, the lineage of Prophets and Messengers of Allah began. Allah forbids! It is not so as people say that human beings have descended through brother and sister.”

According to reliable chain of narrators it is narrated from Imam al-Baqir that Allah sent a huri from heaven and Adam married her to one of his sons. He also married a female jinni to another of his son. Therefore beauty in creation due to the huri and ugliness due the Jinn. Imam has emphatically denied that Adam married sons to daughters.

A reliable chain of narrators states that people asked Imam Muhammad al-Baqir regarding the evolution of generations. Imam asked what people said regarding the marriage of the sons of Adam. The narrator told him they say that in every delivery, twins (a boy and a girl) were born to Hawwa’. Adam used to marry a boy from one set of twins to a girl from another set. Imam said it was not so. When Haibatullah was born and attained maturity, Adam asked Allah to provide a wife for his son. Allah sent a huri and Adam married her to his son. Through her, four sons were born. Then Adam had another son. When he grew up he was married to a Jinn woman and she gave birth to four girls. Later Shith’s sons were married to the daughters of the Jinn woman. Therefore beauty from the huri and forbearance is from Adam, while every bad quality, ugliness and stupidity is due to the Jinn woman. After giving birth to sons, the huri returned to the heavens.

In another reliable tradition, it is said that Adam had four sons. Allah sent four houries for them. When children were born from them, Allah recalled the houries. Then the same sons were married to jinn women and in this way generations grew. Therefore, forbearance is from Adam and every beauty and perfection is due to four houries. Whereas ugliness, bad behavior and evil is from jinn.

According to reliable chain of narrators Sulayman ibn Khalid said to Ja‘far as-Sadiq, “May I be sacrificed for you, people says that Adam married his sons to his daughters?” Imam said, “Yes people do say that, but O Sulayman, you might not know that Holy Prophet said, ‘If Adam had married his daughters to his sons then certainly would have married Zaynab to Qasim without having left the religion of Adam.’”

Sulayman said, “May I be sacrificed on you, they say that Qabil killed Habil because Habil was ashamed that his sister was being given to Habil. Imam said, “O Sulayman! You also attribute such filthy things to Adam and do not feel ashamed?” He said, “May I be sacrificed on you. What was the reason that Qabil killed Habil?” Imam replied, “Because Adam had appointed Habil as his successor. Allah revealed to Adam to hand over the successorship and the Grand Name to Habil while Qabil was elder. When he knew this, he was angry and said that he was the rightful heir to successorship and bounties. Under divine instructions, Adam asked both of them to present a sacrifice to Allah. Allah accepted Habil’s sacrifice and rejected Qabil’s. So he envied Habil and killed him.”

Sulayman said, “May I be sacrificed on you how did the generations of Adam continue? Was there was a woman other than Hawwa’ and a man other than Adam?”

Imam said, “First Allah created Qabil and then Habil from the womb of Hawwa’. When Qabil attained maturity Allah sent a Jinn woman for him and revealed to Adam to marry both of them. Adam did so and Qabil was satisfied. When Habil attained age Allah sent for him a huri and asked Adam to marry them. Adam obeyed the divine command. When Habil was murdered the huri was pregnant and gave birth to a son. Adam named him Haibatullah. Allah ordered Adam to hand over the Grand Name and successorship to him. Then Hawwa’ gave birth to a son whom Adam named Shith. When he matured, Allah sent a huri and commanded Adam to marry his son Shith to her. A daughter was born to that Hoor and Adam named her Hoora. When she attained maturity Adam married her to Haibatullah the son of Habil. And through them, the generation of Adam continued established.

When Haibatullah died, Allah ordered Adam to transfer the Grand Name and other things, which were taught to him as well as knowledge of Prophets to Shith. O Sulayman this is the reality and the truth.”[29]

According to a reliable tradition of Abu Hamza Thumali, Imam Zayn al-‘abidin said, “When Adam’s repentance was accepted he had desire for Hawwa’. From the time he was created until then, he hadn’t such desire. But since Adam had great respect for Ka‘bah and its surrounding whenever he had sexual desire he used to take Hawwa’ out of the Sanctuary. Then perform Ghusl and return to Ka‘bah.

Adam and Hawwa’ had twenty sons and twenty daughters. In every delivery Hawwa’ gave birth to a set of twins consisting of a boy and a girl. First Habil was born with a girl who was named Aqleemiya. Then Qabil and a girl, Luza were born. Luza was the best child of Adam. When they attained maturity, Adam was worried they might be involved in fornication. So he called them and said to Habil that he wanted him to marry Luza and to Qabil that he wanted him to marry Aqleemiya. Qabil said that he was not satisfied with the arrangement. He said, “You want me to marry the ugly sister of and that my beautiful sister should marry Habil?” Adam I will draw a lot between you two and accordingly marry you. Both of them agreed. Adam drew a lot.

In Habil’s part came Luza and Qabil’s part came Aqleemiya. He married them. After that, marriage between brother and sister became haram. At that time a person from Quraysh was present he asked whether they had any children after that. Imam said, “Yes.” Person said it was an act of fire worshippers. Imam said, “After this the same act was performed by fire worshipper, and Allah made it unlawful.” Then he said, “Do not deny it. Did not Allah create Hawwa’ from the rib of Adam and made her lawful for him? In his shari‘ah it was allowed in the beginning and later prohibited.”

In another tradition it is narrated from Imam Muhammad al-Baqir that Qabil disputed with Habil regarding Luza. Adam ordered them to offer a sacrifice. Habil a shepherd, took out a healthy sheep and some milk for sacrifice. Qabil who was a cultivator took a few ears of grain. Both of them took their offerings and kept them at the mountain peak. A fire appeared and burnt the offering of Habil whereas Qabil’s remained as it was. Adam wasn’t present there. He had gone to visit Ka‘bah under divine instructions. Qabil said, “I couldn’t live in this world with ease because your sacrifice is accepted mine is not. And you want to marry my beautiful sister and your ugly sister to marry me?” Habil replied, as mentioned in Qur’an. Qabil hit a stone on the head of Habil and killed him.

According to narrators people asked Imam al-Ridha how the generations of Adam continued? Imam said, “Hawwa’ became pregnant with Habil and his sister. Next time she bore Qabil and his sister. Both of them got married to each other’s brothers and sisters and after that marriage of one to his sister became unlawful.[30]

It is narrated from ‘Ali that the Holy Prophet said, “When Allah sent down Adam to Earth He sent his wife also. Whereas Satan and the serpent came to Earth and had no one of the opposite to pair with. Therefore, they began to practice sodomy and initiated their generation. The generations of Adam grew through his wife.”

Allah informed Adam and Hawwa’ that both Satan and the serpent were their enemies.

Martyrdom of Habil

Allah says, “And relate to them the story of the two sons of Adam with truth when they both offered an offering, but it was accepted from one of them and was not accepted from the other. He said, I would most certainly slay you. (The other) said, Allah only accepts from those who guard (against evil). If you will stretch forth your hand towards me to slay me, I am not one to stretch forth my hand towards you to slay you. Surely I fear Allah, the Lord of the worlds: Surely I wish that you should bear the sin committed against me and your own sin, and so you would be of the inmates of the fire, and this is the recompense of the unjust.” (5:27-29)

Thus the soul of Qabil instigated him to kill his brother. Allah sent a crow to dig the earth and show him how to dispose body of his brother. Qabil said, “It’s a pity. Am I so helpless that I cannot bury my brother’s body like this crow?” Thus, he regretted his mistake.

Imam Zayn al-‘abidin says that when the sons of Adam presented their offerings to Allah one of them took a healthy sheep and the second one took a few ears of inferior quality wheat. Habil’s offering was accepted and Qabil’s was not. Qabil became infuriated and told Habil, “I swear by God I will kill you.” Habil said, “Allah accepts the deeds of forbearing people. (ayah quoted above).” Qabil wanted to kill his brother did not know how. Iblis advised him to crush the head of his brother between two stones. When Habil died he did now not know what to do with the corpse. A pair crows appeared and started fighting. One killed another and the surviving crow dug the earth with his claws and buried the dead one. Seeing this Qabil buried Habil and the practice of burying the dead started.

When Qabil returned, Adam did not see Habil with him and asked where he had left his son. Qabil said, “You did not appoint me as his body guard. Adam realized what must have happened and asked Qabil to accompany him to a place where they had made the offering. When Adam reached the place he came to know that Habil was killed so he cursed the soil, which has absorbed the blood of Habil. After that, the Earth lost the ability to absorb blood. Allah ordered him to curse Qabil too. A voice from heavens announced, “You are the accursed one.” Adam returned and wept for forty days in Habil’s sorrow. When his sorrow reached a pitch, he complained to Allah. Allah revealed to him, “I will grant you another son who in lieu of Habil.” Hawwa’ gave birth to a blessed and pure son. On the eighth day Allah said, “O Adam this child is a gift from Me. Name him “Haibatullah.” Adam did as ordered by Allah.

Imam Ja‘far as-Sadiq said that Habil owned a big herd of sheep and Qabil was a farmer. When they attained maturity Adam said, “I want both of you to present an offering to Allah. For the sake of Allah’s desire or the satisfaction of his father, Habil selected a healthy sheep whereas Qabil took out a few ears of wheat that were was lying useless, and even the cattle had refused it. He indented to neither fulfill Allah’s desire nor satisfy his father. Allah accepted the sacrifice of Habil and rejected Qabil’s offering. Satan came to Qabil and said, “When Habil has children they will boast to your sons that their father’s sacrifice was accepted. Therefore, you must kill him to avert such a situation.” Qabil followed this advice and murdered Habil. Allah deputed Archangel Gabriel to bury Habil. At that time Qabil said: He said, Woe me! Do I lack the strength that I should be like this crow and cover the dead body of my brother? So he became of those who regret. (5:31)

Imam (AS) says that Habil meant to say, Hadn’t it been for this crow I wouldn’t have buried my brother as I had no idea how should have buried him. A voice from the heavens told Qabil, “You are accursed because you have killed your brother.” Adam wept for forty days.

According to a good chain of narrator Imam Ja‘far as-Sadiq said when Adam appointed Habil as his successor Qabil was envious and killed him. Allah granted Adam another son, Haibatullah and asked Adam to appoint him his successor and keep it confidential. Thereafter it became the practice that every Prophet named a successor and kept it confidential. Qabil said to Haibatullah, “I know your father has made you his successor. So if you express it and talk like a Wasi I will kill you as I killed your brother.”

In another reliable tradition it is said that when Qabil intended to kill his brother he did not know how to accomplish it. Satan told him to keep Qabil’s head between two boulders and crush it.

Imam Muhammad al-Baqir says that when the sons of Adam presented a sacrifice each, Habil’s was accepted and Qabil became jealous. He used to spy on Habil for a chance to find him alone. One day he saw that Adam was not with him and killed him.

It is narrated from Imam al-Ridha that a Syrian asked ‘Ali regarding the ayah, “The day on which a man shall fly from his brother.” (80:34)

Imam said, “It is Qabil who will fly from his brother Habil.” The Syrian asked about the inauspiciousness of Wednesday. Imam said, “It is the last Wednesday of the month. This day Qabil killed Habil. Again, the Syrian asked about the first person to recite a poem? Imam said, “It was Adam.”

What kind of a poem was it? Imam said, “When he came down to Earth he saw the vast land, and when Qabil killed Habil. Adam recited a couplet poem that meant: ‘Everything in the cities is transformed and the surroundings have become polluted and foul. Every color and taste has changed, the charm and beauty of faces is cheerless.’ Iblis the accursed said, ‘Then go away from the cities and its inhabitants. The vast abode of heaven became straitened for you although you and your wife were safe from worldly problems. At last, you fell to my deceit and lost the bounties by your own actions. And if the Powerful Lord had not bestowed His Mercy you would have got nothing from heaven except air, and no other benefit would have accrued to you.’”

According to a trustworthy tradition from Imam Muhammad, al-Baqir there is a person in India who stands in garments of sack cloth. Ten persons are appointed on him and one of them dies another person from the village is appointed in his place. People die and are replaced, but ten caretakers continue to mind this person. When the Sun rises, they turn the person’s face towards the Sun and keep it facing the Sun until sunset. In winter, they pour cold water on him and in summer hot water. He was in the same condition when a person passed by. He asked, “O creature of Allah, who are you?” He said, “Either you are a stupid person or an intellectual. I am standing here since creation and no one inquired about asked me.” People say that he was Adam’s son Qabil, who had killed his brother.

Another narration states that Imam himself visited the place, questioned the man under punishment and composed couplets on it. The difference in this narration is that fire was lighted around the person in summer and water was poured on him in winter.

In another reliable tradition it is narrated from ‘Ali that a person came to the Holy Prophet and said, “Messenger of Allah, I have seen an amazing thing.” When the Prophet asked him about it he said, “One of my relative was sick and people advised for him water of Ahqaf well that is situated Wadiul Barhoot. I took a bucket and water bag and reached the place. When I tried to draw water I saw a chain like thing coming from sky with a man tied to it. He was saying give me water I am dying of thirst. I raised the bowl towards him but the chain around his neck tightened and took up to the sun. Again I drew out some water and the same scene was enacted. This happened thrice. So I finally tied up the water bag and did not try to give him any water.” The Holy Prophet said, “He was Qabil the son of Adam; who had killed his brother. And the same thing is mentioned in the Qur’an, “…and those whom they pray to besides Allah give them no answer, but (they are) like one who stretches forth his two hands towards water that it may reach his mouth, but it will not reach it; and the prayer of the unbelievers is only in error.” (13:14)

Through few chains of reporters, it is narrated that one day Imam Muhammad al-Baqir was sitting in Holy Masjid. Tawus al-Yamani suggested to his companion to go and ask Imam a few things and see what he says. They came and Imam Tawus asked, “Do you know the day when one-third of the world population perished?” “Not one-third,” corrected Imam, “You have made a mistake. Actually you meant one-fourth.”

“How is that?” he asked. Imam said, “When the world population consisted of Adam, Hawwa’, Habil and Qabil and Qabil killed Habil, one-fourth of the population perished. Tawus said, “You have spoken truly.”

Imam then asked, “Do you know what was happened to Qabil?” “No,” he replied. Imam said, “He is hanging from the Sun and hot water is sprinkled on him. This will continue until the Resurrection Day.” Tawus asked whether the progenitor of humanity was the murderer or the slain one. Imam said that generations continued from Shith (another) son of Adam.[31]

According to reliable chain of narrators Imam Ja‘far as-Sadiq said that seven people would get the worst punishment on the day of judgment. First of them being Qabil, the son of Adam who killed his own brother (until the end of hadith).

It is narrated from the Holy Prophet that the following five are the worst of the creatures: Satan, Qabil, the Pharaoh, the man who deviated The Israelites from their religion and a person from this Ummah of to whom the people will pledge allegiance in his Kufr (disbelief) –that is Muawiyah.

In another reliable hadith it is said that when the offering of Habil was burnt and that of Qabil rejected Satan lied that since Habil worshipped fire his sacrifice was accepted. Qabil said, “If it were so then I would also worship fire. But not the one that Habil worshipped. And I will present my offering to it so that it is accepted. Then he made a fire temple presented offerings therein and did not recognize his Creator. He did not leave anything except fire worship as his heirloom.

In another authentic tradition, it is said that during the time of Adam ferocious, birds and beasts all lived in harmony. But when the son of Adam killed his own brother, they began to hate and fear each other. So they segregated according to their genre and habits.

According to Imam al-Baqir the son of Adam, Qabil is strung by his hair to the Sun and he rotates with it whether it is summer or winter. He will do so until the Resurrection Day when Allah would throw him into Hell.

In another tradition, it is narrated that Imam Muhammad al-Baqir was asked regarding the condition of the son of Adam in Hell. Imam said, “Glory be to Allah. Allah is more just to chastise him in the world and hereafter.”[32]

A reliable tradition of ‘Ali says that the son of Adam, who had killed Habil, was born in heaven.[33]

It is narrated in reliable books from Amir al-Mu’minin that the person to rebel against Allah was Enaaq, the daughter of Adam. Allah has created her with twenty fingers and each finger had two spade-like nails. She was so huge she occupied about 60 square yards while sitting. When she rebelled against Allah He sent a lion as big as an elephant, a wolf the size of a camel and a donkey. These animals were like this at that time. These animals overpowered and killed her.

And in some traditions it is mentioned that Ewaj the son of Enaaq was a despot and an enemy of Allah and Islam. He was tall and huge. He used to catch fish for his food and roast them by holding them near the Sun. He lived for 3060 years. When Nuh was about to board his ark, Ewaj came and asked him to take him also. Nuh said he was not permitted. The floodwater did not rise above his thigh. He was alive until the time of Musa and Musa finally killed him. Allah says, “He it is who created you from a single being, and of the same (Kind) did he make his mate, that he might incline to her; so when he covers her she bears a light burden, then moves about with it, but when it grows heavy, they bath call upon Allah their Lord: If Thou givest us a good one, we shall certainly be of the grateful ones. But when He gives them a good one, they set up with Him associates in what He has given them, but high is Allah above what they associate (with Him).” (7:189-190)

According to a good chain of narrators it is narrated from Imam Muhammad al-Baqir that when Hawwa’ was pregnant and the child moved in her womb. She said to Adam that something was moving in her womb. Adam said it was his sperm, which has placed itself there. Allah shall create a creature so that He tests us through him. Satan came to Hawwa’ and asked how she felt. Hawwa’ said, “I have a child of Adam in my womb that moves.” The accursed said, “If you make an intention to name it Abdul Haris it would be a male child and would be born alive. And if you do not do so it will die within six days.” Hawwa’ doubted the words of Satan and informed Adam. Adam said, “The wretched Satan came to deceive you. Do not believe him. I am hopeful of the Grace of Allah that our child shall live against the prediction of Satan.”

But even Adam harbored a little doubt, which was inculcated by Satan. So, a son was born but he died after six days. Hawwa’ said that whatever Satan had said was correct. Both of them fell into doubts. After sometime Hawwa’ conceived another child. Satan came and asked her condition. Hawwa’ told him that previously a child was born who died in six days. Satan said, “If you had made an intention to name him Abdul Haris he wouldn’t have died. Now you shall beget an animal like camel, cow, sheep or goat.” Hawwa’ decided to believe him and she mentioned it to Adam. Adam also thought the same thing. When Hawwa’ was in labor they prayed to Allah that if He grants them a good son they shall be thankful to Him.

Allah bestowed them a courteous son, not an animal. Satan came to Hawwa’ before the delivery and asked about her condition. Hawwa’ said, “I am about to deliver the child.” Satan said, “You shall be terrified when you see an animal come out from your womb. Adam will hate you and your child.” At last he convinced Hawwa’ and said, “If you decide to name him Abdul Haris and dedicate him to me he would be normal and will remain alive.” Hawwa’ said, “I have made an intention that a part of him shall be yours.” Satan insisted that Adam should also say so. So Hawwa’ narrated the conversation to Adam. He was also frightened and somewhat inclined towards it. Hawwa’ said, “If you do not name him Abdul Haris or make an intention to dedicate a part of him to Satan I won’t allow you to come near me, nor would I fulfill your desire. Our relationship would be over.”

Adam said, “First of all you caused me to be expelled from heaven. Now, again you have been deceived by Satan. All the same I agree to name the child as Abdul Haris.” At last, a child was born safe and sound. Adam was happy and less fearful. He thought that the child would survive. So he named him Abdul Haris on the 7th day.

In another tradition it is narrated from Imam Muhammad al-Baqir regarding the ayah, “But when He gives them a good one, they set up with Him associates in what He has given them.” (7:90)

It refers to Adam and Hawwa’. Their Shirk was of Shirk of obedience when they obeyed Satan. They dedicated to Satan some part of the creature of Allah and named it Abdul Haris. They did not commit Shirk in the worship of Allah nor had they worshipped some other God.[34]

It could also mean that Allah bestowed upon Adam and Hawwa’ a healthy child and later some of his descendants committed Shirk. This explanation is more plausible as mentioned in Bihar al-Anwar. It is also supported by reliable traditions.

Al-Ma’mun asked Imam al-Ridha the tafsir of this ayah. Imam said, “Hawwa’ had five hundred pregnancies and every time a boy and a girl was born. Adam and Hawwa’ vowed to Allah that if He granted them a virtuous son they would be thankful. So Allah gave them good and healthy twins. From their progeny some became polytheist. And they (sons and daughters) did not thank Allah as their parents (Adam and Hawwa’) did.”

Masoodi in his book Muruj-uz-Zahab narrates that when Habil was killed Adam became was devastated with grief. Allah sent revelation that, “From you a light will be born which I would continue in purified descendants to culminate in the best of My creation. I will make him My last messenger and I appoint for him the best successors and Imams in whose reign the tenure of this world will end. I will inhabit the earth with those who obey them. So be alert and prepare yourself. Perform ghusl and remember Allah. Fulfill your desire with your wife she is also purified with ghusl. Because My Trust will be transferred through this son.” Adam was happy to know this. He came to Hawwa’ and she became pregnant. She became more beautiful. A bright light illuminated her whole body. Shith was born. He was handsome, healthy and a dignified child with an aura of authority. The Noor was transferred from Hawwa’ to Shith and shone on his forehead. Adam named him Shith. Some say he was named Haibatullah. He reached the age of maturity and Adam made a bequest to him and made him aware of the dignity of knowledge, which he was going to inherit, and told him that he is going to be the proof of Allah and his successor after him. He willed that he should fulfill the duties of successorship granted by Allah. And that his successorship should continue on others until it reaches the last Messenger and his heir, which will continue. Shith accepted the legacy and kept it secret as was appropriate. On Friday, in the 6th month of the year Adam left this temporal world. His age was around 930 years.

According to a tradition, Adam left 40,000 children, grandchildren and great grandchildren etc. Shith was the successor of Adam and he guided with the Sahifah (divine book), that he had received from his father. From Shith the light was transferred to Anoosh. When he was born, the light was apparent on him. When he reached the last moments of his tenure Shith transferred all the relics to him and made him the Wasi. He inculcated an awareness of the high station of Successorship and also told him to teach his children the importance of this legacy. This continued until the Noor reached Abdul Muttalib and ‘Abdullah.

Anoosh expired on October 3 at the age of 960 years. Qinyan was his legatee and Anoosh took oath of successorship from him. He attained the age of 120 years. People say his death took place in July.

Mahlayel was the successor of Qinyan. He lived for 800 years. From him came Lood and his age was 962 years. He passed away in the month of Azar. He was succeeded by Idris and light of Muhammad and his progeny were transferred to him. People say that Qabil and his sons had invented many kinds of musical instruments. Revelations on Adam

Sayyid ibn Tawus says that it is mentioned in the Suhuf (book) of Idris that on the 27th of Ramadhan, Thursday afternoon, Allah revealed on Adam a twenty page book in Syriac and it was the first book that Allah sent to the Earth. It contained all the languages and dictionaries. Altogether there were 1000 languages and a person proficient in one could not understand the others languages. It also contained proofs of Allah’s existence, the obligatory acts, practical laws, recommended acts and penal laws.

According to a reliable chain of narrators Imam Ja‘far as-Sadiq and Imam Muhammad al-Baqir said that Allah (SWT) revealed to Adam, “I present to you truth and righteousness in four sentences: One concerns Mine, one is for you, One is common between Me and you, and one is common between you and other creatures. Whatever is in it with regard to Me is your worship. You worship Me and do not associate anyone with Me. Whatever is regarding you is the reward of your action will be bestowed when you deserve it. The words common between you and Me is that it is necessary for you to supplicate Me and it is My responsibility to accept it. Whatever is common between you and creatures is that you should like for others what you like for yourself.” Death of Adam; His age and his bequest to Shith

Imam Ja‘far as-Sadiq and Imam Muhammad al-Baqir state that Adam was informed the names of all Prophets and their ages. When he learnt that the age of Dawud was to be only 40 years he said, “O Allah! Why is the age of Dawud so less while I had such a long life? O Allah would you accept if I gift thirty years of my life to Dawud and increases his age?” “Yes,” said Allah. So Adam requested Him to reduce his age by thirty or sixty years and increase the age of Dawud. When the angel of death came to take away his soul Adam said, “I have thirty to sixty years remaining.” “Did you not gift it to Dawud?” the angel of death reminded. “When the names of Prophets and their age were presented to you in the valley of Jenaam?” Adam said he didn’t remember. The angel of death said, “O Adam! Do not refuse it now. Did you not ask Allah that your life should be reduced and given to Dawud? Allah established it in Zabur and decreased your life.” Adam said, “Bring to me Zabur so that I recall it.”

Imam Muhammad al-Baqir says, “Adam was speaking the truth that he had forgotten it. Therefore from that day onwards Allah ordered that all transactions must be put in writing so that no one could deny later.”

A tradition of Ja‘far as-Sadiq says that initially Allah had told Archangel Gabriel, Mika’il and the angel of death to write it because Adam will forget. So it was written and the angels sealed it with the Tinat of their arms. When Adam refused the angel of death showed him the document.

Imam as-Sadiq said that is why the loaner gets embarrassed when the promissory note is shown to the debtor.[35]

According to a reliable chain of narrators it is narrated from Imam as-Sadiq that when Adam became sick, he called Shith and said, “O my Son! I am going to die very soon. Whatever you see has been sent by Allah from His kingdom, and He has taken the oath from me so I make a bequest to you. I make you the legatee for whatever Allah given me. The book of wasiyyah is under my head. It contains the heritage of knowledge and the Grand Names of Allah. After I am dead, you take it in your possession and do not let anyone know of it. Nor should you look at it until the next year. It contains (Suhuf) everything that would need regarding the affairs of this world.”

It was the scroll that Adam had brought from the heaven. Then he said, “I wish to have fruit from heaven. Go to Mt. Hadeed and if you see any Angel convey my regards and say that your father is sick and needs a fruit of heaven.” Shith went to the mountain. He saw Archangel Gabriel with a group of angels. Archangel Gabriel saluted him and asked where he was going?” “Who are you, O servant of Allah?” Shith asked. “I am the trustworthy spirit, Archangel Gabriel.” Archangel Gabriel said. Shith conveyed the salaam of Adam. He said, “O Shith! Salutations upon your father. He has departed from this world and that’s why we have descended to the Earth. May Allah reward you and grant you patience in this great calamity. Now go back to your father.” Shith returned. The Angels brought with them whatever was required for the burial. When Shith reached home he took the will from beneath the head of Adam and tied it to his stomach.

Archangel Gabriel said, “Congratulation O Shith! Who can be compared to you? Allah has honored you with His Generosities and clothed you in the dress of salvation. By my life, Allah has selected you for a very special affair. Then Shith bathed Adam’s body under instruction from Archangel Gabriel. He also taught him to shroud and embalm the body. When he finished Archangel Gabriel taught him to dig the grave. He made him stand before the bier of Adam to recite the prayers of Mayyit (dead). Archangel Gabriel told Shith to recite seventy Takbirs and then taught him the method of Salat al-Mayyit. The Angels stood behind Shith in a row for the prayers. Shith wanted Archangel Gabriel to lead the prayers but he said that as the Angels were made to pay obedience to Adam they could not lead them in prayers. Archangel Gabriel said, “You might not know that when Allah created your father, He made him stand before us and ordered us to prostrate to him. Therefore, Adam became the Imam and this practice continued in his generations. Today he has left this world and now you are his successor and the inheritor of his knowledge. How we we replace you? You are our Imam!”

Shith recited Salat al-Mayyit for Adam as taught by Archangel Gabriel who taught him how to bury his father. After the burial when Archangel Gabriel and other Angels were about to leave Shith started weeping and exclaimed, “O what a terror!” Archangel Gabriel said, “You should not have any fear as Allah is with you. We will visit you by the permission of Allah. Allah is your associate, so do not be sad and have faith in your Lord because He is the Beneficent upon you.” Archangel Gabriel and other Angel returned to the heavens. At that time Qabil who had ran away fearing his father came down from the mountain. He met Shith and said, “I killed my brother Habil because my sacrifice wasn’t accepted and I suspected that he would get the position, which you have now got. I didn’t want him to become the successor and legatee of his father as you are today. So if you narrate even one sentence of whatever father has taught you, I will kill you like I killed Habil.”

A similar tradition has been narrated from Imam Zayn al-‘abidin. It also mentions that Shith recited seventy five takbirs on Adam. Seventy for Adam and five for his children.

It is narrated from Imam Muhammad al-Baqir that when Adam learnt of the murder of Habil he wept bitterly and complained to Allah regarding his sorrow. Allah revealed, “I will give you another son like Habil.” A child was born and on the 7th day, Allah revealed that since it was a Gift from His side he should be named Hibtullah (Gift of Allah). When time of his death approached Allah revealed on him, “Soon I am going to summon you to the vicinity of My Mercy. Therefore, make a bequest to the best of your sons, who is gifted by Me because I do not like that the world should be devoid of one whom I have given knowledge and one who executes My commands. I want him to be a proof upon My creatures.” Adam gathered his clan and said, “My Children, I am about to depart from this world and Allah has ordered me to appoint Haibatullah as my successor. So listen to him and obey him, as he is my successor and caliph on you.” All of them said, “We have heard you and we will obey him.”

The Ark of covenant trunk was prepared according to the order of Adam and he placed in it the relics, will, and testament and gave it to Haibatullah. He said, “After I am dead give me Ghusl and shroud, recite prayers and bury me. And when your death is near you will know it. At that time, you must also make a bequest to your son who is the best among your children from the aspect of manners and helpfulness. And do not ever leave the Earth devoid of a person from us (Ahl al-Bayt). O Son! Allah has sent me to the Earth and appointed made me His vicegerent and a proof over His creatures. After me, you shall be my proof. You must also not leave the world without appointing your successor. Pass on these relics to your successor as I am handing it to you. Also inform him that a Prophet from my progeny is going to come whose name is Nuh and his nation will be submerged in water. Make a bequest to your legatee to protect whatever is in this Ark of covenant. Emphasize that when he is about to depart he should also appoint his best son as the legatee and this should continue until the time of Nuh. Then he should board the ship and take with him the chest of relics. O Haibatullah! Of all my sons, beware of Qabil the accursed.”

Thus, when the end of Adam was near the angel of death arrived. Adam said, “I witness that Allah is One and has no partner. I witness that I am the servant of Allah and His Caliph on this earth. He favored me by creating me and asking the Angels to prostrate to me. And He taught me all the names. He settled me in heaven although He had created me to inhabit the Earth according to His Plan.” When Archangel Gabriel brought Hanoot and wooden planks with the shroud from heaven, he was accompanied by 70000 Angels. They gave Ghusl, shrouded him and anointed (Hanoot) him. Archangel Gabriel told Haibatullah to go ahead and recite prayers for his departed father with 75 Takbirs. Angels dug a grave and buried Adam. Haibatullah assumed the leadership of Adam’s children as ordered by Allah. When Haibatullah neared his end, he transferred the legacy to his son Qinan and handed over the Ark of covenant to him. Qinan lived among his clan and promoted obedience towards Allah. At his death bed he appointed his son, Barra as the successor (wasi) and handed over the Ark of covenant to him and also reminded him about the Prophethood of Nuh. At the time of his death Barra made bequest in favor of his son, Akhnu‘ (Idris) and handed over the Ark of covenant to him. Idris completed his tenure. When he was about to die Allah revealed to him, “I am going to raise you to the heavens, so bequeath all the things to Khargaeel.” Khargaeel stood thus became the wasi Idris. When Khargaeel’s death approached he nominated his son Nuh and handed over the Ark of covenant. It was always with him and he took it abroad the ship. When his death was near, he gave the Ark of covenant to his son, Sam and did formally appointed him the legatee.[36]

It is mentioned from Imam Muhammad al-Baqir that Adam sent his son to Archangel Gabriel and said, “Ask Archangel Gabriel to get me some food from near that particular tree of heaven.” When the son met Archangel Gabriel he was informed that Adam has already expired.” We have been commanded to meet him at his last moments and recite prayers for him,” said Archangel Gabriel. After the Ghusl Archangel Gabriel asked Haibatullah to lead the prayer of his father. Haibatullah stood up at the front recited 75 takbirs. 70 takbirs for the excellence of Adam and five takbirs to establish the Sunnah.

Imam says that Adam used to be engrossed in the worship of Allah at Makkah. When Allah wanted to take his soul, He sent Angels from heaven, with wooden plank, a shroud and anointments. When Hawwa’ saw the Angels she tried to intervene but Adam told her to leave them alone. The Angels captured his soul and bathed with lote-tree water. They made a grave for him and said this practice shall continue in the generations of Adam. Adam was 936 years old and was buried in Makkah. There was a gap of 1500 years between Adam and Nuh.

According to reliable chain of narrators from Imam, as-Sadiq when it was time for the funeral prayers Haibatullah told Archangel Gabriel, “O Messenger! Go ahead and recite prayers for the Prophet of Allah.” Archangel Gabriel said, “Allah has ordered us to prostrate to your father. So we cannot lead their children in prayers. And you are the best of his children.”

Thus Haibatullah led the funeral prayers of his father with five takbirs as prescribed by Allah for the followers of Muhammad. This practice was to continue among the children of Adam until the Resurrection Day.

Another reliable tradition from the same Imam states that Adam requested for a fruit. Haibatullah went out to bring him the fruit. Archangel Gabriel met him and asked where he was going. He told him Adam wanted a fruit as he was unwell. Archangel Gabriel said, “Go back as Allah has taken away his soul.” When he returned, he saw that Adam was no more. Angels gave him the Ghusl and asked to Haibatullah to recite the prayers. Allah revealed upon him to recite five takbirs. Then he was laid in his grave. Haibatullah was told to perform funeral rites in the same way.

In another reliable tradition it is said that thirty takbirs were recited for Adam. Twenty five were dropped later on and five remained. Imam Muhammad al-Baqir says that the grave of Adam is in the Holy Sanctuary and according to Prophet Muhammad Adam expired on Friday.

Some great scholars have mentioned in mursal (without chains of narrators) that when Allah sent Adam to Earth he was terrified due his separation from heaven. He prayed to Allah to send him a tree of heaven. Allah sent for him a date palm, which remained with him all his life. When death was near, he told his sons, “This tree has been with all my life and I hope after my death it will remain so. Therefore, you split a branch of it and keep it in my shroud.” The sons did as bidden. After him, other Prophets also followed the same way. It was discontinued in the Jahiliyya (pre-Islamic period) but Prophet Muhammad restarted the practice.

According to reliable chain of narrators, it is narrated from Imam as-Sadiq when Adam died, Qabil and Satan rejoiced and played musical instruments vain sports. Thus all the musical instruments and vain past times of the world are derived from the invention of Satan.

Sunni and Shi‘ah scholars have narrated from Wahab ibn Munabbah that Shith buried Adam in a cave of Mt. Abu Qubays known as Ghaarul Kabeer (the big cave). He remained buried until the deluge of Nuh. During the deluge Nuh exhumed him and placed him in a coffin abroad his ship.

Reliable chains of narrators narrate from Imam as-Sadiq that when Nuh (as.) was abroad the Ark, Allah revealed him to perform the circumambulation of the Holy Ka‘bah seven times. When he completed the circumambulation and came down from the ship the water was up to his thighs. He dug out a coffin from the earth containing the bones of Adam and placed it on the ship and again did circumambulation of Ka‘bah. The Ark reached al-Kufah and Allah ordered the Earth to absorb the water as it has gushed out from the mosque. Nuh buried Adam at Najaf.[37]

It is narrated from Imam Ja‘far as-Sadiq that the Holy Prophet said, “Adam was nine hundred and thirty years old.”

Sayyid ibn Tawus quotes from the book of Idris that Adam was ill for ten days. He died on Friday the fifteenth of Muharram and was buried in a cave of Mt. Abu Qubays facing Kiblah. And his age from the day the soul entered his body and until the time it was taken out was 1030 years. After one year and fifteen days Hawwa’ also fell sick and died. She was buried next to Adam.

Sayyid says, “I have seen in Torah in 3rd Chapter that Adam’s age was 930 years and the same is narrated by Muhammad ibn Khalid Barqi in his book ‘Beda’ from Ja‘far as-Sadiq.”[38]

According to reliable chain of narrators it is narrated from Imam Al-Hasan that the successor of Adam was Shith. He lived for one thousand years. In a tradition narrated by Abu-Dharr, as mentioned before, the language of Shith was Syrian. Fifty scriptures were revealed on him. Most of the historians have mentioned that Shith was born when Adam was 235 years old. Shith lived for 912 years. He is buried in Mt. Abu Qubays next to his parents.

Sayyid ibn Tawus mentions, “I have seen in the Sahifah of Idris that Allah revealed fifty books on Shith containing the proof of the existence of Allah, Laws and practices and the prescribed penalties. Shith lived in Makkah and preached the scriptures to the children of Adam. He worshipped Allah at the Ka‘bah and performed hajj and Umrah until was 912 years. When he fell sick, he appointed his son Ewas as his Legatee and warned him to fear Allah and be humble and pious. When Shith died, Ewas along with his son Qinan and grand son Mahkael (son of Qinan) performed Ghusl and Ewas recited the prayers and buried Shith at the right of his father in the cave of Mt. Abu Qubays.

Notes:

[29] It is very difficult to establish unanimity in these traditions. It is possible all this occurred and generations continued.

[30] As these traditions are in accordance with the view of Sunni they have appeared due to taqiyyah. The traditions mentioned previously are more reliable.

[31] It is possible that the sisters who were born with him died before and Qabil hadn’t seen their burial, or the report of the birth of twin brother-sisters is based on taqiyyah. It is narrated in another tradition that according to Tawus the first blood to be shed was of Habil and same day one-fourth of the people were killed. Imam Zayn al-‘abidin said, “It is not so, first blood was the menstrual blood of Hawwa’. When Qabil killed Habil it was one-sixth of humanity because they were six: Adam, Hawwa’, Habil, Qabil and two sisters. Then he said, “Allah has appointed two guards over Qabil. When the Sun rises they bring him out. And they take him back at Sunset. They sprinkle hot water on him and he will be punished like this until the day of judgment.

[32] This hadith contradicts other traditions. It might be referring to the fact that the chastisement of world is less than the chastisement of hereafter or that the punishment of killing Habil shall not be meted out in the hereafter, rather he would go to hell due to his disbelief.

[33] This hadith is accepted by the Sunni but according to Shi‘ahs Adam didn’t have any children in heaven.

[34] This hadith is against the Shi‘ahs belief but accepted by some Sunni scholars. It might have entered hadith books due to taqiyyah.

[35] This tradition is against the Shi‘ah belief that Prophets are infallible. According to most Ulama this has come in hadith books due to taqiyyah.

[36] All these traditions shall be discussed in the volume of Imamate.

[37] This proves that Adam and Nuh are buried in Najaf. So the tradition which say that Adam is buried in Makkah mean that initially he was buried there but later his remains were exhumed by Nuh and buried at al-Kufah.

[38] Commentators and narrators differ regarding age of Adam. Some say it was a thousand years and he gave 60 years to Dawud but later he denied so again it became 1000 years. Other maintain it was 936 years. Some others claim it to be 930 years. The last two traditions show that it was probably 936 years and it is usual to mention the figure in tens (i.e. 930 instead of 936).

Relevant statements from the Imams AS for more details

H 1448, CH 1c, h 1 Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from Ali ibn al-Hakam from Dawud al-’Ijli from Zurara from Humran from abu Ja’far, who has said the following: “Abu Ja’far has said, ‘As Allah, the Most Holy the Most High, created the creation, He created sweet water and a very salty water and then mixed the two together. Then He took a (kind of) clay from the surface of the earth and kneaded it intensely. He then said to the people of the right, as they crawled about like particles, “To paradise (you go) in peace.” He then said to the people of the left hand, “To the fire (you go) and I am not concerned.” Then He asked, “Am I not your Lord?” They all said, “Yes, You are our Lord we testify.” Allah said, “I make you to witness this so that on the Day of Judgment you will not say, ‘We were unaware of this.’” (7:172) ‘Then He made the prophets to form the covenant. He asked them, “Am I not your Lord and is not this Muhammad, My messenger and is not this Ali, the commander of the believers?” They said, “Yes, it is just as You said.” This established their prophet hood. He then made the ‘Ulu al-‘Azm messengers to testify and acknowledge this fact: “I am your Lord, Muhammad is My messenger, Ali is the commander of the believers and his successors, recipients of divine supreme covenant, after him are people who possess My Authority and are the reservoir of My knowledge. That al-Mahdi, recipient of divine supreme covenant, is one whom I will make to lend support to My religion. Through him I will establish My kingdom on earth and make My enemies to face justice for their crimes. Through him I will make them to worship Me willingly or otherwise.” The prophets altogether said, “Yes, Lord we testify to these facts and bear witness.” Adam did not refuse and did not affirm (verbally) the fact about al-Mahdi, recipient of divine supreme covenant, so he was not included in the group of five ‘Ulu al-‘Azm messengers of Allah. Adam did not have the resolve to affirm the facts about al-Mahdi, recipient of divine supreme covenant. Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, has said in the Holy Quran, “We had made a covenant with Adam before but he forgot all about it and we did not find in him a firm resolve.” (20:115) He said that it was so but he ignored it. He then created a fire that blazed and told the people of the left hand to enter in the fire. They were afraid thereby. He said to the people of the right hand, “Enter in the fire.” They entered in the fire and it was cool and peaceful to them. The people of the left hand then said, “Lord, forgive us and reduce our sins.” The Lord said, “I have forgiven you but you must go in the fire.” They were afraid. Thus, with this, the obedience, authority and disobedience came to take place.’”

H 1446, CH 1b, h 2 Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from ibn abu ‘Umayr from ibn ‘Udhayna from Zurara who has said the following: “Once a man asked abu Ja’far, recipient of divine supreme covenant, about the words of Allah, the Majestic the Glorious, ‘When your Lord took from the back of the children of Adam their offspring and told them to bear testimony to the words of Allah, “Am I not your Lord,” they all said, “Yes, You are our Lord. . . .”’ (7:172) “He (the Imam), while his father, recipient of divine supreme covenant, was listening, said, ‘My father narrated to me that Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, took a handful of clay, from which He created Adam. He poured upon it sweet water from Euphrates and left it for forty mornings. Then He poured upon it very salty water and left it for forty mornings. When the clay fermented He then kneaded it strongly and they (children of Adam) appeared as particles from his right and left sides. He ordered all of them to enter the fire. The people of the right hand entered it and it became cool and peaceful for them but the people of the left hand refused to enter.’”

H 1444, CH 1a, h 7 Ali ibn Muhammad has narrated from Salih ibn abu Hammad from al-Husayn ibn Yazid from al-Hassan ibn Ali ibn abu Hamza from Ibrahim from abu ‘Abd Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant, who has said the following: “When Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, willed to create Adam He sent Jibril in the first hours of the Friday. He picked up with his right hand a handful. His hand had in its reach from the seventh heavens to the heaven above earth. From each of the heavens he picked up a handful. He also picked up another handful from the seventh earth of the above-most and to the farthest seventh earth. Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, then commanded His word to hold the first handful in his right and the other in his left. The clay then was cleaved into two. It was scattered from earth and from the heavens and then said to the clay in his right hand, ‘From you will be the messengers, the prophets, their successors, the truthful ones, the believers, those who will achieve salvation and those whom I will to have honors.’ It then became necessary for them to be as He said them to be. He then said to that which was on his left, ‘From you will be the tyrants, the polytheists, the unbelievers, the devils and those whom I will to humiliate and be of the wicked ones.’ It then became necessary for them to become what He said them to become. Thereafter the two clays mixed together as Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, has said, ‘Allah makes the seed and the nuts to cleave apart.’ (6:95) The seed is the clay of the believers upon which Allah has placed His love. The nuts are the clay of the unbelievers that are far from all good. It is called nuts (alNawa’) because it is far away from all good and from Him. Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, has said, ‘He (Allah) brings forth the living from the dead and the dead from the living.’ (6:95) The living are the believers who come out from the unbelievers and the dead who come out of the living are the unbelievers who are from the believers. The living are the believers and the dead are the unbelievers. This is because of the words of Allah, ‘Are those whom We brought to life after their being dead . . .’ (6:122) Their death was the mixing of their clay with the clay of the unbelievers and his coming to life was when Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, caused separation between them through His word. In this way Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, takes the believers at birth out to light from darkness after their entering therein and He takes the unbelievers out of the light to darkness after their entering into the light as it is said in the words of Allah, the Majestic the Glorious, ‘So that he can give warning to those who are of the living and the word about the unbelievers truly come to pass.’” (36:70) H 1447, CH 1b, h 3 Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn abu Nasr from Aban ibn ‘Uthman from Muhammad ibn Ali al-Halabi from abu ‘Abd Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant, who has said the following: “When Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, willed to create Adam He sent water on the clay. He then took a handful and kneaded it and then divided it in two parts with His hands then scattered them and they began to move. He then started a fire for them and commanded the people of the left hand to enter therein. They went near but were afraid of it and they did not enter therein. He then commanded the people of the right hand to enter in the fire. They went and entered into it and Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, commanded the fire to become cool and peaceful for them. When the people of the left hand observed it they said, ‘Our Lord, forgive us.’ He forgave them and said to them, ‘Enter into the fire.’ They went but did not enter therein. He then changed them to clay and He created Adam therefrom. Abu ‘Abd Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant, then said, ‘Those will never be able to become these and they will never be able to become of those.’ He, recipient of divine supreme covenant, then said, ‘They saw the Messenger of Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant, to be the first to enter that fire. For this reason is the words of Allah, the Majestic, the Glorious, ‘(Muhammad), Say, “Had the Beneficent had a son then I would have been the first to worship.”’” (43: 81) Satan is of those who believe in predestination, he thinks that God made him fail, and that he had no say in it. This is despite Satan having freewill and freely choosing not to accept Adam AS as an authority on him. Satan was even questioned and he gave his reasons why he choose not to obey. H 395, Ch. 30, h4 Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from Isma‘il ibn Marrar from Yunus ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman who has said that abu al-Hassan al-Rida, recipient of divine supreme covenant, said to me the following: “O Yunus do not say what pre-determinists say. The predeterminists do not say what people of paradise say or what people of hell say or what Satan says. The people of paradise say, ‘. . . all praise is due to Allah for His guiding us. We could never have been guided without Allah’s guiding us.’ (7:43) The people of hell say, ‘Lord, our misfortune overwhelmed us and we became lost,’ (23:107) and Satan said, ‘My Lord for your making me to rebel . . .’ (15:39) “I then said, ‘I swear by Allah that I do not say what they say but I only say that there will be nothing unless Allah will want, will, measure and decree.’ The Imam, recipient of divine supreme covenant, said, ‘O Yunus, it is not that, ‘there will be nothing unless Allah will want, will, measure and decree.’ O Yunus, do you know what is want?’ I said, ‘No, I do not know.’ The Imam said, ‘It is the first mention of something. Do you know what is will?’ I said, ‘No, I do not know.’ The Imam said, ‘It is the intention to do something. Do you know what measurement is?’ I said, ‘No, I do not know.’ The Imam said, ‘It is the figure, the position, the limits of survival and extinction.’ “The Imam further said, ‘The decree is the readiness and the production of substance.’ I then asked permission to kiss his head and said, ‘You just opened for me something of which I was unaware.’”

H 1150, Ch. 108, h 73 Al-Husayn ibn Muhammad has narrated from Mu‘alla ibn Muhammad from the one who had narrated to him from Ali ibn Ja‘far who has said the following: “I heard abu al-Hassan, recipient of divine supreme covenant, say, ‘When the Messenger of Allah saw (in his dream) Taym, ‘Adi and Amawids climb his pulpit he was severely frightened. Allah, the Most Holy, the Most High, sent him a reading to comfort him: “When We told the angels to prostrate before Adam they all obeyed except Iblis (Satan), who refused.” (20:116) Then Allah sent him a message that said, ‘O Muhammad, I commanded them and they disobeyed. Do not despair if you will command them and they will disobey you in the matters of the executor of your will.’’”

H 14372, Ch. 13, h 2 Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad and Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father all from ibn Mahbub from abu Ja‘far al-Ahwal from Salam ibn al-Mustanir who has narrated the following: “This is about the meaning of the words of Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious. ‘. . . We made a covenant with Adam, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, before but he forgot and We did not find in him firm determination.’ (20:115) Abu Ja‘far, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, has said, ‘When Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, said to Adam, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, to enter in the garden (paradises) He said, “O Adam, you must not go near this tree.”’ He (the Imam) said that He showed it to him and Adam said to his Lord, “How will I go near the tree when You have prohibited me and my wife?” He (the Imam) said that Allah said to them not to go near the tree meaning do not eat thereof. Adam and his wife said, “Yes, Lord we will not go near the tree and will not eat”, but they did not make an exception (did not say, ‘if Allah wills’) when saying, “yes” Allah, in that matter left them on their own and to their memories.’ He (the Imam) said, ‘Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, spoke to His Holy Prophet, O Allah, grant compensation to Muhammad and his family worthy of their services to Your cause, about a fact in the book. “. . . You must never say about anything, ‘I will do it tomorrow without saying, ‘unless Allah wills’ otherwise,” (18:23) and Allah decides that I must not do then I will not be able to do.’ He (the Imam) said that for this reason Allah, most Majestic, most Glorious, has said, ‘. . . you must speak of your Lord when you forget’, meaning make the act and the will of Allah an exception in your act.’”

H 2461, CH 111, h 1 Al-Husayn ibn Muhammad has narrated from Ahmad ibn Ishaq from Bakr ibn Muhammad from abu Basir who has said the following: “Abu ‘Abd Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant, has said, ‘The roots of disbelief are three: Greed, Self aggrandizement and Envy. It was greed that led Adam to eat from the prohibited tree. It was Self-aggrandizement that led Satan to refuse prostration before Adam. Envy led one of the sons of Adam to murder his own brother.’”

H 3564, Ch 14, h 14 Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from ‘Abd Allah ibn Muhammad from Ali ibn al-Hakam from ‘Abd Allah ibn Bukayr from abu ‘Abd Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant, who has said the following: “The Holy Quran was revealed in a manner like, ‘I speak to you, but it is the neighbor who must listen.’” It is narrated, in another Hadith, from abu ‘Abd Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant, who has said the following: “The meaning of ‘I speak to you, but it is the neighbor who must listen’, is that whenever Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, has addressed His prophet in critical expressions they, in fact, are addressed to others and not the Holy Prophet such as: ‘Had We not strengthened your faith you might have relied on them some how,’ (17:74) is addressed to others (not the Holy Prophet).’”

H 2904, CH 172, h 1 Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from ibn abu ‘Umayr from Jamil who has said the following: “Al-Tayyar would say to me that Satan is not among the angels. Only angels were commanded to bow down in prostration before Adam and Satan said, ‘I will not bow down in prostration.’ Why should Satan be called disobedient for not bowing down in prostration when he is not among the angels? The narrator has said that he and I went in the presence of abu ‘Abd Allah, recipient of divine supreme covenant. He, by Allah, presented his question very nicely saying, ‘May Allah keep my soul in service for your cause, please consider Allah’s, the Most Majestic, the Most Holy, calling the believers, “O believing people,” are hypocrites also addressed along with the believers?’ The Imam said, ‘Yes, also the straying people and all who had affirmed the public call to Islam. Satan was included in the public call with them (the angles).’”

H 6683, Ch. 4, h 1 Ali ibn Muhammad has narrated from Salih ibn abu Hammad from al-Husayn ibn Yazid from al-Hassan ibn Ali ibn abu Hamzah who has said the following: “Abu Ibrahim from abu ‘Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, has said that Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Glorious, when Adam and his spouse were affected by the tree of wheat, expelled them from paradise and made them to descend to earth. Adam landed on al-Safa’ and Hawwa’ (Eve) landed on alMarwah. Al-Safa’ is called by this name because it is derived from Adam’s name al-Mustafa’ (the chosen one) as Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Glorious, has said, “Allah chose Adam and Noah.” (3:33) Al-Marwah is called by this name because it is taken from the word al-Mar’ah (a woman). Adam then said to himself, “Allah has separated her from me is because she is not lawful for me anymore; had she been lawful for me she would descend with me on al-Safa’.” Adam waited away from Hawwa’. He would go to her at al-Marwah during the day and speak to her. At night, for fear that his desires may overcome him, would go back to al-Safa’ and pass the night there. Adam had no one beside Hawwa’ to comfort him and for this reason women are called al-Nisa’ (comforting). Hawwa’ was a source of comfort for Adam. Allah did not speak to him and did not send any messenger to him. Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Glorious, then accepted his repentance as a favor to him. He dictated to him certain words. Adam 