Abraham

:Abram redirects here. For other uses of Abram, please see Abram (disambiguation).

Abraham in Islam

Abraham (called Ibrahim in Islam) is very important to Islam, both in his own right and as the father of Ismail (Ishmael), his firstborn son.

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There are numerous references to Abraham in Quran. According to Quran, Abraham is the spritual father of all the believers and it was he who first coined the term "Muslim" (Quran 22:78). He is mentioned as an upright person who was neither a polytheist nor a Christian or a Jew (Quran 3:67).

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Abraham (Ibrahim) is considered one of the first and most important prophets of Islam, and is commonly termed Khalil Ullah, Friend of God. (Islam regards most of the Old Testament "patriarchs" as prophets of God, and hence as Muslims.) While most Muslims believe that Adam, the first man, was the first Muslim (submitter to God), they universally agree that Abraham was a prophet of God.

Related Topics:
Old Testament - Prophet - Adam

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According to the Qur'an, Abraham reached the conclusion that anything subject to disappearance could not be worthy of worship, and thus became a monotheist (Quran 6:76-83). As in Jewish belief, Abraham's father (named Azar in Islam) was an idol-maker, and Abraham broke his idols, calling on his community to worship God instead. They then cast him into a fire, which miraculously failed to burn him (Quran 37:83-98). The well-known but wholly non-canonical Qisas al-Anbiya (Ibn Kathir) records considerably more detail about his life, which are commonly referred to in Islamic accounts of his lifehttp://iisca.org/knowledge/biographies/ibrahim_1.htm.

Related Topics:
Monotheist - Quran 6 - Quran 37 - Qisas al-Anbiya - Ibn Kathir

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Traditionally, Muslims believe that it was Ishmael rather than Isaac whom Abraham was told to sacrifice. In support of this, Muslims note that the text of Genesis, despite specifying Isaac, appears to state that Abraham was told to sacrifice his only son ("Take now thy son, thine only son, whom thou lovest, even Isaac," Jewish Publication Society translation, Genesis/Bereshit 22:2) to God. Since Isaac was Abraham's second son, it is arguable there was no time at which he would have been Abraham's "only son", and that this supports the Muslim belief that there was an original text that must have named Ishmael rather than Isaac as the intended sacrifice. The Qur'an itself does not specify by name which son Abraham nearly sacrificed (Quran 37:99-111).

Related Topics:
Ishmael - Isaac - Genesis - Qur'an

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Also, unlike Jewish belief, Muslims also note that nowhere in the Qur'an does God say that it was He who told Abraham to sacrifice his son nor does God say He gave Abraham the dream of the sacrifice. The Qur'an teaches that God never advocates evil. Thus, it is said that for a father to slaughter his son, is an evil that cannot be coming from God; it can only come from Satan. Furthermore, Muslims state that God would not contradict Himself and, therefore, would not order Abraham to commit what he prohibited, even as a test. Since Abraham thought the dream was from God and he proceeded to sacrifice his son Ismail, God sent him the lamb to be sacrificed instead, and to save Ismail and the father-son sacred relationship. Furthermore, Muslims believe that God promised to protect His righteous believers from Satan's tricks, and he saved Abraham and his son, Ismail, from this exact test.

Related Topics:
Qur'an - Satan

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In many accounts however, it is believed that Ibrahim's dream is a test from God. And when Ibrahim told his dream to Ismail, it is Ismail who convinced Ibrahim to fulfill God's order. So this is test for both Ibrahim, which had longed for a son for so long time, and unto Ismail. When devil teased them before sacrifice, Ibrahim and Ismail throw stone to the devils. This reincarnated as jumrah, one of rite on Hajj.

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This entire episode of the sacrifice is regarded as a trial that Abraham had to face from God. It is celebrated by Muslims on the day of Eid ul-Adha. Muslims also believe that Abraham, along with his son Ishmael, rebuilt the Kaaba in Mecca (Quran 2:125).

Related Topics:
Eid ul-Adha - Kaaba - Mecca - Quran 2

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Abraham is one of the most important prophets in Islam, and Muslims have a specific dua that (in some traditions) they recite daily which asks God to bless both Abraham and Muhammad. According to Islamic tradition, he is buried in Hebron. In the Masjid al Haram in Mecca, there is an area known as the "station of Ibrahim" (Maqam Ibrahim مقام), which supposedly bears an impression of his footprints.

Related Topics:
Prophets - Muhammad - Hebron - Masjid al Haram - Mecca

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