Is Khidr (AS) Still Alive? Quranic and Hadith Proofs
Question: Is Khidr (peace be upon him) still alive in the world today, and will he remain alive until the Day of Judgment?
Answer..!
All praise is due to Allah..!
Like many false tales and stories, it is famous among people that Khidr (peace be upon him) is alive and will remain so until the Day of Judgment. However, the truth is that the death of Khidr (peace be upon him) is proven by the Qur’an, the Sunnah, the consensus of reliable scholars of the Ummah, and by reason and logic. Those who claim he is alive have no solid proof except for weak narrations, flimsy dreams, and feeble statements.
Here are the proofs:
Evidence from the Book of Allah (The Qur’an):
Allah the Almighty says:
أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ
بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ
وَاِذۡ اَخَذَ اللّٰهُ مِيۡثَاقَ النَّبِيّٖنَ لَمَاۤ اٰتَيۡتُكُمۡ مِّنۡ كِتٰبٍ وَّحِكۡمَةٍ ثُمَّ جَآءَكُمۡ رَسُوۡلٌ مُّصَدِّقٌ لِّمَا مَعَكُمۡ لَـتُؤۡمِنُنَّ بِهٖ وَلَـتَـنۡصُرُنَّهٗ ؕ قَالَ ءَاَقۡرَرۡتُمۡ وَاَخَذۡتُمۡ عَلٰى ذٰ لِكُمۡ اِصۡرِىۡؕ قَالُوۡۤا اَقۡرَرۡنَا ؕ قَالَ فَاشۡهَدُوۡا وَاَنَا مَعَكُمۡ مِّنَ الشّٰهِدِيۡنَ ۞
Translation:
And [mention] when Allah took the covenant of the prophets, [saying], "Whatever I give you of the Scripture and wisdom and then there comes to you a messenger confirming what is with you, you [must] believe in him and support him." [Allah] said, "Have you acknowledged and taken upon that My commitment?" They said, "We have acknowledged." He said, "Then bear witness, and I am with you among the witnesses."
(Surah Al-Imran, Ayah 81)
It is reported from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) with a hasan (good) chain of narration in the commentaries of al-Tabari and Ibn Abi Hatim that Allah the Almighty took a covenant from all the prophets that if Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) were to appear in their lifetime, they would believe in him (and support him).
(Tafsir al-Qur’an al-Karim)
So, Khidr (peace be upon him) is included in this covenant. If he were alive during the time of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), his most important duty would have been to come before the Prophet (ﷺ), believe in the Shari’ah revealed to him, and support him so that no enemy could harm him.
Second Proof:
Allah the Almighty says:
وَمَا جَعَلۡنَا لِبَشَرٍ مِّنۡ قَبۡلِكَ الۡخُـلۡدَ ؕ اَفَا۟ئِن مِّتَّ فَهُمُ الۡخٰـلِدُوۡنَ ۞
Translation:
And We did not grant to any human being before you immortality. So if you die - would they be immortal?
(Surah Al-Anbiya, Ayah 34)
If Khidr (peace be upon him) exists somewhere, then khuld (immortality) would be proven for him, which is against this verse of the Qur’an.
Khidr (peace be upon him) is a human being and is certainly included in this general ruling. It is not permissible to make an exception for him without authentic proof. The default assumption is non-existence [of an exception] unless proven otherwise, and there is no such proof mentioned from the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) that would make an exception to this general rule, as stated by Imam Ibn Kathir in Al-Bidayah wa’l-Nihayah (1/334).
Third Proof:
Sahih al-Bukhari
Book: The Times of Prayer
Chapter: Discussing matters of knowledge and goodness after the ‘Isha’ prayer.
Hadith No: 601
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الْيَمَانِ ، قَالَ: أَخْبَرَنَا شُعَيْبٌ ، عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ ، قَالَ: حَدَّثَنِي سَالِمُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ ، وَأَبُو بَكْرٍ ابْنُ أَبِي حَثْمَةَ ، أَنَّ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ عُمَرَ ، قَالَ: صَلَّى النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ صَلَاةَ الْعِشَاءِ فِي آخِرِ حَيَاتِهِ، فَلَمَّا سَلَّمَ قَامَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، فَقَالَ: أَرَأَيْتَكُمْ لَيْلَتَكُمْ هَذِهِ فَإِنَّ رَأْسَ مِائَةٍ لَا يَبْقَى مِمَّنْ هُوَ الْيَوْمَ عَلَى ظَهْرِ الْأَرْضِ أَحَدٌ، فَوَهِلَ النَّاسُ فِي مَقَالَةِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِلَى مَا يَتَحَدَّثُونَ مِنْ هَذِهِ الْأَحَادِيثِ عَنْ مِائَةِ سَنَةٍ، وَإِنَّمَا قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لَا يَبْقَى مِمَّنْ هُوَ الْيَوْمَ عَلَى ظَهْرِ الْأَرْضِ، يُرِيدُ بِذَلِكَ أَنَّهَا تَخْرِمُ ذَلِكَ الْقَرْنَ.
Translation:
Narrated Abdullah bin Umar: The Prophet (ﷺ) led us in the `Isha’ prayer during the last days of his life and after finishing it (the prayer) (with Taslim) he stood up and said, “Do you realize (the importance of) this night? Nobody present on the surface of the earth tonight will be living after the completion of one hundred years from this night.” The people made a mistake in understanding the statement of Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) and engaged in various discussions. (Abu Mas’ud thought that the Day of Judgment would come after one hundred years). But the Prophet (ﷺ) only meant that of all those who were living on the earth at that time, none would be alive after a century. He meant that that generation would pass away.
Imam Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him), after mentioning this hadith and another similar one in Al-Bidayah (1/336), states that Imam Ibn al-Jawzi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “These authentic hadiths cut the root of the claim of Khidr’s life.” He says that if Khidr (peace be upon him) did not live to see the time of the Prophet (ﷺ), as is thought, and this thought strengthens to a certainty, then there is no issue.
And if he did live to see the Prophet’s (ﷺ) time, then according to this hadith, he would not have been alive a hundred years later. Therefore, he is not present now because he is included in this general statement, and the default is no exception unless proven by acceptable, authentic evidence.
Imam Ibn al-Qayyim quotes Ibrahim al-Harbi (may Allah have mercy on him) as saying that when he was asked about the age of Khidr (peace be upon him) and whether he was alive, he replied: “He who refers to the unseen is not being just, and these stories are spread among the people by Satan.” I say that the Imam spoke the truth.
Imam al-Bukhari (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about Khidr and Ilyas (peace be upon them), whether they were alive. He replied: “How can this be, when the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) has said: ‘No one who is alive on the earth today will be left after one hundred years.'”
When most scholars were asked about this, they responded with this verse:
﴿وَما جَعَلنا لِبَشَرٍ مِن قَبلِكَ الخُلدَ …﴾ Sura Al-Anbiya
"And We did not grant to any human being before you immortality. So if you die - would they be immortal?"
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked the same question, and he replied: “If Khidr (peace be upon him) were alive, it would have been obligatory for him to come to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), to perform jihad with him, and to learn from him. Whereas the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said on the day of Badr: ‘O Allah! If this group is destroyed, You will not be worshipped on earth.'” And they were three hundred and thirteen known individuals, whose names, their fathers’ names, and tribes were known. So where was Khidr (peace be upon him) at that time? This is a matter of knowledge.
Imam Ali ibn Musa al-Rida says:
“Khidr (peace be upon him) has passed away.” This is also the view of Imam Ibrahim ibn Ishaq al-Harbi and Abu al-Hasanayn al-Munawi. Both these Imams, especially Imam Ibn al-Munawi, disliked the view that Khidr (peace be upon him) is alive. Qadi Abu Ya’la also narrates the view of his death from the companions of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him).
Some scholars have argued that if he (Khidr) were alive, it would have been obligatory for him to come to the Prophet (ﷺ), because the Prophet (ﷺ) said that if Moses (peace be upon him) were alive, he would have had no choice but to follow me. So how could it be that he (Khidr) (peace be upon him) is alive and does not join the Prophet (ﷺ) in Friday and congregational prayers and does not participate in jihad with him? Do you not see that when Jesus (peace be upon him) descends to the earth, he will pray behind the leader of this Ummah, so as not to disrupt the prophethood of our Prophet (ﷺ).
Imam Abu al-Faraj ibn al-Jawzi says that the understanding of those who affirm his existence is far from reality. They should not forget that this affirmation entails turning away from the clear Shari’ah.
Rational Arguments
First Argument: It is speaking about Allah without knowledge, which is forbidden by the text of the Qur’an.
Second Argument: If he had lived for such a long period, Allah would have surely informed us, as it would be an extraordinary piece of news.
Third Argument: If he existed before Noah (peace be upon him), it is established that no one survived except those in Noah’s ark.
Fourth Argument: The strongest evidence for those who believe he is alive consists of transmitted tales in which someone reports seeing Khidr (peace be upon him). It is strange, does Khidr (peace be upon him) have a specific sign by which the observer recognizes him?
Fifth Argument: If he were alive, it would have been better for him to fight against the disbelievers, guard the borders for the sake of Allah, attend Friday and congregational prayers, and teach the knowledge of the religion, rather than wandering in forests among wild animals and birds.
Great scholars have extensively refuted the idea of the life of Khidr (peace be upon him)
Such as Imam Ibn al-Qayyim in Al-Manar al-Munif fi al-Sahih wa’l-Da’if, ed. Abu Ghuddah, p. 27.
And Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani in Fath al-Bari (6/309) and Al-Isabah (1/428).
And Hafiz Ibn Kathir in Al-Bidayah wa’l-Nihayah: 1/325-337.
Imam Ibn al-Jawzi wrote a detailed book on the death of Khidr and in refutation of those who claim he is alive, titled ‘Ujalat al-Muntazir fi Hal al-Khidr.
Imam Ibn Taymiyyah wrote a treatise on his death.
Imam Ali al-Qari authored ‘Kashf al-Khidr ‘an Amr al-Khidr’.
And Imam Ibn al-Munadi (d. 336 AH) wrote a treatise on his death. Refer to Tafasir Ahl al-Tahqiq fi Surah al-Kahf.
Some say that he is alive and that the sign is that there is no bone in his thumb. This is all falsehood:
Allah the Almighty says:
﴿وَلا تَقفُ ما لَيسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلمٌ ۚ إِنَّ السَّمعَ وَالبَصَرَ وَالفُؤادَ كُلُّ أُولـٰئِكَ كانَ عَنهُ مَسـٔولًا ٣٦﴾…Sura Al-Isra
"And do not pursue that of which you have no knowledge. Indeed, the hearing, the sight and the heart - about all those [one] will be questioned."
(Sourced from: Fatawa Din al-Khalis, vol. 1, p. 252)
When the same question was asked on the Saudi Fatawa website, IslamQA, their answer was!
قال الشنقيطي :
وحكايات الصالحين عن الخضر أكثر من أن تحصر ، ودعواهم أنه يحج هو وإلياس كل سنَة ، ويروون عنهما بعض الأدعية ، كل ذلك معروف ، ومستند القائلين بذلك ضعيف جدّاً ؛ لأن غالبه حكايات عن بعض من يظن به الصلاح ، ومنامات وأحاديث مرفوعة عن أنس وغيره وكلها ضعيف لا تقوم به حجة . . .
الذي يظهر لي رجحانه بالدليل في هذه المسألة أن الخضر ليس بحي بل توفي وذلك لعدة أدلة :
Sheikh al-Shinqiti (may Allah have mercy on him) says:
The tales of the righteous about Khidr are too numerous to be counted, and their claim that he and Ilyas perform Hajj every year, and they narrate some supplications from them, all of this is well-known. The basis for those who say this is very weak, because most of it consists of stories from some who are thought to be righteous, dreams, and marfu’ hadiths from Anas and others, all of which are weak and cannot be used as proof…
What appears to me to be the most correct view on this issue, based on evidence, is that Khidr is not alive but has passed away (in summary).
(Source: See Adwa’ al-Bayan by al-Shinqiti (may Allah have mercy on him) (4/178-183))
(https://islamqa.info/ar/answers/20505)
(And Allah the Almighty knows best what is correct)
Reference: https://alfurqan.info/problems/1625
