Prophet Enoch

(Reference: Dr. Imran Khan & Mufti. Shah Rafi Uddin Hamdani (2018), Encyclopedia of Muhammad , Article: 03, Seerat Research Center Karachi, Pakistan, Vol. 1, Pg. 98-102.)

The Holy Quran describes Idris as a prophet (Nabi) who was “truthful” (saddiq), “patient” (Sabir), and “righteous” (Salih). ¹ In extra-Quranic writings, he is often identified with Enoch. ² His name is an unusual one; it probably originated as a term in ancient Hebrew for “interpreter” (doresh) of the Torah. This is an early Jewish reference to Enoch, who is mentioned in the Bible as a descendant of Adam and an ancestor of Noah . Likewise, Islamic tradition regards Idris as a prophet who lived between the time of Adam and Noah. Eighth-century Muslim sources explicitly mention that Idris’s true name is Enoch and that he is called Idris in Arabic because of his devotion to the study (Dars) of the sacred books of his ancestors Adam and Seth (a son of Adam). In the line of legendary prophets who preceded Prophet Muhammad , he is credited with being the first person to write with a pen, to sew clothes, and to study astronomy. According to one prophet story, Idris’s great piety attracted the attention of the angel of death, who visited him for three days in his human form and then rewarded him with a tour of heaven, hell, and the gardens of paradise. Muhammad is said to have met Idris in the fourth heaven during his night journey and ascent. Sufi masters such as Ruzbihan Baqli and Muhy al-din Ibn al-Arabi also mention that they encountered him on their visionary journeys. ³ Ibn al-Arabi also described him as the axial prophet (Qutb) sharing exclusively with Jesus, Elijah, and al-Khidr (the Green One) the status of immortals. Islamic writers of hermetic, alchemical, and philosophical works, including Ibn al-‘Arabi, designated Idris as the “prophet of the philosophers” and the “Father of the philosophers” (Abu’l-Hukama’) and revered him as the Prophetic patron of alchemy and the hermetic arts. ⁴ His lineage is described as; Idris / Enoch son of Yaar / Yarid son of Malhan’ne / Mahla’il son of Kinan / Qainan son of Aanoosh / Anwas / Anusha son of Shees / Sheth son of Adam. ⁵

Enoch As Depicted In The Holy Quran And Other Holy Scriptures

Enoch is mentioned twice in the Holy Quran in the verses of Surah Maryam (Mary ) and Surah Al Anbiya (The Prophets). Allah Almighty said:

وَاذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتَابِ إِدْرِيسَ إِنَّهُ كَانَ صِدِّيقًا نَّبِيًّا 59⁶

And recite in the Book the account of Idris. He was a man of truth, a Prophet.

وَإِسْمَاعِيلَ وَإِدْرِيسَ وَذَا الْكِفْلِ كُلٌّ مِّنَ الصَّابِرِينَ 58⁷

And (We bestowed the same favour) upon Ishmael, Idris and Dhu al-Kifl, for they were all steadfast.

There is a difference of opinion as to who Prophet Idris was. Some commentators opine that he was a prophet from among the Israelites, but the majority of them are inclined to the view that he was a Prophet before Noah . For of all the prophets mentioned, he alone was the one who may be said to be the descendants of Adam . ⁸

In the Bible, Enoch is cited as:

وَعَاشَ أَخْنُوخُ خَمْسًا وَسِتِّينَ سَنَةً، وَوَلَدَ مَتُوشَالَحَ. وَسَارَ أَخْنُوخُ مَعَ ٱللهِ بَعْدَ مَا وَلَدَ مَتُوشَالَحَ ثَلَاثَ مِئَةِ سَنَةٍ، وَوَلَدَ بَنِينَ وَبَنَاتٍ. فَكَانَتْ كُلُّ أَيَّامِ أَخْنُوخَ ثَلَاثَ مِئَةٍ وَخَمْسًا وَسِتِّينَ سَنَةً. وَسَارَ أَخْنُوخُ مَعَ ٱللهِ، وَلَمْ يُوجَدْ لِأَنَّ ٱللهَ أَخَذَهُ… ⁹

When Enoch was 65, he had a son, Methuselah. After that, Enoch lived in fellowship with God for 300 years and had other children. He lived to be 365 years old. He spent his life in fellowship with God, and then he disappeared because God took him away.

Regarding this, the Quranic commentator Yusuf Ali states:

“His identification with the Biblical Enoch, may or may not be correct. Nor are we justified in interpreting verse 57 of Surah Maryam (Mary ) as meaning the same thing as in Genesis, verse 24 ("God took him") that he was taken up without passing through the portals of death. Altogether we are told that he was a man of truth and sincerity, and a prophet and that he held a high place among his multitude.” ¹⁰

H. Polano in his famous book the Talmud selections gives further details about Enoch . The summary of that detail is as follows:

“Before Noah , when the descendants of Adam began to degenerate, the angel of God called to Enoch, who led a pious life away from the people, and said: “O Enoch, arise, come out of seclusion, and go about among the people of the earth, and guide them to a path which they should follow and teach them the right ways which they can adapt.” When Enoch received this divine command, he left his seclusion, gathered the people and preached to them what he had been commanded. Resultantly they listened to him and worshipped the God instead of other things. Enoch ruled over humanity for around 353 years, and his rule was based on truth and justice. Hence, God bestowed humanity with all types of blessings.” ¹¹

The Life Of Enoch

Enoch was born and raised in Babylon ¹² following the teachings and the religion of Prophet Adam and his son Seth . Enoch was the 5th generation of the Prophet Adam . He called the people back to his forefathers' religion, but only a few listened to him,.

He declared prophethood at the age of 40 ¹³ and at that time, people used to worship fire, stars and idols. ¹⁴ Enoch preached day and night, but still, a significant number of individuals committed numerous sins. Hence Enoch decided to leave for Egypt. Some of his loyal followers accompanied him, but this process was complicated for them. They asked: "If we leave Babylon, where will we find a place like it?" Enoch said: "If we emigrate for the sake of Allah, He will provide for us." They accepted this answer and accompanied Enoch , and they reached the land of Egypt. They saw the Nile River. Enoch stood on its bank and said, "Subhan Allah".

There he carried on his mission, called people towards justice and fairness, taught them certain prayers, instructed them to fast on certain days, and told them to give a portion of their wealth to the poor so that they may attain piety. ¹⁵

Elevation Of Enoch To A Lofty Position

Almighty Allah granted him honour and made him worthy of praise, elevating him to a lofty position. The account is mentioned in the Holy Quran as:

وَرَفَعْنَاهُ مَكَانًا عَلِيًّا 57¹⁶

And We lifted him to a high position.

This account is also mentioned in the hadith. As per the hadith, on the night of the Ascension, Prophet Muhammad passed him in heaven. ¹⁷ In another hadith, Ibn Abbas asked Ka’b about the meaning of the above verse which says, “And We raised him to a high station.” Ka’b explained:

An angel visited Enoch , and then carried him to the heavens on his wings. When they reached the fourth heaven, they met the angel of death, who was descending towards earth. The angel of death inquired about the whereabouts of Enoch , the other angel replied: He is on my back. Upon hearing this, the angel of death said ‘how astonishing! I was sent and told to extract his soul from the fourth heaven, and I kept wondering that how could I take it from there since he was on earth?’ Then, the angel of death took his soul. ¹⁸

According to another hadith of Sahih Muslim, narrated by Malik Ibne Anas , it is stated that when Muhammad ascended towards the heavens (on the night of ascension), he encountered Enoch , in the fourth heaven, the account is narrated as:

ثم عرج بنا إلى السماء الرابعة، فاستفتح جبريل عليه السلام، قيل: من هذا؟ قال: جبريل، قيل: ومن معك؟ قال: محمد، قال: وقد بعث إليه؟ قال: قد بعث إليه، ففتح لنا فإذا أنا بإدريس، فرحب ودعا لي بخير، قال الله عز وجل: ورفعناه مكانا عليا. ¹⁹

. . .Then he took us up to the fourth heaven and Jibril asked for it to be opened. It was said: 'Who are you?' He said: 'Jibril.’ It was said: 'Who is with you?' He said: 'Muhammad.' It was said: 'Has he been sent for?' He said: 'Yes, he has.' Then it was opened for us, and there was Idris. He welcomed me and prayed for good for me. "Allah, the Mighty, and Sublime says: "And We raised him to a high station."

The above-quoted verses of the Holy Quran and Hadith of the Holy Prophet establish the belief that Allah blessed Idris with a distinct status, and raised him to an elevated position (Heavens). Furthermore, Idris was also provided with divine scriptures. As per Tabari’s narration, Idris was given 30 leaves (divine scrolls). ²⁰ Although Enoch was given divine scrolls, but the prophecies about Prophet Muhammad by Enoch would be quoted from the Bible since the whereabouts of those scrolls are unknown.

• ¹  Phyllis G. Jestice (2004), Holy People of the World: A Cross Cultural Encyclopedia, ABC Clio, California, USA, Vol.1, Pg. 388.
• ²  Gordon Newby (2002), A Concise Encyclopedia of Islam, One World Publications, Oxford, U.K, Pg. 95.
• ³  Juan E. Campo (2009), Encyclopedia of Islam, Facts on File Inc., New York, USA, Pg. 344-345.
• ⁴  Phyllis G. Jestice (2004), Holy People of the World: A Cross Cultural Encyclopedia, ABC Clio, California, USA, Vol.1, Pg. 388.
• ⁵  Abdul Malik Bin Hisham Bin Ayyub Al-Humairi (2009), Al-Seerat-ul-Nabwiyya, Dar Al-Kutub Shirkatu Maktabatu Wa Matb’atu Mustafa Al-Babi Al-Halbi, Egypt, Vol. 1, Pg. 3.
• ⁶  Holy Quran, Maryam (Mary), 19: 56
• ⁷  Holy Quran, Al Anbiya (The Prophets) 21: 85
• ⁸ http://www.islamicstudies.info/tafheem.php?sura=19&verse=51&to=65 Retrieved: 24-06-17
• ⁹  The Bible, Genesis 5: 21-24
• ¹⁰  Abdullah Yusuf Ali, The Holy Quran: Text, Translation and Commentary, Note: 2508.
• ¹¹  H. Polano (1936), The Talmud selections from the Contents of that Ancient Book, Its Commentaries, Teachings, Poetry and Legends, Frederick Warne & Co., London, U.K, Pg. 18.
• ¹²  Babylon is the most famous city from ancient Mesopotamia whose ruins lie in modern-day Iraq 59 miles (94 kilometres) southwest of Baghdad. The name is thought to derive from bav-il or bav-ilim which, in the Akkadian language of the time, meant ‘Gate of God’ or `Gate of the Gods’ and `Babylon’ coming from Greek. (J. J. Mark (2011), Ancient History Encyclopedia. http://www. ancient.eu/babylon/ Retrieved: 26-06-17 )
• ¹³  Muhammad ﷺ also declared prophet hood at the age, 40.
• ¹⁴  Muhammad bin Jareer Abu Jafer Al-Tabari (2004), Tareekh-e-Tabari (Urdu Translation), Nafees Academy, Karachi, Pakistan, Vol. 1, Pg. 120-122.
• ¹⁵  Abul Fida Ismail Ibne Kathir, Stories of the Prophets (Translated by Muhammad Mustapha), Darussalam, Riyadh, Saudia Arabia, Pg. 20.
• ¹⁶  Holy Quran, Maryam (Mary) 19: 57
• ¹⁷  Abu Abdullah Muhammad Bin Ismail Al-Bukhari (1999), Sahih Bukhari, Kitabu Ahadith-ul-Anbiya, Hadith: 3342, Darussalam, Riyadh, Saudia, Pg. 555-556.
• ¹⁸  Abul Fida Imaduddin Ibn-e-Kathir (2003), Tafsir Ibn-e-Kathir, Commentary on the Holy Quran, Maryam (Mary) 19: 56-57, Darul Taiba Lin Nashr wa Towzee, Riyadh, Saudia Arabia, Vol. 5, Pg. 240-241.
• ¹⁹  Muslim bin Al-Hajjaj Abul Hassan Al-Neshapuri (2000), Sahih Muslim, Kitab-ul-Iman, Hadith: 411, Darussalam, Saudia, Pg. 82.
• ²⁰  Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari (1987), The History of Tabari (Translated by WilLiyam M. Brinner), State of New York Press, New York, USA, Vol. 2, Pg. 130.