Dhul-Qarnayn (Arabic ذو القرنين), literally meaning "He of the Two Horns", is a figure mentioned in the Qur'an, the sacred scripture of Islam, where he is described as a great and righteous ruler who built a long wall that keeps Gog and Magog from attacking the people of the West. Moreover, he is regarded by some Muslims as a prophet. Historically, Dhul-Qarnayn has been identified as Alexander the Great, and this remains the opinion of most secular historians, while contemporary Islamic scholars are divided on the issue. The epithet was also familiar among the pre-Islamic Arabs, who applied it to at least three different kings.

Reference to context on Dhul-Qarnayn

According to Tafsir Ibn Kathir, a widely used 14th-century commentary on the Qur'an:

"The Quraysh sent An-Nadr bin Al-Harith and `Uqbah bin Abi Mu`it to the Jewish rabbis in Al-Madinah, and told them: `Ask them (the rabbis) about Muhammad, and describe him to them, and tell them what he is saying. They are the people of the first Book, and they have more knowledge of the Prophets than we do.' So they set out and when they reached Al-Madinah, they asked the Jewish rabbis about the Messenger of Allah. They described him to them and told them some of what he had said. They said, `You are the people of the Tawrah and we have come to you so that you can tell us about this companion of ours.' They (the rabbis) said, `Ask him about three things which we will tell you to ask, and if he answers them then he is a Prophet who has been sent (by Allah); if he does not, then he is saying things that are not true, in which case how you will deal with him will be up to you. Ask him about some young men in ancient times, what was their story For theirs is a strange and wondrous tale. Ask him about a man who travelled a great deal and reached the east and the west of the earth. What was his story And ask him about the Ruh (soul or spirit) -- what is it If he tells you about these things, then he is a Prophet, so follow him, but if he does not tell you, then he is a man who is making things up, so deal with him as you see fit.^*

According to Maududi's conservative 20th-century commentary:

"This Surah was sent down in answer to the three questions which the mushriks of Makkah, in consultation with the people of the Book, had put to the Holy Prophet in order to test him. These were: (1) Who were "the Sleepers of the Cave"? (2) What is the real story of Khidr? and (3) What do you know about Zul-Qarnain? As these three questions and the stories involved concerned the history of the Christians and the Jews, and were unknown in Hijaz, a choice of these was made to test whether the Holy Prophet possessed any source of the knowledge of the hidden and unseen things. Allah, however, not only gave a complete answer to their questions but also employed the three stories to the disadvantage of the opponents of Islam in the conflict that was going on at that time at Makkah between Islam and un-belief."^*

Dhul-Qarnayn in the Qur'an

The story of Dhul-Qarnayn appears in sixteen verses of the Qur'an, specifically verses The Holy Qur'an:

Theories on the identity of Dhul-Qarnayn

Alexander the Great as Dhul-Qarnayn

The story of Dhul-Qarnayn as described in the Qur'an follows very closely some passages of the Alexander Romance, a thoroughly embellished compilation of Alexander the Great's exploits from Hellenistic and early Christian sources which underwent numerous expansions and revisions throughout Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The Alexander Romance was enormously popular in the Hellenistic world, including Jewish communities, among which Alexander had practically gained the status of a folk hero. Some adaptations containing all the elements of the Qur'anic account can be found in early Hellenistic documents, such as the Armenian recension of the Alexander Romance. Actually the main elements of the story (an iron gate constructed by Alexander blocking the passage of Scythian tribes; identification of said Scythians with Gog and Magog) can already be found in Josephus and in Saint Jerome, although in fragmented occurrences (see Alexander in the Qur'an for details).

For these reasons the widely accepted view is that the (indirect) model for Dhul Qarnayn is Alexander the Great. The majority of medieval Muslim scholars were happy to identify Dhul-Qarnayn as Alexander. However, some Muslim scholars have asserted that the medieval scholars were mistaken and that Dhul-Qarnayn cannot be Alexander.

Cyrus the Great as Dhul Qarnayn

Some contemporary Muslim scholars, such as Maududi and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, have suggested that Dhul-Qarnayn is Cyrus the Great. This theory has been endorsed by Iranian scholars Allameh Tabatabaei (in his Tafsir al-Mizan) and Grand Ayatollah Makarim al-Shirazi (Bargozideh Tafseer-i Nemuneh, Vol 3, p69).

The archaic Dhul-Qarnayn

Some early Islamic commentators stipulated that Dhul-Qarnayn must have been a contemporary of Abraham. Others postulated an Alexander who lived 2000 years before Alexander the Great ^*.

The Arab Dhul-Qarnayn

Two early Arabian kings were known as Dhul-Qarnayn: the northern Arabian king Al-Mundhir al-Akbar ibn Ma' as-Sama' (so called for his two curled locks), and the early South Arabian king Tubba' al-Aqran. South Arabian interpreters of the Qur'an argue that the Qur'anic Dhul-Qarnayn was their king Tubba' ^*. Other supporters of the Yemeni Dhul-Qarnayn theory included (the Persian) Biruni in his Āthār al-bāqiyah (آثار الباقیه), Asma'i (اصمعی) in his Tarikh al-Arab ("History of Arab" تاریخ العرب), and Sirah of Ibn Hisham, among others.

Others have suggested that Dhul-Qarnayn could be the Egyptian pharaoh Narmer , who unified northern and southern Egypt. Among supporters of the Arab Dhul-Qarnayn theory were Al-Maqrizi (المقریزی) in his book al-Khitat (الخطط), and Allama Sayyed Habeddin al-Shahrestani (علامه سید هبه الدین الشهرستانی).

The angelic Dhul-Qarnayn

There are scattered references in which Ali ibn Abi Talib gives the epithet Dhul-Qarnayn ^*. Since Dhul-Qarnayn was a righteous ruler, this may simply be a way of praising by Ali. Al-Maqrizi also quotes Mukhtar ibn Abi Ubayd (مختار ابن ابی عبید) as saying that Ali always referred to Dhul-Qarnayn as "an angel without wings". The 8th century scholar Al-Jahiz, in his (الحیوان), also writes of Dhul-Qarnayn being born to a human mother and angelic father.

References

1. Encyclopédie de l'Islam, "Iskandar", 1960–1998
2. Encyclopædia Britannica, Alexander III, 1971
3. "A Discource Composed by Mar Jacob upon Alexander, the Believing King, and upon the Gate which he made against Gog and Magog," in The History of Alexander the Great Being, the Syriac Version of the Pseudo-Callisthenes. Translated by E.A. W. Budge, 1889.
4. Iskandarnamah - A Persian Medieval Alexander-Romance, Translated by Minoo D. Southgate, Columbia University Press, New York, 1978.
5. Alexander the Great, p. 37, Richard Stoneman, Routledge, 1997.
6. The Wars of the Jews, VII, vii, Flavius Josephus.
7. The Antiquities of the Jews, I, vi, Flavius Josephus.
8. The Impact of Alexander the Great’s Coinage in East Arabia ^*
9. Sahih Bukhari, English Translation, Hadith number 6326

See also

• Prophets of Islam
• Alexander the Great

External links

• pothos.org - Legends (Marco Polo) - mentions Alexander's Gate

Alexander the Great | Qur'an

ذوالقرنین | Зуль-Карнайн | Zülkarneyn