Editing Abraham in Islam (section)

== Biography in Islamic scripture ==
===Youth===
{{See also|Akkadian Empire|Sumer|Sumerian religion}}
{{multiple image |align=right |direction=vertical |width=
 |image1=Birthplace of Abraham (30644538800).jpg |caption1=Ruins in the [[ancient Iraq]]i city of [[Ur]], 2016, where Ibrahim is thought to have been born, and are thus named "Abraham's House" ({{coord|30|57|42.75|N|46|06|21.3|E}})
 |image2=Operation Iraqi Freedom DVIDS284470.jpg |caption2=The [[Ziggurat of Ur]], in 2010.
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Ibrahim was born in a house of [[Idolatry|idolaters]] in the ancient city of [[Ur Kaśdim#Islamic|Ur of the Chaldees]], likely the place called '[[Ur]]' in present-day [[Iraq]], in which case, the idolaters would have been practitioners of the hypothesized [[Ancient Mesopotamian religion]].{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}} His father Azar was a well-known [[Shirk (Islam)|idol-sculptor]] that his people worshiped. As a young child, Ibrahim used to watch his father sculpting these idols from stones or wood. When his father was finished with them, Ibrahim would ask his father why they could not move or respond to any request and then would mock them; therefore, his father would always scold him for not following his ancestors' rituals and mocking their idols.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://m.qtafsir.com/?option=com_content&task=view&id=2637&Itemid=76|title=QTafsir Tafsir Ibn Kathir Mobile|website=m.qtafsir.com}}</ref>

Despite his opposition to [[Shirk (Islam)|idolatry]], his father Azar would still send Ibrahim to sell his idols in the marketplace. During one of the many festivals that would take place in the city, the people would gather in their temple and place offerings of food before their idols. Ur's most prominent temple is the [[Ziggurat of Ur|Great Ziggurat]], which can be seen today.<ref name="Zettler, R.L. 1998">{{citation |editor1-last=Zettler |editor1-first=R. L. |editor2-last=Horne |editor2-first=L. |year=1998 |title=Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur |publisher=[[University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology]]}}</ref> Ibrahim would ask them, "What are you worshipping? Do these idols hear when you call them? Can they help you or hurt you?" The people would reply, "It is the way of our forefathers." Ibrahim declared "I am sick of your gods! Truly I am their enemy."{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}}

===The great fire===
The decision to have Abraham [[Death by burning|burned at the stake]] was affirmed by the temple priests and the king of Babylon, [[Nimrod]]. The news spread like fire in the kingdom and people were coming from all places to watch the execution. A huge pit was dug up and a large quantity of wood was piled up. Then the biggest fire people ever witnessed was lit. The flames were so high up in the sky that even the birds could not fly over it for fear of being burnt themselves. Ibrahim's hands and feet were chained, and he was put in a [[catapult]], ready to be thrown in. During this time, Angel [[Jibril|Gabriel]] came to him and said: "O Abraham! Is there anything you wish for?" Abraham could have asked to be saved from the fire or to be taken away, but Ibrahim replied, "God is sufficient for me, He is the best disposer of my affairs." The catapult was released and Ibrahim was thrown into the fire. God then gave an order to the fire, "O fire! Be coolness and safety for Ibrahim." A miracle occurred, the fire obeyed and burned only his chains. Abraham came out from it as if he was coming out from a garden, peaceful, his face illuminated, and not a trace of smoke on his clothes. People watched in shock and exclaimed: "Amazing! Abraham's God has saved him from the fire!"<ref>{{Cite web |title=Stories of the Prophets {{!}} Alim.org |url=https://www.alim.org//history/prophet-stories/6/13/ |access-date=2023-08-04 |website=www.alim.org |language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{qref|21|69|b=y}}</ref>

===Confrontation with Nimrod===
The Quran discusses a very short conversation between an unrighteous ruler and Abraham.<ref>{{qref|2|258|b=y}}</ref> Although the king in the Quran is unnamed, and this fact has been recognized as being least important in the narrative, outside of the Quran, namely in some of the ''[[Tafsir|tafasir]]'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://quranx.com/tafsirs/2.258|title=Tafsir Surah 2:258|website=quranx.com|access-date=8 May 2019}}</ref> this king has been suggested to be [[Nimrod]].<ref>''History of the Prophets and Kings'', [[Tabari]], Vol. I: ''Prophets and Patriarchs''</ref> This Tafsir by [[Ibn Kathir]], a 14th-century scholar, has many embellishments in the narrative like Nimrod claiming [[divinity]] for himself. The [[Tafsir]] describes Nimrod's quarrel with Ibrahim, how he (Nimrod) became extremely angry and in his 'utter disbelief and arrant rebellion' became a tyrant.<ref>{{Qtaf|en:ibk|2|258}}</ref>

According to [[Roman Jews|Romano-Jewish]] historian [[Flavius Josephus]], Nimrod was a man who set his will against that of God. Nimrod proclaimed himself as a living god and was worshipped as such by his subjects. Nimrod's consort [[Semiramis]] was also worshipped as a goddess at his side.{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}} Before Abraham was born, a portent in the stars tells Nimrod and his [[Astrology|astrologers]] of the impending birth of Abraham, who would put an end to [[idolatry]]. Nimrod therefore orders the [[Infanticide|killing of all newborn babies]]. However, Abraham's mother escapes into the fields and gives birth secretly. Flavius Josephus mentions that Abraham confronts Nimrod and tells him face-to-face to cease his idolatry, whereupon Nimrod orders him [[Death by burning|burned at the stake]]. Nimrod has his subjects gather enough wood so as to burn Abraham in the biggest fire the world had ever seen. Yet when the fire is lit and Abraham is thrown into it, Abraham walks out unscathed. In Islam, it is debated whether the decision to have Ibrahim burned at the stake came from Nimrod and the temple priests or whether the people themselves became [[Vigilantism|vigilantes]] and hatched the plan to have him burned at the stake. According to Muslim commentators, after Abraham survived the great fire, notoriety in society grew bigger after this event. Nimrod, who was the King of [[Babylon]] felt that his throne was in danger, and that he was losing power because upon witnessing Ibrahim coming out of the fire unharmed, a large part of society started believing in God and Abraham being a [[Prophets in Islam|prophet of God]]. Up until this point, Nimrod was pretending that he himself was a god. Nimrod wanted to debate with him and show his people that he, the king is indeed the god and that Ibrahim was a liar. Nimrod asked Ibrahim, "What can your God do that I cannot?" Ibrahim replied, "My Lord is He who gives life and death." Nimrod then shouted, "I give life and death! I can bring a person from the street and have him executed, and I can grant my pardon to a person who was sentenced to death and save his life." Abraham replied, "Well, my lord God makes the sun rise from the East. Can you make it rise from the West?" Nimrod was confounded. He was beaten at his own game, on his own territory and in front of his own people. Abraham left him there speechless and went back to his mission of calling people to worship God.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.islamicity.com/media/ancmts/docum1.htm|title=The Father of the Prophets|work=islamicity.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.islamawareness.net/Prophets/ibrahim.html|title=Ibn Kathir: Story of Prophet Ibrahim/Abraham (pbuh)|work=islamawareness.net}}</ref>

This event has been noted as particularly important because, in the Muslim perspective, it almost foreshadowed the prophetic careers of future prophets, most significantly the career of Moses. Abraham's quarrel with the king has been interpreted by some to be a precursor to Moses's preaching to [[Fir'awn|Pharaoh]]. Just as the ruler who argued against Abraham claimed divinity for himself, so did the [[Pharaoh of the Exodus]], who refused to hear the call of Moses and perished in the [[Red Sea]]. In this particular incident, scholars have further commented on Abraham's wisdom in employing "rational, wise and target-oriented" speech, as opposed to pointless arguments.<ref>''Book 1: The Prophet Abraham'', Harun Yahya, ''The Unbeliever Advised By Abraham'', Online.</ref>

Abraham, in the eyes of many Muslims, also symbolized the highest moral values essential to any person. The Qur'an details the account of the [[angel]]s coming to Abraham to tell him of the birth of Ismael. It says that, as soon as Abraham saw the messengers, he "hastened to entertain them with a roasted calf."<ref name="q11s69">{{qref|11|69|b=y}}</ref> This action has been interpreted by all the scholars as exemplary; many scholars have commentated upon this one action, saying that it symbolizes Abraham's exceedingly high moral level and thus is a model for how men should act in a similar situation. This incident has only further heightened the "compassionate" character of Abraham in [[Islamic theology|Muslim theology]].{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}}

===Sacrifice===
[[File:Timurid Anthology Zhertva.jpg|thumb|Ibrahim's Sacrifice; Timurid Anthology, 1410–1411]]
The classical Quranic exegete and historian [[Tabari]] offered two versions, whom Abraham was ordered to sacrifice. According to the first strand, Abraham wished for a righteous son, whereupon an angel appeared to him informing him, that he will get a righteous son, but when he was born and reached puberty, he must be sacrificed for God. Later, the angel appeared to Hagar to inform her about the upcoming child. When Ishmael was grown, someone appeared to Abraham, invites him to keep his vow.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rippin |first1=Andrew |last2=Knappert |first2=Jan |title=Textual Sources for the Study of Islam |publisher=The [[University of Chicago Press]] |date=15 October 1990 |isbn=978-0-2267-2063-0 |page=63}}</ref>
<blockquote> When Ishmael was grown, someone appeared to Abraham in a dream and said to him: "Keep your vow which you made! God bestowed upon you a boy by Hagar so that you may sacrifice him" So he said to Ishmael: "Let us go offer a sacrifice to God!" So he took a knife and some rope and went with him until they reached a place in the mountains. The boy said to him: "Oh father! Where is your sacrifice?" He replied: "Oh my son, I saw in a dream, that I will slaughter you. So pay attention to what you see". He said, "Oh my father, do what you have been commanded; you will find me, Insha-Allah (if God wills), one of the patient". Ishmael then said to him: "Make tight my bonds, so that I will not struggle to pull back your clothes so that none of my blood will be shed on them for Hagar will see it and be grieved. Hurry! Pass the knife over my throat so that death will be easy for me. When you come to Hagar, greet her'. Abraham began to approach him and, while crying, tied him up. Ishmael too was crying such that the tears gathered by the cheek of Ishmael. He then drew the knife along his throat but the knife did not cut, for God had placed a sheet of copper on the throat of Ishmael. When he saw that, he turned him on his forehead and nicked him on the back of the head just as God has said in Quran {{qref|37|103|pl=y}}: ''When they had both submitted and he flung on his forehead'', that is they had submitted the affair to God. A voice called out: 'Abraham, you have fulfilled the vision!" He turned around and behold, there was a ram. He took it and released his son and he bent over his son saying: "Oh my son, today you have been given to me". That comes in God's saying in Quran {{qref|37|107|pl=y}}: ''We ransomed him with a great sacrifice''.</blockquote>

The second strand, provided by Tabari, states that Abraham was about to sacrifice his son Ishmael, and [[Iblis]] appeared in form of a man to prevent the sacrifice.
<blockquote> Iblis (Satan), who had taken on the form of a man, said: "Where are you going, O Shaikh?" He replied: " I am going to these mountains because I must do something there'. Iblis said: "By God, I have seen that Shaytan has come to you in a dream and ordered you to slaughter this little son of yours. And you intend to do that slaughtering!" Thereupon Abraham recognized him and said: "Get away from me, enemy of God! By God, I will most certainly continue to do what my Lord has commanded". Iblis, the enemy of God, gave up on Abraham but then he encountered Ishmael, who was behind Abraham carrying the wood and the large knife. He said to him: "O young man, do you realize where your father is taking you?" He said: "To gather wood for our family from the mountains". He replied: "By God, his actual intention is to sacrifice you!" He said: "Why?!" Iblis replied: "He claims that his Lord has ordered him to do so!" Ishmael replied: "He must do what his Lord commands, absolutely!" When the young man had rebuffed him, Iblis went to Hagar, the mother of Ishmael who was still at home. Iblis said to her: "Oh mother of Ishmael! Do you realize where Abraham is going with Ishmael?" She replied: "They have gone to gather wood for us in the mountains". He said: "He has actually gone in order to sacrifice him!" She replied: "It cannot be! He is too kind and too loving towards him to do that!" Iblis said: "He claims that God has ordered him to do that!" Hagar said: "If his Lord has ordered him to do that then he must submit to the command of God!" So the enemy of God returned exasperated at not being able to influence the family of Abraham as he wished.</blockquote>

This great sacrifice denotes the importance of the ram that replaced Ibraheem's son. [[Ibn Kathir|Tafsir ibn Kathir]] records Ibn Abbas' explanation of the verse, according to Muhammad's teachings. The explanation is as follows:<ref name="Qtaf|en:ibk|37|107">{{Qtaf|en:ibk|37|107}}</ref>
{{blockquote|"And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice" (37:107). It was reported that Ibn `Abbas (may God be pleased with him) said, "A ram which had grazed in Paradise for forty years."|{{Qtaf|en:ibk|37|107}}}}

The Tafsir further goes on to say that the ram's horns were preserved until the time of [[Muhammad in Islam|Muhammad]]:<ref name="Qtaf|en:ibk|37|107" />
<blockquote> Imam Ahmad recorded that Safiyyah bint Shaybah said, "A woman from Bani Sulaym, who was the midwife of most of the people in our household, told me that the Messenger of God sent for `Uthman bin Talhah, may God be pleased with him.<nowiki>''</nowiki> On one occasion she said, "I asked `Uthman, `Why did the Prophet call you' He said, `The Messenger of God said to me, I saw the horns of the ram when I entered the House (i.e., the Ka`bah), and I forgot to tell you to cover them up; cover them up, for there should not be anything in the House which could distract the worshipper.)<nowiki>'''</nowiki> Sufyan said, "The horns of the ram remained hanging in the House until it was burned, and they were burned too.<nowiki>''</nowiki> The Quraysh had inherited the horns of the ram that Abraham sacrificed, and they had been passed down from generation to generation, until the Messenger of God was sent. And God knows best.</blockquote>

From that day onwards, every [[Eid al-Adha]] once a year Muslims around the world slaughter an animal to commemorate Abraham's sacrifice and to remind themselves of self-abnegation in the way of God, and they would share the meat among friends, family, the poor and the needy. This is called [[Qurban (Islamic ritual sacrifice)|Qurban]]i ("sacrifice").<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.aaiil.org/text/books/mga/khutbahilhamiyya/khutbahilhamiyyadeepermeaningsacrifice.pdf|title=Deeper Meaning of Sacrifice in Islam<!-- Bot generated title -->|access-date=8 December 2014|archive-date=9 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809042827/https://www.aaiil.org/text/books/mga/khutbahilhamiyya/khutbahilhamiyyadeepermeaningsacrifice.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Miracles===
Abraham encountered several miracles of God during his lifetime. The Quran records a few main miracles, although different interpretations have been attributed to the passages. Some of the miracles recorded in the Quran are:
* Abraham was shown the kingdom of the [[Heaven]]s and the [[Earth]].<ref>{{qref|6|75|b=y}}</ref>
* Abraham and the miracle of the birds.<ref name="q2s260">{{qref|2|260|b=y}}</ref>
* Abraham was thrown into a fire, which became "cool" and "peaceful" for him.<ref>{{qref|21|68–70|b=y}}</ref>
The first passage has been interpreted both literally, allegorically, and otherwise. Although some commentators feel that this passage referred to a physical miracle, where Abraham was physically shown the entire kingdom of Heaven ([[Jannah]]),<ref>''The Book of Certainty'', M. Lings, S. Academy Publishing</ref> others have felt that it refers to the spiritual understanding of Abraham; these latter scholars maintain that the [[Babylon|Chaldeans]] were skilled in the observance of the stars, but Abraham, who lived amongst them, saw beyond the physical world and into a higher spiritual realm. The second passage has one mainstream interpretation amongst the [[Tafsir|Quranic commentators]], that Abraham took four birds and cut them up, placing pieces of each on nearby hills; when he called out to them, each piece joined and four birds flew back to Abraham.<ref>''Stories of the Prophets'', Kisa'i/Kathir, ''Story of Abraham''</ref> This miracle, as told by the Quranic passage, was a demonstration by God to show Abraham how God gave life to the dead. As the physical cutting of the birds is not implied in the passage, some commentators have offered alternative interpretations, but all maintain that the miracle was for the same demonstrative purpose to show Abraham the power God has to raise the dead to life.<ref>Quran: Text, Translation, Commentary, ''Abdullah Yusuf Ali'', note. 285</ref> The third passage has also been interpreted both literally and metaphorically, or in some cases both. Commentators state that the 'fire' refers to the main aspects. They maintained that, firstly, the fire referred to the physical flame, from which Abraham was saved unharmed. The commentators further stated that, secondly, the fire referred to the 'fire of persecution', from which Abraham was saved, as he left his people after this with his wife Sarah and his nephew Lot.<ref>Quran: Text, Translation, Commentary, ''Abdullah Yusuf Ali'', note. 2703</ref>