The idea that dogs are held in contempt in Islam amounts almost to a truism in the modern West. This notion is shared by both Muslims and non-Muslims and is reflected in writings ranging from public media to academic literature. The supposed Muslim bias against dogs is inferred primarily from two themes: (1) the emphasis that Muslim tradition lays on the principle of the impurity of dogs and (2) the objection to admitting these animals indoors and keeping them as pets. However, some have pointed out that an important exception to this rule is the Qur'ānic narrative of the Aṣḥāb al-Kahf, or the Companions of the Cave (also known as Ahl al-Kahf), in which a dog is a prominent feature. Previous academic discussions of this story, however, fall short of accounting for the full significance of this character. More than merely providing a favorable depiction of the dog, the Aṣḥāb al-Kahf pericope redefines the role and status of the dog in accordance with the Qur'ān's theocentric worldview. Moreover, even though the issues of the impurity of dogs and keeping them as pets are not discussed explicitly in the Qur'ān, they seem to be implicit in this Qur'ānic narrative, without conveying negative connotations. In this article I reexamine the Aṣḥāb al-Kahf pericope in light of current scholarship on dogs to consider how the Qur'ānic viewpoint agrees with or departs from cultural stances on dogs in world traditions, and how the Qur'ān inscribes its own worldview on the role and status of this animal.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2979/jims.3.2.04
There are many societies that have prejudice against dogs. Many Muslims also harbor prejudice against dogs. One can’t blame ordinary Muslims as their attitude and perception have been shaped primarily by some hadiths (Prophetic narrations) that require careful analysis and by the interpretation of many among our scholars (
ulama) and jurists (
fuqaha).
Ordinary Muslims can’t be blamed because they have become used to understand the world as well as Islam through the lens of the accumulated positions and interpretations of fallible human beings over so many centuries. That’s why they have become accustomed to the notion that dogs represent evil, impurity, or even bad omen.
What does the Qur’an have to say about dogs? That’s the focus of this brief write up.
In two Suras (chapters), the Qur’an mentions about dogs.
Those who have an entrenched anti-dog attitude and perception, they would usually flag the following verse from Surah al-A’raf.
"And if We had willed, we could have elevated him (
ghawin, deviants) thereby, but he adhered [instead] to the earth and followed his own desire. So his example is like that of the dog: if you chase him, he pants, or if you leave him, he [still] pants. That is the example of the people who denied Our signs. So relate the stories that perhaps they will give thought." (
7/al-A’raf/176)
In understanding and interpreting this verse, we need to remember that dogs are not like human beings with conscience and ability/freedom to choose. A dog’s behavior is purely innate and instinctive, as Allah has created them.
Here the Qur’an has drawn attention to the unchangeable nature of dog, a nature that is innately programmed by Allah. It is the same nature due to which a dog embraces a human being as a companion, friend or master. Unless the behavior of the human changes, the conduct of the dog is reliably consistent, which is reflected in its loyalty. There is so much evidence of this in the real world, that there is simply no room to deny this reality about dog’s basic nature in its close interaction with human beings.
It is in this context that Qur’an discusses about dogs in
Surah al-Kahf (The Cave). In two verses –
18:18 and
18:22 – the mentions occur. Approaching these verses without the relevant context before these verses would render the reference to dog as simply inconsequential. First, let’s cite these two verses.
وَتَحْسَبُهُمْ أَيْقَاظًا وَهُمْ رُقُودٌ وَنُقَلِّبُهُمْ ذَاتَ الْيَمِينِ وَذَاتَ الشِّمَالِ وَكَلْبُهُم بَاسِطٌ ذِرَاعَيْهِ بِالْوَصِيدِ لَوِ اطَّلَعْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ لَوَلَّيْتَ مِنْهُمْ فِرَارًا وَلَمُلِئْتَ مِنْهُمْ رُعْبًا
Verse Options:
Translations |
CommentaryAYK |
Context
+ Reciters
And thou wouldst have thought that they were awake, whereas they lay asleep. And We caused them to turn over repeatedly, now to the right, now to the left; and their dog [lay] on the threshold, its forepaws outstretched. Hadst thou come upon them [unprepared], thou wouldst surely have turned away from them in flight, and wouldst surely have been filled with awe of them.
Ref Search Results
(1 verse(s) found).
Al-Kahf (The Cave) 18:22
❤
سَيَقُولُونَ ثَلَاثَةٌ رَّابِعُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ وَيَقُولُونَ خَمْسَةٌ سَادِسُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ رَجْمًا بِالْغَيْبِ وَيَقُولُونَ سَبْعَةٌ وَثَامِنُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ قُل رَّبِّي أَعْلَمُ بِعِدَّتِهِم مَّا يَعْلَمُهُمْ إِلَّا قَلِيلٌ فَلَا تُمَارِ فِيهِمْ إِلَّا مِرَاء ظَاهِرًا وَلَا تَسْتَفْتِ فِيهِم مِّنْهُمْ أَحَدًا
Verse Options:
Translations |
CommentaryAYK |
Context
+ Reciters
[And in times to come] some will say,
"[They were] three, the fourth of them being their dog," while others will say, "Five, with their dog as the sixth of them" -idly guessing at something of which they can have no knowledge -and [so on, until] some will say, "[They were] seven, the eighth of them being their dog." Say: "My Sustainer knows best how many they were. None but a few have any [real] knowledge of them. Hence, do not argue about them otherwise than by way of an obvious argument,
and do not ask any of those [story-tellers] to enlighten thee about them."
