Prophet Solomon (a)
| Name inthe Qur'an: | Sulayman سُلَیمان |
|---|---|
| Name in the Bible: | Solomon |
| Place(s) of Residence: | Palestine |
| Name of People: | Banu Israel |
| After: | Prophet David (a) |
| Religion: | Monotheism |
| Repeat in the Qur'an: | 17 times |
| Important Events: | The Temple of Solomon was built by his order in Jerusalem |
Solomon (a) (Arabic: سُلَیمان) was son of David (a) and one of the important prophets of Banu Israel. He asked God a kingdom no one would deserve after him. God fulfilled his request and, in addition to humans, made jinns, demons, wind and birds under his control. The "Books of Proverbs" and "Song of Songs" are attributed to him. The Temple of Solomon was built at his time and by his order.
Lineage
Solomon (a) was son of David (a) and was from the progeny of Judas, son of Prophet Jacob (a).[1] Prophet Solomon (a) had a white face and a large hairy body who was born circumcised.[2]
Prophet Solomon (a) was the successor of his father after his demise[3] while he was twenty-two[4] or thirteen[5] years old.
Prophethood and Kingdom
Prophet Solomon (a) was one of the greatest prophets of Banu Israel[6] and became their king as well.[7]
There are many opinions about the ring of Solomon. According to hadiths, it will be received by Imam al-Mahdi (a).[8] There are also superstitious stories about this ring.[9]
At the time of Solomon (a), a group of people engaged in practising magic. He ordered them to collect all their writings and keep them in a special place. After the demise of Solomon (a), some people took them out and began teaching and preaching magic.[10] Prophet Solomon (a) ruled for forty years.[11]
Power and Kingdom
Prophet Solomon (a) asked God for a kingdom no one would deserve after him.[12] God fulfilled his request and made wind under his control[13] which took him a distance in one day which was usually passed in two months.[14] Humans, birds[15] and demons became under his control.[16] Some disobedient demons were chained.[17] Jinns worked for him[18] and he received access to the mines of copper.[19]
Temple of Solomon
Based on the text of the Torah, God gave Prophet David (a) the good news of building the largest and most significant temple for Jews, "For when you die and are buried with your ancestors, I will raise one of your descendants, your own offspring, and I will make his kingdom strong. He is the one who will build a house--a temple--for my name. And I will secure his royal throne forever."[20] This place was later called al-Aqsa mosque by Muslims.
Distinguished Attributes
In addition to power and great kingdom, God gave Prophet Solomon (a) other privileges:
- Different verses and hadiths have reported many attributes for Prophet Solomon (a). The Qur'an has introduced him as a good servant who always remembered God[21] and God granted him knowledge.[22] According to the Qur'an, Prophet Solomon (a) understood the language of animals.[23]
- According to some sources, the story of Radd al-Shams happened to Prophet Solomon (a).[24]
- The Books of Proverbs and Song of Songs are attributed to him, and both of them are among the holy books of Jews.[25]
- Prophet Solomon (a) also made judgements.[26] In the Qur'an, his judgements are mentioned.[27]
- Solomon (a) is mentioned seventeen times in the Qur'an.[28] The Qur'an has mentioned different stories about Prophet Solomon (a), the most famous one of which is the story of the Queen of Sheba.[29] There are also different stories about him in traditions, many of which have been considered by researchers unreal and exaggerated.[30]
- The Qur'an also generally attributed an error to Solomon (a), after which he repented.[31] Exegetes have mentioned different opinions on what that divine test was.[32]
Status among the Jews
The Torah has mentioned different stories about Solomon (a). According to the Torah, Prophet Solomon (a) had a thousand wives, many of whom were idol-worshipers and marrying them was against the order of God.[33]
According to the Torah, toward the end of his life, Prophet Solomon (a) followed some of his wives and turned to their gods and idols, incensed and made sacrifices for them.[34] The Qur'an has opposed this belief, saying, "and Solomon (a) was not faithless"[35]
Demise and Division of the Country
Prophet Solomon (a) passed away while he was leaning on his walking stick.[36] No one realized that he had passed away until termites ate his walking stick, and he fell to the ground.[37]
After the demise of Solomon (a), the regions under his rule were divided. The two tribes of Judas and Benjamin remained in a land called Judah, which included Jerusalem as well. The other ten tribes established an independent country called Israel.[38]
Notes
- ↑ Ibn Kathīr, Al-Bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 2, p. 18; Ibn Athīr, al-Kāmil fī l-tārīkh, vol. 1, p. 229.
- ↑ Majlisī, Bihār al-anwār, vol. 10, p. 77.
- ↑ Burūjirdī, Tafsīr-i jāmiʿ, vol. 5, p. 106.
- ↑ Ibn Khaldūn, Dīwān al-mubtadaʾ wa l-khabar, vol. 2, p. 112.
- ↑ Ibn Athīr, al-Kāmil fī l-tārīkh, vol. 1, p. 229.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 15, p. 414.
- ↑ Mustafawī, al-Taḥqīq fī kalimāt al-Qurʾan al-karīm, vol. 5, p. 195.
- ↑ Nuʿmānī, al-Ghayba, p. 238.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 19, p. 281.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 1, p. 370.
- ↑ Masʿūdī, Murūj al-dhahab, vol. 1, p. 71.
- ↑ He said, 'My Lord! Forgive me, and grant me a kingdom that will not befit anyone except me. Indeed, You are the All-munificent.' (Qur'an 38:35)
- ↑ Qur'an 38:36.
- ↑ And for Solomon [We subjected] the wind: its morning course was a month's journey and its evening course was a month's journey. We made a fount of [molten] copper flow for him, and [We placed at his service] some of the jinn who would work for him by the permission of his Lord. (Qur'an 34:12)
- ↑ Qur'an 27:17, Solomon's hosts were marched out for him, comprising jinn, humans and birds.
- ↑ Qur'an 38:37.
- ↑ Qur'an 38:38.
- ↑ Qur'an 34:12.
- ↑ Qur'an 34:12.
- ↑ 2 Samuel 7:12-13.
- ↑ Qur'an 38:30.
- ↑ Qur'an 27:15.
- ↑ Qur'an 27:16.
- ↑ Tabātabāʾi, al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 17, p. 203-4.
- ↑ The Bible, Old Testament
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 13, p. 466.
- ↑ Qur'an 21:78.
- ↑ Qarashī, Qāmūs-i Qurʾān, vol. 3, p. 306.
- ↑ Qur'an 27:20-44.
- ↑ Tabātabāʾi, al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 15, p. 369.
- ↑ Qur'an 38:34.
- ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, vol. 8, p. 741.
- ↑ [1 Kings 11]:2-3.
- ↑ [1 Kings 11]:7-8
- ↑ Qur'an 2:102.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 18, p. 42.
- ↑ Qur'an 34:14
- ↑ Tufīqī, Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg, p. 89.
References
- Burūjirdī, Sayyid Muḥammad Ibrāhīm. Tafsīr-i jāmiʿ. Tehran, Intishārāt-i Ṣadr. 1366 Sh.
- Ibn Athīr al-Jazarī, ʿAlī b. Muḥammad. Al-Kāmil fī l-tārīkh. Beirut: Dār Ṣādir, 1385 AH.
- Ibn Kathīr al-Dimashqī, Islmāʿīl b. ʿUmar. Al-Bidāya wa l-nihāya. Beirut: Dār al-Fikr, 1407 AH.
- Ibn Khaldūn, ʾAbd al-Raḥmān b. Muḥammad. Dīwān al-mubtadaʾ wa l-khabar. Ed. Khalīl Shaḥāda. Beirut: Dār al-Fikr, 1408 AH.
- Majlisī, Muḥammad Bāqir al-. Bihār al-anwār. Beirut, Dār Ihyāʾ al-Turāth al-ʿArabī, 1403 AH.
- Makārim Shīrāzī, Nāsir. Tafsīr-i nimūna. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmīyya, 1374 Sh.
- Masʿūdī, ʿAlī b. al-Ḥusayn al-. Murūj al-dhahab wa maʿadin al-jawhar. Ed. Asʿad Dāghir. Qom: Dār al-Hijra, 1409 AH.
- Mustafawī, Ḥasan al-. Al-Taḥqīq fī kalimāt al-Qurʾan al-karīm. Tehran: Bungāh-i Tarjuma wa Nashr-i Kitāb, 1360 Sh.
- Tabātabāʾi, Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn. Al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Qom: Daftar-i Intishārāt-i Islāmī, 1417 AH.
- Ṭabrisī, al-Faḍl b. al-Ḥasan al-. Majmaʿ al-bayān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Tehran: Nāsir Khusru, 1372 Sh.
- Tufīqī, Ḥusayn. Āshnāyī bā adyān-i buzurg. Tehran: Samt, 1386 Sh.
- Nuʿmānī, Muḥammad b. Ibrāhīm. Al-Ghayba. Ed. ʿAlī Akbar Ghaffārī. Tehran: Nashr-i Sadūq, 1397 AH.
- Qarashī, Sayyid ʿAlī Akbar. Qāmūs-i Qurʾān. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmīyya, 1371 Sh.