I said to Ibn Abbas, "Nawf Bikali claims that the Musa of the Children of Israil is not the Musa who met Khidr."Ibn Abbas replied, "The enemy of Allah has lied. Ubayy bin Kaab told us that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, 'Musa stood up to address the Children of Israil, and he was asked, "Who is the most knowledgeable of people?" He answered, "I am." Allah reproached him for not referring the matter of knowledge back to Him, and revealed to him, "There is indeed a servant of Mine at the junction of the two seas who knows more than you."Musa asked, "My Lord, how do I reach him?"Allah said, "Take a fish in a basket, and wherever you lose the fish, follow him there."So Musa set out with his young companion Yusha bin Nun, carrying the fish with them, until they reached the rock, where they stopped. Musa laid down his head and fell asleep.'"Sufyan said, and in a narration other than Amr's it is stated, that at the base of that rock there was a spring called Life, and nothing touched by its water failed to come to life. The fish was touched by the water of that spring."So it stirred, slipped out of the basket, and entered the sea. When Musa woke up, his companion had forgotten to mention it, as Allah says, 'Bring us our morning meal' [Kahf 18:62]. And Musa felt no fatigue until he had passed the place he was commanded to reach.Then his companion Yusha bin Nun said to him, 'Do you recall when we took shelter at the rock? I forgot the fish' [Kahf 18:63].So the two went back, retracing their footsteps, and they found in the sea an arched passage where the fish had gone. It was a marvel to his companion, and for the fish it was a pathway.When they reached the rock, there was a man covered with a garment. Musa greeted him with peace.The man said, "And how does peace come to be in your land?"Musa said, "I am Musa."The man asked, "The Musa of the Children of Israil?"Musa said, "Yes. May I follow you so that you may teach me some of the right guidance you have been taught?"Khidr said to him, "Musa, you possess a knowledge from the knowledge of Allah which Allah has taught you and which I do not know, and I possess a knowledge from the knowledge of Allah which Allah has taught me and which you do not know."Musa said, "Still, I will follow you."Khidr said, "If you follow me, then do not ask me about anything until I myself tell you about it" [Kahf 18:70].So they set off, walking along the shore, and a ship passed by them. Khidr was recognized, so the crew carried them on their ship without a fare, meaning without any payment. The two boarded the ship.A small bird landed on the edge of the ship and dipped its beak into the sea, and Khidr said to Musa, "Your knowledge and my knowledge and the knowledge of all creatures amount to no more, in comparison with the knowledge of Allah, than what this bird has taken up with its beak."Then, before Musa realized what was happening, Khidr took an adze and made a hole in the ship.Musa said to him, "These are people who carried us without a fare, and you deliberately damaged their ship, 'so as to drown its people? You have surely done' [Kahf 18:71] a dreadful thing."Then they went on, and there was a boy playing with other boys. Khidr took hold of his head and tore it off.Musa said to him, "Have you killed an innocent soul who had killed no one? You have surely done a terrible thing."Khidr said, "Did I not tell you that you would not be able to bear with me patiently?" [Kahf 18:74], up to Allah's words, "but they refused to offer them any hospitality. There they found a wall on the verge of collapse" [Kahf 18:77]. So Khidr gestured with his hand like this and set it straight.Musa said to him, "We entered this town and they gave us no hospitality and no food. 'Had you wished, you could have taken a wage for this.'"Khidr said, "This is where you and I part ways. I will tell you the meaning of what you could not bear patiently" [Kahf 18:77–78].The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, "We wish that Musa had been patient, so that Allah would have told us more about the two of them."And Ibn Abbas used to recite, "Ahead of them was a king who was seizing every sound ship by force" [Kahf 18:79], and, "As for the boy, he was a disbeliever" [Kahf 18:80].
حدثني قتيبة بن سعيد قال حدثني سفيان بن عيينة عن عمرو بن دينار
قلت لابن عباس إن نوفا البكالي يزعم أن موسى بني إسرائيل ليس بموسى الخضر فقال كذب عدو الله حدثنا أبي بن كعب عن رسول الله ﷺ قال قام موسى خطيبا في بني إسرائيل فقيل له أي الناس أعلم قال أنا فعتب الله عليه إذ لم يرد العلم إليه وأوحى إليه بلى عبد من عبادي بمجمع البحرين هو أعلم منك قال أي رب كيف السبيل إليه قال تأخذ حوتا في مكتل فحيثما فقدت الحوت فاتبعه قال فخرج موسى ومعه فتاه يوشع بن نون ومعهما الحوت حتى انتهيا إلى الصخرة فنزلا عندها قال فوضع موسى رأسه فنام قال سفيان وفي حديث غير عمرو قال وفي أصل الصخرة عين يقال لها الحياة لا يصيب من مائها شيء إلا حيي فأصاب الحوت من ماء تلك العين قال فتحرك وانسل من المكتل فدخل البحر فلما استيقظ موسى قال {لفتاه آتنا غداءنا} الآية قال ولم يجد النصب حتى جاوز ما أمر به قال له فتاه يوشع بن نون {أرأيت إذ أوينا إلى الصخرة فإني نسيت الحوت} الآية قال فرجعا يقصان في آثارهما فوجدا في البحر كالطاق ممر الحوت فكان لفتاه عجبا وللحوت سربا قال فلما انتهيا إلى الصخرة إذ هما برجل مسجى بثوب فسلم عليه موسى قال وأنى بأرضك السلام فقال أنا موسى قال موسى بني إسرائيل قال نعم قال هل أتبعك على أن تعلمني مما علمت رشدا قال له الخضر يا موسى إنك على علم من علم الله علمكه الله لا أعلمه وأنا على علم من علم الله علمنيه الله لا تعلمه قال بل أتبعك قال {فإن اتبعتني فلا تسألني عن شيء حتى أحدث لك منه ذكرا} فانطلقا يمشيان على الساحل فمرت بهم سفينة فعرف الخضر فحملوهم في سفينتهم بغير نول يقول بغير أجر فركبا السفينة قال ووقع عصفور على حرف السفينة فغمس منقاره في البحر فقال الخضر لموسى ما علمك وعلمي وعلم الخلائق في علم الله إلا مقدار ما غمس هذا العصفور منقاره قال فلم يفجأ موسى إذ عمد الخضر إلى قدوم فخرق السفينة فقال له موسى قوم حملونا بغير نول عمدت إلى سفينتهم فخرقتها {لتغرق أهلها لقد جئت} الآية فانطلقا إذا هما بغلام يلعب مع الغلمان فأخذ الخضر برأسه فقطعه قال له موسى {أقتلت نفسا زكية بغير نفس لقد جئت شيئا نكرا قال ألم أقل لك إنك لن تستطيع معي صبرا} إلى قوله {فأبوا أن يضيفوهما فوجدا فيها جدارا يريد أن ينقض} فقال بيده هكذا فأقامه فقال له موسى إنا دخلنا هذه القرية فلم يضيفونا ولم يطعمونا {لو شئت لاتخذت عليه أجرا قال هذا فراق بيني وبينك سأنبئك بتأويل ما لم تستطع عليه صبرا} فقال رسول الله ﷺ وددنا أن موسى صبر حتى يقص علينا من أمرهما قال وكان ابن عباس يقرأ وكان أمامهم ملك يأخذ كل سفينة صالحة غصبا وأما الغلام فكان كافرا