Three Tests of Patience

They came to a river that had to be crossed. Some men there must have looked upon these two as men of dignity — a prophet, after all, is a man of dignity whether or not he is known to be one — and that was generally the experience wherever Khiḍr (peace be upon him) went: people simply recognised them. So they were taken aboard for nothing.

But halfway across, Khiḍr began pulling planks from the boat. Mūsā (peace be upon him), a man of justice, very bold, very open and straightforward — such is Mūsā — said: they took us for nothing, and you are damaging their boat. Khiḍr said: did I not tell you, lan tastaṭīʿa maʿiya ṣabrā, that you would not be able to keep patience with me? I told you not to ask me anything. Mūsā said: this is my first mistake, lā tuʾākhidhnī bimā nasītu, do not take me to task for what I forgot, and do not make this harder for me. This may be read at verse 73; it is a very straightforward story.

They went on; and then there was a youth, perhaps eleven or twelve years old, some young boy, and Khiḍr simply killed him; he died. This is a graver violation still of the norms of the dunyā, simply to go and kill a man. Mūsā objected: why did you do that? You have done a terrible thing — qatalta nafsan zakiyyah, you have killed a pure soul. And again — and this is the beginning of the next chapter, the sixteenth juzʾ, at verse 75 — Khiḍr said: did I not tell you that you would not be able to keep patience with me? Mūsā then said: if he should ask again, let him be given one more chance, one more question, and then he is finished.

They went on, hungry now, and came to a certain region, and asked for food. Many of the mufassirīn say this region is Antakya, Antioch, also in southern Turkey — Tarsus and this being both in the central south, with Antakya further south than Tarsus. They refused to receive them, saying: no, we will give you no food. But then they found a wall there; and subḥān Allāh, Khiḍr did a very strange thing: he went and began rebuilding the wall. Mūsā said: those people took us for nothing and you damaged their boat, and these people would not even feed us, and you do this labour for them for nothing. Khiḍr said: that is the end of it — firāq baynī wa baynak, this is the parting between us; but I shall now tell you why I did those three things.