Bismillah
Surah Kahf is a Surah we recite every Friday. That is a Prophetic way of letting us know that there are lessons in the Surah that are going to be relevant in our everyday life. We need to review them especially on the day of Friday. This guidance is going to protect us from all kinds of problems.
There is a very unique story in this Surah. The story highlights Musa's commitment to learning. Allah calls him to task, essentially that he had to learn something from someone in a far away land. So, he said to his young student that he will stay committed to this journey even if it means he has to spend multiple life times finding it.
وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِفَتَىٰهُ لَآ أَبْرَحُ حَتَّىٰٓ أَبْلُغَ مَجْمَعَ ٱلْبَحْرَيْنِ أَوْ أَمْضِىَ حُقُبًا ﴿٦٠﴾
And [mention] when Moses said to his servant, "I will not cease [traveling] until I reach the junction of the two seas or continue for a long period." [Quran, Al Kahf 18:60)
The purpose of this journey is that he is going to learn something and the first thing he is telling his student that he himself is a student and he is teaching his student his own commitment as a student.
Musa alayhissalaam is the most mentioned prophet in the Quran. He was also the recipient of the largest revelation, the Torah, which was significantly much bigger in volume than the revelation in the Quran. By that definition, he is actually the most knowledgeable of all human being until that time. He has more knowledge of revelation that anyone else. And yet he was being told to go learn. His followers were called People of the Book, meaning people of learning. In other words, this is the messenger who inspired so much learning and knowledge that came after him. His people became known as People of the Book/information.
Musa was going to learn something that will take extra effort on his part. There is something unique and valuable about this knowledge that the Book of Allah at the time is not going to teach him. He has to learn it from somewhere else and Allah was not going to reveal it to him. He has to go on a journey and learn from this person.
Who is this person that he is going to learn from? What is his credentials? If Musa alayhissalaam, the most mentioned prophet in the Quran and the most knowledgeable person at the time is now going to be a student of this someone, we must really learn his name and acknowledge him. But Allah only gave one bit of information about this person, i.e. "a servant from among Our servants."
فَوَجَدَا عَبْدًا مِّنْ عِبَادِنَآ ءَاتَيْنَٰهُ رَحْمَةً مِّنْ عِندِنَا وَعَلَّمْنَٰهُ مِن لَّدُنَّا عِلْمًا ﴿٦٥﴾
And they found a servant from among Our servants to whom we had given mercy from us and had taught him from Us a [certain] knowledge. (65) [Quran, Al Kahf 18:65]
Quran deliberately does not mention his name. You would think this is a very important individual but it is not an issue in the Quran. The Quran gives one bit of information, only describes him "a servant from among our servants." What does this teach us? The Quran teaches us something profound about those who reached the heights of knowledge...they are nothing more than slaves of Allah. Their titles and credentials are insignificant before Allah. It is interesting also that Musa alayhissalaam did not ask him his credentials when he found him. Typically when people are learning from someone, they want to size up the teacher. There is nothing like that, instead he said, he "May I follow you?" ... What he is going to learn from him isn't just words. He has to follow him to gain the knowledge. It is the kind of knowledge that cannot come from books nor words but from experience and only from those experiences will he learn something. And of course, this person said, you don't have the patience for it. And Musa alayhissalaam convinced him to allow him to follow.
قَالَ لَهُۥ مُوسَىٰ هَلْ أَتَّبِعُكَ عَلَىٰٓ أَن تُعَلِّمَنِ مِمَّا عُلِّمْتَ رُشْدًا ﴿٦٦﴾ قَالَ إِنَّكَ لَن تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِىَ صَبْرًا ﴿٦٧﴾ وَكَيْفَ تَصْبِرُ عَلَىٰ مَا لَمْ تُحِطْ بِهِۦ خُبْرًا ﴿٦٨﴾ قَالَ سَتَجِدُنِىٓ إِن شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ صَابِرًا وَلَآ أَعْصِى لَكَ أَمْرًا ﴿٦٩﴾
Moses said to him, "May I follow you on [the condition] that you teach me from what you have been taught of sound judgement?" (66) He said, "Indeed, with me you will never be able to have patience. (67) And how can you have patience for what you do not encompass in knowledge?" (68) [Moses] said, "You will find me, if Allah wills, patient, and I will not disobey you in [any] order." (69) [Quran, Al Kahf 18:66-69]
This is important for us because before we learn anything about these lessons, we have to internalize that these lessons cannot be learned if you are not patient, and these lessons will only be learned if your patience is tested, if you are put in difficult situations. These lessons are directly related to difficulties and hardships where your patience is going to be to test.
May Allah make us among the patient ones. Aameen.
And Allah knows best.
Allahumma salli ala Muhammad wa ala alihi wasahbihi wasallam
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