Cave of Ashabe-Kahf (interior)

The main view above shows a section of the

interior. The crafted stone blocks are tombs; one

of them has a viewing hole through which bones

can be seen (inset). The bones of the dog have

also been displayed.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be

on him) was challenged by the Quraysh of

Makkah who did not believe in his message to

answer three questions passed onto them by

the Jews. One of the questions was, “Who

were the youth who disappeared, and how

many were they?” The Jews knew that the

Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on

him) would only be able to tell the story if he

was indeed a prophet.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be

on him) had no clue and said that he would

answer them tomorrow, hoping for the answer

to be revealed to him through Jibraeel (upon

him be peace) but forgetting to say

’Inshallah’ (if Allah wills). No revelation came

to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah

be on him) for 15 days, leading the Quraysh to

greatly abuse and revile him.

The answer, however, was eventually revealed

to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah

be on him) in a Surah named after the cave

(Al-Kahf) of the sleepers. The Quran revealed

the exact story that the Jews knew of, and it

answered the questions similarly to the

information they had. The Quran confirmed

that they slept for 309 years, which the Jews

knew of. The Quran however did not give an

exact answer as to how many they were. Allah

(Glorified and Exalted is He) revealed: “(Some)

will say: They were three, their dog the fourth,

and (some) say: Five, their dog the sixth,

guessing at random: and (some) say: Seven,

and their dog the eighth. Say (O Muhammad):

My Lord is best aware of their number. None

knowth them save a few. So contend not

concerning them except with an outward

contending, and ask not any of them to

pronounce concerning them.” [18:22]

The Jews themselves did not know exactly

how many there were (whether 3,5 or 7) and

were astonished when the Quran gave all the

possible numbers they had suspected for the

number of sleepers.

References: Stories of the Prophets – Ibn Kathir,

Wikipedia, wehateqadyani.blogspot.in