What Is the Meaning of Najd and the “Horn of Shaytan” in the Hadith?
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
What is the meaning of Najd and the “horn of Shaytan” mentioned in the hadith: “There, earthquakes and tribulations will occur, and there will emerge the horn of Shaytan”? How should this be understood?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
There are some explanations about the horn of Shaytan. I would like to share one of the hadiths and the explanation given by the foremost commentator of hadith, Ibn Hajar (Allah have mercy on him).
Ibn Umar said: ‘The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) mentioned: “O Allah, give us baraka in our Syria, O Allah, give us baraka in our Yemen.” They said: “And in our Najd?” and he said: “O Allah, give us baraka in our Syria, O Allah, give us baraka in our Yemen.” They said: “And in our Najd?” and I believe that he said the third time: “In that place are earthquakes and seditions, and in that place shall rise the horn of Shaytan [qarn al-shaytan].”’ [Bukhari]
The Horn of Shaytan
The above hadith is mentioned in the chapter, The Trials from the East, in Bukhari:
Ibn Hajr (Allah have mercy on him) wrote in his commentary, Fath al-Bari:
As for his saying, “The horn of Shaytan,” Dawudi said that the sun literally has a horn.
It is possible that by the horn, he means the power of Shaytan and what he uses to aid him in misleading others. This is the most reasonable explanation.
Some say that Shaytan places his head close to the sun when it rises so the worshipers could prostrate before him.
Some say there may be a devil in the sun, between whose horns the sun rises.
Khattabi said, “The generation of a nation of people occurs after the demise of others. Qarn al-Hayya is set as an example regarding matters that are not praiseworthy. Others say the people of the East at that time were people of disbelief, so the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) informed them that the strife would come from that direction, and it was as he reported.
The first tribulation and trial were from the East, and that was a reason for the division between Muslims, and that is something that Shaytan loves and rejoices in. Likewise, innovations and heresies arose from that direction.
Khattabi said that Najd is in the eastern direction, and whoever was in Madina, Najd is the desert of Iraq and its surroundings, which is the east direction of the people of Madina.
The origin of Najd is what is high from the earth, which is the opposite of the gawr, for it is what lies low from it. Tihama is all from the gawr, which is low land, and Makka is part and from it.
From this, we learn what Dawudi said: Najd is from the direction of Iraq. He thought that Najd was a special place. This is not the case, but everything that rises about what follows it is called a Najd, high end, and that which is low is called a Gawr, low end.
[Ibn Hajar, Fath al-Bari]
I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. In sha Allah, you will receive guidance and direction.
– Puncturing the Devil’s Dream About the Hadiths of Najd and Tamim
– Where Is the Levant (Sham) and Why Is It Significant?
I pray this helps answer your question.
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Mawlana Ilyas Patel has received traditional education in various countries. He started his schooling in the UK and completed his hifz of the Quran in India. After that, he joined an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied secular and Aalimiyya sciences. Later, he traveled to Karachi, Pakistan, and other Middle Eastern countries to further his education. Mawlana has served as an Imam in the Republic of Ireland for several years and taught the Quran and other Islamic sciences to both children and adults. He also worked as a teacher and librarian at a local Islamic seminary in the UK for 12 years. Presently, he lives in the UK with his wife and is interested in books and gardening.
