This video goes into detail as to why Dhul Qarnayn described in the Quran is actually Alexander the Great. It goes through multiple parallels of the two stories to demonstrate without a shadow of a doubt that the two people are one and the same. Much has been written about this online already including how Alexander was given the name “The man with two horns”, but the actual details of the story are extremely closely related.
The Quran has many stories in it. Infact one of the claims of its miraculous nature is that it contains many stories that Prophet Muhammad could not have known. It is said that God himself told him these stories.
ذَٰلِكَ مِنْ أَنبَاءِ الْغَيْبِ نُوحِيهِ إِلَيْكَ ۚ وَمَا كُنتَ لَدَيْهِمْ إِذْ يُلْقُونَ أَقْلَامَهُمْ أَيُّهُمْ يَكْفُلُ مَرْيَمَ وَمَا كُنتَ لَدَيْهِمْ إِذْ يَخْتَصِمُونَThat is from the news of the unseen which We reveal to you, [O Muhammad]. And you were not with them when they cast their pens as to which of them should be responsible for Mary. Nor were you with them when they disputed. (Quran 3:44)نَّحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ نَبَأَهُم بِالْحَقِّ ۚIt is We who relate to you, [O Muhammad], their story in truth…
وَكُلًّا نَّقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ أَنبَاءِ الرُّسُلِ مَا نُثَبِّتُ بِهِ فُؤَادَكَ ۚ وَجَاءَكَ فِي هَٰذِهِ الْحَقُّ وَمَوْعِظَةٌ وَذِكْرَىٰ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَAnd each [story] We relate to you from the news of the messengers is that by which We make firm your heart. And there has come to you, in this, the truth and an instruction and a reminder for the believers.
The first point is simply that the Quran mentions that they asked Prophet Muhammad about Dhul Qarnayn. So we know this is an individual that was known to the questioners in Arabia. This eliminates the possibility that Dhul Qarnayn is a completely foreign entity that nobody knows about.
Secondly, the two stories have very strong similarities including Alexander travelling to the east and west, seeing the rising of the sun from a people who had no cover from it, seeing the setting of the sun into a pool of water, etc.
Thirdly, why do Muslim scholars want to deny the similarity? Because historical evidence has been found regarding Alexander the Great being a pagan idol worshipper, which means either the Quran is mistaken, or history is wrong, or the two people are not the same. Since we have so much evidence that they are the same person, the only possibility is either history is completely wrong and fabricated (a conspiracy maybe?) or the Quran is actually the writing of Prophet Muhammad who included the popular fable of Alexander the Great in his “revelation”.
Abdullah,
Have you studied about the dating of Alexander legends? They are dated 628-29 at the earliest, which is near the time of the Prophet (ﷺ)’s death roughly 10 years ‘after’ the migration from Makkah to Madina. The Syriac text has most probably a 9th century origin and the ones arguing for earlier origin cannot go back beyond 628-29. If, for the sake of argument, 9th century origin is ignored all-together and 628-29 is assumed to be accurate, it would mean that the Qur’anic account is dated between five to 10 years before the migration and hence, we know for a fact that the events of Dhul Qarnayn, in the Qur’an, were revealed between 15 to 20 years before the Syriac version came into being.
See more here: https://quranmisconceptions.wordpress.com/2015/12/03/dhul-qarnayn-and-the-muddy-spring/#6
I believe the article in the link will be useful for some of your other doubts as well.
The Syriac legend is clearly a further development in a tradition of earlier legends about Alexander and the gate that go back long before the Quran. There were other versions of the legend circulating around the time of Muhammad too, with the sun setting in a spring and so on. The Quranic version is very obviously part of this tradition, regardless of whether it is a direct descendant of the Syriac version or merely a cousin. You can see too from verse 18:83 that it was a popular legend in those days.
As for Adeel’s blog, I have to say having read it once some time ago that for all the rhetoric and venom, there were barely a handful of places where he even has a semi credible point when you compare it to the article (on the same subject) he thinks he’s refuting. I recall a diatribe of straw man arguments, misunderstandings of the point, brushing aside or ignoring key things, weak points, even no evidence presented for a postulated interpretation whatsoever. Not surprising to me given that his position is fundamentally wrong and the Quran critics are well justified. Lots of attitude not lived up to by the content is not exactly an uncommon pattern in Islamic apologetics.
Go back long before the Qur’an? Wow. Alexander was/is a holy figure for the Jews, not for the Muslims. Go and read about it. The pre-Islamic legends (if you’ve bothered to read about them) are nowhere close to the Qur’an. A historical personality was debated by some individuals and the Qur’an clarified it. [Original legend no where near the Qur’an —-> Qur’an clarifies —-> Syriac copies from the Qur’an]. The dating discoveries have forced even the orientalists to go a bit into silence and they have stopped criticising the Qur’an on this topic with such rigour as before because the exact copy/paste similarities between Qur’an and Syriac text are copy/paste the other way round and not as alleged by critics of Islam earlier on. It appears you are not up to date on the latest developments.
Your comments and taunts are referring to your self only using words such as [Straw man.. semi credible.. rhetoric.. venom.. misunderstanding.. brushing aside.. ignoring.. weak points.. no evidence.. interpretation.. fundamentally wrong.. attitude not lived up to by the content] without justifying them.
You sound exactly like [You’re wrong because I say you’re wrong; I have no proof but your proofs are wrong].
All the time,you fail to realize that people at the time of Mohammed were aware of that person(Dhul Qarnayn),that’s why they asked him about Dhul Qarnayn(18:93).
Regardless of details found in Syriac legends,there WERE stories circulating the region at time,there is also an ancient poem of Tubba regardind Dhul Qarnain and how he traveled to the place where Sun sets.
That poem is CLEARLEY pre-islamic.
Having in mind that Jews asked him about the Dhul Qarnayn,they also invented their own legend about Dhul Qarnain.
Since qarn means horn,and Dhul Qarnain-two horned one(guy with two horns),in their scriptures it’s stated that God gave him(Alexander) those horns as a sign of crushing other kingdoms and their kings.
We can’t really ignore their story,since they asked Mohammed about DQ,so we are to assume they know his character.
We see that pre-islamic poet talks about him,plus Jews also talked about Alexander,so yeah…
Good luck with your mental gymnastics…
Alexandar was a bisexual pagan idol worshiper,he couldn’t be a Muslim…