فَضَرَبنا عَلىٰ آذانِهِم فِي الكَهفِ سِنينَ عَدَدًا
So We put them to sleep in the cave for several years.
EXEGESIS
Again, the untranslated fa denotes that what happened here was a consequence of their prayer mentioned in the previous verse and God responded to it by making them sleep in the cave.
Ḍarabnā ʿalā ādhānihim literally means ‘we struck upon their ears’ and is a figurative way of saying putting someone to sleep, meaning no sound would rouse them from their slumber. The statement is one that has no suitable parallel translation.
It has been said that the subject is omitted here, and it effectively means: We struck a veil upon their ears. Others have understood ḍarb as cessation, meaning the functioning of their ears was ceased. Finally, it has been proposed that the statement is likening their sleep to that of a baby, whose ears are covered by their mother’s hands, gently lulling them to sleep.
In any case the apparent meaning of the expression is clear in that they did not die in the cave but where somehow kept in a state of stasis.
ʿAdad (several) denotes maʿdūd, which literally means that which is counted. It is here hinting towards the fact that the years they were to spend in the cave were closely counted and specifically numbered with a purpose in mind and according to God’s exact plan.
Although some have argued that the expression ʿadad means they slept for a long time, others said it conveys insignificance and means a short time, like in the verse, And they sold him for a cheap price, a few (maʿdūdah) dirhams (12:20); so it implies that their sleep was not as wonderful (verse 9) as some have supposed. The latter is more appropriate considering also that later God uses the word ruqūd to describe their sleep, which is used for a nap. In this way the expressions convey that while three centuries might seem like a long time to us, for God – who is not bound by time – it is nothing.
EXPOSITION
When the youths took refuge in the cave and prayed for God’s help, it is certain that they did not expect what happened next. The fact that this verse is related as being the answer to their prayers for help is extremely profound. By all accounts, when they awoke from their sleep they only lived for a few days, so the purpose of the sleep was not for them to escape from the death penalty that awaited them. The reason for their sleep is found in the later verse of the surah, that they might know that Allah’s promise is true (verse 21) in destroying falsehood and confirming truth, and to realise in the depth of their hearts that We have made whatever is on the earth an adornment for it that We may test them [to see] which of them is best in conduct (verse 7). By making them sleep for three centuries, God removed the thick veil of time from before their eyes so that they could see for themselves how God’s plan and promise is realised gradually but surely. Having been shown the truth, there was no reason to delay their reward and withhold it from them any longer. In any case, remaining in the new epoch in which they were awakened would have been difficult for them. All their families and friends having passed away, they had no knowledge of the time and its customs.
Secondly, God wished to show the people that He is capable of bringing back the dead and will certainly do so. The sleep of the youths was God’s miraculous sign to people, so they might know that Allah’s promise is true, and that there is no doubt in the hour (verse 21).
This is also a great lesson in how sometimes we may pray for something and how God’s plan may be completely different to what we had in mind. The youths prayed for a mercy (verse 10) from God, hoping against hope that they would somehow be saved from the evil of their nation’s idolatry to which they did not want to return. They could not imagine that the mighty superpower of their time, the Roman Empire, could so be transformed; that the Christianity which was so persecuted could become the religion of the very state that had done the persecution. By putting them to sleep in the cave, God showed them how He has a plan for everything, It is He who has sent His Apostle with the guidance and the religion of truth that He may make it prevail over all religions though the polytheists should be averse (61:9). It is interesting to note that this is quite similar to the promise God made to His Prophet when he too took refuge in a cave, and He made the word of the faithless the lowest; and the word of Allah is the highest (9:40).
All of this links with the surah’s main theme: God knows what is the true and full scope of all things and the final outcomes, a reality which is often beyond the scope of His servants, even the faithful ones.
While this verse only tells us that they slept several years, the specific length of their sleep is clarified in verse 25.
[1] Tabrisi, 6/698.
[2] Zamakhshari, 2/705.
[3] Qurtubi, 10/363
[4] Mizan, 13/248.
[5] Mizan, 13/249.
[6] Nemuneh, 12/358.
[7] Zamakhshari, 2/705; Razi, 21/429; Mizan, 13/249.