Quranic Studies and Islamic Culture

A Semantic Analysis of the Phrase ‘Say: Allah knows best how long they stayed’ and a Re-evaluation of the Interpretation of the Duration of the Companions of the Cave’s Sta

Articles in Press

Document Type : Research Article

Author

Zohreh Narimani

Associate Professor, University of Quranic Sciences and Studies, Kermanshah, Iran

10.22034/isqs.2026.55291.2537
Abstract
According to the verses of Surah Al-Kahf, God speaks about the number and time of the Companions of the Cave in the cave. These two issues are the subject of disagreement among commentators. This study, by dwelling on the verses and following the interpretations, is an answer to resolve these disagreements, in which God's last statement about the number of the Companions of the Cave is declared correct with various evidences, and about the duration of the Companions' stay, while mentioning the opinions of the commentators and criticizing it, two other possibilities are also presented with evidences. Another is that the opinion of most commentators that the letter "ma" in the initial part of verse 26 "Say, Allah, I know best what they stayed" is adverbial and means "little", has been seriously criticized, and the possibility was examined that "ma" is non-adverbial, meaning "how". As a result, in this story, God has answered three important questions about the Companions of the Cave and their awakening, namely the number of people, the duration of their stay, and the quality of their remaining healthy and being resurrected

Keywords

Surah Al-Kahf
criticism of interpretations
number of people
duration of stay
quality of stay in the cave
Subjects
Quranic Studies and Islamic Culture

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 14 November 2026

  • Receive Date 29 July 2026
  • Revise Date 22 September 2026
  • Accept Date 25 October 2026

Home

Guide for Authors

Submit Manuscript

Reviewers

Contact Us