# Was Solomon's hudhud really a bird?

*The hudhud and Solomon: a human agent, and the throne of Sheba*

- URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/zz85auzek5w/s/36/
- Date: 2021-04-06 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti #209 | Q&A Unscripted & Unrestricted! 😉 | Mufti Abu Layth (3:36:01–3:40:28)
- Status: general teaching
- Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ85AUzeK5w&t=12961s
- Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/zz85auzek5w/

**Topics:** Stories of the prophets; How to read the Quran; Responses to critics

**Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** The hudhud is addressed in Arabic forms used only for humans, so Mufti Abu Layth reads it as a person, perhaps an agent of Solomon's intelligence service, and he rejects a reading that makes a prophet steal a throne.

## Longer summary

Mufti Abu Layth says the critics cut and paste his discussion of the hudhud. He says the verses address the hudhud with plurals and pronouns that Arabic uses only for human beings, that Solomon threatens to slaughter it unless it explains itself, and asks how a bird has such cognition and accountability; so it was a person, possibly part of what he calls Solomon's intelligence service bringing word of neighbouring kingdoms, a view he notes some scholars have also mentioned. On the bringing of the Queen of Sheba's throne, he asks whether prophets would steal thrones and says an alternative reading makes sense. He objects that the critics dismiss a scholar he cites, author of a nine-volume tafsir and works on hadith, as some random person, and says agreeing with his view does not make a lifelong scholar a hidden heretic.

## Sources and names cited

- Sulayman (Solomon)
- hudhud (hoopoe)
- the Queen of Sheba
- zindiq

## Transcript (machine tier, 3:36:01–3:40:28)

[3:35:43] So, I don't know why they didn't just tackle the actual point of refuting the actual Jewish literature on this issue of like getting the dead meat and tapping a dead body and doing it's actually in the Jewish literature and they don't mention about things like they come back to life and stuff. So, yes, you could say, you know, the the Jewish rituals, they are like you could find some strange rituals, but why not refute the actual point?

[3:36:12] Abdarim and other people say this is the actual verse of the Quran describing hood and on several this is another thing they don't tackle the actual point now I did mention that yes and other people have highlighted that I do mention two different things I say that where it says right that this was like whispering and I do highlight that some scholars have said that about having this kind of about his because there's other verses where it mentions that that this could have referred to like an intelligence

[3:36:50] intelligencia kind of thing because if he was this great ruler who he was Solomon he had he must have had uh like an intelligence agency he must his own version in that day and age people who bring uh you know they they kind of bring intel about neighboring empires to him. Now I mention about hood hood. I do not say hood hood was from the and so on.

[3:37:16] I mention that if you look at those verses and see this they just cut and paste it. I say that the verses addressing hudhood are addressing him as a human being. Now why didn't they tackle that? Because that is how the Quran says that if he doesn't explain this to me then I'm going to do birds explain things to you that that Solomon is so angry with this bird that he says I'm going to slaughter this I'm going to this is what I'm going to do I'm going to slaughter him and then he says to him are you from the you don't address animals with these plurals this is only for human beings in the Arabic language why not address that so why is Solomon

[3:37:56] addressing a bird first of all, how does a bird have cognition? How does a bird speak, right? And actually, because he's he's being held accountable and and Solomon is really angry with this bird. I mean, I could understand, you know, you could have a pet and be upset, but he's really angry that he's going to torture this pet, right? This is what, you know, according to their understanding. And then why is this bird being addressed as a human using human language and pronouns in the Arabic language?

[3:38:27] Why not answer the actual question? So clear that this is a particular person that Islam is addressing. What is he talking about? Intelligencia. Here's what's really interesting. Asking them to go get her throne. Now this the throne of Shiva. They don't answer the actual thing because I mentioned her throne. Are you saying that prophets would steal thrones?

[3:38:51] That's a huge problem. Why? It's theft. Now, what's an alternative narrative? And I do actually make sense. And once again in the Abdarand say look some random kept. Now this is the thing that just because you don't know just because you don't know people they're now zindiks that means they're hidden kafir I mean here is a scholar who has written what what is that in nine volumes there of the Quran he was a [snorts]

[3:39:28] his entire life uh he was also he's written other works on the Quran on hadith he was hadith he was not maliki or whatever he was he has written this but just because his view now is something that concurs with my view. He must be also a hidden kafir a zindik who really hates Islam and his ultimate plot is to uh mislead people and take him into hell.

[3:39:55] And the way he does his this is he spends his whole life becoming a scholar in Islam and then being a mosque till he dies. [laughter] Your conspiracies Ha. So key features of key of landmark. So I mentioned that events or landmark kind I can make you from that

[3:40:24] there is again and these people said that it was a natural birth. Um they say you want us to speak to this boy. He was just debating you a few seconds ago. And this once again they don't tackle the actual topic of Jesus cuz they're saying well why would the Quran say to address the boy when wasn't he just dealing with I mention in my actual clip that they were very they found it incredibly dishonoring and insulting that this boy was debating them and he was getting one over them.

## Cite

Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment zZ85AUzeK5w/s/36. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/zz85auzek5w/s/36/

Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.