An-Nabi as-Siddiq — The Truthful Prophet
Prophet Idris إِدْرِيس
The second prophet mentioned by name in the Qur'an after Adam. He lived in the generations of tawhid between Adam and Nuh, was praised as a man of perfect truthfulness, and was raised by Allah to a 'high station.' Classical tradition identifies him with Enoch and remembers him as the first man to write with the pen, the first to study the stars, and the first to sew clothes.
Between Adam and Nuh
Idris lived in the period the Prophet ﷺ described as 'ten generations of tawhid' between Adam and Nuh (recorded by Ibn Abbas, narration in Bukhari). Classical scholars (Ibn Kathir in al-Bidayah wa-n-Nihayah, al-Tabari in Tarikh al-Rusul wa-l-Muluk) identify him with the figure later called Enoch (Akhnukh in Arabic). Some narrations place him as the great-grandfather of Nuh — others as the great-great-grandfather. He inherited the message of Adam and carried it to a generation that was just beginning to drift, in the same lands and among the same families that would later need Nuh's longer call. He is the only prophet between Adam and Nuh whom Allah named in His Book — a sign of his particular standing in Allah's sight.
His Lineage and His People
Ibn Ishaq, in his Sirah, traces Idris's genealogy back to Sheth — Adam's son. He was therefore not a stranger to the household of the first prophet; the chain of teaching descended through his fathers. He was born and lived (per the dominant tradition) in Babylon — though some narrations associate him with Egypt, calling him by the title Hermes Trismegistus that came to be attached to his memory in later Hellenistic writings. He preached to a people who had begun to mix the worship of their ancestors into the worship of Allah, the same drift that would later snowball into the open idolatry that Nuh confronted. Idris stopped the drift in his own generation; the next generations, after his death or ascent, resumed it.
Siddiq and Prophet
Allah introduces him in just five verses, but with extraordinary praise: 'And mention in the Book Idris. Indeed, he was a man of truth (siddiq) and a prophet. And We raised him to a high station.' (Qur'an 19:56-57). The double designation — siddiq and nabi — is rare. The same title is given to Maryam (19:34) and to Yusuf (12:46). The siddiq is one whose every word matches reality and whose every act matches his word; prophethood is built on that foundation.
The First to Use the Pen
The classical tradition holds that Idris was the first man to write with the pen, the first to teach the science of the stars, the first to tailor and sew clothes (his people wore only animal skins until then), and the first to recognize Allah's precision in the order of the heavens. The Qur'an's later honoring of the pen — 'Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous, who taught by the pen' (96:3-4) — echoes the legacy Idris began.
Calling His People
Idris's prophethood was a prophethood of intellectual reform: teaching writing and astronomy at the same time as teaching the worship of Allah, so that the generation that learned to read learned with the same breath to recognize their Creator. Ibn Kathir narrates that he also struggled against those who turned away — making him a forerunner of the prophets after him who would have to fight for the message they brought.
Raised to a High Station
The phrase 'And We raised him to a high station' (19:57) produced two interpretations in classical tafsir. The first holds it refers to his rank in this world and the next — the high station of the truthful prophets. The second, more dramatic, holds that Allah literally raised him alive into the heavens, where he met the angel of death and was returned to a station between earth and Paradise. The Prophet ﷺ meeting him in the fourth heaven during the Mi'raj (Bukhari 3207, Muslim 162) is read by many as supporting the second view.
Of the Patient
Allah pairs him with two other prophets for one shared virtue: 'And Ismail and Idris and Dhul-Kifl — all were of the patient. And We admitted them into Our mercy. Indeed, they were of the righteous.' (Qur'an 21:85-86). The patient man does not merely endure; he keeps moving forward with the work of his Lord while he endures. Idris taught, called, struggled, and never tired even when his people did. Patience, says the verse, is the gate of Allah's mercy.
The Encounter with the Angel of Death
One of the most celebrated narrations about Idris (cited by Ibn Kathir from earlier traditions, with chains that vary in strength) tells of a friendship between Idris and the angel of death. Idris asked the angel one day to take his soul so he could experience death and then be returned to life — a request granted by Allah's permission. The angel took his soul; Idris experienced the parting; his soul was returned. Idris then asked to be shown Hell-fire so he could fear what no living person fully fears, and to be shown Paradise so he could long for it. He was granted both. Once in Paradise, he refused to leave — citing the verse later revealed about every soul: 'Every soul will taste death' (Qur'an 3:185). The angel objected. Allah ruled: 'Let him stay.' Whether read literally or symbolically, the story preserves the same theological point Allah Himself makes: 'And We raised him to a high station.' (19:57).
The First Crafts
Ibn Kathir, drawing on al-Tabari and earlier sources, records that Idris was the first to teach mankind several arts that would shape every civilization after him: writing with a pen (qalam), tailoring and sewing clothes (his people wore animal skins), the use of the scale (mizan) for trade, the science of the stars (ilm an-nujum) for guidance and timekeeping, and even smelting metals. The Qur'an itself does not list these in the four verses about him, but the classical tradition saw no contradiction with the verse's spirit: a prophet raised among an early civilization will teach not only how to worship but how to live with dignity. The Prophet ﷺ would later honor 'the pen' as the first tool taught by Allah in his very first revelation (Qur'an 96:4).
Welcome, Righteous Brother
In the long hadith of the Isra and Mi'raj, the Prophet ﷺ said: 'Then I was taken up to the fourth heaven. Jibril asked for it to be opened. It was said: Who is it? He said: Jibril. They said: Who is with you? He said: Muhammad. They said: Has he been sent for? He said: Yes. They said: Welcome to him — and what an excellent visit. So I met Idris there, and he said: Welcome, righteous brother and righteous prophet.' (Bukhari 3207). Idris is the only prophet greeted as 'righteous brother' before 'righteous prophet' in that sequence — a small textual hint of his standing. The Prophet ﷺ described him as a tall, slender man with a serious bearing. The classical mufassirun draw from this that the Prophet ﷺ recognized him as alive in the heavens — confirmation of the 'high station' described in the Qur'an.
وَاذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتَابِ إِدْرِيسَ ۚ إِنَّهُ كَانَ صِدِّيقًا نَّبِيًّا وَرَفَعْنَاهُ مَكَانًا عَلِيًّا
Wa-dhkur fi-l-kitabi Idris. Innahu kana siddiqan nabiyya. Wa rafa'nahu makanan 'aliyya.
And mention in the Book Idris. Indeed, he was a man of truth and a prophet. And We raised him to a high station.
فَلَمَّا كَانَتْ بِي عِنْدَ السَّمَاءِ الرَّابِعَةِ، إِذَا فِيهَا إِدْرِيسُ، فَقَالَ: مَرْحَبًا بِالْأَخِ الصَّالِحِ وَالنَّبِيِّ الصَّالِحِ
Fa-lamma kanat bi 'inda s-sama'i r-rabi'ah, idha fiha Idris. Fa-qala: marhaban bi-l-akhi s-salih wa-n-nabiyyi s-salih.
Then when I reached the fourth heaven, behold — there was Idris. He said: 'Welcome to a righteous brother and a righteous prophet.'
Lessons
- The pen is among the first gifts of revelation — the science of reading and writing began with a prophet.
- Truthfulness (sidq) is the deepest mark of prophethood — siddiq is the title Allah gives His closest servants.
- Patience is the gate of mercy — Allah grouped three prophets (Ismail, Idris, Dhul-Kifl) for this single shared virtue.
- A prophet's work is not only worship but the rectification of his society — Idris taught writing and astronomy alongside tawhid.
- Allah honors His friends in this world and the next — the 'high station' is not deferred to the Hereafter alone.
- A righteous brother is a higher praise than a righteous stranger — Idris greeted Muhammad ﷺ with the warmer title.
Quran references
19:56-57 · 21:85-86