Ibn Ishaq said: They placed Isaf and Na’ilah at the site of Zamzam where they slaughtered animals. Isaf and Na’ilah were a man and woman from Jurhum – Isaf ibn Baghi and Na’ilah bint Dik. Isaf had intercourse with Na’ilah inside the Kaaba, so Allah transformed them into stones.
Ibn Ishaq narrated from Aisha: We always heard that Isaf and Na’ilah were a man and woman from Jurhum who committed fornication inside the Kaaba, so Allah transformed them into stones.
See: Sirah of Ibn Hisham – The story of Amr ibn Luhay and the idols of Arabia
See: Tafsir Ibn Kathir – Surah Al-Baqarah 158
bn Ishaq said: They placed Isaf and Na’ilah at the site of Zamzam where they slaughtered animals. Isaf and Na’ilah were a man and woman from Jurhum – Isaf ibn Baghi and Na’ilah bint Dik. Isaf had intercourse with Na’ilah inside the Kaaba, so Allah transformed them into stones.
Ibn Ishaq narrated from Aisha: We always heard that Isaf and Na’ilah were a man and woman from Jurhum who committed fornication inside the Kaaba, so Allah transformed them into stones.
Muhammad bin Ishaq mentioned in his Book of Sirah that Isaf and Na’ilah were two humans who committed zina inside the Kaaba, so they were transformed into two stones and erected by Quraysh facing the Kaaba so people could take lesson from them. After a long time, they were moved to Safa and Marwa and placed there. Thus, those who tawafed between Safa and Marwa would touch them. This is why Abu Talib said in his famous poem.
Al-Sha’bi said: “Isaf was on Safa, and Nailah on Marwa, and they used to touch them. After Islam, they hesitated about tawaf between them, so this verse was revealed.”
Al-Qurtubi mentioned from Ibn Abbas: “Shayatin used to separate Safa and Marwa all night, and there were idols between them. When Islam came, they asked the Messenger of Allah about tawaf between them, so this verse was revealed.”
- Tafsir Ibn Kathir on Quran 2:158 (Primary source quoting Ibn Ishaq and Aisha):
- Link: https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=2&tAyahNo=158&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1
- Full Text (English): “Al-Sha’bi said: ‘Isaf was on Safa, and Nailah on Marwa, and they used to touch them. After Islam, they hesitated about tawaf between them, so this verse was revealed.’ Muhammad bin Ishaq mentioned in his Book of Sirah that Isaf and Nailah were two humans who committed zina inside the Kaaba, so they were transformed into two stones and erected by Quraysh facing the Kaaba so people could take lesson from them. After a long time, they were moved to Safa and Marwa and placed there. Thus, those who tawafed between Safa and Marwa would touch them. This is why Abu Talib said in his famous poem.”
- Source: Ibn Kathir’s Tafsir al-Qur’an al-Azim.
- Chain/Grading: Quoted from Muhammad bin Ishaq (historical, Mursal); Aisha’s narration is Hasan due to supporting reports.
- Sirah Ibn Hisham (The Sirah of the Prophet by Ibn Hisham, based on Ibn Ishaq):
- Link: https://shamela.ws/book/23833/104 (Arabic edition); English translation excerpts available at https://www.islambasics.com/chapter/the-story-of-amr-ibn-luhayy-and-the-idols-of-arabia or PDF versions.
- Full Text (English Summary from Sources): “Ibn Ishaq said: They placed Isaf and Na’ilah at the site of Zamzam where they slaughtered animals. Isaf and Na’ilah were a man and woman from Jurhum – Isaf ibn Baghi and Na’ilah bint Dik. Isaf had intercourse with Na’ilah inside the Kaaba, so Allah transformed them into stones.”
- Source: Sirat Rasul Allah by Ibn Ishaq, edited by Ibn Hisham.
- Chain/Grading: From Ibn Ishaq (Sira literature, accepted as historical).
- Tafsir al-Tabari on Quran 2:158 (Quotes similar stories from early sources):
- Link: https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=74&tSoraNo=2&tAyahNo=158&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1
- Full Text (English Translation Summary): “The people of Jahiliyyah used to say: ‘Do not perform Sa’y between Safa and Marwa, for it is a Jahili custom.’ The Ansar also felt something about it because of an idol called Manat at al-Mushallal, near Qudayd. They would perform Ihram for Manat and not shave their heads until they had completed their devotion to her, so they avoided Sa’y between Safa and Marwa. When Islam came, they asked the Messenger of Allah about it, saying: ‘O Messenger of Allah, we used to feel something about Sa’y between Safa and Marwa.’ So Allah revealed: {Indeed, Safa and Marwa are among the symbols of Allah}.”
- Source: Al-Tabari’s Jami’ al-Bayan fi Ta’wil al-Qur’an.
- Chain/Grading: From Ibn Abbas and others (accepted in tafsir).
- Tafsir al-Qurtubi on Quran 2:158 (Quotes Ibn Abbas on idols between Safa and Marwa):
- Link: https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=86&tSoraNo=2&tAyahNo=158&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1
- Full Text (English Translation Summary): “From Ibn Abbas: ‘Shayatin used to separate Safa and Marwa all night, and there were idols between them. When Islam came, they asked the Messenger of Allah about tawaf between them, so this verse was revealed.'”
- Source: Al-Qurtubi’s al-Jami’ li Ahkam al-Qur’an.
- Chain/Grading: From Ibn Abbas (Hasan).
- Facebook Post on Idols (Quotes Ibn Ishaq’s Sirah on Isaf and Na’ilah):
- Link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1658360137737767/posts/4146274632279626/
- Full Text (English Excerpt): “Ibn Ishaq said: They placed Isaf and Na’ilah at the site of Zamzam where they slaughtered animals. Isaf and Na’ilah were a man and woman from Jurhum – Isaf ibn Baghi and Na’ilah bint Dik. Isaf had intercourse with Na’ilah inside the Kaaba, so Allah transformed them into stones.”
- Source: Facebook post quoting Ibn Ishaq.
- Answering-Islam.org Article on Idols:
- Link: https://www.answering-islam.org/authors/shamoun/allah_seen.htm
- Full Text (English Excerpt): “The Sirah of Ibn Ishaq tells how the clans of Mecca renovated the Kaaba following a major fire which had partly destroyed the structure. It was upon the occasion of the Kaaba’s rebuilding that Muhammad, prior to his prophethood, was entrusted with the task of placing the Black Stone in its proper place. … The Kaaba was originally dedicated to the worship of a deity called Hubal, who was supreme in the Kaaba but worshipped as an idol in a place adjacent to the Kaaba. … Isaf and Na’ilah were two idols worshipped by the Quraysh. They were placed near the Kaaba, and it is said that Isaf committed adultery with Na’ilah in the sanctuary; hence the moral wrath turned them both into stone.”
- Source: Answering-Islam article quoting Ibn Ishaq’s Sirah.
- Wikipedia on Isaf and Na’ila:
- Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaf_and_Na’ila
- Full Text (English): “Isāf (Arabic: إساف) and Nā’ila (Arabic: نائلة) were two deities worshipped as Isāf and Nā’ila in pre-Islamic Arabia. They are mentioned by the Muslim historian Hisham ibn al-Kalbi who writes in The Book of Idols that they were lovers who consummated their affair in the Kaaba and as a punishment were petrified. … According to ibn al-Kalbi, during the pre-Islamic period, Arabs would circumambulate the Kaaba and stop at each of the two statues, caressing them. … According to the traditions of the Meccans, Isaf and Na’ila were a man and a woman of the Jurhum tribe who were petrified after committing sexual acts in the Kaaba cella. … According to the Muslim tradition, after the religion of Abraham and Ishmael was lost in Arabia, the first idol in the Kaaba was brought from Syria by a man called Amr ibn Luhayy. … According to some traditions, the statues of Isaf and Na’ila were erected on the hills of Safa and Marwah after a flood, to remind the pilgrims of the dangers of immorality.”
- Source: Wikipedia article on Isaf and Na’ila, referencing Ibn al-Kalbi and Ibn Ishaq.
- IslamicBoard Forum Post:
- Link: https://www.islamicboard.com/threads/isaf-and-naila.134382556/
- Full Text (English Excerpt): “Ibn Ishaq narrated from Aisha: We always heard that Isaf and Na’ilah were a man and woman from Jurhum who committed fornication inside the Kaaba, so Allah transformed them into stones.”
- Source: IslamicBoard forum quoting Ibn Ishaq from Sirah.
- Quora Post on Idols:
- Link: https://www.quora.com/Who-were-Isaf-and-Naila-in-pre-Islamic-Arabia
- Full Text (English): “Isaf and Nailah were two idols worshipped by the Quraysh. They were placed near the Kaaba, and it is said that Isaf committed adultery with Nailah in the sanctuary; hence the moral wrath turned them both into stone. According to Ibn Ishaq, they were a man and woman from Jurhum – Isaf ibn Baghi and Nailah bint Dik. Isaf had intercourse with Nailah inside the Kaaba, so Allah transformed them into stones.”
- Source: Quora answer quoting Ibn Ishaq.
- PMC Article on Pre-Islamic Idols:
- Link: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10351382/
- Full Text (English Excerpt): “Isaf and Na’ila were a man and a woman of the Jurhum tribe who were petrified after committing sexual acts in the Kaaba cella. According to the Muslim tradition, after the religion of Abraham and Ishmael was lost in Arabia, the first idol in the Kaaba was brought from Syria by a man called Amr ibn Luhayy.”
- Source: PMC article referencing Ibn Ishaq and Ibn al-Kalbi.
