Adam and Eve (peace be upon them) settled on earth and resolved to avoid the temptations of Satan after their repentance (Tawbah) was accepted by Allah Almighty, especially since Satan had expelled them from Paradise with his temptations, and Satan also made a covenant with Allah [after he refused to prostrate to Adam] that he would do his utmost to mislead the children of Adam, as stated in the divine word: “قَالَ فَبِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأَقْعُدَنَّ لَهُمْ صِرَاطَكَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ * ثُمَّ لَآتِيَنَّهُم مِّن بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ وَعَنْ أَيْمَانِهِمْ وَعَن شَمَائِلِهِمْ وَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمْ شَاكِرِينَ.” Translation: “(Satan) said, “So, as a punishment for what You have led me astray, I will lie in wait for them on Your straight path; then I will rush upon them from before them and from behind them and from their right and from their left, and You will not find most of them grateful.” [1]
Therefore, Allah Almighty made Adam and his children aware of Satan’s enmity with them and warned them against this enmity, as He said: “يَا بَنِي آدَمَ لَا يَفْتِنَنَّكُمُ الشَّيْطَانُ كَمَا أَخْرَجَ أَبَوَيْكُم مِّنَ الْجَنَّةِ يَنزِعُ عَنْهُمَا لِبَاسَهُمَا لِيُرِيَهُمَا سَوْءَاتِهِمَا إِنَّهُ يَرَاكُمْ هُوَ وَقَبِيلُهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا تَرَوْنَهُمْ إِنَّا جَعَلْنَا الشَّيَاطِينَ أَوْلِيَاءَ لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ.” Translation: “O children of Adam! Let not Satan deceive you, as he drove your parents out of Paradise and stripped them of their garments, to show them their shame. Indeed, he and his clan see you from where you do not see them. We have made the devils friends of those who do not believe.” [2]
Allah Almighty also commanded them to take Satan as their enemy and to beware of his temptations and tricks: “إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ فَاتَّخِذُوهُ عَدُوًّا إِنَّمَا يَدْعُو حِزْبَهُ لِيَكُونُوا مِنْ أَصْحَابِ السَّعِيرِ” Translation: “Indeed, Satan is an enemy to you, so take him as an enemy. He only invites his party to be among the people of Hell.” [3]
Adam and Eve (peace be upon them) also resolved to practice affection, love, and mercy (among themselves and with others).
The two lived the life that Allah Almighty had destined for them in order to nurture the earth after them and produce offspring from which various nations and tribes would emerge. Eve became pregnant and experienced her first pregnancy. The two asked their Lord to grant them a righteous child so that they would be among the grateful. Allah Almighty says about this: “فَلَمَّا تَغَشَّاهَا حَمَلَتْ حَمْلًا خَفِيفًا فَمَرَّتْ بِهِ فَلَمَّا أَثْقَلَت دَّعَوَا اللَّهَ رَبَّهُمَا لَئِنْ آتَيْتَنَا صَالِحًا لَّنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الشَّاكِرِينَ.” Translation: “But (it often happens that) when husbands have sexual intercourse with their wives, the wives bear a light burden (called the fetus) and live with it easily; but when their burden becomes heavy, the husbands and wives cry out to their Lord, saying, ‘If You grant us a healthy and worthy child, we will surely be among the grateful.'” [4]
Then Eve gave birth, and (her firstborn) was twins, a boy and a girl; then she conceived again and again, and the births continued, and no child was born to them, except that a girl was also born with her. So Adam, peace be upon him, married the son of this branch to the daughter of that other branch, and the daughter of this branch to the son of the other branch. At that time, the separation of branches inevitably replaced the separation of lineages until two sons were born to him, who were called “Abel” and “Cain.” Cain was a farmer and Abel was a rancher, meaning that the former was a farmer and the latter was a shepherd, and Cain was the older brother. [7]
The beginning of Satan’s enmity with the children of Adam (peace be upon him)
Satan carried out his satanic duty against the children of Adam and tempted one of them and made ugliness and disobedience attractive to his eyes. Satan succeeded in deceiving Cain, gained control over him, inclined him towards himself, and threw him into the abyss of evil, to the point that he committed the crime of murdering his brother (Abel). [6] The following verses narrate the story of the misguided son and inform us of the terrible crime that he committed under the instigation and guidance of Satan. Almighty Allah says: “وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ابْنَيْ آدَمَ بِالْحَقِّ إِذْ قَرَّبَا قُرْبَانًا فَتُقُبِّلَ مِنْ أَحَدِهِمَا وَلَمْ يُتَقَبَّلْ مِنَ الْآخَرِ قَالَ لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ قَالَ إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ * لَئِن بَسَطتَ إِلَيَّ يَدَكَ لِتَقْتُلَنِي مَا أَنَا بِبَاسِطٍ يَدِيَ إِلَيْكَ لِأَقْتُلَكَ إِنِّي أَخَافُ اللَّهَ رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ * إِنِّي أُرِيدُ أَن تَبُوءَ بِإِثْمِي وَإِثْمِكَ فَتَكُونَ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ النَّارِ وَذَلِكَ جَزَاءُ الظَّالِمِينَ * فَطَوَّعَتْ لَهُ نَفْسُهُ قَتْلَ أَخِيهِ فَقَتَلَهُ فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ * فَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ غُرَابًا يَبْحَثُ فِي الْأَرْضِ لِيُرِيَهُ كَيْفَ يُوَارِي سَوْءَةَ أَخِيهِ قَالَ يَا وَيْلَتَا أَعَجَزْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِثْلَ هَـذَا الْغُرَابِ فَأُوَارِيَ سَوْءَةَ أَخِي فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ النَّادِمِينَ” [7] Translation: “Recite to the Jews and the people the story of the two sons of Adam (Cain and Abel) as it is (so that they may know the end of sin and the end of piety). When each of them did an act of nearness (to Allah), it was accepted from one (who was sincere and was called Abel), but it was not accepted from the other (who was not sincere and was called Cain). (Cain said to Abel): “I will surely kill you!” Abel ran and said, “What sin have I committed? Allah accepts (the work) only from the righteous. If you stretch out your hand to kill me, I will not stretch out my hand to kill you. Indeed, I fear Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. I want you to return (to Allah on the Day of Resurrection) with my sin and your sin and be among the people of the Fire. And that is the just recompense (of Allah for) the wrongdoers.” So his (rebellious) soul gradually made the killing of his brother attractive to him and made him determined to kill him, so he killed him! And he was among the losers (and lost both his faith and his brother). (After killing him, he did not know what to do with his body.) So Allah sent a crow (who had killed another crow) to dig in the ground and show him how to bury his brother’s body. (When he saw how the crow hid the dead crow in the hole it had dug) he said, “Woe to me! Can I not be like this crow and bury the body of my brother?! So (he finally regretted what he had done for fear of disgrace and due to the pressure of his conscience, and) he regretted being among the people.”
[1]. Al-A’raf/16-17.
[2]. Al-A’raf/27
[3]. Fatir/6.
[4]. Al-A’raf/189.
[5]. Shahab al-Din Mahmoud, Al-Alusi, Ruh al-Ma’ani, Beirut: Dar Ihya’ al-Turath al-Arabi, 1405 AH, vol. 6, p. 111.
[6]. Salah al-Khalidi, With the Stories of the Predecessors in the Qur’an: Lessons in Faith, Call, and Jihad, Damascus: Dar al-Qalam, 1415 AH, vol. 3, p. 89.
[7]. Al-Ma’idah/27-31.
