Sahih al-Bukhari 3461
Book 60, Hadith 128
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Convey from me, even if it is one verse. And narrate from the Children of Israel — there is no harm. And whoever deliberately lies about me, let him take his seat in the Fire.”
The Story of Qabil and Habil
When Adam and Hawwa came to live upon the earth, Allah blessed them with children. According to the earliest traditions, Hawwa would give birth to twins — a son and a daughter together. Adam would marry the son of one pair to the daughter of another, so that siblings would not marry their own twin.
Among these children were two sons: Qabil and Habil, known in the Bible as Cain and Abel. Their story is told across the three traditions.
The Bible’s Story (Genesis 4)
Cain became a farmer, working the ground. Abel became a shepherd, tending the flocks. Both brought an offering to God: Cain brought produce from his harvest, Abel brought the best from his flock. God looked with favor on Abel’s sacrifice but not Cain’s.
Cain grew furious. God warned him: “Why are you angry? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”
Cain ignored the warning. He lured Abel into the field and killed him — the first murder in human history. When God asked where Abel was, Cain answered, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”
God declared, “Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground!” Cain was cursed so that the ground would no longer yield for him. He was condemned to wander as a restless fugitive. He left and built a city, and from him came generations of builders and inventors — but the stain of the first murder never left his name.
Jewish Traditions
Jewish commentaries add more detail. Some say the brothers did not fight only over sacrifices but also over inheritance and marriage. Cain, it is said, wanted the most beautiful of their sisters for himself, but she had been destined for Abel. Others describe disputes over land and dominion.
The Midrash tells how Abel’s blood seeped into the ground in many places, crying out before God. Cain, in these traditions, is remembered as the founder of violence and jealousy, while Abel is remembered as the first martyr — the righteous man who died because of envy. Some texts add that Cain was eventually killed himself, struck down as a wanderer.
The Qur’an’s Story with Tafsir and Hadith (Surah al-Ma’idah 5:27–31)
The Qur’an tells their story with clarity:
“And recite to them the story of Adam’s two sons, in truth: when each offered a sacrifice, it was accepted from one of them but not accepted from the other. He said, ‘I will surely kill you.’ The other said, ‘Indeed, Allah only accepts from the righteous. If you extend your hand against me to kill me, I will not extend my hand against you to kill you. Indeed, I fear Allah, Lord of the worlds. Indeed, I would rather you bear your sin and my sin, so you will be among the companions of the Fire. And that is the recompense of the wrongdoers.’” (5:27–29)
This was not surrender to injustice but patience and fear of Allah. Habil reminded Qabil that Allah accepts only from those who are sincere. If Qabil killed him, then Qabil alone would carry the burden of that crime.
The Tafsir Details
Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir narrate that Adam had decreed, by Allah’s command, that Qabil’s twin sister was to marry Habil. But Qabil resisted. He wanted his own twin, who was more beautiful, for himself. Adam commanded them to offer a sacrifice, and Allah would decide.
So Qabil brought produce from his crops, but without care — the poorest of his harvest. Habil chose the best lamb from his flock. Allah accepted Habil’s offering and rejected Qabil’s. This sparked Qabil’s rage and his oath: “I will kill you.”
The Murder
The Qur’an continues:
“So his soul permitted to him the murder of his brother, and he killed him and became among the losers.” (5:30)
It was the first spilling of blood on earth.
The Burial
Qabil did not even know what to do with the body. Then Allah sent a crow scratching the ground to show him how to hide the body of his brother.
“He said, ‘Woe to me! Am I not even able to be like this crow and hide the body of my brother?’ So he became of the regretful.” (5:31)
The Hadith on Sin
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Whenever a soul is murdered unjustly, a share of the guilt falls upon the first son of Adam, for he was the first to establish the path of murder.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim)
Thus Qabil carries a portion of every unjust killing after him. He opened the door of bloodshed for mankind.
The Lesson of the Qur’an
From this tragedy, Allah gave a lasting command:
“Because of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul — unless in retribution for another soul or for spreading corruption in the land — it is as if he has killed all of mankind. And whoever saves one soul, it is as if he has saved all of mankind.” (5:32)
Comparison
In the Bible, the story centers on jealousy over sacrifice, and Cain is cursed as a wanderer.
In Jewish tradition, the story grows into disputes over marriage and inheritance, and Abel is remembered as the first martyr.
In the Qur’an, with tafsir and hadith, the story carries profound moral weight: sincerity in worship, the danger of envy, patience in the face of injustice, the sanctity of life, and the warning that Qabil’s crime became the doorway of all bloodshed after him.
