Habil; A Good Man Who Fell Victim to Envy
Habil was the second son of Adam and Eve. There is no mention of his name in the Quran but there are references to him in Islamic Hadiths and in other sacred books. The story of Habil and Qabil cited in these sources is the same for the most part and there are only minor differences. According to these sources, the father (Adam) decides to introduce Habil, who is more meritorious than Qabil, as his successor. This provoked Qabil’s envy and became a pretext for fratricide.
Habil was a pious and righteous man and that is why his father, on the order of God, named him as his successor. After Qabil protested, a challenge was put out between them according to which each of them were required to offer a sacrifice to God.
Abel, who was a shepherd, offer one of the fattest of his sheep as an oblation to God. His offer was accepted and it was confirmed that he will be his father’s successor.
Qabil, who was defeated in the challenge, vows to take revenge.
According to the Holy Quran, when Qabil was going to kill his brother, Habil admonishes him and tries to warn him about the terrible fate that would await him if he commit murder. “Even if you try to kill me, I certainly shall not try to kill you. I have fear of God, the Lord of the creation. I would prefer you to take sole responsibility for both our sins and thus become a dweller of hell; this is what an unjust person deserves.” (Surah Al-Ma’idah, Verses 28-29)
Qabil, however, ignored Habil’s warning and killed his brother with a blow to his head. According to some sources, Habil was 20 years old when he was killed.
Some sources say this happened in an area near Mecca while other say it was on a mountain near Damascus, Syria. It is named Mount Qasioun and overlooks the Syrian capital city. It is said that there was a rock on the mountain which contained remains of the blood of Habil. There is a cave there called Magharat al-Dam (the Cave of Blood) and some 40 kilometers to the west is a tomb said to be that of Habil.
