أصحاب الكهف
Aṣḥāb al-Kahf
Group
Young believers who fled persecution and slept in a cave for centuries, in Quran 18:9–26.
What it means
The Quran tells of youths who took refuge in a cave, saying “our Lord, grant us mercy from Yourself and prepare right guidance for us”. God made them sleep for 309 years (18:25), and on waking they supposed they had slept a day or part of one. The Quran says the number of them is known to few, and that debating it is of no use (18:22).
What the sources say
A similar story of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus was told by Syriac Christians. Muslim scholars say that the story is a true one, which was known among Christians and is told in the Quran for the lesson it carries: God’s power to raise the dead, and that He protects those who hold to faith.