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Prophet / MessengerPhase 1 · Adam to IsaMajor figure

Prophet Yahya (AS)

يحيى

c. 1st century CE (approximate) date disputed

Son of Zakariya, named by Allah Himself, given wisdom as a child, chaste and devoted. He confirmed Isa as 'a word from Allah' and is honoured with peace on the day of his birth, death and resurrection.

Biography

Allah gave Zakariya glad tidings of Yahya, 'a name We have not given to anyone before' (19:7), who would confirm a word from Allah (understood as Isa) and be a leader, chaste (hasur) and a prophet from among the righteous (3:39).

He was told: 'O Yahya, take the Scripture with strength', and was given judgement (hukm) while still a child, along with compassion and purity; he was dutiful to his parents and not a disobedient tyrant (19:12-14). 'Peace be upon him the day he was born, the day he dies, and the day he is raised alive' (19:15).

In the Mi'raj hadith, the Prophet ﷺ met Yahya and Isa together in the second heaven and described them as maternal cousins (Sahih Muslim 162a; the meeting itself is also in Sahih Bukhari 3207). He corresponds to John the Baptist of the Christian tradition and is revered by the Mandaeans (a candidate for the Quranic Sabians).

The Quran states generally that some of the Children of Israel killed prophets (2:61; 3:112). Accounts that Yahya was beheaded at a king's command come from Christian sources (the Gospels) and later Islamic histories, not from Sahih Hadith.

Sources & explanation

۞ Qur'an

3:39 6:85 19:7 19:12 19:13 19:14 19:15 21:90

Links open quran.com.

📜 Hadith verified on sunnah.com

  • Sahih al-Bukhari 3207 Sahih

    The Mi'raj: the Prophet ﷺ met Adam, Yahya and Isa, Yusuf, Idris, Harun, Musa and Ibrahim in successive heavens.

💬 Explanation Unverified

Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza's perspective

Methodological note (not a direct quote): Engineer Muhammad Ali Mirza's widely known approach is to build narratives primarily on the Quran and Sahih Hadith, to set aside Israiliyat (Judeo-Christian lore absorbed into later tafsir) and weak or fabricated narrations, and to avoid sectarian framing. Applied to this node: The Quranic praise is primary; the manner of his death is taken from historical/Christian sources and marked as such.

Empires in their lifetime

  • Herodian kingdom of Judea 37 – 4 BCE
    Luke's Gospel places the birth of John (Yahya) in this reign.
  • Roman Empire 27 BCE – 395 CE
    Yahya (John the Baptist) was executed by Herod Antipas, a Roman client ruler.

Further references

  • Quran 3:39
  • Quran 19:7-15
  • Quran 21:90
  • Sahih Bukhari 3207
  • Sahih Muslim 162a

Connections

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