The Making of a Hole in the Ship and Moses’s Objection

After Moses made a commitment to be patient in accompanying al-Khiḍr and not opposing him in any matter, and after al-Khiḍr obtained his renewed promise not to question anything about his actions until he explained them, Moses became al-Khiḍr’s traveling companion. The two set out together from the junction of the two seas until they boarded a ship. When the ship was moving, al-Khiḍr made a hole in it. Upon seeing this, Moses forgot his promise and, based on religious law and his religious zeal which required him to protect people’s lives and property and to command good and forbid evil, asked al-Khiḍr: “Did you make a hole in it to drown its people? Indeed, you have done a grave thing.” The phrase “when they both boarded the ship” is the condition, and “he made a hole in it” is the response to “when” and the consequence of the condition.(232)

Question: The ship mentioned in the verses under discussion had passengers in addition to Moses and al-Khiḍr, and one cannot say there was no one on the ship, since Moses the Speaker referred to its people: “to drown its people.” So how did no one except Moses the Speaker notice the damage to the public ship, and assuming they were aware of it, which would be normal, why did no one object?

Answer: Perhaps it could be said that al-Khiḍr’s action was hidden from others because he had a special mission to teach Moses. A point about this will also be discussed in the section on traditions.