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Quran stories

Habil and Qabil: the story in the Quran

The story of Adam's two sons, the first sacrifice, and humanity's first murder

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  • Surah Al-Ma'idah (the 5th surah), 27-31
  • #the story of Habil and Qabil
  • #the two sons of Adam
  • #the first murder
  • #sacrifice
  • #the crow
  • #Surah Al-Ma'idah
  • #Quran stories

At a glance

Theme
The two sons of Adam (peace be upon him) and the first murder
Quranic source
Surah Al-Ma'idah, 27-31
Their names in the Quran
The Quran calls them "the two sons of Adam"; the names Habil and Qabil come from tradition
Main event
The offering of two sacrifices and a brother's murder
Instructive detail
The crow's lesson in burial (Al-Ma'idah, 31)

Summary

The two sons of Adam (peace be upon him) each offered a sacrifice to Allah; one's sacrifice was accepted, the other's was not. The brother whose sacrifice was rejected fell into envy and anger and threatened to kill the other. Although his brother answered him with piety and submission, he gave in to his own desire and killed his brother, becoming the first murderer in human history. Allah then sent a crow, which scratched at the ground to show him how to bury the body, and he regretted what he had done. The Quran narrates this event truthfully as the account of Adam's two sons; the names Habil and Qabil come from later tradition.

The story

  1. The two brothers' sacrifice

    The Quran commands the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to relate truthfully the account of Adam's (peace be upon him) two sons. Both offered a sacrifice to Allah, but one was accepted while the other's was not (Al-Ma'idah, 27).

    The brother whose sacrifice was not accepted met this difference not with fairness but with envy, and said he would kill his brother. The other answered him calmly and profoundly: Allah accepts a sacrifice only from those who fear Him. This is the central lesson of the account: what gives a sacrifice its worth is not its size but the sincerity and fear of Allah in one's heart.

  2. The first murder

    The brother who heard he would be killed did not answer wrong with wrong. The Quran narrates his words: "Even if you stretch out your hand to kill me, I will not stretch out mine to kill you, for I fear Allah, the Lord of the worlds" (Al-Ma'idah, 28). Rather than take on the burden of that sin himself, he preferred that the wrongdoer bear it.

    Despite this submission, the other brother gave in to his own desire and killed his brother, becoming one of the losers (Al-Ma'idah, 30). According to tradition, the brother whose sacrifice was accepted was Habil, and the one who killed him was Qabil; but the Quran does not name them.

  3. The crow's lesson

    After killing his brother, the murderer did not know what to do with the body. Allah sent a crow that scratched at the ground to show him how to bury his brother's body (Al-Ma'idah, 31).

    Seeing this, he realized his own helplessness and felt regret: "Woe to me! Have I failed even to be like this crow and bury my brother's body?" This regret did not change the consequence of the sin, because repentance had come after the bloodshed.

  4. The ruling the Quran draws

    The Quran closes this account with a universal principle. Because of this event, it was decreed for the Children of Israel that whoever kills a person, not in retaliation for another person or for causing corruption in the land, it is as if he had killed all of mankind; and whoever saves a life, it is as if he had saved all of mankind (Al-Ma'idah, 32).

    In this way, the first murder also becomes a lesson showing just how great the sanctity of human life is.

Key verses

Surah Al-Ma'idah, 27

وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ابْنَيْ آدَمَ بِالْحَقِّ إِذْ قَرَّبَا قُرْبَانًا فَتُقُبِّلَ مِنْ أَحَدِهِمَا وَلَمْ يُتَقَبَّلْ مِنَ الْآخَرِ قَالَ لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ قَالَ إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ

Transliteration
Watlu alayhim naba'a-bnay Adama bil-haqqi idh qarraba qurbanan fatuqubbila min ahadihima walam yutaqabbal minal-akhar, qala la'aqtulannaka, qala innama yataqabbalullahu minal-muttaqin
Meaning
Relate to them truthfully the account of the two sons of Adam: each of them offered a sacrifice; it was accepted from one but not from the other. (The one whose sacrifice was rejected) said: "I will surely kill you!" The other said: "Allah accepts only from those who fear Him."

Surah Al-Ma'idah, 31

فَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ غُرَابًا يَبْحَثُ فِي الْأَرْضِ لِيُرِيَهُ كَيْفَ يُوَارِي سَوْءَةَ أَخِيهِ قَالَ يَا وَيْلَتَا أَعَجَزْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِثْلَ هَذَا الْغُرَابِ فَأُوَارِيَ سَوْءَةَ أَخِي فَأَصْبَحَ مِنَ النَّادِمِينَ

Transliteration
Faba'athallahu ghuraban yabhathu fil-ardi liyuriyahu kayfa yuwari saw'ata akhih, qala ya waylata a'ajaztu an akuna mithla hadhal-ghurabi fa'uwariya saw'ata akhi, faasbaha minan-nadimin
Meaning
Then Allah sent a crow that scratched at the ground to show him how to bury his brother's body. He said: "Woe to me! Have I failed even to be like this crow and bury my brother's body?" So he became one of the regretful.

In the Quran

This account is narrated only in Surah Al-Ma'idah (27-31). The Quran does not name the brothers, presenting them as "the two sons of Adam," and gives the event within the context of a moral lesson: the end result of envy, the sanctity of life, and facing injustice with patience. The following verse, 32, presents the unjust killing of one person as a crime against all of humanity.

Lessons and wisdom

  • Envy and anger can lead a person to the greatest sin, even to the shedding of a brother's blood.
  • Allah accepts deeds only with piety and sincerity (Al-Ma'idah, 27).
  • Submission in the face of injustice and fear of Allah are marks of a believer (Al-Ma'idah, 28).
  • Killing a person unjustly is like killing all of humanity (Al-Ma'idah, 32).
  • Regret, even when it comes after the sin, does not remove its grave consequence.

Sources

References are drawn from Quran verses, available authentic hadith and reliable scholarship.

Related stories

Other narratives found in the Quran.

Prophets in this story

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about this story.

  • What is the story of Habil and Qabil about?

    The story of Habil and Qabil tells of the two sons of Adam (peace be upon him) offering a sacrifice, one being accepted, and the first murder that resulted from envy. In the end, Allah sends a crow and teaches the murderer how to bury the body (Al-Ma'idah, 27-31).

  • Do the names Habil and Qabil appear in the Quran?

    No. The Quran presents the brothers as "the two sons of Adam" (ibnay Adam) and does not name them. The names Habil and Qabil come from later tradition.

  • Who killed Habil?

    According to tradition, the brother whose sacrifice was accepted was Habil, and the one who killed him out of envy was Qabil. The Quran narrates only the event and its lesson, without recording their names.

  • What was the crow's role in this story?

    The murderer did not know what to do with his brother's body. Allah sent a crow that scratched at the ground to show him how to bury it; seeing this, he realized his own helplessness and felt regret (Al-Ma'idah, 31).

  • What do we learn from this story?

    We learn that envy leads a person to ruin, that deeds are accepted only through piety, and that taking one person's life is like taking the life of all humanity (Al-Ma'idah, 32).