To understand who al Khidr was and who He is we have to let the Quran explain the Quran.
Allah did not mention al Khidr (r.a) by name in the Quran instead he characterized him by the following qualities, “Then found they one of Our slaves, unto whom We had given mercy from Us, and had taught him knowledge from Our presence.”(18:65).
He was a Abd (slave and servant) of Allah, Allah had granted him Mercy from himself, and taught him a unique knowledge from his direct presence. The Arsh of Allah is one of the only other things in the Quran Allah has associated with his presence, He “is established on the throne of His almightiness” (32:4). The significance of having knowledge from Allah’s presence is something unique when considering reports of his role in life and his miracles. But the scholars have said the fact that Allah had given “him mercy from himself” is more important because this is the manner by which Allah says he has given someone prophethood. The word Mercy is used for prophethood because the mercy given isn’t for the slave, the mercy is that the slave becomes Allah’s mercy on earth, this is the role of a prophet towards his Ummah (people).
“and the next moment khidr was gone”
Allah characterized another of his servants with the following words, “One with whom was knowledge of the Scripture said: I will bring it thee before thy gaze returneth unto thee”(27:40).
Allah chose to characterize the Scribe of the prophet Sulayman (saws), Asaf bin Barkhiyya (r.a), regarding his ability to bring Sulayman the throne of the Queen Bilqis “in the twinkling of an eye” (as other translations have) with the words, “One who had the knowledge of the Book” and he said to Sulayman “I will bring it to you in the twinkling of an eye”(27:40). In this verse Allah clearly connects knowledge with ability, and then connects both to who we are, because “One with whom was knowledge” was how he was characterized. His qualification for having the ability was his knowledge, in other words since he didn’t mention him by name and in the previous verse to this mentioned the Jinn (who promised something similar) by his strength, he was a Ifrit the strongest type of Jinn, Allah was telling mankind the strongest type of spiritual being (Other than Angels) can be overcome and surpassed with knowledge.
27:38 Solomon said: (O chiefs! Which of you will bring me her throne before they come unto me, surrendering) and seeking peace?
27:39 (A) mighty (stalwart of the jinn) called ‘Amr (said: I will bring it thee before thou canst rise from your place) before you leave your seat of judgement, for he used to sit for judgements until noon. (Lo! I verily am strong and trusty for such work) even though it (Her throne) is adorned with gems, pearls, gold and silver.
27:40 Solomon said: I want it even quicker than that. (One with whom was knowledge of the Scripture) one who knew Allah’s greatest name, O Living, O Subsistent, who was called Asaf Ibn Barkhiyya (said: I will bring it thee before thy gaze returneth unto thee) before that thing which you see from far reaches you. (And when he saw it set in his presence) i.e. when he saw her throne next to his, (Solomon said) to Asaf: (This is of the bounty of my Lord) this is of the favour of my Lord, (that He may try me whether I give thanks) for his blessings (or am ungrateful) or whether I abstain from being grateful for His blessings. (Whosoever giveth thanks) for Allah’s blessings (he only giveth thanks for (the good of) his own soul) for the reward of his Lord: (and whosoever is ungrateful) for the blessing of His Lord, he harms only his soul. (For lo! my Lord is Absolute in independence) of his gratitude, (Bountiful) He forgives who ever repents, and He does not hasten his punishment. (Tanwir al Miqbas min Tafsir Ibn Abbas)
Allah was comparing the strongest Jinn in the court of Sulayman with a Human, his scribe, Asaf ibn Barkhiyya. The Kingdom of Sulayman was in Jerusalem while the kingdom of the Queen Bilqis was in Yemen, Sulayman wanted her throne brought before she arrived in his kingdom so she and her people could witness a miracle of Allah and understand, they worshiped the sun and Sulayman wanted to them to worship Allah. Asaf traveled to Yemen and back in the twinkling of an eye with her throne, this gift is something al Khidr (r.a) is characterized as having like the scribe of Sulayman (saws), this journey occurred at a speed faster than the speed of light but this isn’t simply a miracle of Allah that cant be understood, it is something he grants his servants like the Angels and Jinn.
The Messenger of Allah (saws) said about the day of resurrection “And Allah will place the Siraat (bridge) over (Hell to) Paradise, like a strap of (thin) hair or a knot of hair or like the blade of a sword. Upon it will be hooks and grapples and hard thorns of steel like the thorns of Sa’daan (a kind of thorny plant). Before it (Hell) is a bridge that is slick and slippery. They (the people) will pass over it like the blinking of an eye, like the flash of lightning, like the passing of wind, like racing horses, like other racing animals, or like racing men. Some will go by safely, some will be safe but scratched, and some will be pushed onto their faces into the Hellfire. (Al Bidaya wa nihaya, Ibn Katheer)
“…Then a bridge will be laid over the Fire.” Allah’s Apostle added, “I will be the first to cross it. And the invocation of the Apostles on that Day, will be ‘Allahukka Sallim, Sallim, (O Allah, save us, save us!),’ and over that bridge there will be hooks Similar to the thorns of As Sa’dan (a thorny tree). Haven’t you seen the thorns of As-Sa’dan?” The companions said, “Yes, O Allah’s Apostle.” He added, “So the hooks over that bridge will be like the thorns of As-Sa’dan except that their greatness in size is only known to Allah. These hooks will snatch people according to their deeds. Some people will be ruined because of their evil deeds, and some will be cut into pieces and fall down in Hell, but will be saved afterwards, when Allah has finished the judgments among His slaves, and intends to take out of the Fire whoever He wishes to take out, from among those who used to testify, that none had the right to be worshipped but Allah…” (Bukhari)
In this narration Allah linked our deeds with what He will grant us of ability, “Some people will be ruined because of their evil deeds”, “They will pass over it like the blinking of an eye, (others) like the flash of lightning, (others) like the passing of wind, (others) like racing horses, (others) like other racing animals, or like racing men”, Allah connects our deeds with the laws of creation that are present in this life and the next, the mechanism for this is the Light (electromagnetic wave) that the physiology of our body relies on for its nervous system, heart, brain and cells.
Many people as they are heading towards Jannah (Heaven) will move so fast that their perception will not be able to notice that they crossed over the Sirat (bridge) and will ask the angels, “Where are the Sirat and Hell? Did we cross them?” The Angels will answer, “You crossed the Sirat, which was over Hell. However, Hellfire receded and was covered because of your light.”(you earned in life)
“On that Day shall the hypocrites, both men and women, speak [thus] unto those who have attained to faith: “Wait for us! Let us have a [ray of] light from your light!” [But] they will be told: “Turn back, and seek a light [of your own]!” And thereupon a wall will be raised between them [and the believers], with a gate in it: within it (among the believers) will be grace and mercy, and against the outside thereof, suffering”(57:13). Imagine if Allah stopped light (the electromagnetic wave) from reaching our bodies in this life, we rely on it simply to function and live, this is what will occur on the day of judgment and people will be begging others to have some of their light.
There are four fundamental forces in nature we have identified so far: electromagnetism, gravity, the strong nuclear force which takes part in all nuclear phenomena, such as fission and fusion, and the weak force involved in radioactivity, causing unstable atomic nuclei to decay. “Just as the forms of matter (Solids, Liquids and Gas) we encounter on a daily basis can be broken down into their constituent fundamental particles (electrons, neutrons and protons), the forces we experience can be broken down on a microscopic level”.
“Electromagnetism causes almost every physical phenomenon we encounter in our everyday life: light, sound, the existence of solid objects, fire, chemistry, all biological phenomena, and color, to name a few”.
“for he to whom Allah gives no light, no light whatever has he!” (24:20)
“Could, then, one whose bosom Allah has opened wide with willingness towards self-surrender unto Him, so that he is illumined by a light [that flows] from his Sustainer, [be likened to the blind and deaf of heart]? Woe, then, unto those whose hearts are hardened against all remembrance of Allah! They are most obviously lost in error!”(39:22)
Imam Ali (r.a) said, “Enlighten the heart with prayers.”
“Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth…Allah guideth unto His light whom He will.” (24:35)
“Ordinary matter takes its form as a result of intermolecular forces between individual molecules in matter. Electromagnetism is also the force which holds electrons and protons together inside atoms, which are the building blocks of molecules. This governs the processes involved in chemistry, which arise from interactions between the electrons orbiting atoms. Electromagnetism manifests as both electric fields and magnetic fields. Both fields are simply different aspects of the single electromagnetism, and hence are intrinsically related. The theoretical implications of electromagnetism led to the development of special relativity”.
Angels who govern the universe are created from one of its four fundamental forces that all matter relies on, in this way Jinn and Humans can in life acquire qualities not inherent in them when they are born since they are not pure Light, while the Angels who are already perfect and have the same qualities they will always have in life are given vast amounts of knowledge when they are first created and act on what they know to learn more, the qualities they need are already inherent in them and relates to their role in life.
Just as the Scribe of Sulayman (saws) moved in the blink of an eye, so will the best people of this Ummah move over al Sirat (the bridge). Crossing the Sirat Bridge depends on everybody’s light, and Light is the same substance Angels are created from. Some will cross it in the twinkling of an eye; some, like lightning; some, like a falling star; some, like a running horse. The prophet (saws) said “He who has very little light will creep facedown. His hands and feet will slip, and he will cling to it again. At long last, he will break free from it by creeping and creeping.” [Tabarani], people who have very little light won’t be able to function properly in the next life, and the amount of light they have will be determined by the light of their deeds in life.
Increasing Light from Allah through our actions is required in our life so we gain greater insight about the reality of life. Shaykh Abdul Qadir al Jilani explained, “Insight comes from the eye of the spirit, which opens within the heart of the saints (awliya). That is why it is not acquired by knowledge of the external world, but only by knowledge of the inner Presence (through the heart). As Allah (Exalted is He) has said: “And We taught him knowledge from Our Presence” (18:65). (Shaykh Abdul Qadir al Jilani, Sirr al Asrar)
what common people know of this they call experience from life, those with a clearer insight granted to them by drawing closer to Allah through their actions can see the moments of those experiences with clarity and take deeper more precise knowledge, understanding, and experience at those times. Just like a dream that takes 20 minutes to experience takes no more than 3 seconds in real life because our perception is focused in that inner quantum world.
The companion of the prophet (saws) Salman al-Farisi said: “I was digging in one corner of the trench at which time one rock gave me difficulty. Allah’s Messenger came near me and saw my difficulty as I was digging. He came down and took the pick from my hands. Then he struck and a great spark flashed under the pick. He struck again and another spark flashed. He struck a third time and a third spark flashed. I said to him: My father and mother (be ransomed) for you, O Messenger of Allah! What is that I saw flashing under the pick as you were striking? He said: Did you see this, O Salman? I said: Yes! He said: The first time, Allah opened Yemen [in the South] for me; the second time, He opened the North (al-Sham) and the West (al-Maghrib) for me; and the third time, he opened the East (al-Mashriq).”(Ibn Hisham relates it in his Sira (Beirut, dar al-wifaq ed. 3-4: 219) and also Ibn Kathir in al-Bidaya (4:99).
Salamn al Farsi (r.a) could see there was something more in the light coming from each spark but couldn’t make out the details, so he asked Rasul Allah (saws) regarding it, the messenger of Allah (saws) could see in detail what was being shown in the light of each spark.
Shaykh Abul Qadir continues, “The knowledge that is sent down to us is twofold: exoteric (Knowledge of the Physical world) and esoteric (Knowledge of the spiritual world and our inner selfs), meaning the sacred law [shari’a] (exoteric) and direct understanding (ma’rifa, esoteric). Allah (Exalted is He) has commanded us to apply the sacred law to our outer being, and direct understanding to our inner being, so that the combination of the two will result in knowledge of Reality [Haqiqa]…(Knowledge of) Reality cannot be attained, and the goal cannot be reached, by exoteric (external) knowledge alone. Perfect worship is accomplished by means of both forms of knowledge (our understanding of that knowledge shapes who we are), not one without the other. As Allah (Exalted is He) has said: I did not create the jinn and humankind except to worship Me”. (51:56)
“In other words: ‘to know and understand Me.’ If someone does not know and understand Him, how can he worship Him? Direct knowledge is attainable only by removing of the veil (that is) the lower self [nafs] from the mirror of the heart, and cleaning and polishing that mirror. It will then reflect the beauty of the treasure hidden in the secret of the heart’s core. Allah (Exalted is He) has said in the Sacred Tradition [Hadith Qudsi]: I was a hidden treasure and I wished to be known, so I created Creation. It is clear, therefore, that Allah (Exalted is He) created the human being to know and understand Him. ” (Shaykh Abdul Qadir al Jilani, Sirr al Asrar))