The Quranic Account
“And We certainly sent Noah to his people, and he remained among them a thousand years minus fifty years; and the flood seized them while they were wrongdoers.” (29:14)
950 years of da’wa — with only a handful of followers to show for it. Nuh’s patience (sabr) in the face of universal rejection is one of the Quran’s supreme examples of the prophetic character.
The divine command and the warning: “And reveal to him [Noah]: ‘Construct the ship under Our observation and Our inspiration and do not address Me concerning those who have wronged; indeed, they are to be drowned.’” (11:37)
The mockery: As Nuh built the Ark, his people mocked him. “And he constructed the ship, and whenever an assembly of the eminent of his people passed by him, they ridiculed him. He said, ‘If you ridicule us, then we will ridicule you just as you ridicule. And you are going to know who will get a torment that will disgrace him [on earth] and upon whom will descend an enduring punishment.’” (11:38-39)
The Da’wa of Nuh: Surah Nuh
The Prophet Nuh’s entire da’wa strategy is recorded in Surah Nuh (71), which is narrated in Nuh’s own words as a report to the divine:
“He said, ‘My Lord, indeed I invited my people [to truth] night and day. But my invitation increased them not except in flight [from truth]. And indeed, every time I invited them that You may forgive them, they put their fingers in their ears, covered themselves with their garments, persisted, and were arrogant with [great] arrogance.’” (71:5-7)
The multi-method approach: Nuh then describes his different da’wa strategies:
“Then I invited them publicly. Then I announced to them and [also] confided to them secretly.” (71:8-9)
- Open public preaching
- One-on-one private counsel
- Different messages (tawhid, gratitude for divine blessings, repentance, the promise of prosperity for those who repent)
Despite all methods: “My Lord, they have disobeyed me and followed those whose wealth and children increase them not except in loss.” (71:21)
See also: Nubuwwa, Sabr Patience
The Flood and the Ark
The divine’s command: “Until when Our command came and the oven overflowed, We said, ‘Load upon the ship of every kind two mates and your family, except those about whom the word has preceded, and whoever has believed.’ But those who believed with him were few.” (11:40)
Nuh’s son: Among the most heart-rending passages in the Quran — Nuh’s own son refused to board the Ark:
“And it sailed with them through waves like mountains, and Noah called to his son who was apart [from them]: ‘O my son, come aboard with us and be not with the disbelievers.’ [But] he said, ‘I will take refuge on a mountain to protect me from the water.’ [Noah] said, ‘There is no protector today from the decree of Allah, except for whom He gives mercy.’ And the waves came between them, and he was among the drowned.” (11:42-43)
Nuh then called upon the divine to fulfill His promise to save his family — and received the profound reply:
“He said, ‘O Noah, indeed he is not of your family; indeed, he is [one whose] work was other than righteous, so ask Me not for that about which you have no knowledge. Indeed, I advise you, lest you be among the ignorant.’” (11:46)
The lesson: True family (ahl) in the divine’s eyes is defined by spiritual kinship (faith and righteousness), not biological descent. Nuh’s son’s biological relationship to Nuh meant nothing without faith. This is one of the Quran’s most direct teachings on the nature of true belonging.
The Ark’s resting place: “And it was said, ‘O earth, swallow your water, and O sky, withhold [your rain].’ And the water subsided, and the matter was accomplished, and the ship came to rest on the [mountain of] Judiyy.” (11:44) — Mount Judi (Ararat region, identified with mountains in modern Turkey/Iraq/Armenia).
Nuh’s Du’a’ After the Flood
Nuh’s du’a’ after the flood is one of the most moving in the Quran:
“My Lord, forgive me and my parents and whoever enters my house a believer and the believing men and believing women. And do not increase the wrongdoers except in destruction.” (71:28)
The contrast: his prayer is expansive in its mercy (for all believers) but does not include — cannot include — those who rejected the truth.
The Ismaili Ta’wil of Nuh
In the Ismaili prophetic scheme, Nuh is the first natiq (speaking prophet) of the current daur (cycle) of prophecy. The six great prophets (Nuh, Ibrahim, Musa, Dawud, ‘Isa, Muhammad) form the six cycles of the current aeon; Muhammad is the seventh, the seal.
The Ark as the da’wa: In the Ismaili ta’wil, the Ark is not merely a physical vessel but a symbol of the da’wa itself — the community of believers who are preserved within the Imam’s protection from the “flood” of ignorance and spiritual destruction. “Whoever boards the Ark is saved; whoever stays behind is drowned.”
The 950 years as sitr: Nuh’s 950-year mission — most of it fruitless — represents the cycles of sitr (concealment) that the da’wa undergoes. The handful of believers who survived with him are the saved remnant that every cycle of da’wa produces.
Nuh’s son as the disloyal community member: The Quranic correction — “He is not of your family” — is applied in the Ismaili ta’wil to those who have the external appearance of belonging to the da’wa community (biological or social membership) but lack the inner commitment of walayah.
See also: Daur Wa Kawr, Sitr And Zuhur, Imamah, Asas Wa Natiq In Depth
See also: Nubuwwa, Sayyidna Ibrahim, Tawil Esoteric Interpretation, Imamah, Daur Wa Kawr, Asas Wa Natiq In Depth, Sitr And Zuhur, Akhira And Afterlife, Sabr Patience