Samiri or the Samiri (Arabic: ﺍﻟﺴﺎﻣﺮﻱ,
translit. as-Sāmirī) is a phrase used by the
Quran to refer to a rebellious follower of
Moses who created the golden calf and
attempted to lead the Hebrews into
idolatry. According to the twentieth
chapter of the Quran, Samiri created the
calf while Moses was away for 40 days on
Mount Sinai, receiving the Ten
Commandments.[1] In contrast to account
given in the Hebrew Bible, the Quran does
not blame Aaron for the calf’s creation
and instead praises him for trying to stop
the worship of it.[2]
In the Quran
In Ta-Ha, the Quran’s twentieth surah,
Moses is informed that Samiri has led his
people astray in Moses’ absence. He
returns to his people to berate them, and
is informed of what Samiri has done.
They said, ‘We did not fail our tryst with
you of our own accord, but we were
laden with the weight of the people’s
ornaments, and we cast them [into the
fire] and so did the Samiri throw.’ Then
he produced for them a calf —a
[lifeless] body with a low— and they
said, This is your god and the god of
Musa (Moses), so he forgot! Did they
not see that it did not answer them, nor
could it bring them any benefit or
harm? Haroun (Aaron) had certainly
told them earlier, ‘O my people! You are
only being tested by it. Indeed your
Lord is the All-beneficent. So follow me
and obey my command!’
[Moses] said, “And what is your case, O
Samiri?” He said, “I saw what they did
not see, so I took a handful [of dust]
from the track of the messenger and
threw it, thus did my soul entice
me.” [Moses] said, “Then go. And
indeed, it is [decreed] for you in [this]
life to say, 'No contact.’ And indeed, you
have an appointment [in the Hereafter]
you will not fail to keep. And look at
your 'god’ to which you remained
devoted. We will surely burn it and blow
it [i.e., its ashes] into the sea with a
blast. [Quran 20:95 ]
In Islamic tradition
The Quran’s statement that Samiri’s calf
made a "lowing" sound has resulted in
much speculation. A number of Islamic
traditions say that the calf was made with
dust trodden upon by the horse of the
angel Gabriel, which had mystical
properties. Some traditions say that the
calf could also move, a property granted
to it by the dust of the “horse of life”.[3]
Other traditions suggest that Samiri made
the sound himself, or that it was only the
wind.[4] Still others say that the calf was
formed by Allah himself, as a test for the
Hebrew people.[5]
Later traditions expand upon the fate of
those who worshiped the calf. Works by
al-Tabari include a story in which Moses
orders his people to drink from the water
into which the calf had been flung; those
guilty of worshiping it were revealed
when they turned a golden hue. Moses
ordered his people to kill them, resulting
in thousands of casualties, but the
carnage stopped after Moses begged
Allah to stop the violence.[6]
Samiri's punishment has been interpreted
as total social isolation by most