al-Samiri (the Samaritan)

Al-Samiri is mentioned in the Quran (Surah Ta-Ha 20:85-97) as the individual responsible for fashioning the golden calf that the Israelites worshipped while Musa AS was on Mount Sinai receiving the Torah. When Musa returned and saw his people in idol worship, he turned first to his brother Harun AS in anger — until Harun explained that he had warned the people but they overwhelmed him. Musa then turned to al-Samiri. The Quran records al-Samiri's explanation as one of the most cryptic passages in Islamic scripture: he said that he had taken a handful of dust from the footprint of the messenger (interpreted by many scholars as Jibril's footprint) and cast it into the calf, giving the golden form the sound of a low bellowing that convinced the Israelites it was a god. The exact mechanism of this event is described as a miracle-like phenomenon, but the moral emphasis is on al-Samiri's willful use of his knowledge to lead a nation astray. Musa declared a severe punishment: al-Samiri would live in isolation, saying to anyone who approached him, 'Do not touch me,' and his punishment in the Hereafter would be severe. He would have a fire that would never be extinguished. His story illustrates how knowledge and skill can become catastrophically dangerous when used to serve one's own ends against the revelation, and how the charisma of a misleader can draw an entire community away from the truth.