The Quranic Narrative
Surah 38:32–33:
And he said, 'Indeed, I gave preference to the love of good things over the remembrance of my Lord until the sun disappeared into the curtain. Bring them back to me.' Then he began to pass his hand over their legs and necks.
Solomon is reviewing his magnificent warhorses in the late afternoon. He becomes so distracted admiring them that he forgets his afternoon prayers until the sun sets ("veiled by the curtain of night"). Realizing his mistake, he commands, "Bring them back to me!" and begins to stroke or slash (tafīqa masḥan) their legs and necks.
Classical commentators are deeply divided on what Solomon actually did to the horses:
The Violent Interpretation:
Early scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Abbas state that Solomon slaughtered and hamstrung the innocent horses as a punitive sacrifice because they distracted him from God. Critics point out that brutally killing innocent, valuable animals out of guilt for one's own personal lateness portrays a volatile and cruel temperament rather than prophetic wisdom.
The Gentle Interpretation:
Later apologists claim he merely "stroked" their legs and necks with affection. However, critics argue that the linguistic context and traditional historical consensus lean heavily toward a physical destruction of the property that caused the spiritual distraction.