The Second Group

The first group of soorahs that contained Al-Baqarah, Aali „Imraan, An-Nisaa
and Al-Maaidah, all revealed in Madeenah, demonstrated how a degenerated,
dysfunctional and corrupt society is transformed into an orderly, organized
law-abiding Islamic society of peace, justice and excellence. These soorahs
mostly contained the rules and regulations given in evolutionary phases that
transformed the Arabian society of Yathrab from its ignorant, lawless fighting
tribes into the desired Islamic state of Madeenah. It also gave examples of
earlier Muslim communities that had deviated from Islam to become the Jews
and the Christians and described in detail the deviations that made them what
they had become. This was done for multiple purposes:

 To help the Jews and Christians understand that they were taught
only Islam by their prophets and messengers and it was their
innovations, heresies and abandonment of Islam that caused them to
become Jews or Christians. Hence, they should come back to the
pure Islam that was the Deen of all the prophets and messengers.
 To warn Muslims to remain on guard and not repeat the mistakes
made by the earlier Ummahs.
 To teach Muslims that if they commit the same mistakes and end up
becoming like the Jews and Christians, what they need to do to
correct themselves and come back to the straight path of Islam.

In other words, this group of soorahs had mainly addressed the matters related
to the Jews and Christians. As they used to be the Muslims of the past,
reforming them was like reforming Muslims who had deviated from their path.
That is why they were treated as a part of the family of believers until they
were given a full chance of reforming themselves through the teachings of
these soorahs. All those who refused to avail themselves of this opportunity
afforded to them were deprived of this entitlement, their claim to faith was
rejected, they were declared to be disbelievers and treated as outsiders except
for a very limited permission in matters of food and marriage, and that only if
they followed their religious rules and did not contravene the Islamic rules.

This group of soorahs was put at the beginning of the Book so that we Muslims
can learn from this and use this guidance to reform ourselves from within when
most of the Muslims have now become exactly like the Jews and Christians of
the past.
Thus, the thrust of this group of soorahs was to teach the Islamic movement the
process of reforming the corrupt behaviour and establishing or re-establishing
Islam within a Muslim society.

The second group consists of four soorahs: Al-An„aam and Al-A„raaf revealed
in Makkah and Al-Anfaal and At-Towbah in Madeenah. The addressees of this
group are mainly the Quraish of Makkah and theme of this group is the
struggle between the Islamic movement and its opponents. It deals with the
different stages of struggle between the two sides, once the Islamic movement
starts calling non-Muslims to Islam and they react with fierce opposition. Thus,
after dealing in the first group of Soorah with the issues arising from within
(hypocrites posing as Muslims), Muslims are now being taught how to deal
with the opponents who are outside of their faith group. These four soorahs,
among many other profound teachings, provide the details of four distinct
stages of the struggle between the Makkans and the Prophet‟s Islamic
movement, and thus, coach the contemporary Islamic movement in dealing
with non-Muslim opponents.

1. Inviting people to reflect on the signs of Allaah present so abundantly

in our own selves and in the whole universe so that as a result of that
reflection, they logically discover Allaah and develop faith in Him and
in Islam as a result of rational thinking; presenting the essence of the
Deen of Islam and its fundamental principles and the importance of
making those principles the exclusive basis of a complete system of
life, while completely abandoning “society‟s heritage of customs and
traditions” in favour of the Islamic way of life; and explaining the
validity of the Islamic message and absurdity of the opposition‟s stance
from every possible rational and logical angle. That is the major theme
of the first Soorah of the group, Al-An„aam.

2. Warning people that if they do not pay heed to the signs and refuse to
use their logic and wisdom to discover and adopt Islam as a complete
system of life, they will be facing severe consequences in this world
and in the Hereafter just as many people did before them. This is the
recurring theme in Al-A„raaf.

3. Preparing Muslims to defend themselves against the onslaught and

attacks of those who, instead of listening to reason and to the warnings,
wage war against the Islamic movement and vow to destroy it by force.
 Soorah Al-Anfaal plays that role by educating Muslims of Madeenah in
the ways to handle Makkan aggression.

4. Putting the opponents on notice and wresting the control of the affairs
of the world out of the hands of the Şaaghoot into the hands of the
Islamic state so that the whole society can benefit from the justice,
peace and excellence afforded by Islam. This is the final stage of the
Islamic movement where instructions given in Soorah At-Towbah
apply.

Just as in the first group of soorahs the People of the Book were removed from
the leadership role and Muslims were appointed in their stead, in the second
group of soorahs, the Quraish have been declared ineligible to be the trustees
of the Holy Ka„bah and the Muslims have been appointed in their stead. Thus,
in both groups, the Muslims have been given the responsibility to lead the
world in establishing the law and order of Allaah on earth and to ensure that
peace, justice and excellence prevails in this world, taking it away from the
People of the Book in the first group and from the pagans in the second group.
Al-An‘aam
Name, Background and Topics
Name
Al-An„aam means “the livestock” and is mentioned in verses 136-140 where
the superstitious practices of Arabs regarding some animals have been
criticized and rejected. It is known as Soorah Al-An„aam, symbolizing “the
soorah in which superstitions about Al-An„aam have been condemned.” As
this is merely a symbolic name, not the soorah‟s topic, it will not be translated,
but continued to be referred to as Soorah Al-An„aam.

Background
Al-An„aam is a Makkan soorah. Compared to the soorahs revealed in
Madeenah about which ample information is available as to when and in what
circumstances they were revealed, very little of that information is available for
Makkan soorahs. Their time and circumstances of revelation are usually
guessed from the nature, temperament and style of their contents. Although the
Islamic movement moved along a continuum of activities and circumstances,
for convenience, the Makkan period of the Islamic mission can be divided into
four segments:

 From the Prophet‟s appointment as the last Messenger to a period of

about three years of low-key, quiet preaching during which good-
natured people were individually approached and given the message of
Islam.

 About two years of open preaching during which any convert to Islam
who was considered weak or poor, lacking the backing of a strong
protector, was beaten up and brutally persecuted by the powerful
people of Makkah;

 A period of about five years during which every Muslim was a subject
of severe persecution. Some Muslims took refuge in Abyssinia. The
Prophet and his supporters were socially and economically boycotted
and his followers were tortured physically as well as psychologically;
  The last period of about three years during which the persecution was
severest and at its peak. There was no safe place anywhere for a
Muslim. In an effort to find a home for Islam, the Prophet went to Şaaif
but was brutally treated there. During that period, the Makkans were
plotting to kill the Prophet ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam.

This soorah was revealed in the last segment of the Makkan period. This is
corroborated by a report from Asmaa bint Yazeed who reported that she had
witnessed the occasion when this soorah was revealed. Because she was from
Madeenah, it could have been revealed only in the last part of the Makkan
period when the people of Madeenah came into contact with the Prophet.

Topics
The main theme of the soorah is to invite Makkans to reflect on the signs of
Allaah in and around themselves and rationally look at their current beliefs and
what Islam is inviting them to. As they claimed to be the descendents and
followers of Ibraheem, peace be upon him, his rational approach to faith and
his Millah has been explained to them to emulate. In addition to the logical and
rational approach on the basis of the signs of Allaah, they have also been
encouraged to learn from the history of the past nations. The following seven
sub-themes run throughout the soorah:

1. Inviting Makkans to take a rational approach to beliefs instead of

blindly following they ways of their society;
2. In the footsteps of their Patriarch Ibraheem, adopt Towĥeed and reject
Shirk because doing so is the only view that makes sense;
3. Inculcating the beliefs about the eternal life of the Hereafter;
4. Refuting the superstitious beliefs and practices;
5. Presenting the essence of Deen as it was practised and taught by
Ibraheem, listing its fundamental principles on which an Islamic society
is founded, and indicating that any deviations from this Deen and its
principles are deviations from the ways of Ibraheem and is not at all
acceptable to Allaah SWT;
6. Responding to the objection of opponents against the Prophet and his
mission;
7. Consoling and reassuring Muslims in the face of continuous violent
opposition from the non-Muslims against the Islamic mission;
8. Warning the opponents of the harm they are doing to themselves by
opposing the Islamic system of peace and justice.
Placement

After teaching Muslims how to deal with deviations within themselves and
how to re-establish the Islamic system of justice, peace and excellence in their
societies, they are now being taught how to deal with the opposition from
outsiders which include all the contemporary atheists, agnostics, humanists,
Jews, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and people of all other religions. In dealing
with them, the first step must be to present to them the signs of Allaah; to help
them take the rational approach to faith; to inspire them to forsake the blind
following of the beliefs, customs, traditions and so-called cultural heritage of
their societies; and to encourage them to learn from the people of the past who
faced destruction of their societies because of their rejection of Islam. That, as
stated earlier, is the main theme of Soorah Al-An„aam; hence, its placement as
the first soorah of the second group.
Teachings with Running Commentary
In the name of Allaah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
1
All the gratitude and praise is for Allaah Who created the heavens and the
earth and made the darkness and the light; yet those who disbelieve equate
others with their Lord. 2 He it is Who created you from clay, then He fixed a
termi; and with Him is another specified termii, yet you dispute. 3 And He is
Allaah in the heavens and in the earth; He knows what you keep secret and
what you utter aloud, and He knows what you earn.

Most of the Makkans did believe in Allaah as the Supreme God and as the Creator of the
heavens and the earth. Their problem was that they did not believe in Towĥeed, the oneness
and uniqueness of Allaah in all of His attributes and His works -- not having anyone similar,
equal or opposite to Him or having any kind of partnership, supportive, complementary or
supplementary role with Him. Hence, the soorah starts with a statement that was already
agreed upon and uses this agreed upon fact to make the point about Towĥeed. The point is that
if He is the Creator of everything, everything else being His creation, how can someone who
did not and cannot create anything and himself or itself having been created be equal to or a
partner with the Creator? Why would He who did not need any help in creating anything need
any help from anyone afterwards? Then why would someone in his right mind bow to, worship
or pray to anyone else than Allaah, the Creator?
The second verse takes the point about creation farther to the matter of the life hereafter. The
fixed term refers to the human lifespan pre-programmed into our genetic code and the other
specified term refers to the life span of the current universe at the end of which it will be
destroyed and re-created under new laws and systems to start the life hereafter. Just like our
life, the life of the universe is pre-programmed into its nature. The first point is, why doubt and
argue about the end of the life of the universe when we witness that everything in the current
set up of the universe is temporary? The second point is that if all the elements we are
composed of come from earth, and if all those inert elements convert into living human beings,
why dispute that the same Creator will resurrect us from the same elements again?
The third verse presents the argument both for Towĥeed and the accountability in the hereafter.
For Towĥeed, it makes the point that Allaah SWT is the Lord of the earth as much as He is the
Lord of the whole universe. He does not need, nor has He appointed anyone to manage the
matters of the earth on His behalf. The whole universal system is one coherent, integrated and
interdependent system run by Allaah Himself. Any interference from anyone else would have
created incoherence and caused problems instead of being beneficial. For accountability, it
makes the point that just as Allaah is governing every aspect of the universe, the matters of
human life must also be governed according to His commandments. Only in that case, human

i
A person‟s lifespan
ii
Life span of the universe in its current form
society will be coherent with its surrounding natural systems of life and only then it will be at
its best with balance, justice, peace and excellence. Just as Allaah‟s law is obeyed in the
heavens, it must be obeyed on the earth as well. This is what He is expecting. Whether you
behave accordingly or not, He is fully aware of everything you do or plan to do and the
intentions that you have behind your actions and plans. Thus, He will hold you accountable
and reward or punish you for whatever you earn in your temporary life on earth.
Although there are abundant signs leading to the Truth about Allaah and Islam, the Quraish
just did not heed. The Prophet and the Qur-aan drew their attention in different ways using
different styles, but they would not listen. The next few verses bring this to their attention and
warn them of the consequences of their behaviour.

4
Yet people‟s attitude has been such that never does a single sign from the
signs of their Lord reach them, but they shun it. 5 Thus, they have denied the
Truth when it came to them; nevertheless, soon there will come to them the
news concerning what they used to mock at.
Instead of reflecting on the signs and heeding the message, they used to make fun of the Qur-
aan and laugh at its promise of the ultimate success of the Islamic movement; its vision of
justice, peace and excellence in the society; and its warnings of the failures of and Allaah‟s
punishment for the pagans. They would make fun by saying things such as: Why do you not
bring the punishment that you warn us about? If you people are on the right, why are you
suffering from so much poverty, helplessness and deprivation? If Muĥammad is the true
Messenger of Allaah, why does not an angel walk with him and shield him from people? In
response to all these kinds of questions, verse 5 tells them that soon they will be experiencing
the punishment of Allaah in two ways: by being defeated at the hands of the Muslims and by
experiencing the torments of the hereafter. They will also be hearing the news of the successes
of the Muslims. These claims by the Qur-aan seemed far-fetched at the time of revelation of
these verses; however, Allaah showed the truth of these claims in a short period of time.
Within a few years, the Quraish started receiving the news of Muslim successes from
Madeenah, they were defeated by Muslims, and many of them were killed in their battles of
aggression against Muslims, witnessing their places in Hell.

The Quraish were very proud of their power and influence in the Arabian society. They were
content with their lifestyle and belief systems, and did not feel any need to re-examine their
views. They were rather contemptuous of those who invited them to change for the better.
They were not the first ones to do so. Every powerful nation in history adopted the same
attitude and ended up suffering Allaah‟s punishment. Had they been prudent, they would have
reflected on the historical evidence and heeded admonition. The next verse comments on that
matter.
6
Did they not consider how many a generation We have destroyed before
them, whom We had established on earth as We have not established you, on
whom We showered rain from the sky in abundance, and beneath whom We
made rivers flow? Then We destroyed them because of their sins and raised up
other generations after them.
The Quraish of Makkah were well travelled people. They had seen the ruins of destroyed
nations before them. Each of those nations were far more powerful, more sophisticated and
more established than Quraish, but nothing could stop the destruction inflicted upon them
because of their sins. The next soorah, Al-A„raaf, which is the twin of Soorah Al-An„aam gives
detailed examples of some of those nations and the punishments they suffered.

It is interesting to note human nature does not change at all over time. Even today, the
powerful nations of the world adopt the same attitude that the Quraish adopted 14 centuries
ago. People refuse to learn. Their unwillingness to learn lessons from history lets history repeat
itself. If Muslims follow the footsteps of the Prophet and excel in conduct and faith as the
Ŝaĥaabah did and convey the message of Islam with the same dedication and fortitude as they
did, they will have the same experiences and face the same reactions.

Verses 4and 5 mentioned how the Makkan pagans shunned the signs and rejected the truth
presented to them. Instead, they demanded miracles of their liking, as if those miracles were
the only missing link between them and their acceptance of the truth. The next few verses
comment on their demands to show that even if the miracles they demanded came to happen, it
would make no difference whatsoever in opening their closed minds. They would not be in any
better position to accept the truth. Their doubts and uncertainties would remain as they had
been. The only way they could accept the truth was if they opened their minds, and sincerely
reflected on the signs of Allaah and the history of the people before them.

These verses are addressed to the Prophet to console him that they deny the truth only because
they do not want to accept it, not because there is anything wrong in his delivery of the
message or any shortage of miracles.

7
Had we sent down to you (Muhammad) a book written on paper, so that they
could touch it with their hands, the unbelievers would have certainly said,
“This is nothing but sheer magic!”

The Qur-aan with its par excellence style, its stunning beauty and the sublime nature of its
message, was itself a living miracle that was attracting all good-hearted people to its message
of truth. Seekers of the truth did not need any additional miracles. But those who did not want
to accept its message would ignore the miracle of the Qur-aan on the basis that they did not
know if it was really revealed or the Prophet himself compiled it and claimed it to be from
Allaah. They claimed that if a written book descended from heaven then they would know that
it was from Allaah and they would accept it. The reality was that even if a written book
descended from heaven, they would simply disregard it as magic, just as they had disregarded
many other miracles including the miracle of the Qur-aan itself. This expected response was
consistent with their behaviour thus far as well as with the behaviour of the deniers of the past.
The opponents of the messengers of the past such as Moosa (Moses), accused them of being
the magicians on account of their miracles and the opponents of „Eesa (Jesus) regarded him to
be aided by Shayşaan in performing his astounding miracles. Thus, the Makkans did not need a
“convincing” miracle; they just needed to open their minds. There was sufficient evidence of
the truth of the Qur-aan and the Prophet available to them if they were willing to open their
eyes.
8
And they say, “Why is not an angel sent down to him?” Had we sent down an
angel, their destiny would have been sealed and they would have not been
allowed any respite. 9 And if We had sent an angel, We would have sent him in
human form, causing them the same confusion as they currently suffer.

Another excuse they used to deny the Prophet was that if he was the Messenger of Allaah, the
Sovereign of the universe, why was there no angel seen to accompany, guard and protect him
just as the representatives of kings had human guards and orderlies with them. While raising
such questions, what the deniers conveniently forget is that the life in this world is a test where
human beings are supposed to arrive at the truth through rational and intellectual means and
then believe in the unseen. That is why people have not been given the capability to see angels.
Unseen things such as angels will become visible only in the hereafter, when the test of the
people in this world is over and they are to be judged for their deeds or when Allaah has
decided to punish people for their misdeeds. That will be too late for believing. Until that time,
no one can see angels except the prophets. Thus, the only choice the Makkans had was to
believe on the basis of intellectual evidence and rational approach, not physical evidence of
things unseen.

For an angel to be seen by ordinary people, he would have to be sent as a human being. In that
case, sending an angel would be useless because those sceptics who did not want to believe in
the Prophet would be in no better shape to believe in the angel who would be like a human
being in every respect. How would they know that he was an angel as he claimed? So instead
of waiting for an angel, if they used a rational approach to evaluate the truth of the claims of
the Prophet, they would see more than ample evidence in his life and his behaviour indicating
that he was for sure the Messenger of Allaah. Thus, their uncertainty and confusion was self
inflicted and could not go away even if an angel was sent.

As for their mockery of the warnings of Allaah‟s punishment, it was nothing new. The
misguided, ignorant people of all ages have ridiculed their messengers but when the
punishment of Allaah came, they could not save themselves. Rather, they were overtaken and
surrounded by the very punishment they were warned about and that they had derided

10
And all the messengers before you were derided, but eventually what they
mocked at hemmed in the scoffers among them. 11 Say, “Travel around the
country and see what was the end of the deniers.”

If they would just look at the ruins of the people before them and discover what happened to
them, that would be a good source of physical evidence to guide them aright.

The next verse makes the audience look inward to face the reality that they already believe in
their hearts. They are asked a question about the reality that they cannot deny but do not want
to acknowledge either. Hence the question is asked and is answered right after it is posed.
12
Ask them, “Who owns whatsoever is in the heavens and the earth?” Say,
“Allaah does. He has decreed upon Himself to treat His creations with mercy.
He will definitely gather you together on the Day of Resurrection whereof
there is no doubt. It is the losers who do not believe.

Looking at human behaviour, people have come up with axioms such as, “Power corrupts, and
absolute power corrupts absolutely.” This is because they see that the more power and
authority a person has, and the less accountable he feels, the more ruthless he becomes. Allaah
SWT is omnipotent, has the absolute power and authority and is accountable only to Himself.
But He is absolutely Gracious and infinitely Merciful. He has chosen to deal with all of His
creations on the basis of mercy. This grace and mercy of Allaah SWT makes our life worth
living, gives us strong hope of success and ignites our spirit to pursue His pleasure.

The Day of Resurrection and Judgment is a natural result of Allaah‟s mercy. It is an expression
of Allaah‟s mercy in every rational way one looks at it. First of all, a specified day designated
for Judgment gives respite to people who happen to disobey Allaah SWT in any matter. A
violator of Allaah‟s command deserves punishment as soon as he disobeys, but Allaah
mercifully has decided not to punish individuals for their acts of disobedience in this world.
This gives them ample chance to repent, seek forgiveness, compensate their victims and avoid
punishment altogether. In fact, because of His absolute knowledge, Allaah can punish people
even as soon as they intend to disobey Him, but mercifully he leaves them alone to give them a
chance to change their minds. A person is not held responsible for intending to disobey, he is
held responsible only if that intention is executed and disobedience is actually committed. That
is His mercy to the perpetrator of a crime.

All of Allaah‟s laws and commands for us are designed to establish justice or promote
excellence. When any of His commands or teachings are violated, some kind of injustice is
done and some of His creations are victimized by the perpetrator in some way or the other. If
justice is not done to make matters right between the perpetrator and the victim, it will be
unfair and cruel to the victim. Hence, the mercy of Allaah demands that on the Day of
Judgment, perfect justice is done to every victim of any crime who was not duly compensated
in this world. This also takes care of all the matters not adjudicated judiciously in the human
courts. It also establishes justice for the victims of serial killers, serial rapists, sociopaths,
fascists and ruthless dictators, corrupt businessmen, etc whose victims did not have any chance
to obtain justice in this world. Thus, the Day of Judgment is a mercy of Allaah to compensate
those victims and reward the good, and the punishment of the criminals is only a natural result
of justice to the victims. It is due to this demand of justice to victims that no intercession is
allowed or accepted by Allaah SWT in this matter. It is for the same reason that no one can
compensate for another person‟s crimes.

If people remember their accountability of the Day of Judgment and settle their matters justly
in this world, naturally they are going to be successful in the hereafter. Those who do not
believe in the Day of Judgment and continue to do injustices against the teachings of Islam are
obviously going to be the big losers on that day.

The next verse reminds people of the infiniteness of Allaah‟s knowledge and authority so that
they know that they cannot hide anything from Him or hide themselves from Him.
13
And to Him belongs whatever rests at night and whatever moves during the
day; and He is the Hearer, the Knower.

When Allaah owns everything in the universe and everything is in His control and authority,
how can any rational person take someone as a patron other than Allaah or equate someone
else with Allaah?

14
Say, “Shall I take as a patron anyone other than Allaah, Who is the
Originator of the heavens and the earth and Who feeds, and is not fed?” Say, “I
am commanded to be the first who submits to Allaah in obedience, and I am
commanded, „You must not be one of those who equate others with Allaah‟.”

Food is used as a profound example in this verse to show that only Allaah SWT is independent
of all while everyone else is dependent. While Allaah feeds all His creations through the
resources He has created, all the others who are equated with Allaah SWT are dependent on
their devotees and followers. They are all dependent on the offerings, gifts, donations, taxes,
etc. In the case of “saints” who are worshipped beside Allaah, even their monuments and
celebrations are dependent on their devotees. In the case of idols, even their carved body is
dependent on someone crafting it, decorating it and putting it up for worship. In the case of
kings and dictators, if people do not listen to them, they cannot do anything whatsoever. Their
kingdom or authority continues only because people have submitted to them for one reason or
the other. It is only Allaah who absolutely does not need anything from anyone. Anything
given in His way is only invested for the betterment of the human society.

The Messenger does not only call people to submit to Allaah. He submits himself first and then
invites others to do the same.

15
Say, “Indeed I fear, if I disobey my Lord, the punishment of a grievous day.”
16
He who is spared from punishment on that day, it is certainly to him Allaah
has shown mercy, and that is the clear triumph. 17 If Allaah lets any harm touch
you, none can remove it but He; while if He lets some good touch you, well He
has power to do every thing. 18 He has complete authority over His slaves; and
He is the Wise, the Aware.

What can be a greater success than succeeding to avoid any punishment on the Day of
Judgment and being able to enjoy the infinite bounties of Allaah in the hereafter forever?

When Allaah has all the authority, power and control and when He is the only one Who can
make any difference in terms of inflicting or benefiting, why would someone submit, listen to,
or take as a patron any one other than Allaah?
Attempts to convince the polytheists about the truth of Allaah being the one and only God
continue in the next few verses. Different styles are being used so that people with different
mindsets can all understand the truth if they wanted to.

Whether Allaah has any equals, partners or associates is a matter of the unseen. It can be
reliably found only from the witness from Allaah Who has the real knowledge of the subject.
Verse 19 educates people from that perspective.
19
Ask them, “Which entity is the most reliable for testimony?” Say: “Allaah --
the witness between you and me! This Qur-aan has been revealed to me in
order that I warn you thereby and whomever it reaches. Can you really testify
that there are other gods along with Allaah?” Say, “I can never testify as such!”
Say, “He certainly is only one God, and I truly am averse to your ascribing
partners to Him."

Allaah SWT Himself has given unequivocal witness that He has no partner, equal or associate.
For that purpose He has revealed the Qur-aan containing clear statements to that effect and to
warn people against fabricating lies that Allaah has partners. Allaah SWT rejects all lies and
assumptions that people have invented whether it is:
 Believing someone being equal to Allaah in any respect or possessing an attribute of
Allaah to the same level and extent as Allaah Himself,
 Believing in someone being God-incarnate or Allaah in human form,
 Believing that someone is so beloved of Allaah that they can make Him do whatever
they want,
 Believing that Allaah SWT is bound to accept someone‟s intercession,
 Believing that one cannot go to Allaah directly but has to approach Allaah through a
certain person or persons,
 Giving someone or something the same importance as should be given to Allaah or
His commands,
 Performing some kind of ritual for someone other than Allaah as it is usually
performed for Allaah.
These are all different forms of ascribing partners to Allaah or equating others with Allaah.
Allaah SWT and the Qur-aan have rejected all such beliefs and actions as Shirk or polytheism.

Those who adopt such beliefs and practices do so based on their assumptions or conjecture, not
on the basis of authentic knowledge from Allaah. Thus, they cannot really and validly testify
about their authenticity.

If the believers see any such beliefs being held and practices being performed around them,
they must show their aversion to these practices as the Messenger has shown. They must also
warn people about the consequences of their fabricated beliefs and practices by presenting
them the Qur-aanic teachings. Some scholars indicate that “whomever it reaches” has the same
obligation as the Messenger had to warn people by means of the Qur-aan. This conclusion is in
line with the saying of the Prophet, “Those present must convey it to those who are not” and
the obligation of the Muslims to be the witnesses to humankind.
The belief in Towĥeed (oneness and uniqueness of Allaah) and rejection of all forms of Shirk
(polytheism, idolatry, ascribing partners to Allaah, equating others with Allaah) has always
been the core belief for the followers of all prophets since Adam. This has been well
documented in the books revealed by Allaah. Even in their current corrupted form, the
previous books of Allaah continue to give a clear message of Towĥeed. Although some
changes and interpolation in the New Testament have been attempted to make this message
obscure, the Biblical scholars cannot deny the fact of God being one and only one. In fact,
among all the different views, they can easily recognize the true monotheistic faith (Towĥeed)
just as a person can recognize his own children among a multitude of children.

20
Those to whom We have given the Book know Himi as unmistakably as they
they recognize their own sons. As for those who have opted for themselves to
be the losersii, they do not believe.

People usually resort to Shirk because they somehow think that they are getting an edge in
attaining salvation, success and benefits through gaining the favours of the entities they assume
to be capable of interfering in the decisions and plans of Allaah SWT. While believing in
baseless assumptions, they commit an extremely heinous injustice to Allaah SWT. They
should have dedicated their love, their reverence, their loyalties and their rites of devotion only
to Allaah their Creator, Master and Owner; instead they channelled some or most of those
emotions to someone other than Allaah who had no part in creation. This injustice will take
them to the punishment and perdition, not to success and salvation.
21
Who can be more unjust than he who invents a lieiii about Allaah or rejects
His signsiv? Surely the unjust will not succeed.

„Signs‟ is an all inclusive term that covers three kinds of signs: Signs of Allaah in our nature
and in the universe around us that lead one to conclude that the creator of all these entities is a
wise, knowledgeable, and almighty creator who must be infinite and thus one and only; the
signs of truthfulness in the life of the Messenger and his miracles; and the revelations of Allaah
clearly describing the oneness and uniqueness of Allaah.

Those who equate others with Allaah or associate partners with Him come into many shades
and varieties. They have different personalities whom they revere and they have a variety of
beliefs and ideas about their favourite personalities. While there is a unity of thought among
those who believe in Towĥeed, there is a hodgepodge of ideas among those who practice
Shirk. However, they will all be treated in the same way and all will be gathered all together on
the Day of Judgment.

i
That He is only One and Unique and that He is not racist, favouring people or not, on the basis of their
race.
ii
In the Hereafter.
iii
That Allaah has equals or partners.
iv
Which lead a person to acknowledging that Allaah is the only God.
22
The day when We shall gather them all together, We shall say to those who
ascribed partners to Us, "Where are the partners whom you assumed that they
existed?" 23 Then they will not be able to play any game except to say, “By
Allaah, our Lord, we were not those who ascribed partners.” 24 You will see
how they lie even about themselves, and how the gods they used to invent will
disappear into thin air.

On the Day of Judgment, nothing will remain unseen so it will become evident to people that
whatever assumptions they made about Allaah‟s partners were all baseless fabrications. When
they will have no defence for their injustice to the majesty of Allaah SWT, they will resort to
lying and denying the beliefs they used to be so devoted to in the world.

The case for Towĥeed and the life hereafter is quite strong. The evidence is sound, the
arguments are convincing and the logic makes sense. The audience seems to be listening and
paying attention; why do they continue to disbelieve then? The problem is that the message is
not reaching inside their conscience. It is being filtered by so many thick layers of
preconceived notions, prejudices, biases, vested interests, resistances to change, societal
influences, loyalties and personal aspirations that not a shred of reason reaches the mind intact.
On top of it all, their intent for listening is not to understand but to find any points they can to
use in arguing against the Islamic message. This intent blinds them completely from the
message because all they pay attention to is seeking some point that can be used in their
propaganda against Islam.
25
Of them there are some who apparently listen to you, but We have placed
veils upon their mindsi, so they do not understand it, and placed deafness in
their ears, so they do not really hear it. Even if they see every sign they will not
believe in it. So much so that when they come to you arguing with you, those
disbelievers say, “These are merely legends of former people.”

Allaah SWT has made human nature such that unless a person keeps an open mind and
removes all the filters to look at the facts of the case rationally, he cannot understand the truth
nor make the right decisions. This inability is a person‟s own fault but because it is the natural
result of the laws of nature decreed by Allaah SWT, Allaah SWT ascribes it to Himself
rightfully as the Creator of nature itself. Describing it in this style has its advantages:
disbelievers usually harbour a sense of pride for not being convinced by the message of the
Messenger, so this style hits at their pride, clarifying that the rejection of the message is not
some sort of privilege to be proud of, but a deprivation to be ashamed of. At the same time, the
Messenger is usually worried that perhaps his delivery of the message is not good enough to be
sinking in. This style consoles him that there is nothing wrong with the delivery, the problem is
with the recipient.

i
Rational faculty
Because of the attitude described above, no sign from the universe or no miracle from the
Prophet is going to be helpful in convincing them of the truth. They will continue to argue
instead of accepting the most evident of truths.

Despite their best efforts, they usually do not have any rational arguments against the message
of Islam or any satisfactory answer to the logical arguments and evidence from the signs of
nature that Islam presents. So the disbelievers summarily reject Islam as “old stories”. They
call it “old stories” from two perspectives: Firstly, Islam as a Deen is as old as the creation of
the universe which was created on the principles of Islam – obedience to Allaah, the Creator.
For human beings, the Islamic message is as old as when the first human came into being. Its
truth is everlasting and is going to stay that way forever. Throughout human history, the
Islamic message has been constant. People invent new things, but when they are called back to
Islam, they contemptuously discount it as old thinking. Every generation of disbelieving people
considers themselves as “modern” and “progressive” and continues to disregard the ultimate
and everlasting truth of Islam as old and primitive. That attitude continues to this day.

Secondly, in addition to the logical arguments and evidence from the signs of nature, the Qur-
aan also uses examples from the history of previous nations to support the message it needs to
convey to its audience. The anecdotes of the past actually present to them the mirrors in which
they can see their own image and arrive at the right conclusions as to what course of actions
they should adopt and what the consequences will be if they do not. Instead of learning lessons
from those anecdotes, the disbelievers usually use them to summarily discount the whole thing,
including the arguments and the evidence presented to them, as old stories.

By summarily discounting the message of the Qur-aan as old stories, they do disservice to
themselves and others. It stops them from understanding and evaluating the Islamic message
honestly and clearly with an open mind and their propaganda keeps others away from it. Their
hindering themselves and others from giving genuine and open consideration to Islam,
however, does not hurt Allaah, the Messenger or Islam. All they, the disbelievers, are doing is
destroying themselves.
26
They prevent others from it and they themselves keep away from it. They
ruin none but themselves, though they do not realize it. 27 If you could see
when they will be made to stand by the Fire and will wish, “Would that we
were sent back, then we would not reject the signs of our Lord, but would be
amongst the believers!” 28 They would say so, not because of the change of
hearts, but because what they used to conceal in their hearts has come out open
in front of them; otherwise, if they were sent back, they would certainly relapse
to the things they were forbidden, and they indeed are liars.

When the message was presented to them with logical arguments and evidence of signs of
nature, it made sense to them, but for all other reasons mentioned earlier, they did not want to
accept it. On the Day of Judgment, the physical reality will be there in front of them so they
will not be able to disregard it. However, because their paradigm, their outlook and their
mentality remains the same, even if they are sent back to the world, their behaviour will still
remain the same.
29
Today they claim, “There is nothing but our life of this world, and we shall
not be resurrected.” 30 If you could see when they will be made to stand before
their Lord! He will ask, “Isn‟t this real?” They will respond, “Of course it is,
by Our Lord!” He will say, “Taste then the punishment because you
disbelieved.” 31 Losers indeed are they who deny their meeting with Allaah
until its time will come upon them all of a sudden and they will exclaim, “Alas
for us for neglecting it!” They will be carrying their burdensi on their backs.
Ah, evil indeed is that which they bear! 32 This world's life is merely sport and
amusement, while the home of the hereafter is better for those who have
Taqwa. Do you have then no sense?

People who do not believe in or care for the hereafter try to make the most of the life of this
world. They want to maximize their fun, amusement, entertainment and happiness. That is
what they consider success. But this is a temporary and transitory life, while the permanent and
eternal life is that of the hereafter. The real winners will be those who will have fun,
amusement, luxury and happiness in that life, forever. They are those people who adopt Taqwa
– the attitude of living in this world while restraining themselves, instead of indulging;
excitedly doing those things which please Allaah SWT and carefully and cautiously avoiding
anything that displeases Him. This attitude can be illustrated by the life of a student. A student
has two choices: either he can spend all his time in playing and having fun at the expense of his
studies and then being a loser for not completing his education; or he can restrain himself from
such temptations, study hard, avoiding wastage of time and then become successful in life to
have fun and a good life.

The Prophet had an outstanding reputation for his impeccable truthfulness, honesty and
trustworthiness. Before he was commanded to undertake the Islamic mission, he was known as
“the Truthful” and “the Trustworthy”. Even when he was rejected as the Messenger of Allaah
by many of them, they still would keep their valuables with him in trust. But in response to his
call to Islam, he was vehemently rejected. The prophet would do his best to bring them to the
guidance, but they would spurn him and demand custom-made miracles as a proof of his being
the prophet and messenger of Allaah. The people would ignore the reality of this world being a
test to see if people believe in their creator and in the hereafter on the basis of rational,
intellectual evidence presented by creations of Allaah. They would ignore the clear evidence in
the truthfulness of the prophet, his impeccable character and his selfless dedication to the
mission, and would refuse to accept him as the Messenger of Allaah appointed to help them
believe in Allaah and in the hereafter. Instead, they would demand some miracles that they
thought would prove that he indeed was the Messenger of Allaah. They would expect to see an
angel accompanying the prophet and acting as his usher and bodyguard. They wanted to see a
complete, pre-written book revealed physically in front of them. They thought the prophet of
God should be the richest man in the world because God should be giving him all the wealth.
The prophet should have a special garden grown for him by Allaah to enjoy its produce and
fruits. Despite the prophet‟s best efforts, they would refuse to understand Allaah‟s policies in

i
Of sins
this regard. They would continue to insist on judging him by their short-sighted, misguided
paradigm that measured success and truth by the abundance (At-Takaathur) of this world rather
than accepting the truth on its own merit and understanding the reality of the eternal success in
the hereafter. Because of his sincerity for their well being and his passion for their salvation
and true success, the Prophet was saddened by their refusal to understand the truth. The next
few verses comment on this phenomenon.
33
We have been well aware that what they say certainly grieves you; however,
remember that it is not you whom they reject; it is, in fact, the signs of Allaah
that these wicked people deny.

The fact that their rejection of the Prophet‟s claims was in fact denying the revelations of
Allaah was not just a logical conclusion, nor was it something based merely on Allaah‟s
knowledge of people‟s motives. This was even acknowledged by the staunch opponents of the
Prophet. For example, Aboo Jahl „Amr Ibn Hishaam, the leader of the enemies of Islam, once
himself told the prophet, “We do not consider you a liar, but we reject what you have brought.”
The purpose of mentioning this fact here is two fold:

 To console the Prophet and to strengthen him in forbearing his enemies‟

behaviour by acknowledging his grief and by reminding him how Allaah SWT is
forbearing with them despite their rejection of His revelations. It is not because
Allaah SWT does not know or does not care what is going on with His prophet,
but because that is Allaah‟s policy of dealing with people in their temporary stay
on this earth.

 To warn the opponents of the Prophet by announcing to them that Allaah knows
exactly how they are responding to His revelations. If He has forborne with them
without punishing them for their crimes, it is not because He does not have the
power to destroy them but only because of His policy of mercy and respite to
give them the maximum opportunity to repent and reform. Those who are not
availing this opportunity to accept the message of the Prophet are being
extremely unjust to themselves by subjecting themselves to Allaah‟s punishment
in the hereafter forever.

At this point, it is important to remember Allaah‟s policy and His way (Sunnah) for dealing
with the behaviour of people in this world. Except for human beings and Jinns, every other
creation of Allaah SWT in the universe has been pre-programmed to be obedient to Allaah
SWT. This pre-programming ensures the smooth running, balance and equilibrium in the
universe. Human beings and Jinns have been given freedom in a designated area to make
choices and decisions about the way they live their lives. Their life in this world is a test to see
if they voluntarily adopt obedience and submission to Allaah SWT by living according to
Islam or if they rebel and follow their own desires. If they choose to live by Islamic teachings,
they will enjoy justice, peace, balance and moderation. In addition, they will have a chance to
excel in goodness. If they choose to follow their desires in disobedience to Allaah, they will
spread violence, strife, injustice and chaos in the world. Those who submit voluntarily to
Allaah (the Muslims) will be rewarded in the form of eternal freedom and blessings in Jannah,
while those who rebel and disobey (the Kaafirs) will be imprisoned in hell and suffer forever.
The foremost aspect of Allaah‟s policy in this respect is that Allaah SWT ensures that people‟s
ability to make decisions in the designated area of freedom is not affected by Allaah‟s power
and authority at all so that their lifestyle in that designated area remains the product of their
own choices and decisions. This is so that they can be held fully accountable for the choices
and decisions they make. This ensures validity of the test.

The second important aspect of Allaah‟s policy in this respect is that of His mercy. Being
extremely kind and merciful to His creations, He took it upon himself to send prophets and
messengers from time to time to help people follow the path of Islam. Prophets were sent more
frequently to remind people about Islam and help them get back on track when they deviated.
When Islam was totally abandoned, messengers were sent to re-introduce Islam and to re-
implement its system of justice, peace and excellence. To make it happen, Allaah helps His
messengers so that eventually they succeed in establishing the complete Islamic system and
making it dominant in the world. However, this is done through presenting the message,
educating people and convincing them of its truth so that whoever comes to Islam comes to it
voluntarily and wholeheartedly, without being forced in any way by the power of Allaah SWT
so that their test remains free and valid. This makes the job of the messengers extremely
difficult. They present the message and are rejected. They continue working and spreading
their message, one person at a time. They and their followers are vehemently opposed, abused,
persecuted and terrorized. They forbear and persevere while Allaah SWT gives the opponents
respite and an opportunity for them to listen to the message and reform themselves. In the
meantime, the Muslims are passed through hardships, trials and tribulations to purify them
from any worldly considerations, personal agendas and vested interests; to make them purely
and exclusively dedicated to the pursuit of Allaah‟s pleasure; to strengthen them in selflessness
and reliance on Allaah; and to train them in making personal sacrifices for objectives of Deen
in pursuit of Allaah‟s pleasure. This team of excellent people is then fully qualified to establish
the Islamic system of justice, peace and excellence in the society. Once the rejecters have been
given the maximum respite possible under the circumstances so that anyone who has a little bit
of goodness in his heart has come to Islam, the period of respite is concluded and the
remaining opponents are destroyed. In other words, their test is finished and their books are
closed for them to suffer the consequences of their behaviour in the hereafter. This is the policy
of Allaah and His way (Sunnah) of dealing with people that has been consistent through all
ages and with all messengers.

34
Rejected certainly were the messengers before you, yet they persevered
despite being rejected; and they were persecuted until Our help came to them.
None can change Allaah‟s policies. And there has already come to you some
information about the previous messengers.
The policy of Allaah SWT described above has been consistently followed throughout human
history. That is the only way to spread Islam and establish the Deen of Islam to benefit
humanity through its system of justice, peace and excellence. There is no shortcut through this
slow, difficult, arduous and painstaking process. The Islamic workers have to go through all of
its stages until Allaah SWT deems that it is time now to give victory to the believers because
they are fully trained for their role and the opponents have been given full and maximum
opportunity to come to Islam.
The mention of Allaah‟s policies here is an important reminder about the process to the
Prophet and His companions; while at the same time, it is an important warning to the
opponents who have been challenging the Prophet as to why the punishment of Allaah is not
coming upon them despite their opposition to Islam.

The Messenger of Allaah had worked extremely hard and made so many sacrifices to call
people towards their salvation and towards establishing the Deen of Allaah on His land. When
people would not respond to his passionate pleas and tireless work for their salvation, this
would naturally sadden him. It was very human for him to think that perhaps they might
believe if he showed such and such miracle or if he could do this or if he would do that. It was
all because of his boundless kindness towards them and because of his passionate desire to
bring them to salvation. The next verse comments on that thought process.

35
And if their evasion (from your call) is hard on you, then seek, if you can, a
tunnel in the ground or a ladder to the skies to bring them a sign! Had Allaah
willed, He would certainly have united them all on guidance, so do not be like
those who are naïve.

This brief verse reminds people of some extremely important points. First of all, it is not in the
power of the Messenger to show a miracle, regardless of how hard he tries. Only Allaah
permits a miracle to happen through a Messenger whenever Allaah deems it is necessary.
Secondly, even if the demanded miracles are shown, as has been explained earlier in this
Soorah, the obdurate people are still not going to believe. They will come up with another
excuse. Thirdly, Allaah‟s policy is not to force people to become Muslims by the power of
miracles. Had He wanted to force people to become Muslims, He could have easily pre-
programmed them like all other creations. Then, all of them would be united on guidance. But
Allaah wants people to use their intellect and discover the truth through rational thinking. That
can happen only through slow, but extremely hard work of educating people one at a time,
breaking their barriers to open their minds and helping them go through the rational mental
process. Hence, the Messenger and Islamic workers should concentrate on those who pay heed
and listen because those who listen with an open mind are the only people who are going to be
guided. Others cannot be helped in any way.

36
Thus, only those respond positively (to your call) who listen with an open
mind; as for the intellectually dead, Allaah will raise them up; then, to Him
they shall be returned.

As for those who are intellectually dead and do not want to believe without physical evidence
of the truth, let them wait for the Day of Judgment when they will be brought back to Allaah
and they will witness the truth first hand. But, alas, that will be too late. For now, they will not
be shown the kind of miracle they want to see, not because Allaah SWT cannot make it
happen, but because it is not fitting with His plans and policies.
37
They wonder, “Why is not a sign sent down to him from his Lord?” Say:
“Allaah certainly has power to send down a sign”; but most of them are
ignorant of His policy in this regard. 38 There is no animal that walks upon the
earth nor a bird that flies with its two wings but they are communities like you.
We have not neglected anything in predetermining the courses of their lives;
then to their Lord are they gathered. 39 Those who reject our signs are deaf and
dumb, in utter darkness. Allaah lets go astray whom He wills, and guides to the
straight path whom He wills.

For those who really want to explore and find the truth there are ample signs around them to
reflect and ponder. Just reflecting upon the animals and birds around us will give enough
evidence of the power and the wisdom of their creator. The scientific research has by now
revealed so much fascinating information about these animals, their wonderful capabilities and
their method of community living that people of understanding can learn tremendous lessons
from. In addition to the many lessons people can learn about the power, the wisdom and the
care put by the Creator in their physical attributes and in their instincts, it also becomes evident
how those communities live together in peace within themselves in harmony with their
environment.

Unfortunately, not all people who study these kinds of natural phenomena learn appropriate
lessons from what they observe. Only those who have an open mind to think outside the
proverbial box and who form opinions only on the basis of the facts they observe benefit from
these reflections. People who begin from a biased position or are indoctrinated too much with
preconceived ides, warped notions and faulty paradigms are not going to benefit much from
any such reflection on the signs of nature because they have closed their minds as if they are
deaf and dumb.

This happens as a natural consequence of a person‟s attitude and behaviour. As has been
explained earlier, whatever happens according to the laws of nature is attributable to Allaah as
the Creator and promulgator of those laws.

The previous verse encourages people to reflect on signs of Allaah in other creatures around
us. The next verse invites them to reflect on one of the signs of Allaah SWT that are inherent in
human nature.

40
Ask them, “Have you considered whether, once the punishment of Allaah
comes upon you or end of time comes upon you, you will call upon others for
help besides Allaah, if you are truthful? 41 Rather, it is only Him you will call
upon and will forget whomever you equated with Him. Then, if it be His will,
He will remove what occasioned your call upon Him.”

When people encounter extremely difficult times or face a disaster or crises where they cannot
see any way out of it and their death seems to be imminent, at that critical time people turn to
Allaah and plead for help. Even an atheist inadvertently calls upon Allaah. All those who
equate others with Allaah forget about them and call Allaah directly and singly. This is a
potent sign from our own nature about the oneness and uniqueness (Towĥeed) of Allaah. I
have personally seen an atheist coming to Islam after such an encounter. There is a famous
incident of „Ikrimah son of Aboo Jahl, the staunchest enemy of Islam. When the Prophet
conquered Makkah, „Ikrimah ran away and decided to leave the country. The boat he took
encountered a violent storm. Initially, people prayed for their safety to their gods beside
Allaah. But when the storm grew stronger and the fear intensified, they all called upon each
other to pray to Allaah alone because only He could save at them that time in those conditions.
This call opened „Ikrimah‟s eyes. He realized that calling Allaah alone was precisely what
Muĥammad had been calling them towards. He prayed that if he was saved, he would become
Muslim. After the storm subsided, he came back to Makah and accepted Islam.

However, not all people learn the lessons from the hardships they encounter. At the time of
suffering, they call on Allaah for help; but as the suffering goes away, they go back to their
rebellious lifestyle even more so than before. Allaah SWT uses physical sufferings and
financial hardships to help those who have some goodness in their hearts so that the hardships
soften their hearts and they listen to the messengers and reform themselves. But even these
hardships have the opposite effect on those who are blinded by their biases, prejudices and
animosity to the messengers. They take their salvation from such hardships the wrong way and
become even more hardened and blinded in their opposition to the messengers. Some Makkan
leaders had developed that kind of blindness in their opposition to the Messenger of Allaah.
They were challenging the Messenger to bring the punishment of Allaah that he was warning
them about. The next verse informs them of Allaah‟s way in this respect. It warns them that
Allaah‟s punishment usually comes when the opponents expect it the least and then it roots
them out completely.

42
We did send messengers to many nations before you and We inflicted those
nations with hardships and sufferings that perhaps they might humble
themselves to Us. 43 Then why, when Our hardships came to them, did they not
humble themselves? On the contrary, their hearts became hardened and
Shayşaan (Satan) made whatever they were doing seem attractive to them. 44
Then, when they forgot what they had been advised of, We opened for them
the doors to everything, until when they were rejoicing in what they had been
given, We seized them by a sudden calamity; then lo! they were utterly
dumbfounded. 45 So the wrong-doers were totally uprooted; and gratitude and
praise be for Allaah, the Lord of the universe.

It is indeed a great mercy of Allaah SWT that He, every so often, destroys the wrongdoers and
thus saves humanity and His other creations from the tyranny and injustices of the wicked
people, and restores balance, justice, peace and excellence on the earth through His
messengers.

These verses draw people‟s attention to the way Allaah SWT deals with those who oppose His
messengers by alluding to the history of messengers without giving specific examples. The
next Soorah, the twin of this current Soorah, gives some historical examples in detail. For now,
the emphasis is on encouraging people to think rationally by considering the matter from
various angles and all aspects. Instead of challenging the Messenger to bring on the
punishment of Allaah, they should reflect on the consequences if that happens.

46
Say, “Have you considered that if Allaah takes away your hearing and your
sight and seals your rational faculty, who is the god besides Allaah that can
bring them back to you?” See how We present Our signs in diverse ways, yet
they turn away. 47 Say, “Have you considered, if the punishment of Allaah
comes to you suddenly or openly, will any be destroyed except the wrong-
doers?

People who do not understand the role and mission of the messengers have many strange,
unreasonable and irrational expectations and make many outrageous demands of them. They
expect them to be superhuman in their power and abilities, beyond having any human needs,
possessing knowledge of the unseen and have all the wealth and resources of the world at their
disposal. With these expectations, they want them to prove their genuineness by showing all
kind of miracles and bringing Allaah‟s punishment on demand. The irony is that Shayşaan uses
such wrong expectations in two ways to mislead people. During the life of a messenger, he
uses these unrealistic and unreasonable expectations to keep people from accepting the
messenger. After a messenger‟s departure from this world, Shayşaan incites and causes people
to falsely ascribe such qualities and godly powers to their messenger, misleading such people
away from the very Islam the messengers spent their life preaching. The next verse defines the
real role of the Messenger as being that of educating people about the rewards of believing and
practising, and about the punishment for not believing. Then, the succeeding verse sets
people‟s expectations of the Messenger aright so that they can pay attention to his message
instead of making outrageous demands from him or expecting him to possess god-like
attributes or to be anything other than human.

48
We do not send messengers but as announcers of good news and givers of
warnings. So whoever believes and reforms himself, they shall have no fear,
nor shall they be saddened. 49 But those who reject our signs, punishment shall
afflict them because they have been defiantly disobedient. 50 Say, “I do not say
to you that I have with me the treasures of Allaah, nor do I know the unseen,
nor do I tell you that I am an angel; I follow only what is revealed to me.” Say,
“Are the blind and the seeing equal? Do you not then reflect?”

What the Messenger invites people to is based on the knowledge he has received from the
revelation. He has insight into those matters. On the other hand, those who reject him and
oppose him have no knowledge regarding those matters. They are blind to the realities that the
Messenger is doing his best to educate them about.

Another excuse the rejecters of the Prophet‟s call to Islam used for justifying their rejection
was that the people who had believed in Islam included slaves, poor and weak people of the
society. These poor believers were concerned about their accountability to Allaah SWT and
were very anxious to learn about the teachings of Islam, doing good deeds and pleasing Allaah
SWT. Thus they used to stay around the Prophet and the Prophet was very kind and attentive to
them. The Makkan leaders thought that it was denigrating their status and honour to sit in the
same session and in the company of those people. They used to demand that the Prophet
should first get rid of those people before they could come and listen to what he had to say.
This class consciousness was very strong in the Arabian society. One of the objectives of the
Islamic mission that the Prophet was entrusted with was to eradicate all kind of discrimination
based on so-called class or status of the people and establish the Islamic concept of human
equality – all human beings are equal in the sight of Allaah and they distinguish themselves
only on the basis of their achievement in doing good, not on the basis of the physical features,
race or the family they happened to be born in. From that perspective, the Islamic message was
for everyone: slave or free, rich or poor, Quraishi or non-Quraishi, Arab or non-Arab. Hence,
the Prophet welcomed everyone who believed and was kind, respectful and loving to them. At
the same time, he did not want to alienate any group of people from paying attention to his call
and his mission. Thus the arrogance of the Makkan leaders posed a big dilemma for the
Prophet as to how he was to appreciate the believers from the ranks of the poor, without
alienating the Makkan leaders. The next few verses give directions in this respect.
51
Using the revelation, focus on warning those who fear that they shall be
gathered to their Lord while they will have no patron or intercessor besides
Him – so that they (such believers) adopt Taqwa.

Although the Prophet‟s general call to Islam should remain towards all people, he should not
spend much time and energies on those people who cannot think beyond the physical matters
of this world and thus demand meaningless miracles, have unrealistic expectations or are
blinded by their arrogance. The most productive use of his time and energies is to focus his
attention on those who can:

 Use their intellect to look beyond this temporary world, its wealth, and its amenities
and rationally deduce the imperative accountability to Allaah SWT and reality of a
permanent life hereafter;
 Understand that there can be no shortcuts to pass the accountability test, no
intercession and no helper will be able to provide any help and the criterion for
success will be strictly based on their performance in this world.

To do this job, the Qur-aan is the best means. Education, training and purification of these
people through the Qur-aan in order to help them attain the appropriate level of Taqwa are of
paramount importance. They need to be cared for, not driven away, as the rejecters are
demanding.

52
Because of the criticism of the rejecters, do not drive away those (the
believers) who call upon their Lord day and night seeking His approbation.
You have nothing to do with their reckoning, nor do they have anything to do
with yours. So were you to drive the believers away, you would be a wrong-
doer. 53 Thus did We test some of them (the rejecters) by others (the believers)
so that the rejecters say about the believers, “Is it these then that Allaah has
favoured from amongst us?” Does not Allaah know better than the rejecters
which of the people are grateful to Him?

The life in the hereafter depends on how successful a person is in his accountability to Allaah.
It does not depend on the social status or wealth of a person. Also, how other people behave is
totally irrelevant for the salvation of a person. Whether it is the rejecters or the poor believers
or the Prophet himself, every one of them will have to face Allaah individually to give his own
reckoning. Hence everyone should worry about his own salvation by fulfilling his Islamic
duties for the pleasure of Allaah, instead of worrying about whomsoever else is or is not doing
so.

The rich or honourable leadership of the Makkans have been put to test by the positive
initiative of the poor people towards Islam. Now it is up to them to demonstrate that they can
appreciate and accept the truth of Islam regardless of who else has done it, get rid of their
arrogance and class consciousness, and join other Muslims as equal brothers in Islam. They
should not expect the Prophet to drive the sincere believers away for their sake because he is
not allowed by Allaah to do so. If they think those believers are not honourable in their eyes,
Allaah does not care about their questioning and their opinion. Allaah very well knows and
appreciates those who are grateful for the guidance of Islam. If they think that those Muslims
are not worthy of Allaah‟s kindness for some mistakes they may have made in the past before
accepting Islam, they should know that Allaah is forgiving and merciful to those who repent
and reform. When a person becomes a Muslim, Allaah SWT wipes that person‟s slate clean to
give him a fresh, new start.
54
When those who believe in Our revelations come to you, say, “Peace be on
you, your Lord has decreed upon Himself mercy so that if any one of you does
evil out of ignorance then repents thereafter and acts aright, then He is
Forgiving, Merciful. 55 Thus do We expound the revelations so that the
believers‟ attitude is highlighted as well as the way of the criminals becomes
evident.
Therefore, the rejecters should understand it clearly that the Prophet is not going to drive the
believers away because of their past or their social status. Rather he is going to welcome them
and help them with love and care to attain Taqwa, purify their behaviour and excel in
goodness. Thus, the rational approach to faith, attitude of Taqwa and pursuit of excellence for
the pleasure of Allaah is the way of the believers, while the rejecters continue to harbour
illogical expectations, demand physical proofs, use baseless excuses and be duped by their
illegitimate pride in their ancestry and social status.

The emphasis in the previous section was on dealing with the objections and excuses used by
the Makkans to justify their disbelief in the Messenger of Allaah. The next section focuses on
their confusions, objections, questions and demands relative to Allaah, Towĥeedi and His
attributes. The style used is that without mentioning their oft-repeated wrong notions,
demands, questions or objections, the Prophet has been taught what to say in response. For the

i
Oneness and uniqueness of Allaah SWT
original addressees, there was no need to waste words on repeating their falsehood. Every one
knew exactly what the opposition‟s propaganda was to which the Qur-aan was responding to.
For subsequent generations like us, the response itself indicates the point being addressed.

As was mentioned at the beginning of this Soorah, the Arabs did believe in Allaah as the
Supreme God. However, they also thought that it was impossible to approach Allaah directly;
and that to attain Allaah‟s favours and mercy, one needed to go through the personalities who
are very dear and close to Allaah. Consequently, they used to glorify, pray to and call upon
some intermediaries for help, support and mercy, which in fact is the worship that Allaah
wants to be dedicated exclusively to Himself. This kind of thinking is the result of wrong
notions about Allaah SWT such as not understanding His infiniteness and thinking of him in
human terms. It is also a result of human desire to seek shortcuts. Seeking Allaah‟s pleasure
through total submission to Him is, no doubt, a difficult task that requires foregoing some
personal preferences, pleasures and making some sacrifices. These people think that they can
use their presumed intermediaries as a shortcut to attaining all the benefits of Allaah‟s pleasure
and salvation. The fact is that these are merely their whims, desires and fancies that have no
logical or rational basis, nor any evidence that those entities claimed to have any such
privileges, nor any sanction or approval from Allaah SWT. Despite the absurdity and
baselessness of their fancies, they clung to them strongly as do many people in our
contemporary society who treat Jesus, Muĥammad or some other entities in that way. They
were willing to cooperate with the Prophet if he accepted their presumed intermediaries as
legitimate entities. The Prophet was taught to respond as in the next verse.

56
Say: “I am forbidden to worship those whom you call upon besides Allaah.”
Say: “I cannot follow your whims because if I did, I would be right then
straying away from the Islamic path and would not anymore be of those who
are rightly guided.”

The greatest proof in favour of Towĥeed is the word of Allaah Himself. Were there any
intermediaries, assistants or partners between Allaah and people, He himself would have told
us about them. Instead, He completely denies their existence. Thus, not only did those people
not have any proof in favour of their fancies, but the Prophet also had a clear proof from the
revelations of Allaah, the Qur-aan. When the pagans of Makkah could not defend their stance,
they would challenge the Prophet to bring upon the punishment from Allaah as if the decision
of the punishment rested with him. The next response pertains to this challenge.

57
Say: “I take my stand on a clear proof from my Lord, while you have
rejected it. The punishment of Allaah that you would see hastened, is not in my
power. The decision rests with none but Allaah. He relates the truth and He is
the best of deciders.” 58 Say: “If what you would see hastened were in my
power, the matter between you and me would have certainly been already
decided; however, Allaah knows best about dealing with the wrong-doers.”

This response reflects the truth about the majesty of Allaah whose decision is not influenced by
any of His creations. Whether it is about bestowing mercy and salvation or it is about
punishing people for their incursions, Allaah‟s decision is according to His own plans and
wisdom, not according to the desires of any one else, not even His own Messenger. The
Messenger has to go through tough times at the hands of the rejecters, but He does not punish
the perpetrators immediately. He handles the wrongdoers at the appropriate time according to
His Sunnah that has been described earlier. The Prophet‟s job is to continue his mission despite
all the difficulties; while the opponents should not feel immune to the consequences of their
crimes against the Messenger, because Allaah SWT is watching what they are doing and will
take care of them in due course. The wrongdoers should be worried more about what they are
going to face in the hereafter than what is going to happen to them in this world. The worldly
punishment of Allaah is limited to cutting short their stay on the earth by causing them to die
earlier than their natural death; however, they will be facing extremely painful punishment in
the hereafter forever. To make a fair and just decision in the hereafter, Allaah has made special
arrangements to precisely record all details of human thoughts and actions. Thus they should
remember that their behaviour and performance is being closely watched and recorded. The
next few verses mention these arrangements and also describe Allaah‟s power, authority and
majesty over all of the affairs of the world.

59
He holds the keys to the Unseen -- none knows them except Him. He knows
whatever there is on the land and in the sea. Not a leaf falls but He knows it.
And there is not a grain in the darkness (or depths) of the earth, nor anything
wet or dry, but is inscribed in a clear record. 60 It is He Who takes your souls at
nighti and knows what you did during the day. Then He raises you up the next
day that the appointed determined termii may be completed. Then to Him will
be your return, then He will inform you of what you used to do. 61 He has
complete authority over His slaves and appoints watchersiii over you until when
death comes to one of you, Our angels receive him (his soul) completely, and
they never fail in their duty. 62 Then, all the souls are brought back to Allaah,
their real Master, now surely judgment belongs to Him and He is the swiftest
Reckoner.

Human beings can understand only the things that they experience in their life. They cannot
comprehend anything that they have never experienced. Thus, it is very difficult for them to
imagine their being raised on the Day of Judgment. To help people understand it, Allaah SWT
has made arrangements for us to experience a sort of death and resurrection every day when we
sleep and get up after the sleep to continue our normal life.

Even for Towĥeed, Allaah has put its proof right into our nature that people experience
sometime in their life. When a calamity strikes, everyone innately and automatically calls upon
Allaah for help. However, when the tough time has passed, people forget about it and fall back
to their idolatrous behaviour.

i
When you sleep
ii
One‟s natural age as determined by one‟s DNA.
iii
Angels who precisely record every thought, word, move and action of the person under their watch.
63
Say: “Who is it that rescues you from the perils in the darknesses of the land
and the sea, Whom you call upon imploring humbly and secretly, and
pledging, “If He rescues us from this, we will definitely be so grateful.” 64 Say:
“It is Allaah who rescues you from this and from every distress, yet you
ascribe partners to Him.” 65 Say: “He has the power to send punishment upon
you from above you or from beneath your feet, or to bewilder you splitting into
factions and make you taste the tyranny of one of another.” See how diversely
We explain Our signs so that they may understand. 66 Even then your people
reject it, although it is the Truth. Tell them, “I am not responsible for you. 67
For every prophecy, there is a determined time, and soon shall you know it.”

In addition to punishing people through natural disasters, Allaah SWT can let people lose their
senses and divide themselves in to “us” and “them” and into “with us” and “against us” that
terrorize one another. The mass destruction and bloodshed being inflicted by powerful nations
of the world is an example of what is being described here. The only way to establish peace in
the world is educating people about the Islamic lifestyle of submission to Allaah alone and
implementing Islam as a complete system of life. Until the majority of people on earth,
Muslims and non-Muslims alike, come to Islam and adopt it as a complete way of life in every
aspect of their lives, the strife will continue. Only Islam will bring Allaah‟s mercy to people of
the globe and let them enjoy the justice and excellence that Islam teaches to people.

The role of the Messenger (and sincere Muslims for that matter) is not to force people to accept
Islam but to present the message in a variety of ways as revealed to him so that people have the
full opportunity to realize the truth of the message and to make up their minds independently of
what they want to do. As for the punishment of Allaah or the accountability in the hereafter,
each will happen according to Allaah‟s plan at its predetermined time, the reality of which they
will find it out soon.

Some people do not pay heed to the message regardless of how effectively it is delivered, how
convincingly the facts are presented and how precisely their questions are answered. Instead of
paying attention to what is presented to them, they mock, ridicule and cavil, playing on the
words. The next three verses advise the Prophet and the Muslims on how to deal with such
people.
68
And when you come across those who are playing on the words of Our
revelations sardonically and cavillingly, withdraw from them until they turn to
a different topic; and if the Shayşaan makes you forget, then after realization,
do not sit with the unjust people. 69 On the account of cavillers, no
responsibility falls on those endowed with Taqwa, except to appropriately
advise them that haply they also attain Taqwa.

The advice is that a believer must not remain at a place where people are cavilling and making
fun of the revelations of Allaah. It is essential that he stays away from such an environment for
two reasons: Firstly, preaching to people in that frame of mind is a waste of time because they
cannot listen to reason when they have such a mindset. Any preaching will result into senseless
arguments that will harden the opponents in their opposition and frustrate the believer
unnecessarily. Secondly, the love of the truth of Allaah‟s word and its respect will hurt a
believer emotionally; and such hurt may cause him to react inappropriately which he is not
allowed to do. On the other hand, only a hypocrite will keep quiet without being hurt or
distraught when Allaah‟s words are openly disrespected, nastily caviled and sardonically
mocked. Thus, a believer can neither react emotionally nor keep quiet. Hence, the best thing is
to leave such a venue.

Yes, Muslims still have a responsibility to deliver the message to such disbelievers so that any
of them who still have some goodness in their hearts are not deprived of the opportunity to
discover the truth of Islam; but the believers are not accountable for them if they do not listen.
Thus the believers should give the message when the disbelievers seem to be in a better mood
to listen. As soon as they start their games, they should be left alone without getting into
arguments. It is not necessary for the believers to respond to every malicious attack or
senseless objection raised by the opponents of Islam. Their job is to deliver the message in the
most reasonable manner using the best possible approach in the circumstances without getting
into arguments. Instead of arguing with such people, the believers should focus their time and
energy on helping those who are open to learn and improve.

The believers also must not hang out or socialize with such people because that will develop
hypocrisy in them. Being around people who mock the Revelations of Allaah and tolerating
such behaviour will desensitize a believer to the disrespect and attack on the words of Allaah.
In verse 140 of Soorah Nisaa, that was mentioned as a clear sign of hypocrisy.

70
Avoid socializing with those who use their religion for play and fun, and
whom the worldly life has deluded. But continue to advise them by means of
the Qur-aan lest a person be delivered to ruin for what he has earned, when he
will have no patron or intercessor except Allaah and all the ransom he offers
will not be accepted from him. They are those who will be delivered to ruin for
what they earned; they will have boiling water for drink and a most grievous
punishment because they persisted in disbelieving.

This is a very strong warning to those who subject Allaah‟s religion, Islam, to wordplay, fun
and jokes. They have been clearly told the kind of punishment that awaits them. Many of them
oppose Islam because of their dedication to entities other than Allaah. They are being told that
none of those entities will be there to intercede on their behalf or to save them. Even the wealth
and power they enjoy in this world will not be there to be of any avail. When the reality will
become clear to them, they will be willing to sacrifice everything and everyone – even their
loved ones, their children, spouses, parents, friends – everyone to save themselves from the
punishment, but nothing will work.

They opposed and persecuted Muslims to force them back into worshipping and praying to
entities other than Allaah. Through the next three verses, the Prophet and the Muslims have
been taught how to categorically announce that whatever the opponents do, the Muslims
cannot be misled back to the misguidance.

71
Say: “Shall we invoke others, besides Allaah, that can do us neither good nor
harm, and thus turn on our heels after Allaah has guided us, like one whom the
devils have enticed to wander bewildered through the desert, while his friends
are calling him to guidance, saying, „come to us‟? Say: “Indeed, Allaah's
guidance is the only true guidance; and we have been commanded to submit
ourselves to the Lord of the universe, 72 to establish Ŝalaah and to maintain His
Taqwa; and He it is to Whom you shall be gathered. 73 And He it is Who has
really created the heavens and the earth with a purpose, and the day He
commands „Be‟, their end shall instantly happen. His word is the truth, and His
will be the kingdom on the day when the trumpet shall be sounded; the Knower
of the invisible and the visible; and He is the Wise, the Aware.”

The word used for indicating that the universe has been really created by Allaah SWT with a
purpose is “Haqq” which literally means “truth”. It has been used to signify that not only is it
fact that this whole universe and everything in it is the creation of Allaah SWT but also that its
creation was for a specific purpose. It is a temporary universe where people are being tested for
their behaviour. It will be destroyed as per Allaah‟s predetermined plan and a new universe
with new laws of nature will be created to exist forever. In that permanent universe, people will
live forever in pleasure or agony according to their behaviour in this temporary universe. That
is the truth about the reality of the universe.

The destruction of the universe will occur at the sounding of the “trumpet”. With intense,
terrible sound, the whole universe will collapse. The exact nature of that sound or trumpet is
beyond our understanding.

In response to all the sound reasoning the Qur-aan and the Prophet were presenting to the
Makkans to help them discover the truth of Islam, the only thing they had to say was that they
could not abandon the ways of their forefathers. They were proud of their culture, their
traditions and the practices of their forefathers for whom they had immense loyalty and
respect. This was not something unique with Makkans. In fact, the biggest hindrance in the
way of truth has always been the loyalty of people to their culture and traditions. It was
consistently the main obstacle in the way of every prophet including „Eesa (Jesus) peace be
upon him. Even in this era of so called enlightenment and liberalism, people‟s loyalty to
culture and traditions continues to be the greatest cause of strife, bigotry, prejudice,
discrimination and hate. The more a person is “proud of his traditions”, the more Islamophobic
he happens to be. When the Islamic truth is presented, the main source of resistance is the
loyalty to their existing culture and traditions regardless of how irrational and wrong those
happen to be. Even today, people refuse to listen to the Islamic message or to reflect on it
because of their cultural biases. Those people who have a chance to understand the message
are too hindered by their association with the existing cultural relationships to accept Islam.
Allaah SWT endowed people with reason and intellect so that people can make rational
decisions in matters of faith. Unfortunately, they let the Shayşaan cloud their judgment and
incite them to make their decisions on the basis of emotional loyalty to the traditions of their
forefathers or prevalent culture of their society. Allaah SWT was so kind to people that he
ingrained into their nature a process that when a person reaches puberty, he develops a natural
rebellion against the beliefs of his family. This was Allaah‟s way of helping people to de-
program themselves from what they were continually conditioned to since their birth. It allows
them to break the chains of traditions and to set them free so that they can make their own
personal decisions about faith rather than remaining caught in the web of family traditions. But
Shayşaan keeps them tied and entangled in those un-Islamic views in the name of pride in
one‟s traditions and culture.

The irony is that what people call their traditions and culture is an amalgam of ever changing
practices that has developed over time through people‟s own small innovations and heresies.
Most of the traditions and culture usually have very little to do with the original source to
which they are ascribed. In the case of Makkans, they thought that they were following the
faith and traditions of Ibraheem (Abraham) and Ismaa„eel (Ishmael). Nothing could have been
farther from the truth. Ibraheem and Ismaa„eel practised Islam but small changes, innovations,
and heresies of each successive generation gave it the form of paganism and polytheism
practised by Makkans. It was the same way through which the Islam practised by Moosa
(Moses) slowly became Judaism and that practised by „Eesa (Jesus) became Christianity.
Unfortunately, many Muslims have made the same mistake. Many views and practices found
among Muslims are subsequent changes, innovations and heresies similar to those adopted by
the Jews and Christians, as opposed to the Islam practised and taught by the Prophet ŝall-
Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam.
Allaah SWT has been very kind and merciful to us and has taken special care to protect Islam
in its original form so that those persons willing to follow the original Islam, as it was followed
by the Prophet and his companions, can always refer to the original sources and adopt it purely.
The next section of the verses provides Makkans with the true traditions of Ibraheem whom
they proudly claimed to follow. This section describes how Ibraheem took a rational approach
to faith when he reached adulthood instead of following the traditions of his family and
society. It narrates his thinking process in a very concise manner and shows how, through his
rational approach, he was able to discover the truth of Islam and reject idolatry, polytheism and
associating partners with Allaah. This is the tradition of Ibraheem they should proudly follow.
74
Remember when Ibraheem (Abraham) said to his father Aazar, “Do you take
idols for gods? I see you and your people in obvious error.” 75 Thus did We use
to show Ibraheem the nature of Our universal kingdom so that he reasons with
his people and he himself attains certitude in Towĥeedi. 76 When the night
covered him over, he saw a star and wondered, “This is my Lord?” But when it
set, he concluded, I do not like the setting ones.” 77 Then when he saw the moon
shining, he wondered, “This is my Lord?” But when it set, he exclaimed,
“Unless my Lord guide me, I would be one of the lost folk.” 78 Then when he
saw the sun shining, he wondered, “This is my Lord? This is the largest of all.”
But when it also set, he declared, “O my people! I am certainly staying clear of
what you equate with Allaah. Verily, I have turned my face, truly and
exclusively, towards Him Who originated the heavens and the earth, and I am
not of the polytheists.”

According to anthropological research, Ibraheem was born in a society where idols, stars, the
moon and the sun were worshipped. His own father was an idol maker and idolater priest.

The Qur-aan tells us Ibraheem was a thinking young man. When he reached adulthood and
went through the normal, natural questioning phase of life, he used to reflect on the nature of
things and signs of Allaah in the universe to evaluate the veracity of the beliefs of his family
and society. It did not make sense to him to believe in gods that people manufacture with their
own hands. Thus he challenged the notion of worshipping idols. He thought about the sun,
moon and stars and rejected the notion of worshipping them as well. He figured that all these
finite entities cannot be gods but only creations of the infinite God. Thus it is only the infinite
God who should be worshipped and obeyed, not His finite creations. Once he realized the truth
about Allaah SWT, he dedicated his life to His service and Allaah SWT appointed him as His
messenger. He called upon his father and his people to abandon idolatry and the worship of
heavenly bodies. They, instead of listening to his voice of reason, argued with him, opposed
him and persecuted him. The same story was being repeated once again. By inviting his people
to abandon false gods and submit to Allaah alone, Prophet Muĥammad was doing what
Ibraheem used to do; while, by opposing the mission of the prophet, the Makkans were doing
what the opponents of Ibraheem used to do. In other words, the Makkans were not following
the footsteps of Ibraheem – neither in using rational reasoning and reflection on the signs of
Allaah in the universe to arrive at the correct beliefs, nor in going against their society‟s

i
Believing that Allaah is the only One God, Master and Lord of the whole universe and everything in it,
that He is Unique in all His attributes, that only He should be worshipped and that He must be obeyed in
every aspect of one‟s life throughout one‟s life.
erroneous beliefs, nor in dedicating themselves to the propagation of Towĥeed. Rather they
were going totally against the ways of their patriarch.

The above is the simple, straightforward message of this set of verses. However, considering
the spread of some speculative stories about these verses, people also need to understand the
following points to avoid any confusion about this episode in the life of Ibraheem:

 The episode describes that Ibraheem saw a star, the moon and the sun and made his
comments. It does not mean that Ibraheem had never seen these things before. Here,
the seeing implies reflecting and pondering over their nature and their reality in order
to evaluate if these things are worthy of any reverence or devotion. Some people are
so caught up with this style of wording that they concoct a story claiming that
Ibraheem was brought up in a cave where he had no chance to see these things before.
It is not that he had not seen these heavenly bodies before, it is just that he is
reflecting on his observations to take a position vis-à-vis the views of the society.

 Ibraheem‟s comment “This is my Lord” also has caused much confusion in people‟s
minds. Once again, this is just a description of the reasoning process that a person
goes through. The society holds certain beliefs and the person is going through the
evaluation of each belief to determine if it makes sense or not. He takes each
hypothesis one by one and refutes them to reach the correct conclusion. During this
process, the description of the hypothesis “this is my Lord” should not be interpreted
as his personal view and hence commitment of Shirk. Rather the person is going
through a natural process of reasoning to formulate his own view and adopt his own
personal, sensible decision.

This adoption of faith through personal reasoning is so important that every Muslim
should go through it and adopt Islam as their personal faith arrived at them by their
own personal reflection.

 The use of the word “Qaala” (He said) should not cause confusion about what
occurred. It does not always mean saying something aloud. It is also used for the
mental dialogue that takes place in a person‟s mind. For example, when Yoosuf
(Joseph) said to himself in his own mind about his brothers “You are in an evil
condition” (verse 77 of Yoosuf), the same word “Qaala” was used to describe it.
Similarly, the communications from shayşaan to people (satanic ideas) are also
described as such (verse 48 of Al-Anfaal and verse 16 of Al-Ĥashr).

 Some people think that this episode occurred after Allaah had appointed Ibraheem his
messenger. They assume that he repeated these statements loudly in front of people to
make them think about the rationale of his beliefs. If it is assumed that it occurred
during the prophetic mission of Ibraheem, then the following serious questions arise:

Firstly, Ibraheem, as a prophet of Allaah, could not have genuinely called the
star, the moon and the sun his gods; did he then utter these statements
deceptively? Where is the evidence of his doing so? How does someone
know his intent? Is it mentioned anywhere in the Qur-aan? Did the Prophet
 tell anyone about the intent of prophet Ibraheem? If not, on what basis it is
being speculated?

Secondly, this speculation that he pretended to believe in these entities to

convince people otherwise is not allowed by the internal context of this
section of verses. The context of the episode is: Allaah SWT mentions that
Ibraheem talked to his father stating that worshipping idols does not make
sense. At this time, he does not refer to any special knowledge he has
received from Allaah. He is challenging him on the basis of his common
sense (I see you and your people clearly in error) as an intelligent young
mani (verse 74). At the mention of this questioning by Ibraheem, Allaah
SWT explains that Ibraheem was able to challenge the established views of
the society because he was a rational person who used to reflect on the signs
of Allaah in His universe. That is: Allaah used to show Ibraheem the nature
of His universal dominion so that he attains certitude (verse 75)ii. Allaah
SWT has clearly mentioned the purpose of this exercise to be his personal
certitude, not demonstration to people. The start of verse 75 with
“kadzaalika” meaning “Thus” or “In this manner” establishes commonality
of the thinking process between his rejection of idols as gods and his
rejection of heavenly bodies as gods. Then, verses 76 to 78 describe how his
reflection led him to Towĥeed and detail his thinking process through which
he rejected the worship of heavenly bodies. It is at this point that he declared
his aversion to the views of his society. His conclusion is then supported by
revealed knowledge from Allaah as he is appointed as a prophet. Then
Ibraheem declares his Towĥeed to people forcefully and vocally which
ensues arguments.

Nowhere is it implied in the context that until he declared his abhorrence to

shirk that there were people involved in his reasoning.

Thirdly, the greater context of the episode within the discussion taking place
also does not allow this speculation. The purpose of describing the episode is
to support the mission of the Prophet by bringing Makkans to open their
minds for Islam. So they are being told that they should follow the rational
approach of their patriarch instead of blindly following their society and that
they should adopt Towĥeed instead of Shirk. What is the occasion or purpose
of telling how, in doing his prophetic job, Ibraheem pretended something he
did not believe? Would not mentioning pretence be counterproductive in the
sense that they could assume that Prophet Muĥammad may also be
pretending to bring them in line with his thinking?

i
This should be contrasted with his subsequent dialogues as a prophet with his father and his people such
those in Aŝ-Ŝaafaat and Maryam. In Maryam verse 43, he specially refers to his prophetic knowledge,
instead of just giving his personal view as he has done here.
ii
Commentatros like Syed Maudoodi and Syed Amin Ahsan Islahi agree that the message of the verse 75
is that Ibraaheem used to reflect over the nature of things and signs of Allaah SWT and derive lessons
from the phenomenon of nature in a rational manner.
 Finally, it should be known that the messengers of Allaah do not make their
point by false pretence. Before prophethood, they go through the reasoning
process and come to the right conclusions with the help of the intelligence
given to them by Allaah SWT. Then Allaah SWT sends them knowledge of
certainly through revelation. Once they are appointed as the messengers, they
make points to people directly and clearly. Those who think that Ibraheem
pretended try to support their view from the episode of Ibraheem‟s breaking
idols and drawing the attention of people to the biggest idol. But that is not a
valid case in point. There was no false pretence or deception involved in that
episode and it will be discussed in detail at its own occasion.

The fact is that it was merely Ibraheem‟s thought process that has been
described in words as the process was taking place in his mind to eliminate
all false deities one by one through reasoning until he was certain that only
the infinite Creator is worthy of worship, not any of His finite creations.
Then he challenged his people on their manifestly wrong views and invited
them to believe in Towĥeed. This started a huge debate in the society and his
people responded aggressively and violently.

The people who believe in false gods usually assume that the person who opposes the worship
or devotion to those false deities will incur their wrath and suffer greatly as a result. The next
few verses explain how Ibraheem responded to their false notions and how he was free from
those fears because of his firm belief and reliance on Allaah SWT.

80
His people disputed with him. He said, “Are you arguing with me
concerning Allaah, while He has guided me? I do not fear the beings that you
associate with Him, as no harm can happen unless my Lord wills something;
my Lord encompasses all things in His knowledge. Will you not then be
admonished? 81 How should I fear what you associate with Allaah, while you
do not fear that you associate partners with Allaah for which He has not given
you any authority? Which of us two parties merits peace and freedom from
fear, if you know? 82 Those who believe and do not pollute their faith with
Shirki, it is they who have peace of mind and are rightly guided.”

The word used in the last verse for Shirk is “Zhulm” meaning injustice or wrong-doing. The
Qur-aan uses this word to denote Shirk as well as to describe sinful behaviour. Shirk is
injustice in the matter of faith: Being the Creator, it is solely Allaah‟s right to be acknowledged
as such, believed in, worshipped and obeyed as the only Lord and God, instead of being
associated with false partners who had no hand in the creation. Sinful behaviour is injustice in
actions: Sins are acts of disobedience to Allaah SWT that expose the sinner to Allaah‟s
punishment. Thus the sinner does injustice to himself by bringing upon himself the punishment
of Allaah. Here the context indicates that the injustice refers to the faith, not the actions, and
injustice in the matters of faith is Shirk.

i
Treating anyone or anything as Allaah‟s equal, partner in godhead; or believing anyone or anything
other than Allaah to have any divine attribute or to be worthy of worship or devotion.
It should be noted that the crime of Ibraheem‟s people was not that they did not believe in
Allaah. The problem was that they associated partners with Allaah SWT. They thought Allaah
SWT was too great to be dealt with directly; so, they must show reverence and devotion to the
intermediary entities who would then help them get what they wanted from Allaah. This kind
of belief is in fact totally contrary to what Allaah SWT has always revealed about Himself, and
thus, has no sanction, authority or validation from Allaah. This is actually a lack of faith in
Allaah‟s power and ability to deal with all his creations directly, and is tantamount to ascribing
a human incapability to Allaah. Thus anyone who believes that people need a “Waseelah” or
an “intermediary” to call upon, to pray or to please Allaah SWT is committing Shirk like
Ibraheem‟s people did.

The rational reasoning through which Ibraheem approached the matters of faith was also the
way he tried to bring his father and his people to their senses.

83
This is the rational evidence about Us that We gave to Ibraheem against his
people. We raise in rank whom We please; surely your Lord is Wise, Knowing.

It was because of his dedication to Towĥeed that he was granted the leadership over the people
of the world. So much so that he is respected as patriarch of the Jews, the Christians, the Arab
pagans and the Muslims alike. Thus Towĥeed and Islam were the heritage and tradition of
Ibraheem, his forefather Nooĥ and all of his descendent prophets. They all enjoyed respect and
status because of Islamic guidance.

84
We bestowed Isĥaq (Isaac) and Ya„qoob (Jacob) upon him; each of them We
guided as We guided Nooĥ (Noah) earlier and as We guided Dawood (David),
Sulaimaan (Solomon), Ayyoob (Job), Yoosuf (Joseph), Moosa (Moses) and
Haaroon (Aaron) from Ibraheem‟s descendants. Thus we reward those who
excel. 85 And Zakariyyaa (Zachariah), Yaĥya (John), „Eesa (Jesus) and Ilyaas
(Elias), all in the ranks of the righteous. 86 And Ismaa„eel (Ishmael), Alyasa‟
(Elisha), Yoonus (Jonah) and Looş (Lot), each We exalted over people of the
world. 87 And from among their fathers, their descendants and their brethren,
We also exalted, and We chose them and guided them to the right path. 88 This
is Allah's guidance, He guides thereby whom He wills from His slaves. But
had they practiced Shirk, all that they did would have become useless.

Now if people want to be loyal to the traditions of their forefathers, they should follow all of
these prophets who were their forefathers. They all practised Towĥeed and followed the
guidance of Allaah and undertook the same mission that the Prophet has undertaken. None of
them practised Shirk. Had they done so, they would have not enjoyed any of the status that
Allaah had given them. Instead, they would have been losers.
89
These are they to whom We gave the Book, and wisdom, and prophethood.
Now if these contemporary descendents of those prophetsi reject this heritage
of guidance, then We have entrusted it to a peopleii who are not disbelievers in
it.

The prophets were given three things: The Book, which is revealed to them to explain the
Islamic lifestyle and its objectives; the wisdom, which is the ability to understand the teachings
of the Book and to wisely apply them to the individual affairs and collective realities of life so
that all blessings of Islam are effectively realized and its objectives are efficiently achieved;
and the prophethood, which is a responsibility to guide, educate and coach people in the Book
and wisdom.

These teachings of the Book and wisdom are the real heritage, traditions and culture of the
prophets and which, as their descendents, the people should proudly practice, promote and
preserve. But this precious heritage is entrusted only to those who sincerely and voluntarily
dedicate themselves to practice and promote this heritage. Those noble souls have joined the
Prophet in his mission and more of them continue to join. As for those who reject it, they are
depriving themselves of this guidance at their own peril.

90
O Muĥammad! Those were they whom Allaah guided, therefore follow their
guidance. Say: “I do not ask you for any reward for it; it is nothing but a
reminder to the people of the world.”

The Islamic message that the Qur-aan gives is not an innovation. It is in fact a reminder of
what is built into our nature if we take a rational approach to faith and it is also a reminder of
the same message that has consistently been given by all prophets and messengers. In giving
this message, the Prophet has no axe to grind. If they accept the message, they will benefit
from it. There is no material gain to the Prophet. If they do not, it does not make any difference
to him and he will be fully rewarded for his work by Allaah SWT in the hereafter.

Now that all the objections of Makkans have been answered and they have been shown the
proper attitude they should adopt in the footsteps of Ibraheem and other prophets, the next two
verses comment on the objection that was taught to the Quraish by the Jews. The Jews were
famous in Arabia for their religiosity and for believing in the previous prophets and books. To
get their perspective on Prophet Muĥammad‟s claim of receiving the revelations of Allaah
SWT literally in Allaah‟s words, the Quraish used to refer to the Jews. The Jews themselves
were against the Prophet, though previously they were awaiting his advent. But they were
expecting the last prophet to come from the Israelites, not from Ishmaelites (Arabs). Thus,
when he came from Arabs, against their expectations, they turned against him violating all
their religious teachings and covenants they had made to believe in, follow and support the last
prophet. However, they could not say that openly to Arabs. Had they disclosed that they were

i
The Prophet‟s Makkan opponents who claim to follow their forefathers but in reality are not following
their rightly guided forefathers.
ii
The Muslims who have earnestly chosen to believe in the Prophet.
opposing Muĥammad just because he was an Arab, not an Israelite, it could have triggered
nationalistic or tribal pride among the Arabs to follow Muĥammad. So despite knowing that
Allaah does reveal books to His prophets, they told Makkans that Muĥammad‟s claim is false
because Allaah does not send down His Book to any human being.

91
They, the Jews, did not appraise Allaah with His due appraisal when they
said, “Allaah has never sent down any revelation to any man.” Ask them O
Muĥammad, “Who then sent down the Book which Moosa (Moses) brought, a
light and guidance for people, which youi fragment onto various parchments,
making some parts public but hiding many of them, and through which you
were taught that which neither you yourselves knew nor your fathers?” Say,
“Allaah sent it.” Then leave them sporting with their trifling and cavilling.

The Qur-aan comments on the Jewish response to the Arab question in two ways: Firstly, such
a statement coming from people who claim to believe in Allaah indicated a serious problem
with their beliefs and their perceptions about Allaah, implying that:

 Allaah SWT does not have the power, resources or means to send down His guidance
in His own words to a human being;
 While Allaah SWT has taken care of all physical means to sustain human life, He has
neglected providing him guidance to live in an optimal, balanced way. In other words,
He gave human beings freedom and then let them create chaos and unrest in the world
by misusing or experimenting with their freedom, instead of guiding them on how to
use their freedom to establish justice and peace in the world.

The first indicates a serious lack of understanding and faith in the power and authority of
Allaah SWT and the second indicates that lack in His being Wise, Just, and a Good Planner.

Secondly, the statement is a clear lie considering that they already believed in the books
revealed to the previous prophets. By deliberately denying an obvious fact, they had added
another extremely serious crime to their dossier of the crimes against Allaah that they were
already committing. The book that was given to them to be the light to show them the way and
to guide them in all affairs of their lives was one wholesome package of guidance to be
practiced and propagated completely as one system of life. However, they practiced only some
of its parts and only those parts were publicly recited and shared openly with all. But most of
its teachings were ignored, were never talked about, and were effectively and even deliberately
concealed by their scholars from public knowledge and discourse. Thus they tore the book into
segments and broke the system of life given therein into parts, making it totally ineffective in
attaining the objectives it was supposed to achieve. This crime of practicing (in other words
truly believing) in a part of the book and ignoring (which is tantamount to disbelieving) in the
rest was a very serious crime in itself for which they were condemned and cursed.

Unfortunately, a vast majority of Muslims are currently committing the same crime of
practicing only a small part of the teachings of the Qur-aan while ignoring all the rest. In fact,

i
The Jews
many Muslims today do not even know or realize that many of the essential parts of Deen have
been abandoned and forgotten. That is why neither do we see the benefits of the blessing of
Islam nor do we see the help from Allaah. The benefits of Islam will not be realized and the
help of Allaah will not come unless we put the whole Islamic system into practice. Luckily, the
Qur-aan is fully preserved and every part is available in one volume for the sincere Muslims to
learn, reflect upon and discover what is being missed and must be brought back into practice.

Now that irrefutable evidence has been presented indicating that Allaah SWT does indeed send
down His books for the guidance of people, the next verse asserts the need, the status and the
role of the Qur-aan which also serves as evidence of this book being from Allaah SWT.
92
In the like manner, this is a Book that We have sent down, full of blessings,
a testament to the earlier prophesies, as a means to fulfill them and to warn the
people of the Metropolis and those around it. Those who believe in the
Hereafter believe in this Book, and they particularly take care of their Ŝalaah.
This verse makes the following points about the Qur-aan:

 It is full of blessings: Its teachings are such that if they are practised properly, they
will fill human society with its blessings in the form of balance, justice, peace,
excellence, love, care, grace, magnanimity, etc. It will transform human society into
its best and most beautiful form.

 It is not presenting something new but it is confirming the same Islamic message that
was presented by the prophets and messengers of the past, but lost by the people
through their neglect.

 It was foretold by the previous prophets and books and its revelation testifies to the
truth of those prophesies.

 It not only reminds of the Islamic duties to those people who had had the opportunity
to benefit from the teachings of the previous prophets and books (such as Israelites)
but also it educates a major branch of the progeny of Ibraheem (Ishmaelites) in the
Islamic teachings.

 The people are attracted to it not for any worldly motive but solely for the success in
the life in the Hereafter and for serving Allaah through Ŝalaah.

All these are solid grounds to indicate to any reasonable person that this Book can only be
from Allaah SWT.

After answering the Jewish statement, the address turns back to the Makkans. In the next two
verses they are being warned of their fate in the Hereafter if they continue to reject the Qur-aan
because of their pride and arrogance.
93
Who can be more wicked than one who invents a lie about Allaah, or claims,
“It has been revealed to me”, while nothing has been revealed to him, or brags,
“I can send down the like of what Allaah has sent down”? If you could only
see when the wicked shall be in their death throes and the angels shall stretch
forth their hands, saying, “Discharge your souls! Today shall you be
recompensed with the punishment of humiliation because you used to speak
against Allaah other than the truth and used to arrogantly disregard His verses.”
94
And Allaah will say, “Certainly you have come to Us individually as We
created you at first, and you have left behind you the things which We gave
you, and We do not see with you your intercessors about whom you assumed
that they were Our partners in respect to your affairs; certainly the links
between you have been cut off and what you used to fancy has disappeared.

To neutralize the influence of the Prophet‟s presentation of the Qur-aan on people‟s minds, the
Makkan leaders used to make baseless claims that they can bring about the same kind of verses
as Muĥammad does. Because of their false pride and arrogance, neither did they want to
submit to the Islamic teachings, nor did they want to let people feel that they lacked anything
that Muĥammad possessed. Hence they are being told how they will be facing humiliation if
they keep letting their pride come in the way of accepting the guidance of Islam.

Allaah SWT also tells them that all the wealth, equipment and armies that they have at their
disposal in this world will be left behind and they will be presented to Allaah in a situation that
they will be empty handed and will have no one to support them or intercede on their behalf.
Whoever they thought was their saviour will not be there to save them because such notions of
salvation are merely their fancies, not a reality.
The theme of the Soorah, as described in the introduction to the Soorah, has been to present the
signs of Allaah in the universe in a variety of ways, to encourage the audience to reflect on
those signs, and to help them use their common sense and a logical approach to arrive at a
rational belief in Towĥeed – the Infiniteness, Oneness and Uniqueness of Allaah, having no
partners in divinity -- as well as a rational belief in the life Hereafter and in the prophethood of
Muĥammad ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam. This theme continues in the next section. In
keeping with Ibraheem‟s way of taking the rational approach to faith, natural phenomena are
being presented for people to reflect upon them.

The section starts with the mention of Allaah‟s power and wisdom in creating all sorts of plants
and vegetation to fulfil our needs. If we look around and reflect, we will realize that Allaah
SWT has made arrangements to meet the vast majority of our needs through plants and
vegetation. They are natural factories which manufacture every kind of nutrition that we need –
protein, carbohydrates, oils, sugar, vitamins, minerals, etc. They manufacture the medicine to
cure us. They manufacture tastes – sweet, sour, bitter, bland, blended, etc. They manufacture
colour and fragrance. They manufacture the fibre for our clothing and wood for our use; and so
on and so forth. They not only manufacture the things we need, they clean our environment
while doing so, unlike man-made manufacturing facilities that pollute instead of cleaning.
They are all renewable resources. Every seed of a plant is a fully programmed, turn-key
manufacturing facility that starts working as soon as it is put in the ground and rain falls on it.
It manufactures all the goods, the nutrients, the tastes and the smells from the same dust and
moisture, extracting exactly what is needed and transforming it into what a plant is
programmed to manufacture. Despite all our advancements in science and technology, can
anyone build a manufacturing facility that will manufacture these nutrients and tastes and
smells directly from the dirt itself? These arrangements by Allaah for our sustenance are living
miracles and signs of Allaah and His creative resourcefulness and power. They are also an
indication of the love and care with which He made arrangements to fulfil our needs. Those
who wanted to see miracles before they would believe in Allaah should have reflected on these
miracles and signs spread around everyone everywhere.

As we have mentioned earlier in this series on teachings of the Qur-aan, everything that
happens through the normal operation of the laws of nature, Allaah SWT rightfully attributes it
to Himself as He is the Creator of the nature, its laws and their system of operation. We have
been able to discover the process through which a seed sprouts and grows as a plant. Thus,
when we talk about these things we discuss the existing process of how things are happening.
But when Allaah SWT talks about them, He does so from the perspective of His power,
wisdom and authority that made it happen and lets it continue to happen.
95
It is Allaah who splits and sprouts a grain-seed or a fruit-stone. He brings the
living from the dead and is the bringer of the dead from the living. Such is
Allaah; then to where are you being deluded?

“Bringing out living from dead and dead from living” can be very comprehensively applied to
many phenomena by people of knowledge in biological sciences. In the context here, it refers
to the lifecycle of vegetation. A lifeless seed or a stone that just has a program coded in its
DNA, when put in dead, but moist earth produces a living plant which in turn produces seeds
and then dies to become part of the dead earth again. Also, the lifeless foods that we eat
transform into living cells in our bodies while at the same time our living bodies continue to
shed dead cells and excrete dead matter. The point is that it is only Allaah SWT who has
created amazing systems to sustain human life. When no one else has any share in our creation
or creating these life-sustaining systems, why would any one else be considered Allaah‟s
partner in divinity. Or, why would anyone assume these intelligently designed systems to be
accidental in their origin?

In the next few verses, the reflection shifts from earth to the universe around the earth, giving
some simple examples of how those things have been made useful to help us live our lives on
earth.

96
He causes the dawn to break; and He has made the night for rest, and the sun
and the moon for calculating time. Such is the predetermined plan of the
Mighty, the Knowing. 97 And He is the One Who has placed the stars for you
that you may be guided thereby through the darkness of the land and the sea.
We have spelled out signs for people who know.

Had Allaah SWT not precisely predetermined their courses, distances and rotational and
revolving speeds, they would have not been useful for our purposes. The people with
knowledge and an open mind can easily see that the existence and placement of heavenly
bodies is not the result of an accident but are planned creations that have been assigned very
specific predetermined roles by a knowledgeable and powerful Creator.

The next verse invites people to reflect upon the human lifecycle in this temporary world and
draws our attention to the fact that it all started with the creation of the first human being that
has now grown into billions of people. People come into existence taking the shape as pre-
programmed in the DNA they inherit from their parents, utilizing the nutrients from this earth;
they have to stay on this earth during their life and on death their remains are deposited back to
the earth. Despite originating from the same first human being, going through the same birth
and growth process and being made of the same earthly elements, every one of the billions of
people is distinguishable from the other. Then, if nature is allowed to take its course and
human beings do not interfere in selecting the sex of their child, human population remains in a
healthy ratio of males and females. The Creator Who created this amazing system of life has
also created the system to raise them again. Reflecting on this lifecycle can open many doors
of understanding if people honestly seek to find the truth, instead of living through this
lifecycle like animals, without thinking and reflecting.

98
And He it is Who has produced you from a single being; everyone having a
habitation and a repository. We have spelled out signs for people who
understand. 99 And He it is Who sends down water from the sky; thus We
produce vegetation of all kinds therewith, then from it We produce: greenery
from which We produce grain layered in ears; pendent clusters of dates from
the blossom sheaths of the date-palm; and orchard of grapes, and olives, and
pomegranates – similar yet varied. Look at their fruit as it grows and observe
its ripening as it ripens. Verily there are signs in these things for people who
believe.

People observe the cycle of birth, growth, death and being raised again in the form of crops
and vegetation wherein the catalyst for their rebirth is the rain sent down by Allaah SWT. In
addition to clarifying the concept of raising the dead, the reflection on the vegetation cycle
leads people to many more lessons. It indicates the mercy and kindness of Allaah SWT Who
made our food so varied, so delicious and so delightful. He could have created just one food to
take care of all of our needs. Can you imagine eating the same thing multiple times a day,
everyday, all your life?i Thus, it is incumbent on us to be grateful to such a Gracious God and
worship and serve only Him. It also shows that everything in this world happens in a
systematic, predetermined fashion according to a system prescribed for it, going through
different stages of its lifecycle. Nothing is haphazard, nor can the order of the predetermined
process be changed or any stages be eliminated. The predetermined course indicates planning
and wisdom of the Creator behind it. The consistency among various systems and collaboration
among them that makes them work properly indicates that there is only one Creator. Different
systems have neither been designed by nor are they under the controls of different gods, as
some ignorant people tend to believe.

100
Yet they consider the Jinnsii as partners in Allaah‟s divinity, while He
created them (the jinns), and they falsely attribute to Him sons and daughters
without knowledge -- glorified and highly exalted is He above what they
ascribe to Him as partners in divinity. 101 The Originator of the heavens and the
earth! How can He have a child, when He has no wife? He created all things,
and He hath full knowledge of all things.

What people need to clearly understand is that the created and the Creator cannot be partners or
equals. In fact, they have nothing in common and there can be no comparison between the two:
the created are finite entities while the Creator is Infinite. The confusion occurs when people
forget this point and ignore the difference between finite and infinite. They start thinking about
Allaah in finite terms, relating to Him as if He is human and ascribing to Him human
attributes. Because of any of these reasons, different people start ascribing different kinds of
sons and daughters to Allaah SWT. What they forget is that having children is an attribute of
finite species who are born and who die, who need to continue their species through children.
For that purpose, a male and female of a species have to come together and the child they have
is of the same species as themselves. In contrast to this phenomenon, Allaah is Infinite, does
not have a beginning or end, and does not have a species. Rather, He is One and Unique and
there cannot be more than one infinite or more than one unique. Therefore, He cannot and He
does not have a wife, nor can He have a child. He does not beget, He only creates. But
whatever He would create would be His finite creation, could never be His child, could have

i
For drinking Allaah SWT created water, but we are not content with it and create so many different kind
of drinks harmful or useless ingredients such as sugars, colour and carbon dioxide.
ii
A creature that is also endowed with freedom of action but is invisible to human beings.
no comparison to Him and could not have anything in common with Him in terms of nature,
shape, form, likeness or substance.

102
That is Allaah, your Lord, there is no deity except Him, the Creator of
everything, therefore serve Him like slaves as He is the Caretaker over
everything. 103 No vision can perceive Him, but He grasps every look. He is the
Knower of subtleties, the Aware.

This verse describes Allaah‟s Infiniteness in a manner that everyone can comprehend. Being
Infinite, He is beyond the physical vision or perception of finite people. Human beings can
neither perceive Him nor understand His nature, shape, form or likeness. That is why we
should never say anything about Allaah except what He Himself has told us about Himself.
Similarly we should not use any similitude or examples for Him because to give an example or
similitude correctly, one needs to know the subject. As we do not know Him with our personal
knowledge, we should not devise examples for Him. We must remain confined to the attributes
and example He Himself describes in the Qur-aan. We should also remember that while our
eyesight cannot see Him, none of our looks are hidden from Him. He even knows our intention
behind our looking at anything.
104
Indeed there have come to you enlightenments from your Lord; thus anyone
who enlightens himself, does so for his own sake, while anyone who acts
blindly is blind to his own peril. And I am not a guardian over you.

After giving a series of points in the previous verses to help people think rationally about their
beliefs, this verse gives the concluding comment in that respect on behalf of Prophet
Muĥammad to inform the Makkans clearly that if they do not listen to the voice of reason, they
are hurting themselves. His job is to present the message as diligently as humanly possible. It
is not his job to ensure that people respond positively and save themselves from Allaah‟s
punishment. He is neither responsible nor accountable for them.

The next three verses give Allaah‟s comments that are directed to the Prophet but also
indirectly set the record straight for the Makkans.

105
Thus do We explain the signs in a variety of ways so that it serves as a
conclusive evidence, so that they acknowledge that you have taught diligently,
and so that We make it clear to people who know. 106 You continue to follow
what is revealed to you from your Lord; there is no god but He; and turn away
from the polytheists. 107 Had Allaah willed, they would not have attributed
partners in divinity to Allaah. We have not appointed you a guardian over
them, nor are you responsible for them.

The message is clear: Despite presenting the teachings in so many ways and despite the
Prophet‟s diligent efforts, if they still do not pay heed, then forget about them. They are a lost
cause. You are neither responsible nor accountable for them. Instead, concentrate your energies
on the people who are willing to listen and use their knowledge to understand the reality of the
religious matters. Do not let their rejection impact your personal dedication and your own
excellence in performance. Continue to live by the principles that you have been taught – you
as well as the noble souls who have accepted Islam on the basis of their knowledge and
rational understanding. Islamic guidance is a privilege which is not for those who do not
appreciate it. It is for those who voluntary and willingly accept it on the basis of their rational
understanding. Otherwise, Allaah would have pre-programmed all people to avoid idolatry and
to live as Muslims.

Because the instruction to Muslims was to forget about the polytheists without wasting further
energies on them, there was a possibility that Muslims annoyed with the polytheists‟ ignorant
behaviour could have shown their annoyance towards the polytheists and shown disrespect for
their false gods. The next verse explains that such a temptation must be resisted.

108
And do not insult those whom they invoke besides Allaah, lest they insult
Allaah out of spite in their ignorance. Thus have We made their deeds seem
attractive to every community. In the end, they will return to their Lord, and
He will tell them what they used to do.

It is human nature that people take their own views, beliefs, ideas, culture and traditions as
right and like it, even if they are in fact wrong. Therefore, any disrespect to other‟s views,
regardless of how ridiculous or outrageous they are, will have a totally negative effect. Such
disrespect will hurt them and become a barrier against any future possibility of their warming
up to the Islamic guidance, even if that possibility seems utterly unlikely or extremely remote.
Also, a Muslim may have a legitimate basis to make a disparaging comment about a false god
or idol, but in return the idolaters may make totally unfair, inappropriate and improper
insulting remarks about Allaah SWT, which may lead to further confrontation. Thus, Muslims
should be very cautious, avoiding any disparaging comments about non-Muslims‟ beliefs,
regardless of the level of their absurdity. Muslims should concentrate on giving the message of
Islam in the best possible rational and effective manner and leave it to Allaah to tell the non-
Muslims about the absurdity of their views and behaviour on the Day of Judgment.

The refutation of the legitimacy of blindly following the forefathers and the convincing
rational arguments presented by the Qur-aan for the legitimacy of the Prophet and his message
of Towĥeed, would make the opponents‟ position totally indefensible. To convince people that
their opposition is not for its own sake, they would swear profusely that if a convincing miracle
is shown to prove the prophethood of Muĥammad beyond doubt, they would instantly believe
in him. By doing this, they could undertake the propaganda that if Muĥammad were a true
messenger, he could have showed them the desired miracle and won us over. The fact is that if
a person refuses to accept sound rational arguments, no miracle can convince him. Every
miracle can be rejected for one excuse or the other. That is why the miracles of the previous
messengers failed to convince their opponents. Even curing the blind and raising the dead
could not convince the Jews that „Eesa (Jesus) was a true messenger. His miracles were
attributed to the devil by his opponents. It was because those opponents of „Eesa (Jesus) were
given to his opposition, no miracle could have changed their mindset, and none did. The same
was true for the Prophet‟s opponents. But some simple-minded Muslims did not understand
that their oaths were farcical and that the real reason for their opposition was their egos, pride
and insincerity. Otherwise, the truth of the Prophet‟s claim and teachings was well established
and clearly evident. Not understanding the opponents‟ psychology, those Muslims would
believe in their oaths and would want the Prophet to show the demanded miracles so that the
opponents would have no excuse to stay away from Islam. The next two verses address
Muslims in this respect.

109
They swear by Allaah with the strongest of their oaths that if a sign
(miracle) came to them they would most certainly believe in it. Say, “Only
Allaah has the signs.” But what will make you (Muslims) realize that even if
the desired sign came, they will not believe? 110 We will turn away their hearts
and their sightsi from believing just as they did not believe in it the first
instance, and We will leave them wandering about in their rebellion. 111 Even if
We had sent down to them the angels, even if the dead had spoken to them and
even if We had gathered together before them all the things that they desired,
they would not have believed unless Allaah would have so wished, but most of
them are ignorant.

The first thing that the Muslims have been reminded of is that the decision about when and
what miracle to show is not made by the prophet but by Allaah. So they should not
unnecessarily try to convince the Prophet about showing the miracles demanded by the
opponents. Secondly, any miracle will be useless until they change their mentality and open
their minds with a willingness to accept the truth. Without that change nothing will make a
difference. It is a simple matter of human nature that unless the motive, outlook, mindset or
paradigm changes, human reaction to a stimulus (which in this case is the evidence for the
legitimacy of the Prophet) will remain the same. Once again, Allaah SWT ascribes this
phenomenon of human nature to Himself.

Muslims need to understand that opposition to a messenger can never be eliminated. Some
opponents will never give up their animosity to the Messenger, regardless of what is done to
satisfy them. That is the way people are and that is what the Islamic struggle has always faced
and will continue to face always. Whenever a prophet, a messenger or a Muslim reformer
stands up and gives the true message of Islam and starts a movement to establish the complete
Islamic system of life, the human devils and Satans gang up against him. They deem Islam as a
threat to their power, their authority and their vested interests. Thus, regardless of how evident
the truth of Islam is, their vested interests and their pride will never let them accept it. The
interesting part is that they always hide their true motive and real reason of their opposition
behind the slogans such as protection of the society‟s “superb” values, freedom, democracy,
civilization and standard of living. In addition, protection of a society‟s “rich” heritage, culture,
traditions, ways of forefathers, legacies of saints and righteous predecessors, noble symbols of
piety, etc. are all used to hinder the Islamic movement and Islamic work. Depending upon the
background of the devils, whether they are religious or political authorities, they use the
slogans that suit their profile.

i
“Hearts and sights” refers to their mindset and their attitude.
112
Thus have We set against every prophet enemies, human and jinn devils,
who inspire each other with charming, seductive talks by way of deception.
But had your Lord so willed, they would not have done so; therefore ignore
them and the lies they invent 113 so that the hearts of those who do not believe
in the Hereafter may incline thereto, that they may take pleasure therein, and
that they may earn the evils they are going to earn.

The evil behaviour of opponents could have been eliminated had Allaah SWT pre-programmed
human beings and Jinns just as He had pre-programmed all other of His creations. But because
he wanted to give people freedom of action, their evil behaviour has to be tolerated in this
temporary world. Thus, the prophet and the workers of the Islamic movement have to put up
with their opposition; however, they should spend their energies efficiently and effectively
without spending too much time responding to the opponents attacks. The opponents should be
ignored and the time, energies and resources should be spent where they are going to be most
effective in achieving the objectives of Deen.

This freedom that Allaah has bestowed on people in this temporary world gives people the
opportunity to prove themselves: On the one hand, it gives an opportunity to the believers to
prove their mantle by being steadfast in following the Messenger, attaining the objectives of
Deen and ensuring their success in the Hereafter; while on the other hand, it allows those who
want to maximize the pleasures of this world, without worrying about the Hereafter, to amass
whatever they want to and to follow the devils instead of the Messenger. It is on the basis of
this record of everyone‟s achievements and loyalties that their eternal life in the Hereafter will
be decided.

This is the nature of the Islamic struggle vis-à-vis the opposition of its enemies that Islamic
workers must always keep in their minds while making suggestions to the leaders of the
Islamic movement and while chalking out the action plans of their work. Thus, the Prophet
ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam is being taught to addresses Muslims as such:

114
Shall I then seek a judge other than Allaah, while it is He Who has sent
down the Detailed Book to you? Those to whom We had given the Book know
that it has been sent down with truth by your Lord, therefore you should not be
of the doubters. 115 And the word of your Lord has been accomplished truly
and justly; there is none who can change His words, and He is the Hearing, the
Knowing.

The message is that when Allaah‟s decision is that the Islamic movement must succeed
through a natural process of hard missionary work of the Islamic workers against fierce
opposition, without changing their hearts through super-natural intervention from Allaah SWT,
should the Prophet find an authority other than Allaah who can make the desired miracles
happen to settle the matters between the Prophet and the opponents? The message, the
objectives and the methodology of the Islamic mission – all have been detailed in the book.
Even the stories of the previous prophets and messengers as recorded in the previous books
and known to the believers in those books indicate the same objectives and methodology have
been consistently the way of every Islamic movement of the past. Thus, the believers in the
Islamic mission must focus on their slow, laborious and constructive work of changing the
hearts and minds of people one person at a time, instead of expecting miracles to happen or
instead of being confused by the attacks and demands of the opponents of the Islamic
movement.

This struggle between those who want to establish the complete Islamic system of justice,
peace and excellence in this world and those who want to establish lifestyle systems built upon
satanic ideas is a natural struggle that started with the resistance and objections of Shayşaan
(Satan) against Adam. Shayşaan wanted respite until the end of the world to mislead people,
and Allaah promised him the respite. To help people avoid Shayşaan‟s misguidance, Allaah
promised to provide them guidance through the prophets and messengers. Allaah SWT has
fulfilled both of His promises and let the struggle between the two take its course. It is also a
requirement of justice that Allaah SWT let the human devils use their freedom and do
whatever evil they want to do. This human freedom without divine intervention to curb the
freedom was the plan of Allaah SWT and this plan cannot be changed by anyone or for
anyone. Muslims must succeed in the struggle by doing better and working harder than the
devils. And Allaah knows and hears what each side is doing and will recompense them
appropriately on the Day of Judgment.

It must be remembered that the difference between Muslims and pagans was not merely about
some metaphysical views about God, some superficial beliefs or some matters of rituals. The
concepts of Towĥeedi and Shirkii are far more comprehensive and profound than these things.
These concepts are as applicable to the right to legislate, to promulgate laws, to declare what is
lawful and what is unlawful, to designate what is allowed and what is not allowed and to
determine what kind of lifestyle people should adopt and what kind of lifestyle they should
avoid, as much as they are applicable to metaphysical views, religious beliefs and acts of
devotion. According to the Islamic concept of Towĥeed, not only must all acts of worship,
devotion, rituals, supplications, prayers, etc. exclusively be performed for Allaah SWT but also
that He has the exclusive right as the Creator to pronounce and promulgate laws and
regulations about any aspect of human life and to determine the system and way of life for
people. Any human rules and regulations must be formed only within the limits allowed by
Allaah SWT. If any human laws, regulations, customs or traditions are given preference over
or afforded an equal importance to Allaah‟s injunctions or if the limits prescribed by Allaah
SWT are ignored in favour of any of human injunctions, it is regarded as Shirk or polytheism.
One of the reasons for Makkan refusal to accept Islam was that the Makkans did not want to
give up their customs and traditions or to surrender to Allaah‟s authority over their lifestyle or
over their societal system and set up.

The fact is that it is to the benefit of humans themselves that people follow the injunctions and
system of life given by Allaah SWT because it is based on Allaah‟s absolute and perfect
knowledge. As the planner and Creator and He knows exactly how human society can be at its
best, working optimally to enjoy the benefits of justice, peace and excellence. Any human

i
Oneness and uniqueness of Allaah
ii
Equating anything or anyone with Allaah or considering anything or anyone else to be a partner with
Him in any respect.
laws, regulations and lifestyle paradigms are based on mere human assumptions, speculations,
guesswork. Even the so-called expert knowledge is incomplete and imperfect. That is why a
theory or an idea presented today is changed, contradicted and overruled some time later.
When human beings do not rely on Allaah‟s knowledge, they are relying on their own trial and
error methods through which they try to find which of their assumptions and guesses are valid
and which need to be revised. If people follow Islam, the system of life based on Allaah‟s
knowledge, they can adopt the best practices and establish the best human society without
making all the errors and facing problems that are inherent in guesswork and the trial and error
method. The next two verses allude to these points.
116
And if you obey most of those on earth, they will lead you astray from
Allaah's path; they follow only assumption and they merely speculate. 117
Indeed, your Lord is most knowing of who strays from His way, and He is
most knowing of the rightly guided.

Thus, people should understand that whatever the majority of the people do in this world is not
necessarily right or valid. The criterion for right and wrong and the guideline for making the
decisions in life is not what the most people are doing, but what Allaah wants us to do. A
Muslim must follow Allaah‟s commands even if he is alone in doing so and even if the whole
society is violating it.

A real test of a Muslim‟s faith is in the situations where a society disapproves certain
behaviour while Allaah SWT allows it. If a Muslim avoids that behaviour considering the
sensitivity of the society, he has committed Shirk. An example of this attitude is given in the
next verse. Pagan Arabs, as mentioned earlier, used to avoid eating certain animals because
they were sanctified by their idolatrous customs. Allaah SWT declared that all those practices
are baseless and that if a species of animals is allowed for food by Allaah SWT and it is
slaughtered properly with the pronouncement of Allaah‟s name, it should be eaten without any
compunction and without any regard to the practices of the society. The reaction against such
pronouncements from the disbelievers was very strong. But Allaah SWT regarded it as a test of
faith for Muslims to violate the society‟s customs and to slaughter such animals with the
pronouncement of Allaah‟s name and eating it.
118
So eat of that meat on which Allaah's name has been pronounced, if you are
believers in His revelations. 119 And what basis do you have not to eat of the
meat on which Allaah‟s name has been pronounced, when He has explained to
you in detail what is forbidden to you, unless you are compelled thereto? Many
people do mislead others on the basis of their own wishes without having any
knowledge. Your Lord is indeed most knowing of the transgressors.

Muslims nowadays who avoid valid Islamic practices for the fear of the society or for similar
expediencies should take heed. If avoidance of something permitted by Allaah is not because
of some medical or personal reasons, but is because of the perceptions of the society, it will be
considered lack of faith and even hypocrisy. A case in point is about the refusal or dislike
towards beef practiced by those Muslims who were raised in India or surrounding areas.
When the wishes of the society are respected despite the lack of support for such practices
from Allaah and His Messenger, such practise is considered Bid‟ah and sincere Muslims must
avoid it to keep Islam pure of such invented practices.

Many Muslims think that if their intention is good and they really do not mean to disobey
Allaah SWT or to practice any Bid‟ah or any other custom of the society, but they just go
along with the people for Ĥikmah (tact and wisdom), there is nothing wrong with it. The truth
is that when practising Muslims go along with the society and continue to participate in
practices not sanctioned by Allaah SWT, they are reinforcing that practice despite their good
intentions. To stop sinful activities or practices unsupported by Islamic teachings, Muslims
must abide both their form and their substances. Not only should the intentions, attitudes,
outlook, paradigms and thoughts of people change but also, the apparent, physical or temporal
manifestations of those practices should be avoided and shunned. Attacking it and abandoning
it from both perspectives is a must; otherwise those practices cannot be changed in the society.
Even if people understand it to be bad, such understanding will be temporary and very soon the
practice will bounce back and remain part of the culture of people. Thus, the next verse
commands Muslims to abandon a vice from both perspectives. If either of the perspective is
not abandoned, the punishment for the sin cannot be avoided.

120
And abandon what is visible manifestation of sin and what is invisible
thereof; surely they who earn sin shall be recompensed for what they used to
commit.

The comment in the previous verse was to stop people from having any reservations in eating
the meat of animals that Allaah has allowed for food. The next verse reiterates that an animal
that is allowed for food must be slaughtered with pronouncement of Allaah‟s name. The
requirement is not only to eat the right animal, but the right animal slaughtered in the right
manner by pronouncing Allaah‟s name. Thus people neither have the right to exclude what
Allaah has included in Ĥalaal, nor do they have right to eat it without the pronouncement of
Allaah‟s name.

121
Eat not of the meat on which Allaah's name has not been pronounced; and
that is most surely a grave disobedience. The devils (Shayaaşeen) most surely
inspire their adherents to argue with you; but if you obey them, you shall most
surely be polytheists.

The Makkan used to argue with Muslims about the need to pronounce Allaah‟s name while
slaughtering a permissible animal. All kinds of arguments were brought against such a need
just as it is done in today‟s society. The Qur-aan clearly indicates that source of all these
arguments are devils and Shayaaşeeni. Instead of listening to any of those arguments, Muslims
must be strict in following the command of Allaah to recite His name while slaughtering an
animal for food. If it is not slaughtered in that manner, that meat must not be eaten. If someone
listens to the arguments presented against pronouncing Allaah‟s name and eats meat from the

i
Plural of Shayşaan (Satan).
animal that was slaughtered without the pronouncement of Allaah‟s name, that person has
become of polytheist or Mushriki because he has listened to someone else instead of listening
to Allaah SWT.

Although disbelievers lack the light of knowledge and guidance from Allaah SWT and make
their decision on the basis of guesses and speculations, they always try to impose their views
on believers. They like their lifestyle, customs and practices which are not sanctioned or
approved by Allaah and expect the believers to conform with them. When believers do not
conform, the disbelievers get upset and call the believers names. If the disbelievers would think
rationally, it would be they who would be following the believers because Islamic practices are
based on the knowledge and wisdom of Allaah SWT. The difference between the two parties is
explained by the next verse to give Muslims confidence in the superiority and privilege they
have due to the guidance they have been given, to help them withstand the pressures and
difficulties they face at the hand of their opponents, and to encourage them to share the light of
their faith with open-minded people around them.

122
Is someone who was dead then We gave him life and made for him a light
by which he walks among the people, has any comparison with someone who
is in utter darkness from which he cannot come out? However, what the
disbelievers do has been made pleasing to them.

A person who becomes Muslim or a non-practising Muslim who rededicates his life in the
service of Allaah SWT is like a person who has been given a new life after being in a state of
death. Such a person has the guidance of Allaah contained in the Qur-aan as the light that
illuminates his path while living in this world. Those who are devoid of faith in Islam are in
total darkness – ignorant of Allaah‟s guidance. How unfortunate it is for the disbelievers that
they do not have even a clue about what they are missing. Thus they remain quite happy with
and fond of their existing lifestyle and behaviour. That is the condition of the general
disbelieving public. However, their leaders, who have a vested interest in the existing system
of ignorance and lifestyle of misguidance, go even further to scheme against the Islamic
movement.

123
Thus We have placed in every town the greatest of its criminals to scheme
against Islam therein; but effectively their scheming is against their own selves,
which they do not understand. 124 When there comes to them a sign, they say,
“We shall not believe until we are given the like of what Allaah's messengers
are given.” Allaah knows best with whom to place His message. The criminals
will soon face belittlement before Allaah and a severe punishment for the
scheming they used to do.

Their schemes are against themselves because the more they scheme against Islam, the more
hard-hearted and close-minded they become against accepting the truth and the more severe
the punishment of Allaah they invoke.

i
One who commits Shirk.
In addition to their vested interest in the current set of misguidance and ignorance, another big
factor in closing their minds to Islamic guidance is their bloated egos and haughtiness. They
think it is they who deserve the revelations and miracles from Allaah instead of the Messenger.
In other words, they are challenging Allaah‟s choice of the Messenger, as if they know better
than Allaah. Such people will not only face severe physical punishment but also will be
belittled as a punishment for their arrogance. This is one of the examples indicating that the
punishments in the hereafter will correspond with the crimes and the motives behind the
crimes.

The next verse describes the psychological conditions that indicate openness or closeness of
one‟s mind towards Islam.

125
Whomsoever Allaah intends to guide, He opens his breast to Islam; and
whomsoever He intends to leave straying, He makes his breast close and
constricted, as if he were climbing up to the skies. Thus does Allaah place
defilement upon those who do not believe.

When people study Islam with an open mind in a rational manner, they feel the truth, the
beauty, the simplicity, the rationale and the meaningfulness of Islam. They are attracted to it
and realize a sense of tranquility upon its discovery. They find their questions about its beliefs
fully answered in a logical manner, their doubts about the unseen duly cleared and their
scepticism properly disposed. When they accept it, they feel that they have found their lost soul
and accomplished the objective of their life. The close-minded people, on the other hand, are
overburdened by their prejudices, arrogance, vested interests in status quo, and worldly
expediencies so much that they do not want to discover Islam. They rather feel threatened by
its teachings and all of its beautiful attributes that attract the open-minded, sincere people.
They do not even want to hear its name. When Islam is presented to them they feel so much
anxiety and rage that they feel tightness of their chest and breathlessness as if ascending a very
high mountain peak at a high speed in the thin air. However, they fail to realize that the
problem is not with Islam but with the piles of negative baggage (defilement) they continue to
carry. As usual, these natural phenomena and the natural consequences of their behaviour are
attributed to Allaah, the Creator of the human nature.

The fact is that Islam is not a path of peaks and valleys that may cause tightness of the chest to
anyone. It is a straight path that leads humanity to be at its best in the forms of a just, balanced,
peaceful and excellent society in this world. Those who adopt this system of peace, justice and
excellence will also be rewarded with bountiful residence in the Home of Peace (paradise) in
the hereafter.

126
This Islam is your Lord‟s path, the straight one. We have certainly detailed
the revelations for those who take heed. 127 They shall have the Home of Peace
with their Lord, and He will be their Patron because of what they used to do.
Jannah, the paradise, is described as the Home of Peace because its residents will enjoy perfect
peace and tranquility, and a complete freedom and security from any fears, worries, dangers,
troubles, calamities or mishaps of any kind.

After describing from verse 112 onwards the role that the human and Jinn devils play in
misguiding the masses in this world, the next few verses give a glimpse of the dialogue they
will have with Allaah SWT on the Day of Judgment when they will be gathered to face the
consequences of their actions in the world.

128
On the day when He will gather them all together, He will say to the Satan
Jinnsi, “O assembly of Jinns! You took away a great part of mankind.” And
their allies from human beings will say, “Our Lord! Some of us did take
advantage of one another, and we have now reached our deadline which You
did appoint for us.” He will say, “The fire is your abode, to abide in it forever,
except for what Allaah wills; surely your Lord is Wise, Knowing. 129 Thus We
let some of the wrong-doers govern others because of what they had been
earning.

These two verses remind people of the following points:

1. Iblees, the head of the Jinn devils and the founder of satanism, had indicated to Allaah
SWT that he would tempt and mislead the vast majority of human beings. Human
beings should have remembered this fact, treated the Jinn devils as their enemies and
remained on guard against Satans‟ tactics; but they proved themselves to be an easy
prey and kept falling into satanic traps stupidly. They are so duped that they even
think that they are doing the right thing and brag about being progressive, modern,
advanced or enlightened. Therefore Allaah SWT will first put human beings to shame
by mentioning the success of devils in trapping human beings in huge numbers.

2. Although human devils will put a positive spin in their response by indicating that
both parties used each other to attain their goals, yet their tone will be apologetic and
remorseful. In the hope of requesting Allaah‟s pardon, they will readily accept that
their satanic lifestyle continued until their time in the world was over. But even before
they can ask for forgiveness or another chance, Allaah SWT will close the matter by
announcing their punishment.

3. The reason the human and Jinn devils succeed in commanding a big following is not
because those Satans have some extraordinary or godly powers to impose themselves
on others. It is only because the wrong-doers choose to be governed by devils for their
own expediencies, evil tendencies and inclinations. People obey devils and follow
their path in chasing their own lusts, desires, cultural heritage, customs of society and
traditions of forefathers which they do not want to sacrifice for the obedience and
pleasure of Allaah SWT.

i
Jinn is a sprite kind of creature that has also been given freedom of action but is invisible to human
beings.
This world is temporary while the hereafter will be eternal. Hence, people will bear the
punishment and enjoy the rewards of the Hereafter forever. However, in verse 128, the Qur-
aan includes the words, “except for what Allaah wills”. This is simply conveying to people that
the sole determinant of matters in the Hereafter shall be Allaah‟s will. There shall be absolutely
nothing else that will influence the matters in one way or the other; and Allaah‟s decisions or
wishes are not haphazard, random or emotional, but are calculated and consistent, based on His
ultimate knowledge and absolute wisdom. Venturing into precisely defining the nature of
eternity or speculating about Allaah‟s will in this respect is a very dangerous venture into
Mutashaabihaat -- something beyond human realm, understanding, capacity and legitimate
territory.

It was to save people (both human beings and Jinns) from following the devils that Allaah
SWT sent the messengers. It was a great manifestation of Allaah‟s mercy, but they kept
rejecting and opposing the messengers. Hence, on the Day of Judgment Allaah SWT will ask
them about this.

130
O assembly of Jinns and men! Did there not come to you messengers from
among you, relating to you My signs and warning you of the meeting of this
day of yours? They will say, “We testify against ourselves.” It was the life of
this world that deceived them. But then they will testify against themselves that
they were disbelievers. 131 That is because your Lord would not destroy towns
for wrongdoing while their people were unaware of Islam.

These verses remind people of the following matters:

1. Allaah SWT has sent messengers for human beings from among themselves and for
Jinns from among themselves.

2. People refuse to listen to messengers because of their indulgence in the life of this
world. They are so deluded by the comforts, pleasures and expediencies of this world
that they refuse to see beyond their immediate interests and instant gratification of
desires.

3. In addition to being an expression of Allaah‟s mercy in helping people find the

straight path distinctly from the paths of satanic misguidance, the messengers were
also to fulfil the requirement of Allaah‟s justice. It is human responsibility to keep on
the Islamic path as taught and established by the messengers and to preserve it for
subsequent generations. If they move away from the Islamic path and start living in
this world according to their own laws and ways instead of Allaah‟s laws and ways,
Allaah SWT has every right to destroy them and remove them from His earth..
However, once the Islamic path is lost, the subsequent generations usually assume
that whatever their fathers believed must be right. Because of His kindness and
Justice, Allaah SWT does not destroy those generations without sending them a
messenger who presents the Islamic way of life to them. Once a messenger completes
his job properly, the rejecters of the messenger are destroyed.
 This was the rule until the advent of Muĥammad ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam, the
final Prophet and Messenger of Allaah. After him, the responsibility and
consequences have been adjusted accordingly. Now the responsibility to guide the
non-Muslims rests on the shoulders of Muslims. If they convey the message of Islam
to the people of the world properly, they succeed and the onus shifts to the non-
Muslims to justify their rejection of Islam to Allaah. They are not destroyed
completely because that happens only for rejecting messengers. If Muslims do not do
their job of conveying the message of Islam, they face misery and humiliation in this
world as a consequence of not doing their job. To bring the Muslim Ummah back on
track is the responsibility of the rightly guided scholars of Islami, the Mujaddideen or
reformers, who have the same responsibility as the prophets and messengers had in
the past. This is so because the guidance of Islam has now been perfected and
completely preserved for whoever wants to benefit from it. Now, only the reformers
are needed who can implement the pure Islamic model to demonstrate to the world the
true Islamic path. If the majority of Muslims follow the reformer and come back to
the true path of Islam, fulfilling their Islamic responsibilities, they are restored to their
dignity and status. If the reformers are rejected, the Ummah continues to suffer
dishonour and humiliation at the hands of its enemies and the rejecters will face
painful punishment in the Hereafter. Only the reformers and their followers would
enjoy the success in the Hereafter.

4. In contrast to their vehement rejections of Messengers in this world, the disbelievers

will readily accept their fault on the Day of Judgment because the truth will be so
evident that no one will dare deny it.

i
These are people like Ibn Taimiyyah and Syed Abul A‟laa Muadoodi, not to be confused with traditional
mullahs, muftis or scholars.
After explaining matters in general in the previous section, the next few verses give clear
warnings to the Makkans for their rejection of the Prophet and Islam.

First of all they should know that their Messenger has come to them so they do not have any
excuse of not being warned. Their behaviour is being closely watched so that they can be
treated precisely and exactly according to their behaviour.
132
For everyone there will be a level according to what they did. And your
Lord is not oblivious of what they are doing.

It is not Allaah‟s need that they become Muslim. Whether they accept Islam or not, it does not
matter at all to Allaah SWT. He is absolutely self-sufficient. Even if all Jinns and all human
beings become Muslim, it does not add an iota to the Majesty and Greatness of Allaah SWT;
and even if all Jinns and all human beings become disbelievers, it does not take away an iota
from the Majesty and Greatness of Allaah SWT. Accepting Islam is only going to benefit them
because when Islam is established as a system of life, they will be able to enjoy peace, justice
and excellence in this world and ultimate success in the Hereafter. The Messenger has been
sent to them only because Allaah SWT is infinitely merciful and kind. Otherwise he could have
easily destroyed all of the disobedient people instantly and raised a new obedient generation. If
He is giving them time and respite to think and understand and if He has been forbearing of
their persecution and opposition of the Messenger and his followers, it is again only because of
Allaah‟s mercy so that they have every opportunity to repent and accept Islam.

133
And your Lord is absolutely self-sufficient, full of Mercy. If He so wished,
He could do away with you and make whom He pleases successors after you,
just as He produced you from the descendents of another people. 134 Surely
what you have been promised is coming; and you will never be able to escape
it.

Now if they do not utilize the opportunity and respite that is being given to them, they will
soon be facing what they have been warned about – destruction in this world and painful
punishment in the Hereafter.

135
Say (O Muhammad), O my people! You do your part; I am definitely doing
my part; you will soon find out who will reach the Home in the end. Certainly
the wrong-doers will not succeed.

If they want to continue their opposition even after all these clear messages, then let them do
what they want to do. The Prophet must continue the duty he has been assigned in the best
possible manner. They will soon find out the reality as to who attains the ultimate success in
the form of entry into the Paradise, the Home of peace, tranquility, joy and bounties.

Islam is all about bringing one‟s whole life within the confines of obedience to Allaah SWT.
Obedience to Allaah must be pure and exclusive so that only those matters are practised which
are clearly sanctioned by Allaah SWT or His Messenger. Anything beyond the sanctioned
Islamic practices, especially all the customs and traditions of society, should be abandoned.
Some of the said customs and traditions of the society are clearly un-Islamic and others may
seem to be innocuous. But even those innocuous practices take time and resources away from
Islamic work and, hence, must be abandoned. Without abandoning all the practices that are not
clearly sanctioned by Allaah and His Messenger, the obedience to Allaah remains incomplete
and adulterated, rather than being complete and exclusive as is required by Islam. Many
Muslims are very good in performing Islamic obligations but do not feel like abandoning the
practices and customs of the society to which they have become accustomed. They must
realize that Allaah SWT requires complete and exclusive submission, not a partial one. In
verses 118-121, Muslims were urged to purify their eating habits by aligning them completely
with Islamic rules and by breaking the societal rules and customs without any compunction or
hesitation. That led to comments on the inherent appeal of societal customs and practices, the
disbelieving leaders who so dedicatedly defend and promote these un-Islamic and idolatrous
practises, the devils who initiate and support such practices, the dreadful consequences of not
giving them up, the role of messengers in this respect and the rewards for those who dare to
follow the Islamic path exclusively. Then, in the previous section, the discussion concluded on
the declaration that the Prophet will continue to do his job of inviting people to adopt Islam
exclusively, abandoning all human invented religious customs regardless of what the
opponents want to do and that the opponents will never succeed with Allaah SWT.

The next section now describes some of the idolatrous and/or heretical practices relating to
food that were practised by Arabs so that they clearly know what kind of things are causing
them to fail in front of Allaah SWT and so that Muslims completely purify themselves of any
such practices.
136
Out of what Allaah has produced such as crops and livestock, they assign
Him a share, and say, “This is for Allaah” – according to their fancies – “and
this for our „partners with Allaah in godhead‟!” Then, anything that is meant
for their “partners” cannot be reapportioned for Allaah, while Allaah‟s share
may be given to their “partners”! How evil is what they decide!

In Islam, Zakaah has always been a very important act of worship which the Arabs were also
practising since the time of Ibraheem and Ismaa‟eel „alayhimassalaam. The portion of produce
and livestock that should have been paid as Zakaah or charity in the way of Allaah (Allaah‟s
share) was prescribed by Islam and was used for the well-being of the poor, needy and
underprivileged members of the society. Over time, people split the Zakaah or charity share
and reserved part of it for the other gods that they had since invented. The portion that was
presented to the fabricated gods effectively ended up in the hands of the religious authorities
instead of the needy people of the society. When, in times of difficulty or drought, people were
unable to pay both shares, presentations to false gods were given preference over the Zakaah
for Allaah that was going to the needy people. Similarly, when the produce or animals
apportioned for the false gods perished for some reason, it was made up from the part that was
reserved for charity for the sake of Allaah; however, if it were the other way, no one would
dare make up Allaah‟s portion from the false gods‟ portion. This was for two reasons: Firstly,
people who adopted false gods do so because they believed that those gods will bring them
favours and successes in the world more than what Allaah would grant them. Hence, they
would worry to please those gods more than they would try to please Allaah. Secondly, the
religious authorities, being the recipients of the false gods‟ share had a vested interest in
ensuring that it was always paid up fully. Thus, these heresies were against the Islamic concept
of Towheed, were idolatrous in nature and totally against the Islamic objective of
implementing social justice in the society, thus totally evil and promoted by the religious
authorities for their vested interest.

This is not the only evil that the idolatrous religious authorities promote. They even promoted
sacrificing children to please their false deities.

137
Similarly, their “partners” have made killing their children seem desirable
to many of the polytheists, in order to lead them to their own destruction and to
cause confusion in their concept of Deen. If Allaah had willed, they would not
have done so, so leave them alone and their inventions.

These sort of teachings inflict two kinds of serious damage:

 They cause destruction of human society by unjustly taking lives of innocent children,
by conditioning people to tolerate acts of cruelty and by promoting violence in the
society;

 They confuse people about the Deen and its objectives so that they totally lose the real
objectives of Deen and even the concept of Deen. That is why Arabs who were far
away from Deen and practices of Ibraheem continued to assume that they were
following the ways of Ibraheem. All the heresies and misguidances introduced after
Ibraheem were being considered the Deen of Ibraheem, while the real Deen of
Ibraheem that was being presented by the Prophet was being opposed.

The last part of the verse is to console the Prophet vis-à-vis the fierce and violent opposition of
the idolaters to his Islamic mission. Had Allaah willed to force them to behave rightly, He
could have pre-programmed them to do so. Thus, the advice to the Prophet is that he should do
his best to provide them the Islamic guidance, but should not worry whether people accept it.

The next two verses give more examples of such fabricated practices that were considered
religious practices.
138
And they say, “Such and such livestock and crops are prohibited”, and
according to their assumptions, “none may eat them except those whom we
approve”. Further, there are livestock whose backs are forbidden for riding or
carrying burden, and livestock on which Allaah‟s name is not pronouncedi – all

i
That is, they are not slaughtered with the pronouncement of Allaah name. Allaah SWT does not allow
slaughtering of animals for food without pronouncing His name while slaughtering. Because
“Pronouncing Allaah‟s name” and act of slaughtering occur simultaneously, in keeping with its concise
style, the Qur-aan uses “Pronouncing Allaah‟s name” in lieu of describing both pronouncing of Allaah‟s
name and slaughtering. This style also automatically reminds people that they have no right to slaughter
an animal except in Allaah‟s name and to do so only for food.
all fabrications about Him. Soon will He requite them for what they are
forging. 139 They also say, “What is in the wombs of such and such livestock
shall be food exclusively for our men, and is forbidden to our women; but if it
is still-born, they all may share it.” He will soon punish them for such
prescriptions; surely He is Wise, Knowing.

Although the ancient Arab practices do not exist any more, many communities have their own
fabricated analogous religious practices by which certain food can only be eaten at a certain
venue, or only by a certain gender, or during a certain time, or in a certain manner; or should
be avoided during certain times, or in a certain manner; or must be eaten at a certain occasion
or time. All such practices are heresies that have no foundation in the revelations of Allaah and
have no sanction from Allaah in their favour; hence, they must be abandoned.

140
Losers are indeed those who killed their children foolishly, lacking
knowledge, and who, on the basis of fabricated lies about Allaah, prohibited
consumption of food that Allaah has provided for them. They indeed have
gone astray and are not guided.

Muslims must understand this message clearly and avoid any such customs or traditions of the
society which require them to observe any restrictions that Allaah has not put or give them any
allowance that Allaah has not given.

If people reflect on how beautifully Allaah SWT has taken care of human food and nutritional
needs, it will lead them to be extremely grateful to Him for His mercy and kindness in doing
so. They will also realize that only He, as the Creator and Sustainer, deserves our gratitude,
that only He has the right to instruct what is allowed and what is not allowed from a religious
perspective; thus, all superstitious or man-made religious customs and practices about food
items are baseless and irrational.
141
He it is Who has produced gardens, both trellised and un-trellised, and date-
palms and crops yielding a variety of foods, and olives and pomegranates,
similar and dissimilar! Eat of its yield when it yields, and pay its due on the
day of its harvest. And be not excessive; surely He does not like the
extravagant. 142 And He also created livestock of which some are big beasts of
burden and others are short and small. Eat of what Allaah has provided for you,
and do not follow the footsteps of the Shayşaan; he indeed is your open enemy.

The emphasis is on the variety and diversity of the sources of our food, which is a great mercy
and kindness of Allaah SWT. He could have created one food item containing the exact
proportion of all the nutrients that the human body needs. Imagine eating the same food item
several times a day, every day of your whole life! Remember that the Israelites were provided
their nutrition through two items. After some time, they rebelled and wanted the variety of
produce from the earth. It is because of this variety that we can enjoy different tastes and
flavours at different times and thus enjoy the experience of eating while taking care of our
bodies. This diversity also allows us freedom and is one of those factors that make our test in
this world a very valid test of how we use that freedom. It allows us to eat food in a balanced
manner or to commit excesses. Similarly, the diversity of livestock allows us to use different
animals for our different needs, while at the same time testing how responsibly and humanely
we use our livestock resources.

To show our gratitude for these bounties of Allaah SWT, we must pay Zakaah in the way of
Allaah to help the less fortunate members of our society and to finance Islamic projects. This
Zakaah should be paid out of the produce as soon as it is harvested.

People commit excesses with the bounties of Allaah in many ways: one way of committing
excess is to use these bounties according to the rules of someone other than Allaah; another
way of committing excesses is to make offerings from produce and livestock to false gods,
rather than or in conjunction with making offerings in the way of Allaah; and yet another way
of committing excesses is to use these bounties extravagantly for one‟s own satisfaction
leaving too little to spend in the way of Allaah.

It is up to people whether they want to succeed in their test of freedom by living a balanced life
and practicing kindness in gratitude to their Creator and Sustainer, or whether they follow in
the footsteps of Shayşaan by committing excesses, forgetting that he is their enemy who has
avowed to incite them to make them fail their test of freedom.

It only makes sense that when Allaah SWT is the Creator and Sustainer, only He has the
authority to tell us what we should eat and what we should avoid. Thus, those people who
follow the customs and traditions of their society in determining what kind of animal is
allowed and for whom, and claim that these were the traditions of Ibraheem „Alayhissalaami
(AS), they should bring evidence from Allaah‟s revelations as to where and when Allaah SWT
gave that kind of instructions to Ibraheem AS, or any prophet for that matter. If they have no
knowledge or evidence of such instructions, then they should give up those fabricated
practices.

143
Take eight mates of livestock: A male and a female of sheep and the same
two of goats; say, “Is it the males of both that Allaah has forbidden or the
females of both, or that which the wombs of the two females contain? Inform
me with knowledge if you are truthful.” 144 And two mates of camels and two of
cattle; say, “Is it the males of both that Allaah has forbidden or the females of
both, or that which the wombs of the two females contain? Were you present
when Allaah instructed you such a thing? Who, then, is more unjust than he
who forges a lie against Allaah to lead people astray without knowledge?
Surely, Allaah does not guide the wrongdoing people.”

Livestock to Arabs consisted of the four species mentioned in these verses. They are being
challenged to bring any evidence that Allaah SWT has prohibited anyone of eating meat of any

i
Peace be upon him
member of these species. Hence, their rules mentioned earlier in verses 138-139 and about
Baĥeerah, Saaibah, Waŝeelah or Ĥaam i as mentioned in verse 103 of Al-Maaidah are all
heresies and innovations forged without any sanction or approval from Allaah. Allaah SWT
would not make separate rules for the different members of the same species.

They continue to claim that the heretical customs they practise are the traditions of Ibraheem
(AS), , but that is absolutely not true. The fact is that when it comes to the livestock that people
domesticate or raise for meat, the following describes the only things that were forbidden in
Islam taught to Ibraheem (AS):

145
Say, “I do not find in that which has been revealed to me any meat
forbidden to be eaten by one who wishes to eat it, unless it be a dead animal, or
blood that has been shed, or the flesh of swine because that definitely is
unclean, or an animal slaughtered sinfully by consecrating it to someone other
than Allaah. However, if a person is forced by necessity to eat any of these
forbidden meats, without meaning to disobey nor exceeding his barest needs,
then surely your Lord is Forgiving, Merciful.”
The four prohibitions described in this verse have been mentioned in other places of the Qur-
aan in more or less detail than given here. The following is an all-inclusive description of these
four items:

 Dead animal -- any animal that dies without being intentionally slaughtered while
invoking Allaah‟s name. Thus, it includes all animals that die because of some
sickness or some injury, even if the only cause of death is loss of blood. An animal is
lawful to be eaten only if Allaah‟s name is recited while intentionally slaughtering it,
it dies due to loss of blood and the blood is completely drained. Otherwise, it is
considered a dead animal. (Al-Maaidah 5:3 and Al-An‟aam 6:121).

 Blood that is shed or drained from a cut or wound. In other places, blood is mentioned
without any qualifier, but this verse clarifies that the blood that is prohibited is the
blood that flows from a cut or wound. Any blood that is constituted within or is
inseparable from meat, liver or spleen, after the complete drainage of blood has been
allowed, is not forbidden.

 Absolutely all pork products.

i
These were names given to different animals that were held in esteem, allowed to graze freely, and not
used for any service or benefit. A she-camel that had delivered five calves, the fifth one being a male was
consecrated by slitting its ears and designated as Baĥeerah. Saaibah was a camel turned loose as an
offering of gratitude for recovery from disease or some danger. If the first delivery of a goat had twin
kids, one being male and other being a female, the male was consecrated for gods and designated as
Waŝeelah. If a camel sired ten off-springs or if a camel‟s third generation had become fully grown, it was
designated as Ĥaam.
  Any animal that was consecrated or dedicated (Nazar or Niyaaz i) for anyone or
anything other than Allaah, even if it is slaughtered invoking Allaah‟s name.

Even for these items, there is exception. If it is a matter of survival, a person can consume any
of them as long as he does not consume it out of desire, meaning to disobey or exceeding his
barest needs.

These rules apply to the animals that are normally considered livestock in human societies. As
for other animals, if an herbivorous animal is similar in nature and characteristics to the four
species mentioned here, that animal‟s meat would be allowed for consumption if slaughtered
according to the aforementioned principles. As for the beasts and birds of prey, the Prophet
ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam has forbidden them for human consumption.

Although this dietary law has been in effect for Muslims of all ages, there were some
additional restrictions imposed subsequently on the Jews. These included various restrictions
that they imposed upon themselves because Ya„qoob (Jacob) AS avoided some things for
personal reasons, but then his subsequent generations started considering them as religiously
forbidden. Then, many of the restrictions were imposed as a result of them asking too many
questions and their religious jurists giving them rulings upon hair-splitting rulings. In this way,
they took the law into their own hands and became law-makers in addition to Allaah. As a
punishment for such excesses, Allaah SWT let them suffer under those restrictions until the
advent of „Eesa (Jesus) and then the advent of Muĥammad ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam, both
of whom were sent to remove those chains and burdens.

146
To those who had become Jews, We made unlawful every animal having
claws or undivided hoof, and We also made unlawful to them that fat of the ox
and the sheep, except what adheres to their backs or their entrails, or is mixed
with bones. This was in recompense for their rebellion, and We are certainly
Truthful. 147 If they accuse you of falsehood, then say, “Your Lord is the Lord
of All-encompassing mercy; but His punishment cannot be averted from the
guilty people.”

The very emphatic statement that “We are certainly Truthful” is equally emphatic that any
Arab or Jew who argues about these matters is definitely wrong insisting on something without
evidence or knowledge. All their claims are fabricated and any such commands in their current
version of books are man-made additions and interpolations.

If they reject the truthfulness of the Qur-aanic claims, because of His all-encompassing mercy,
Allaah will continue to give them some more respite in the hope that they may eventually
repent. But if they do not repent during this respite, then in the hereafter, none of them will be
able to avoid His painful punishment.

The long discussion that has been devoted to condemn the customary, fabricated dietary rules
of the Arabian society and the strict warnings of severe punishments that are being given to

i
Urdu terms for consecration and dedication
those who are rejecting the Prophet because of his non-acceptance or non-endorsement of
those rules is indicative of the importance Allaah SWT is placing on these matters. One may
wonder why was it such an important matter? If people did not want to use a certain animal for
food, why not just ignore it? Why spend so much energy on making them give up their
traditions? The matter is simple. Unless a person submits every matter of life in obedience to
Allaah, the person cannot be Muslim. If Allaah allows something, a Muslim must use it
without any compunction and without any regard for the customs of the society. If Allaah
disallows something, a Muslim must avoid it even if the customs of the society force him to do
it and it happens to be a seemingly innocuous matter. Without breaking the customs of the
society that are not sanctioned by Allaah, submission to Allaah is not complete. If Islam
tolerates any customs, however innocuous they may be, they will be entrenched in the lives of
Muslims and no one will be able to get rid of them. Thus, certain practices of the society that
have no Islamic value, benefit or sanction from Allaah will be consuming the time and energy
of Muslims, taking those resources away from Allaah‟s work or putting unnecessary burdens
and complexities in Muslims‟ lives.

A look at the lives of contemporary Muslims will clearly demonstrate how Muslims have
picked up or retained different customs and traditions from different societies that they hail
from. It has made their lives unnecessarily occupied with things that are usurping their time
and energy that should have gone into the establishment of Islam in their own lives and in their
societies. The only reason it happened is that Muslims thought that those were minor,
innocuous matters, and that it was not expedient to push for their abandonment and to take a
strong stand against them. This section of verses indicates how important it is to break the
practices and customs of the society to help Muslims learn, understand and implement full
submission to Allaah vis-à-vis their society, to simplify their lifestyles and to purify their
behaviour.

Once heretics cannot produce any evidence in favour of their invented practices or when
violators of Allaah‟s commands cannot come up with any meaningful defence for their sinful
behaviour, their final resort is to defend their behaviour by blaming it on Allaah‟s ultimate
power and authority. They conveniently ignore the fact that Allaah SWT has given them
freedom and it is by misusing this freedom that they are disobeying Allaah SWT. Allaah SWT
has not forced them to do what they are doing. Had Allaah forced them to do anything, it
would have been the behaviour of obedience to Allaah SWT.

148
Those who practice Shirki will resort to saying, “Had Allaah willed, we
would not have practised Shirk, nor our fathers, nor would we have had any of
the taboos that are being criticized.” So did their predecessors argue falsely,
until they tasted of Our punishment. Ask them, “Have you any knowledge with
you that you can produce before us? You are merely following assumptions
and you are merely speculating.” 149 Say, “Only Allaah has the conclusive
argument. Had He willed He could indeed have guided you all.”

i
Equating anything or anyone with Allaah, regarding anyone as a partner in any of Allaah‟s special
attributes or powers, or performing religious rituals for anything or anyone except Allaah.
This claim of being predestined for sinful behaviour has long been an excuse of the sinful
people. They continue to do so until they face the punishment of Allaah SWT in this world or
the next.

Even the sinners of the 21st century blame it on their natural make up, or being born with it.
The natural process of adaptation that occurs in the human mind and physique when a certain
kind of behaviour is pursued repeatedly is used to justify that the sinful behaviour is in their
“nature”; hence, they cannot be blamed or condemned for it.

The reality, the conclusive argument referred to in the verse, is that Allaah SWT has pre-
programmed all His creations, except human beings and Jinns, such that balance, equilibrium,
moderation and fairness are always maintained in their environment. Had Allaah pre-
programmed human beings, they would have also been pre-programmed to remain obedient to
Allaah and maintain fairness, justice and peace on earth. But Allaah SWT has given people the
freedom to make choices and to act upon them. Using this freedom to choose, people can adopt
that path of obedience to Allaah, doing what is good, fair and appropriate. If a person continues
to do so, his entire personality begins to be tuned to goodness and he continues to become
better until he becomes excellent in everything he does. If a person starts making the wrong
choices, his personality becomes adapted to the bad behaviour. Thus, his rut of bad behaviour
continues to become deeper and deeper until it becomes his second nature. This second nature
is because of the choices a person has been making, not because he was pre-programmed by
the power of Allaah to behave in that manner.
150
Say, “Come, produce your witnesses who should testify that Allaah has
forbidden these things.” Then if they so testify, still do not testify with them,
nor follow the whims of those who reject our revelations and who do not
believe in the Hereafter and they do equate others with your Lord.
Witness can be brought from two sources: one‟s personal, direct observation and knowledge of
the matter; or logical, rational evidence. A person who has some goodness left in him, despite
his sinful past, if challenged, may realize that no witness or evidence is available for his views
and behaviour, so he might repent and mend his ways. However, some people may have dug
themselves so deep in falsehood that, if challenged, they may feel no hesitation in testifying for
falsehood. If that happens, the believers must disregard and reject their false witness which is
merely based on their whims, fancies, conjectures, speculations and guesses, rather than being
based on knowledge of the truth and sanction from Allaah SWT or on any rational logic.

Now that the legitimacy of the heretical practices and religious rituals has been fully refuted,
the real Deen and straight path that Allaah SWT had taught to Ibraheem AS and all other
messengers is presented.
151
Say, “Come, I will reiterate to you what your Lord had disallowed you to
commiti or omitii; that you:

i
These are the negative commands, saying, “Do not …” People are not allowed to commit these acts.
ii
These are positive commands, saying, “Do ….” People must not omit performing these acts.
  Do not equate or associate anything with Him;
 Do treat both parents with excellence;
 Do not kill your children for fear of poverty; We provide for you and
for them;
 Do not go near indecent, shameful matters, whether open or secret;
 Do not take life sanctified by Allaah, except by legal righti;

These are what He has instructed you so that you may understand.

 152
Do not go near the orphan's property, except to look after it in the
best manner, until he is fully mature;
 Give full measure and full weight, in all fairness; We do not burden
anyone beyond one‟s capacity;
 When you speak, then be just, even though it concerns someone very
close; and
 Fulfill Allaah's covenant.

These are what He has instructed you so that you may bear them in mind. 153
And that this is My path, the straight one, so follow it. Do not follow other
ways, for they will lead you away from His way. These are what He has
instructed you so that you may ward off Allaah‟s displeasure.

The abovementioned constitute the straight path of Islam that Allaah SWT taught to Muslims
of every era and that leads to the attainment of the objective for which Allaah SWT sent Islam
-- establishing peace, justice and excellence in human society. Nobody can be on the straight
path without living by these principles. Hence they must be understood properly:

1. People must practice Towĥeedii and refrain from Shirk. Shirk may take many forms:
Considering anyone a partner with Allaah in any aspect of godhead or believing
anyone to be God-incarnate, son or daughter of God or a physical expression of God;
Considering anyone to possess any attribute to the same level, extent or manner as
Allaah does; Performing any rituals or rites for anyone as they are performed for
Allaah SWT; Obeying anyone unconditionally or adopting anyone‟s rules, regulations
or words with the same or higher priority as afforded to Allaah‟s commands, words,
rules or regulations.

i
Through due process of Islamic law.
ii
Believing in Allaah SWT as having no equals, similars, opposites, partners or children; being unique in
every respect; and being the only entity worthy of worship and unconditional obedience; and bringing
one‟s whole life, every aspect of it, under the rule of and in obedience to Allaah SWT.
2. People must serve their parents in the most excellent manner. Even when they are
continuously behaving in the most annoying manner, children must not express even
minimal frustration in reaction at any time. They must be respected and treated with
utmost kindness. However, it does not mean that they must be obeyed in everything
unconditionally. The obedience must only be in those things which are Islamically
appropriate. Nothing un-Islamic or improper should ever be done because the parents
want it that way; but, refusal must be done tactfully and respectfully. Treating them
excellently, kindly and respectfully must be done without compromising any Islamic
or moral principle. This is something that cannot be omitted from one‟s routine, if any
of his or her parents are alive.

3. Many civilizations of the past and present think that children are a source or cause of
poverty or a lower standard of living, and a hindrance to the enjoyment/fun and
comforts of life. This results in infanticide whether it is done by killing of born
children or aborting foetuses, and whether it is aborting foetuses of any particular
gender. To Allaah SWT, it is a heinous crime. It shows lack of faith in Allaah, His
planning capabilities and His resourcefulness. It shows that people think that Allaah
SWT gave people the capability to reproduce without ensuring that the earth has
means to sustain them all. Allaah SWT declares that there are enough resources to
sustain the human population born naturally, if people pay attention to properly utilize
those resources, instead of putting their energies towards the killing of children.

4. Fawaaĥish (indecent, lewd, obscene or shameful acts) include three types of

behaviour:

a. All acts that have sexual connotations and are directed toward another living
being except for one‟s spouse to whom one is Islamically married. Allaah
SWT is not only prohibiting us from them but also wants us to avoid going
close to them and to stay away from them completely. They include acts
such as adultery, fornication, homosexuality, etc., even acts that we might
consider insignificant, like flirting,; anything that leads to such behaviour
through sight or sound such as any chat or discussion that has sexual
overtones or connotations, whether in person, on phone or on the Internet;
watching/sexually explicit pictures, movies, TV programs, listening to
indecent songs; staring at someone or something with sexual thoughts and
harbouring sexual thoughts or fanaticizing about someone – whether they are
evident, not-so evident or secret.
b. Exposure of private parts, nudity, indecent exposure, wearing revealing (too
tight or too thin) clothes or any kind of sexually attractive exposure.
c. Consumption of alcohol, drugs and substances that lead to indecent
behaviour or that make a person oblivious to their condition whether they are
behaving decently or indecently.

5. Allaah SWT has declared every life as sacred. Thus people must respect each other‟s
lives. No one should be killed unless a person has committed a capital crime and is
punished through due process of Islamic law for that crime.
 6. Inheritance belonging to an orphan must be protected until that orphan is mature
enough to take proper care of it himself. People must approach it only for its
management and growth for the benefit of the orphan. If there are any other intentions
or carelessness, Allaah SWT will know it and will certainly punish the offender.

7. Adopting fair trading practices is another matter that must be a part of a believer‟s
personality and must be practised. If a person honestly and sincerely tries to be fair
and accurate, he will not be held responsible for inadvertent mistakes or such an
accuracy that is beyond human capability.

8. People may be fair in what they say routinely, but may slip when they say something
concerning someone very close to them. That is why it is specially mentioned that
people must say only what is right and fair, even if it concerns someone very close.

9. Fulfilling Allaah‟s covenant is a comprehensive command to cover many other

commands of Allaah that are not detailed above. In particular, it refers to the covenant
a believer makes with Allaah by becoming a Muslim:

a. To submit his whole life in obedience of Allaah seeking His pleasure; and
b. To dedicate his life in the service of Allaah‟s Deen and in the attainment of
the objectives of Deen –
i. Attaining personal excellence according to the model of the
Prophet; and
ii. Establishing a society of peace, justice and excellence through
implementing the complete Islamic system of life.

10. The above-mentioned teachings comprise the straight path of Islam which leads to the
pleasure of Allaah and salvation in the Hereafter. This being Allaah‟s path, it is the
only path that can unite people and establish a universal human brotherhood. As soon
as people deviate from this path, they become unable to agree on a unified course.
Every society devises its own ways. Every thinker or philosopher comes up with his
own theory. There is a plethora of views, but all of them are defective ways leading to
strife in this world and failure in the Hereafter. They all take people away from
Allaah‟s path of peace and cohesion in this world and success in the Hereafter. Thus,
any deviation from these principles in any way constitutes misguidance. All such
deviations will displease Allaah SWT and must be avoided.

All three verses above used a different word to describe the purpose of these instructions. The
first one was to promote understanding, wisdom and reasoning (T„aqqul). This is the first stage
where people are encouraged to use their common sense to accept Allaah‟s guidance instead of
following the traditions and heritage of their societies. The next stage is that a person realizes
the wisdom of believing in Islam and reflects on its guidance and becomes mindful of it
(Tadzakkur). Then, he adopts it as a way of his life and avoids anything that is non-compliant
with this way and that will be displeasing to Allaah SWT. That is the attitude of Taqwa.

These were the ten commandments of Deen which were revealed to Ibraheem AS, as they were
revealed to all messengers of Allaah. After Ibraheem AS, the next messenger to receive the
Book was Moosa AS (Moses). The same principles of Deen were revealed to him as well.
154
Then, We gave Moosai the Book, completing Our favour on those who
would excel, and explaining all things as well as a guidance and a mercy, so
that they may believe in the meeting with their Lord.

The Towraat (Torah) revealed to Moosa AS not only included the principle of Deen, but also
gave the details of Sharee‟ah to help people implement those principles of Deen practically in
their individual and collective lives.

The Book of Allaah provides humanity with the guidance to the way of life that leads them to
personal excellence and to establishing a peaceful, just and excellently caring society in this
world as well as to the success and salvation in the Hereafter. It saves them from trying to find
that optimal way of life through their own trials and errors and protects them from the pitfalls
of their own imperfect knowledge and wisdom. In this way, the provision of guidance is a great
mercy of Allaah SWT.

Although some non-believers can and some certainly do some good deeds, that kind of
random, optional goodness is not enough for creating an optimal human society. The level of
goodness and excellence that the Deen of Islam wants people to attain and to live by is not
possible unless people believe that they are going to be accountable to Allaah in the Hereafter
and their success will depend on how pleased Allaah SWT is with them. It is only that
realization which makes people sacrifice their personal needs, desires and interests to excel in
serving others and to constantly live by the principle of Deen in all thick and thin
circumstances. The Book of Allaah develops that kind of personality. And when non-believers
see the selflessness of those who believe in and live by the Book, it also leads the sceptics to
believe in the accountability to Allaah SWT in the Hereafter.

The revelation of the Qur-aan is to fulfil the same purpose as the earlier revelations.

155
Now, this Book We have sent down as a blessing, so follow it and adopt His
Taqwa so that you may be shown mercy.

The Qur-aan is a blessing in many senses: It is the complete and final guidance, it nourishes
and gives a new life to human excellence, it is for the whole humanity in addition to the people
who already were given guidance in the past, and it is to be fully preserved pristinely until the
end of the world so that people of all generations and all times can benefit from its guidance.

Since the revelation of the Qur-aan, anyone who wants to receive the mercy of Allaah SWT
must follow this Book with enthusiasm, care and diligence, all of which result from the Taqwa
mindset.

Because Arabs were the direct addressees of this message, they are being told that they do not
have any excuse for not following the Qur-aan. Ibraheem‟s progeny from his son Isĥaaq were

i
Moses
reminded about the Deen of Ibraheem through revelations to Moosa AS and „Eesa (Jesus) AS.
Now, the revelation of the Qur-aan serves as a reminder to Ibraheem‟s progeny from his son
Ismaa„eel and, through them, to all humanity.

156
Lest you say that the Book was only sent down to two groups before us and
we were truly unaware of what they studied. 157 Or lest you say, “If the Book
had been sent down to us, we would certainly have followed its guidance better
than they.” Now there has come to you a clear proof from your Lord and
guidance and mercy. Who then could be more wrong than he who denies
Allaah‟s signs and turns away from them? We will soon recompense those who
turn away from Our signs with the worst of punishment because of their
aversion.

As explained many times before, the signs of Allaah include everything that leads people to
believe in Him: the verse of the Qur-aan, the miraculous personality of the Prophet and other
miracles shown through him by Allaah, and the wonders of Allaah‟s creations including the
universe and all its systems.

The addressees of the Qur-aan now have no excuse to ignore its message. If they do, they will
be punished with the worst of punishments. Short of showing them the naked reality, whatever
could be done to intellectually guide them has been done. If they cannot believe without
observing the reality being disclosed right in front of them, they will be greatly disappointed.

158
Are they only waiting for angels to come to them, or your Lord to come, or
some of your Lord‟s signs to come? The day that some of the signs of your
Lord do come, its faith shall not benefit a person who did not believe before, or
earn good through its faith. Say, “Wait; we too are waiting.”

People have been put in this world to be tested if they can intellectually believe in the reality of
Allaah SWT, the life Hereafter and other matters of unseen. Those who want to see the reality
before they believe should know that the reality will be exposed only when the test is over,
whether it is at the time of Allaah‟s punishment, at the end of their lives or at the end of the
world. There is no question of believing at that time because the reality will be clearly exposed
at that stage. And accepting the reality after seeing it will be utterly useless because the test
will be over. So if they still want to wait for the reality to be exposed, they are doing so at their
own peril.

It should also be noted that if a person adopts Islamic faith prior to the expiry of the time of his
test (before death seems certain), in order to benefit from that faith, he must have performed
good deeds too, if he has some time to act before he dies or death seems certain. Faith and
good Islamic behaviour go hand in hand for the salvation of a person.

The Deen of Allaah SWT -- the core teachings of Islam -- which has always been the same
throughout the ages, was recapitulated in the previous section. Allaah SWT does not allow any
deviations, differences or divisions whatsoever in matters of Deen. Anyone who wants to
worship, obey and please Allaah SWT must live faithfully by the complete set of the principles
of Deen. The entire Deen must be accepted wholly and followed exactly as promulgated
without any changes, additions, subtractions or exceptions. Those who follow the Deen in that
manner are the followers of Ibraheem and are Muslims. Others are not. The next verse teaches
the Prophet and Muslims the manner in which to deal with those who continue to stick with
deviations from the Deen.

159
Concerning those who create divisions in matters of their Deen and form
sects, you should have nothing to do with them in any way. Their case rests
with Allaah. He will then inform them of what they used to do.

People create divisions in the matters of Deeni, cause difference of opinion or deviate from
them by:

 Dividing life into segments (such as secular and sacred, carnal and spiritual or private
and public) and considering one or more segments out of the purview of Deen;
 Picking and choosing from among all of its principles, practising some and
abandoning some;
 Changing, increasing or decreasing the relative importance or priority of various
components of the Deen;
 Generalizing the specific or specifying the general;
 Adding new practises or traditions to matters of Deen (heresies and bid„ah);
 Corrupting the purity of the articles of faith by heretical views such as exaggerating in
or denigrating the beliefs about or status of the prophets and messengers;
 Confusing matters of Sharee„ah and Fiqh with matters of Deen and giving the matters
of Sharee„ah similar or higher importance than the matters of Deen;
 Neglecting the rules of Sharee„ah altogether.

Different religions including Judaism and Christianity came into being because of such
deviations from Islam. The sects among Muslims came into being in the same manner. The
Muslims who understand the Deen properly and who are dedicated to achieving the objectives
of Deen and to practising Islam as a complete system of life must separate themselves from all
those people who have deviated. They should not condone the deviant behaviour in any way,
directly or indirectly, and should not develop or maintain affinity with such people. They
should continue to promote and present pure and total Islam and call everyone to adopt and
practice it, without making any compromise with or accommodation for those who are guilty
of any of the above-listed practises. If the deviant people do not listen, the true followers of
Deen should not associate with them and, while continuing to practice and stand up for the
pure Deen, leave the deviant to face the consequences of their behaviour from Allaah. Allaah
SWT will deal with them in the Hereafter when He will inform everyone of the record of their
actions, wherein informing implies holding them accountable and rewarding or punishing their
behaviour accordingly.

i
As opposed to the difference of opinion in matters of Sharee„ah wherein Muslims may have legitimate
differences of opinions.
160
Whoever comes to his Lord with a good deed shall have ten times as much
to his credit, while whoever comes to his Lord with an evil deed shall only be
recompensed its equivalent and they shall not be wronged.

When it comes to the Hereafter, Allaah SWT rewards those who sincerely and truly believe in
the whole Deen of Islam as a complete system of life, with many times the value of their good
deeds. The minimum multiple, as mentioned here, is ten times. But it can be as much as 700
times or even more, as mentioned in other places in the Qur-aan. This is the manifestation of
Allaah‟s bounty and mercy on His obedient slaves. On the other hand, He deals with
wrongdoers on the basis of justice, punishing them only equal to their crime, without doing any
wrong to them.

Verse 159 exhorted the Prophet and the believers to keep their identity, outlook and paradigm
distinct, separate and clear from those who differ in or deviate from the matters of Deen. The
next two verses provide the most suitable words to positively describe and declare their stance:

161
Say, “Verily, my Lord has guided me to the straight path -- the right Deen --
the way of Ibraheemi the upright, and he was not one of the polytheists.” 162
Say, “Indeed, my rituals of worship, my rites of sacrifice, my living and my
dying are all for Allaah, the Lord of the universe. 163 He has no partner; and
this is what I have been commanded, and I am the first of those who submit to
Him as Muslims.

The true Muslim is only a person who submits exclusively to Allaah in all affairs of individual
or collective life and who adopts seeking His pleasure as the sole goal in life. His life revolves
around servitude to Allaah SWT and in pursuit of His pleasure. Whether it is an act of worship,
a rite of sacrifice or any kind of ritual, devotion, glorification, consecration, dedication –
whatever it is -- it is done exclusively for Allaah SWT. Allaah becomes the focus of a
believer‟s acts of living and dying so that his living and dying becomes only in submission to
and for the pleasure of Allaah. That is the essence of Deen and that was the way of Ibraheem --
the paradigm which governed Ibraheem‟s life. One who adopts that attitude and paradigm has
found guidance. If the whole life, and every aspect of it, is not submitted exclusively to and for
the pleasure of Allaah, it means someone else or something else is being made a partner with
Allaah. That is Shirk and that is not the way of Ibraheem AS.

Submitting to Allaah in this manner is the only sensible thing to do. When Allaah is
exclusively the Creator and Lord of everything in the universe, it does not make sense for us to
give slave-like service or submission to anything or anyone beside Allaah.

164
Say, “Should I seek a Lord other than Allaah, while He is the Lord of
everything? Whatever one earns is accountable for it; and no bearer of burdens

i
Abraham
shall bear the burden of another. Then, to your Lord is your return, so He will
advise you concerning what you have been differing over.

As Allaah SWT is the only Lord, everyone will return to Him after the temporary stay on this
earth. There, He will settle the matters between the differing views and paradigms of life and
religion and hold those people accountable who had adopted the wrong paradigms, attitudes
and views. According to His law, the responsibility for one‟s deeds is non-transferable. No one
else can be accountable for what a person has done and no one can bear the burden of another‟s
sins. People will not be able to blame any leaders or philosophers, thinkers, priests, scholars,
Rabbis, Fuqahaa or Mullah‟s, Imaams, parents, peers, society or the social environment around
them for their adoption of the wrong paradigms and attitudes. No one had authority on anyone
to force someone to adopt a certain paradigm. The final decision is always one‟s own to adopt
a view from among differing views. So those who do not agree with submitting exclusively to
Allaah will be held personally responsible for adopting a variant view, attitude or paradigm.

165
It is He Who has made you successors upon the earth and raised some of
you in ranks above others in order that He may test you through what He has
given you. Surely your Lord is swift in punishment and He is most surely the
Forgiving, the Merciful.

This is the concluding statement reminding people of the reality of this world. People need to
realize the temporary nature of our stay on this earth. We are successors of previous
generations. We see people departing one by one and being replaced by the next generation.
People also need to realize that the circumstances that people find themselves in are neither
rewards nor punishments, but different modes of testing people. Neither is the health or
prosperity of someone a reward, nor are the hardships a punishment. Everyone on this earth
has been given different circumstances and different conditions to live with so that they can be
tested on how well they perform in the given circumstances in obeying Allaah SWT and
fulfilling their responsibilities to their fellow human beings. Then, according to everyone‟s
performance in their given circumstances, they will be rewarded or punished in the Hereafter.
Depending on the performance of people, He can be swift and severe in punishing or he can be
very kind and merciful. If a person lived by the wrong paradigm and adopted the wrong
concept of Deen, it will not be tolerated. But if a person has been doing His best in seeking His
pleasure exclusively in the given circumstances, Allaah SWT shall be very kind and merciful
in forgiving such a person‟s mistakes and sins and in rewarding for good deeds by more than
what one deserves.
Al-A‘raaf
Name, Background and Topics
Name
It is called Soorah Al-A„raaf implying the Soorah in which A„raaf and its
people have been mentioned.

Background
This Soorah was revealed in Makkah in about the same period or immediately
after Soorah Al-An„aam. That is the period when the opposition from Makkans
and their persecution of Muslims was at its peak. The Prophet had used all
possible means of communication and all sorts of logical arguments to
convince his opponents of the message of Islam and the goals of its mission.
The rational evidence had been presented in a variety of ways, demonstrating
the validity and profundity of Islamic beliefs from every human perspective.
The opponents had no logical response or credible evidence against Islamic
assertions except that they were following the traditions of their society and the
heritage of their forefathers. Even from that perspective, they were told how
their real forefather and their Patriarch, Ibraheem „Alayhissalaam („AS),
preached, practised and stood up for exactly the same message of Islam as
Prophet Muĥammad ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam (ŜA„WS)was doing.

The law of Allaah SWT is that when a Messengeri is sent to a community or a

nation, he eventually succeeds in defeating and eliminating his opponents and
in establishing the complete and pure Islamic system of justice, peace and
excellence in the society. Once the messenger has delivered, presented and
explained the message of Islam in all possible ways, from all possible
perspectives and responding to all objections that can be thought of by the
human mind, those who continue to reject Islam are destroyed – either by a
natural disaster or by being killed in the war they wage against the messenger.
But before that happens, and it happens only after all the rational approaches to
convince them of the truth of Islam have been exhausted, they are warned of
their impending defeat and destruction repeatedly and passionately so that they
can reflect and give up their fight against Islam and the messenger. They are

i
A messenger is different in that respect from a prophet to whom this rule does not apply.
warned through historical examples of the previous nations that were meted
such a fate in the past. This is because Allaah, being kind and merciful, wants
to give anyone who may have the capability to learn a lesson from history,
another chance to repent. The main theme of this Soorah is to present those
lessons and warnings, perchance some more people can attain salvation by
accepting Islam as a result of their reflection on the history of previous
messengers and their addressees.

Topics
This Soorah gives the historical perspective on the ongoing struggle between
Islam and its enemies that started with Adam and Iblees (the Shayşaan),
highlighting that:
 The original and the only Deen taught by Allaah SWT has always been
Islam. All other religions have been created by Shayşaan (Satan) and
his follower through deviations from Islam.
 The tricks, techniques and snares used by Shayşaan to mislead people
away from the Islamic path also have always been the same throughout
human history;
 To help people come back to Islam, Allaah SWT, out of his mercy, has
been sending messengers so that they and those who follow them
succeed in establishing the Islamic system of life on Allaah‟s earth, and
their opponents are eventually defeated and destroyed.

While quoting examples from Jewish history, the Jews have also been invited
to reform themselves, abandon their hypocritical behaviour and follow and
support the final Messenger which they had been promised and whom they had
been waiting for.

Muslims have also been urged to learn lessons from the presented history, to
continue to remain dedicated to the Islamic mission regardless of the sacrifices
they have to make and to continue to use wisdom, patience, perseverance and
forbearance despite the worst treatment, severe violence and extreme
instigation from the enemies of Islam.

Placement
As mentioned in the introduction to the second group of the Qur-aanic Soorahs
and to Soorah Al-An„aam, once the Prophet had started the Islamic movement
by calling Makkans to Islam and the Makkans had undertaken a strong
opposition against his mission, the struggle between the Islamic movement and
its opposition went through four stages. The Qur-aan guides people through
those four stages in four Soorahs: The first stage consisted of explaining the
validity of the Islamic message and absurdity of the opposition‟s stance from
every possible rational and logical angle. That was done in Soorah Al-An„aam.
The second stage was that the opponents were warned of their failure and
destruction through the examples of previous nations who faced destruction
because of their rejection of the Islamic message and Allaah‟s messengers.
That is the theme of this Soorah. The third stage was that the opposition
imposed war on the Muslims thus starting an armed struggle between the two
for which the Muslims needed to be trained and educated. That aspect has been
covered in the next Soorah, Al-Anfaal. The final stage was the victory and
supremacy of Islam, the guidance about which is contained in the last Soorah
of this group – Soorah At-Towbah or Al-Baraa„ah.

This Soorah, Al-A„raaf, being the second in the group, consists of the lessons
presented and the warnings given to the Makkans on the basis of the historical
examples of the Ummahs of the previous messengers.
Teachings with Running Commentary

This Soorah starts with a string of alphabets; Alif, Laam, Meem, Ŝaad, similar to Al-
Baqarah and Aali „Imraan and states the purpose of the revelation. Then, as a
preamble, it gives a brief advice and reminder in the next seven verses.
1
A L M Ŝ. 2 This Soorah of the Book has been sent down to you -- and let
there not be any distress in your breast therefrom -- that you may warn the
rejecters thereby and that it serves as a reminder for the believers.

While mentioning the purpose of revelation, a parenthetical remark has been included
to console the Prophet. He was under extreme stress for two reasons: Firstly, it was a
natural stress caused by the taunting questions, the foolish demands and the extremely
violent opposition from the Makkan establishment who were viciously persecuting
him and his followers. Secondly, it was caused by his superb sense of responsibility.
He was worried whether he was doing his job properly. He was concerned that it
might be a shortcoming in his methodology that was responsible for the rejecters‟
inability to accept such a logical, sensible and true message. He knew that they were
being warned of their impending disaster if they did not abandon their opposition. For
this reason, the Prophet felt pressured to do a good job of educating them. He is being
advised not to feel distressed for any of these reasons. The style of the brief statement
of purpose is very consoling. It reminds him that the book was sent down to him
without his desire for it or his asking for it. So, the Lord who gave him the task will
also ensure the passing of the challenging times and granting of the ultimate success
of the mission. Thus he should feel no reluctance in warning the opponents of the
consequences they are going to face. It also reminds him that his responsibility is
merely to deliver the message, not to ensure that people benefit from it. That is in
people‟s own hands and they are responsible for it themselves.

After consoling the Prophet, people are addressed directly:

3
O people! Follow what has been sent down to you from your Lord and do not
follow any of your supposed patrons besides Him. Little do you learn from
reminders!

This is the essence of the message. People must live in obedience of Allaah SWT
fashioning their lifestyle and all their societal systems according to what Allaah has
revealed. Human life should not be governed by or fashioned according to man-made
philosophies, theories and ideas. That creates problems in the world, which belongs to
Allaah SWT, and that is not acceptable to Him. The word used for human
philosophers, think tanks and legislators is “owliyaa” or patrons because adoption of
someone‟s ideas against the guidance of Allaah SWT is taking that human being or
human institution as one‟s patron.

Although obeying Allaah SWT is the logical and sensible thing to do, not many
people pay heed to it. When such heedless people are in majority and in power in a
locality and they refuse to listen to the Messenger calling them to the obedience of
Allaah and they hinder the messengers from establishing the law of Allaah in that
locality, as a result, they are destroyed and thus removed from this earth. Thus, the
Quraish of Makkah are being warned:
4
How many towns have We destroyed? Our might came upon them suddenly
at night or while they were resting in the afternoon. 5 Their utterance, when
Our might came to them, was only that they exclaimed, “We definitely were
wrong-doers”.

Opponents of the Messenger need to learn from history what has been repeated so
many times before. They should reflect on the destruction of the many nations whose
ruins the Arabs saw during their travels. They should also realize that the destruction
comes suddenly. The mention of day and night is only to emphasize that it can come
anytime of the day and it comes suddenly, whether they are asleep or awake, without
giving people any more chances to change their ways. Verses 97-98 of this Soorah and
many other verses of the Qur-aan explain this point further.

If they remain sceptical about their impending destruction, they should understand that
once the destructive forces of Allaah appear, any realization of the mistake at that time
is too late. The test period expires at that time and their papers are taken back.
Normally their test period would have extended to their natural death, but because of
their unrepentant criminality, they are being arrested and imprisoned before their
natural death. After that moment, they will have no choice but to face accountability
on the Day of Judgment.
6
Then, most certainly, We will question those to whom the messengers were
sent, and We most certainly will also question the messengers. 7 Then most
certainly We will narrate to them their whole story with knowledge, because
We were not absent.

On the Day of Judgment, people will be asked if the message of messengers reached
them. If the message did reach them, and they accepted it, they will be successful. If
they rejected it, they will have no excuse to avoid the eternal punishment. The
messengers will be asked how people responded to them when they delivered the
message. The evidence from the messengers will establish further guilt against those
who opposed the messengers and in favour of those who supported them. If opponents
of Islam and messengers try to subterfuge the facts, Allaah SWT will set the record
straight on the basis of His personal knowledge of the reality and the recorded
evidence of their deeds. Once the facts about the deeds of people are established, the
judgment will be rendered.

8
Only the Truth will have weight that day. So those whose scale will be heavy,
only those are they who shall be successful; 9 while those whose scale will be
light, they are the ones who will lose themselves because of the injustice they
have been doing to Our Signs.

Allaah SWT will reward or punish people on the basis of the weights of their deeds.
Only the Truth and the deeds in accordance with the Truth will have positive weight.
Everything else will have no weight or negative weight. To determine anyone‟s
overall balance, the faith in the Truth (Islam) will be the first and foremost measure of
the weight because weight of deeds will be dependent on faith. If a person did not
sincerely and validly believe in the Truth (Islam), his or her deeds that they did in this
world thinking that they were doing good, will have no weight whatsoever. They will
only have the negative value of their disbelief and their living by falsehood. They will
face the eternal punishment. Those who believed in the Truth and acted accordingly
will have all the weight. However, the total weight will be reduced by the negative
value of any sinful activity they would have committed. Their fate will depend on the
balance they are left with after setting off negative values of their bad deeds. The
heavier the weight, the more successful the person will be. If the weight is zero or
negative, the person will be punished.

This can be easily understood in banking terms. When a person opens and deposits
money, it shows as a credit in his account. All subsequent deposits appear as credits
and all withdrawals/payments appear as debits. The balance determines what he owns
or what he owes the bank. Similarly, when Muslim children come of age believing in
Islam, their accounts are opened with Allaah with credit balances, the size of the credit
balance depending on their sincerity, dedication and commitment. As they live their
life, every good deed is posted to the credit of their respective account from ten to 700
times or more, depending on the sincerity behind the deed and the sacrifice or
hardship endured for it. Every sin is debited. Sincere repentance and seeking
forgiveness reverses the debit for the sins that have been forgiven. The ending balance
will determine the fate of the person. If the account statement shows a credit balance,
the person will be entered into Jannah. The size of the credit balance will determine
the kind and the level of rewards in Jannah. Those who do not believe in Islam, have
no account for their credits whatsoever. They only have a debit account in which the
size of their debit depends on the circumstances of their disbelief in Islam such as their
knowledge and awareness of the Islamic message, their personal reaction to it, their
reaction to the messenger‟s call, their level of animosity to Islam, etc. All their bad
deeds continue to be debited to the account. However, none of their good deeds are
credited because their account is only a debit account. For their good deeds, they are
rewarded in the world so that no injustice is done to them. As they only have debit
balance, they will be punished in Hell. The severity and level of their punishment will
depend on the size of their debit balance. If a disbeliever accepts Islam, the debit
account is completely written off and a credit account is opened. From then on, their
account is operated just like every other Muslim.

If people think aright, they should be living in complete obedience and service to
Allaah in their gratitude for His creating them, giving them power and authority over
all creatures on the planet, and providing them with such a variety of means of
sustenance. Unfortunately, they fall victim to Shayşaan (Satan) and behave
ungratefully, thus inviting Allaah‟s punishment. In doing so, they forget that Shayşaan
is their avowed enemy from whom they should be guarding themselves, rather than
falling into his traps. The next section of verses reminds people of these facts.

10
We have certainly given you authority on earth, and provided you therein
with means of livelihood; yet seldom are you grateful. 11 And certainly We
created you, then We shaped you and We told the angels to prostrate to Adam.
Angels prostrated but Iblees did not become one of those who prostrated.

The first part of verse 11 mentions the creation of human beings in two stages:
creating an initial model and then shaping it or giving it a final form. The Qur-aan
refers to human creation at different places in a variety of ways and contexts
depending upon the point that needs to be emphasized or highlighted. When reading
these descriptions we must be mindful of the fact that human beings can only fully
grasp and appropriately comprehend the narration of those matters that they have
already personally experienced. When it comes to human creation, no human being
has or could have ever witnessed or experienced the original creation of the first
human being. Hence, it is humanly impossible to imagine, visualize, grasp or fully
comprehend the act and the process of creation and the infinite ways that Allaah used
for that purpose. Thus, the exact description being impossible, the Qur-aan describes
some aspects of the infinite act of human creation in such words of finite human
language as an approximation of the reality. The intent of such a description is not to
educate people about the precise process of creation because that is beyond human
understanding. The event is mentioned to merely make important points for the
guidance of people. The point being emphasized here is the special attention and care
that Allaah took in our creation. Human beings should acknowledge it and be grateful.

The second part of the verse describes how the path was paved towards the
establishment of human authority over all other creations. Once again, the precise
nature of these matters is beyond human understanding. People should take notice of
the care and attention that was given to grant human beings this status, rather than
trying to understand or determine the precise nature of the process used for that
purpose.

It should be noted that the prostration of angels, as mentioned in this verse, was
directed at the whole of humankind, not singularly to Adam. Such a description
underscores the fact that this angelic act had nothing to do with the person of Adam;
rather it was an acknowledgement of human dominion over all other creatures.

It should also be remembered that Iblees, who refused to accept human dominion over
his species, was the leader of Jinns -- another creation of Allaah who, like human
beings, were also bestowed with freedom to make choices and decisions.

The story of Adam that starts with the mention of angelic prostration in this verse and
continues until verse 25 was earlier described in verses 30-39 of Al-Baqarah. As the
episode was discussed in detail at that time, herein only the nuances of the words used
in this narration as compared to those previously used or the additional details
provided in this section that were not provided earlier will be highlighted.

12
Allaah asked, “What prevented you from prostrating when I had commanded
you?”
He responded, “I am better than him. You created me from fire, while
You created him from clay.”
13
Allaah commanded, “Descend from it (the Garden of paradise), as it is
totally inappropriate for you to behave proudly therein. So get out; you
indeed are one of the debased.”
14
Satan requested, “Reprieve me until the day they are resurrected.”
15
Allaah said, “You are reprieved.”
 16
Satan stated, “Since you have let me wander off, verily I shall lurk in
ambush for them on Your straight path. 17 I shall come upon them from
before them, from behind them, from their right and from their left, and
You will not find most of them grateful.”
18
Allaah declared, “Get out of here, despised, rejected! Whoever of them
follows you, I will certainly fill hell with you all. 19 And O Adam, reside
you and your wife in the Garden, and eat from wherever you wish, but do
not go near this tree, for then you both will be of the unjust.”

This dialogue teaches the following lessons:

 Iblees, the Satan (Shayşaan), was convinced of his racial superiority and this
racist attitude prevented him from obeying God, his Master and Creator, in the
matter of prostrating to an “inferior” race. Once a person is diseased with such
prejudicial attitudes and resulting feelings of jealousy, he is prone to make
deadly mistakes that destroy his own future. Thus human beings must be
vigilant in ensuring that they do not let any satanic attribute of racial prejudice
enter into their psyche.

 Anyone who disobeys Allaah or harbours sentiments of racism, arrogance or

jealousy cannot abide in Jannah (garden of paradise). Also, whoever disobeys
Allaah because of his pride and feelings of superiority, Allaah debases and
disgraces him.

 Reprieve sought and granted was not only for a certain amount of time but
also for the ability to make suggestions and incite people. Satan cannot force
people to do things but he can secretly make suggestions and implant ideas.
Final decision to act on his suggestions or ideas is, however, a person‟s own,
for which he will be fully accountable.

 Shayşaan (Satan) is an avowed enemy of human beings. People must

recognize him as such to avoid falling prey to his animosity. He is determined
to make people deviate from the straight path of Islam and thus make them
ungrateful to Allaah, their Lord and Creator. To attain his goal, he ambushes
them and attacks them from all directions in a variety of ways so that
whatever works, he succeeds. He plays with their emotions and feelings; fans
their lusts and arouses their desires; influences their ideas, thoughts and
philosophies; contaminates their literature, art, culture, and fashion; and
poisons their social customs, traditions, civilization, economy, politics, etc.
 For this reason, human beings need to remain alert and on their guard at all
times, and carefully and cautiously stay clear of Shaytaan‟s traps.

After his vow and Allaah‟s permission, Shaytaan did not waste a single moment and
set to work against human beings right away.
20
Then Satan began to whisper suggestions to them in order to uncover their
private parts that were hidden from them. He told them, “Your Lord has
prohibited you from this tree only to keep you from becoming angels or
immortals.” 21 And he swore to them both that he was their sincere adviser.

People must realize that Shayşaan always incites them through nice attractive slogans
and deceives them by posing as their well-wisher who has nothing but their best
interest at heart. The same is true for his human counterparts. But it is up to human
beings to use their God-given intelligence and make rational decisions according the
guidance provided by Allaah SWT so mercifully.
22
So he led them on through deception. Once they tasted from the tree, their
private parts became apparent to each other and they both began to cover
themselves with the leaves of the Garden; and their Lord called out to them,
“Did I not forbid you both from that tree and tell you that the Satan is your
open enemy?”

Covering parts of the body that attract the opposite sex is ingrained in human nature
by Allaah SWT and their exposure naturally makes people feel shy and ashamed.
Knowing that if this sense of shame is overcome, human beings can be easily
corrupted to disobey Allaah and adopt corrupt sexual behaviours, he especially targets
this area. Even if we look at the contemporary society, Shayşaan has enjoyed the most
success to incite people to deviate from the straight path by desensitizing people from
this shame through the promotion of indecency and nakedness in dress, fashion, arts
and culture.
23
Both of them acknowledged, “Our Lord! We have wronged ourselves. If
You do not forgive us and have mercy on us, we shall certainly be the losers.”
Allaah said, “Go down you all, enemies to one another! On earth will be your
abode and your means of livelihood -- for a specified time.”

Forgiveness of Allaah SWT saves sinners from the punishment of their sins but it does
not save them from facing the natural consequences of their behaviour. The natural
result of disobedience for Adam and his wife was to lose the comforts of Jannah
where their livelihood and their clothing needs were all taken care of. They had to
move out of Jannah and live on the earth, work to fulfil their needs and deal with their
avowed enemy. Their stay in Jannah provided them two valuable lessons before being
sent to the earth for their test. Firstly, it underscored that Jannah is the intended place
to be for people but for that they have to deserve it through their unconditional and
willing obedience to Allaah SWT. Secondly, they need to be extremely vigilant
against the deceptions of Shayşaan who is their avowed enemy and who will use every
possible trick to lead them astray from the straight path of obedience to Allaah SWT.
25
He also said, “Therein shall you live, and therein shall you die, and from it
shall you be brought forth.”

Human beings now have been put on earth for a temporary period so that they can
prove themselves to be worthy of Jannah by remaining grateful and obedient to Allaah
SWT and by resisting the temptations of Shayşaan. After their stay, they will be
brought back to be judged. Those who succeed in this test will be admitted to Jannah,
those who follow Shayşaan will be imprisoned in Hell along with Shayşaan. It is up to
people now to recognize and remember their enemy and protect themselves from his
machinations, while continuing to remain on the straight path in obedience to Allaah.

The mention of Shayşaan‟s incitement and deception and the exposure of private parts
of Adam and Ĥawwaa (Eve) has presented a good segue to remind people about the
role and significance of clothes in decent lifestyle.
26
O children of Adam, We did reveal to you clothing to cover your private
parts and to serve as adornment and protection. Yet the clothing of Taqwa is
the best. That is one of the signs of Allaah so that they may be mindful. 27 O
children of Adam, do not let Satan tempt you as he caused the removal of your
parents from the Garden, stripping them of their clothing in order to show them
each other‟s private parts. Indeed, he sees you, he and his gang, from where
you cannot see them. We surely have made the devils allies of those who do
not believe.

These two verses stress the following:

 The role of clothes in human life is twofold: Primarily, to cover one‟s

“sow‟et”, a term that represents something people consider indecent to
expose, i.e., their private parts; and secondarily to act as “reesh” which
implies adornment and protection like the feathers of the birds or coats of
animals. This covering of the private parts is from all people, not just from the
 members of the opposite sex, as people in the western societies think. That is
why they feel no compunction in exposing themselves when there is no one
around from the opposite sex.

Use of the word “reveal” indicates that it has been instilled in human nature to
wear clothes for both objectives in relative order of their significance.
Covering oneself modestly and feeling ashamed when exposing oneself is not
a learnt behaviour that human society invented later on. That is why Adam
and Ĥawwaa tried to cover themselves with leaves, as stated earlier. This is a
part of human nature with which human beings were born and which shows
itself once a child has grown to an age of knowing the difference between the
two. For that purpose, they have been provided means on earth to make
clothes and to fulfil their natural needs. This is in contrast to animals who
neither needed, nor have been given a sense to hide anything, and thus, have
already been granted “reesh”. If people reflect on the role of clothes from this
perspective, it will serve as a good reminder for them to adopt a proper
attitude in this respect.

 The objective of the clothes are met in the best manner if the person has
Taqwa – imbued with consciousness of Allaah, fearing accountability to Him,
eagerly seeking His pleasure and carefully avoiding anything displeasing to
Him. This attitude or mindset enables people to maintain balance and
moderation in everything including the kind of clothes they wear. Their
clothes will not only be properly covering their private parts and their physical
attractions to the opposite sex, but also they will ensure that their clothes are
reasonably tidy and appealing, not untidy or sloppy, nor too costly or
extravagant, nor resembling the styles used by the opposite sex, etc.

 The matter of covering oneself properly is a prime target for Shayşaan. He

makes them neglect the primary role of dress so that they concentrate only on
the adornment part. He incites them to display their sexual attractions rather
than covering them and conditions them to overcome their natural shame and
shyness in this respect. For this purpose, he uses all sorts of deceitful tactics.
He tries to make people believe that it is something modern, progressive or
advanced as compared to the repressive, antiquated and backward practice of
covering modestly. Once people are desensitized from their natural shyness,
they have stepped on a slippery slope where they continue to slide lower and
lower in terms of indecency, immorality, obscenity and lewdness. Hence,
people need to be extremely vigilant against Shayşaan‟s traps in this respect.
  Those who do not believe in Allaah SWT deprive themselves of His help and
guidance. This leaves a vacuum which provides Shayşaan with full
opportunity to incite and misguide such people. By refusing to follow their
Lord and enjoying His guidance, support and protection, they end up making
Shayşaan their patron.

To make religious people uncover themselves and to de-sensitize them against the
natural shame or shyness, he misleads them in religious matters so that some sort of
nudity is considered necessary for the rituals of worship. For example, Arabs believed
that their worldly clothes were not appropriate to be worn in the House of Allaah. To
perform rites of pilgrimage, they should either borrow the clothes from someone from
the Quraish, or they should perform them naked. Many people were performing these
rituals nude, providing Quraish the opportunity to gaze at the sights they otherwise
would not see. This was a heretical practice incited by Shayşaan, but when Arabs were
suggested to reform their behaviour, they cited their traditions and claimed that the
practice has been ordered by Allaah. The next verse comments on this point.
28
When they do something lewd, they claim, “We found our fathers doing so,
and Allaah ordered us to do so.” Say, “Verily, Allaah never orders indecencies!
Do you say about Allaah what you do not know?”

The statement “Allaah never orders indecencies” is a strong argument against their
practice of performing rituals naked, because both the Quraish and the Arabs knew
that nudity was indecent and that is why they did not walk around nude in public.
Using this criterion, people can identify many practices used in temples of worship in
some religions where the religious authorities have invented different kinds of
indecent practices to exploit people for the satisfaction of their own lusts and desires.
The next few verses take this opportunity to correct the wrong religious paradigms
that most people tend to adopt.

Most people think of religion to be a set of a few rituals that are carried out to find
favour with a deity. The ritual can be a completely nonsensical thing but they would
continue to practice it without paying attention to its absurdity. Islam is not that kind
of religion. It is an objective-focused system of life that is based on exclusive
submission to Allaah SWT. The next verse describes the essence of Islam.
29
Say, “My Lord has commanded justice and balance in every matter, that you
devote yourself purely to Him at every place and time of worship, and that you
call upon Him dedicating the Deeni exclusively to Him. Just as He originated
you, so shall you return.

The Deen that Allaah has commanded people to follow requires them, individually
and collectively to:
1. Practice and establish justice, fairness, balance and moderation in all matters
and affairs of life;
2. Perform all acts of worship and devotion purely and exclusively for Him
according to his instructions without any innovations or heretical practices;
3. Seek help and invoke support only from Him;
4. Establish their whole system of life exclusively on the basis of complete
submission and obedience to Him.

The first item is the objective and other parts are the means that help us in attaining
this crucial objective. They help us to be fair to our Lord and Creator by worshipping
and obeying Him exclusively. They also help us in attaining that objective in all other
matters because all of His commands are designed to attain balance, moderation and
fairness in all our affairs.

This is what Allaah created human beings for and this is what they will be held
accountable for when they are returned to Allaah. However, some people accept Islam
and adopt this lifestyle, while others follow the Shayşaan who is in fact their enemy,
but they take him as their ally.

i
Deen is the way, style and system of life of a society and its individuals. Dedicating it exclusively to
Allaah means that it must be based exclusively on obedience and submission to Allaah and the principles,
paradigms and commands given by Him, not on human philosophies and paradigms.
30
A group of you He guided; but misguidance has taken hold over the other
group who have, in fact, taken the devils as their allies instead of Allaah, while
they continue to assume that they are guided.
The irony is that the misguided people do not even realize that have become victims of
Shayşaan. They continue to assume that what they are doing is the right thing.

Another related error in religious paradigms is that people think that satisfying the
necessities of life (carnal needs) is against the spirituality desired by the religion.
Allaah SWT negates these human terms and the division of life into carnal and
spiritual because one‟s whole life must be in obedience to Allaah as mentioned in
verse 29. Moderate enjoyment of life and fulfillment of human needs is quite in line
with the Islamic teachings.
31
O children of Adam, adorn yourselves with your nicer clothes at every time
and place of worship, and eat and drink, but be not excessive. He does not like
32
the extravagant. Ask them, “Who has forbidden the adornments from
Allaah which He has produced for His slaves and the clean, pure items of
food?” Say, “They are for the believers -- very much so during the life of this
world, but exclusively for them on the Day of Resurrection.” Thus do We
explain the signs in detail for those who know. 33 Say, “The only things my
Lord has forbidden are:
 Lewdness and indecencies – what is apparent of them and what is
concealedi;
 Iniquities;
 Transgression without right;
 That you associate or equate with Allaah that for which He has not
sent down any authority; and
 That you say about Allaah what you do not know.

Iniquities include all instances where people are not fulfilling their duties and
obligations to Allaah or to people as much as they should be fulfilling them. The
Arabic word used in the verse is “Ithm” which is often translated as “sin” because
when an obligation to Allaah is not fulfilled, it is a sin.

Transgression (exceeding limits) means going beyond one‟s authority, territory or

rights and encroaching upon someone else‟s territory, authority or rights -- whether

i
Please see verse 151 of Al-An„aam for explanation.
encroaching is against the rights of Allaah or those of people. It also includes rebellion
against a legitimate authority. Thus people who do not obey Allaah living in His land
are also transgressors. The qualifier “without right” does not mean that there can
possibly be some transgression that is within one‟s right, but this qualifier has been
used to emphasize the heinousness of the crime the transgressors commit. They have
no justification for doing it, but they still do..

These prohibitions apply to all affairs of life, without dividing them into any
segments, just as the commands in verse 29 applied to all affairs of life. It should also
be noted that all that is forbidden is what violates the principles of justice, fairness and
moderation in individual and collective behaviour -- one of the primary objectives of
Islam.

After explaining what Allaah has really commanded and what He has really forbidden,
his law about human societies, nations and civilizations is reiterated as a reminder.
Although He wants people to establish their societies and civilization exactly
according to the principles hereby laid out, He does not instantly destroy those nations
who collectivelyi violate these principles. He gives them respite and affords them a
chance to reform themselves until their evils surpass any goodness they may practice.
Even then, to help them out because of His extreme kindness and mercy, He sends
messengers to them who try their best to bring them back to the Islamic principle of
excellence, justice, fairness and moderation. When a point is reached where every one
that could have been reformed has been reformed, the rest are destroyed. When that
point is reached, and only Allaah SWT exactly knows that point, their destruction is
not delayed even for an hour. Conversely, it is not allowed to happen even an hour
sooner than that point.

The destruction of a nation or a community cleans the land from its corruption,
injustices and opposition to Islam, but it does not absolve its individuals from their
accountability to Allaah SWT on the Day of Judgment. What the destruction does, is
bring their death earlier, shortening their test period. Their test period is shortened
because they have proven themselves to be total failures, who, if allowed to live, are
going to add nothing but more corruption and injustice. In the Hereafter, each one of
them will be judged for his or her actions individually.
34
For every nation there is a defined duration; when it expires, they shall not
be able to postpone it for an hour nor advance it.

i
Significant majority of that nation as a whole
The fact that the messengers will be sent to help and guide people and that people are
expected to listen to and follow them was clearly communicated to human beings
when they were sent to dwell on earth. They were fully informed of the rewards of
listening to the messengers and reforming, as well as the punishments for their
rejection.
35
O children of Adam, whenever any messengers from among you come to
you describing My Signs to you, then whoever shall adopt Taqwa and reform,
they shall have no fear nor shall they need to grieve; 36 while those who reject
Our signs and disregard them with arrogance, they shall become the inmates of
the fire wherein they shall remain forever.

One major factor in making people reject the call of a messenger or of Islamic d„awah
is their arrogance and their feeling that what they have (their lifestyle, their
civilization, their culture, etc.) is better than what the messenger or Islam has to offer.

Considering such a great mercy of Allaah SWT in helping people to do good and
attain salvation, how wicked, unfair and unjust it is for any human being to disobey
Allaah and to reject Islam! The next few verses now explain the consequences of such
behaviour for people as individuals.
37
Who is then more unjust than he who invents a lie about Allaah or rejects
His Signs? They will have their portion of the decree until Our angel
messengers come to them causing them to die, and they will ask, “Where are
whatever you used to call upon besides Allaah?” They will respond, “They
have disappeared from us.” And thus they will testify against themselves that
they were disbelievers.

Anyone who believes anything or anyone to be a partner of Allaah SWT in divinity is

inventing a great lie or subscribing to a great lie. Similarly anyone who says anything
about Allaah that is not what Allaah Himself has told people in the Qur-aan is
inventing a lie about Allaah SWT.

The rule for individual disbelievers is that they are being allowed to live their life as
they want to live without any coercion from angels or Allaah SWT. Throughout their
life until they die, they continue to enjoy their God-given personal freedom within the
limits imposed by the laws of nature and circumstances, just like everyone else. They
are treated differently by the angels only from their death onwards. It is also the time
when they will finally realize and acknowledge that they definitely have been wrong.
But it is too late to acknowledge the truth at that time. Such people will be thrown into
Hell on the Day of Judgment.
38
Then, on the Day of Judgment, Allaah will say, “Enter into fire among the
nations that have passed away before you from jinn and mankind.” Every time
a nation enters, it will curse its sister-nation until, when they all have caught up
with one another therein, every latter group of them will say about the former
one, “Our Lord, it is these that misled us, therefore give them a double
punishment of the Fire.” He will say, “Every one shall have double but you do
not understand it.” 39 Then the former group will say to the latter one, “You are
in no respect better than us, so taste the punishment for what you used to earn.”

Many people disbelieve in Islam because they blindly follow the beliefs, customs and
traditions handed down to them by the previous generations and their society. They
stay on their course of disbelief and become more committed to it because of their
blind trust in their religious leaders, their philosophers and professors, their think
tanks, their political establishment, their media pundits, their cultural gurus and the
trend-setters of their society, while they sceptically disregard the truth of Islam
presented to them. When they will be thrown in Hell, and they will see all those
predecessors, leaders, pundits, gurus and authorities, they will become extremely
angry and blame their own misguidance on those leaders. They will be so upset that
they will request Allaah SWT to punish those leaders twice as much. What they will
have forgotten in their anger is, and the leaders‟ response talk to it, that nobody forced
them to follow those leaders. For whatever expediencies they chose to follow them, it
was the followers‟ personal decision. They followed the leaders because they wanted
to. They listened to those leaders because it suited them. So, they are fully responsible
for their actions and are in no way better than the leaders who mislead them.

The interesting point is that those persons who follow others in disbelief, in turn, also
influence others in carrying on the disbelief. Even if they do not have much influence
in the society, they still influence the next generation in continuing with the disbelief,
both individually as parents and collectively as a society. So, they are as much to be
blamed for misguiding others as they are blaming others for misguiding them. It is for
this dual role that they will all receive double punishment. That is why Allaah SWT
responded to their request by saying, “Every one shall have double but you do not
understand it.”

Thus, it must be remembered that people will not only be punished or rewarded for
their own acts but also for the influence and impact that their behaviour has on other
people. If someone does good and his goodness influences, inspires, motivates or
reminds others around him to do good, he will be rewarded for all the impact that he
had on the goodness of the society, in addition to the reward for his own good deed.
Similarly, if someone does something bad and his bad action encourages, incites or
influences someone else to do a similar bad action, then he will be accumulating his
share of the sin from the sins of all those persons who were influenced by his bad
behaviour, in addition to the sin he earned for his own bad action. This sin or reward
for the demonstrative effect of one‟s behaviour on others can continue for all the
subsequent generations that are indirectly influenced by the chain reaction of one‟s
personal action. That is why we have been told that whenever a human being is
murdered, it adds to the sins of the first murderer in human history, Qaabeel (Cain)i.
Also, the Prophet ŜA„WS said, “Whoever invents a heretical practice that is disliked
by Allaah and His Messenger, he will be earning the sins equal to the sins of all those
who practice that heresy, without causing any reduction in their sins.”

This leads us to two more points:

1. Nobody can be justly rewarded or punished until the end of this world because the
impact of one‟s actions continues through generations as long as human beings are
still living on earth.

2. It is only possible for Allaah SWT, the Knowing, the Aware, to exactly know the
impact of one‟s actions through all the subsequent generations. That is why
perfect justice is possible only by Allaah SWT on the Day of Judgment.

The myth of reincarnation, people being reborn in some new form is baseless, illogical
and irrational because of two reasons:

 It implies reward or punishment when the impact of one‟s action is not even
completely reckoned;
 If it is accepted to be true, it leads to colossal injustice, instead of justice.
Instead of settling the account for one‟s previous deeds, each new lifecycle for
an individual adds even more actions whose impact on the society is un-
reckoned.

The previous verse presented the scenario of how different groups of disbelievers in
hell would be arguing among themselves and blaming each other for their
misguidance, although in this world they used to be proud of each other. The fact is

i
Hadeeth
that justifying one‟s misguidance by blaming it on others is not going to be helpful at
all in warding off the punishment of the Hereafter. Their rejection of the Islamic faith
will bring them certain and eternal punishment. People must understand that the
Hereafter is a purely binary world. Either one is rewarded or punished; there is
nothing in between. The reward is only for those who sincerely believe in Islam, and it
is in the form of the pleasures in the Garden or paradise. The entry into the Garden for
those who reject or turn away from Islam is absolutely as impossible as a camel
passing through the eye of a needle, as mentioned in the next verse.

40
Verily, as for those who reject Our signs and disregard them arrogantly, for
them the gates of heaven will not be opened and their entry into the Garden
will be as impossible as a camel‟s passing through the eye of the needle. Thus
do We recompense the criminals. 41 They will have hell-fire as the bed for
them and as the coverings over them; thus do We recompense the wrong-doers.

It has been explained at length previously that all the messengers of Allaah preached
the same message of Islam and that all of them were taught from the same Book
which was finally revealed in its entirety and in its original words to Muĥammad, the
Messenger of Allaah. Because of the same guidance coming from the same source, not
only has the message of all messengers been the same, but even the examples and
analogies used by them have sometimes been common. Thus the analogy of a camel
passing through the eye of a needle has also been attributed to Jesus („Eesa peace be
upon him) in Matthew 19:23-24. The only difference is that in Matthew it has been
used to negate the possibility of a “rich man” entering into the kingdom of heaven or
kingdom of God. No one knows the exact words used by „Eesa, peace be upon him,
but the words currently reported in the Bible imply richness as the cause of the
problem, while the truth is that a rich man can be a God-fearing man who does good
deeds and lives a righteous life. The pure word of God in the Qur-aan focuses on the
real problem, which is one‟s rejecting Islam, the guidance of Allaah, ignoring it or
turning away from it in arrogance. This does not implicate any rich man who is a
righteous, humble and charitable believer.

As compared to arguing and blaming each other by the inmates of the fire, the people
of the Garden (Jannah) will have clean hearts, peace and only positive feelings about
each other. Even if they had any ill-feeling against any of the believers, Allaah SWT
will remove it before their entry into Jannah.
42
As for those who believe and do good deeds – and We hold a person
responsible only to the extent of his capacity -- they will be the inhabitants of
the Garden, living therein forever. 43 We will remove whatever of ill-feeling is
in their hearts. Rivers will be flowing beneath them; and they will say, “Praise
and gratitude be to Allaah Who guided us to this; we would never have been
guided, had it not been that Allaah had guided us. The messengers of our Lord
certainly brought the truth.” Thereby they will be called out, “This is the
Garden of which you have been made inheritors because of what you used to
do.”

The beauty of Allaah‟s mercy is that no one needs to be perfect to enter Jannah. As
long as a person continues to strive to the best of his ability and capacity to perform
good deeds, Allaah SWT will remit his shortcomings and reward him according to the
best level of his performance. Nobody will be held responsible for matters beyond
one‟s ability in any given circumstances. And Allaah definitely and precisely knows
what were the limits of one‟s abilities and where a person compromised rather than
doing his best.

Because no human being is perfect, believers will be admitted into Jannah because of
the mercy of Allaah SWT and because of Allaah‟s forgiving their shortcomings.
Therefore, all the people of Jannah will be expressing their heartfelt gratitude on this
mercy and bounty of Allaah SWT. At the same time, because Allaah‟s mercy will be
only on those believers who sincerely continued to do their best in doing good deeds
in the obedience of Allaah SWT, Allaah SWT will be appreciative of their efforts and
they will be affectionately told that this Garden is theirs because of their deeds.

The use of the phrase “have been made inheritors” should be noted in the context of
the story of Adam and Satan mentioned in the beginning of this discourse. After
human beings lost Jannah initially, only the righteous will inherit it forever.

In this temporary world, the human capabilities of seeing, hearing and speaking are
very limited. When thinking about the Hereafter, many people tend to think about it in
terms of physical laws of this world. It must be remembered that the new universe
created after the Day of Judgment will operate under very different laws of physics. In
the Hereafter, people‟s abilities to perceive and communicate will be very different
and will be free from the limitations we experience in this world. The next few verses
inform us of some communications between the inhabitants of Jannah and inmates of
Jahannam.
44
The inhabitants of the Garden will call out to the inmates of the fire, “We
have indeed found what our Lord promised us to be true; have you too found
what your Lord promised to be true?” They will say, "Yes". Then an announcer
will cry out among them that the curse of Allaah is on the wrong-doers -- 45
who hinder people from Allaah's path and seek to make it crooked, and who
are disbelievers in the Hereafter.

This communication is to make the inmates of the fire realize how wrong they were in
doubting the authenticity and veracity of the Islamic message. It is reported to make
wrong-doers think and reform themselves in this world when they still have the
opportunity to do so. The wrong-doers who will be cursed in that manner are further
identified by Allaah SWT by describing their three attributes:

 They hinder people from the straight path of Islam – the path of Allaah –
by persecuting and terrorizing Muslims, propagating against Islam, trying
to scare people away from it, spreading rumours and misinformation
about it, etc.
 They want to make the Islamic path crooked by pressuring Muslims to
change it to suit their desires and preferences under the pretext of making
it “moderate”, “reforming” it or “modernizing” it.
 The focus of their endeavours is this world. Either they do not believe in
the Hereafter at all, or the belief is merely a lip service or it is a perverted
belief without a clear concept of individual accountability to Allaah and
resulting Judgment from which nothing and no one will be able to save
anyone.

The wrongdoers usually look down upon Muslims, consider them backward and treat
them condescendingly. They are usually proud of their status, wealth and
accomplishments. Explicitly or implicitly, they usually claim that even if there is a
Hereafter, as Muslims claim, they will be as well-off in there as they are in this world,
while the Muslims will remain as deprived as they are in this world.

The Quraish behaved with that kind of attitude and used their power and influence to
hinder the path of Islam in the 7th century as the Western powers are trying to do the
same in the 21st century. Indeed, the attitude, the tactics, the tools and the goals of
Shayşaan and its followers, the Şaghoot, remain the same throughout the ages.

The people of Jannah and those of Jahannam will be separated by a barrier which is
described in the next verse (46) as a curtain (Ĥijaab) and has been described in Al-
Ĥadeed as a wall. On top of this barrier or wall, there will be pathways or observation
posts from where someone can observe and address people on both sides. These
observation posts are called “Al-A„raaf” (the heights), which is the plural of „Urf. „Urf
is the word used for a cock‟s comb or a horse‟s forelock.
As against those who mislead the people away from Islam, there are those who
dedicate their lives to bring the message of Islam to people. They do their best to win
the hearts and minds of the people to the beauties of Islam so that as many people as
possible can succeed in attaining peace and salvation here and in the Hereafter. These
people will be given a chance to visit the observation posts from where they would be
able to witness the final fulfillment of the message they used to preach.
46
Between them shall be a barrier, on the heights of which will be men who
would recognize everyone by their countenance. They will call out to the
inhabitants of the Garden, “Peace be on you”; they shall not have yet entered it,
though they shall be longing to. 47 When their sight is shifted towards the
inmates of the fire, they will say, “Our Lord! Do not put us among the wrong-
doing people.” 48 The men on the heights will call out to some prominent men
from the inmates of the fire whom they will recognize by their countenance,
saying, “How was your gang of any avail to you and whatever you were proud
of?” 49 Are these the people on the other side about whom you used to swear
that Allaah will not confer mercy on them? It is they who have been told,
“Enter the Garden; you shall have no fear, nor shall you grieve.

This set of verses is commonly thought to be about those people whose good deeds
and bad deeds will be equal, hence, not deserving either Janaah or Jahannam and
waiting for a decision from Allaah about their fate. However, Amin Ahsan Islahii
disagrees with this common interpretation on the following grounds:

 In verse 46, these people have been identified as “Rijaal” (Men), a word
which has been used in this style in the Qur-aan to identify some important
group of people. For example, in An-Noor, it has been used to talk about the
very special people who do not forget Allaah SWT in any circumstances and
continue to glorify him while carrying on their daily activities. In Al-Aĥzaab,
it is used for the people who fulfill their covenant with Allaah SWT in a
superb manner. Even in verse 48, it is used for the prominent leaders of
disbelievers. Thus, it cannot be used in verse 46 for some unknown entities
who are neither here nor there. It has to be used for some prominent scholars
or righteous Islamic workers as was the opinion of celebrated mufassir
Mujaahid, as quoted by Ibn Jareer.

i
Famous exegete (Mufassir) of the Qur-aan and the author of nine-volume “Tadabbur-ul-Qur‟aan”.
  Also, those whose fate is still hanging in the air would be a group represented
proportionately by men and women. There is no reason for them to be
predominantly men. Thus, they could not have been described as “Rijaal”,
which specifically means men, instead of being described with a word such as
“group” or some other word similar to that.

 If they were those who have not yet been judged about their destiny, they
should still be in the place of their judgment, not being taken around for
observation.

 The way these people are addressing the people of Jannah and Jahannam
indicates their status and leadership. It does not indicate the words of a people
who are in a delicate situation themselves. Psychologically it is impossible for
someone who does not know his own destiny to be addressing others in that
manner.

The only thing that casts some doubt about the Islahi stance is the use of phrases:
“They shall not have yet entered it, though they shall be longing to” and “Our Lord!
Do not put us among the wrong-doing people.” According to Islahi, these are their
expressions of humility and fear of Allaah as well as the expression of the same
sentiments as were expressed by “Praise and gratitude be to Allaah Who guided us to
this; we would never have been guided, had it not been that Allaah had guided us.”

Hence, he concludes that these people of heights will be the scholars and righteous
Islamic workers who dedicated their lives to call people to the Truth, to promote good
and forbid evil. Before being taken to their destination in Jannah, they will be
specially honoured and given the tour so that they can see the ultimate fulfillment of
Allaah‟s promises and the destiny of those who stayed with Truth and who spread
falsehood. Because of their knowledge and experience in the Islamic work, they will
be able to recognize different people from their countenance, features or facial
expressions; the good people with happy countenance and glowing faces with light
and bad people with sad countenance and wretched faces. Also because of their
experience in Islamic work, they will be able to address the leaders of the falsehood
about the arrogance they displayed on the basis of their clique and retinue and their
wealth and resources as well as the kind of attitude they used to show toward believers
and their righteous lifestyles.

After everyone has reached their destiny, the people of Jahannam will seek help from
the people of Jannah who will be unable to help because any help to them will be
totally forbidden,
50
The inmates of the fire will call out to the inhabitants of the Garden, “Pour
on us some water or some of that which Allaah has provided you with. They
will respond, “Allaah has forbidden them both to the disbelievers”, 51 who took
their Deen as entertainment and sport, and whom the worldly life deceived. So
this day We have forgotten them just as they forgot the meeting of this Day of
theirs and as they used to deny Our signs.

Verse 51 adds to the response of the people of Jannah to explain who these
disbelievers are. They are the people who did not take religion seriously and handled
it with jokes and in jest; they spent their whole life for the sake of fun, entertainment
and sports; and the goal of their life was maximizing the pleasures of this world, rather
than the success in the Hereafter. They were deceived by the temporary life which
they lived as if that is all there was. When Allaah‟s signs and his revelations were
presented to them, they were annoyed and regarded the person as the enemy of their
fun and happiness.

It is a great mercy of Allaah SWT that He has sent the book for their guidance so that
they can succeed in attaining salvation in their eternal life. The Book provides
guidance in this world and will help one attain the mercy of Allaah in the Hereafter.
The next two verses admonish about that.
52
We certainly have brought them a Book which We have detailed on the basis
of knowledge – a guide and mercy for the believing people. 53 Are they
waiting but for its practical fulfillment? On the day when the fulfillment
thereof comes, those who had ignored it before will exclaim, “The messengers
of our Lord did indeed bring truth! Do we have any intercessors that they may
intercede for us? Or could we be sent back so that we behave differently from
what we used to do?” Indeed they have lost themselves and all that they used
to forge has disappeared from them.

People need to understand that what Allaah SWT tells them in the Qur-aan is based on
His personal, absolute and ultimate knowledge. Any views they adopt that are
different from the views presented by the Qur-aan are mere guesses, speculations and
conjecture. If they remain sceptical about it and keep waiting to find the absolute
evidence, they will find it on the Day of Judgment. When that happens, they will see
the Truth in front of them and realize their mistake, but it will be too late for that
realization to be beneficial. All their misguided ideas, views and theories about the
Hereafter, intercessors, saviours, partners in divinity, etc. will be shattered at that time.
It is, therefore, in their best interest to accept the message on an intellectual basis
instead of waiting to witness the Hereafter. They should remember that there will not
be a second chance.

For those who may open their hearts and minds to reflect and to examine their beliefs
rationally, the next few verses describe the basis of Towĥeed, thereby dispelling any
justification for Shirk. Many people indulge in Shirk as a consequence of their wrong
notions about Allaah SWT. For example, Arabs believed in Allaah as the Creator of
the universe, but thought that many “lords” (deities) are responsible for managing the
affairs of the world. Thus they would worship those “lords” to be able to attain their
favours. Some thought that Allaah SWT was too great and too powerful to be
approachable for their needs; hence they should seek favour with angels who were
considered daughters of Allaah SWT. Many philosophers accept Allaah as the cause
of the causes, but they think that Allaah has nothing to do with the ongoing care and
governance of the universe. Others do not even believe in any cause of causes. Both of
these groups think that the universe is operating automatically. Such people live their
lives according to their own whims and desires or those of other philosophers like
them. In that way, either they are worshipping their own thoughts and desires or those
of their fellow thinkers.

54
The reality is that your Lord is Allaah Who created the heavens and the earth
in six periodsi, and firmly retained His sovereignty over the universeii; He
covers the night with the day, which pursues it incessantly. He created the sun,
the moon, and the stars, making them subservient to His rule. Remember, it is
His to create and to rule! Tremendous source of blessings is Allaah, the Lord
of the worlds.

These verses make the following points:

 Allaah is definitely the Creator of the universe;

i
Arabic „Ayyaam” (Singular “Yowm”) is usually translated as “days” in English; but a day in English is
a 24 hour period, while “Ayyaam” or “Yowm” refers to a large expanse of time over which some
important event may have occurred. This expanse of time may be equivalent to thousands or millions of
years. Hence, “periods” reflects the meaning of the Arabic word better than “days”.
ii
The literal meaning of this phrase is that “He mounted on the Throne”, effectively implying that after
creating, He did not abandon the sovereignty, authority and control of the affairs of the universe or
delegated to anyone else. He retained the control and is governing the whole universe actively
promulgating laws and commands as He wants. As for the physical manifestation of His throne, these
matters are beyond human comprehension or imagination. No one should ever try to specify it or think
about it. He uses the words that serve the purpose of giving us a vivid idea of His authority, sovereignty
and power as the Lord of the universe, not to give us any concept of His physical attributes which are
infinite and absolutely beyond human perception, understanding or imagination.
  He Himself is also the Lord of the universe and there is no other lord beside
Him;
 He not only created the universe and everything in it, but He also subjected all
creations to His laws, which we call the laws of nature; the working of the
solar system and the incessant alternation of day and night is an example of
how everything has been made subservient to Allaah‟s laws; the life-
sustaining system of the universe is functioning in a balanced and effective
manner only because of Allaah‟s rules;
 As the Creator, only Allaah has the right and authority to rule and to
promulgate laws;
 Although human beings have been given a certain amount of freedom, they
should follow the rules of Allaah even in their area of freedom. This will
ensure balance and equity in their lives and peace in their society as it exists in
the universe. If they violate Allaah‟s laws and follow their own ideas and
desires, they will be causing “fasaad” -- disorder, disequilibrium, distress,
corruption, ecological imbalance and disaster, and a lack of peace on earth.

Thus, Allaah SWT is not only an absolutely powerful Creator, but also a kind and
merciful nurturer who has taken care of human life-sustaining needs even in the
design of the universe and its laws. In addition, He continues to take care of all kinds
of the needs of His creations kindly, actively and responsively. His greatness,
blessings and goodness are tremendous, eternal and limitless. The use of the word
“tabaaraka” in the last phrase of the verse contains all these meanings.

Therefore, people should humble themselves before Allaah SWT, the only Lord,
making themselves subservient to His commands, adopting the balanced and equitable
lifestyle that He has taught people through Islam, and avoiding extremism and
transgression of limits, and thus maintaining peace, justice and order on His earth
rather than spreading “fasaad”. With this humility, they must only call upon Him for
any help in fulfilling their needs and desires, instead of seeking them from the “lords”
they invent.
55
Call on your Lord humbly and secretly; surely He does not like those who
exceed the limits. 56 And do not cause disorder on the earth after its
reformation, and call on Him fearing and hoping; surely the mercy of Allaah is
near to those who excel.

A humble request is naturally low, not loud. Especially when communicating with
Allaah SWT who knows all hidden and secret thoughts and emotions, humility can
really be expressed in quiet communications coming from one‟s heart. This humility
is best displayed when it permeates thoughts, tone and physical actions altogether.
Ŝalaah teaches us how to express it in the standing position, in the bowing position
and in prostrating to Allaah SWT.

The relationship we should have with Allaah SWT should be such that He is always
the focal point of all of our hopes and our fears. When a person has attained a level of
reliance on Allaah (Tawakkul) so that the only fear relevant in his life is the fear of
Allaah and that he has all his hopes only from Allaah, such a person has attained the
desired level of excellence in faith (Iĥsaan). If people continue trying to excel in
goodness while fearing only Allaah and having hopes of mercy only from Him, they
are assured of Allaah‟s mercy to be close by.

The phrase “do not cause disorder on the earth after its reformation” demands special
reflection. When Allaah SWT put human beings on earth, all of its ecological systems
were in an ideal state of equilibrium and human beings were supposed to preserve that
equilibrium as well as maintain balance, moderation, justice and peace in their own
society. Then, whenever people caused “fasaad” on earth beyond limits, Allaah SWT
sent messengers to re-implement the Islamic system and reinstate the balance, peace
and justice. The Prophet ŜA„WS was sent for the same purpose and people are being
told not to destroy it after he has restored it. Unfortunately, it has been destroyed again
and to such a bad extent that everyone can see the havoc wreaked both to the ecology
and to the human society. We are witnessing ecological disasters due to human
excesses while Allaah SWT has clearly told us that He does not like those who exceed
limits or commit excesses. Similarly, we are witnessing wars, death and destruction
all over the globe because those who have power are bent upon committing excesses
on weaker people, imposing their will on them and occupying their lands to subjugate
them. They are spreading “fasaad” by imposing their rule instead of the rule of Allaah
and by demanding people to submit to them instead of letting them submit to Allaah –
the Lord of the universe.

As the Prophet SAAW was the last Messenger of Allaah, it is now the responsibility
of Muslims to restore the balance, order and equilibrium and re-establish peace and
justice on the earth.

There is an implicit message in “surely He does not like those who exceed the limits”
and “surely the mercy of Allaah is near to those who excel” that should be noticed.
Allaah SWT wants people to maintain the earthly environment and human society in
peace with balance and justice. Thus, whenever humble, God-fearing people will
attempt to restore balance and justice, they will be helped with the mercy of Allaah
SWT in their struggle against those who are causing “fasaad” on earth and thus are
disliked by Allaah SWT.

The next verse gives an example of a mercy of Allaah SWT that enables life and
growth in the land. Through this example, some very profound lessons are being
taught.
57
It is He Who sends the winds bearing good news heralding His mercy, when
they lift up heavy rain-clouds, We drive them to a dead land, make rain to
descend thereon, and produce every kind of harvest. Thus shall We bring forth
the dead; perhaps you may be mindful.

The mercy of Allaah here is the rain on which we depend for our food and agriculture.
The rain is preceded by strong winds because it is the winds that carry the heavy
clouds as if they do not have any weight. The use of the word “Aqallat” here is very
meaningful. It means lifting up as if something is not weighty. Thus the clouds
containing hundreds of thousands of tons of water are carried by winds as if they are
light fluff. Then the rain falls on the land and the land which receives the rain livens
up with growth as a result. This teaches us two lessons:

1. When messengers or reformers stand up to reinstate order in Allaah‟s land,

there is an initial turbulence which leads to a rain of Allaah‟s mercy in the
form of His help as well as in the form of implementation of His guidance
(Islam), and society that is dead livens up with peace and justice.
2. When earth is dry with drought, it seems so dead and devoid of any capability
to grow anything. But when the same dead land receives rain, it suddenly
comes to life. We can understand our resurrection on the Day of Judgment in
the same manner. It appears to people that those who have died have become
dead dust and cannot be raised again, but on the Day of Judgment they will
come to life just as the dead land comes to life after the rain.

However, it should be remembered that the extent to life and growth resulting from
rain depends on the quality of land. If the land is fertile, the vegetation is abundant;
but if the land is uncultivable, acidic or rocky, the vegetation is sparse growing only
where there is some soil to let the plants develop roots or where acid is mild enough to
let a plant survive.
58
As for the good land, its vegetation emerges as pre-destinedi by its Lord;
while as for that land which is bad, nothing emerges except sparsely. Thus do
We reiterate Our signs diversely for a people who are grateful.

This verse explains that when messengers or reformers present the people the message
of Allaah‟s mercy in the form of Islamic teachings, the fertile, rational minds soak up
the teachings and they grow in goodness tremendously according to the fertility of
their soil. On the other hand, those with acidic minds and rocky hearts do not benefit
from it. The reasons for their acidity may be bigotry, arrogance, jealousy or
prejudices against the people presenting the Islamic teachings. The reasons for the
hardness of the hearts may be resistance to change, unwillingness to leave one‟s
comfort zone, too much indulgence in worldly pleasures and possessions, too much
stake in the status quo and many other similar expediencies.

Allaah SWT presents these points through different perspectives, in different styles,
using varied examples and analogies so that people can appreciate His kindness and
can attain guidance by reflecting on these points.

i
As pre-programmed by the laws of nature that Allaah has promulgated since the creation.
From verse 59, the lessons from the history of earlier nations that were known to
Arabs are being presented to illustrate the points made in the previous sections. To
fully benefit from the historical anecdotes presented in these verses, it will be helpful
to keep in mind the following points from the previous teachings:

 As mentioned earlier in this Soorah, human society started on this earth

abiding by Islamic lifestyle based on the exclusive obedience to Allaah SWT
in all affairs of life. This view of life is called Towĥeed – making oneself
exclusively subservient to Allaah in all matters of life.

 Human beings were clearly warned that Shayşaan is their avowed enemy and
he will try to mislead them away from the Islamic path without letting them
realize that he is doing so.

 He misleads people by pretending to “make things better” for them as their

well-wisher. He does so by causing tiny little changes in their paradigms,
attitudes and practices. Thus people usually adopt his ideas with very good
intentions, without realizing the far reaching impact of the little change they
are making in the Islamic views or practices.

 Overtime, they do not even realize that, little by little, they have diverted their
direction far away from Islamic path., and they have in fact adopted
misguidance.

Unfortunately, that is what happened after Adam peace be upon him. Although he was
given good grounding in his encounter with Shayşaan in Jannah, his progeny soon
became careless and started following the footsteps of their enemy. So much so that at
the time of Nooĥ, they had completely abandoned Towĥeed. Everyone was practising
Shirk -- serving various other “gods” besides Allaah SWT, including idols, this
worldly life, one‟s own aspirations and desires, etc. To help people come back to
Islamic Towĥeed and to re-establish Islamic system of life on earth, Allaah SWT sent
Nooĥ as His messenger.

As a result of Nooĥ‟s mission, like the mission of all messengers including Prophet
Muĥammad, his people were divided in two groups: those who had good-natured,
open minds like fertile soil accepting his message, and those who had bad-natured
closed minds like rocky, acid-ridden land rejecting the message.
Once all efforts were exhausted to educate the rejecters, and it took more than 900
years of tireless work for Nooĥ to do so, and it was established that nothing could ever
convince them to adopt Towĥeed, Allaah SWT caused the great flood to happen,
destroying them while saving the believers who embarked on the Ark with Nooĥ.

59
We sent Nooĥi to his people, so he said, “O my people! Become Allaah‟s
slaves exclusively, you have no deity other than Him; I fear for you the
punishment of a dreadful day!” 60 The eminent among his people said, “Verily,
we see you in obvious misguidance.” 61 He said, “O my people! There is no
misguidance in my stance; rather, I am a messenger from the Lord of the
universe. 62 I convey to you the messages of my Lord, I wish only what is good
for you and I know from Allaah what you do not know. 63 Are you surprised
that a reminder from your Lord came to you through a man from among you
that he might warn you and that you might adopt Taqwa so that you might
receive mercy?” 64 But they called him a liar. So We saved him and those with
him in the boat, while We drowned those who rejected Our signs. They were
indeed a blind people!

The punishment of the dreadful day was what came to them in the form of the flood
when they ignored Nooĥ‟s warnings. The irony is that those who are sent by Allaah
with clear evidence and who speak on the basis of the knowledge they receive from
Allaah are considered misguided by the current leadership and establishment of a
society, while in fact they are the misguided ones who have no rhyme or reason for
their un-Islamic views except a claim that they are following the “rich heritage” of
their forefathers. It is even ironic that many people follow their misguided leaders who
clearly have a vested interest in the status quo than following the messengers of
Allaah who selflessly sacrifice everything in their life helping people attain salvation
and in saving people from misguidance and destruction.

It should be noted that the main objective of the messengers in their mission is to
inculcate Taqwa in people and it is this Taqwa that makes people eligible for the
mercy of Allaah SWT.

After the flood, only Nooĥ and his followers – the Muslims – were left on earth.
Ideally, human beings should have continued to live by Towĥeed afterwards forever.
But unfortunately, people fell victims of Shayşaan‟s tactics again and lost the Islamic
way in the same manner as before. Instead of keeping their slave-like submission

i
Noah
exclusively for Allaah, they started submitting to other “gods” besides Him. They
started giving the same importance to other entities or other things or considerations in
decision making and setting priorities as much importance as should be given to
Allaah SWT. The people of „Aad were one such example of a people who went astray
after Nooĥ. They were the most ancient people in Arabian history and their stories
were known to Arabs in general. They were located in the south-western part of
Arabian Desert that is called the “Empty Quarter”. The only religious book that has
mentioned them at all is the Qur-aan. In 1992, their destroyed town was located and
unearthed with the help of modern technology.
65
And to the „Aad, We sent one of their own brothers, Hood. He said, “O my
people! Become Allaah‟s slaves exclusively, you have no deity other than
Him. Will you not have His Taqwa?” 66 The eminent ones who disbelieved
among his people said, “Most surely we see you full of nonsense and most
surely we think you are a liar!” 67 He said, “O my people! There is no nonsense
in me, rather I am a messenger of the Lord of the universe. 68 I convey to you
the messages of my Lord, and I am a trustworthy well-wisher for you. 69 Are
you surprised that a reminder from your Lord came to you through a man from
among you that he might warn you? Remember that He made you successors
after Nooĥ's people and made you grow bigger in physique. So remember the
marvels of Allaah so that you may be successful. 70 They said, “Have you
come to us that we may exclusively become slaves of Allaah alone, and
abandon those whom our fathers have been serving? Then bring upon us what
71
you threaten us with if you are the truthful!” Hood said, “Incurrence of
defilement and anger from your Lord upon you is already inevitable! Are you
arguing with me about some names that you and your fathers have made up,
without having any sanction or authority from Allaah? Wait then, I am
alongside you, also waiting.” 72 We saved him and those with him by way of
Our mercy, and We completely eliminated those who rejected Our signs and
were not prepared to be believers.

The people of „Aad were of a larger physical framei than other people and were
stronger in their mental abilities. Thus, they were quite powerful in their era and had

i
The literal translation of this phrase is “He increased you in Khalq substantially”. The Arabic word
Khalq is used in the Qur-aan only in three ways: Mostly it has been used for Allaah‟s act of bringing
something physically into existence; in a few cases, it has been used for the physique of a created entity;
and lastly, it has been used for alluding to the natural role and function for which a certain entity was
created and for indicating that it is satanic behaviour to misuse any entity for a role or function that is at
odds with its natural role or function. This meaning is implied in An-Nisaa 4:119 and Ar-Room 30:30.
Here it has been used in the second sense. Other examples of similar use are in Al-Faaşir 35:1 where it
has been used for the physical powers of angels; and in Yaaseen 36:68 and Az-Zumar 39:6, where it has
been used for changes in human physique. Also, the famous du„aa of the Prophet that should be recited
built huge lofty buildings with 30 foot high pillars, as evidenced from the building
unearthed in 1992. Although they were proud of their own marvels, Hood invited
them to reflect on the marvels of Allaah SWT observable throughout the universe.

The most important point to remember here is that most of the gods that people adopt
other than Allaah SWT are based on some mythical stories, hearsay and rumours
passed on from generation to generation. Based on such myths and attached
superstitions, those entities or personalities are given some names and are served or
worshipped according to those names. All of those stories are totally baseless but
people continue to believe in them only because their parents and priests tell them to
believe in them. Even in this age of so-called enlightenment, people continue to
believe in such baseless mythical names such as personal Saviour (one who grants
salvation to a person who accepts him as such), Ganj Baksh (one who bestows
treasures), Daataa (one who fulfils needs). Similarly, some people have given dead
saints such names that imply that they have the spiritual powers to remove the troubles
and difficulties of people and to solve their problems in different matters of life.

Such beliefs about any entities other than Allaah SWT not only defile the spirit,
mindset and psychology of a person but also incur the anger of Allaah SWT.

Once again, after it became evident that whoever could have adopted Towĥeed had
already done so and the remaining people were not going to believe regardless of how
the truth was explained to them, those disbelievers were completely destroyed, leaving
behind only Hood and his followers who migrated just before the destruction to the

when looking into the mirror uses this word for physical features saying, “O Allaah, you have given me
good Khalq (Physical features), also give me good Khulq (attitude and disposition).”

Some translators have used the word “stature” to imply that „Aad‟s were tall of height. Then some people
interpret stature in terms of status among other nations. The word Khalq cannot be interpreted in terms of
honour or status. Neither does the word imply such a meaning, nor is there any example of such use in the
Qur-aan. Translation of Khalq to mean physique instead of stature is preferred for three reasons. Firstly, it
is a clearer description of what it implies; secondly it cannot be confused with status; and thirdly, the
increase in Khalq does not necessarily mean only increase in height but a larger overall physique. It
should also be remembered that substantial (Basşah) does not necessarily mean ridiculously large size
such as scores of feet in height. The word “substantial” has to be understood in relation to the average
human build. Some people go wild in exaggerating the physical size of „Aad. They should keep in mind
that the same word “Basşah” was used for Şaaloot (Israelite king at the time of Dawood) to describe his
physique. To put things in perspective, you can visualize that even a little-taller-than-six-feet, broad-
framed, body-builder would be considered substantially larger than a diminutive, thin man. Hence, all this
verse describes is that the people of „Aad were endowed with more robust, healthier and better than
average physical capabilities.
North-Western side of Arabia, called Al-Ĥijr, and came to be known as second „Aad,
as well as the people of Thamood. Their stories were also well-known among Arabs.

The people of Thamood went through the same cycle as „Aad had done. After the land
had been cleaned up from the inequities and excesses of „Aad, and justice, peace and
balance had been restored in the society through Towĥeed, Thamood became trapped
by Shayşaan and started gradually moving away from Towĥeed through small
innovations and heresies. These innovations included injustices and excesses in
matters of the world, too much indulgence in the world at the neglect of the Hereafter
and inventing different “gods” who were presumed to fulfill their unjust desires. As
compared to „Aad who built buildings with lofty pillars, Thamood built huge palaces
and mansions as well as invented the art of carving houses out of mountains. That is
how their rich and famous demonstrated status, pride and glory. Allaah SWT sent
Ŝaaliĥ as His messenger to re-establish peace, justice and moderation through the
Islamic system of life. Like the people of Nooĥ and „Aad, the establishment of the
society – the leaders, the rich and the powerful elements – turned against Ŝaaliĥ. Only
some good-hearted people from the masses and from the poor responded positively to
Ŝaaliĥ‟s message. The next section gives a concise overview of their attitude until
they were destroyed.

73
And to the Thamood was sent their brother Ŝaaliĥ. He said, “O my people!
Become Allaah‟s slaves exclusively, you have no deity other than Him. You
have just received a clear proof from your Lord. This she-camel of Allaah is a
Sign for you. So leave her to feed in Allaah's earth, and do not touch her with
ill intentions lest a painful punishment seize you. 74 And remember that He
made you successors after „Aad, and established you in the land such that you
build palaces in its plains and carve houses out of the mountains. So remember
the marvels of Allaah and do not cause havoc on earth acting inequitably and
corruptly.”

The leaders of a misguided society are usually very proud of their accomplishments
and they think that adopting the Islamic way will be tantamount to losing their
wonderful civilization. They are usually so mesmerized by their success that they do
not even want to think of the damage they are doing to the environment and to the
masses of society who are usually deprived of the basic necessities of life. Hence,
Ŝaaliĥ invited them to reflect on the marvels of Allaah‟s creation to put their
accomplishments in perspective to help them correct their paradigms.

Instead of reflecting on Ŝaaliĥ‟s message rationally, they demanded to see a miracle

that will indicate that Ŝaaliĥ was indeed a special person from Allaah. A she-camel
miraculously appeared as a sign for them from Allaah SWT. There are no details
available from the Qur-aan or the Prophet about its miraculous appearance. The only
thing that is clear is that her sudden appearance was distinctly extraordinary so that it
could not be explained through the normal operations of the laws of nature. People
knew that Ŝaaliĥ or his followers did not have such a camel before. It may have been
as simple as its walking into the town where people had gathered after Ŝaaliĥ had
indicated that she will appear. Some books mention stories about her being created
from a mountain. But those stories are only imaginative guesses of the commentators.

Once the she-camel appeared as a miracle, they were told that she would roam around
and graze as she liked and that she would have an exclusive right on the water of the
city well every other day. Their animals were permitted to drink from the well only on
the days not designated for her. If someone touched her with ill-intentions, Allaah‟s
punishment would come in three days. This was a very tough challenge. In a land
where limiting anyone‟s access to water could ignite furious wars, limits were
imposed as a challenge.

75
The eminent ones who acted arrogantly from his people asked those
subjugated ones who believed from among them, “Do you know for sure that
Ŝaaliĥ is sent from his Lord?” They responded, “We certainly are believers in
what he has been sent with.” 76 The arrogant ones declared, “Definitely, in that
which you have believed, we are disbelievers.” 77 So they killed the she-camel,
thus defiantly disobeyed their Lord's command and said, “O Ŝaaliĥ, bring
about what you threatened us with, if you are one of the messengers.” 78 So a
tremor caught them, and they became corpses fallen on their faces in their
homes; 79 while Ŝaaliĥ had left them saying, “O my people! I did indeed
convey to you the message of my Lord, I wished you the best, but you do not
like the well-wishers.”

At first they were reluctant. No one touched her for a few days. But then one of their
leaders killed her. Ŝaaliĥ and his followers immediately migrated to safety and the
disbelievers were destroyed when the punishment came after the three-day notice
period. Although Ŝaaliĥ and his followers had left for a safe place before the disaster
struck, its mention is left to the end so that the cause and effect relationship between
the defiant act and the consequent disaster remains direct, without being distracted by
other details. Also, concluding the story with concluding remarks from Ŝaaliĥ makes
his remarks stand out and have greater impact.

Although the killer was one person, it is attributed to all of them because they all
approved of or acquiesced to his action.
The point that should be noted is the difference between the attitude of the common
people and the leadership of the society. Those of the common people who take time
to think rationally on the signs and points presented by a messenger accept Islam and
adopt it sincerely as their way of life. They are treated condescendingly by the
arrogant leaders who are deprived of the capability of rational thinking by their vested
interests, arrogance and prejudices. The unwilling leaders are the people who demand
miracles, but even after seeing the miracles, they remain misguided. It is because what
is needed to make the right decisions is not miracles, but a mind that has been freed
from baggage and has been opened for sincere, rational reflection.

Their destruction occurred through some natural disaster that has been termed here as
a “tremor”, and in other places it has been described as “thunder”, an “explosive
sound”, or “something extremely intense”. Thus some commentators think it was an
earthquake, while others think it was an extremely intense wind storm accompanied
by thunderous clouds. As the Qur-aan has used all words interchangeably, it might
have been a combination of all of these elements. The point that the Qur-aan clearly
makes is that their destruction took only a few moments.

The next example of those who were destroyed because of their rejection of Islamic
guidance is that of people of Looş. Looş („AS) was a nephew of Ibraheem („AS) who
believed in Islam and migrated with him. Initially, he accompanied Ibraheem („AS) on
missionary trips to various townships in Palestine, Iraq and Syria. Then he was
appointed as a messenger of Allaah to the people living around the Jordan River,
where the Dead Sea is located. It was a very beautiful area surrounded by gardens.
Looş settled among them, married one of their women, and invited them to adopt an
Islamic lifestyle. It should be noted that unlike all other historical examples used in
this section, Looş has not been referred to as their “brother” because he was not related
to them by blood.
80
Similarly We sent Looş. Remember when he said to his people, “Do you
commit such lewd sexual acts as never committed previously by anyone in the
universe? 81 Verily, you approach men lustfully instead of women. Rather, you
are an extremely transgressing people.” 82 And the response of his people was
no better than that they said, “Evict them from your city! They are people who
consider themselves holy.” 83 So We saved him and his followers, except his
wife; she was of those who remained behind. 84 And We rained upon them a
rain; then look what was the end of the criminals!
The biggest crime of the people of Looş was homosexuality. Homosexuality is a
perverse behaviour that is totally against the natural human roles for which Allaah had
created males and females, and thus is totally unacceptable to Allaah SWT. It is an
adopted practice that results from a person transgressing the natural limits of
satisfying one‟s sexual urges. When such transgressions are repeated, the person
becomes conditioned to such behaviour, losing his natural inclinations. Looş‟s people
had the “distinction” of being the first society where such perverted behaviour not
only became acceptable but also fashionable. When the rich and famous adopted it
and it was accepted in the society, it became the symbol of a “cool”, “modern”,
“progressive” and “advanced” lifestyle. Looş („AS) did his utmost to convince them to
come back to the natural ways of satisfying their desires. Instead of listening to his
rational arguments and passionate appeals, they blamed him and his followers to be
from those who suffer from a “holier than thou” syndrome, who do not belong in a
“civil” society and thus should be thrown out. They had become a society where
weirdness had become normalcy and normalcy was characterized as weirdness. When
it had became apparent that they were not going to reform regardless of what was
tried, they were destroyed by such violent explosions and windstorms that brought a
rain of stones over them, and their cities were sunk deep into the ground and were
covered by the water of the Dead Sea, which grew in its size as a result. The area that
was not covered by the Dead Sea is below the sea level and is a barren and a very
gloomy part of the earth. Looş and his followers, who were only from his own family,
were saved because they were directed to leave the town before the disaster struck.
Looş‟s wife was not saved because she sympathized with the criminals and stayed
behind.

Unfortunately, homosexuality is becoming increasingly acceptable and fashionable

again. People are vocally expressing their “pride” in committing this crime. Those
who express their disapproval for this perversion are being stigmatized in a manner
very similar to Looş and his followers. In such circumstances, we must remember the
Islamic teachings and adopt our behaviours accordingly. Islam teaches us that we must
dislike, hate and condemn every crime and every sin but we should not hate or
condemn people who commit those crimes. Homosexuals should be treated in the
same way. We must not hate them as human beings, but we must not approve of their
behaviour. We must follow Looş, not his wife.

The last example of destruction quoted for the Arabs to reflect upon is that of the
People of Madyan. They were settled in the area surrounding the ports of the Red Sea
and the Gulf of Aqabah that happened to be the business centre because it was the
crossing point of the trade routes between Iraq and Egypt and between Makkah and
Syria. The people of Madyan were the descendents of Midyaan, the third son of
Ibraheem („AS), and his followers. Thus they also started as Muslims fully practising
Islam, but then slowly diverted away from the Islamic lifestyle, while still claiming to
the believers and followers of Ibraheem and Midyaan („AS).
85
And to the people of Madyani We sent their brother Shu„ayb. He said, “O my
my people! Become Allaah‟s slaves exclusively, you have no deity other than
Him. You have just received a clear proof from your Lord; therefore, give full
measure and weight and do not undervalue for people their things, and do not
spread corruption and disorder on the earth after its reformation. That will be
better for you, if you are believers. 86 And do not lurk along every road,
threatening and hindering from the path of Allaah those who believe in Him,
and seeking to make it crooked; and remember when you were few then He
multiplied you, and look how the end result has been for the corrupters in the
past. 87 Now if there is a group of you who believes in the message with which
I have been sent while a group does not believe, wait patiently until Allaah
judges between us; and He is the best of the Judges.”

The main objective which Allaah SWT wants to achieve through Islam is the
establishment of peace, justice, equity, balance and fairness in the world and root out
corruption and disorder from the human society. Midyaan had established that kind of
reformed society according to the Islamic teachings of Ibraheem („AS). Shu„ayb („AS)
is reminding them that the claim to believe in Islam is meaningless without being fair
and just in their dealings whether it is being fair to Allaah by not equating anything or
anyone else with Him or it is being fair to people by being honest in business dealings.

Instead of listening to the reasonable and rational message of Shu„ayb, they reacted by
taunting, ridiculing and harassing Shu„ayb and his followers. They tried to pressure
them into conforming to their crooked views and lifestyle. Shu„ayb refused to
compromise on principles and left the matter of the opponents to Allaah. At this, they
were threatened to be thrown out of town or forced to conform to their crooked ways.

88
The eminent ones who acted arrogantly from his people said, “O Shu„ayb!
We shall certainly drive you and those who have believed with you out of our
town, or else you people shall have to return to our ways and paradigms.” He
wondered, “What! Even though we do detest it?” 89 “We would be inventing a
lie against Allaah if we return to your ways and paradigms after Allaah has
rescued us therefrom. There is no justification for us to return to it unless
Allaah our Lord wishes us to. Our Lord‟s knowledge encompasses everything.

i
Midian
Only on Allaah have we relied. Our Lord, decide between us and our people
justly, and You are the best of those who give decisions.”

There are a few points that should be noted from the response of Shu„ayb („AS) to the
threats of the disbelievers. Shu„ayb („AS) ignored their threat of expulsion
completely, and responded only to the threat of being forced to conform. Firstly, this
indicates that the true Muslims do not care much on the worldly consequences of their
obedience to Allaah SWT. Their main concern is that they do not make any
compromise in their principles in any circumstances. Secondly, the messengers of
Allaah are pure in their behaviour before being appointed as messengers and
afterwards. When Shu„ayb („AS) says “after Allaah has rescued us therefrom”, it is on
behalf of his followers who abandoned the corrupt ways and became true Muslims.
Thirdly, although the true Muslims are extremely determined not to make any
compromises in the principles regardless of how difficult the circumstances are, they
are still humble in their attitude and show full reliance on Allaah SWT that only He
can protect them from such compromises and grant them power to stay on their
course. That is the spirit of “unless Allaah our Lord wishes us to. Our Lord‟s
knowledge encompasses everything. Only on Allaah we have relied.”

When everything else fails, the opponents usually scare the true Muslims and the
general public that if Islam is practised purely as these “extremists” preach, it will
result in business and economic losses, and hurt our civilization and the status that we
enjoy. The best thing is to make some compromises according to the current trends of
the society, and thus adopt “moderation” and survive, instead of losing everything.
This continues without fail. Even today, the hypocrites who want to invent a
“moderate” Islam want to make all kind of compromises for the same reason, with the
same rationale.

90
The eminent ones who disbelieved among his people said, “If you follow
Shu„ayb, you will definitely be the losers.” 91 So a tremor caught them, and
they became corpses fallen on their faces in their homes. 92 Those who rejected
Shu„ayb as a liar were as though they had never resided therein. Those who
rejected Shu„ayb as a liar, it was they who were the losers. 93 Shu„ayb had left
them saying, “O my people! I did indeed convey to you the message of my
Lord, I wished you the best, so how shall I lament over a people who refuse to
believe!”

Once all those who wanted to practice pure and complete Islam without making
compromises were asked to vacate the place, those who would not abandon making
compromises in Islamic principles of honesty, justice and fairness were destroyed. The
concluding comment from Shu„ayb („AS) indicates that once a true Muslim has done
his best to invite hypocrites to true and complete Islam, they should not sympathize
with them any more.

All the examples of previous nations given above were to show the Makkans their
image in the mirror. Their crimes were the same crimes for which those nations were
destroyed and their attitude towards the Prophet was the same attitude that the
destroyed nations had exhibited towards their messengers. The message of these
historical examples was clear: If they continued their attitude and behaviour towards
the Prophet and his Islamic mission, they would meet similar fate.
After giving the examples of destruction of nations who rejected the messengers of
Allaah, the next section gives an overview of how the system worked. While
reflecting upon this section, we should keep in mind that these principles used to
apply when a prophet or messenger was sent by Allaah to a nation.

When a prophet is sent to a people, he is aided by some small scale natural mishaps
such as storms, earthquakes and famines. These mishaps are not to destroy but to
create hardships for people so that they realize that they are not the masters of the
affairs of the world. Rather, the affairs of the world are in the hands of Allaah. All
good and bad people equally suffer in such mishaps. These hardships bring humility to
all good-hearted people and they become more open to listening to the prophet. This
maximizes the effectiveness of the work of a prophet and helps the maximum number
of people attain salvation by listening to the prophet and reforming themselves. As the
mishaps are meant only to warn, not to annihilate, they soon pass and life goes back to
normal conditions in which the community prospers and grows in affluence. The hard-
hearted people who did not ameliorate because of hardships, they become even more
arrogant in their opposition to the prophet, claiming that the hardships were natural
cycles of good times and bad times, which have nothing to do with the prophet and his
mission. Then, ultimately they have to be destroyed. As against the warning hardships
that affect everyone, this disaster destroys only the disbelievers. The believers are
saved, so that the human society becomes once again fully reformed, consisting purely
of believers, functioning under pure and complete Islamic system.
94
Never have We sent a prophet to a township but We did afflict its people
with financial and physical sufferings that they might grow humble to listen to
the prophet. 95 Then We changed their suffering into prosperity, until they grew
affluent and began to say, “These are natural cycles. Even our fathers
experienced bad times and good times.” Then We took them by surprise while
they did not even realize.

There was an important and timely lesson for Makkan in this statement. According to
reports from „Abdullaah Ibn Mas„ood and „Abdullaah Ibn „Abbas, when Makkans‟
opposition to the mission of the Prophet ŜA„WS had grown extremely strong, he
prayed to Allaah to help with a famine like that experienced by people of Egypt during
the time of Yousuf (Joseph) („AS). Consequently, Makkan faced a famine worse than
they had ever faced in their history. Finally their leaders came to the prophet and
requested him to pray to Allaah for the removal of that hardship. When he prayed and
the hardship was removed, the opponents became even more arrogant and severe in
their opposition. They claimed that it was just a natural cycle, having nothing to do
with the Prophet and his supplications.
To a disbeliever, it may appear that the disasters that destroyed the nations whose
examples have been quoted were random acts of nature. That is not the reality. Had
those people listened to their messengers and reformed their lifestyles accordingly,
they would not have been destroyed. Rather they would have enjoyed good life.
96
If the people of the townships had believed and adopted Taqwa, We would
certainly have opened up for them blessings from the heaven and the earth. But
they rejected the prophets, so We seized them for what they used to earn.

It should be noted that Islamic faith and Taqwa bring success and prosperity not only
in the Hereafter, but also in this world. The fact is that the human society can fully
flourish and prosper only under Islamic lifestyle of Taqwa.
97
Did the people of the townships feel secure against the coming of Our wrath
by night while they were asleep? 98 Or did they feel secure against its coming
in broad daylight while they played about? 99 Did they then feel secure against
the secret plan of Allaah? But none feels secure from Allaah's plan except the
loser people.

These were serious points of reflection for Makkans. They were happily going about
their daily chores of life as if there is no danger just as the nations destroyed before
them behaved. Allaah‟s plan is termed secret because no one knows that it is about to
occur, until it strikes.

One would assume that the prudent people would learn lessons from the history of
their predecessors, but unfortunately people do not. And that was exactly Makkans
case as well.
100
Do those who inherit the earth after its former residents not learn the lesson
that, if We so willed, We could punish them too for their sins? When they fail
to do so, We seal up their hearts so that they cannot hear. 101 These townships
about which We relate to you some of their stories are examples of previous
people to whom their messengers certainly came with clear, evident signs; but
they would not believe in what they rejected at first. Thus does Allaah seal up
the hearts of disbelievers.

One reason that stops people from learning lessons from history and from accepting
the clear and evident signs presented by the messengers is that their hearts are sealed
and their minds are closed. The way the end up sealing their hearts and closing their
minds is that they initially reject the message of a prophet because of their personal
reasons, their prejudices, their expediencies, etc. But once they reject it, they continue
to justify their rejection and digging themselves deeper and deeper in their ruts until
they lose any willingness, inclination or aptitude to listen, objectively analyze or even
understand the facts presented to them. Allaah SWT attributes this sealing to Himself
because it occurs as a result of the laws of human nature that He promulgated.
Describing it this way also may jolt someone to want to come out of this disfavour
from Allaah and he may start opening his mind. This may lead to his accepting the
guidance.

When people face hardships and they approach the messenger to pray to Allaah to
remove the hardship, they usually promise that if the hardship is removed they would
become the believers. However, when hardship is removed, they go back on their
words and become even more hardened opponents. Such behaviour is a sure evidence
indicating the one‟s heart is totally sealed and minds is tightly shut.
102
We did not find most of them true to their covenant; rather We did find
most of them to be the violators.

The covenant referred to here is the covenant they make to Allaah and/or to the
prophet that if the hardship is removed, they would accept the guidance. That is what
Makkans had done. They came to the prophet to pray for the removal of the famine,
but then turned back on their words.

With the help of examples of previous nations, from the nation of Nooĥ to the nation
of Shu„ayb, the previous section clearly laid down the way Allaah deals with people
who reject a messenger. The next section is a long one that concisely describes the
whole history of Banee Israaeel from the advent of Moosa (Moses) onwards. The
purpose is fourfold:

Firstly, to show the Quraish a clear and complete picture of how a messenger starts his
mission, what kind of games the messenger's opponents play, how initially the
opponents seem to succeed and how they are finally destroyed. This is giving the
Quraish another chance to see the reflection of their own behaviour and reform
themselves before they suffer the inevitable consequences.

Secondly, it is to show the sincere believers that after suffering their share of
hardships, they are destined to succeed, despite the apparent resourcefulness and
initial upper hand of the disbelievers.
Thirdly, Banee Israaeel have been shown the mirror of their own history to warn them
to accept and follow the Messenger ŜA„WS and not react as the Egyptians reacted to
Moosa („AS), otherwise they will end up suffering the same consequences.

Fourthly, the Muslims have been warned to avoid repeating Banee Israaeel‟s attitude
towards Islam after receiving the guidance if they want to avoid the anger and curse of
Allaah, which the Israelites suffered. These purposes are summarily mentioned in one
concise statement “See then, what was the end of the trouble-makers!”
103
Then after themi, We sent Moosa (Moses) with Our signs to Fir„own
(Pharaoh) and his eminent courtiers, but they rejected those signs unjustly. See
then, what was the end of the trouble-makers! 104 Moosa said: "O Fir„own! I
am a messenger from the Lord of the universe. 105 It is only right for me to say
nothing but truth about Allaah. I have come to you indeed with a clear proof
from your Lord, therefore, send with me the children of Israel. 106 Fir„own
(Pharaoh) said, “If you have come with a sign, then show it if you are truthful.”
107
So Moosa tossed his staff down, and lo! it became a clearly living serpent!
108
And he drew out his hand, and behold! it was shining brightly for the
observers.

Fir„own (Pharaoh) was the title of the kings of Egypt. Each Fir„own claimed to be the
incarnation of the Egyptian sun god who was considered the supreme of all gods and
the creator. The crown of Fir„own was overlaid with a Uraeus - a stylized upright
cobra that was considered a symbol of sovereignty, royalty and divine authority. It
was thought that the Uraeus protected the king by spitting fire at evil forces. Even the
picture of Ra‟, their supreme god, included at the top a sun disk surrounded by the
cobra (Uraeus) protecting it. Thus, the sun and the snake were the two most important
gods and symbols of power that were worshipped and adored in Egypt and that were
considered to be the sources of power and legitimacy for each Fir„own. The sun God
was considered to have vast magical powers with which he created other things. Thus,
Egyptian society was infatuated with magic and expertise in magic was highly
regarded.

The “signs” refer to the miracles that Allaah SWT had bestowed upon Moosa to
witness that he is His representative. The miracles that Allaah bestows to His
messengers as proofs of their truthfulness in their claim are tailored according to the

i
The messengers and their nations mentioned in the earlier paragraphs.
society they are sent to. Miracles pertain to whatever area of expertise is considered
impressive in the society and they clearly supersede and outperform whatever is
humanly possible. In this case, it was the demonstration of magical powers. The two
signs given to Moosa („AS) pertained to the two symbols of divinity, power and
authority – the sun and the snake, whereupon his hand would shine brightly like the
sun and his staff would transform into a living serpent. The demonstration of these
signs not only proved his being a representative of Allaah but also gave a clear
message to Fir„own and his eminent courtiers that the one worthy of worship and the
source of all power and authority is only the Creator who created the sun and the
snake and Who can bring them into being any time from any material whenever and
wherever He wants.

They rejected the signs absolutely unjustly and regarded them as magic while they
knew that such feats were not possible through magic and their own magicians had
testified that they were not magic.

Moosa („AS) did not merely present the signs, but explained the Islamic beliefs and
invited them to become Muslim and purify themselves from Kufr, Shirk, tyranny and
injustice. His claim to messenger-hood and all of his Islamic message is alluded to in
the phrase “It is only right for me to say nothing but truth about Allaah.” Some aspects
of its message are described in other places in the Qur-aan; however, the details of
Moosa‟s message are to be understood from the standard message which all
messengers of Allaah give to their people. As the ultimate conciseness of the Qur-aan,
here only a special aspect of the message “send with me the children of Israel” has
been mentioned.

Because of the long period of time that Israelites had spent as slaves, they had lost the
sense of how free and liberated people behave. Being led and told what to do, they - as
a community - lacked the sense of playing a leadership role in the society. It was not
possible to train them in the qualities of the liberated and in traits of leadership while
they continued to live in Egypt as slaves. They were also dispersed among various
townships. Hence Moosa wanted to gather them and take them out of their townships
into the wilderness to let them experience, understand and aspire liberty and put them
through leadership training.

Obviously, Fir„own refused to accept him as a messenger of Allaah and to let the
Israelites escape from slavery. The miracles, however, made Fir„own and his courtiers
feel their authority and rule over land were threatened. This was for two reasons:
Firstly, a messenger of Allaah must be obeyed by everyone, thus by virtue of his being
a messenger, he displaces any king or existing structures of authority. Secondly, the
display of miracles by Moosa („AS) in itself deprived them from legitimacy to rule. In
their minds and their public‟s minds, legitimacy to govern emanated from the lifeless
images of sun and snake gods. Moosa („AS) had displayed the possession of both of
these things in their physical and living form, thus depriving Fir„own and his courtiers
of the right to govern. For these reasons, they immediately concluded that Moosa
wanted to take over the authority and throw them out of the land.
109
The eminent ones from the people of Fir„own said to each other, “This is
some learned magician. 110 He wants to drive you out of your land; so what do
you suggest?” 111 Then they suggested, “Put him and his brother off, and send
recruiters out through the cities 112 to bring to you every learned magician.”

When a messenger presents his claim of being a representative of Allaah and presents
miracles in support of his claim, the initial reactions of those in power is of utter
disbelief. They reject his claim although the miracles are evidently and undoubtedly
beyond human power. They try to find a reason to discredit the claim. Usually, the
people surrounding an authority figure are the ones who suggest some “plausible”
sounding excuses to reject a messenger‟s claim. Also, usually, a messenger is regarded
as crazy and/or a magician: crazy because of their inability to understand how a
normal person can make such a claim as being representative of Allaah SWT; and
magician because of their physical miracles and because of the efficacy of their
message that keeps effectively sinking into people‟s hearts. In this case, they thought
that Moosa can safely be regarded as a magician and even discredited by a
competition with top magicians of their kingdom. Thus they summoned all the famous
and celebrated master magicians of the country to come and compete in their magic
with Moosa („AS). A public competition was announced to take place at one of their
biggest country fairs where thousands of people could witness them compete.
113
The magicians came to Fir„own and enquired, “Shall we have some suitable
reward if we are the winners?” 114 He said, “Yes, and you will certainly be
included among the closest courtiers.” 115 (A public competition was
announced and at the time of competition) The magicians asked, “O Moosa,
are you throwing first or are we going to be the first throwers?” 116 Moosa
said, “You throw!” When they threw (their sticks and cords), they charmed
people‟s eyes and frightened them, and produced a mighty spell. 117 We
instructed Moosa through waĥy (revelation), “Cast your staff.” As soon as he
did so, it swallowed up what they were falsifying through their spell. 118 So the
Truth was established and what magicians were doing collapsed. 119 Thus
Fir„own and his people were defeated right there and ended up belittled. 120
The magicians fell down in prostration. 121 They said, “We believe in the Lord
of the universe, 122 the Lord of Moosa and Haaroon (Aaron).
The magicians being the celebrated masters of their craft were quite sure to win
because it was unimaginable that anyone in that kingdom would have the skills to
surpass their skills. Hence they took a commitment from Fir„own for huge rewards.
At the time of the competition, with Fir„own and his courtiers and thousands of people
watching, they gave Moosa the option of starting. Moosa („AS) took this opportunity
to invite them and the audience to Islam, but let them take the lead. They threw sticks
and cords, and with their spell, they all appeared to the audience as if they were
snakes. It should be noted here that the magic does not change the nature of the
objects, but merely affects the human perception causing some illusionary appearance
of those objects. Then Moosa threw his staff and it actually became a snake moving
around freely among the magical snakes. As it would approach those magical
(illusionary) snakes, it would swallow their magical appearance and nullify the magic
spell, making them re-appear in their natural form as cords or sticks. Seeing this, the
magicians realized that they were not up against a magician. His staff did not merely
appear like a snake but really became a living snake that moved around and behaved
like a real python. He truly was a representative of God, otherwise he could not have
created a real snake out of wood and he could not have nullified their magic. Upon
this realization, they could not help but believe in Moosa as the messenger of Allaah
and could not hold themselves from prostrating to Allaah SWT, the Lord of Moosa
and Haaroon.

Fir„own, who was hoping to discredit Moosa, was himself humiliated on this defeat.
He became furious and took out his anger on the magicians.
123
Fir„own said, “You believed in him before I gave you permission! Surely
this is a plot that you have secretly devised in this city, to drive out its people,
but soon shall you know (the consequences). 124 I will certainly cut off your
hands and your feet on opposite sides, then will I crucify you all together.” 125
They responded, “Indeed to our Lord we will be returning anyway. 126 You are
persecuting us only because we have believed in the signs of our Lord when
they came to us! Our Lord, pour out on us steadfastness and ensure that we die
as Muslims!

This incident would have started a huge conversion to Islam by Egyptians and
tremendous success to the Islamic mission of Moosa („AS). For damage control, on
the one hand, Fir„own discredited the competition by claiming that it was a set up
between the magicians and Moosa who he claimed to be their guru and master
magician. On the other hand, he threatened the magicians with dire consequences for
their acceptance of Islam. The beauty of Islamic faith is that once a person consciously
and truly accepts it, he becomes liberated from all fears and worries. For the ultimate
and eternal success with Allaah in the hereafter, he is willing to face any consequence
in the temporary life of this world. Thus the magicians took Fir„own‟s threats in stride
and refused to go back from the truth they had sincerely discovered.

It should be noted that during all this time from the initial presentation to Fir„own and
his courtiers to the time of this competition, Moosa („AS) was clearly presenting and
propagating his message of Islam so much so that Fir„own, his courtiers and the public
at large knew exactly what the Islamic beliefs were that Moosa („AS) was inviting
everyone to. That is why the magicians knew exactly what was Islamically required of
them, as soon as the truth became evident to them.

Once the truth became evident, one would expect Fir„own and his courtiers to accept
it. That, however, does not usually happen. It is difficult for those in power to yield to
the truth. Rather, they want to preserve their self-interest by opposing the truth
through lies and through killing, torture and persecution, while using propaganda
techniques to make the world believe that they are doing it for the best interest of
humanity. That is why Fir„own instantly fabricated the lie that the magicians were in
collusion with Moosa („AS) to destroy the great Egyptian civilization, their values and
their fantastic lifestyle. The good people who stand up for the truth are regarded as
trouble makers and enemies of the civilized society. This trick was used by the
arrogant powers of every era, is used today and will continue to be used until the Day
of Judgment.

Thus, the hawks of Fir„own‟s court urged him to do something about Moosa and his
followers.
127
The eminent ones from the people of Fir„own said, “Are you going to leave
Moosa and his people to cause problems in the country and to abandon you and
your gods?” He replied, “We will kill their sons and spare their women, and we
are strongly dominant over them.”

Although Fir„own was also regarded as a god and a living representative, son and
incarnation of Egyptian gods such as Ra‟, Horus and Isiris, the Egyptians had a host of
additional mythical gods that they used to worship.

Fir„own assured them that he would keep them under control by keeping their male
population down by killing their boys, without losing the slave labour on which
Egyptian society was quite dependent. This technique was used in the past, but could
once again be used more aggressively and effectively.
The Islamic goals of submitting only to Allaah, the only Creator and God, and
establishing justice and peace in the society require a steadfast struggle against the evil
of the existing powers, enduring hardships at the hands of those evil powers and
making sacrifices on the way. When believers continue to persevere despite all the
difficulties and persecution, the final success is theirs with the help of Allaah. Thus
Moosa („AS) advised people to excel in their Taqwa and submission to Allaah and
remain steadfast.

128
While Moosa advised his people, “Seek Allaah‟s help and be steadfast.
Surely the land belongs to Allaah, He makes whoever He wants from His
slaves inherit it. The success at the end is for those who maintain Taqwa.” 129
They complained, “We were persecuted before you came to us and even now
after you have come to us.” He responded, “It is possible that your Lord may
destroy your enemy and make you successors in the land, then see how you
behave.”

However, the Israelites did not understand the natural course of the Islamic struggle
and hoped that, being on the right and with the messenger of Allaah, they should be
able to attain their objectives without suffering pain. Thus they complained to Moosa
(„AS). He explained to them the process of Islamic revolution which would culminate
in their success if they remained steadfast and true to their Islamic objectives. Once
they came into power, then Allaah would be watching them to see if they remained
true to the Islamic objectives of establishing justice and peace in the society or if they
became corrupt like the others.

To help Moosa („AS) and the Israelites in the struggle, Allaah SWT provided them
with miraculous help again and again. The Egyptians were inflicted with droughts
and plagues to force them to let the Israelites go.
130
We gripped Fir„own‟s folk with years of droughts and shortage of harvest
so that they may come to their senses. 131 When good times came, they would
say, “We deserved it.” When gripped by calamity, they ascribed it to evil
omens in Moosa and his companions. Behold! In reality their evil fortune was
only from Allaah but most of them did not realize. 132 And they said, “No
matter what sign you bring us to bewitch us, we shall never believe in you.” 133
We sent upon them the storm, the locusts, the lice, the frogs and the blood – as
134
distinct signs, but they showed arrogance and were criminal people.
Every time one of these plagues descended upon them, they said, “O Moosa,
utilizing the close relationship you have, appeal to your Lord for us. If you
remove this plague from us, we will certainly believe in you and we will
certainly send the Israelites away with you. 135 But when We removed the
plague from them till a term which they should reach, they broke their
commitment. 136 Therefore, We inflicted retribution on them and drowned
them in the sea because they had rejected Our signs and been so heedless of
them. 137 And We caused the people who were subjugated to inherit both the
east and west of the land which We had blessed. The good word of your Lord
was fulfilled for the children of Israel because they were patient; and We
destroyed what Fir„own and his people had been constructing (building) and
trellising (vines).

When everything was tried and all means were exhausted, but nothing worked, Moosa
(„AS) was commanded to take the Israelites out. Fir„own and his armies who chased
them were destroyed by drowning in the sea. Even their buildings and their gardens
full of trellised grape vines were destroyed by natural causes. The Israelites were set
free to establish their own independent Islamic state to establish the Islamic system of
justice and peace and to spread it to the rest of the world.

Now that Israelites have been saved and taken safely across the sea, their story continues.

138
We took the Children of Israel safely across the sea. When they came upon
a people who were completely devoted to their idols, they said, “Moosa, make
for us a god-like the gods they have.” He said, “You certainly are ignorantly
behaving people! 139 What these people are engaged in is indeed doomed and
whatever they are doing is in vain.” 140 He asked, “Shall I seek for you a god
other than Allaah while He has preferred you over all nations? 141 (Allaah
asks), „Did you forget so quickly when We rescued you from Fir„own‟s people
who subjected you to the worst of torments, slaughtering your sons and sparing
your women?‟ In that was a great trial from your Lord.”
The Israelites were supposed to be believers in Allaah, knowing that He is infinite, having no
finite shape or form and that it is blasphemous and sacrilegious to associate any finite physical
thing to Him. They had witnessed His power and glory in the miracles shown through Moosa
(„AS). They had just observed how He had parted the sea to save them and drown the Fir„own.
They should have been profusely thanking Allaah SWT for saving them from persecution,
torture and miserable life of slavery and His tremendous mercy and kindness to them. But
instead, they could not be content worshipping and obeying Him without having Him
physically in front of them. Like the idolaters, they wanted to have a physical idol to worship.
They had become so used to idolatry by living under the subjugation of Egyptian idolaters that
they could not abandon the ways of their old masters. Without realizing, they had internalized
adopted the absurd behaviour of their masters due to a long time of tolerating and accepting it.
This is a result of abandoning the Islamic duty of Nahi „anil munkar – forbidding evil.
Muslims must perform their duty of stopping bad behaviour by using their authority or
criticizing it using their communication skills, whenever they see it occurring. However, when
they are weak in a society, they may have to contend with abhorring it mentally. If they do not
even feel mental anguish on observing bad behaviour, it is a sign that evil is now being
tolerated. From tolerance, it then slowly develops into acceptance. That is when people do not
see anything wrong with that kind of behaviour. When that happens, even something as terrible
as worshipping idols is easily justified by the notion that it is not the stone that is being
worshipped. The idol is only a symbol of the God. The people who justify an evil, indulge in it
as well. That is what had happened to Israelites and it can happen to any people. That is why it
needs to be seriously reflected upon by the Muslims living under strong influence of a non-
Islamic society, especially those who tolerate, accept and even justify the practices of non-
Muslims.

The Israelites were brought out of their poisonous environment so that they could be healed
from the psychological diseases they were suffering from and so that they could be trained in
proper Islamic behaviour. Hence, Moosa („AS) explained to them the absurdity of their desire
and educated them in proper Islamic attitude.

The liberated Israelites now needed to establish their society according to Islamic system of
justice and peace. To provide guidance for that purpose, Allaah SWT summoned Moosa („AS)
to come to the mountain and spend 40 days in I„tekaaf.
142
We made an appointment with Moosa for thirty nights, and completed it
with ten more; thus the term of his Lord was completed in forty nights. Before
leaving for the appointment, Moosa told his brother Haaroon, “Take my place
among my people, maintain good order, and avoid following the lead of those
who cause corruption and disorder.”

When leaving for his appointment with Allaah, Moosa did not leave Israelites without
leadership but appointed his brother Haaroon as the interim leader. It appears that Moosa („AS)
had a pretty good idea of the trouble makers in the congregation about whom he warned
Haaroon not to follow their lead. He advised Haaroon to guard against their mischiefs and
maintain good order.

143
And when Moosa arrived at the Our appointed time and his Lord spoke to
him, he said, “My Lord, show me yourself that I can look at You.” Allaah said,
“By no means can you see Me; however, look at the mountain, if it remains
firm in its place, then you may indirectly see Me.” When his Lord manifested
His glory on the mountain, it crushed it into dust and Moosa fell unconscious.
Then when he recovered, he said, “Exalted are You, to You I turn in
repentance, and I am the first to believe.

Moosa‟s request to see Allaah SWT reflected the natural desire of people to want to look at the
person with whom they are conversing. Allaah SWT could have simply explained to Moosa
that finite people cannot see infinite God. But in addition to explaining, Allaah SWT also
chose to give a demonstration where only a slight manifestation of Allaah‟s glory to a
mountain not only crushed the mountain into powder but also made Moosa lose his
consciousness. Thus Moosa was given a first hand experience to be able to explain to
Israelites the point effectively as they were very adamant in demanding to see Allaah SWT.
When Moosa regained his consciousness, he acknowledged the glory of Allaah SWT that He is
exalted above and beyond finite human perceptions; he apologized for and repented from
expressing such a desire and re-affirmed his faith in the infiniteness of Allaah SWT.

Then, Allaah SWT told him how he has made Moosa so special by giving him the guidance
and by talking to him directly, for which he should be grateful instead of desiring even to see
Him. Allaah SWT also explained to him how His guidance should be followed and what
happens to those who arrogantly disregard that guidance.

144
Allaah said, “O Moosa, I have chosen you over all people by appointing
you to convey My messages and through My direct conversation to you. So
take what I give to you and be among the grateful.” 145 And We inscribed
guiding principles concerning all aspects of lifestyle and their explanation from
all angles on the tablets, and told him: “Hold this guidance fast, and command
your people to follow the best of its interpretations. Soon I shall show you the
abode of the transgressors. 146 I shall divert those from My signs who behave
arrogantly on the earth, without having any right to do so – even if they see all
the signs, they will not believe in them; and if they see the way of right
conduct, they will not adopt it as their way; while if they see the way of error,
that is the way they will adopt. That is because they deny Our signs and are
used to disregarding them. 147 Those who reject Our signs and the meeting in
the Hereafter, their deeds will be fruitless. Can they expect to be recompensed
except for what they used to do?”

The Qur-aan does not clearly indicate how the inscription on the stone tablets was done.
According to the style of the Qur-aan, the words “We inscribed” can be interpreted equally in
three ways: that Allaah SWT inscribed the tablets as a miracle with His command, that an
angel was used to do so or that Moosa („AS) did so on Allaah‟s command.

A believer‟s attitude towards the guidance provided by Allaah SWT through revelation to His
messenger is that:
 He is grateful to Allaah SWT for this great mercy because guidance of Allaah SWT
gives humanity the only sure way of attaining balance, justice, peace and excellence
in human society

 He holds it fast; that is, he follows it strictly, steadfastly, enthusiastically and

carefully;
  He follows the best of its meanings or interpretations – a meaning that a reasonable
and sincere person gets from reading the words of Allaah. He does not go after hair-
splitting controversies, legalistic manipulations and compromising interpretations.

Guidance of Allaah provided through revelation is called the signs of Allaah because they lead
people to Allaah and to live the lifestyle commanded by Allaah SWT. Those people who
disregard the guidance or signs of Allaah SWT, are regarded as arrogant people because by
their attitude of disregarding or snubbing the guidance of Allaah they are implicitly claiming to
be wiser and more knowledgeable than Allaah SWT. Those who have such pride in their
abilities and such arrogance in their attitude, display the following kind of symptoms in their
behaviour:

They do not believe in the signs or guidance of Allaah SWT; rather, they want to follow their
own ways;
They fail to see the goodness in the commands of Allaah SWT and end up following
something that is evil or injurious for them and their society.

These are the people who create problems in society, destroy peace and destroy the
environment – as we see happening everywhere in the world.

After explaining the consequences of disregarding the guidance of Allaah, the story of
Moosa and his people continues. While Moosa was being given the guidance on the
mountain for the Israelites to follow, those wicked people could not resist the urge to
follow the ways of their Egyptian masters from whom they had just been liberated.
Moosa had rebuked them when they wanted a statue to worship. Now that he was
gone for a few weeks, they collected their golden jewellery and cast a calf for worship,
in accordance with the Egyptian tradition of ox worship, among many other things. A
person named Saamiriyy was an expert sculptor who was able to make this golden calf
in such a way that when air passed through it, it made a mooing sound. Haaroon („AS)
tried to stop them, but they would not listen. They disregarded his objections and
threatened to kill him if he interfered.

148
In Moosa‟s absence, his people made a calf for worship out of their
jewellery, a sculpture that gave a mooing sound. Did they not see that it could
neither speak to them, nor guide them the way? They adopted it as god and
became wrong-doers. 149 When they repented and realized that they had gone
astray, they exclaimed, “If our Lord will not have mercy upon us and forgive
us, we shall indeed be of the losers.”

Initially, many people were influenced by Saamiriyy and his companions‟ aggressive
and emotional pressure and propaganda. But soon some of them came to their senses
and realized what they had done. That is when they sought forgiveness of Allaah
SWT. The lesson to learn is that whenever someone charismatic in the community
starts or presents some new idea or practice, people should be very careful in being
swept up by the public hysteria and mass appeal. There have been very many incidents
in Muslim societies where people start blindly following a heretic or innovator in
Islamic matters, later on to realize how misleading their ideas were. This causes a lot
of damage to the Muslim community and spreads discord. Then, even after the error is
revealed and explained, many people continue to follow the misguided heretic. One of
the more recent, glaring examples has been Rashad Khalifah whose misguided theory
about the structure of the Qur-aan was even accepted and quoted by renowned
scholars, until its falsehood became evident.

Allaah SWT informed Moosa about the Fitnahi that had taken place in his absence.
Hearing this, Moosa rushed back, sad and furious for this extremely misguided,
abhorring and blasphemous behaviour.
150
And when Moosa returned to his people, angry and grieved, he said, “How
wretched is the way you have behaved in my absence. Were you impatient in
the matter of your Lord?” He put down the tablets and seized his brother by
the head, pulling him towards himself. Haaroon said, “O son of my mother,
people overpowered me and were about to kill me; so do not make enemies
laugh at me and do not count me among the wrong-doers. 151 Moosa prayed,
“My Lord! Forgive me and my brother and admit us into Your mercy, and You
are the most Merciful of the merciful ones.”

Moosa („AS) was disappointed in the performance of his brother to whom he had
delegated the leadership before leaving and had warned him that he must maintain
order and control in case some trouble makers created problems. Moosa was so
shocked at this heinous crime that he put the tablets aside and questioned his brother
while holding his head and pulling it towards him. When Haaroon („AS) explained
what had transpired and how he was overpowered and threatened, Moosa („AS)
sought Allaah‟s forgiveness and mercy for himself and his brother.

Unfortunately, the Torah and the Bible blame Haaroon („AS) for the worship of
golden calf. Allaah SWT has totally absolved him from having any part in that crime.

In the next verse, Allaah SWT warns Israelites about the consequences of their crime
unless they sincerely repent in which case they will be forgiven by the Merciful Lord.

i
The word Fitnah has been used here to indicate a serious problem arising in a Muslim community that
may lead a segment of the community astray.
152
(Allaah declared) Indeed those who adopted the calf as god will incur anger
from their Lord and humiliation in the life of the world. Thus do We
recompense the inventors of falsehood. 153 However, those who do wrong but
repent thereafter and truly believe, verily your Lord thereafter is most surely
Forgiving, Merciful.

Note that repentance is conditional on true faith. Some of the sins, such as the worship
of the calf, are such that people need to renew their faith sincerely and truly for their
repentance to be accepted.
154
Then, when Moosa's anger subsided, he picked up the tablets whose text
contained guidance and mercy for those who are fearful of their Lord.

The Qur-aan indirectly clarifies that the tablets were not broken as is alleged by the
Torah and the Bible. In normal circumstances, they would have been given the most
attention on his return to his people. But because of a critical Fitnah, they were
temporarily put aside. Once the Fitnah was dealt with, the tablets were picked up and
the message was delivered and explained to the people.

Allaah SWT summoned Moosa („AS) to bring the leaders of the community to the
mount to demonstrate their collective repentance from idolatry and to seek Allaah‟s
forgiveness. When they arrived there, Allaah SWT caused a thunderous earthquake to
hit the mountain to let them feel a slight expression of His Majesty.
155
Then, Moosa chose seventy men from his people and brought them to the
mount at Our appointed time. So when the earthquake seized them, he said,
“My Lord! If you wanted, you could have killed them and me earlier. Are you
going to kill us for a crime committed by a few fools among us? This was a
trial by which you lead astray whomever you want and guide whomever you
want. You are our Guardian; therefore, forgive us and have mercy on us; and
You are the best of the forgivers. 156 And ordain for us what is good in this
world's life and in the Hereafter. We have certainly turned to you.”

While beseeching and imploring for forgiveness and mercy, Moosa („AS) presented
two points:
  The crime was not committed by the whole community but only that section
of the community who, because of their stupidity, did not understand the
concept and demands of Towĥeed properly;

 This was one of those hard tests (Fitnah) which truly expose a community‟s
level of maturity and understanding in the matters of faith and in its
relationship with Allaah SWT. By their response to the Fitnah, those who are
properly guided are clearly identified from those who are misguided.

Allaah said, “As for My punishment, I afflict with it whom I want, while My
mercy encompasses everything. So I shall ordain that mercy for those who
maintain Taqwa and pay Zakaah, and especially for those who believe in Our
signs -- 157 those who follow the Messenger, the gentile and unlettered prophet,
whom they find mentioned in their own Torah and Gospel, who commands
them what is good and forbids them what is evil; who makes lawful for them
all decent things and disallows them what is bad and impure; and who relieves
them of their burden and the shackles which were upon them. So those who
believe in him, honour him, help him, and follow the light which has been sent
down with him, they will be the successful.”

Moosa had asked for forgiveness, mercy and goodness in this world and the Hereafter.
In response, Allaah SWT explained the way He treats people. His normal and
pervasive mode of dealing with people is that of mercy. He provides for their needs
and takes care of them mercifully; so much so, that He does not deprive people from
sustenance or from the fruits of their efforts even if they are the most rebellious or the
most vicious criminals. That is His mercy in the world. It is also only because of His
immense mercy that he forgives people who repent sincerely, regardless of the
enormity of their sins. However, He does not forgive anyone who does not repent or
seek His forgiveness or anyone who is insincere in his words of repentance. That is
His rule of punishment and mercy. The words like “whom I want” refer to the rules
Allaah SWT has Himself chosen to follow, because His “Wills” and “Wants” are
neither arbitrary, nor inconsistent.

Allaah SWT also explained that His mercy in the Hereafter will be reserved for those
who have three attributes:
 They have Taqwa – they carefully avoid anything that may displease Allaah
and eagerly do everything that pleases Him.
 They pay Zakaah – they happily pay their Zakaah for the Islamic mission,
social security and financing of the Islamic state.
 They believe in Allaah‟s signs – the Arabic style of this phrase indicates a
special emphasis on this third attribute. Allaah‟s signs usually include natural
 phenomena that upon reflection lead to the recognition of Allaah as the only
Lord, miracles shown by prophets and Allaah‟s revelations sent to the
messengers. Here the context clearly indicates that the signs refer to Allaah‟s
revelations and it was at this gathering that a covenant was taken from
Israelites that they would faithfully follow the revelations of Allaah,
particularly those which were given to them on the stone tablets and those
which informed them of the future messengers in whom they should believe
and support.

Accordingly the most deserving people of Allaah‟s mercy at the time of the revelation
of the Qur-aan were those who believed in, supported and followed Prophet
Muĥammad ŜA„WS, the Messenger of Allaah. The Arabic word used as a title for
Muĥammad the Prophet and Messenger is “Ummi.” This means “Gentile” – a person
other than the Israelites. It also means “unlettered” – the person who does not know
how to read or write. Prophet Muĥammad ŜA„WS was Ummi in both senses of the
word.

The Messenger of Allaah, Prophet Muĥammad ŜA„WS, has been mentioned at

various places in the previous books such as Torah and Gospels, so much so, that it is
a huge subject in itself. The details are available in my book “Exploring Islamic
Beliefs.”

The Messenger of Allaah, Prophet Muĥammad ŜA„WS, made it easy for the Israelites
in three major ways to become deserving of Allaah‟s mercy:

1. In an Islamic society, Muslims are very sensitive about their overall

environment. They do not tolerate evil among them. As soon as they see it
raising its ugly head, they nip it in the bud. They appreciate goodness and
encourage and promote it. Thus, a good environment flourishes in an Islamic
society and bad behaviour fails to take root, leaving the society clean and
pure. Over time, the Israelite society had lost its ability to promote good and
to discourage bad behaviour amongst themselves. Evil was tolerated, while
goodness was not appreciated or encouraged. This was increasing corruption
in the society. Prophet Muĥammad ŜA„WS re-introduced the basic Islamic
values of enjoining good and forbidding evil to keep the society clean.

2. A basic Islamic principle is that people should consume what Allaah has
regarded as good, clean and pure, while they should avoid what He has
declared to be unclean and bad. When society degenerates, people do not pay
much attention to what is Islamically clean or unclean. They, rather, go more
 by their customs and traditions, regardless of how baseless or ill-advised those
customs or traditions might be. The Messenger of Allaah advised them and
identified for them what is clean and unclean so that they could enjoy the
good things and save themselves from unclean.

3. Islam is a straightforward religion which gives basic principles and guidelines

to live by, main goals to achieve and major rules to abide by. Overtime, the
religious authorities (Rabbis and Muftis) create a web of intricate rules and
regulations resulting from their hairsplitting analysis in their efforts to devise
verdicts for different situations, which are further over-burdened by customs
and traditions of the society and by the exaggerated importance being given to
unimportant matters by people. All this adds up to put too many burdens and
restrictions over people and makes it extremely difficult to live by all those
rules. A few who try to live by them live in too much difficulty. But most of
them, not being able to differentiate between the core principles and added
burdens, usually abandon the important core principles and guidelines. The
Prophet removed those man-made burdens, identifying and emphasizing only
basic and simple Islamic teachings, making it easy for people to practise
Islam.

So, in summary, the mention of Allaah‟s mercy in verse 156 brought up the point that
the most deserving of Allaah‟s mercy are the Israelites who follow the Messenger of
Allaah, which segued into highlighting how the teachings of the Prophet make it even
easier for them to attain that mercy. This provides an appropriate opportunity to call
them directly to become Muslims.
158
Say, “O people! surely I am the Messenger of Allaah to you all, of Him
Whose is the kingdom of the heavens and the earth, there is no god but He; He
brings to life and causes to die; therefore believe in Allaah and His Messenger,
the gentile and unlettered Prophet who believes in Allaah and His words, and
follow him so that you attain guidance.”

Thus the Israelites have also been told that those of them who fail to believe in the
Prophet will remain misguided, undeserving of Allaah‟s mercy.

After these parenthetical remarks, before moving back to the story of Moosa and his
people in verse 160, an acknowledgement has been made in the next verse:
159
And among Moosa's people was a section who was guided by the truth, and
by it established justice.
It is a very important feature of the Qur-aan that whenever Allaah SWT mentions the
evil actions of any group of people, it always makes a special point to acknowledge,
praise and appreciate those who do their best to avoid the evils described.
Accordingly, the Israelites who avoided worshipping the idol and those who continued
to live by pure Islamic teachings of fairness, justice and excellence are being
recognized and acknowledged.

Once the Israelites repented and took the covenant to firmly hold and strictly follow
the revelations of Allaah, their repentance was accepted. To ensure that in future all
Israelites maintain the order among their ranks and follow the Islamic teachings
properly without giving any trouble maker a chance to misguide them, they were
organized into twelve organizational units based on their clan structure. The head of
each clan was accountable to ensure proper order and Islamic practice in his clan. The
next section briefly mentions this regimentation of Israelites and other stupendous
favours Allaah conferred upon them to ensure their survival in the desert.
160
We divided them into twelve clan-based communities. When his people
implored him for water, We revealed to Moosa, “Strike the rock with your
staff”; and twelve springs gushed forth therefrom. Each community identified
its watering place. In addition, We made the clouds to provide shade over them
and We sent to them manna and salwai and told them, “Eat of the good things
We have provided for you.” However, they were ungrateful and in doing so,
they did not wrong Us, but they were wronging themselves.

Just imagine the greatness of Allaah‟s mercy on those more than a million Israelitesii
in a desert where they had neither any source of food, nor water, nor any means of
shelter from the scorching sun. As mentioned earlier, they were brought to the desert
to provide them an opportunity to train themselves in personal Islamic excellence and
in the traits of free people, including their leadership capabilities. After their
orientation and training, they were supposed to form an Islamic state for establishing
Islamic system of justice, peace and excellence in all surrounding areas. Hence, they
were commanded to take over a city, enter into it with an attitude of humility and
forgiveness, being kind to its residents, and seeking forgiveness of Allaah.

i
Manna literally means special favour. It was called a special favour because it was extraordinarily
provided as food. It would come down like dew but dried to become like grain. Salwa was a quail-like
bird which came to their encampment in the thousands and was easily caught. Between these two items,
all their nutritional needs were met.
ii
The number of men excluding women and children was 600,000 (Exodus 12:37). Also, the adults 20
and over who could serve in the army of Israel were counted to be 603,550, (Numbers 1:44).
161
And remember when it was said to them, “Take up residence in this town,
consume its produce as you like, repent continually, and enter the gate in a
posture of humility, We shall forgive you your faults and We shall increase
rewards for those who excel. 162 But those who were unjust among them
changed it to a statement other than that which they were told, so We sent upon
them a punishment from heaven because of the wrongs they were doing.

Human beings do make mistakes. Even the most sincere and dedicated believers
sometimes slip and err. That is why Allaah SWT does not expect any person to be
perfect, but He wants everyone to try his best to excel. He, the Merciful, forgives the
errors and mistakes a person makes as long as he continues to strive to do better. If a
person tries to excel, Allaah SWT grants him more rewards than he deserves. But
those who disregard His teachings face His severe punishment.

The next few verses describe a specific incident of the disobedience of the Israelites
and its consequences. Saturday (from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday) was
designated as the Sabbath day for the Jews. They were not allowed to do any work,
light fire, cook meals, do any worldly activity or have any animals or servants do any
activity for them. The day was supposed to be spent only in the remembrance and
worship of Allaah SWT. This was such an important command that the violators were
supposed to be punished by deathi. The incident describes how Allaah dealt with
people when Sabbath was violated.

This incident is currently not found in the Biblical or Jewish literature. However, the
way the Prophet was told to ask the Jews about this incident indicates that it was well
known among the Jews at the time of the Prophet. Its common knowledge among
them is further confirmed by the fact that not a single Jewish enemy of Islam raised
any objection to the narration of this incident.
163
And ask them about the town that was by the sea when they violated the
limits of the Sabbath -- when their fish came to them on the day of their
Sabbath, appearing on the surface of the water, and on the day they had no
Sabbath, they did not come to them. Thus did We test them because they were
defiantly disobedient. 164 And when a group of them said, “Why do you
admonish a people whom Allaah is to destroy or punish with a severe
punishment?” They responded, “To be absolved before your Lord and perhaps
they may save themselves from His wrath.”

i
Exodus 31:14
It shows that when people are given to disobedience, Allaah SWT tests them by
making the circumstances more attractive and alluring for them.

It should be noted that the whole community was not involved in the violation of the
Sabbath. Rather the community was divided into three kinds of people. There were
those who violated the Sabbath. There were those who were actively engaged in
admonishing them not to do so. And then there were those who were neither involved
in the violation nor in the efforts to stop the violators. They believed in minding only
their own business.

It is important to reflect on the dynamics that occur among the three groups when a
sinful activity takes place in a society. Regardless of how tactfully and nicely the
violators are admonished, they do not appreciate being told that they are doing
something wrong and that they should stop doing so. They always react negatively to
such admonition, complain about and even attack the admonishers, thus causing
friction in the society. The “mind-your-own-business” or so called “neutral” people
always put pressure on the wrong side. Instead of telling the wrong doers that they are
wrong, they always put pressure on the admonishers to ignore their behaviour, avoid
disrespect and attacks from the violators and mind their own business. Their argument
usually revolves around the idea that the violation is between the violators and Allaah
Who will Himself deal with those violators. They give this advice to the admonishers
in the spirit of wishing well for them.

In this instance, the admonishers responded very beautifully to their “neutral” well-
wishers. Their response explained the whole philosophy of admonition and its
purpose. It is a crucial Islamic duty of a believer to stop or discourage an evil
behaviour. By admonishing the violators, they are doing their duty. Even if the
violators do not listen, the admonishers will be absolved in the sight of Allaah that
they did their best to stop the evil. On the other hand, if the violators do listen, shun
the violation and repent, the purpose of admonition will be served and the ex-violators
will be saved from the wrath of Allaah.

It also indicates that as long as a violation of Allaah‟s command continues, the

admonition must also continue. A believer can never stop advising against a Munkar
(bad behaviour) thinking that enough has been said and done; now we should leave
them to face the consequences of their actions from Allaah. Admonition must continue
until either the bad behaviour stops or a person dies while doing his job of admonition,
even if it seems to be falling flat and being totally ineffective. Only then is a believer‟s
duty of Nahy „Anil Munkar (forbidding evil) truly fulfilled.
165
So when they forgot what they had been reminded of, We rescued those
who forbade evil and seized wrong-doers with a grievous punishment because
they were disobeying defiantly. 166 When they were insolent about what they
had been prohibited from, We said to them, “Be you apes, despised and
loathed!”

When the punishment of Allaah comes, there are only two groups of people: those
who are saved from the punishment and those who are subjected to the punishment.
There is no third category of people. The verse is very clear that the only people who
were saved from Allaah‟s punishment were those who were actively admonishing to
stop the violation of the Sabbath, indicating that the other two groups – the violators
as well as the neutrals were both considered to be the wrong-doers, the first one for
violating and second one for tolerating the violation without doing anything to stop it,
and both were subjected to the grievous punishment. This is the same consequence
that has been mentioned in the verse 25 of Al-Anfaal where Allaah SWT warned
people to save themselves from punishment that will not be confined only to the
wrong-doers. The Prophet ŜA„WS explained, “Allaah does not punish the general
public for the crimes of specific people, unless people see something bad happening in
front of their eyes, and they are capable of expressing their disapproval but they do not
do so. When that happens, Allaah SWT punishes all specific people as well as the
general public.”

Punishing the violators of Sabbath by turning them into apes is a fitting punishment
for that disobedience. The difference between a human being and an ape essentially
boils down to one matter: Human beings have the capacity to determine if an action is
good or bad and if they should do it or not. Apes do not have that capacity; their
behaviour is pre-programmed by instincts. If human beings are not going to use that
faculty to do the right things, they might as well be made monkeys.

The next few verses make the final comments on the Israelites‟ condition that is
characterized by their continued neglect of their covenant with Allaah and their
commitment to fully implement the provisions of the Book in their society as an
Ummah in an organized manner. Prophets after prophets were sent to remind them of
their responsibilities and to warn them of the consequences of not doing their job. In
particular, prophets such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, David and Jesus warned them clearly
and strongly that their enemies will be imposed over them and they will be scattered
around the world.

167
And remember when your Lord declared that He would certainly keep
imposing upon them to the Day of Resurrection those who would subject them
to severe persecution. Certainly your Lord is prompt in retribution, while He
definitely is also Forgiving, Merciful. 168 And We split them into different
nations throughout the earth. Some of them are good while some are otherwise.
And We tried them through both prosperity and adversity that they might
repent. 169 The generations coming after them who inherited the Book go after
the disallowed gains of this world while claiming “It will be forgiven for us.”
When a similar opportunity for improper gain arises, they grab it again. Was
not the covenant concerning the Book taken from them that they would not
ascribe to Allaah anything but the truth -- and they have studied what is therein
-- and that the home in the Hereafter was better for those who have Taqwa? Do
you not then understand? 170 And that those who hold fast by the Book and
establish Ŝalaah, never shall We let the reward of the reformers go to waste?
171
Do they not remember when We suspended the mountain over them as if it
were a canopy, and they thought that it was going to fall down upon them, and
We told them, “Hold firmly to the Book that We have given you and be
mindful of what is in it, so that you may avoid Allaah‟s displeasure”?

Reflecting upon these verses brings out the following points:

 A covenant was made with them that if they hold the Book firmly,
remembering its teachings and running all their individual and collective
affairs accordingly and implementing its system of justice and excellence in
their society through the establishment of Ŝalaah, they will be rewarded
graciously with successes in this life and in the Hereafter. Otherwise they will
not be able to avoid Allaah‟s displeasure and wrath. To attain these goals and
objectives, they may have to sacrifice their immediate worldly interests,
knowing that they will be better rewarded for their sacrifices in the Hereafter.

 To impress upon them the seriousness of the covenant and the power and
Majesty of Allaah SWT, when the covenant was being made, such
circumstances were created that it appeared that the mountain would fall over
them.

 Although the Israelites always had some good people who tried to please
Allaah by doing their job, as an Ummah they continually failed to abide by
their covenant. They preferred the gains, benefits and expediencies of this
world over fulfilling their responsibilities to establish Islamic systems as
prescribed by the Book. While committing this crime, they continued thinking
that they will be forgiven by Allaah because they believe in Him and they are
His favourites. Whenever there was a clash between the demands of faith and
the expediencies of the world, the world always won. They would not make
 any worldly sacrifices for their success in the Hereafter. Hence they never
succeeded in doing their Islamic duty and they incurred the wrath and curse of
Allaah SWT. He declared that their enemies would be imposed upon them and
consequently, every now and then, their enemies took over them, persecuting
them, destroying their neighbourhoods and their houses of worship and
splitting them into different nations all over the world.

Finally, with the advent of the Prophet Muĥammad, their covenant was abolished and
it was established with the Muslim Ummah. Unfortunately, the Muslim Ummah has
followed their footsteps and is suffering the same consequences. The only way
Muslims are going to get out of their current conditions is by fulfilling their
responsibility under the covenant, sacrificing their world for it and re-establishing the
Islamic system of justice, peace and excellence in the world.
The previous section mentioned the covenant that was made with the Israelites, the
rewards of fulfilling it and the consequences of breaking it. The next three verses talk
about a covenant that was taken from the whole of humanity, every human being, and
the implications of that covenant. This covenant was taken when Adam was created,
the angels bowed to him and he was delegated dominion over other creations as the
vicegerent of Allaah. At that time, the souls of all human beings that were to be born
until Doomsday were gathered and asked to witness the fact that Allaah is their Lord.

172
And mention when your Lord took from the children of Adam, from their
loins, their descendants and made them testify concerning themselves by
asking, “Am I not your Lord?” They responded, “Of course you are, and we do
testify!” This We did lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection, “We
were indeed unaware of this.” 173 Or lest ye should say, “It was really our
forefathers who practised Shirk before us, and we were just their descendents
who followed them. Then would you destroy us for what was done by those
who practised falsehood?”

Some people are of the opinion that these verses are allegorically describing the fact
that believing in one God is built into human nature. But the style of the verse and
words used to describe it clearly imply an actual, factual incident, not an allegory.
Thus, most of the reputed scholars believe that the event actually happened as
described here. Nothing like this is beyond the power and authority of Allaah SWT.
However, this incident is one of those that are beyond human understanding. Our
finite minds cannot comprehend or visualize how it could be done; hence, we should
not try to speculate about the manner, mode or form in which it may have happened.

Because of this acknowledgment and witness, every human being is expected to

believe in Allaah regardless of when or where a person is born. This spiritual human
experience is in itself enough to hold people accountable if they do not believe in
Allaah. No one can plead ignorance about Allaah being the Lord; nor can anyone
claim that their parents, family and society were steeped into idolatry and thus they
had no way of realizing that they were expected to believe solely in one God. No one
will be able to escape punishment for his or her Shirk just because they were
following their predecessors. They should have listened to their inner voice, used their
intellect to think rationally and avoided Shirk.

People may ask how they can be held responsible on the basis of an acknowledgment
which they do not even remember. The fact is that the event could not have been
ingrained into conscious human memory as that would nullify the test for which we
have been put on the earth. However, like many other forgotten things, it remains in
our subconscious memory from where it continues to make everyone yearn to believe
in God. Most of the time, the inner yearning is overshadowed by the strong influence
of society and people‟s own lusts, desires and aspirations and is thus suppressed or
ignored. Many people may not even notice its existence. However, in situations of
crises and desperate circumstances when the conscious mind gives up, it has a chance
to play its role and even the staunchest idolater or atheist calls upon Allaah SWT at
that time.

It is because of this acknowledgement being a part of our nature that despite

continuous attempts of powerful forces, the yearning for God could not be eradicated
from human society. For example, Communism could not take God out of people‟s
hearts despite severe, prolonged and extensive oppression and persecution. The
majority of people in every society throughout human history have continued to
believe in God, regardless of how contaminated or misguided that belief was.

On the Day of Judgment, everyone will clearly remember this acknowledgement and
witness. At that time, the disbelievers will themselves acknowledge that “indeed they
were the disbelievers”. (Al-An„aam:130)

It is the mercy of Allaah SWT that He has sent the prophets and messengers to remind
us about this reality and help us adopt the faith that is in line with our subconscious
yearning and thus acquire inner peace. By guiding us toward Allaah, the Qur-aan also
helps us remember this original covenant we had made; that is why it is called the
“Reminder”. Allaah SWT explains these reminders in the Qur-aan for two reasons:
Taking away the excuse from people that they were not reminded of this forgotten
commitment made to accept Allaah alone as their Lord; and some people may take
heed and return to the obedience and submission to Allaah alone.
174
Thus do We explain the signs in detail so that they have no excuse and
perchance they may turn back to us.

When a reminder is given to people through the signs of nature and the revelations of
Allaah SWT, some people reject it and some accept it. From those who accept and
understand the truth, some may follow it through while others may abandon it. The
next few verses describe the condition of a person who was blessed with the
knowledge and understanding of the Truth, but he abandoned it.
175
Relate to them, O Muĥammad, the story of the man to whom We bestowed
knowledge of Our revelations, but he detached himself from them; so Shaytaan
pursued him, and he became misguided. 176 Had We so wished, We would
certainly have elevated him by means of them, but he clung to the earth and
followed his own desire. His example is that of a dog: If you drive him away,
he lolls out his tongue, or if you leave him alone, he still lolls out his tongue.
That is what the people who reject Our revelations are like. So relate the stories
that perhaps they may reflect. 177 How terrible is the example of the people
who reject Our revelations; it is only themselves they have been doing wrong
to.

These verses describe a behaviour whereby people have been bestowed with the
knowledge of Islam, but following the footsteps of Shayşaan, they abandon it in a way
similar to someone who removes his clothes and becomes naked, as if he has no
clothes to wear. If they would live according to Islam, work to achieve its objectives
and make whatever sacrifices they needed in order to attain those objectives, they
would reach the heights of peace, justice, excellence, honour, status and power in this
world and the highest level of pleasures and comforts in the eternal life of the
Hereafter. Instead, they opted for the enticing and glittering, but temporary, attractions
of this world trying to maximize the instant gratification of lusts and desires.
Whatever Islamic teaching came in their way of maximizing worldly gratification,
they abandoned it one after the other. This way, they became like a dog that is
constantly and incessantly looking for things, lolling out his tongue and sniffing
around. Whether he is chased away and rebuked or patted with love, his searching and
sniffing never stops. Honour or dishonour, love or hate, nothing matters or comes in
the way of his running around greedily. This is how the people who abandon the
Islamic teachings for the sake of this world become. They remain too busy crazily
chasing whatever they cherish in this world till their last breath, sacrificing their
honour and principles along the way.

There are two opinions about “Relate to them the story of the man”. Some scholars
think that it refers to a particular person whose name has not been mentioned because
it is not nice to publicize the names of those who do bad things. Some commentaries
even mention some names, but it is not appropriate to try to identify a person whose
name has been withheld by Allaah. Others are of the opinion that these verses do not
refer to a singular particular person but describe a human behaviour found in some
people or group of people. Instead of mentioning it in general terms, describing it as a
particular person has a greater and clearer impact on the audience because it helps
them visualize a living character rather than just reading a comment. This view is
supported by the phrase “That is what the people who reject Our revelations are like.”
However, in either case, there is a general agreement that this example is applicable to
all those people who have knowledge and understanding of Islam but they do not
practice it for worldly expediencies.
The prime example of such people in the past was that of the Israelites who were
given the guidance but they chose to abandon it in favour of their greed and love for
this life. They could have become the chosen people, but they opted to incur Allaah‟s
wrath and curse. Using their example, the Quraish are being encouraged to aim for the
summit, instead of opting to reject the message of Islam and ending in the pit.

The important lesson for today‟s Muslims is to re-evaluate where they stand and what
they want to aim for considering that many Muslims, unfortunately, are behaving in
the manner of Israelites as pictured in the example.

178
He whom Allaah guides, he indeed is led aright; while whomever He lets go
astray, they indeed are losers.

As stated many times previously, people get guidance and go astray according to their
own initiative and the choices they make in their lives. Because this happens
according to human nature, that is, the natural law that Allaah has promulgated, He
attributes it to Himself. The benefit of describing it in this style is twofold: Those who
are guided aright can be appreciative that Allaah had sent prophets and revealed
guidance, and as well, bestowed them with the intellect, the ability and the
circumstances to benefit from it. On the other hand, those who opt to remain
misguided may realize their deprivation for their lack of utilizing the same
opportunities to attain guidance.

The next verse puts it succinctly about who those unfortunate people are that fail to
benefit from guidance.
179
Certainly We have created many of the jinn and humans for hell. They have
mindsi with which they do not understand, and they have eyes with which they
do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. They are like
livestock; in fact, they are worse because they are so heedless!

To understand the message of this verse properly, one needs to remember that all
creations of Allaah are completely pre-programmed to meet their objectives except the
Jinns and humans. All inanimate creations are pre-programmed by the laws of nature.
Animals are pre-programmed through instincts in addition to the laws of nature. Thus,
all those in animate things and animals are predestined to maintain the balance and
equilibrium that Allaah has set for them. Human beings and Jinns are subject to the

i
The Arabic word “Qalb” is used both for the physical heart as well as the human mind.
laws of nature, as well as being influenced by instincts, but have been given freedom
to make decisions to attain the objectives of their life that Allaah has set for them.
Along with freedom, Allaah has given them Islam so that they can maintain the
desired state of equilibrium by practising its teachings voluntarily. This freedom
allows them three possibilities: They can use their God-given freedom and intellect to
accept, learn and practice Islamic teachings and thus maintain balance and justice in
their society. They can also excel in their practice of Islam and in doing so create an
excellent and loving environment that becomes the envy of the angels. Or they can
disregard Islam and follow their lusts and desires causing imbalance, chaos, injustice
and corruption in the society and as such, becoming worse than animals which are free
from those problems.

In this scheme of things, it was clear that some people were going to misuse their
freedom, reject the Islamic way of life and end up in hell. This is what is meant by
“Certainly We have created many of the Jinn and humans for hell”. It does not mean
that they were pre-destined for hell. They will be ending up in hell because they
refused to use their God-given faculties to discover and adopt the truth of Islam and
submit voluntarily to Allaah SWT. Instead of using their senses and their faculty of
reasoning to accept only what makes sense in matters of faith, they continue to
subscribe to nonsensical and irrational belief in Shirki.

One of the main reasons for their Shirk is their defective views about Allaah and His
attributes. They think in finite human terms and ascribe human weaknesses to Allaah.
Such wrong, imperfect and defective perceptions about Allaah are expressed in the
form of names they use for Allaah.
180
To Allaah are applicable only the most perfect namesii; therefore, call on
Him thereby and disassociate from those who deviate in the matter of His
names. They will soon be requited for what they have been doing.

People express their view of things, entities or actions through names they give to
those things, entities or actions. Thus, the names people give and the attributes they
assign to things and entities reflect their perceptions about them . The right
knowledge, understanding and perception about an entity results in appropriate names
and attributes, while an inaccurate or incomplete knowledge, understanding or
perception results in wrong names and attributes. This is especially true about Allaah
SWT Who is Infinite and the only way we describe our views and beliefs about Him is

i
Equating any thing or person with Allaah in divinity, attributes, rights or importance.
ii
Names of Allaah that describe His attributes. Human beings know and describe Allaah through His
attributive names.
through His attributive names. Because He is beyond human perception, the only
names suitable for Him are those that reflect the most perfect and finest attributes
which Allaah Himself has told us. Whatever names people invent for Him will be
imperfect and reflective of finite human thoughts, extrapolating human weakness and
ascribing them to Allaah. For example, people are born and they die. To continue the
human species, they need to parent children. Allaah SWT is Infinite, One and Only,
Who always was and always will be. He does not need nor does He have any child.
Having a child is in contradiction to the concept of His infiniteness. But even then,
people ascribe to Him this human weakness and call Him “Father” and claim that He
has a son.

Similarly, the perfect and infinite attributes are only for Allaah. They cannot be rightly
applicable to any of His creations because every one of His creations is finite. Thus,
His infinite attributes should never be ascribed to any other person. Such behaviour
will also be a deviation and blasphemy in the matter of His names. For example,
naming Jesus as the son of God, or ascribing any kind of eternity or divinity to Him or
calling upon Him as Lord are all such deviations and blasphemies.

However, not all people are blinded by their Shirk. Some people use their God-given
senses and intellect and believe in the Oneness of Allaah SWT and His Uniqueness
(Towĥeed) in accordance with the rational decision they arrive at and with the
acknowledgement they made to Him when they were questioned.
181
Then, from among those We have created, there are a people who guide
with the truth and do justice therewith.

They are the people who make personal sacrifices to guide the world in establishing
true balance, moderation, justice and fairness in the world through Islam. On the other
hand, those who reject Islam are doomed to face disaster but they do not realize.

182
As for those who reject Our signs, We shall gradually take them to their end
in such a way that they will not even realize. 183 Though I am letting them go
on, My scheme is unfailing.

Allaah SWT does not punish the people who disobey Him or reject His commands in
this world. He lets those rebels live and enjoy the rewards and fruits of whatever work
they do. When they see that they are succeeding in whatever they are doing, they are
duped to think that they are safe from the punishment of Allaah and all the talk and
warnings of Allaah‟s punishment are false. So they continue to rebel and disobey,
without realizing they with every passing moment, they are slowly moving closer to
their bitter and painful end. By every second and every minute they are moving
toward their death, at which time they will suddenly discover the reality and see the
painful punishment waiting for them.

Had they just considered the Prophet‟s selfless passion in trying to save them from
their impending disastrous end and his pure and serene life and had they reflected on
the signs of Allaah in the universe, they would have discovered the truth.
184
Do they not reflect that their companioni is not possessed; he is only a clear
warner. 185 Do they not consider the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and
whatever things Allaah has created, and that their deadline might be
approaching? In what warnings after this will they then believe? 186 Anyone
whom Allaah lets go astray will have no guide for him; and He leaves them
blindly wandering in their rebellious transgression.

Prophet Muhammad was one of them who grew up among their midst as a truthful,
serene, honourable and wise man. Once he started warning his people about the
Hereafter, they could not comprehend the concept and wondered how such an
honourable and truthful man like him could say something so improbable. Thus,
instead of believing in the Hereafter, many of them preferred to disregard his warnings
on the assumption that he was saying such things under the influence of some jinn
who had possessed him. Another reason they thought he was possessed was because
of the selfless passion and dedication with which he was tirelessly performing his
mission, despite all opposition and all odds against him. Thinking from their selfish
point of view, they could not comprehend how a person could sacrifice everything for
others so selflessly and dedicatedly without personally getting any worldly benefit
whatsoever from this mission.

Here Allaah SWT is challenging the Makkans to reflect on these points considering
the life the Prophet had lived among them. If they did so with an open mind, they
would have realized that this was, in fact, strong evidence for his truthfulness and
credibility of his warning, not of his being possessed. Along with this, if they simply
pondered over the nature of the finite things, from the cosmos to ordinary things they
encountered in their life, they would have realized that this finite universe, like every
finite thing, has an end which will lead into a new life, the Hereafter. They did not
even realize how close they themselves were to their death when they would lose this
opportunity of believing and preparing for the life to come in the Hereafter.

i
Prophet Muhammad who was one of their own.
It was unfortunate for them that their current lifestyle had caused them to close their
minds to logical and rational conclusions and had blinded them from discovering the
truth.

Instead of believing in the Hereafter, they asked taunting questions. The next verse
addresses this issue.
187
They ask you about the Final Hour: when is its arrival? Say, “The
knowledge of it is only with my Lord; none but He shall manifest it at its time.
It lays heavily upon the heavens and the earth and will simply come upon you
all of a sudden.” They ask you as if you have anxiously researched it. Say,
“The knowledge of it is only with Allaah but most people do not know.”

Considering the age of the universe, a few hundred or a few thousand years are,
relatively speaking, just like a moment in its timeline. From that perspective, the end
of its current existence is so near, similar to how a full-term pregnant woman can go
into labour any time. That is how the universe is at the brink of collapse.

If the Prophet is warning about the inevitable end of the world, it does not mean that
he has already figured out exactly when it is going to take place. He is just conveying
the message that has been given to him by the Creator Who knows the reality and has
planned it as such. The nature of this test for humans demands that this knowledge
should not be available to them and their death or the final hour should come to them
suddenly. The useful knowledge for them is not when it is going to happen, but the
realization that it shall actually happen so that they can be prepared for it at all times.
Unfortunately, human beings chase the knowledge of things which are not useful or
relevant for them and disregard the facts they should know and live by.

As the knowledge of the Final Hour is a matter of the unseen which is known only by
Allaah, the next verse clarifies logically that the Prophet does not know the unseen on
his own. He conveys only those matters of the unseen that Allaah SWT informs him
of.
188
Say, “I do not control any benefit or harm for myself except as Allaah wills.
If I had knowledge of the unseen, I would have multiplied all good, and no
harm should have touched me. I am merely a warner, and a bringer of good
news to those who believe.”
This verse clears a misconception people have about the messengers of Allaah, A
messenger of Allaah is only a human being whom Allaah has chosen to give His
message to people, warning the disobedient about the punishment of Allaah and
giving the good news of the eternal comforts and pleasures of Jannah to the believers
who do good deeds. Allaah SWT bestows them with as much knowledge of the
unseen realities as is sufficient to enable them to perform this job effectively. During
his life, his opponents expect him to answer every question they raise about unseen
matters; such as “When will be the Last day?” After his death, some of the believers
start exaggerating about his person and assuming that he knew everything of the
unseen. In this verse, the messenger ŜA„WS has been asked to clear this up by
inviting people to think rationally.
The next few verses present the closing call to the Makkan idolaters, inviting them to
take a rational approach to Towĥeed and Shirk.
189
It is He Who created you from a single person, and made his mate of the
same kind, in order that he can find tranquility in her. So when he covers her,
she bears a light burden and moves about with it. When she grows heavy, they
both pray to Allaah their Lord, “If you give us a good and healthy child, we
shall certainly be grateful.” 190 But once He gives them good and healthy child,
they ascribe partners to Allaah for what He has given them. High is He Exalted
above all that they ascribe as partners to Him.

Makkans accepted that Allaah is the Creator of human beings. The first part of the
verse reminds them of this fact and of the system that Allaah SWT has put in place for
the continuation of human species. Then the verse brings the matter to a personal
level, when the spouses meet and the wife becomes pregnant. This verse is not
referring to any specific incident of a particular person, but describing the polytheist
mentality in general. It especially has nothing to do with Adam and Eve as some
people have claimed. Adam was a prophet of Allaah under His guidance and
protection, free from any act of misguidance.

Many Makkans would pray to Allaah for a healthy, wholesome, full-term son. At the
son‟s birth, they would assume that it happened because of the blessings of one or
more of their idols. They would even name their child as “Slave of „Uzza” or “Slave
of Sun”. The same is true of any other polytheists or those who ascribe partners to
Allaah. Unfortunately, many ignorant people who claim to be Muslims do the same
thing. When they have a child according to their wishes, they ascribe this matter to
someone other than Allaah and name their children to reflect their devotion to that
entity. For example, Abdur-Rasool or Ghulam Rasool (slave of the Messenger),
Ghulam Husain or Ghulam „Ali (slave of Ali or Husain), Meeran ditta, Meeran
Bakhsh, Pir Bakhsh (endowed by Abdul Qadir Jeelani, or pirs), etc. Some are so
misguided that they do not even pray to Allaah during pregnancy; rather, they pray to
whoever they ascribe as partner to Allaah SWT.

The idols that the Makkans used to worship were supposed to be representations of
some angels and righteous persons of the past who were thought to be very close in
their relationship with Allaah SWT. The Makkans assumed that if they won favour
with those angels or righteous persons, they would be able to get what they needed in
their lives. Thus there are two aspects to the practice of idolatry: the personalities the
idols are supposed to represent and the idol itself. The next three verses invite
Makkans to think of the helplessness and uselessness of the personalities that are
assumed to be the partners of Allaah SWT.

191
Do they ascribe to Him such entities as partners who create nothing while
they are themselves created! 192 They cannot help them, nor can they even help
themselves. 193 If you invite them to guidance, they will not follow you.
Rather, it is the same to you whether you call them or you remain silent. 194
Verily those whom you call upon besides Allaah are slaves like yourselves. So
call upon them, and let them respond to you, if you are truthful.

To be worthy of worship, an entity should be the creator, should provide guidance to

the creation as to how to live and succeed in life and should be able to answer the
prayers. The personalities that are worshipped by idolaters or polytheists fail on all
three accounts. They are not creators, but created; they cannot provide guidance, but
rather, if they are invited to the guidance, they cannot even follow; and they cannot
even listen to the prayers of their devotees, much less respond to them. That is why
the last verse challenges the Makkans to call upon them for help and see if they
respond.

It should be remembered that these principles did not merely apply to the entities that
were worshipped by Makkans, but to all personalities or entities that are worshipped
other than Allaah – prophets and messengers, including Jesus and Muĥammad; angels,
including the so called Holy Spirit; saints, including Christian saints and Muslim
saints; martyrs; etc.

The next verse invites Makkans to reflect upon the uselessness of their idols
themselves and absurdity of worshipping them.
195
Have they feet to walk with? Or have they hands to hold with? Or have they
eyes to see with? Or have they ears to hear with? Say: “Call upon your so-
called partners of Allaah, then contrive against me, and give me no respite.

The Makkans used to warn the Prophet that he was exposing himself to the wrath of
their idols by talking against them. The Prophet is challenging them to bring forth this
wrath, if the idols can do anything. Not only that the idols cannot do anything, the
Prophet has Allaah on his side who has sent him with His Book and Who is going to
protect him from all kinds of opponents.
196
Indeed, my Protector is Allaah Who has sent down the Book and He allies
with the righteous. 197 But those whom you call upon besides Him are not able
to help you, nor can they help themselves. 198 And if you call them to the
guidance, they do not hear; and you see them looking towards you, yet they do
not see.”

After re-emphasizing the uselessness and illegitimacy of the fake partners they ascribe
to Allaah SWT, the admonition to them is hereby concluded. The remaining few
verses of this Soorah focus on giving the appropriate instructions to the Prophet and
the believers.
199
O Muĥammad, practise forgiveness, command decency, and avoid the
ignorant people. 200 If an incitement from Shayşaan tempts you, seek refuge in
Allaah; indeed, He is Hearing, Knowing. 201 Surely, when a Satanic impulse
touches those who have Taqwa, they bring Allaah to remembrance, and at once
202
they clearly see the right course. While the Satanic brethren of the
evil ones increase them in error, without stopping short.

When people are invited to submit to Allaah alone and abandon everyone and
everything besides Allaah, the response from the people is usually very emotional,
severe, aggressive and violent. Thus the Prophet and, through him, all the believers
have been taught to remain calm, patient and steadfast, while following the four
principles given below:
 Ignore and overlook the aggressive attacks from the opponents calmly and
coolly, regardless of how offensive their attacks are;

 Continue inviting them on the basis of “Ma„roof” -- simple, logical,

commonsense approach to the commonly understood and accepted
aspects of goodness and decency;

 Do not get into arguments with ignorant people;

 If an urge to respond in an angry, improper or tit-for-tat manner is felt

under satanic temptation, Allaah‟s refuge should be immediately sought.

The way to stay protected from Shaytşaan in the refuge of Allaah is through the
remembrance of Allaah. Taqwa and remembrance of Allaah are interrelated and
interdependent. Those who remember Allaah are concerned about accountability to
Him which is the crux of the attitude of Taqwa, while keeping an attitude of Taqwa
continually reminds the person of Allaah.

This Taqwa and remembrance develops the personality of believer in such a way that
as soon as he senses an incitement from Shayşaan, he becomes concerned and wants to
get rid of it immediately. It is just like a healthy person who gets a small spec of dirt in
his eye or a small sliver pinching his skin -- he feels the discomfort and arranges to
remove it immediately.

On the other hand, those who are deprived of the guidance of Allaah and who are
following their human or Jinn Shayaaşeen, they do not feel bad about any incitement
or misguidance they receive from their Shayaaşeen, until they become complete losers
following their incitement and misguidance.

One tactic the disbelievers often used to oppose the Prophet was that they would
demand some ridiculous miracles in order to prove that he was the Messenger of
Allaah. It is not Allaah‟s way to convince people to accept Islam. Allaah wanted
people to accept Islam rationally and logically because it made sense to them, not
emotionally under the influence of a miracle. Moreover, no miracle is going to
convince an opponent who has closed his mind to guidance. Even when the desired
miracles are shown, such people simply reject them as magic. Hence, their requests
for miracles are ignored and they are invited to think logically and rationally on the
basis of the Qur-aanic teaching which in itself is a living miracle. Instead of paying
attention to the Qur-aanic message, those opponents then used to taunt the Prophet for
not showing the desired miracles.
203
When you do not present them a sign (miracle), they say, “Why did you not
forge it?” Say, “I only follow what is revealed to me from my Lord. These are
insights from your Lord as well as guidance and mercy for a people who
believe.”

The response from the prophet to their taunts is worth reflecting upon. It summarily
reminds them that his job is to present to them the message that is revealed to him, not
to forge anything to convince them. The Qur-aanic messages that are being presented
to them contain much rational evidence for Towĥeed and many insights to guide them.
Those who open their mind to believe in it can clearly see the guidance contained
therein and they realize that this is a great mercy of Allaah SWT that he has revealed
this guidance for them. If they do not pay attention to the message, they will have to
explain their reasons to Allaah SWT who has sent the message.
Many opponents used to make noise when the Qur-aan was recited to them, instead of
reflecting on its message. The believers are being admonished of the proper manners
required when listening to the Qur-aan.
204
So when the Qur-aan is recited, then listen to it attentively and remain
silent, so that you may receive mercy.

The Qur-aan is the message from Allaah, the Lord and Sovereign of the universe.
When it is recited, people must give it their undivided attention, listen to it carefully
and maintain complete silence, even with more care and with more attention than what
is shown by military personnel standing at attention to receive commands. In this age
of technology, many Muslims put the recitation of the Qur-aan on their devices while
they keep talking, chatting or doing other things. This behaviour is in flagrant
violation of this command. The Qur-aan should not be used as background music
when attention to Allaah‟s words is not being paid, nor should it be played in shops,
buses and cars when the attention of people is divided between other matters and the
Qur-aan.

When the Qur-aan is not being recited, the believers should remember Allaah
continually, day and night, by other means of glorification. This remembrance should
continue in their hearts, minds and thoughts, even when they are busy doing other
things. This is the kind of remembrance that increases Taqwa and helps believers save
themselves from the temptation of Shayşaan.
205
And remember your Lord within yourself in humility and in fear, and
without loudness in voice, in the mornings and evenings, and be not of the
neglectful. 206 Verily, those who are with your Lord are not too proud to serve
Him like slaves, and they glorify Him with His praises, and to Him they
prostrate.

“Those who are with your Lord” refers to the angels who are close to Allaah. When a
believer recites or hears this verse, or similar other verses, he or she should instantly
fall in prostration to Allaah SWT just as the angels do, wherever the person happens to
be. If a full prostration is not possible at that time, the person should bow as much as
possible in the given circumstances. This will show the readiness of the person to
submit to and prostrate to Allaah in humility and fear.
Al-Anfaal
Name, Background and Topics
Name
Anfaal (windfalls, bounties) is the plural of Nafl -- something over and above
that which is expected, required or owed. It is called Soorah Al-Anfaal
implying the Soorah in which Anfaal have been mentioned.

Background
This Soorah was revealed in Madeenah immediately after the battle of Badr.
To understand its message, its thrust and its beauty, the circumstances leading
up to and surrounding the battle must be kept in view.

Like other messengers in the past, such as Moosa (Moses) and „Eesa (Jesus),
Muĥammad (ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam) the Messenger was assigned the
mission to invite people to Islam, and establish a society of believers where
Islam was fully practised in all aspects and spheres of life, whether pertaining
to individuals or collectively to society. For that purpose, the Messenger
presented various rational and logical signs, arguments and evidence in an
effort to convince the people of the Truth about the oneness and uniqueness of
Allaah SWT and the need for people to submit to Him completely. Some
people opened their minds, and using their intellect and common sense,
became Muslims. The majority of the Makkans, however, refused to reflect
objectively upon the rational ideas that were being presented to them. Instead,
they violently and aggressively opposed the mission of the Messenger and
persecuted and terrorized those who believed in him. Along with logic and
admonition, they were warned of the punishment from Allaah in this world and
in the Hereafter. To drive the point home about the inevitability of the
punishment, they were given many examples of the nations who were
destroyed for opposing the messengers in the past. Instead of heeding the
message of Truth presented to them, they plotted to kill the Messenger. That is
when Allaah SWT allowed him to migrate to Yathrib where people were more
open to listen to the Islamic message.

The people of Yathrib pledged to accept the Messenger as their guide and
leader and to protect him from his enemies even if the whole world turned
against them and they were required to make huge sacrifices for that purpose.
The Makkans in the meantime decided to kill him before he had a chance to
leave for Yathrib. The night his house was surrounded for that purpose, he was
able to escape and reach Yathrib safely with the help of Allaah SWT. The
people of Yathrib welcomed him and celebrated his arrival with festivities.
Then, people started calling Yathrib “Madeenatun-Nabi” – the city of the
Prophet; which was shortened over time to Al-Madeenah (the City).

When Prophet Muĥammad ŝall-Allaahu „alayhi wa sallam (ŜA„WS) managed

to reach Madeenah safely and was fervently welcomed, the Makkan chiefs
were extremely dismayed by his safe exit from Makkah and by his
unprecedented welcome in Madeenah. Also, the news of the spread of Islam in
Madeenah was very disconcerting to the Makkans. They felt belittled and
frustrated by the Prophet‟s success. While the Prophet was busy promoting
human excellence and developing a kind, compassionate, generous, charitable
loving society in Madeenah, the Makkans were preoccupied with hatching
plots to destroy him and kill his mission. The chiefs of Quraish met to
determine what to do with the Prophet now that he was out of their immediate
reach, and was leading a growing body of the believers. Their antagonism to
the Prophet‟s noble mission and their frustration at his success was driving
them crazy with frustration and hatred. They immediately set about conjuring
up the different ways to dismantle the society the Prophet had started to build.
They wanted to attack Madeenah and annihilate the Muslims but were worried
about the backlash from other Arabian tribes because they had no legitimate
reason to justify their attack. The Prophet and the Muslim immigrants were
their own kith and kin who should be protected, not attacked. Neither the
Prophet nor any of his followers owed the Makkans anything. There was no
financial or blood claim against any of them. How could they find a reason to
attack them or to kill them? An attack on their own relatives without a valid
claim would destroy the reputation of the Quraish in the whole of Arabia.

Aboo Jahl, however, came up with an idea: The Aows and Khazraj, after their
devastating war, were considering coronating „Abdullaah bin Ubayy as their
king. Muĥammad‟s (ŜA‟WS) migration had dashed his chances of becoming a
king. He was not happy to lose that opportunity. As he still had a fair amount
of support in Madeenah among the remaining idolaters (polytheists), they
(Makkans) could exploit his psychological condition and use him and his
people for their purpose.
The suggestion was adopted with the understanding that if it failed, Madeenah
would be attacked and the fledgling state completely crushed.

Quraish’s Threat of an All-out War

To incite „Abdullaah and to provide him a good excuse, an ambassador was
sent from the Quraish with the following message:

“You have given refuge to our man. You must fight with him and throw
him out of your city. Otherwise, we swear by God, that we will attack
you with our full force, kill your males, and enslave your women.”

„Abdullaah received the message, called a secret meeting of his supporters and
told them about his intention of taking action to force Muĥammad ŜA„WS to
leave Madeenah. His supporters were leaning towards going along with him.
Although it was a secret gathering, Allaah SWT informed Prophet Muĥammad
ŜA„WS about it and he rushed to the meeting place. He arrived there just as the
decision to throw the Muslims out was being considered. His sudden and
unexpected entry flabbergasted everyone present. He brought them to their
senses by explaining the game the Quraish were playing with them; i.e. if
„Abdullaah and his group fought with the Muslims, they would be fighting
against their own kith and kin (Muslims from Aows and Khazraj). The loss of
lives from both sides would be their own loss. The Quraish would be the only
beneficiaries at their cost. Then, why kill each other at the behest of a third
party? He told them:

“The threat from the Quraish is clouding your judgment. You cannot be
trapped more than you yourselves want to fall into the trap by intending
to fight your own sons and brothers.”

The participants at the meeting realized the truth of what Muĥammad ŜA„WS
had said and decided against falling into the Quraish‟s trap. However, this
meant that the Quraish‟s threat of attack became instantly applicable and the
indirect declaration of war by the most powerful of the Arab tribes (the
Quraish) against a small community of Madeenah came into effect.
Declaration of Territorial Closures
The Anŝaari were being pressured in multiple ways by the Makkans to abandon
abandon the Prophet. In addition to the threats of direct attack, social and
economic isolation and the usurpation of pilgrimage rights were all used as
pressure tactics. Sa„d bin Mu„aadz, a Muslim leader of the Anŝaar went for
pilgrimage to the Holy Ka‟bah as a guest of his long time friend, Umayyah bin
Khalf, a prominent Makkan chief. Aboo Jahl told Sa„d, “Had you not been a
guest of Umayyah, you would not have gone back alive. How dare you provide
refuge to Muĥammad and then expect that we will allow you pilgrimage to the
Ka‟bah?” This threat from Aboo Jahl had broken the well-entrenched Arab
tradition of open access to the Holy Ka‟bah for every friend and foe. It meant
that, from then on, the Muslims were banned from the pilgrimage to the Holy
Ka‟bah. If any Muslim attempted, he would be killed. Sa‟d responded to Aboo
Jahl‟s threat by saying, “If you stop us from the pilgrimage, we will stop you
from something that will be tougher for you to bear, i.e. your trade route
through Madeenah (to Syria).” This exchange of threats between the two
leaders was the de facto declaration that both parties were banned from each
other‟s territories and that they were essentially in a state of cold war.

Terrorism let loose on Madeenah

After the failure of the Quraish‟s plot to incite insurgency in Madeenah
through „Abdullaah bin Ubayy and his followers, the Makkan chiefs made a
direct threat to attack Madeenah and destroy the Muslims once and for all.
They sent a harshly worded threat to the Muhaajireenii:

“Don‟t deceive yourselves assuming you have gone beyond our reach
to Yathrib. We will come out there right into your homes, uproot you
completely and annihilate you utterly.”

They started actively planning the war and arranging for its financing. A big
fund-raising drive was carried out to which Makkans contributed generously.
The funds thus raised were invested in a trade caravan so that the profit from
the trade could be used to finance the war. This caravan was to be led by Aboo
Sufyaan and was destined for Syria, passing through the territory of Madeenah
which the Makkans had no right to enter or pass through as per earlier
declarations.
i
The Helpers – the Muslims of Madeenah who supported the Prophet and the Muslims from Makkah and
vicinity.
ii
The Immigrants – Those Muslims who migrated to Madeenah from Makkah and its vicinity.
In the meantime, they aggressively engaged in terror tactics. Gangs of raiders
were sent to attack and rob the farmers and shepherds in the suburban areas
around Madeenah. Multiple expeditions containing 200-300 troops led by
notable chiefs were also dispatched to scout the vicinity of Madeenah. The
objectives of these incursions were multi-fold: To undermine the influence of
the Islamic state in those areas; to scare the people of Madeenah with the
possibility of a surprise attack; to resist Madeenah‟s assertion of its authority
over the trade route; and, to incite the Muslims to react so that a justification
for an all-out war could be created which could be sold to the Arabs in general
and which would give them an opportunity to blame the war on the Muslims.

The Makkan aggressions and their declared intention of destroying the

Muslims robbed the people in Madeenah of their peace and relaxation. Every
night there was a possibility of attack. People were sleeping with their weapons
so that in case of a surprise attack, they could react quickly. Because of the
constant threat of an attack always looming over this small community, the
hypocritesi had a heyday in spreading rumours and waging psychological
warfare.

One night, a rumour was spread that Madeenah was being attacked. The people
of Madeenah came out of their homes, worried and trying to find out what the
case was. They saw a rider coming in on a bare horseback. It was Muĥammad
ŜA„WS himself. He assured the people that there was no danger that night.
Hearing the first word about the attack, he had taken it upon himself to get out
and determine if the city was really under attack. He had gone out to survey the
city outskirts. Among all the people in Madeenah, he was open to the highest
degree of danger. But, he was such a brave and fearless person that even the
most dangerous of circumstances would not deter him from doing what was
needed. People, overawed by his bravery and fearlessness, felt relaxed on his
assurance and went home to sleep.

Such rumours were becoming a common occurrence. But the only reason
rumours persisted was because there was, in fact, a real danger of an attack at
any time. The Prophet would himself spend nights keeping watch. Sometimes,
he would appoint someone else to keep the watch, so that he could have some
i
Those people who declared themselves to be Muslims along with their tribes, but in their hearts they did
not want to do so because they remained loyal to the idolaters and they were not ready to make the
sacrifices and face the hardships that the sincere faith required in those circumstances. They acted as a
fifth column among the Muslims.
rest. He had also established an intelligence network to keep him informed of
any significant movements of the enemy. Because he had a few followers or
sympathizers in almost every tribe around Makkah and Madeenah, they could
help by keeping him informed of the developments in their areas. His best
source, however, was Allaah SWT Himself to provide him with any critical
news through Jibreeli.

Madeenah’s Response
So far, the Muslims had not been allowed to respond to or retaliate to any
cruelty, terrorism or persecution they were subjected to. At this juncture, in
Dzul-Ĥijjah, the 12th month of the calendar, about 8 months after Hijrah,
Allaah SWT revealed the following verses of the Holy Qur-aan to allow the
Muslims to fight back:

“Permission (to fight) is granted to those who are being attacked

because they have been wronged (persecuted). And Allaah
indeed has the power to help them. They are those who have
been unjustly expelled from their homes merely because they
believed Allaah to be their only Lord. (Allaah allows people to
fight against aggression because) had He not arranged to check
aggressors by means of other people, the monasteries, churches,
synagogues and mosques wherein Allaah is often worshipped
would all have been destroyed by aggressors. Allaah shall
certainly help those who help His cause. He is All-Powerful
All-Mighty.” Al-Ĥajj 22:39-40

Now that the Muslims were permitted to defend themselves against the
Makkan aggressions, they had to be trained to fight in an organized manner.
Also, the Makkans‟ progress in preparation of war had to be monitored so that
Muslims were not taken by surprise. It was known that the Makkan war
machine would be financed by the profits of the trade, hence monitoring of the
trade caravans to both Syria (North) and Yemen (South) was also needed to
gauge their readiness and to estimate the timing of their attack. In addition, the
following work needed to be done:

i
Angel Gabriel
  Expanding the influence of the federation and enhancing its security
through treaties with different tribes in the neighbouring areas and
building close relationships and friendships with them.
 Putting the Makkan trade caravans practically on notice that the
Muslims intend to enforce the stoppage of the Makkan caravans
passing through the Islamic state‟s territory according to the declaration
made by Sa„d in reaction to Aboo Jahl‟s ban on Muslims‟ pilgrimage to
Makkah. As this trade was the main source of their prosperity, the
danger of losing access to the trade route could deter them from
attacking the Muslims.
 Making the state‟s authority accepted by making its presence felt as
well as establishing its ability to reach out and implement its authority
on all of its territory, including the trade routes.
 Establishing law and order in the federated territory and its vicinity
including enforcing law and order on the Bedouins living around
Madeenah so that they ceased their raids.
 Establishing a network of informants to keep the Prophet informed of
the enemy movements and other developments relating to the security
of the state.
 Monitoring the area and its borders to prevent Makkan infiltrations and
to defend the citizens and their property from their raids.
For all of the above-mentioned purposes, the following missions were
undertaken:

1. In the 2nd month (Ŝafar) of the year 2 AH, about 10 months after Hijrah,
the Prophet went on his first diplomatic expedition as the head of state
with 60 Muhaajireen to the shore of the Red Sea and entered into a
written treaty with the Banoo Dhamrah tribe wherein the Prophet
promised peace and protection for that tribe as well as help in case they
were attacked by an enemy. They, in return, had promised to help and
support the Muslims whenever called upon to do so. This treaty
effectively made them part of the federation of Madeenah. This
extended the Prophet‟s authority and control effectively over the trade
route area. He stayed in that area for fifteen days. During the same
journey, an agreement was reached with a tribe called Banoo Juhainah
that they would remain neutral in case of a war between the Quraish
and the Islamic state of Madeenah. This trip opened the doors for
 subsequent reconnaissance missions to be sent to the area without fear
of reprisal or problems from the tribes living around that area. This trip
is known as the trip of Waddaan (a place about 23 miles from
Madeenah) or the trip of Abwaa, both names referring to the two places
where the Prophet stayed during the trip.
The treaty entered into with Banoo Dhamrah and other tribes
mentioned later on, usually contained provisions such as the following:
 Their life and wealth will be afforded safety and protection;
 If the tribe is attacked or their rights are violated, they will be
helped;
 When the Prophet calls upon them for help, they will respond;
 Any religious fight or a fight within a tribe is excepted from
treaty.

2. Within weeks of the abovementioned trip and treaties, the Makkans

sent a 300-strong cavalry unit under the command of „Ikrimah bin
Aboo Jahl to counteract the influence the Prophet had established.
Having received intelligence reports of their incursion, the Prophet
dispatched a platoon of 60 Muhaajireen under the command of
„Ubaidah bin Ĥaarith to stop the invaders at the frontiers of the
Federation. The invading army was taken by surprise in the territory of
Dhamrah (the Muslim‟s treaty tribe as per point #1). When the armies
faced each other, a few arrows were exchanged between them.
Suddenly, two of the invading army‟s soldiers broke ranks, ran out and
joined the Muslims. The invaders retreated and the Muslims came back
safe and sound. This is called the Raabigh expedition.
3. The Makkans were not about to give up that easily and undertook
another military incursion. In the following month (Rabee„ul Awwal
2AH), they dispatched another platoon of 300 horsemen commanded
by Aboo Jahl himself. Thirty Muslims under Ĥamzah‟s command were
sent to intercept the enemy, again, right at the frontiers. The Muslims
confronted the enemy in Juhainah‟s territory. The chief of Juhainah,
Majdi bin „Amr, interfered because of his agreement of neutrality with
the Prophet, and the fight did not take place. The Prophet praised and
appreciated Majdi‟s role in averting the clash. This is known as the
Saiful-Baĥr expedition.
4. The next month (Rabee„ul Aakhir), the Makkans used a different
strategy to assert their power and influence. One hundred Makkan
 horsemen headed by Umayyah bin Khalf attacked the coastal area and
assuaged their anger by capturing somewhere between 1000-2500
camels from different tribes in that area. Some people speculate that
this was a trade caravan consisting of that many camels, but that is
totally implausible considering the size and history of other Makkan
caravans. The other researchers have established that camels had been
stolen from that area to defy the law and order the Prophet was trying to
establish. On receiving the news, the Prophet himself led about 60 or so
Muhaajireen to confront the Makkan bandits and to help the allied
tribes of the coastal area. The bandits ran away before his arrival. This
is known as the Bawwaaş expedition.
All these expeditions occurred within three months. So far, the policy
of the Prophet of avoiding war without showing any weakness or losing
any influence had worked very well. His diplomatic treaties had also
proved useful.

5. After only a few days‟ stay in Madeenah, at the end of Jumaadal-Oola,

the Prophet went on another diplomatic trip. For this trip, he journeyed
using unpopular side routes to develop relations with different clans
and to let the Islamic state‟s presence and its viability take root in the
minds of the people of those areas. Naturally, in all his expeditions and
interactions with various tribes, propagation of Islam always remained
on the forefront of his agenda. He camped in the area called Dzul
„Ushairah near Yamboo„ and established a formal alliance with Banoo
Mudlij. Banoo Mudlij were allies of Banoo Dhamrah who had become
part of the Islamic federation of Madeenah a few months earlier.
6. While the Prophet was constructively cementing relationships with his
neighbours and establishing peace and friendship, the Makkans showed
their frustration through robberies. In the seventh month (Rajab) of 2
AH, Kurz bin Jaabir Al-Fihri came by secret routes through the
mountains, conducted a night raid and drove away some camels and
sheep from the pastures around Madeenah. The Prophet immediately
went with a party of Muhaajireen to chase him. They pursued him up to
the Ŝafwaan valley, but Kurz escaped through his secret routes. This is
known as the Ŝafwaan expedition.
7. With the number of Makkan incursions increasing and their
preparations for war accelerating, it was extremely necessary for the
Prophet to be aware of the Quraish‟s movements so as not to be
 taken by surprise and to monitor arrivals of their caravans because,
to a great extent, the major attack by the Quraish could be
influenced by the arrival of their caravans with profits and wealth to
finance the war. Thus, around that time, the Prophet sent Sa„d bin
Abee Waqqaaŝ with 8 people on a reconnaissance mission that went
up to Kharraar.
8. He also sent another group of 8 persons under the command of
„Abdullaah bin Jaĥsh to Nakhlah (also in Rajab 2 AH) to monitor
the movement of the Quraish and their caravans from Yemen. It
was a dangerous mission in the sense that it was closer to Makkah,
while very far from Madeenah. All of the eight members were old
residents of Makkah thus known by the Makkans. If noticed by the
Quraish, this small party could have been easily captured. On their
way, two of the Muslims became separated from their platoon and
were captured by the Quraish. The remaining party continued their
reconnaissance mission. Coincidentally, a small caravan camped at
night in the same area where the Muslims were camped. In the
morning, this encounter created a difficult situation for the
Muslims. Perhaps due to their apprehension on being discovered
and annoyed by the loss of their two companions, they attacked the
caravan though they had been sent only to monitor and gather
information. Out of the four guards for the Caravan, one guard,
„Amr bin Al-Ĥadhrami, was killed, two („Uthmaan and Alĥakam)
were taken captive and one escaped. The Muslims returned to
Madeenah with the prisoners and their goods.
The Prophet disapproved of their action, refused to accept the goods
brought by them, released the prisoners and offered the blood
money for the killed person. In short, the Prophet did everything
possible to compensate for the incident. Although the action was
taken without his permission and approval and although it could
have been easily defended and fairly justified vis-à-vis the capture
of two Muslims and the attack of the Makkans on Madeenah and
the damages they had inflicted, he did not condone it because it was
against his principles, policy and strategy. Also, he did not want to
give Makkans any reason or justification to attack Madeenah.

As can be seen, four of the expeditions were commanded by the Prophet

himself and each of the other four were commanded by a different person. The
focal points of three of the expeditions led by the Prophet were that they were
extensions of the Islamic mission, diplomacy and setting up an intelligence
network through diplomatic relationships with important tribes as well as the
believers or sympathisers in those tribes. The fourth expedition was for the
enforcement of law and order necessitated by the robbers‟ attack.

The focal point of the expeditions led by other Muslims was to develop
leadership and team building capabilities in a variety of people, training the
Muslims to accept the leadership of anyone appointed as their leader and to
teach them flexibility to work equally well in any role assigned to them,
whether as commanders or the commanded. For this purpose, different people
were appointed commanders for different expeditions.

In addition, these expeditions also accrued the following demonstrative and

developmental benefits:

 Demonstrative benefits were gained by showing the Quraish, in

particular, and other Arabs, in general, that:

o Despite the tough circumstances, the Prophet and his

followers would not allow themselves to be victimized by
the Quraish‟s hostile activities;
o They refuse to be intimidated and were fully prepared to
confront the Makkans and protect their fellow citizens from
their raids; and
o They were fully capable of monitoring and establishing their
authority over all of their territory including the trade routes.

 Developmental benefits towards building a viable political entity

included: Gaining familiarity with the area for future defence needs,
acclimatizing the personnel in the new environment, knowing the
terrain, developing perseverance for difficulties and hardships,
promoting teamwork, teaching cooperative group dynamics,
training in the proper behaviour both as a commander as well as the
commanded, and inculcating Islamic values and morals to be
practised during military expeditions.

Even while undertaking these expeditions, the Prophet‟s strategy was to avoid
war as much as possible. He wanted to achieve all of the above-mentioned
objectives by tactical moves and demonstration of preparedness and
dedication. He would manoeuvre his expeditions tactically so that he would
disable the enemy by catching them by surprise or by putting the enemy in
such a position that they had to retreat instead of fighting. Although he did not
want war, he was not a coward to yield under pressure. He wanted an
honourable peace under which his mission of establishing an ideal human
society in the world could continue onwards strongly and effectively. His
briefings to the commanders always reflected his strategy of avoiding
confrontation with honour, or of minimizing loss of human life, if battle was
imposed.

Due to his awareness of enemy movements and being able to send his
expeditions in time most of the times, he was able to get to the enemy by
surprise and force them to withdraw without fighting. Out of eight Muslim
expeditions, there was no real fight at all in six of them, although sometimes
Makkan troops as strong as 200-300 men were intercepted. In one expedition,
arrows were exchanged, but the enemy retreated immediately. Only the last
expedition was an anomaly where the Muslim reconnaissance team could not
contain their frustration and attacked a caravan of the Quraish without the
Prophet‟s permission.

Although the Makkans were trying to get other tribes involved by sending their
troops to the areas of those tribes and thus exacerbate the tensions, the Prophet
took special precautions to limit the tensions from spreading. He was so careful
that in none of the eight expeditions did he include anyone else other than
Makkan Muhaajireen so that the tension remained limited within the Quraish
on both sides and so that it was viewed by other Arabs as an internal strife
between two groups of the same tribe. This would not give any reason for the
Makkans to get other tribes involved in their campaign against the Muslims.
Also, participation of the Anŝaar of Aows and Khazraj in any of the incursions
would give the Quraish an excuse to attack Madeenah.

Battle of Badr
So far the Prophet had out-manoeuvred the Makkans by asserting his
sovereignty over the territory of the Islamic Federation. He had managed to do
so without giving them any reason to attack Madeenah openly, despite their
utmost attempts to cause a fight. The incident of Nakhlah could have been used
as an excuse, but the Prophet‟s timely action to redress the situation prevented
it from being used as a spark to ignite a full-fledged war.

The Makkan chiefs, on the other hand, were getting impatient to attack the
Muslims before they became well established in Madeenah. The Makkans
were also desperate to maintain their aura of power and their credibility by
making true the threats they had uttered. However, they could not undertake a
full-scale war for many expedient reasons. Firstly, they could not get the
Makkans fired up for the war because most of the Makkans did not want to
fight their own kith and kin that were not doing any wrong to them. Secondly,
those chiefs were worried that if they attacked Madeenah without a sound
justification in the eyes of the Arabs in general, the Quraish‟s status and
reputation would be damaged and they would be viewed as abusing their
position in the Arabian society by attacking smaller tribes. This might initiate a
backlash from Arabs at large. Thus, they had to create a reason to win the
support of common Makkans as well as Arabs in general for a decisive assault
against Madeenah.

As the strong circumstantial evidence (given towards the end) the most bigoted
of the chiefs such as Aboo Jahl and Aboo Sufyaan secretly hatched a plan to
create a justification. Considering the exchange of threats between Aboo Jahl
and Sa‟d bin Mu‟aadz, they expected the Muslims to assert their authority over
their territory and intercept their trade caravan passing through the territory of
the Federation of Madeenah. Hence, they had planned to use the Syrian
caravan headed by Aboo Sufyaan as a reason to ignite emotions and wage a
war. The caravan was the one in which most of the Makkans had invested their
wealth to the tune of 50,000 gold coins. It was protected by forty guards. There
was also an expectation that their caravan might be apprehended for passing
through the Islamic state‟s territory without permission. They figured that the
best strategy to assemble an army and get everyone in a frenzy to fight was to
use the excuse that the protection of this caravan from Muslims was urgently
needed. Moreover, this way they would be able to blame the Muslims for
aggression and give the Muslims a bad name among their allies. Once the
blame of attack was stuck on Muslims, the Makkan chiefs would have a
legitimate cause to attack Madeenah in the eyes of Arabs in general as well as
those Makkans who were reluctant to wage a war against their own relatives
who were not causing them any problems.

As per the plan, the Makkans were preparing for the attack quietly within their
select group of chiefs. Arrangements were made with some tribes from Najd
area to contribute fighting men for the war. Then, also according to the plan,
when the caravan was nowhere around Madeenah, and Muĥammad ŜA„WS
and his companions were still in their homes, Aboo Sufyaan sent Dhamdham
bin „Amr to spread the rumour that Muĥammad was poised to attack the
caravan. When Dhamdham reached Makkah, he slit the ears and nose of his
camel, turned its saddle upside down, tore his shirt from front and back and
stood in front of the Holy Ka‟bah and implored for help to save their wealth
from Muĥammad.

The drama was staged successfully, people were aroused, justification was
provided and the Makkans proceeded to assemble the army. The situation was
so electrified by this drama that even Banoo Haashim, the clan of the Prophet
himself, was pressured into participating. Joining the army was made into a
matter of national pride and refraining from it was made a matter of shame.
Some chiefs such as „Utbah bin Rabee„ah and Umayyah bin Khalf were
reluctant to personally join the army, but were coerced into joining because of
the pride and shame issue. Thus, under the pretext of protecting their caravan
and their goods, a 1300-strong army was assembled and equipped to attack
Madeenah. The army included men from the tribes of Banoo Saleem and
Banoo Ghaşfaan of Najd. Before marching out, holding the curtains of the
Ka‟bah, they prayed, “O Allaah help whoever of the two armies is more
superior, more honourable and better.” Thus it was clear that they were setting
out in religious fervour because they thought themselves ideologically to be the
better of the two. The army marched from Makkah on or around 6th
Ramadhaan, 2 AH (March 624 AD).

When the news of the army‟s departure from Makkah reached the Prophet, he
knew that the most critical moment in the life of the Islamic movement had
arrived where its very survival was at stake. Anything less than the bravest
defence would mean the end of the Islamic work. Although the occasion
demanded significant resources be committed to equip Muslims for the defence
of the fledgling state, the economic and social circumstances were such that the
Muslims did not have adequate resources to defend against the Makkan
offence. From the personnel perspective, although the Muhaajireen had
received some field training through the previously mentioned expeditions, the
Anŝaar were neither trained nor tried as yet for their disposition or inclination
to venture out of town to fight the Quraish. Then, the Muslims had neither the
arms nor finances to equip themselves for defence. In addition, the strong
groups of hypocrites, Jews and idolaters of Madeenah were more loyal to the
Quraish than to Muslims. Despite these vulnerabilities, a desperate defensive
act was the only option.

To consult the trusted companions and to test the rest without scaring the
weakest of them, the Prophet ŜA„WS put two scenarios in front of the
assembly of companions. He told them: There is a trade caravan coming from
the north, and Quraish army from the south. Allaah has promised that you
would be victorious against one of them. Who do you want to confront? The
mature trusted companions immediately knew that the only real option is the
army. Hence, Aboo Bakr and „Umar assessed the situation correctly and spoke
with faith and fervour in favour of confronting the army. But some new,
weaker-in-faith Muslims vocally expressed their desire to intercept the
caravan. Considering the shortage of Muslim manpower and dearth of fighting
equipment, they thought confronting the army was suicidal. They also thought
that they had a legitimate claim against Quraish because of all the wealth and
properties of Muslim Muhaajireen that had been confiscated. What they
overlooked was that if they intercepted the Caravan, the army was not going to
go away without attacking.

The concern expressed by a few companions was not what the Prophet wanted
to hear. So he repeated his question. Then, Miqdaad bin „Amr from the
Muhaajireen stood up and said,

“O Messenger of Allaah, go towards what Allaah has commanded you.

We will accompany you whatever way you like to go. We will not say
like Banee Israaeel said to Moosa, „You and your Lord go and fight, we
will sit here and wait.‟ Rather, our response is, „You and your Lord go
and fight and we will fight along you and keep fighting as long as even
one of our eyes is moving.‟ ”

The Anŝaar had not yet spoken, so without specifying any particular group, the
Prophet repeated his question once again. But the Anŝaar got the point. Sa„d
bin Mu„aadz, from the Anŝaar stood up and said,

“Perhaps you want to hear our opinion. The fact is that we have
believed in you, testified to your being true, and witnessed that what
you have brought is the truth. We have also given you our oath of
allegiance and made our commitment to listen to and obey you. So, O
Messenger of Allaah, go towards whatever you intend. By Allaah Who
has sent you with the truth if you take us to an ocean and jump therein,
we will jump with you and not a single person from us will stay behind.
We have no qualms about you taking us to confront the enemy army.
Definitely we will be steadfast in the war and truly gallant when
meeting the enemy. Hopefully Allaah will help us show you the
performance that will delight you. So, let us proceed to the battle with
the blessings of Allaah!”
These statements clearly indicate that the mature Ŝaĥaabah (companions) knew
exactly what was needed at that time.

After these expressions of outstanding commitment, devotion and faith, except

for a few new or naive Muslims, it was clear that the Makkan army would be
confronted. The Prophet and his companions started preparing for it. It was the
first time that the Anŝaar were participating in an expedition. Both
Muhaajireen and Anŝaar companions were becoming passionate about Qitaal
in the way of Allaah SWT and martyrdom. Even where one of the members of
the family had to stay back for some unavoidable reason(s), each of them
wanted to go instead of staying. For example, it was essential for either
Khaithamah or his son Sa„d to stay home; but both wanted to go. Finally the
son convinced the father to stay and let him go for martyrdom into Jannah.
Even young boys (minors) were excited for that purpose and joined the army.
Two non-Muslims, Khubaib bin Sayaaf and Qais bin Maĥrath, wanted to join
the army in the expectation of getting the booty of the war, but the Prophet told
them that only the follower of Islam could be included in this ideological
battle.

On the 12th of Ramadhaan, the Prophet set out from Madeenah with all the
strength of the sincere Muslims he could muster. Only eight men of fighting
ability were left behind in Madeenah to fulfil some responsibilities that the
Prophet had assigned to them. The Prophet appointed Aboo Lababah bin
Mundzir as caretaker head of Madeenah to manage the affairs in the Prophet‟s
absence. Just outside of Madeenah, at Bi-er Abee „Anbah, the Prophet
examined his troops and sent back a few young boys who had come along in
their passion to please Allaah SWT. Only one, „Umair bin Abee Waqqaaŝ, was
allowed to remain because he started crying when he was asked to leave. Then
the Prophet allowed him to come with the army when he demonstrated his
fighting skills. They spent the night there and then on the 13th, three hundred
and thirteen men (including the under-aged boy who insisted on joining)
proceeded onwards to face the enemy and to defend themselves, their faith and
their way of life.

They headed straight towards the direction the army was coming from, not
towards the Northwest where the caravan was coming from. This relatively
small army was ill-equipped because of a severe lack of resources. Some
Muslims did not even have proper sheathes or cases for their swords. They
wrapped rags around their swords. There were some who had only old, rusted
or even broken swords. Only 60 of them had some sort of armour. They had
only 2 horses and 70 camels to ride on, and not much food to eat during their
journey. They traveled mostly on foot, four people per camel taking turns to
ride and walk. Of the 313, about 82 were Muhaajireen (immigrants) and the
rest were Anŝaar (the helpers), 61 from Aows and 170 from Khazraj. By
participating in the battle, the Anŝaar were practically inviting the animosity of
the whole of Arabia. Muhaajireen were in an even more testing situation. They
were being confronted by their own brothers, fathers, sons, uncles and old
friends. But their loyalty to Allaah, His Messenger and their religion was
paramount over anything else in their life.

When the Makkan army reached close to Badr, and they found out that the
caravan had passed through the Madeenah territory safe and sound, the
Makkans who were not party to the drama (of accusing Muslims of attacking
the caravan) and genuinely thought that the purpose was just to protect the
caravan suggested to the army chiefs to go back, but in vain. At this, two clans,
Banoo Zuhrah and Banoo „Addi, went back to Makkah saying that they came
to protect their people and goods; since they were out of danger, there was no
reason to fight.

The Makkan chiefs who plotted the strategy, however, were anxious to execute
all the threats they had been making. They did not want to go back without
annihilating the Muslims before they became well established and strong
enough to be able to pose a serious challenge to the Quraish‟s religious
monopoly, influence and hegemony over Arabia. To counter the suggestion of
going back because the caravan was safe, Aboo Jahl incited „Aamir, the
brother of „Amr Ĥadharmi, to plead and cry for the revenge of his brother who
was killed by the Muslims in one of the confrontations, though the
compensation had been previously offered by the Prophet. On the suggestions
of Ĥakeem bin Ĥizaam, „Utbah bin Rabee„ah offered to pay up the blood
money instead of fighting, but they rejected even this proposition because
settling that issue was not their intent. They had done all their planning to fight
and destroy Muslims, not to go back. Thus they stood by their decision to fight
and finish the Muslims once and for all without worrying about the reasons or
justifications. Despite some of the Makkans leaving, about a thousand men
remained committed to fight.

After traveling for 90 miles, on the 16th of Ramadhaan the Muslims reached
Badr, a valley surrounded by mountains. The Makkan army had arrived at that
place after traveling for about 200 miles in 10 days, shortly before the
Muslims. They were camped on the other side of the mountain. The Makkan
caravan was also passing that area around the same time on a coastal route
about 11 miles down from where the armies were camped.

The night of the battle, Aboo Jahl prayed, “O Allaah, this man (the Prophet
ŜA„WS) has caused the severance of relationships and calls us to a message
that is not known to us. O Allaah, make him perish tomorrow.”

The Prophet, on the other hand, spent the night seeking Allaah‟s help for His
Deen.

The armies confronted each other on the 17th of Ramadhaan. When the Prophet
saw the Makkan army approaching, he raised his hands for du‟aa saying, “O
Allaah, these Quraish have come well-equipped to prove your Messenger false.
O Allaah, send the help that you had promised me. O Allaah, if this small
group of people is destroyed today, You will not be henceforth submitted to.”
Allaah did fulfil His promise to His Messenger and sent one thousand (1000)
angels to help the Muslims. The miraculous victory of the Muslims as a result
and details of the battle are well known. They will be discussed in detail at the
appropriate places in the teachings of the Qur-aan.

What Caused the Battle?

This is a brief overview of the constant struggle that the Prophet and the
Muslims were engaged in with their Makkan enemies during the first 18
months after Hijrah. According to the Holy Qur-aan, this battle was purely
ideological. It took place because the Makkans wanted to eradicate Islam and
destroy Muslims once and for all, while Allaah SWT wanted to establish the
supremacy of the Truth and cut the roots of falsehood. That is why the day of
this battle was called the day of “Al-Furqaan” – the criterion that determines
what the Truth is.

Considering that some historians theorize that the Makkan attack resulting in
the battle of Badr was initiated because of other reasons, it is necessary to
evaluate those suggested reasons on the basis of the known facts.

Usually one or more of the following reasons are speculated:

1. The Makkans wanted to avenge the killing of „Amr and the arrest of the
other two guards by „Abdullaah bin Jaĥsh expedition to Nakhlah (in
Rajab 2 AH);
 2. The Makkans had to remove the Muslim threat to their trade route to
Syria on which their economic well-being was hugely dependent;
3. The Muslims wanted to rob the caravan, but had to fight the army
because the caravan slipped by and the Makkan army came to protect
it.

None of the above can be a valid trigger for war because of the following
reasons:

1. The first matter was definitely a sore point for Makkans but was not
significant enough to justify amassing an army. According to the rules of
the society, the Makkans could have demanded Qiŝaaŝi either from the
Prophet directly or through his clan in Makkah. Even the Prophet himself
had offered blood money for the person killed. In addition, when some
Makkan leaders wanted to go back without fighting, and this issue of
revenge was raised, „Utbah bin Rabee„ah was willing to pay the blood
money to the victim‟s family, but it was refused. Thus, according to
Arabian traditions, the war could not be justified on this basis.

2. The second reason could not be an excuse for war at all because none of
the Makkan caravans travelling the Syrian route were so far intercepted,
stopped or robbed.

The most common theory presented in this respect is that the Muslims
intended to rob the caravan. Some people even go one step further and
accuse that all of the eight expeditions mentioned earlier were also
undertaken for this reason. Although this claim is so ridiculous that it is not
even worthy of any consideration, some Muslims have accepted this
baseless accusation as a matter of fact, rationalizing it on the basis that
Muslims had a legitimate claim against the Quraish who had usurped the
wealth and properties of the Muslim Muhaajireen (emigrants). Attributing
this intent to the Muslims is a totally implausible assertion for the
following reasons:

 So far, Allaah had granted the Prophet and the Muslims permission
to fight only when they were attacked or fought with, i.e.
specifically for defensive purposes (Al-Ĥajj). Attacking or robbing
a caravan would obviously be an act of aggression rather than a

i
Settling life for life or for an established equivalent monetary compensation.
 defensive encounter. Do you think the Prophet would disobey
Allaah and would attack the caravans just because Muslims have a
legitimate claim against the Quraish?

 There were eight expeditions undertaken before the battle of Badr,

and there was only one encounter with a caravan. Do you think the
Prophet was so clumsy in his planning and so weak in his
intelligence gathering that seven out of eight missions failed in
robbing the caravans?

 Is there any historical evidence that Quraish would send multiple

caravans one after the other in a matter of a few months to the same
direction; i.e. Syria?

 If robbing a caravan was the goal all along, when his men finally
succeeded why would he return all the goods and give the blood
money for the killed guard? Someone might say it was because the
fight took place in Rajab (another propaganda of falsehood). But if
the inviolability of the month of Rajab was the reason, how would
return of the money and payment of the blood money restore the
sanctity already broken? And why would he worry about restoring
the sanctity especially when Allaah had provided a justification for
fighting in the inviolable months? The fact is that the only reason he
returned the goods, freed the prisoners and offered the blood
ransom was because it was never his intention to attack any
caravan.

The idea of plundering the caravan is so inconsistent with the entire life and
style of the Prophet that it is evidently a fabricated story. The person who was
so forgiving and kind to his enemies, who spent lavishly on them after having
authority over them, who was kindest to the prisoners of war -- how could one
say that he was sending troops to rob caravans? Although it would have been
justified for an ordinary person to think of robbing the caravans to recover
misappropriated wealth of Muslims, it does not fit with the personality of
someone who did not even want to mention a thing of the past when he had full
control over his enemies‟ affairs and full authority of recovering all that was
taken from the Muslims in the past. The person who made a point to win the
hearts of people, do you expect him to gain wealth and alienate the hearts?
This fabrication has been most vigorously propagated for the battle of Badr. It
is claimed that Muslims had left Madeenah to rob the caravan. When Aboo
Sufyaan, the leader of the caravan, found out that the Muslims were coming to
attack the caravan, he sent a messenger to Makkah for help. The Makkans
gathered the army and marched towards Madeenah to protect the caravan. On
hearing the news of the Makkan army, then the Prophet consulted his
companions at a place called Dzafraan, where the aforementioned speeches
took place and the Muslims decided to confront the army instead of the
caravan.

This theory is so baseless and so absurd that it should not even be mentioned.
The unfortunate aspect is that many Muslims themselves keep repeating this
fabricated propaganda thoughtlessly, disregarding all the clear evidence
available against this false assertion. Let us look at the events surrounding the
battle of Badr to see what the evidence suggests.

Solid Facts

The battle of Badr took place on Friday, 17th of Ramadhaan at Badr which is
about 90 miles from Madeenah and 200 miles from Makkah. The Muslims
reached Badr on the 16th of Ramadhaan, where Makkans were already camped
on the other side of the mountain. The caravan had reached the vicinity also at
the same time.

The Makkan army had reached Badr before the Muslim army. Now let us say
that they reached there earlier the same day or only a day earlier. It is known
that they spent 10 days traveling to Badr, which means they must have started
from Makkah on the 6th of Ramadhaan, at the latest. After Dhamdham reached
Makkah, the Makkans took 4 days to make arrangements with Banoo Bakr not
to attack Makkah at that time in their absence. They needed this time also to
assemble and organize the army. It means Dhamdham must have reached
Makkah by the first or second of Ramadhaan.

Now the question is when and from where Dhamdham was sent so as to reach
Makkah by the 1st or 2nd of Ramadhaan. Usually it is mentioned that Aboo
Sufyaan sent him when he found out that Muslims are advancing to attack his
caravan. If this is believed to be true, it means Dhamdham must have been sent
when the caravan was close to Madeenah. Even if Dhamdham travelled
uninterrupted at full speed of the camel, it would have taken him about one
week to reach Makkah (remember that it took the Prophet 7-8 days while
migrating to Madeenah on camel). Accordingly, the Muslims must have left
Madeenah around the 20th of Sha„baan, at the latest, to be in the vicinity of the
trade route so that their presence was noted and reported to Aboo Sufyaan, and
Dhamdham had enough time to reach Makkah by the beginning of Ramadhaan.
Although even this time estimate is tight, we are taking the minimum numbers
for the sake of argument.

Hence, if the story that Dhamdham was sent after Aboo Sufyaan had found out
about the Muslim‟s intention to attack the caravan is believed, it implies that:

 Muslims left Madeenah around the 20th of Sha„baan;

 Although the caravan was close by and even its diverted route was
only 15-16 miles away, the Muslims wandered around for about
two weeks instead of chasing the caravan until they heard about the
Makkan army, when they changed their mind and decided to
confront the army instead.

Both of these implications themselves highlight the falsehood of the

proposition.

It is an established fact that the travel did happen in Ramadhaan, not in

Sha„baan. This was the first year when fasting was prescribed. When the
Muslims started from Madeenah they were fasting and the Prophet had to ask
them to break the fast.

Similarly, the second point does not make sense at all. If the intent was to
attack the caravan, why did the Muslim army not do anything when the
Makkans were still at home? Why did they wait for the army to come? Why
not rob the caravan, use the wealth to buy more arms, horses and camels and
then confront the Makkans to fight with them? And when they departed from
Madeenah, why is it that the Muslims marched in the direction of Makkah
towards Badr instead of marching North-west towards the Caravan?

Some others may assume that Aboo Sufyaan sent for help not because the
Muslims troops were seen in the area but as a precaution against the fear that
the Muslims might attack. The question is, what was the basis of the fear? Was
there any caravan robbed by Muslims before he left for Syria? Did anyone
chase his caravan on his way to Syria? The answer to both of these questions is
a resounding NO! So perhaps the Nakhlah incident triggered his fear. That is
not possible either because he was in Syria and did not have access to that
information. Perhaps the Makkans sent him a special courier to inform him
about the incident? Does it not sound odd that at first the Makkans would send
him a message to inform him of the incident and then he would send
Dhamdham to ask for help? Why would the Makkans not send him a message:
“A caravan has been attacked and thus, as a precaution, we will be coming to
protect you according to your scheduled arrival”? Moreover, if it was just
because of the fear and precaution, why would Dhamdham cry about it as if the
caravan was, as a matter of fact, under attack? It is apparent that Aboo Sufyaan
had no clue about the Nakhlah incident and he had no basis to suspect a raid.
He had sent his man to stage the pre-planned drama so that a justification for
war could be created and the Makkans could be incited to fight.

Some more Pertinent Questions

If the Prophet and Muslims started from Madeenah to intercept the caravan,
and the Makkan army was called for, only in response to the presence of the
Muslim army, why was a 313-strong army needed to confront 30-40 guards?
Was that the style of the Prophet, especially considering that the manpower for
each of the expeditions sent so far had been very small compared to the
number of Makkan troops they were expected to confront? Why were the
Anŝaar included for the first time, unless that every Muslim was truly needed
to confront the army for the survival of the Islamic mission, so much so that
only eight believing men were left to fulfil some assigned tasks in Madeenah?

Why were two non-Muslims who wanted to join the army told, “Whoever does
not follow our Deen cannot participate with us.” Was this differentiation
something pertinent for robbing a caravan? Or was it because the Muslims
were setting out to confront the enemies to establish the “Ĥaqq” (the Truth)?

Why were all Muslims joining the army with the passion for Jihad and
martyrdom, so much so that young Muslims like „Umair bin Abee Waqqaaŝ
also wanted to participate? And why were other young boys like „Abdullaah
bin „Umar, Usaamah bin Zaid, Baraa bin „Aazib, Zaid bin Arqam, etc. not
allowed to join? Was intercepting a trade caravan which had only about 40
guards all that risky for an army of more than 300 fighting men to deny
participation to those boys?

If the coming of the army was found later on at Dzafraan, which is very close
to Badr, why would the matter be presented that there were two gangs on the
way, one of which can be yours? By that time, the caravan had already slipped
by (down towards the coast) and the Makkan army was close at hand. Thus,
they had no choice but to face the army.

Also, if the intent was to rob the caravan, why did the Muslim army not chase
the caravan after the defeat of the Makkan army at Badr? After the Muslims
were victorious and the danger of the Makkan army was gone and the caravan
was so close to Badr, it could have been easily chased and robbed.

From the Makkan perspective, if they set out merely to defend their caravan,
what would justify the following:

 When they found out that the caravan had safely passed the “danger”
zone, why did they not leave without fighting, especially when some of
their own urged them to do so? Why did they continue marching to
Badr?

 Why was such a strong army with more than one thousand (1000)
fighters and so much preparation for the war needed? Why was it made
incumbent for every clan and every noticeable leader to participate in
the war? Why was such an environment created that anyone who would
not participate in the war would be doing so to destroy his reputation?
Why was it given the status of a “national” war where each clan
contributed to the expenses of the war, instead of only those clans who
had invested money in the caravan? Why was it given a religious and
ideological significance?

The fact is that the war was undertaken on a purely ideological basis by the
Makkans to root out the Muslims. Dhamdham was sent far in advance
according to the prior plan, not because of any danger from Muslims. The
protection of the caravan was just a cover. That is why troops from Banoo
Saleem and Banoo Ghaşfaan of Najd area were able to participate in the army.
Without behind-the-scene pre-arrangements, their joining the Makkan army on
short notice would have been impossible. Banoo Bakr also agreed to refrain
from attacking Makkah during that time for the religious reasons.

It is also fact that the Muslims started from Madeenah only after hearing the
news of the invading army starting from Makkah. Hence, the Muslims left
Madeenah on the 12th of Ramadhaan, as some of the historians have reported,
traveling at the speed of a foot soldier because of a lack of enough camels,
reaching Badr in 3-4 days by the 16th. What happened at Dzafraan was only
that some of those who had hoped to chase the caravan finally realized that the
only option they had was to face the army.

Thus, the Makkans came out clearly and determinedly to destroy the growing
challenge to their religion and their way of life and the Muslims came out to
defend their Deen and their way of life. Hence it was a critical moment to
determine which ideology was going to survive and flourish.

The fact that the Muslims left Madeenah to confront the army is also clearly
indicated by verses 5-8 of this soorah, which documented the truth
immediately after the Battle of Badr. Those verses make it crystal clear that the
Muslims had set out of Madeenah to defend themselves and their faith from the
Makkan aggression, not to attack the caravan.

The tactics of the Makkans leading up to the battle show that the Battle of Badr
was one of those situations where people are fired up to fight against the
Muslims through dramatization and lies. It also shows that tactics of the Kufr
do not change. Whether it is the Pharaoh of Egypt, Aboo Jahl of Makkah or a
neo-conservative of the 21st century, their mentality and tactics remain the
same. They use lies and false propaganda about an imminent danger,
retaliation or pre-emption to fool people and convince them to participate in
and support the illegitimate and unjust wars of aggression.

Topics
The previous two Soorahs of this group were focused on calling the Makkans
to Islam (Da„wah) through logical and rational approaches and through citing
the examples of previous nations. The focus of this Soorah as well as that of
the next Soorah, the last Soorah of this group, is mainly addressing the
Muslims and guiding them in the area where they need purification from
weaknesses, growth in virtues and education of Islamic teachings.

This Soorah emphasizes the concepts of Taqwa, Tawakkul, brotherhood,

obedience to the Messenger and organized struggle under the leadership of the
Messenger. As it is the first time the Muslims have been involved in a fight, it
teaches them the Islamic ethics and principles of war-related matters. For the
first time in the history of humanity, it lays down the fundamentals of the most
civilized code of conduct in war that has no parallel in its excellence to this
day. It explains how the victory in the battle was because of Allaah‟s help and
it teaches Muslims the superior moral qualities that are necessary to continue to
receive Allaah‟s help and support in future.

At appropriate places, it continues to exhort the idolaters, hypocrites and Jews

to reform their behaviours and attitudes and to come to Islam.

Placement

As mentioned in the introduction to Soorah Al-An„aam and Soorah Al-A„raaf,

once the Prophet had started the Islamic movement by calling the Makkans to
Islam and the Makkans had undertaken a strong opposition against his mission,
the struggle between the Islamic movement and its opposition went through
four stages. The Qur-aan guides people through those four stages in four
Soorahs:

 The first stage consisted of explaining the validity of the Islamic

message and absurdity of the opposition‟s stance from every possible
rational and logical angle. That was done in Soorah Al-An„aam.
 The second stage was that the opponents were warned of their failure
and destruction not only through rational arguments but also through
the examples of previous nations who faced destruction because of their
rejection of the Islamic message and Allaah‟s messengers. That was the
theme of Soorah Al-A‟raaf.
 The third stage was that the opposition imposed wars on the Muslims
thus starting an armed struggle between the two for which the Muslims
needed to be trained and educated. Those needs are addressed in this
Soorah.
 The final stage was the victory and supremacy of Islam and guidance
through that phase; and that guidance is contained in the next Soorah –
Soorah At-Towbah or Al-Baraa‟ah --the last Soorah of this group.
Teachings with Running Commentary
In the name of Allaah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

The Soorah starts with a brief comment regarding the spoils of war that was captured
by the Muslims from the defeated Makkan attackers. Once the battle was over,
questions arose as to who gets what out of the spoils. How should the spoils be
allocated among those who collected it, those who were on guard duties, those who
chased the Makkans so that they did not come back to attack, etc. Different people had
different views and different arguments in favour of their views. This soorah starts
with giving the Islamic perspective on the questions about the spoils of war.

1
They ask you about the windfalls. Say, “The windfalls belong to Allaah and
the Messenger. So be Allaah-conscious and set aright the matters among
yourselves, and obey Allaah and His Messenger if you are believers.

According to the Arab traditions, when it came to the booty of war, either the
commander took over all significant things or the finders were considered to be the
legitimate keepers. Because of this reason, many people participated in wars so that
they could collect booty. This desire for booty was counter-productive to the morals
and ethics that Islam promoted. It caused three problems in the psyche of fighters:

 Firstly, it encouraged people to fight for the sake of booty. Islam wanted to
eliminate this motive for people to join the battles. That was one of the
reasons that the Prophet declined the offer of two non-Muslims who
volunteered to join the Muslim army when setting out from Madeenah for
Badr.
 Secondly, it incited people to run after the booty, instead of chasing the
defeated army so that it did not return to attack.
 Lastly, it encouraged people to hide what they captured so that the
commander does not claim it; thus promoting a stealing and cheating
mentality.

This verse corrects the attitude of believers in two ways:

 It takes the spoils out of the picture of the battle by declaring it a windfall
bounty. This gives a clear message that a Muslim does not fight with the
expectation that there will be spoils at the end of the war. Rather a Muslim
 fights only for the sake of principles and for objectives such as defending his
faith, enforcing law and order, removing hindrances in the way of the Islamic
mission, establishing justice and equality, and eradicating tyranny and
persecution of the public by the rulers. If the battle for the aforementioned
principles and objectives delivers any spoils, then that is a windfall.

 Then it declares that the windfall does not belong to the fighters but to Allaah
and His Messenger. It becomes available only because of Allaah‟s help to the
believers. It is Allaah‟s and His Messenger to deal with in the way they deem
fit. It is not up to the people to decide what to do with it. Whatever a person
collects, it is in his trust for the sake of Allaah and His Messenger. As it
belongs to Allaah, no one can hide anything from Him without being held
accountable for it on the Day of Judgment. Thus if they are true believers,
they should be conscious of Allaah watching them, maintain His Taqwa, stop
arguing about the spoils, mend their brotherly relations among themselves and
accept obediently whatever Allaah and His Messenger decide about it.

After giving this message in one concise verse, the subject was not mentioned until
verse 41 allowing the spirit of the message to sink in and attitudes to be fully
reformed. Then, in verse 41, the guidelines for distribution were given. In the
meantime, the attributes of true believers are expounded further so that everyone can
check his or her personality against these criteria and see where any improvements are
needed.

2
For, believers are only those who: when Allaah is mentioned, they feel a
tremor in their hearts; when His revelations are recited to them, it strengthens
their faith; and, on their Lord do they rely. 3 Who establish Ŝalaah and spend
benevolently out of what We have bestowed on them. 4 Such are the believers
truly. They shall have exalted ranks with their Lord and forgiveness and
generous sustenance.

The first and foremost indication of the true faith is the kind of perception about
Allaah a person has in his mind and the kind of attachment his heart has with Him. To
a true believer, Allaah is not merely an abstract name without any emotional
attachment. Rather, his faith in Allaah is indicative of real feelings based on a very
deep and emotional relationship. A true believer is in awe of Allaah‟s majesty,
greatness, power and sovereignty as well as is in intense love with Him for His
perfection in every respect, and His infinite mercy and kindness. Thus, when Allaah‟s
name is mentioned, the believer feels a jolt in his heart both because of awe and love.
Thus, he submits to Him and His commands instantly, lovingly, enthusiastically and
unhesitatingly.
The second manifestation of true faith is how a person feels when a command of
Allaah SWT is presented to him. If Allaah‟s command strengthens one‟s faith, the
person is a true believer. Faith is not a static thing. It grows when a believer submits to
Allaah‟s command happily and instantly. Every command of Allaah is a test of the
faith. Those who willingly give up their own ideas in favour of Allaah‟s command and
make whatever sacrifice is needed to act upon Allaah‟s command, they continue to
grow in faith and are pleased with that growth. Ignoring or violating a command of
Allaah is not only indicative of weak faith but also results in further weakening.

When acting upon the command of Allaah, the true believers are not concerned about
the consequences of their actions, the hardships that may result as a consequence of
acting upon Allaah‟s command, or the personal sacrifices they have to make for the
pleasure of Allaah. The completely rely on Allaah in that respect, make the necessary
worldly sacrifices and face the resulting hardships willingly and gladly knowing that
their ultimate success lies only in following His commands.

Also, the true believers do not live in isolation of each other. They form their own
community that is structured on the basis of the system of Ŝalaah and revolves round
it. They also spend generously in the way of Allaah from whatever they have been
bestowed so that the community and the Islamic mission can continue to finance its
activities properly.

Without possessing these five attributes, a person cannot be a true, complete believer
in the sight of Allaah, although he will still be treated as a Muslim in the world. It
does not mean that a true believer never makes a mistake or never sins. Human beings
are not perfect. Sometimes a sincere believer can also slip and make mistakes. But if
the believers maintain the above-mentioned attributes on a normal basis, Allaah SWT
will forgive their mistakes because of His kindness and mercy. Such believers will
still be granted their ranks according to the strength of their faith and their overall
commitment to Islam and all the wonderful provisions of Jannah.

By raising the questions about the spoils of the war, some of the Muslims were
displaying the same kind of attitude that was displayed by some who were scared to
face the Makkan army and instead wanted to chase the caravan. Hence, Allaah SWT is
taking the opportunity to also address the weakness that was displayed by them at the
time of setting out for the battle.
5
(The questions being raised now stem from the same mentality as the
questions raised) when your Lord brought you out of your house for the
purpose of Truth, even though a group of believers disliked it. 6 They were
arguing with you about the Truth after it had become clear, as if they were
being driven to death while they were seeing it. 7 It was when Allaah promised
you that one of the two groups would be for you, and you wished the weaker
one to be for you; but Allaah wanted to manifest the truthfulness of the Truth
by His words and to cut off the root of the unbelievers. 8 That He might
establish Truth as true and prove Falsehood false, even if the criminals disliked
it.

These verses were revealed immediately after the battle of Badr and are the most
authentic record of what happened when the Prophet and Muslims were leaving their
homes in Madeenah to confront the Makkans. These verses very clearly and
unequivocally state that the Prophet and the Muslims departed from their homes with
the very clear goal of confronting the army, even though some of the Muslims did not
want that. The Muslim army started from Madeenah to establish “Ĥaqq” and to
counter the disbelievers, not to raid the caravan. These verses are telling us that:

 Allaah brought the Prophet out of his home with Ĥaqq – a legitimate and valid
goal of establishing the truth of Islam and demonstrating the falsehood of the
Makkan‟s idolatry by defeating them in the battle and destroying the main
pillars of falsehood. Naturally this purpose could have been achieved only
through the battle of Badr, not through attacking the caravan.

 This fact was known and fully intended right when the Prophet and the
Muslims were preparing to leave their homes, not later on at any other place.
The question about one of the two gangs was presented right there at the time
of initial discussion and the objective set by Allaah was also known at that
time.

 The matter was presented to people in a subtle but clear manner so that the
dedicated believers immediately knew what was being suggested but only a
few weaker in faith tried to argue for chasing the caravan that had only 30-40
people to guard it. The sensible Muslims knew that the only viable option was
gaining victory over the army for the security of Muslims in Madeenah. Going
after the caravan was neither congruent with the Islamic goals, nor was it
pragmatic. Even if they overpowered the caravan, they would be defeated by
the army. The promise of Allaah was to grant victory over only one of them,
not both.
  Even the group of people with weak faith knew right away that the marching
order was for a decisive battle, though they felt that going for the battle was in
fact jumping into a death trap; therefore, they continued their efforts to talk
the Prophet out of it until they reached Dzafraan and saw that there was no
way out of the battle now.

From these verses, it becomes crystal clear that the Muslims had set out from
Madeenah to defend themselves and their faith from the Makkan aggression, not to
attack the caravan.

After setting out from Madeenah, the Prophet inspected the army at bi-ar Abee
„Anbah and sent some young boys back. They were not mature enough to participate
in the war but had joined because of their passion to fight in the way of Allaah. Then
he travelled with his companions as fast as possible towards Badr.

When they reached the Dzafraan valley, a place close to Badr, the Prophet ensured
that no one among the Muslims was left with the hope of chasing the caravan and that
everyone was mentally prepared to confront the army. He gave them the good news of
Allaah‟s promise of victory and said, “By Allaah, I am seeing the places where the
enemies will be killed.”

When they reached the valley of Badr, the Prophet asked them to camp at a spot in the
valley. One of the companions, Habbaab bin Mudzar, who was familiar with the
valley, asked the Prophet if that particular spot was selected on Allaah‟s command.
When the Prophet indicated otherwise, he suggested that they should advance further
and camp around the well located close to the enemy‟s encampment. Otherwise,
Muslims would not have access to the water. The Prophet ordered his companions to
move forward and encamp as suggested. After descending there, the companions built
a small pool beside the well to store the water so that people could take it as needed,
instead of spending time on drawing it at the time of need. In addition to the drinking
needs, their main concern was the availability of water for purification for Ŝalaah.
Although the Muslims were full of zeal and passion to defend their faith, to fight in
the way of Allaah and to sacrifice their lives for His Deen and although they had
mustered everything they had for this battle, they knew that there was no comparison
between them and their enemies in terms of physical resources. They were humbly
seeking Allaah‟s help, knowing that their success and survival depended on Allaah‟s
help.
It is the Sunnah of Allaah SWT that when the believers deploy all their resources, put
in their best efforts in His way, and then rely on Allaah for results, He takes care of all
matters that are beyond their power and capacity and creates the optimal conditions
for their success. Some of those things are mentioned in the next three verses.

9
Remember when you sought help from your Lord, and He answered you, “I
will reinforce you with a thousand of the angels, ranks on ranks.” 10 Allaah
openly disclosed it only to make it a good news and to comfort your hearts
thereby. Help comes only from Allaah. Allaah is indeed Mighty, Wise. 11 And
remember when He was covering you with drowsiness as a source of serenity
from Himself, and was sending down water from the sky upon you in order to
cleanse you therewith and to take away from you the uncleanness of the
Shayşaani, and in order to strengthen your hearts and to steady your feet
therewith.

Allaah SWT ensured that the conditions were right for the Muslim to gain victory by
blessing them with the following favours:

 Boosted their confidence and morale by announcing that one thousand angels
will be descending in ranks, one after the other, to help the Muslims -- one
angel for every soldier of the Makkan aggressors.

Allaah SWT always helps the sincere believers who dedicate all their life and
possessions and put in their level best efforts in His way. This happens
whether it is disclosed or not; and it will continue to happen until the Day of
Judgment. As the Prophet was with the Muslims at Badr, it was possible to
announce it through him. Thus, it was disclosed as a special favour to boost
their morale by the knowledge of the coming help.

 Gave them such tranquility in their hearts that they were able to sleep properly
the night before the battleii. This provided them with the adequate rest needed

i
Satan
ii
Commentators and writers have usually stated as if the believers experienced the drowsiness during the
battle. That opinion is invalid for two reasons: Firstly, the Qur-aan is stating it as something that
happened along with other things that occurred the evening before the battle such as announcing the good
news that angels will be descending for help and sending down the rain. Secondly, drowsiness during the
battle is counterproductive because people cannot fight effectively if they are not alert. Muslims‟ loss of
alertness during the battle would have been helpful to Makkans, not to the Muslims. The fact is that it
happened on the night before so that the Muslims enjoyed proper rest to be alert and effective next
morning in the battle.
 to fight attentively, alertly and effectively in the battle the next day. The sleep-
deprived people cannot put their heart into the task at hand, nor can they have
steady feet.

 Caused rainfall which helped the Muslims in three ways:

o Provided adequate water for their drinking and purification needs,
which they were able to collect in the pool they had already built;
o The Muslims were on higher ground so the precipitation made the
sand firm under their feet, easing their movement and manoeuvring;
o The Makkans were on the lower side of the valley so the excess water
created slippery conditions.

It should be noted that while describing the benefit of rain, purification (Şahaarah)
was mentioned, without mentioning the drinking water needs. While the benefit of
water for drinking is obvious and goes without saying, the mention of purification
indicates how concerned the companions were about their purification that Allaah
SWT provided enough water for that purpose and mentioned it as a special favour.

According to the literary style of the Qur-aan, the repetition of “in order to” before
listing the last two benefits at the end of verse 11 indicates that those benefits ensue
more from the first mentioned favour, ie., “drowsiness”.

The abovementioned favours were shown the night before. Then on the day of battle,
Allaah SWT helped the Muslims win by commanding the angels to do the following:

12
Also when your Lord inspired the angels, “I am with you, so make the
believers stand firm. I will instil terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve;
so strike upon the necks and strike off every fingertip of them.”

The job of the angels was not to fight on behalf of the Muslims. Rather they were to
keep Muslim morale high and ensure that their weapons strike the right spots and
become effective. On the other hand, by striking the pores of disbelievers‟ fingers,
they were to make the hands of the Makkans unsteady and thus ineffective in their
manoeuvres.

The way the battle turned out was as follows:

After the Fajr Ŝalaah, the Prophet talked about the significance of the impending
confrontation, mentioned Allaah‟s favours and reminded the believers of the high
ranks of the Mujaahideen. Then, he asked them to line up for the fight, keeping
swordsmen and spearmen in the centre and archer on both flanks. The lines were
straightened meticulously, so that no one was ahead of the line or behind it. He
instructed them not to let the lines break under any circumstances and that they should
use their arms only when the enemy came close enough within a striking range.

The battle started with individual challenges in which the Muslims were able to kill
the three challengers. Then, the Makkans initiated the general attack, which Muslims
defended against while staying within their ranks. The fighting was at its peak when
the Prophet picked up a handful of sand and threw it towards the Makkans, saying,
“May these faces perish”, and commanded his companions to make an all-out attack.
It is reported that when the Prophet threw the sand every Makkan soldier felt it in his
eyes. The Makkans could not withstand the Muslim attack and started running away.
In the end, seventy Makkans were killed and seventy taken as prisoners. Nine of the
12 chiefs of the Quraish who had surrounded the house of the Prophet in Makkah to
kill him on the night of his Hijrah (migration) were among the 70 men killed at Badr.
Fourteen Muslims were martyred in the battle.

At this victory, the Prophet offered two Raka‟aat to express his gratitude to Allaah and
said, “Allaah is the greatest. All praise and gratitude is for Allaah Who fulfilled His
promise, helped His slave, and defeated the whole army.”

When the news of the Muslim victory reached Madeenah and people came
congratulating, Salmah bin Salaamah RA said, “What congratulations! We fought
with old ladies who came out of their homes and they were like tied camels whom we
were slaughtering.” On this comment the Prophet smiled and said, “Young man, do
not say it like that; they were the chiefs of the Quraish.” Although the Makkan army
consisted of proud warriors known for their bravery, the ease the companions felt in
defeating them was a clear evidence of the help of Allaah‟s angels.

Before leaving the battle field, the 14 martyrs were buried. Similarly, all the dead
Makkans were buried in a ditch. After their burial, the Prophet addressed them as
such, “O men of the ditch, you proved to be the worst members of the clan to the
Prophet. You rejected me, while others believed in me. You drove me out of your city,
while others accommodated me. You fought with me, while others helped me. O
„Utbah, O Shaybah, O Umayyah, O Aboo Jahl, is it not true that you found the
promise that your Lord made with you to be truthful? I definitely found the promise
that my Lord made with me to be truthful.” This comment by the Prophet described
their crime for which they suffered. That crime is stated by Allaah in the next verse.
13
This is because they antagonize Allaah and His Messenger; and whoever
antagonizes Allaah and His Messenger, Allaah is severe in punishing. 14 This
(loss in the battle), you taste it now; and then (in the Hereafter) indeed for the
disbelievers is the torment of the Fire.

After mentioning the crime of the disbelievers, Allaah SWT addresses them directly
telling them that this defeat is only the worldly part of their punishment. They still will
have to contend with Fire in the Hereafter.

This battle went very well. Muslims were dedicated to and passionate for their cause.
They were fearlessly ready to die in the way of Allaah SWT. They remained steadfast
despite all the odds being against them, except that they knew that Allaah SWT was
going to help them. Allaah SWT also made it very easy for them, but the future
attacks by enemies and the resulting wars might not be that easy. There might be more
hardships, severer tests and fiercer battles for which Muslims needed to be prepared.
They should be trained to be steadfast even in the worst of circumstances. The next
verse reminds them of their responsibilities in this respect.
15
O you who believe! In a formal battle, when you confront those who
disbelieve, then never turn your backs to them. 16 Anyone who turns his back
to them on such a day -- unless manoeuvring for battle or re-grouping with a
company -- then he certainly draws Allaah's wrath, and hell will be his abode,
and that is an awful destination.

The mention of the attribute “formal” with the battle is to distinguish it from guerrilla
warfare wherein small parties attack the enemy and then run away. The exception to
the rule clarifies that an orderly retreat as a military manoeuvre is not prohibited. What
is Ĥaraam (prohibited) for believers is to run away in defeat or because of cowardice.
Such weakness becomes especially reprehensible when it is known that Allaah is the
Helper of the believers.

In this battle, the results were far better than what was humanly possible on the part of
the Muslims only because of Allaah‟s help and approval of the actions of the Prophet
and his companions. If Muslims were able to kill a significant number of invaders
with minimal loss of life on their part, or if the sand thrown by the Prophet acted like a
storm irritating everyone‟s eyes in the enemy‟s army, it did not happen because of the
logical result of human effort but because of Allaah‟s power. The next two verses
make this point and the reasons behind Allaah‟s favours.
17
So, effectively, you did not kill them, but it was Allaah Who killed them;
and O Muĥammad, you did not throw the handful of sand on them, but Allaah
threw it. He did all of this in order that (He could show some of His ways of
helping the believers) and He could bring out the best qualities of the
believersi. Indeed Allaah is Hearing, Knowing. 18 That was for you; for
disbelievers, Allaah is the frustrater of the disbeliever‟s plots.

One of the styles used in the Qur-aan is that for the sake of brevity and conciseness, an
obvious conclusion of a statement is omitted, while the less obvious is expressly
stated. The omission of the obvious phrase is indicated by the presences of
conjunctive “and”. By including “He could show some of His ways of helping the
believers”, approximation of the omitted phrase has been stated.

An express statement to say that Allaah helped the Muslims in order to foil the
disbeliever‟s plot confirms the fact that the Makkan attack on Madeenah on the
pretence of protecting the caravan was a plot hatched to deceive people.

While setting out from Makkah to invade Madeenah, holding the curtains of the
Ka‟bah, the Makkans prayed for the better group to win and for the worse one to be
humiliated. Even on the eve of the battle, Aboo Jahl prayed, “O Allaah, crush
tomorrow the person who is the biggest severer of relationships.” The next verse talks
to that point.
19
(O disbelievers!) If you sought a judgment, the judgment has then indeed
come to you. Now, if you desist from hostilities, it will be better for you; but if
you repeat, so shall We. And your armies, no matter how numerous, shall be of
no avail to you; remember that Allaah is with the believers.

This was an admonition from Allaah to the surviving chiefs of Quraish so that future
bloodshed and hostilities could be averted. They have been clearly told that no matter
what they do, they are not going to win because Allaah SWT is with the Muslims.
Thus, it is better for them to desist. This was also a prediction of the ultimate victory

i
The translation of this phrase is based on the idiomatic rendering in Amin Ahsan Islahi‟s work
“Tadabbarul- Qur-aan”.
of the Prophet and his companions – one of the many examples where the Qur-aanic
prophecy proved one hundred percent accurate.
While the previous section had put the battle of Badr and the Muslim victory in the
proper perspective, the next section is devoted to identifying the areas of improvement
among the Muslims who had some weakness in their faith and the corrective actions
needed for those weaknesses.

The section begins with an admonition to those who claim to be Muslims but do not
listen to the Prophet. It is a flagrant contradiction of one‟s claim to be a believer for
him to ignore, disregard or brush aside the wishes, instructions or commands of the
Prophet, while claiming to believe that he is the Messenger of Allaah and while
knowing that obedience to the Prophet is obedience to Allaah. A true believer listens
attentively to the Prophet and then instantly obeys his word without any reluctance,
reservation or concern, giving it the highest priority and willingly making any
sacrifice that may have to be made in complying with it. Those who may not have
strong enough faith to comply with this standard of listening and obeying are
addressed in the next two verses.
20
O you who believe! Obey Allaah and His Messenger and do not turn away
from Him while you hear his instructions. 21 And do not be like those who say,
“We hear”, but they do not listen. 22 Surely the worst of animals, in Allaah's
sight, are the deaf and the dumb people who do not use reason.

Lack of attention to or ignoring what the Messenger has to say is tantamount to

disobedience not only to the Messenger but also to Allaah SWT. Thus, for example, if
the Messenger calls upon believers to join him in going out and defending against
aggression, any claimant to faith who hears the call but does not join his army, is the
subject of these verses. Not listening to and not willingly obeying the Messenger is
hypocritical behaviour that brought Allaah‟s anger upon the Jews, who had been
behaving in that manner with all of the prophets from Moosa AS onwards. Such
behaviour is incompatible with the claim of being Muslims.

The differentiating factor between the animals and human beings is the human ability
to behave differently from and beyond the confines of instinctive imperatives. To the
knowledge gained through senses, they can react intellectually and morally, instead of
reacting instinctively like animals. When it comes to natural urges and innate desires,
human beings have the ability to strive for higher objectives rather than being
restricted by their physical and instinctive parameters, unlike animals who cannot
think beyond meeting their physical needs. When people concentrate on chasing their
physical desires and worldly aspirations at the cost of higher objectives, they lose their
intellectual and moral superiority over animals and become deaf and dumb towards
important matters such as listening to the Prophet or fulfilling their Islamic
obligations. Such deaf and dumb people who do not appreciate the status of the
Messenger and disregard his instructions are worse than animals because they do not
benefit from the faculties bestowed to them that differentiate them from animals.

The true believers in Islam would have a strong conviction on their own to strive for
the objectives of Deen and to sacrifice their worldly needs and aspirations for the sake
of establishing the Truth they believe in. They would jump to do whatever is needed,
without needing any reminders or prodding. The goodness of their hearts emanating
from their pursuit of Allaah‟s pleasure and the objectives of Deen, guides them to do
the right things and setting the right priorities. In contrast to such sincere believers,
those who do not have that goodness in their hearts, nothing will make them listen to
the Prophet and adopt the right behaviour.
23
Had Allaah known of any good in them, He would have made them hear; if
He had made them hear (while lacking that goodness), they would have turned
away, while shunning (the Prophet).

It should not be expected that because they have become Muslims, Allaah will cause
their deafness and dumbness to disappear and will guide them to make the right
decisions. They need to inculcate the Islamic goodness in their hearts first – making
the pursuit of Allaah‟s pleasure and attainment of the objectives of Deen as their goal
in life. They need to shift their paradigm of life from maximizing the gratification of
worldly pleasures, desires and aspirations to maximizing the pleasure of Allaah. Once
they take the initiative to correct their paradigm and adopt the resulting goodness,
Allaah will open their mind and guide them to make the right decisions and setting the
priorities in the right manner. Without this shift, they are good for nothing. Just as a
seedling planted in unsuitable weather and unsuitable soil cannot establish roots, true
faith cannot establish roots in the absence of the goodness of the heart and the right
paradigm. If people who lack these qualities are pushed to take a right step, they
continue to take the wrong turns every future step of the way. For example, if Allaah
would have made them participate in the army, they would have lacked the courage
and steadfastness in the battlefield. They would have been the first to run away from
danger, causing more problems for the Muslims, instead of being useful.

People who utilize their God-given power to move beyond their instinctive
imperatives and live for higher goals such as establishing the Islamic system of peace,
justice and excellence are truly living human beings. Those constrained by their
instincts and by their focus on the gratification of physical desires and worldly
aspirations are living animals but dead human beings. Allaah and His Messenger
invite them to opt for life, rather than staying in the state of their dead humanity.
24
O you who believe! Respond to Allaah and to the Messenger when he calls
you to that which gives you life; and know that Allaah intervenes between man
and his heart, and that to Him you shall be gathered.

Instead of responding to Allaah and His Messenger, if people continue to focus on the
gratification of their lusts and desires, they become totally infatuated with their
passions. Gradually they become the slaves of their own desires and lose control over
their passions and temptations, being unable to resist them. In other words, they lose
control over their hearts. When such stage is reached that a person loses the ability to
control his desires or resist his temptations, Allaah terms it as “Allaah intervenes
between man and his heart” in the sense that Allaah deprives him of his ability to
reign in his heart. Although this condition is the natural result of a person‟s behaviour,
Allaah ascribes it to Himself because such natural results are built in the human nature
on which Allaah had created people.

There is an important point to reflect upon for those who thought that Muslims going
with the Prophet to Badr were marching towards their death. In fact they were the only
living people. Even their martyrs would enjoy a life better than those living in this
world -- who would soon be dying and gathered to Allaah anyway. If people just
remember the fact that they will soon be gathered to Allaah, this consciousness will be
the key to the removal of the barriers erected by their desires and instincts, blinding
them from making the right decisions and setting the right priorities.

The life-giving message of Islam is applicable to both individuals and society. It bears
fruits only if it is implemented both individually and collectively. Rather, without full
adoption by society, it does not even survive among them for long. Some people miss
this point. They do pursue the pleasure of Allaah SWT, but limit it to their own
personal behaviour. They do not concern themselves with the establishment of Islam
as a system of justice and excellence in the society and to ensuring the creation of the
Islamic environment of peace, purity and grace. They think that they are responsible
only for their own actions and that what happens in their society is not their business.
They try to do their personal “spiritual” things, but ignore their duties of Amr bil-
Ma„roof, Nahi „anil-Munkar and Jihaad fi Sabeelillaah. They do not feel strong
enough to displease other people for the sake of Islamic objectives. The next verse
warns the believers who have this kind of faulty understanding of Islam or weakness
of faith.
25
And save yourselves from an affliction which will not fall exclusively on
those of you who do wrong, and know that Allaah is severe in punishing.
Human society can be restored back to its optimal health only when people work
together to establish the Islamic system fully and completely in every aspect of
societal life through a determined and selfless Jihaad. Without the establishment of
Islam in the whole society, individuals would remain under an intense negative
pressure of the society and would not be able to survive on the straight path for very
long. Similarly, once Islam is fully established in a society, it remains healthy only as
long as Amr bil-Ma„roof and Nahi „anil-Munkar continues to be practised. If people
become reluctant to stop others from doing bad deeds, adopt a passive attitude or
become complacent towards evil behaviour of others, the evil spreads in the society
and everyone in the society, including those who stay away from that evil, suffers
from its consequences. To understand its implications, think about the physical
cleanliness of the society. If littering and uncleanliness are strongly and actively
discouraged and frowned upon, the city remains clean. Even if someone is dirty in his
home, the effect of his uncleanliness remains only on himself. However, if people start
throwing their garbage openly in streets and no one censures them or cleans it up, the
trends grows and, in due course, becomes an uncontrollable problem that affects every
citizen whether he is one of the dirty ones or not.

When people stop caring about what happens in the society, every one is doomed. The
prophet explained this point with the example of people aboard a ship. If the people on
the lower deck of the ship start cutting a hole to obtain water from the ocean and no
one stops them from doing so, everyone will drown with them.

When evil behaviour spreads in the society like an epidemic and Allaah SWT decides
to punish that society the only people who escape the punishment are those who
actively try to stop people from committing evil. This point was explained in detail in
Al-A„raaf while commenting on the story of those who were violating the Sabbath
rules.

The last phrase, “know that Allaah is severe in punishing”, reminds people that, once
Allaah decides to punish people, there is no flexibility or exception in Allaah‟s rules
of punishment. Hence, when an evil spreads in the society, those who do not actively
seek to curb it should not expect that they will be able to escape Allaah‟s punishment
merely because they did not practice that evil themselves. There will be no escape
without actively engaging in the Jihaad to stop the evil, uproot it from the society and
establish the complete Islamic system.

Although this is a difficult task, those who adopt these objectives of Deen as the goals
of their lives, Allaah SWT supports them and takes care of them. The next verse
alludes to such favours of Allaah that were recently bestowed upon the Muslims.
26
And remember when you were few and overpowered in the land, fearing lest
people might uproot you, but He sheltered you and strengthened you with His
aid and provided you with good things, that you might be grateful.

In response to Allaah‟s favours, the believers are expected to express their gratitude
by persevering wholeheartedly in His way until the objectives of Deen are fully
achieved or they die while doing their best for that purpose. It is the Sunnah of Allaah
SWT that those who express their gratitude in that manner, He continues to support
them and grant them victories and successes.

However, if they do not listen to, respond to or obey the Messenger readily, willingly
and unconditionally in His struggle for attaining the objectives of Deen and
establishing the Islamic system, that will be a betrayal against Allaah and His
Messenger.
27
O you who believe! Do not betray Allaah and the Messenger, nor knowingly
betray your trusts.

While talking about betrayal against Allaah and His Messenger, Allaah SWT has also
reminded Muslims that they must not betray any trusts entrusted to them, including
such trusts as: roles and responsibilities assigned to them, leadership positions given
to them, promises or commitments made by them, any confidential information
entrusted to them whether pertaining to individuals or organizations, resources given
under their care or voting rights they are entitled to. They also include trusts from
Allaah such as time, wealth, capabilities and natural resources. The betrayal of trust
would include any action that is inconsistent with the terms of the trust or with the
expectations under which the trust was entrusted.

Honouring of a trust is such a crucial matter in Islam that its betrayal has been linked
with the betrayal against Allaah and His Messenger. In other words, a person who
knowingly betrays trusts is lacking in faith, is a hypocrite.

The root cause of all weaknesses of faith mentioned in this section is one‟s love with,
preference for and indulgence in the matters relating to finances and family. These
two items are actually the greatest tests Allaah SWT has designated for testing one‟s
faith and commitment to Islam and one‟s pursuit of Allaah‟s pleasure and objectives
of Deen.
28
And know that your possessions and your children are a test, that it is Allaah
with Whom lies the immense reward.

The nature of the test is that if a person prefers these two things over the pleasure of
Allaah and the objectives of Deen, he weakens his faith and becomes a hypocrite. If a
person makes the love for these two items subservient to his goals of pleasing Allaah
and working for the objectives of Deen, he passes the test. He comes out a big winner
because for such people Allaah SWT has an immense, never ending reward in the
eternal life of Hereafter.

Thus the believers should get rid of the weaknesses in their faith and develop their
Taqwa of Allaah SWT and maintain it at a high level so that they are always focused
on seeking Allaah‟s pleasure and avoiding His displeasure, rather than giving
preference to the matters relating to their finances and family.
29
O you who believe! If you maintain the Taqwa of Allaah, He will grant you
the criterioni, absolve you of your mistakes, and forgive you; and Allaah
bestows splendid bounty.

There will be three very valuable benefits of maintaining an attitude of Taqwa at a

desirable level:

 They will be granted a criterion, which represents a tool or means that helps in
clearly distinguishing right from wrong and truth from falsehood, as is done
by a touchstone. This criterion can be personal acumen that guides a person in
judging what kind of behaviour or actions will please Allaah SWT and what
will be displeasing to Him. The Muslim victories such as that in the battle of
Badr were also criteria to indicate who of the two parties was right.

 Allaah SWT will absolve them of the mistakes that they make because of their
human frailty and fallibility, despite their sincere and best efforts to maintain a
high level of Taqwa. The negative impact of their mistakes on their lives in
this world and in the Hereafter will be removed.

 They will be forgiven those mistakes.

i
A means that clearly distinguishes right from wrong and truth from falsehood, as is done by a
touchstone.
The next few verses allude to the circumstances that led to the battle and the reasons
for which Allaah SWT punished the Makkans through their death and defeat in the
battle.
30
Remember how the disbelievers plotted against you to imprison you, or kill
you, or exile you. They were plotting, and so was Allaah; and Allaah is the best
of planners.

This refers to the meeting held and the plot devised by the chiefs of the Quraish of
Makkah, excluding the clan of the Prophet and its supporting clans who were
committed to protect him according to the Arab traditions if anyone attacked to kill
him. They secretly met to put an end to the Islamic mission of the Prophet by
imprisoning, exiling or killing him. All three alternatives were considered and the
consensus was developed to kill him. The only hindrance in killing him was the fear
of revenge from his protecting clans who would definitely fight to avenge his murder
in order to save their honour and prestige in the Arab society. For that purpose, on the
suggestions of Aboo Jahl, the plotters decided to form a gang of killers by taking one
noble fighter from each clan participating in the plot. The designated gang was to
attack the Prophet at once so that no single person or clan could be held responsible
for his murder and the Prophet‟s protecting clans would not be able to avenge the
murder. The names of the fighters to constitute the gang were agreed upon as was the
night for the raid. All precautions were taken to keep the plot secret among the plotters
to ensure that the Prophet or his protecting clans would not get wind of it. The gang
arrived on the designated night and laid a siege at his residence so that he could be
attacked and killed when he came out of his house at dawn, as per his usual routine.
They were confident about the success of their smart plot, but Allaah SWT had His
own plans. Allaah SWT took the Prophet that night safely out of Makkah and
established him as the head of the tiny Islamic state of Madeenah. The Makkans could
not swallow their failure to kill him and plotted to attack Madeenah. Thus, they were
brought out to Badr to be punished by Allaah through the sword of the Muslims.

In fact, they themselves had asked for the punishment of Allaah by arrogantly
rejecting the message of the Prophet and by praying to Allaah to punish them if the
Prophet was truthful in his claims and in calling them to Islam.
31
When Our revelations were presented to them, they would say, “We have
heard it enough. If we wanted, we could have said something similar. These
are merely legends of the earlier people.” 32 And remember how they said, “O
Allaah if this is indeed the Truth from you, then rain down upon us stones from
the sky, or bring on us some painful punishment. 33 But Allaah was not going
to punish them while you were among them, nor would He punish them while
they seek forgiveness.

It is the Sunnah of Allaah SWT that He never sends punishing destruction on any
people when His messenger and true Muslims are still among them and while there is
a chance that some of them may still repent and seek Allaah‟s forgiveness. When it
becomes evident that there is no one left in the society who will respond to the call of
the messenger, the messenger and his followers are taken out of the society and the
rest are destroyed by Allaah‟s punishment. Or if the messenger is expelled from the
society, the perpetrators are doomed to face their destruction. The disbelievers who do
not understand this Sunnah of Allaah SWT, challenge the messenger and Allaah to
bring on the punishment. When they do not see it coming right away, they become
more arrogant in challenging the messenger. The Makkans were behaving in the same
ignorant manner. Through these verses, they were reminded that since that the Prophet
was not among them any more, they were open for Allaah‟s punishment, unless they
took the opportunity to repent and seek Allaah‟s forgiveness.

As for Makkan chiefs, they had not only asked for Allaah‟s punishment and plotted to
kill His Messenger, they continued to commit other crimes that led to the battle of
Badr. They started the hostilities by barring the Muslims from the pilgrimage to the
House, which they had occupied without having any legitimate right to do so.

34
And why should Allaah not punish them now while they debar His servants
from the Masjid-al-Ĥaraami -- and they are not even its legitimate guardians?
Its legitimate guardians are only those with Taqwa, but most of them do not
know. 35 Their worship at the Houseii consists only of whistling and clapping.
So taste the punishment for the disbelief that you have been practising.

Prophet Ibraaheem had built the Holy Ka„bah on Allaah‟s command so that it could
serve as the headquarters of the global Islamic movement and the centre of worship
and devotion to Allaah SWT through acts of worship such as Ŝalaah, which is a
dynamic means of regimentation of Islamic workers and of community building.
Thus, the people with Taqwa who are dedicated to Islamic work deserve to be the
guardians of that House, not those who associate partners with Allaah and who have
replaced Ŝalaah with meaningless ritual acts of worship such as whistling and
clapping in the course of religious services. Unfortunately, most of the people were
not even aware of the real objective of Deen for which the Holy Ka„bah was

i
The Hallowed Mosque in Makkah that contains the Holy Ka„bah.
ii
The Holy Ka„bah
established. They retained the respect and devotion for the House, but lost the
objectives.

It should be noted that the Makkans were not the only ones to lose sight and
knowledge of the objectives of Deen and adopting meaningless rituals in place of a
dynamic act of worship such as Ŝalaah. Most communities have done the same thing.
You can observe how Christians and people of many other religions have reduced
their rituals to music and songs. Unfortunately, many Muslims tend to do the same.

It was their crimes mentioned in the verses of this section for which they were
punished through their defeat in the battle of Badr.

The statement about the legitimate guardians of the House gives a clear message to
Muslims as well as to the Makkans about Allaah‟s plans. The Makkans have been put
on notice that they cannot retain the guardianship of the House without becoming
Muslims and adopting Taqwa. The Muslims have been told that it is their job to wrest
the guardianship of the House from the idolaters.

Wars are not cheap. In addition to the human toll, they cost a lot. They drain the
valuable resources that could be used to make life better for people. For the battle of
Badr, the Makkans had enthusiastically and generously spent their resources, each
chief trying to outdo the others. The irony is that all this spending was done to destroy
the Islamic movement, that was initiated to establish justice, peace and excellence in
the society by bringing people to the obedience of the Lord, their Creator. People
should have happily embraced this mission rather than hindering it and wasting
valuable resources in doing so. The next verse comments on the Makkans‟
enthusiastic spending in waging war against something that was good for them and
predicts how their endeavours would be in vain and how they would end up regretting
their actions. This serves three important objectives: Firstly, to encourage the
Makkans to give up the struggle they would not be able to win. Secondly, to let the
Arabs in general know that they should not put their support behind the Makkans,
thinking that they are the ones who have resources to win in the long run. They would
not win. Thirdly, to encourage Muslims to remain steadfast without being
overwhelmed by the Makkan‟s spending ability on war. They were doomed to fail.

36
The disbelievers spend their wealth to hinder people from the path of Allaah,
and so will they continue to spend; but in the end this will be a source of
intense regret for them; and then they will be conquered. And the disbelievers
will be driven together to hell; 37 in order that Allaah may sort out the bad from
the good, pile some of the bad on top of others, heap them all together, and
drop them into Hell. Those will be the real losers.

The disbelievers were doomed to face two kinds of severe regrets: One which they
were to face in this world and the other in the Hereafter. Thus those who were alive
when Makkah was conquered did end up regretting when they realized how wrong
they had been. They were the lucky ones; because they had a chance to embrace Islam
and attain salvation in the Hereafter. Those who died during this struggle not only
regretted it at the time of their death, but they will also be regretting in the Hereafter,
when they will be gathered and driven to Hell.

It is very telling to reflect on and visualize the scenario that Allaah SWT has presented
here about how good people will be sorted out from the bad ones. Imagine people
sorting out the good things from the bad and how they nicely stack or display the good
things and how, on the other hand, they throw the bad things in a heap to be
incinerated or dumped.

After presenting them the reality of the future to come, Allaah invites the disbelievers,
through the Prophet and Muslims, to stop their resistance to the Islamic mission and
the persecution of the believers and to embrace the Islamic message of justice and
peace. If they would do so, their past crimes would be forgiven. However, if they
continued their hostilities, they would be facing the consequences according to the
Sunnah of Allaah -- the way Allaah had dealt with such people in the past.
38
Say to those who disbelieve, if they desist, whatever they have done in the
past will be forgiven to them; but if they persist, then Allaah‟s Sunnahi of
dealing with such earlier people has already been set.

It is the Sunnah of Allaah that He ensures the success of His messenger in his mission
until Islam is completely and totally established as the sole system and way of life
(Deen) in the locality where the messenger has been sent. If there is any opposition to
the Islamic mission, and there is always violent opposition, the messenger of Allaah
and his followers, called Allaah‟s party, continue their struggle against the opposition
until everyone in that society or locality adopts Islam as his Deen and there remains
none who is hostile to it. The messenger and his followers do face hardships and
setbacks on the way, according to the human nature and the natural results of human
actions in the given circumstances; but if they persevere, Allaah eventually grants
them victory over their opponents, who either embrace Islam or are eliminated. It was

i
Consistent way of dealing with a situation
to explain and emphasize this point that Allaah SWT had given many examples from
history of earlier messengers from Nooĥ (Noah) onwards in the previous Soorah Al-
A„raaf.

Thus, according to this Sunnah, if the disbelievers continue their hostilities, the
Prophet and his followers are being commanded to steadfastly carry on their struggle
until any resistance to the Islamic mission is completely wiped out and every resident
in their locality embraces Islam.
39
So fight with them (the Makkan disbelievers) until there is no more hostility
to the Islamic mission and until the Deeni becomes exclusively for Allaah. And
if they do cease resisting the Islamic mission, then Allaah is Observant of
whatever they do. 40 On the other hand, if they refuse, then know that Allaah is
your Protector – the most excellent Protector, the most excellent Helper.

Once again, indirectly, the disbelievers have been presented with the option that if
they stop resisting the Islamic mission and embrace it, their past will be forgiven.
They will be held accountable only for their post-Islamic behaviour, and Allaah knows
all they do because He is always watching. But if they do not give up, they are
doomed because the Muslims have Allaah on their side. This verse (39) also indicates
that the only justification for war is removing hindrances in the way of people
submitting wholly and solely to Allaah SWT, and empowering and enabling them
with the freedom to make all decisions of life according to the Deen of Allaah, thus
making Deen exclusively for Allaah.

The believers have been told to stop fighting if the disbelievers cease their resistance.
On the other hand, if the disbelievers do not cease, the believers should continue their
struggle knowing that they have the most excellent help and protection on their side.

A reminder will be useful here for the readers, lest anyone takes this section, in
general, and verse 39, in particular, out of their context. This Sunnah of Allaah that all
of those who disbelieve in a messenger of Allaah are destroyed applies only when a
messenger is sent to those people. It is not applicable once the messenger has
accomplished his mission, or to subsequent generations that come after the messenger.
Similarly, it was only Makkah and its vicinity that had to be clear of any non-Muslims
as per verse 39. It is absolutely not commanding Muslims to continue fighting until
everyone in the world becomes Muslim, nor is this section implying that as a result of

i
The way of life (Deen) become exclusively based on the obedience to Allaah.
such an initiative by Muslims, Allaah will destroy non-Muslims. The subject matter of
these verses was the people living at the time of the Prophet in Makkah and its
surrounding areas.

After conveying words of advice and warning to the Makkans, the focus reverts back
to the Muslims. The next verse states the rule for the spoils of war, which was
deferred to let the Muslims first develop pure motives for, as well as a proper Islamic
perspective on war, victory and related matters.

41
Know that whatever war spoils you collect, a fifth thereof is for Allaah, for
the Messenger and for the near relatives, the orphans, the needy, and the
wayfarer -- if you do believe in Allaah and in that which We sent downi to Our
slaveii, on the day of criterioniii, the day on which the two parties met. And
Allaah is Capable of everything.

The word used for spoils of war is “ghaneemah” which is used for something that one
acquires without giving anything in return. This, once again, implies that the things
that are collected as spoils of war are a windfall, not compensation for participating in
the war, as was considered by Arabs before Islam. A Muslim fights exclusively to
fulfil his obligation to Allaah and His Deen. His only motive is to gain Allaah‟s
pleasure and reward in the Hereafter. Spoils of war, if there are any, are only windfalls
that were not sought after.

In that respect, Allaah SWT has declared his decision: everything collected from the
battlefield by any Muslim, ranging from a tiny needle or a piece of thread to the most
precious thing one can acquire, must be deposited with the Ameer or commander.
Then one fifth of the total spoils will be allocated to the state treasury for financing the
specific spending categories listed in the verse. The other four fifths will then be
distributed equally among all those who took part in the war.

For the fifth part, the verse lists six heads of expenditure in three categories: The first
category is “For Allaah” which means spending it for the attainment of the objective
of Deen, supremacy of Islam and establishing the Islamic system of peace justice and
excellence in the world. The second category is “For the Messenger” to meet the
expenses of the Prophet in fulfilling his responsibilities as the head of the state. The

i
Allaah‟s help that made Muslims win
ii
Prophet Muĥammad, the slave and Messenger of Allaah
iii
The day of the battle that distinguished right from wrong
third category is “For the near relatives, the orphans, the needy, and the wayfarer” to
take care of the relatives of the Prophet who might be dependents of the Prophet or
might be relying on the Prophet for their financial needs as well as the have-nots of
the society who are considered in Islam as the dependents or the family of the head of
the state. This money does not have to be given in their hands. It can be spent on the
projects that cater to fulfil their needs or their overall welfare.

The fact that the head of state is responsible for the orphans, the poor and the
wayfarers in a Muslim society was evident not only from the Sunnah of the Prophet
SA„WS but also from the way the Khulafaa-Ar-Raashideen (the rightly-guided
Caliphs) conducted their affairs. „Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) was, in
particular, very vocal and concerned about this responsibility. He used to say publicly
that he was responsible for the well-being of the orphans, the poor and the wayfarers
in the Islamic state and that from the state treasury, he deserves to draw a salary only
as much as the compensation a guardian of an orphan is allowed to take for his
services from the inheritance left for an orphan. Thus, any country or state where
orphans are neglected, the poor sleep hungry and the travelers are not cared for is not
fulfilling its Islamic obligations, regardless of their leaders‟ claims to Islam.

The last part of the verse re-emphasizes the point that true and sincere faith is
evidenced by the willing, unequivocal, instant, unreserved and no-questions-asked
submission to the commands of Allaah SWT. Anyone not submitting in that manner is
not a real believer. This part of the verse also mentions the help that was sent down by
Allaah to help the Prophet. The next few verses detail some aspects of the behind-the-
scene arrangements that were made by Allaah to ensure that the war took place, the
chief opponents of the Islamic mission were killed and that Islam‟s and the Prophet‟s
truthfulness became evident to everyone watching the struggle between the Islamic
mission and its opponents.
42
Remember when you were on this side of the valley and they were on the
other side, and the caravan was at a place below you – (all three parties
reaching that area at the same time). Even if all three of you had mutually
made a commitment to do so, you would certainly have been unable to time it
right, but Allaah made it happen in order that Allaah might conclude a matter
which had already been determined, that whoever perished would perish upon
a clear proof of being wrong, and whoever survived would survive upon a clear
proof of being right. And most certainly Allaah is Hearing, Knowing.

The timing of the Muslim army‟s arrival at Badr in itself was miraculous. On the one
hand, the Muslims were able to leave the fifth-columnists in Madeenah, the hypocrites
and the Jews, unsure about the real destination and aim of the Muslims by making it
ambiguous as to whether they were going to chase the caravan or the Makkan army.
On the other hand, they were able to reach Badr at an optimal time to confront the
Makkan army -- not too early to be waiting for the Makkans and facing food and
water shortages, nor too late to be ill-organized to confront them.

The phrase “whoever perished would perish upon a clear proof of being wrong, and
whoever survived would survive upon a clear proof of being right” is about the
survival of Islam and the victory of the Islamic mission, and the death of Jaahiliyyah
(non-Islam) and destruction of Makkan opposition to the Islamic mission. The “clear
proof” is the whole encounter that had clearly shown to all believers and non-believers
alike as to who was right and who was wrong. This was a very special role assigned to
the battle of Badr by both parties and it should not be expected of or implied in other
battles between Muslims and non-Muslims.

The reference to Allaah‟s attributes of hearing and knowing underscores the

importance of Allaah‟s knowledge of all plots, motives, ambitions and apprehensions
of all three groups that Allaah SWT used to make happen what He wanted to achieve.

In addition to the timing of the conjunction of all parties in the same vicinity, Allaah
SWT used human perceptions and impressions about each other‟s strengths and
weaknesses to ensure that none of the two sides backed out of the ensuing battle. The
next two verses talk about those perceptions.

43
Also remember when Allaah showed them to you, O Prophet, in your dream
as less; and if He had shown them to you as many, you (the Muslims) would
certainly have become weak-hearted and you would have disputed in the
matter (whether and how to defend), but Allaah saved you from that; surely He
is the Knower of whatever is in your minds.

This is about a vision that the Prophet saw in his dream before the Muslims reached
Badr or before they had any inkling about the size of the Makkan army, and he
narrated that to the Muslims. The word used is “Qaleel” which does not necessarily
mean few in number but is also used to show dearth of honour, morale, courage,
effectiveness, status, etc. In other words, the Prophet SA„WS was shown the effective
reality of the Makkan army, rather than their physical numbers.
The mention of disputing and faltering is about those weak Muslims who were
apprehensive about confronting the Makkan army. Had they known the number of
fighters in the Makkan army, they would have intensified their arguments against
confronting the enemy.

The next verse describes the perceptions when the armies sighted each other.
44
And remember when He showed them to you, when you met them, as less in
your eyes and He made you appear fewer in their eyes, in order that Allaah
might conclude a matter which had already been determined; and to Allaah are
all matters returned.

The Makkans saw a small, ill-equipped Muslim army but did not see the strength of
the believers‟ faith, their commitment to defend that faith and their passion to die for
the pleasure of Allaah, nor did the Makkans see the angels that were to descend in the
believers‟ support. On the other hand, the Muslims were psyched up by the grace of
Allaah, the strength of their faith and the promise of Allaah‟s help. When morale is
high and people have the conviction that they can do it, any challenge seems easy and
any obstacle seems insignificant.

The last phrase “to Allaah are all matters returned” reminds Muslims that all affairs of
the world are decided by Allaah SWT. Outcomes of events are only what He allows
them to be. He usually lets the circumstances take their course, unless adjustment is
needed to support a messenger or to respond to the Du„aas of sincere believers. For
them, Allaah makes the circumstances produce the desired results. Thus, the best
course of action for true believers is to do their best and then leave the results to
Allaah SWT. However, Allaah SWT provides His help and support to messengers and
believers in such a way that He does not interfere with the personal decisions and
actions of any individuals, ensuring that each and every human being goes through
their test of this life freely and independently, without Allaah‟s intervention.

In the next three verses, Allaah SWT is taking the opportunity to teach the believers
the kind of behaviour they should demonstrate in future encounters with Kuffaar.
45
O you who believe! When you encounter an army, hold firm and keep
thinking of Allaah profusely, so that you may be successful. 46 And obey
Allaah and His Messenger; and do not dispute one with another lest you falter
and lose your courage; and be steadfast; surely Allaah is with those who
patiently persevere.
When fighting in the way of Allaah, a believer must:
 Remain steadfast and firm, regardless of what kind of turn the events take. A
true believer would never turn his back to run away from the severity of an
attack; he would give his life rather than giving up or running away.
 Keep thinking of Allaah and remembering Him. A natural result or corollary
of true faith is that a believer keeps thinking of and remembering Allaah SWT
all the time. This remembrance and thoughtfulness keeps him connected with
Allaah and develops humility,, keeps his motives pure for Allaah, and helps
him continue doing the right things for Allaah. Thinking and remembering
Allaah is the critical ingredient of everything a believer does, including
fighting in His way. Remembrance of Allaah during fighting keeps a
believer‟s motive pure for the pleasure of Allaah and the objectives of Deen to
be achieved through the fighting. It frees him from all worries or fears, gives
him courage, and helps him become steadfast and firm.
 Obey Allaah and His Messenger. Follow the instructions of the Messenger
strictly and willingly, without questioning or reluctance.
 Refrain from arguing, insisting on his opinion or trying to lobby against any
decisions already taken. This will cause disunity and weakness in the ranks.
 Persevere and remain steadfast like a solid rock. This includes taking the brunt
of the hardships bravely and steadfastly; keeping calm and cool even in tense
situations, continuing to be organized and disciplined in the face of adverse
circumstances; and keeping emotions, desires, greed and anger in check and
under control.

As a result, they will attain Falaaĥ and will enjoy the support and help of Allaah SWT.
Falaaĥ means success and as a Qur-aanic terms implies “succeeding in doing the right
things that please Allaah SWT”.

The next verse informs them about the kind of attitude that was displayed by the
Makkans, but must be avoided by the believers.
47
And do not be like those who left their homes boastfully and arrogantly,
showing off to people, and who hinder people from the path of Allaah. And
Allaah‟s authority fully surrounds whatever they do.

The Makkan army was very proud of their power because of their numbers,
equipment, resources and established reputation of their warriors. They were
displaying their power with arrogance, taking victory for granted. They were
accompanied by singing and dancing slave girls to entertain them and they held music
and drinking parties at various stations on the way to Badr. With all this pomp and
show and display of power, they had set out to crush the believers in Allaah and to
stop people from submitting exclusively to Allaah SWT. Little did they know that
they were fighting against Allaah who was aware of their intentions and their moves
and that they were surrounded by and under siege of His authority.

History is witness that the Makkans were not alone in displaying this kind of attitude.
Anti-Islamic forces have always displayed their power and arrogance in such a
manner and continue to do so to this day. The tools and types of arms and ammunition
change, but the mentality and attitudes remain the same.

Muslims might also have been tempted to become boastful and arrogant after their
victory at Badr and other future victories, and because of the human tendency to copy
the ways of others. Thus, they are being warned to keep themselves clean of such evil
attitudes.

People may not realize but they are usually fooled by some instigator to adopt the
attitudes of arrogance and invincibility.

48
And when the Shayşaan made their deeds seem attractive to them, and said,
“None of the people can overcome you this day, and surely I am your
protector.” But when the two armies sighted each other, he turned on his heels
and said, “Surely I have nothing to do with you; surely I see what you do not
see; surely I fear Allaah; and Allaah is severe in punishing.”

Shayşaan can refer to instigators from both Jinns and human beings. Iblees, the
original Shayşaan from the Jinn, was given the opportunity until the Day of Judgment
to mislead people against Allaah and Islam. When He instigates people, he does not
communicate with people openly but instils and incites these kinds of thoughts in
people‟s minds. As for saying, “Surely I see what you do not see; surely I fear Allaah;
and Allaah is severe in punishing”, it is the description of his personal thoughts that
Allaah knows because of His infinite knowledge of whatever crosses any of His
creation‟s minds.

The Makkans were not only instigated by Iblees but it appears also by the Jews who
collectively acted as a human Shayşaan. The Jews also wanted to eliminate the
Prophet whom they perceived as a threat to their influence in Madeenah that had been
dampened since his arrival. However, in keeping with their tactics displayed by them
throughout their history, they preferred to stay in the background and use the Makkans
to do the fighting job for them. Although they had entered into a treaty with the
Prophet, behind the scenes they were inciting the idolaters against the Islamic mission
and assuring their assistance if they did so. But they also knew from their books and
traditions that he was the Messenger of Allaah, so they did not want to come out
openly to fight against him and thus reneged on their assurance of support when the
Makkans attacked. This is exactly the same behaviour that has been attributed to the
hypocrites in the matter of army action against the treachery of the Jews as mentioned
in Soorah Al-Ĥashr (11-17).

This was the attitude and perspective of the Makkans, and their satanic backers, as the
attackers. The next verse mentions the way the anti-Islamic elements in Madeenah
mocked the Muslim determination of defending themselves despite their lack of
resources and arms.
49
Also recall when, (seeing the ill-equipped Muslims leave to defend against
Makkan aggression) the hypocrites and those with diseased minds said, “Deen
has deluded these Muslims.” While the reality is that whoever relies
completely on Allaah, then indeed, Allaah is Mighty, Wise.

The Qur-aanic term “those with diseased minds” is usually used for people who are
suffering from hypocrisy and/or jealousy. However, when it is used along with the
mention of hypocrites in the same sentence, it refers specifically to those suffering
from jealousy -- the Jews of Madeenah who were opposing the Prophet out of
jealousy, while knowing him to be the Prophet promised in their books according to
the signs mentioned therein. Thus, the verse refers to the situation when Muslims,
despite being ill-equipped and fewer in numbers, set out from Madeenah to face the
Makkan army while the hypocrites and the Jews taunted them thinking that their
passion for Islam had made them crazy to march towards death at the hands of
Makkan warriors. But it is the Sunnah of Allaah SWT that when the believers do not
show weakness and put all their efforts and all the resources they can muster in His
way relying on Him, He helps them in the areas that are beyond their power and
control with His ultimate Power and Wisdom.

Death in the battlefield was not the only consequence that the Makkans faced. There
was much more trouble waiting for them for their disbelief and rebellion against
Allaah SWT.
50
If you could only see when the angels took the souls of those who
disbelieved, striking their faces and their backs, and saying, “Taste the
punishment of burning. 51 This is for what your own hands have sent on ahead;
and the reality is that Allaah is never even a bit unjust to His slaves.”

When the Makkans were dying in the battlefield, the angels of death took their souls
out of their body harshly and painfully, while striking them as well. In addition, they
also gave them the news of how they will burn in Hell. Although the treatment they
received and the punishment prepared for them may sound harsh, their crimes were
equally heinous. Allaah‟s justice is perfect and the punishment exactly equals the
crime, without being even a tiny bit unfair.

It was not the Makkans only who were being treated that way. Every community that
rejected and opposed a messenger of Allaah was treated in that manner.
52
This is just like what happened to the people of Fir„own (Pharaoh) and to
those before them: they disbelieved in Allaah‟s Signs, so Allaah seized them
for their sins. Surely Allaah is Strong, Severe in punishing.

Before destroying a nation, Allaah SWT brings his token punishment as a warning to
them and gives them a chance to repent and reform. Just as the Egyptians faced many
warning punishments before they were destroyed by drowning in the sea, defeat at the
battle of Badr was a warning from Allaah SWT to the Quraish of Makkah so that they
could learn a lesson from it and embrace Islam as their way and mission in life.

Another aspect of this Sunnah of Allaah is that He grants status, power and prosperity
to the nations and communities who deserve them because of their superiority in
morals and character. They continue to enjoy these favours of Allaah as long as they
maintain their qualities. If they lose those qualities and superiority, Allaah sends them
a Messenger to give them a chance to reform themselves. If they reject the Messenger,
they are given an initial punishment as a warning. If they still do not reform, they lose
all those favours of Allaah SWT and the disbelievers from them are completely
destroyed. This Sunnah is mentioned in the next verse.
53
This is because it is Allaah‟s Sunnah (way) that He does not change the
grace which He has conferred upon a people until they change their own
condition; and because Allaah is Hearing, Knowing. 54 This again is just like
what happened to the people of Fir„own (Pharaoh) and to those before them:
they rejected the Signs of their Lord, so We destroyed them for their sins and
We drowned Fir„own‟s people; and they were all wrong-doers.
The Quraish of Makkah were granted respect, leadership, peace and prosperity in
Arabia because of their role as the custodians of Allaah‟s House. This verse reminded
them that if they did not reform themselves, they would lose the favours of Allaah
SWT that they had so far enjoyed and would be finally destroyed as were other people
like the Egyptians before them.
The next three verses give instructions about dealing with those who had entered into
treaties with the Prophet but were violating the terms of their treaties. This was
particularly true about the Jews of Madeenah with whom the Prophet had entered into
a treaty of good relations, mutual help and cooperation. Although the Muslims were
fulfilling their part of the deal, the Jews continued to violate the treaty in different
ways. They would work with the hypocrites to create problems for the Islamic
mission; using the old hostilities between Aows and Khazraj, they would try to cause
fights/discord among them; and they would incite the Quraish of Makkah to attack the
Muslims, as discussed under verse 48. After the battle of Badr, their jealousy
increased in its intensity and they started plotting and making mischief against the
Muslims more aggressively, despite the existence of the treaty.
55
Verily, the worst of animals in Allaah's sight are those who have disbelieved
and are unwilling to believe. 56 They are those with whom you made a treaty
and they continue breaking it at every instant and do not fear the consequences.
57
Should you encounter them in war, defeat them so severely that it frightens
off even those behind them so that they may learn a lesson. 58 And if you fear
treachery on the part of a people, then throw the treaty back to them in equal
terms; surely Allaah does not like traitors.

Muslims can rescind a treaty only if the other party clearly violates its provisions. In
that case, they are allowed to throw the treaty back at the violators and take action
against them but only to the extent of their violation. “Throwing back” implies that the
Muslims should notify the violators that the treaty has been rendered void because of
their violation. If the violators attack or participate in a battle against the Muslims,
then the Muslims should teach them such a lesson in the battlefield that any other
faction considering violation of a treaty is discouraged from taking such a deceitful
step.

People usually break a law, violate a treaty or attack good people aggressively because
they believe that they can get away with it, profit from it or succeed in attaining the
objectives for their aggression. Many people will behave properly, if they honestly
realize that they will be caught, punished or clearly defeated. The next verse reminds
the opponents of the Islamic mission that they should govern their behaviour knowing
that they cannot escape, avoid or forestall Allaah‟s punishment in this world or in the
Hereafter.

59
Let not those who disbelieve assume that they can escape; they will never be
able to outsmart Us.
As it has been explained many times previously, while dealing with people in this
world, Allaah SWT does so in such a manner that His power and authority does not
make anyone do anything forcibly or coercively in order for the test of people‟s
behaviour in this life to remain free, fair and pure. Even when disbelievers rebel
against Allaah SWT, He does not use His power to stop them or influence their
decisions. Rather, He uses believers to reason with them and invite them to become
law abiding citizens of Allaah‟s kingdom and to establish the Islamic standard of
excellence in fairness, justice and peace in this world. When the disbelievers resist and
oppose the believers in their mission of establishing justice and peace according to
Allaah‟s commands, Allaah SWT lets the believers confront them. When the believers
do their utmost and sincerely employ all the manpower and resources they can muster
in this struggle, then Allaah helps the believers in the areas that are beyond their
power and control. Eventually, the believers succeed in defeating their opponents and
in establishing the Islamic system of justice, peace and excellence in Allaah‟s
kingdom. However, the believers cannot just rely on Allaah without doing their
utmost in providing the manpower and resources and in acquiring training and
expertise needed to win. They must continue doing their best to always remain in the
state of preparedness for confronting the disbelievers in the war, while relying on
Allaah‟s help for matters utterly out of their means and control.

The next verse exhorts the believers that they must remain prepared on an ongoing
basis. Even though they were ill-prepared when the battle of Badr was imposed on
them by the Makkan attack and Allaah helped them to win it, they should not count on
Allaah‟s help without fully preparing and equipping themselves for the war and the
victory to the best of their own abilities. The additional benefit of this preparedness
will be that it will act as a deterrent to war. When the aggressors know that the
Muslims are prepared and equipped, the fear of defeat will deter them from initiating
the hostilities.
60
And prepare against them to the utmost of your ability whatever fighting
force and steeds of war you can, to frighten thereby Allaah‟s enemy and your
enemy and others besides them, whom you do not know, but Allaah knows
them. Whatsoever you spend for Allaah‟s sake shall be fully repaid to you and
you shall not be treated unjustly.

These verses mention fighting force (trained warriors) and cavalry (steeds of war)
because at the time of the revelation of these verses Muslims were short of both.
Depending on the needs of the time, it will apply to any arms, ammunition or
technology that may be needed to deter war and attack from powerful nations or to
win it if it is caused by the opposing nations.
The preparedness must be against the known enemies as well as potential enemies. At
the time of the revelation, the Makkans were known enemies, but behind-the-scenes
enemies included the Jews, the hypocrites and the other Arabian tribes who had
treaties with the Muslims but were looking for the opportune time to break the treaty
and attack the Muslims. Other potential enemies were the Romans, Persians, etc. The
message is that instead of fighting fires when attacked, the Muslims must think long
term and develop their strategic and long range plans to deal with any situations that
may arise in their way of establishing Allaah‟s systems of justice, peace and
excellence in this world.

When such preparation is done solely for the purpose of establishing the Islamic
system of justice, peace and excellence in the world as required by Allaah, every
penny spent for this purpose is considered spending for Allaah‟s sake and will be fully
rewarded as such.

Although the Muslims must remain prepared for war, they must look for ways to solve
the problems through negotiations and dialogue, without showing any weakness
during this process. If the opponents show any inclination towards peace, the Muslims
must capitalize on this opportunity to avoid war, but once again, without being
complacent during the peace process and thus being deceived and being caught
unprepared. However, they must not discount the opportunity to avoid war because of
the fear that the other party is planning to deceive them through their offers to talk
about peace. They must seize the opportunity, relying on Allaah, because even if the
other party ultimately wants to deceive, the Muslims must take a chance on keeping
peace. They should, of course, remain fully vigilant and prepared during this peace
process to see if they can obtain their objectives without fighting, knowing that even if
they are deceived, Allaah will be helping them.
61
However, if they incline towards peace, you too incline to it and rely on
Allaah; He indeed is the Hearing, the Knowing. 62 And if they intend to deceive
you -- then certainly Allaah is sufficient for your protection. It is He Who
strengthened you with His help and by means of believers, 63 and Who united
the believers‟ hearts – which you could not have done on your own even if you
had spent all that is in the earth. It is Allaah Who united them and He surely is
Mighty, Wise.

The basic responsibility of establishing the Islamic system (the Deen of Allaah) in the
society is that of the Messenger of Allaah who is aided in this mission by Allaah and
his followers who are unified in their thinking and convictions and determined to
attain the objectives of the mission like a disciplined, single-focused army. The
followers of the Prophet hailed from different tribes and clans who used to be at each
other‟s throat, who used to worship different gods, had divergent views and used to
follow a variety of lifestyles. In a society where blood relations and tribal loyalties
were the sole determinant of right and wrong and where these loyalties had the most
powerful influence on the behaviour of people, it was an astounding miracle to unify
people from such divergent backgrounds and tribes into one brotherhood. They had
developed stronger bonds among themselves than their blood relatives and were ready
to sacrifice everything for their Islamic mission. It was possible only because of the
beauty of Islamic teachings and Allaah‟s help.

Naturally, such rightly-guided, objective-focused and single-minded people who are

passionately committed to the mission are found only in small numbers. That kind of
followers are all that the Prophet needs to succeed in his mission with the help of
Allaah. Although they are smaller in numbers than the opponents of the mission, they
are better than a multitude who are devoid of these qualities.
64
O Prophet! Sufficient for you are Allaah and those of the believers who
follow you.

These followers of the Prophet have so far been trained to be kind, gentle, forbearing,
loving, generous, charitable and dedicated to the attainment of the lofty goals of
Islamic excellence in conduct, but they also need to be coached to understand that
establishment of the ideal Islamic society of excellence is not possible without
fighting against those who oppose this noble mission. Once they fully understand this
reality, they will be able to succeed despite their smaller numbers, of course with
Allaah‟s help.
65
O Prophet! Urge the believers on to fight. If there be twenty steadfast and
persevering of you, they shall overcome two hundred and if there be a hundred
of you, they shall overcome a thousand of those who disbelieve, since they are
a people who do not understand.

Ideally, the standard is that the true Muslims who are consciously and passionately
dedicated to the objectives of the Islamic mission should be able to fight against
armies ten times their size. The main determining factor in this formula is that the
Muslims are passionate in pursuing the pleasure of Allaah SWT knowing the
importance of success in the eternal life of the Hereafter and for that purpose and
understanding the need for establishing justice, peace and excellence of Islam in this
world; while the opponents lack this clarity of thinking, vision and understanding. The
second important factor is that the clarity of understanding, focus on the vision, and
passion for the objectives of Deen on the part of the Muslims must translate into such
steadfastness and perseverance that no amount of dangers and sacrifices can deter
them from pressing on with their mission.

However, when Muslims have some weakness in the above-mentioned qualities, they
may not be able to attain that standard. Even in that situation, the sincere Muslims
should be able to achieve success against an enemy twice their size.

66
For now, Allaah has lightened the standard for you, for He knows that there
is weakness in you. Hence, if there are a hundred steadfast and persevering of
you, they shall overcome two hundred; and if there are a thousand, they shall
overcome two thousand by Allaah's permission; and Allaah is with those who
patiently persevere.

The point that should be clearly understood is that the Muslims should not expect that
Allaah would help them just because they are Muslims and they have shown up in the
battlefield. Allaah‟s help comes only when the believers have put everything they
have, including their own lives, at stake and demonstrated the utmost level of
steadfastness, perseverance and fortitude. Once they do everything in their power with
steadfastness, then Allaah SWT helps them take care of the things that are beyond
their human capabilities. In the end, they succeed and win with Allaah‟s help.

Reminding Muslims of their Islamic mission and urging them to fight against their
enemies who wanted to destroy them, was necessary for another reason as well. When
coming out to attack Muslims, the Makkans themselves had declared that this battle
was going to be the determinant of which of the two sides was right and which was
wrong. However, when defeated, they began a campaign of negative propaganda, with
the advice and help of the Jews and the hypocrites of Madeenah, against the Prophet
and Islam. Their propaganda challenged the religiosity of the Islamic mission and its
stance for the establishment of justice, peace and excellence in the world. To cover up
their own crimes, their intense propaganda raised questions such as: What kind of
religion is it that, instead of focusing on spirituality, fights and takes prisoners and
demands compensation. In mounting this propaganda, they conveniently overlooked
the fact that the Muslims were the victims of aggressions and the battle was imposed
on them. Usually this kind of propaganda puts the good, kind-hearted, well-meaning
Muslims on the defensive and they seriously adopt a thinking that they should not
fight for their mission and their survival. This is very dangerous thinking because it
means not resisting the evil and leaving the matters of the world in the hands of evil-
doers. At that time, this meant that while the simple-minded, good-hearted Muslims
would become passive in response to the propaganda, the enemies of the Islamic
mission would continue to prepare for even stronger attacks to annihilate the Muslims.
Thus, it was extremely important for the survival of the Islamic mission and for the
achievement of its objective of establishing law and order with justice, peace and
excellence in the society to not let the believers be fooled by such nefarious
propaganda, but to encourage them to continue to prepare for war until the enemy was
fully defeated and peace and order was fully established.i

Although one aspect of the propaganda attack was in reference to prisoners of war,
their own practices in this respect were based on greed, cruelty and abuse. It was an
established practice among Arabs and non-Arabs of that time that once their enemy
was defeated, they tried to capture as many of the fleeing army as possible as the
prisoners of war in the expectation of demanding a huge ransom for their release.
Capturing prisoners was the most precious form of war booty. But then the captors
would not even feed their prisoners awaiting their release, but rather let the shackled
prisoners beg for food in the streets to feed themselves. Islamic teachings reformed all
these matters 1300 years before the Geneva Convention and in a more humane way,
affording more dignity and respect to prisoners than any convention has ever done. In
addition, Muslims acted upon those reforms from the very first time they had
prisoners, while non-Muslims disregard even the basic civility of following their own
conventions and create Guantanamo Bay-like torture institutions to violate their own
laws and conventions. An example worth noting of Muslim treatment of the prisoners
is how they were kept and fed. The prisoners were not kept in Prisoners-of-War camps
in a dehumanized fashion but were provided shelter in the homes of those Muslims
who had a house of their own. The Muslims were told to treat them with the best
conduct. To the surprise of the prisoners themselves, the Muslims treated them so well
that in those days of shortage of food, the Muslims remained either hungry or survived
on dates while feeding their prisoners the cherished bread.

When it came to ransom, it was set according to the financial means of the prisoners,
anywhere from 4000 to 1000 silver coins. Those who were literate were told to teach
reading and writing to 10 Muslims to earn their freedom, without paying any money
as ransom. Those who were poor as well as illiterate were freed without any ransom.

However, there was one area where Muslims needed a reminder and correction.
Before the war, the Muslims were told that:

i
As we can see, the mentality, tools, and tactics of anti-Islamic forces are always the same. Even today,
they attack and capture Muslim lands, but when Muslims respond to their terrorism, they blame Islam for
violence. It is deemed alright for them to have the most lethal weapons of mass destruction and to destroy
Muslim countries and slaughter hundreds and thousands of them, but any response from Muslims is
portrayed as an act of terror.
 “When you meet the Disbelievers in the battle, smite at their necks,
until when you have thoroughly subdued them, then make them
prisoners, and afterwards either set them free as a favour or for ransom,
until the war ends.” Muĥammad 47:4

The intent of these instructions was to ensure that the Muslims would not follow the
practices of the society and rush to take prisoners, without ensuring that the enemy
strength had been crushed to a level that will hinder its ability to launch future battles
and bloodshed. Accordingly, when the Makkans were defeated at Badr, the Muslims
should have continued fighting and chasing them until they were too crushed to
initiate future battles. But they started collecting booty and capturing prisoners too
early before routing the enemy thoroughly. Thus the expectation of worldly gains kept
them from attaining their objectives completely. The next three verses comment on
this aspect.

67
It is not proper for a prophet to have prisoners of war until he has totally
crushed the enemy in the land. You want the temporal goods of this world,
while Allaah wants the Hereafter for you; and Allaah is Mighty, Wise. 68 Had it
not been for a decree from Allaah that had come previously, a grave
punishment would have definitely befallen you for what you had taken. 69 Now
enjoy what you have taken, as lawful and good; surely Allaah is Forgiving,
Merciful.

Because taking of the prisoners was allowed by verse 47:4, the carelessness was only
regarding the timing of ceasing the fight and taking the prisoners. Thus Muslims were
told that this censure did not make the ransom they had received illegal. It remained
lawful.

The above-mentioned meaning and explanation is based on the opinion of the major
commentators of the Qur-aan. However, Amin Ahsan Islahi, the famous author of
Tadabbarul-Qur-aan, translates and explains these verses differently and his
arguments are strong and convincing. According to him, the meaning of the verse 67-
69 is as follows:

67
It is not to the liking of a prophet to have prisoners of war and to cause
bloodshed for that purpose in the land. You, the disbelievers, want the
temporal goods of this world, while Allaah seeks the Hereafter for the
believers. Allaah is Mighty, Wise. 68 Had it not been for a decree from Allaah
that had come previously, a grave punishment would have definitely befallen
you (the disbelievers) for the path you had taken. 69 So you, the believers,
enjoy what you have taken, as lawful and good; surely Allaah is Forgiving,
Merciful.

According to him, these verses are a commentary on the nefarious propaganda

undertaken by the Makkans with the help and guidance of the Jews and the hypocrites.
Thus it responds to them saying:
The Prophet did not like to fight the battle or take any prisoners, as you, the
disbelievers, are propagating. He had to do so because you attacked him, his
people and his territory just purely to protect your hegemony in this world and
to maintain the unjust, unfair and exploitive status quo in disobedience to
Allaah. The Prophet and believers, however, are acting only for the pleasure
of Allaah and success in the Hereafter. Had Allaah not decided to give you
more opportunity and respite to think and accept Islam, you would have been
completely destroyed for your rebellion against Allaah and His Messenger.
Then, in verse 69, Allaah reaffirms to the believers that they have done nothing wrong
in taking prisoners and accepting ransom for them.

He rejects the aforementioned explanation of other major commentators on the

following basis:

 Everything the Prophet did in the battle of Badr had Allaah‟s approval. So
much so that his throwing sand was attributed to Allaah Himself.

 The Prophet was under constant supervision of Allaah Himself, and he was
corrected if he intended to do anything that did not meet Allaah‟s approval;
hence, none of his actions could be wrong.

 At Badr, seventy of the Makkans was killed including their notable chiefs and
warriors. This was more than in any subsequent battle between the Makkans
and the Muslims. Thus, it is not right to claim that the Muslims stopped
fighting too soon.

 When Muslims captured the prisoners, the fight was over and the enemy was
running, so who were Muslims supposed to fight? If the people who were
captured were supposed to be killed, rather than captured and released for
ransom, why would Allaah talk about giving better reward for those released
if they accept the guidance as mentioned in verse 70; or, why would Allaah
 declare the ransom to be lawful? Is it the way of Allaah to approve the things
that have been done against His commands?

 The prisoners were handled exactly according to instructions given in 47:4.

Thus, according to him, the fact is that the stoppage of the fight and capture of the
prisoners was according to Allaah‟s approval and that Allaah was not unhappy with
the Prophet for any thing at all. His warning was directed at those Makkans who
survived the battle and thus were given another chance to repent and reform, not at the
Prophet or his companions.

The next verse gives a message to the prisoners that they should not feel bad for
paying ransom; rather, they should appreciate the opportunity that is being afforded to
them. If they open their hearts to Islam, they will get much more reward than they are
paying as ransom.
70
O Prophet! Say to those of the captives who are in your hands: If Allaah
knows anything good in your hearts, He will give to you better than that which
has been taken away from you and will forgive you, and Allaah is Forgiving,
Merciful.

Muslims have been consoled that if the prisoners do not appreciate the favour that
they are being freed and they come back to fight again, they will be overpowered
again.
71
And if they intend to betray you, then surely they have betrayed Allaah
previously, and He gave you power over them. Allaah is Knowing, Wise.

Their betrayal to Allaah is that they continue to disobey Him while He is their Creator
and Bestower of everything.
The last four verses are the epilogue of the Soorah. They address the need of the
Muslims to form firm bonds on the ideological basis to establish themselves as a
cohesive, unified and strong society. In Arabia, before Islam, people used to support
or protect each other solely on the basis of blood relationships. They would protect
and fight for their own against the other passionately and aggressively, regardless of
who was at fault. The Islamic society of Madeenah was formed on the ideological
basis creating a new fraternity of faith where protection and support would be afforded
on the basis of faith, not on the basis of blood lines. The believers were the supporters
and protectors of each other even against their own kith and kin. To form this
fraternity of faith, all believers were commanded to emigrate to Madeenah and
become part of the community of believers, strengthening each other and pooling their
strength. However, not all Muslims had migrated. This posed two problems: Firstly,
the Muslim strength was not aggregated at one place under one command; secondly,
the Muslims scattered in different areas and tribes could not be supported and
protected by the Muslim brotherhood of Madeenah. The next verse reiterates the
principle of forming the society on an ideological basis rather than on the basis of
bloodlines or ethnicity and absolves the Muslims of Madeenah from the responsibility
of protecting the Muslims that did not emigrate to join them.
72
Verily those who believed and emigrated and strove hard with their assets
and their persons for the cause of Allaah, and those who gave shelter and
helped -- they are allies and protectors of each other; while those who believed
but did not emigrate – you do not owe any protection to them until they
emigrate. However, if they seek aid from you in the matter of Deen, it is your
duty to help them, except against a people with whom you have made a treaty;
and Allaah sees what you do. 73 Those who disbelieve are allies and protectors
of one another. If you do not do likewise, there will be oppression on earth, and
great havoc.

According to these two verses:

 The Islamic state and its Muslim citizens do not have the relationship of
wilaayah with the Muslims living outside of its boundaries. Wilaayah means
support, protection, guardianship, closeness, loyalty, backing, etc. Thus the
Islamic state and its citizens are not responsible for the Muslims living outside
its boundaries. So much so that even the rights and obligations that stem from
the blood relationships such as inheritance are cut off and rendered void.

 If Muslims of an area outside the Islamic territory are persecuted or abused

and they seek help, the Islamic state must help them but that help will be
subject to the treaty obligations, if any, of the Islamic state with the
 government of that area. Treaty obligations would take precedence over the
request of the Muslims for help.

 If the Islamic state does not provide help to the persecuted or abused Muslims,
the anti-Islamic elements would be encouraged and the Muslim minorities
will be persecuted and abused in other societies as well. Thus the Islamic state
must act to stop the persecution of the Muslim minorities.

The next verse encourages the scattered Muslims to emigrate to Madeenah by

reiterating the fact that the true believers are only those who are willing and ready to
sacrifice everything for the sake of their faith, emigrate to join Muslims in Madeenah
and dedicate themselves to the ongoing struggle in the way of Allaah or those who are
already in Madeenah and they provide support and shelter to the immigrants. Thus the
criterion of true faith is one‟s commitment to striving in the way of Allaah for the
success of the Islamic mission as well as the migration for that purpose to join
Muslims in Madeenah or providing support and shelter to the immigrants. It is only
Muslims with that kind of commitment that will be forgiven and rewarded with the
bounties of Jannah.
74
Those who believed and emigrated and strove hard for the cause of Allaah,
and those who gave shelter and helped, it is they who are the true believers.
For them, there will be forgiveness and generous provision.

The Muslims already living in the Islamic territory and striving for the Islamic
mission should welcome the newcomers with open hearts and arms as their brothers in
faith.
75
And those who believed afterwards and emigrated and strove along with
you, they are also part of you. Nevertheless, the blood relatives have priority of
rights over each other according to Allaah‟s decree. Indeed Allaah is Aware of
everything.

Although the bond of brotherhood for support and protection as a community are
based on the ideological qualities mentioned in these verses, within the Islamic
territory, the Islamic teachings about inheritance and about taking financial and social
care of one‟s relatives apply only on the basis of blood or marital relations.