ROOT غ ش و

4:156; 6:26, 47; 7:102, 180; 10:75; 16:109; 45:24; 83:15.

Important Words:

ختم (set a seal) means, he set a seal on; or he stamped a thing so that there should remain no likelihood of its being regarded as forged. خاتم means, a seal (Aqrab). The expression ختم الله علی قلبه (lit. God has set a seal on his heart) means, God made his heart such that it could neither understand anything nor could anything come out of it, i.e. it could not make itself understood by others (Baqa).

قلوب (hearts) is the plural of قلب which is derived from قلب (qalaba). They sayقلب الشیء i.e. he turned the thing; or he turned it upside down or inside out, etc. قلب means, the heart, or the central point of a thing. The word قلب is also used in the sense of عقل i.e. reason, as well as for such qualities as knowledge, courage and spirit (Aqrab). It also signifies the faculty of thinking and reasoning, i.e. the mind (Lisan).

السمع (the ears) is derived from سمع i.e. he heard. السمع ھاس three different meanings (1) the ear or ears; (2) the sense of hearing; (3) the sound which one hears (Aqrab).

ابصار (eyes) is the plural of بصر (eye). They say بصر (basura) or بصر (basira), i.e. he saw, or he perceived, or he knew. بصرmeans: (1) the eye; (2) the sense of sight; and (3) knowledge (Aqrab).

العذاب (punishment) is derived from عذب (‘adhaba). They say عذب الرجل i.e. the man left off eating, owing to intense thirst. عذب عنه means, he kept back from it. عذب فلانا means, he prevented him or deprived him. عذب الشراب والطعام means, the drink and food became good and tasteful. عذب الماء means, the water became very dirty. عذبه (‘adhdhabahu) means, he inflicted pain or punishment on him; he detained him; he prevented or deprived him (Aqrab). تعذیب means, inflicting pain or punishment; forcing a man to remain without food and sleep; depriving one of the sweetness or goodness of life; making life miserable (Mufradat). Thus عذاب means, anything which is hard and painful for man and prevents him from attaining his object; pain inflicted as punishment in order to prevent one from repeating an act or prevent others from doing the same; the inflicting of such punishment; anything that deprives a person of the sweetness of life and makes life miserable; anything that prevents a man from attaining the object of his life (Aqrab & Mufradat).

Commentary:

The verse refers to the disbelievers mentioned in the last verse and explains how they have reached their present woeful condition. It is a common observation that organs which remain unused for a long time become dead and useless. The eyes lose their sight and the ears their hearing if they remain out of use, and the limbs become stunted for the same reason. The disbelievers mentioned here refused to employ their hearts and ears for the comprehension of the truth, and as a result their capacities for hearing and understanding were lost. It is thus only the natural consequence of wilful indifference which is described in the clause, Allah has set a seal on their hearts and their ears, and over their eyes is a covering. As all laws proceed from God, the final Controller of the universe, and every cause is followed by its natural effect under His will, so the sealing of the hearts and the ears of disbelievers is ascribed to Him. It is, therefore, a mistake to take the verse to mean that as God had Himself sealed up their hearts, so the disbelievers could not believe. The Quran contradicts this view and states clearly that it is the disbelievers themselves who seal their fate and God’s seal follows only as a result of their action (see 4:156; 40:36; 47:25; 83:15). Says the Holy Prophet: "When a man commits a sin, a black spot is thereby formed on his heart. Then if he repents and gives up the sin and asks God’s forgiveness, the black spot is washed off, leaving the heart clean. But if he repents not and commits another sin, another black spot is formed on his heart and so on, until his whole heart is covered with a black covering, and that is the covering of rust to which the Quran refers in Surah Tatfif " (Jarir).

It may also be noted that in the present verse the word "ears" has been put before the word "eyes". This is in conformity with the law of nature that the ears of a newborn baby begin to function earlier than the eyes.

8:12.

3:169.

Important Words:

امر (government) means: (1) order or command; (2) matter or affair; (3) state or condition; (4) authority, government or management. اولوا الامر means, those who hold command or exercise authority (Aqrab).

قتل (fighting) being noun-infinitive means both to kill and to be killed. Another reading of the word قتل here is قتال(Muhit iii. 90 & Kashshaf) which shows that the word قتل (qatl) has been used here in the sense of fighting and not killing. The word has been used elsewhere also in the Quran in the sense of fighting (see 2:192). See also Jarir under 3:155.

Commentary:

The words, a slumber that overcame a party of you, refer to an incident connected with the Battle of Uhud. AbuTalhah says, "I lifted my head on the day of Uhud and began to look about, and there was none among us on that day but was bending down his head with slumber." This incident has been narrated by Tirmidhi, Nasa’i and others (see Kathir, ii. 303). As sleep or slumber is a symbol of a peaceful condition, being a sign of hearts that are calm and at rest, the Quran refers to this incident as a sort of favour. The incident evidently occurred when the battle was practically over and the Muslims had returned to the neighbouring height.

The reference in the words, the other party, is to the hypocrites who were at Medina and who had not taken part in the battle. When they heard of the reverse which overtook the Muslims and of the reported death of the Holy Prophet, they, in spite of rejoicing at the misfortune that had befallen the Muslims, became anxious about their own lives and feared what would happen to them in case the Meccans should attack Medina. The words cannot apply to the party of Muslims that took part in the battle, of whom the Quran says, He has surely pardoned you and Allah is gracious to the believers (3:153 above).

The words, Is there for us any part in the government of affairs? uttered by the hypocrites mean, "nobody listens to our opinion in matters of administration; we had advised the Muslims not to go out of Medina to fight, but our advice was ignored, with the result that they were defeated." The sentence might also mean, "now, (i.e. after this reverse) real government and power have gone into the hands of the idolaters and nothing has been left for us."

The words, All government belongs to Allah, signify that the decision in all matters rests with God; or that whatever might happen in the intervening period, God has ordained that eventually power and government shall be vouchsafed to Muslims, who will have dominion in the land.

The words, we should not have been killed here, mean, "If we had any voice in the management of affairs and if our advice had been accepted, our brethren would not have been killed in the battle," it being insinuated that while they were wise, the Muslims were simply foolish. The words may also be understood to mean, "if we were to have any government (as the Prophet had promised), we should not have been defeated in the battle." By saying so, the hypocrites hinted that the prophecies of the Holy Prophet regarding the triumph of Islam had turned out to be false.

It may be noted here that by saying, we should not have been killed here, the hypocrites did not evidently mean that they themselves would not have been killed. What they meant was that their brethren or comrades who were killed would not have been killed. This shows that by the slaying of one’s self is sometimes meant the slaying of one’s brethren or companions. This explains the words اقتلوا انفسکم in 2:55, and تقتلون انفسکم in 2:86. See also note on 2:55.

The Divine Words, If you had remained in your homes, refer to the hypocrites; and by the words, those on whom fighting had been enjoined, are meant the true believers. The injunction referred to is contained in 2:191.

In the clause, would have gone forth to their deathbeds, the word مضاجع (deathbeds) has been used in order to point to the abject cowardice of the hypocrites on the one hand, and the steadfast devotion of the true believers on the other. It reminds the hypocrites that whereas they returned to Medina, thinking that fighting in the existing circumstances was sure death, such was the faith of the true believers that even if the hypocrites had kept back from the very beginning they would have cheerfully gone forth to the battlefield, or the place of death, as it was commonly thought to be. All this happened that God might purify and ennoble the Faithful.

39:17.

Important Words:

غواش (coverings) is the plural of غاشیة which is derived from غشی. They say غاشیه i.e. it covered or concealed him; or it overcame or overwhelmed him. غاشیه also means, he came to him. غاشیة (of which غواش is the plural) means, a covering; a calamity or misfortune; punishment; fire of Hell; a man’s resorters such as hangers-on, seekers of favours, servants and dependants; also visitors, guests and friends (Lane).

Commentary:

The word غواش rendered as "coverings" also means "servants", and "dependants". Taking the word in the latter sense, the sentence may mean that disbelievers will have their believing "servants" and "dependants" above them on the Day of Judgement.

10:4; 11:8; 25:60; 32:5; 41:10-13; 50:39; 57:5.

13:4; 36:38.

Important Words:

عرش (Throne) is substantive from the verb عرش which means, he constructed or built a shed or a building, etc. عرش البیتmeans, he built or constructed the house. عرش بالمکان means, he put up, or lodged, in the house. The saying من العرش الی الفرشmeans, from the highest sphere to the lowness of the earth. عرش means, a shed or building constructed for shade; a house in an absolute sense; a dwelling or a place of abode; the wood upon which one stands when drawing water; the roof of a house or the like; the throne or the seat of a king; the means of support of a thing or an affair; might or power; regal power; sovereignty; dominion. The expression استوی علی العرش means, He (God) reigned as King; He settled Himself on the Throne; He was or became established on the Throne of Power and Majesty (Lane & Aqrab). See also 2:30 & 6:142.

Commentary:

The word یوم (day) also means "time" absolutely (1:4); and it is in this sense that the word has been used in the present verse. It is difficult to say how long these six periods of time were in which, according to this verse, the heavens and the earth were created. They may have extended over hundreds of thousands of years. The word ایام (days) evidently is not used here in the sense of ordinary days of 24 hours, because such days are determined by the rising and setting of the sun and the sun itself, being a part of this universe, came into existence simultaneously with it.

The word ثم (then) shows that after completing the creation of the heavens and the earth in six "days" or six "periods", God settled Himself on the Throne on the seventh day. As the Arabic word سبع (seven) is generally used as a symbol of perfection, the expression would signify that on the seventh day when God became established on the Throne of His Power and Majesty, the universe became in perfect working order.

The "night and day" mentioned in the clause, He makes the night cover the day, have been mentioned here as symbolizing sin and virtue. In fact, the phenomenon of sin in a perfectly ordered universe is explainable only by the phenomenon of night. Just as that part of the earth which is hidden from the sun is covered by darkness; similarly, when a man turns away from God, he becomes involved in the darkness of sin; but when he turns his face towards God, the day dawns for him and he basks in the light of truth and righteousness.

The words, He makes the night cover the day which pursues it swiftly, are explained in 2:165 by the expression "the alternation of night and day." The clause may also imply that it is God’s سنة or practice that after a period of darkness He brings a period of light so that mankind may not suffer.

By using the word مسخرات (all made subservient) with respect to the sun, the moon and the stars, the verse reminds us that it was not in the power of man to make all these planets serve him and that it is God alone Who has placed them at his service. Therefore, if, in spite of these great favours, he would not listen to God’s voice, he would be marked as a transgressor and consequently merit His punishment.

The distinction between خلق (the creation) and امر (the command) is that while the former generally means, the measuring out or evolving of a thing out of pre-existing matter, the latter means, bringing into being without matter by uttering the simple command "Be". The clause, His is the creation and the command, may also mean that God has not only created the universe but also exercises authority and command over it.

For the words, He settled Himself on the Throne, see under 10:4 where the expressions "Divine Throne", and "God’s settling on it" have been fully dealt with.

4:2; 16:73; 39:7.

30:22.

Commentary:

By the words, a single soul, is here meant the father. The verse does not refer to Adam or for that matter to any particular man but speaks of men generally. See also 4:2.

The verse describes one of the objects of marriage, which is that man and woman may be a source of comfort and solace to each other. Man is highly social by nature, and it is his natural craving for a close companion that is supplied by marriage. Without the institution of marriage man, in most cases, would have vainly spent his whole life in search of a true and loyal companion.

3:155.

Important Words:

رجز (filth) is derived from رجز. They say رجز الناقة i.e. the she-camel had the disease of convulsive motion in the legs or thighs. رجزت الریح means, the wind was continuous or lasting. رجز means, commotion or agitation or convulsion; consecutiveness of motion; punishment that agitates by its vehemence and occasions vehement consecutive commotions; conduct that leads to punishment; sin; uncleanness or filth; polytheism or worship of idols; the Devil and his suggestions; plague or pestilence (Lane).

Commentary:

Before a battle, especially an important one, begins, there is generally great uneasiness and disquietude among the contestants; their hearts throb with anxiety, and sleep vanishes. So the verse mentions the coming of sleep on the battlefield of Badr as a sign of God’s favour. God caused sleep to come upon Muslims with the result that their anxiety was removed, that they were inspired with a feeling of confidence and security and that it had a soothing effect on their minds. This mental state proved highly helpful and materially contributed to their success.

The second favour mentioned in the verse pertains to the falling of rain. God caused rain to fall, which, as the verse points out, served four useful purposes: Firstly, it purified the Muslims because, seeing this token of God’s help, their faith in God was strengthened, with the result that their hearts, being filled with faith, were purified. Secondly, it dispelled from them the filth of Satan, i.e. thirst. In the Quran, thirst has been figuratively described as a pang due to Satan or the Devil; for instance, it is related that when Job was stricken with the pangs of thirst, he prayed to God, saying: Satan has smitten me with affliction and torment (38:42), whereupon God accepted his prayer, saying: Strike thy riding beast with thy foot. Here is cool water to wash with and a drink (38:43). So the removal of “the filth of Satan” signifies removal of thirst or the pangs of extreme thirst. The word "Satan" may also signify "those who are of Satan," i.e. the friends or associates of Satan. Taken in this sense, the clause would mean: "God dispelled from you the attack of the wicked people," the hint being that the rain proved a means of dispelling the attack of the Quraish, inasmuch as it rendered the hard ground occupied by the Meccan army slippery, thus preventing the enemy from making a successful attack on the Muslims. Thirdly, the rain strengthened the hearts of the Faithful. This was due to their faith being reinforced by witnessing signs of God’s special assistance. Fourthly, the rain helped to make the steps of the Muslims firm for, as mentioned in books of history, the ground occupied by the Muslims was sandy, so the rain made it hard, and the Muslims were able to tread it with firm steps. All these factors contributed to the success of the Muslims.

The reader should note the beautiful order in the words of this verse. It begins with the purification of the heart (the first purpose served by the rain) and ends with the establishing of the steps and making them firm (the fourth purpose served by the rain), i.e. the favour of God descended on the heart and then, as it were, travelled down to the feet.

42:41.

68:44; 75:25; 80:41, 42; 88:3, 4.

Important Words:

عاصم (One who protects) is the active participle from عصم which means, he or it prevented or hindered; or he defended or protected or he or it preserved or kept. عصمه الله من المکروه means, God protected him from evil. اعتصم بالله means, he held fast to God. اعتصم means, he defended or preserved himself; or he refrained or abstained. عصمة means, protection from that which causes destruction of man; faculty of avoiding acts of disobedience with possession of power to commit them; inability to disobey. عصمة النکاح (plural عصم) means, the tie or bond of marriage. عاصم means, defender. The Quranic expression, لا عاصم الیوم من امر الله means, there is no defender this day from the decree of God; or there is no possessor of defence this day (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The verse embodies several important truths: (a) whereas the reward of good is manifold, the reward of evil is only the like thereof; (b) those who break the law of God cease to be inspired by high ideals and great ambitions. They become mere imitators of others, losing all initiative and never aspiring to be the leaders of men; (c) having thus fallen and incurred the displeasure of God, they forfeit His assistance, which is so necessary to raise them from the depths of degradation into which they sink; (d) the iniquities and transgressions of evildoers cannot long remain hidden but sooner or later become exposed and known to the world.

2:78; 16:24; 27:75; 28:70; 36:77.

Important Words:

یثنون (fold up) is derived fromثنی . They say ثنی الشیء i.e. he doubled or folded or bent the thing; he turned one part of it upon the other; he drew one of its two extremities to the other; he joined or adjoined one of the things to the other. ثنا زیداmeans, he turned Zaid away or back from his course, or from the object of his want. ثنا صدرہ (lit. he folded his breast or bosom) means, he concealed enmity in his breast or bosom; or he folded up what was in it, in concealment. The expression انھم یثنون صدورھم means, surely they infold and conceal in their bosoms enmity and hatred; or they bend their breasts or bosoms and fold up and conceal what is therein (Lane & Aqrab).

یستغشون ثیابھم (they cover themselves with their garments). یستغشون is derived from استغشی which is again derived from غشیwhich means, it covered or concealed or overwhelmed. استغشی ثوبه or استغشی بثوبه means, he covered himself with his garment in order that he might not see or hear; or he put his garment as a covering over his ears—a phrase denoting a refusal to hearken, or, as some say, an allusion to running (Lane).

Commentary:

In the previous verse, mention was made of the obstacles which of themselves happen to come in the way of men, and of the means to remove them, while the present verse speaks of the obstacles which men themselves put in their way and which can be removed only if they desire to have them removed.

The expression یثنون صدورھم (they fold up their breasts) means that disbelievers keep their doubts and objections hidden in their minds and do not disclose them to others and have them removed. This is why they cannot see the right way. Unless one seeks the satisfaction of doubts by disclosing them to others who are in a position to remove them, one can never attain to truth.

The expression یستغشون ثیابھم (they cover themselves with their garments) is used when a person turns a deaf ear to another man and refuses to see the truth. Thus the second reason why disbelievers were debarred from accepting the truth was that they refused to listen to the Holy Prophet. They not only themselves abstained from listening to the Holy Prophet but also prevented others from doing so, declaring that what he preached was magic and would captivate their hearts if they hearkened to it (see 21:4; 41:27; 46:8; 74:25). This attitude of disbelievers in refusing to listen to the Holy Prophet was even more injurious for them than their keeping doubts hidden in their hearts, because there is a possibility, however remote, that a person who does not disclose his doubts to others may sometimes happen to listen to a discourse dealing with the subject about which he entertains doubts and may thus have them removed by chance, but there is no hope for a person who refuses to listen to the truth.

The verse points to the fact that disbelievers have to deal with a Being Who knows even their secret ideas and therefore they cannot take shelter under the false plea that, as the truth

was not explained to them, they deserved to be excused if they did not accept it. A person who tries to evade the truth and deliberately shuts his eyes to it cannot excuse himself on the score of ignorance. Such men are as guilty as those who refuse to accept the truth after it has been fully explained to them. They alone can legitimately bring forward the plea of ignorance who make an honest effort to understand and arrive at the truth, but somehow or other fail to do so, or whom the Message of truth does not reach though they are ready to welcome it.

The words, what they conceal and what they reveal, may also refer to the concealed hatred which disbelievers harbour in their minds against the heavenly Messenger and to their open acts of hostility towards him.

The expression, ذات الصدور (what is in their breasts), refers to the hidden thoughts that dominate men. As the uppermost part of anything is called its صدر (Lane) and as the thoughts of a man naturally occupy the highest position in him—all his actions being subordinate to them—therefore, they are represented as being seated in his صدر of which the plural is صدور. The verse thus means that God has sent His Messenger because He knew the innermost corrupt condition of the minds of disbelievers, which demanded that a heavenly reformer should come. Therefore, they cannot say that they needed no reformer.

10:51; 22:56; 43:67.

Important Words:

غاشیة (an overwhelming punishment) is derived from غشی. They say, غشیه i.e. it covered or concealed him; it overcame or overwhelmed him, etc. غاشیة means, a covering; a calamity or misfortune; a certain disease attacking the belly or the chest; a punishment that overwhelms and is general in its extent (Lane). See also 7:42.

Commentary:

The verse purports to say that as disbelievers refuse to accept anything but a sign of punishment, they will indeed have a sign of punishment. But as is the way of God, they will have smaller punishments before they are visited with the final or decisive one. And so it happened in the case of the Meccan idolaters. After a series of small reverses, Mecca, which was in those days temporarily the citadel of disbelief and infidelity, fell to the victorious arms of the Muslims. This was the decisive and real sign for which they had clamoured.

15:20; 16:16; 21:32.

36:37; 51:50.

7:55; 39:6.

Commentary:

This verse points to the law of nature that heaven and earth work in unison and this harmonious co-operation of the celestial and terrestrial bodies is responsible for the successful working of the universe. For instance, when rain falls from heaven the earth brings forth its vegetation which is thus the common result of both heaven and earth. The same law works in the spiritual universe, for just as there is a heaven and an earth in the material world there is also a spiritual heaven and a spiritual earth. Rain and light come down from the spiritual heaven, and the spiritual earth becomes enligh-tened and revived into a new life. Just as good soil cannot fail to yield its treasures after the descent of rain, similarly, unsullied human nature cannot withhold its treasures after the descent of heavenly water which is Divinerevelation. God’s Prophets attract men as a magnet attracts iron. There was therefore, no cause for wonder if Islam spread quickly. The wonder would have been if it had not spread so fast, because then one would have been entitled to ask why the soil did not bring forth its verdure and herbage when rain had fallen at the proper time.

The verse refers to another important natural law, viz. God has made in the earth mountains which keep water stored up in the form of snow which, on melting, feeds rivers and springs. If the store of snow on the tops of mountains were exhausted, rivers and springs would be dried up and the land would lie dry and desolate. An analogous law operates in the spiritual world. In the spiritual realm certain individuals are like mountains and serve as reser-voirs, storing up the Word of God, while certain other individuals are like rivers and springs which water the world but cannot keep the water stored up. Prophets are the mountains of the spiritual world, while savants and ulema, learned in religious lore, are its rivers and springs, and the common people provide the soil which these rivers and springs, being themselves fed by the melted snow of the mountains, water and make fertile. Should these mountains disappear, there would be no springs and no rivers and the earth would dry up and be ruined.

Though the present verse refers only to fruits, elsewhere the Quran speaks of God having made pairs—male and female—of all things (36:37; 51:50). This is a truth which of all religious Scriptures the Quran was the first to propound. It is true that even in pre-Islamic days the Arabs had discovered that the date trees were male and female, but they could go no further. It was the Quran that made known to the world the great truth that all fruit-trees, in fact, everything, had male and female. The people could not at first understand it. But now, after a lapse of 1350 years, scientific research has confirmed the Quranic announcement and scientists have begun to discover pairs even in inorganic matter.

The verse draws our attention to the fact that the law that everything has a pair applies to the human intellect also. Until heavenly light descends on it, man cannot have true knowledge, which is born of a combination of Divinerevelation and human reason. So it is impossible to have true knowledge of God independently of the revelation sent to the Holy Prophet. Similarly, human reason cannot fail to accept the Word of God revealed to the Holy Prophet if it is presented to it in a proper manner.

The words, He causes the night to cover the day, point to yet another fundamental law of nature that the night serves as a covering for the day, and by pointing to this law the Quran dispels the popular misconception that the light of the Quran could not spread amidst the prevailing im-penetrable veil of darkness. Just as the darkness of night is removed to give place to the light of the day, similarly, the present darkness of sin and iniquity will be followed by the spiritual light of truth and righteousness. Darkness, in fact, possesses no independent existence and a single ray of the sun dispels and dissipates it. The Sun of Islam will now dispel the darkness of unbelief and infidelity.