ROOT ر ع ب

8:13; 59:3.

Commentary:

The words, because they associate partners with Allah, signify that he who associates gods with Allah can never be truly brave, for he lacks complete devotion to anyone. It is only complete devotion that can inspire a person to make sacrifices. As a believer is completely devoted to the One God, therefore, he is ever ready to make every kind of sacrifice in His cause.

Moreover, it is through lack of perseverance that idolaters go from one god to another, and perseverance is an essential concomitant of bravery. Where there is no perseverance, there is no bravery. Again, idolaters are rebels in setting up gods with Allah and a rebel’s heart is never at rest; and a heart that is not at ease cannot be brave. Yet again, polytheism springs from superstitious fear and one possessed of that sort of fear can never be truly brave.

It should, however, be remembered that it is only relative bravery that is meant here; otherwise, even among idolaters and polytheists, there are men who possess bravery and courage, but their courage and bravery is inferior to that of true believers who put faith in One God and believe in His great powers and in the life after death.

Important Words:

فوق (upper part) is derived from فاق. They say فاقھم i.e. he was or became above them. So فوق means, the location or place that is above or over a person or a thing. They say فوقه رأسه i.e. his upper part is his head (Lane).

Commentary:

This verse shows that the angels are, as it were, intermediaries between God and men. It is through them that God’sassistance comes to men.

The verse also hints that there are some angels whose function is to strengthen the hearts of good men and make them firm, while there are others who are deputed to cast terror into the hearts of wicked men. So God bade the former class of angels to strengthen the hearts of the believers and told them that He would cast terror into the hearts of the disbelievers through the other class of angels.

God instructed the believers to strike the disbelievers at "the upper parts of their necks" because the upper part of the neck, i.e. that which is just below the head, is considered to be the best point for dealing an effective blow with the sword. This order related to such of the enemy as deserved to be killed and without killing whom the Muslims could not defend themselves. The striking on the “finger-tips” was meant to incapacitate the enemy and make them unfit for fighting. This order thus related to those of the enemy who, so far as possible, were to be spared with the infliction of minimum injury. Both these orders were faithfully carried out, for although the Muslims were very weak at Badr, they were able to kill seventy of the disbelievers, mostly leaders, and take as many prisoners, while the enemy could kill only fourteen of them.

Important Words:

ایقاظا (awake) is the plural of یقظ (yaqizun) which is derived fromیقظ (yaqiza) which means, he awoke; he did not sleep. (yaqizun) means, a man waking; a man vigilant, wary, cautious, or in a state of preparation; having his attention roused and possessing knowledge and much intelligence (Lane & Aqrab).

رقود (asleep) is the plural of راقد which is derived from رقد which means, he slept. They say رقد عن الامر i.e. he abstained or held back from the affair; he neglected it. رقدت السوق means, the market became stagnant or dull (Lane & Aqrab).

وصید (threshold) is derived from وصد. They say وصد بالمکان i.e. he remained in the house. اوصد الباب means, he closed the door. وصید means, a court or open space in front of a house; a threshold of a door or entrance; a door or entrance; a fold for sheep or goats; a house of stones made in the mountains for flocks or herds (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The verse does not refer to the Dwellers of the Cave in the early days of Christianity but to Christian nations in the Holy Prophet’s own time. Muslims of that time were warned that Christian nations in northern regions were then lying in a state of dormancy but they would soon rise from their deep sleep of centuries and would spread all over the world and hold it under their sway. Before that time Muslims should make effective preparation to protect themselves against their devastating onslaughts. Muslims threw this timely Divine warning to the winds. After Caliph Uthman, internecine dissensions rent them. They became heedless of the danger that existed in the shape of the Byzantine Empire by their side. If they then had attacked and conquered it, for which they had quite legitimate reasons as the Romans had first attacked them, the political map of the world would now be quite different from what it is.

The words, their dog stretching out his forelegs on the threshold, refer to the great fondness of Christian peoples for their dogs. The words may also be taken as referring to the Byzantine Empire which then kept guard over Europe on both sides of the Sea of Marmora. This sea looks like a dog keeping watch with his forelegs stretched forth on both sides. The Turks conquered this country in the 15th century but it was too late. By then a great political awakening had taken place among the Christian nations of the northern regions. If in the day of their power and glory the Moors and the Abbasids had made common cause to subdue and crush these nations, Islam would have spread to these parts and mankind would have been spared much misery and bloodshed.

The expression, If thou had had a look at them, thou wouldst surely have turned away from them in fright, refers to the time when Christian nations will have acquired great political power. Till very recently the nationals of all western countries were treated with great respect and fear all over the East. It constitutes a proof positive of the Divine source of the Quran that it foretold this fact hundreds of years ago when Christian nations were yet sunk in a deep sleep of centuries and the wildest stretch of imagination could not have foreseen the power and glory to which they subsequently rose.

59:3.

Commentary:

The reference in the verse is to the tragic fate of the perfidious Banu Quraizah. They had entered into a solemn treaty with the Holy Prophet that they would aid and help Muslims if an enemy attacked Medina. But at the time of the Battle of the Ditch they were prevailed upon by Huyayy, the leader of the Banu Nadir to break their plighted word with the Holy Prophet and join the grand confederacy against Islam. When the attack of the confederated hosts fizzled out, the Holy Prophet marched against them, and besieged them in their strongholds. The siege continued for about 25 days after which they agreed to lay down their arms and preferred to submit to the award of Sa‘d bin Ma‘adh, the chief of the tribe of Aus, rather than to that of the Holy Prophet. Sa‘d decided the case according to the Mosaic Law (Deut. 20:10-15), viz. that combatants be put to the sword and non-combatants taken prisoner. According to different accounts from 300 to 700 persons were put to the sword. The award of Sa‘d may seem a little severe but it was of the Banu Quraizah’s own seeking and choice and the Holy Prophet had nothing to do with it, except that he was in honour bound to get it executed. Moreover, the award was quite in harmony with the laws of civilized warfare and was a fit and fully deserved punishment for their brazen-faced treachery and perfidy.

16:27; 39:26.

3:152; 8:13.

Commentary:

There lived at Medina three Jewish tribes—Banu Qainuqa‘, Banu Nadir and Banu Quraizah. The present verse refers to the banishment from Medina of the Banu Nadir. This tribe like Banu Qainuqa‘ before them, had acted treacherously towards Muslims on several occasions. They had hatched plots and had entered into secret alliances against them, with their enemies. They had repeatedly broken their plighted word and had repudiated the solemn agreement that they would remain neutral between the Holy Prophet and his enemies, and even had conspired to take his life. Their leader Ka‘b bin Ashraf had gone to Mecca to enlist the help of the Quraish and of other pagan tribes around Mecca in order to drive out the Muslims from Medina. After the temporary reverse suffered by Muslims at Uhud, their machinations and defiance of the Prophet had greatly increased. It was when the cup of their iniquities had become full to the brim and their presence in Medina had proved to be a constant source of mortal danger to Muslims and the Islamic State that the Holy Prophet had to take action against them. They were told to leave Medina. But the Prophet was exceptionally kind and considerate to them. He allowed them to carry their goods and chattels with them, and they departed from Medina in perfect safety, but not until they had despaired of the help they had expected from their Meccan allies and from the hypocrites of Medina, and had also found that their fortresses which they thought were impregnable could not save them. The Holy Prophet laid siege to the fortresses and after vainly holding out for about 21 days, they surrendered. They all left for Syria, only two families choosing to remain behind at Khaibar.

The reference in the words, "at the time of the first banishment" may be to the banishment of the Jewish tribe of BanuQainuqa‘ who had been expelled from Medina, sometime after the Battle of Badr, for their intrigues and defiance of the authority of the Holy Prophet, to whom they had pledged allegiance as the acknowledged Head of the Medina Republic. Or the words may refer to the banishment by the Holy Prophet from Medina of the three above-mentioned Jewish tribes. This was the first banishment. ‘Umar, the Holy Prophet’s Second Successor, however, banished all Jews from the whole of Arabia for the second and last time. Thus the words, "at the time of the first banishment" may be taken as embodying a prophecy that after the Jewish tribes of Medina will have been banished by the Holy Prophet, all the Jews of Arabia would suffer the same fate at some later time.

Before departing from Medina the Banu Nadir had destroyed their houses and other movable property before the very eyes of Muslims, because the Holy Prophet had given them ten days to dispose of their affairs as they liked. Thus the Jews of Medina were the originators of the scorched earth policy, centuries before the Russians had adopted it in the World War I1. The reference in the words "they destroyed their houses with their own hands," is to that policy.

The words, "you would not think that they would go forth," show that in view of the material resources, political alliances and organization of the Jews of Medina, the Muslims could not conceive that they could be driven out of Medinaso easily and without any loss of human life on either side.