مَآءُ

5:14; 6:44; 57:17.

Important Words:

یشقق (cleave asunder) which is originally یتشقق is derived from شق meaning, he cut it open or he clove it.

تشقق means, it clove or broke asunder (Aqrab).

Commentary:

The murder of the innocent Muslim referred to in the preceding verses sealed the fate of the Medinite Jews who thereafter became more and more hardened, their hearts becoming like stones or even worse.

The verse goes on to say that even lifeless things like stones are useful, but the Jews, although rational beings possessing understanding and descended from holy men, have become so hardened as virtually to become worse than stones. Stones have functions to perform; but as they possess no volition, their work can bring them no reward. Deeds are in fact of two kinds, firstly those which are performed through volition or exercise of will, and secondly those which are performed not through volition but under some natural law. According to Islam, it is only the deeds of the former class that bring reward; but the deeds of the latter class, though unable to bring a reward, are also sometimes useful. Most of the Jews, however, had become so depraved that, far from performing any act of virtue out of a desire to be virtuous, they did not even involuntarily perform anything that might be called virtuous. They had become worse than stones; for even from stones there comes out water which people profit by.

It has, however, been added that these remarks do not apply to the whole nation; for some of the Israelites were, no doubt, swayed by the fear of God. Of these the Quran says: Of them (the hearts) there are some that humble themselves for fear of Allah. It may be noted that the pronoun ھما (them) in the clause, and indeed of them there are some that humble themselves for fear of Allah, stands for قلوب (hearts) and not for حجارة (stones). The fact that of the two pronouns in the verse the first refers to حجارة (stones) and this one to قلوب (hearts) need not create any doubt. The Quran contains many instances of what is termed انتشار ضمائر i.e. where similar pronouns occurring in the same verse stand for different nouns. For example, we read in 48:10: That you may believe in Allah and His Messenger and may help him and honour him, and glorify Him morning and evening. In this verse the pronoun 'him' refers to the Holy Prophet in the first two places and to God in the third.

The sentence, for of stones indeed there are some out of which gush forth streams, and of them there are some out of which flows water when they cleave asunder, signifies that even among lifeless things there are grades, some being more useful than others; and the Quran hints that we should recognise the difference in the grade and usefulness of all things. Everything must have its due, whether small or great.

17:111.

Important Words:

الاسماء الحسنی (perfect attributes). The word اسماء is the plural of اسم (for which see 1:1 & 2:32), meaning, (1) name; and (2) attribute. الحسنی which is the feminine of الاحسن means, that which is better or that which is best; the final good state or condition. So الاسماء الحسنی means, best names, or best attributes, or perfect attributes. The term is specifically used to denote the attributes of God.

یلحدون (deviate from the right way) is derived from لحد which means, he or it declined or deviated from the right course, or he or it inclined. الحد also means the same. الحد فی الدین means, he deviated or swerved from the right way with respect to religion; he impugned religion. الحد also means, he disputed or wrangled. الحد به means, he brought a reproach upon him; or he held him in light estimation; or he despised him; or he said of him what was false (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The proper name of God is only Allah, all the rest being, strictly speaking, not His names but attributes. The verse tells us the secret as to how our prayers can be readily accepted. While praying, we should invoke such attributes of God as are directly related to the object of our prayer. This will make our prayer more susceptible of acceptance, because, by so doing, we would excite the jealousy of God with regard to the relevant attribute of His, with the result that the prayer, if otherwise acceptable, will not be suffered to go in vain. The Quran specifically mentions as many as 69 Divine attributes, but there are others which may be inferred and yet others which are found mentioned in the Hadith.

The verse next proceeds to enjoin the believers to have nothing to do with those who devise for God attributes which are not attributable to Him. Says the verse: Leave alone those who deviate from the right way with respect to His attributes. When God possesses all the best attributes mentioned in the Quran or the Hadith, what need is there to devise other attributes for Him? Such attributes cannot be free from error. An instance of such an ill-devised attribute is عادل (Just) which Christians attribute to God. The Quran says that God certainly is not unjust but at the same time it scrupulously avoids the ascription of the attribute of عادل (Just) to Him, for the ascription of this attribute to God would imply that His justice should demand that He must always punish sinners. But He is not bound to do so, because He is Forgiving and Merciful and He can pardon any sinner. In fact, God is not like a judge bound by the Law to deal with men according to their deeds. But He is مالك or Master of His creatures and Master of His law as well. He can forgive the sins of His servants as and when He pleases. By calling God "just", the Christian Church had to enlist the aid of a so-called redeemer who, by his supposed death on the cross, should atone for the sins of men to satisfy God’s attribute of justice.

Important Words:

اقلعی (cease raining) is derived from قلع i.e. he displaced or uprooted. اقلع means, it (rain) left off; it cleared away. یاسماء اقلعیmeans, O sky, cease raining. اقلع عنه means, he or it left him; he abstained or desisted from it. They say أقلعت الحمی عن فلان i.e. the fever passed away or left such a one (Lane & Aqrab).

بعدا (curse) is the noun-infinitive from بعد which means, he or it was or became distant, remote, or aloof; he went or withdrew himself to a distance; he alienated; it perished. They say لا تعبد و ان بعدت عنی i.e. mayest thou not perish, though thou be distant from me. The Arabs say ابعدہ الله i.e. may God alienate him, or estrange him from good or prosperity; or may God curse him. بعد means, distance or remoteness; remoteness from probability or correctness i.e. improbability or strangeness; perdition or death; judgement and prudence; curse, execration or malediction. They say, بعدا له i.e. may he be cursed, or may God alienate him from good (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The verse makes it clear that water not only came out from the "fountains of the earth" (v. 41) but it also fell from the sky (i.e. the clouds) and thus both combined to deluge the land.

The mountain al-Judi is, according to Yaqut al-Hamwi, a long chain of mountains on the eastern side of the Tigris in the province of Mosul (Mu‘jam). According to Sale, "al-Judi is one of those mountains which divide Armenia on the south from Mesopotamia and that part of Assyria which is inhabited by the Curds, from whom the mountain took the name of Cardu or Gardu, but the Greeks turned it into Gordyaei...The tradition which affirms the ark to have rested on these mountains must have been very ancient, since it is the tradition of the Chaldeans themselves (Berosus, apud Joseph. Antiq.). To confirm it, we are told that the remainders of the ark were to be seen on the Gordyaean mountains. Berosus and Abydenus both declare that there was such a report in their time…The relics of the ark were also to be seen here in the time of Epiphanius and we are told the Emperor Heraclius went from the town of Thamanin up to the mountain al-Judi and saw the place of the ark. There was also formerly a famous monastery, called the monastery of the ark, upon some of these mountains where the Nestorians used to celebrate a feast-day on the spot where they supposed the ark rested; but in 776 A.D. that monastery was destroyed by lightning" (Sale, pp. 179, 180).

Again, "Judi (Djudi) is a lofty mountain mass in the district of Bohtan, about 25 miles N.E. of Jazirat ibn ‘Omar in 37°, 30΄ N. Lat…It owes its fame to the Mesopotamian tradition, which identifies it, and not Mount Ararat, with the mountain on which Noah’s ark rested. It is practically certain from a large number of Armenian and other writers that, down to the 10th century, Mt. Ararat was in no way connected with the Deluge. Ancient Armenian tradition certainly knows nothing of a mountain on which the ark rested; and when one is mentioned in later Armenian literature, this is clearly due to the gradually increasing influence of the Bible which makes the ark rest on the mountains (or a mountain) of Ararat. The highest and best known mountain there is Masik…The tradition that Masik was the mountain on which the Ark rested, only begins to find a place in Armenian literature in the 11th and 12th centuries. Older exegesis identified the mountain now called Judi, or according to Christian authorities the mountains of Gordyene, as the apobaterion of Noah (Enc. of Islam. Vol. 1, p. 1059).

Babylonian traditions also place the mount al-Judi in Armenia (Jew. Enc. under Ararat) and the Bible admits that Babylon was the place where the descendants of Noah lived (Gen. 11:9).

7:181; 20:9; 59:25.

7:56,206.

Commentary:

In the previous verse reference was made to prostrations and prayers. In the present verse a Muslim is taught how to pray while prostrating for the fulfilment of God’s promises and the betterment of his own self.

The expression, His are the most beautiful names, signifies that God has many names which express His various attributes and a Muslim should invoke in his prayer that particular attribute of God which has a special bearing on the matter for which he wants to pray. If, for instance, the object of prayer falls under the category of God’s attribute of رحمانیتthe supplicant should invoke His attribute of الرحمان (the Gracious). Similarly, if the object for which he prays has particular reference to the attribute of الرحیم (the Merciful), or الرزاق (the Great Sustainer), or الوھاب (the Bestower), these attributes should be invoked and so on, i.e. prayer should be offered to God by invoking the relevant Divine attributes.

The word صلواة applies to both the five daily Prayers, and prayer in general. The context, however, shows that it is prayer in general that is meant here.

The expression, but seek a way between, implies an injunction that we should pray to God neither too-loudly, for He is not deaf, nor in too low a voice as that would interfere with our concentration of mind in prayer.

7:181; 59:25.

Commentary:

The verse contains the quintessence and kernel of the Quranic revelation referred to in v. iii, above. It is that God exists. He is One. He possesses all perfect attributes and is completely free from all conceivable defects and imperfections and therefore He alone is entitled to our worship and adoration.

2:211.

Commentary:

The reference in the verse may be to the Battle of Badr when rain came as a welcome relief to Muslims, and angels descended in large numbers to help them. Elsewhere the Quran says that in the battlefield of Badr as many as five thousand angels descended to attack disbelievers (3:125-126). It further says, "God revealed to the angels, saying, ‘I am with you; so give firmness to those who believe. I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Smite, then, the upper parts of their necks, and smite off all finger-tips" (8:13).

22:66; 35:42.

Commentary:

At another place in the Quran we have: "Who raised up the heavens without any pillars that you can see" (13:3). Long ages have passed since this solar system came into being, yet nothing has gone wrong with it. Such is God’s handiwork that stars keep their orbits without any visible support. The law of gravitation which is supposed to keep them in their respective positions was discovered long afterwards. This fact too points to God’s great powers and control over the universe. See also 13:3.

Important Words:

For دخان (smoke) see 41:12.

Commentary:

The reference in the verse may be to the severe famine that overtook Mecca and lasted for several years till Abu Sufyan, then a great leader of disbelief, came to the Holy Prophet and begged him to pray for deliverance from the scourge. The famine is said to have been so severe that the Meccans ate hides, bones and even dead bodies (Bukhari, Abwabul-Istisqa). The famine has been described by the word دخان (smoke) because, as the tradition goes, the hunger was so severe that people felt a sort of smoke hanging before their eyes. Or the word may have been used because there was no rain for a long time in Mecca, and the whole atmosphere had become dusty, for دخان also means dust.

The verse may also be taken as referring to the last two world wars in which towns and cities were burnt down to rubble and the smoke that rose from their ruins filled the whole atmosphere with smoke and dust.

Commentary:

Mark the pathos of these words! The ill-fated people of Pharaoh enjoyed all sorts of comforts and luxury. They had wealth, power and influence. A Prophet came to them. They rejected his Message and opposed his mission with the result that heavenly punishment came down upon them sudden and swift and they went to their doom unwept, unhonoured and unsung. The ill-fated monarch who, in his conceit and arrogance, called himself God, went to the depths of the sea (20:79), with the memorable words, "I believe that there is no God but He in Whom the Children of Israel believed," on his lips. He who wanted to have a peep at the God of Moses in the heavens (40:38) had a taste of His might in the depths of the sea.

11:41; 21:78; 26:121; 37:83; 71:26.

Commentary:

The rainwater pouring down in torrents from the skies and also gushing forth from under the ground, caused a huge flood which engulfed the entire land and thus the Divine decree was fulfilled, destroying the people of Noah.