يْلِ

4:163.

Important Words:

امة قائمة (a party who stand by the covenant) may give a number of meanings besides the one given in the text e.g.: (1) a party of people who perform well the duties entrusted to them; (2) a people who stand up for Prayer in the latter part of the night, an act of worship highly commended both in the Quran and the sayings of the Holy Prophet.

Commentary:

The words, a party who stand by their covenant, refer to those among the Jews who embraced Islam (see the next verse and also 4:163). The view finds further support from the words, and prostrate themselves before Him, for سجدة (prostration) was not included in the worship performed by Jews. The exhortation to Mary conveyed in the words, and prostrate thyself (3:44), was only an exceptional commandment specifically meant for her.

3:191; 10:7; 30:23; 45:6.

Important Words:

اختلاف (alternation) is derived from خلف. They say خلفه i.e. he or it was or became his or its successor. خلف الرجل means, he came after or remained after the man and stood in his place. اختلفه means, he followed him as his successor. اختلفوا means (1) they came one after another by turn; (2) they differed or disagreed (Aqrab).

الفلك (ships) is derived from the verb فلك meaning, it became round or circular. الفلك (al-fulk) means a ship, or a boat, probably because it looks round and shapeless when seen at sea from a distance. The word is both singular and plural. الفلك (al-falak) means, the vault of heaven or the firmament in which the stars move. This is also probably owing to the apparently round shape of the sky (Aqrab, Mufradat & Lane).

دابة (beast) is the active participle from دب which means, he or it crept or crawled or walked slowly like an ant or a reptile or a child or a weak or sickly person. دابة means, all such animals or insects as creep or crawl or walk slowly (Aqrab). The word is used about all moving animals, whether big or small, whether walking on two legs or on four legs or creeping on the belly, etc. (24:46). It is also used about beasts used for riding or for carrying burden, like the horse, the mule, the donkey, etc. (Lane).

المسخر (pressed into service) is the passive participle from سخر sakhkhara. They say سخره (sakhkhara-hu or سخره sakhara-hu, not سخر sakhira which gives a different meaning), i.e. (1) he employed him or imposed on him a task without compensation; (2) he subjugated him and made him subservient to himself. Thus مسخر is that who or which has been made subservient to another, being unable to free himself or itself from constraint (Aqrab).

Commentary:

This verse gives a twofold meaning, one literal and the other metaphorical. In the former sense, it supplies an argument in support of the existence of God referred to in the preceding verse. A careful study of the universe unfailingly points to a Creator on the one hand and to man being created with a definite object on the other. It also proves that, having created the world, God did not leave it alone but continues to watch over and control its affairs and is the First Cause of all change and every working in the universe. Heaven and earth, night and day (with alternating light and darkness), the supply of provisions, rainfall with its power of quickening and devastating, the means of communications, the blowing of winds, and shade and sunshine, all point to one controlling agency, God, the Maker of heavens and earth. And if God has done so much for the material requirements of man, He cannot be imagined to have neglected his spiritual needs which are much more important. Let all thinking men think and ponder and again think and ponder.

The Quran takes the universe as a whole to prove its theme. The objects of nature taken individually do not furnish such conclusive evidence of the existence of God as the whole universe taken together. The earth may be said to owe its existence to a fortuitous concourse of atoms, or a similar reason may be given for the origin of the sun and the moon and so on. But when the universe as one united whole and the deep order that permeates it are taken into consideration, it becomes impossible to escape the conclusion that this universe has not come into existence accidentally. Indeed, the consummate harmony that prevails throughout the universe, forcefully points to the fact that the whole system has been created and is being directed by one Intelligent Being Who is All-Powerful and All-Knowing.

Taken in the metaphorical sense, the ship mentioned in the verse will be taken to stand for Prophets who help men to cross the gulfs of carnal desires and materialistic concepts of things which separate men from God, rain being likened to God’s revelation which comes down like rain and gives life to the world after it has become dead. The clouds send down no new water. Water already exists in the vast oceans of the earth but, as it is impure, men cannot make use of it. God purifies it and changes it into clouds and then sends it back to earth in the form of pure rainwater. Similarly, by sending a new revelation God purifies beliefs, which, with the passage of time, get mixed up with false notions and superstitious ideas. It is inconceivable that God Who supplies man with fresh rainwater for the maintenance of his physical life should have omitted to supply him with heavenly water which is so necessary for the preservation of his spiritual life. Similarly, night and day stand for the alternating periods of light and darkness, it being hinted that the coming of the Holy Prophet heralds the dawn of a new day.

Moreover, by laying special emphasis on the study of the phenomena of nature in the verse under comment, the attention of disbelievers is also drawn to the fact that they could not possibly hope to succeed in their designs against the Holy Prophet, because the whole universe is controlled by God and is working in favour of His Prophet and in furthering his cause.

Important Words:

رفث (going in unto) has a number of meanings: amatory talk, kissing, caressing, embracing, compressing, coition, etc.; in fact, everything that a man desires of his wife. When رفث is followed by the preposition الی it means, coition or going in unto one’s wife, and it is in this sense that the word has been used here. رفث also means, immodest, foul and lewd talk or speech (Lane).

تختانون (you have been acting unjustly) is derived from خان. They say خانه i.e. he acted unfaithfully or perfidiously towards him; he was not faithful to the trust reposed in him. اختانه is like خانه, giving the same meaning. It also means, he acted wrongfully or unjustly towards him. The Arabs say خانته رجلاه i.e. his feet or legs acted unfaithfully towards him, meaning he was unable to walk. تختانون انفسکم would, therefore, mean, you failed to give your souls (i.e. yourselves) their due either (1) by preventing them from their duty to God, or (2) by refusing them the satisfaction of their natural and lawful cravings. The former act is a sin, while the latter, though not a sin, may endanger one’s health or deprive one of just happiness. The word has been used in both these senses in the Quran. In 4:108, it has been used in the sense of "sin", while in the present verse it has been used in the sense of "depriving the soul of the gratification of its natural and just desires".

عفاعنکم (afforded you relief). The word عفا gives a number of meanings (see 2:53). The expression عفاالله عن فلان is sometimes used where there is no question of pardoning any sin or obliterating traces thereof but simply in the sense of removing one’s mistake or misunderstanding or improving one’s condition or bestowing honour on one (Aqrab). It also means, making things easy, i.e. affording relief (Muhit).

باشروھن (go in unto them) is derived from بشر from which is also derived the word بشارة or بشری meaning, glad tidings. The expression بشربه means, he became glad and happy because of that. The words بشرالجلد mean, he removed or peeled off its skin. البشرة means, outer part of skin, or what is visible of the face or body. باشرالمرأة means, he came in contact with his wife skin to skin; he went in unto her. البشری (glad tidings) is so called because it changes the colour of the listener’s face. البشر (man) is also so called because, unlike other animals, man’s skin is visible and not concealed under hair (Aqrab, Mufradat & Lane).

Commentary:

It was a custom among the Israelites to abstain from all kinds of food from one evening to the other on the occasion of the fast of the Atonement Day, the only fast prescribed by Moses for his people. When fasts were first prescribed for Muslims, and details had not yet been revealed, they thought that, like the Jews, they too would have to fast for 24 hours with a slight intervening breakfast. Hence, following their own judgement, they concluded that it was lawful for them to eat and drink and to go in unto their wives only as long as they did not go to bed, and that after they had gone to sleep, they were not allowed to partake of any food or drink or to go in unto their wives until the next evening. Bukhari gives the following tradition on the authority of Bara’: "When the command to fast was revealed, if anybody kept a fast and then went to sleep in the evening, he abstained from eating, drinking and sexual intercourse until the time for breaking the fast the following day" (Bukhari ch. on Saum). This tradition and others of the same import show that it was not in obedience to any command from God or the Holy Prophet that his Companions abstained from sexual intercourse after going to bed at night, but it was owing to their own imitation of similar customs among the People of the Book that they had imposed these restrictions on themselves. As, however, these restrictions were against the will of God, a revelation was soon sent down allowing the Faithful to eat and drink and approach their wives as they liked during the night; only they were forbidden to do so while fasting during the day.

Some commentators have inferred from the words, you have been acting unjustly to yourselves, that the Companions of the Holy Prophet were unable to act upon the commandment to abstain from intercourse with their wives during the nights of fasts and frequently broke it. But this is evidently wrong, for the good reason that there was no such commandment to be broken. Moreover, the words of the Quran, i.e. you may now go in, also belie this interpretation, for the use of the word "now" clearly indicates that the Companions of the Holy Prophet were erring not on the side of indulgence but on that of abstinence. The Quran could not obviously say, you may now go in, to a people who were already going in unto their wives.

The clause, they are a garment for you and you are a garment for them, very beautifully describes the object of marriage. The verse points out that the object of marriage is not the gratification of carnal passions. The real object is the comfort, protection and embellishment of the parties, for such are the uses of a garment as explained in 7:27 & 16:82. Thus in a very few words, the Quran has described the true relationship that should exist between husband and wife, a description which has hardly a parallel in any other scripture.

The clause, the white thread becomes distinct from the black thread of the dawn, does not refer to the thread made of yarn but to the streak of light that appears along the eastern horizon at the time of dawn. The verse enjoins that from dawn till sunset Muslims should abstain from food and drink and intercourse while fasting. But they are free to have recourse to these things between sunset and dawn. At places where days and nights are unusually long, i.e. nearer the poles, calculation should be made for the purpose of fasting on the basis of average conditions, i.e. in such a case day and night would each be supposed to be of twelve hours’ duration (Muslim, ch. on Ashratus-Sa‘at). The clause, while you remain in the mosques for devotion, refers to the practice of اعتکاف which is observed by remaining in the mosque, night and day, during the last ten days of Ramadan. During these days, the devotee who decides to observe اعتکاف is not to leave the mosque except from human necessity, i.e. to answer a call of nature, etc. He enters the mosque on the morning of the 20th of Ramadan

and abides therein till the end of the month, fasting from daybreak to sunset and occupying himself in prayer or recitation of the Quran or other religious study or meditation. During اعتکاف (I‘tikaf), which is, as it were, the consummation of the spirit of fasting, intercourse with wives and preliminaries thereto are not allowed even at night time. The clause, these are the limits fixed by Allah, so approach them not, points to the very important principle that a man can attain true piety only if he refrains from even "approaching" the things that have been forbidden by God. "Some acts," says the Holy Prophet "are of doubtful character, one not knowing whether they are right or wrong. It is always better to avoid these. The forbidden things are like a pasture-land which the Wise God prohibits to the people. If you make your beasts graze on the borders of such land, i.e. allow your beasts to approach near them, there is danger of their trespassing upon the prohibited area" (Bukhari, ch, on Iman). This is an extremely wise injunction which cuts at the root of all trespass. Only those can protect themselves against sin who give all unlawful things a wide berth. The final clause, that they may become secure against evil, repeats the idea contained in 2:184 in which the subject of fasting was first introduced. In both verses the underlying object of fasting has been stated to be the attainment of تقوی i.e. piety, righteousness and protection against evil, which are all different forms of divineblessings. The reader may, with advantage, compare this idea with the belief of the Christians that the Law is a curse (Gal. 3:10, 13).

13:23; 14:32; 16:76; 35:30.

Important Words:

عند (with) signifies, with, besides, at, near, by, or in the presence of, etc. It also implies possession, as one says عنده خیروفضلi.e. he possesses goodness and excellence. ملوك الارض عند الله تراب means, the kings of the earth are like dust compared with God. عند also signifies, in one’s mind, or in one’s opinion or estimation (Aqrab & Lane).

Commentary:

Islamic commandments have been so made as to meet the exigencies of all times and all seasons. For instance, lunar months which rotate all through the year, have been appointed for the observance of fasts and the performance of Pilgrimage, so that Muslims may keep fasts and perform Pilgrimage both in summer and winter, spring and autumn. Similarly, the five daily Prayers and the two supererogatory Prayers––تھجد (tahajjud) and ضحی (duha), which are said respectively in the latter part of the night and in the forenoon, are so timed that a Muslim practically performs Prayers at all hours of the day and night. Similarly, charity is to be performed during both day and night, so that this righteous act of man may cover every hour of his life.

Observe also the beautiful order of the words. The word "secretly" corresponds to night, and the word "openly" to day. Thus a Muslim has to expend his wealth in the cause of Allah not only in such a way and at such a time that others may be induced to follow his good example by noticing his charity, but also at such time and in such a way that even the recipient of his charity may not know the donor.

It may be noted here that alms are of two kinds: (1) obligatory زکوة (Zakah), and (2) supererogatory صدقه (Sadaqah). Zakah is collected by the state from every man of a prescribed measure of wealth and is then spent by the state on helping the poor and needy, orphans, widows and wayfarers, etc. In this case, the recipients do not know any particular donor and thus preserve their sense of self-respect. But as Zakah is collected by the state, people are apt to look upon it as a tax and not as charity. So Islam has instituted Sadaqah also which is voluntary and is given to individuals out of a desire to help the poor and needy. Thus Sadaqah engenders feelings of sympathy among the well-to-do towards their brethren and feelings of gratefulness among the poor for their benefactors. It also serves to distinguish sincere believers from the insincere.

18:47; 57:21.

3:186; 9:38; 10:71.

Important Words:

الشھوات (desired things) is the plural of شھوة being derived from شھا. They say شھاہ i.e. he desired it; he desired it eagerly and intensely; he longed for it. شھوة means: (1) desire, or intense desire or longing for a thing; (2) the thing desired, or the object of desire. Sometimes the word is used in a bad sense indicating a low desire or gratification of venereal lust (Aqrab & Lane).

القناطیر (heaps) & مقنطرة (stored-up) are both derived from قنطر. They say قنطر الرجل i.e. the man possessed, or came into possession of, great wealth. قنطر الشیء means, he tied up the thing, or he vaulted it. قناطیر is the plural of قنطار meaning, heaped-up wealth. It also signifies a measure varying in weight and value at different times and in different countries. مقنطرة when added to قناطیر intensifies the meaning, pointing to the greatness of heaped-up wealth. It also means, collected together or stored-up, giving also the sense of completeness and perfection (Aqrab & Lane).

Commentary:

The verse enumerates some of the things of this world which engross man’s attention and often turn him away from God. These are particularly the things to the acquisition of which men, more specially in Christian countries, have applied their time and energy. As already pointed out, it is the Christians that are chiefly addressed in this Surah. Islam does not prohibit the use, or even the seeking, of the good things of this world; but it certainly condemns the action of those who become engrossed in them and make them the very object of their life. Elsewhere the Quran refers to the Christian people as "those whose efforts are all lost in the life of this world" (18:105).

As to the question, who is the "beautifier" referred to in the clause, beautified for men, it may be noted that though the natural beauty in all things comes from God, yet here the "beautifier" is Satan, for in the present verse the question is not of "simple beauty" but of "engrossing beauty", not simply of the desired things of the world but of the abnormal love for them; and it is certainly Satan who endows the things of this world with engrossing beauty and creates in the hearts of men special love for them. God is only the Beautifier of good deeds and good things, and the Creator, in the heart of man, of dislike for evil ones (49:8, also 16:64).

7:55; 13:4; 22:62; 35:14; 39:6; 57:7.

6:96; 10:32; 30:20.

Commentary:

This and the preceding verse point to the immutable divine law that nations rise and fall as they conform to, or defy, the will of God, Who is the source of all power and glory. They also refer to the fulfilment of a great prophecy. A nation which had enjoyed temporal and spiritual sovereignty for a long time was going to be abased, because it had persistently violated the divine law and had become spiritually dead; and in place of it another nation, till now very low in the scale of humanity, was going to be raised to the highest pinnacle of temporal and spiritual power. The sovereignty or kingdom mentioned in the preceding verse refers to both the temporal and spiritual kingdom which was promised to the progeny of Abraham and which the Israelites had enjoyed for a long time. That kingdom was now going to be transferred to the House of Ishmael to find its completest manifestation in Islam. A living nation had suffered death and another, as good as dead, had arisen into life.

The word النھار (day) represents prosperity and power, and اللیل (night) signifies the loss of power combined with decline and decadence. By using this simile, the Quran draws attention to the fact that a people who wish that the night of woes and miseries should never overtake them and that they should ever continue to enjoy the day of prosperity and glory, should so place themselves in front of the Divine Sun as to continue to be illuminated by its ever-effulgent light. In this connection it may also be noted that the Quranic expression, Thou makest the night pass into the day and makest the day pass into the night, does not merely signify "the" alternate ending and beginning of day and: night, but also the conversion of part of the day into night and vice versa, thus hinting at the lengthening of the one at the cost of the other.

The clause, And Thou givest to whomsoever thou pleasest without measure, holds out a promise to Muslims that the glory of Islam will be unparalleled and will last forever. Islam will never be displaced as a religion and Muslims will always continue to be one of the most exalted peoples of the earth till the end of time. The appearance of Ahmad, the Promised Messiah, at a time when the temporal power of Islam was at its lowest ebb and Muslims had also become morally and spiritually degenerate, was in fulfilment of this very promise. Through him Islam has found a new life. It will now bloom and blossom till whole nations shall come under its spiritual sway, and Muslims shall regain their pristine glory and shall become the most dominant people on the face of the earth.

2:165; 3:28; 45:6.

Commentary:

The lesson implied in the creation of the heavens and the earth and in the alternation of night and day is that man has been created both for spiritual and temporal progress, and that if he acts righteously, his period of darkness and affliction must be followed by one of sunshine and happiness. For further explanation of this verse see next verse.

4:4.

2:232.

Important Words:

معلقة (a thing suspended) is derived from علق. They say علقه i.e. he hung it up or suspended it. علق الامر means, he left the affair suspended, i.e. undecided. معلقه is, therefore, a woman whose husband neither keeps her properly as a wife nor divorces her so that she might marry another man (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The words, And you cannot keep perfect balance between wives, however much you may desire it, mean that it is not humanly possible for a man to keep perfect balance between his different wives in every respect. For instance, love being an affair of the heart over which man has no control, a husband cannot be expected to have equal love for all his wives. But he can certainly treat them with equity in matters of money, time, etc., and this he must do. So acting equitably between the different wives, which has been laid down by Islam as an essential condition for polygamy, pertains only to such overt acts over which man has control. This is the interpretation which the Holy Prophet himself has put on this verse, both through his word and example. ‘A’ishah reports that the Holy Prophet used to treat his wives with equity in all matters over which man can have control and having done this, he used to pray to God, saying: "My Lord, these are my dealings in matters over which I have control; so blame me not for that which is in Thy power and not mine," meaning the feelings of the heart (Dawud, ch. on Nikah). The Holy Prophet is also reported to have said: "If a man has two wives and he is inclined to one of them (neglecting the other), he will rise on the Day of Resurrection with one of his sides having been torn off (Dawud, ch. on Nikah). Thus, both the example and the sayings of the Holy Prophet show that though a husband cannot love his wives equally, he should in his outward treatment, i.e. allotment of time, money, etc. be equally just and fair to all of them. In this connection see also 4:4.

Commentary:

Not only have darkness and light been made by God (6:2), but, as the present verse puts it, all that dwells in them also belongs to Him. This shows that both darkness and light have been made with a purpose. Now when God is the Master of all that dwells in darkness and light, how could He entrust His own possessions to other beings?

As pointed out under 6:2 above, even darkness and afflictions have their advantages. God involves men in darkness and sends down afflictions so that their character may be perfected and they may pray to God and He may hear them, for He is All-Hearing. And if there is no time for men to pray or they do not know or do not realize the danger and consequently do not pray, even then God is All-Knowing and may come to their help without their praying for it.

39:43.

Important Words:

یتوفاکم (who takes your souls). The learned author of the Al-Bahrul-Muhit says: "The word توفی (tawaffi), as is well-known, means, 'to cause to die,' but in this verse it has been metaphorically used in the sense of 'causing to sleep' on account of the close resemblance between sleep and death." See also 2:235 & 3:56.

جرحتم (you do) is derived from جرح They say جرحه i.e. he wounded him. جرح also means, he acquired, earned, worked or did (Lane).

Commentary:

The subject that none but God is entitled to punish is continued in this verse, which says that God alone knows the condition of man by night and his actions by day, and all times are subject to His control, and, therefore, it is He alone Who knows the true character of the pious and the wicked, and consequently none but He is in a position to punish. Again, it is He alone Who knows the time most suited for the death of a person and, therefore, He has not entrusted the work of punishment to others.

The words, that the appointed term may be completed, do not refer to any term arbitrarily fixed by God. The "term" spoken of here is determined by the faculties and powers with which man is endowed from the time of his birth, and is liable to be increased or decreased according as a right or wrong use is made of the faculties granted to him. There is no reference here to the eternal knowledge of God.