ٱسْمَ

2:64; 4:155; 7:172.

Important Words:

اشربوا (were permeated with) is derived from شرب meaning, he drank. اشرب means, he was made to drink. The expression,اشرب فی قلبه حب فلان means, the love of such and such a person permeated his heart (Aqrab). The word is so used because love is like alcohol that intoxicates one who partakes of it. The clause, اشربوا فی قلوبھم العجل (lit. they were made to drink into their hearts the calf) must really be read as اشربوا فی قلوبھم حب العجل (lit. they were made to drink into their hearts the love of the calf), the word حب (love) being understood before the word عجل (calf).

Commentary:

For an explanation of the expression, raised high above you the Mount, see under 2:64.

The words, they said, We hear and we disobey, signify that they practically refused to obey God. They did not necessarily use these exact words; for the word, as pointed out under 2:31, sometimes conveys the sense not of actual speech but of practical conduct.

Reference to calf-worship in verse 93 is not a mere reiteration of what has been already said in verse 55; the incident has been mentioned here as an illustration of what has been said about the Jews in the previous verse. Their attention is drawn to their conduct in the days of Moses. When Moses was absent from them for a short time only, they took the image of a calf for their idol, although they had witnessed how God had helped Moses and had shown mighty Signs at his hands; and that at a time when they had given a solemn promise not to worship anything besides God. In spite of that promise, they showed active opposition to the commandments of God by their deeds.

In the concluding portion of the verse, it is pointed out that the Jews professed to believe in what was revealed to them by God, but their belief was of a strange character for in spite of it, they persisted in their opposition to the Prophets. If this was believing, then their faith was only leading them astray.

4:47.

Important Words:

راعنا (ra‘ina) is derived from رعی meaning, he watched or looked on. راعه means, he looks towards him with goodly feeling or he had regard for him. راع امرہ means, he watched his affair. راعنی سمعك means, lend me your ear or listen to what I say. راع النجوم means, he watched the stars and waited for their setting (Aqrab). So راعنا would mean, look to us or have a regard for us. Or the word is derived from the root رعن i.e. he acted foolishly in which case راعن would mean, a fool; a conceited person; a proud man (Aqrab).

انظرنا (unzurna) is derived from نظر meaning, he looked, or he saw, or he had regard for. So انظرنا would mean, look to us or have regard for us. Both these words, i.e. راعنا and انظرنا are used by a listener when he cannot follow the speech of a speaker. They roughly give the sense of, "I request you to repeat what you have said" or, to give a commoner idiom, "I beg your pardon"; or they are used on similar other occasions when one desires to draw the attention of a person towards oneself.

Commentary:

After mentioning the intrigues which the Jews carried on with outsiders to ruin the mission of the Holy Prophet, the Quran proceeds to illustrate such of their machinations as they resorted to in order to belittle the Holy Prophet and sow dissension and discord among Muslims. An apparently minor illustration is selected to emphasize the fact that where the spirit of a people is concerned, sometimes very small things bring about dangerous results, inasmuch as they help to undermine the spirit of discipline and respect for authority. It is hinted that the Jews were in the habit of devising plans to detract from the due respect with which the minds of the Muslims were inspired towards the Holy Prophet. One of these mean attempts was to address such words to the Holy Prophet as were not quite in harmony with a spirit of discipline and respect; or bore a twofold sense, one good and the other bad. Some Muslims, in innocent imitation of the Jews and in ignorance of the latter’s real motive, sometimes began to imitate their language.

One of the words used by the Jews was راعنا (ra‘ina) which, as explained under Important Words, means, have regard for us. But as the word راعنا belongs to the measure of مفاعلة which generally gives the idea of reciprocity denoting two parties standing almost on the same level, it may mean, have regard for us that we may have regard for you. As this expression involved disrespect to the Holy Prophet, God forbids Muslims to use such words, and advises them to use language which is perfectly respectful and unequivocal. He exhorts them to say انظرنا instead of راعنا because the former expression, though having a similar meaning, conveys no bad sense. God further enjoins Muslims to listen to the Holy Prophet attentively, so that they may not need such words at all.

The word راعنا which the Muslims were forbidden to use can, as pointed out above, also be traced to the root راعن which means, a fool or a conceited person. When used in addressing a person, it takes the form of راعنا which may mean, "O fool" or "O conceited person".

The Jews, utterly depraved in mentality, resorted to these mean practices with a view to belittling the position of the Holy Prophet and undermining the spirit of respect in which he was held by his followers. The Quran has mentioned this incident with a twofold purpose; firstly, to expose the Jews and to bring home to them their mean and mischievous intentions; secondly, to teach the Muslims a lesson of respect and caution. For the testimony of the Hadith to such incidents see Jarir and Manthur under 2:105.

2:76; 3:79; 5:42.

2:105.

Commentary:

The verb یقولون (they say) is used in Arabic both for words of mouth, and for what one expresses by one’s condition or conduct (see 2:31). In this verse, the expression has been used of the Jews in both these senses, viz. "They say with their tongues that they have heard and obeyed, but their conduct shows that instead of obeying they disobey and defy."

The expression غیر مسمع (without being heard) gives a number of meanings: (1) mayest thou not be made to hear, i.e. mayest thou not hear by reason of deafness; (2) mayest thou not hear any speech or news which thou wouldst like or which may please thee; (3) may not what thou sayest be accepted, or may not thy invitation be accepted and thy call responded to; (4) mayest thou not be obeyed; or (5) the expression may mean, though it was not certainly intended by the Jews, mayest thou not hear anything offensive or unpleasant.

For the expression راعنا (ra‘ina) see note on 2:105.

The Jews used the aforesaid ambiguous expressions in order (1) to conceal what evil thoughts they entertained about the Holy Prophet; (2) to make Muslims imitate them and use analogous expressions while addressing the Holy Prophet; and (3) to taunt Muslims with regard to matters affecting their religion, saying to them in effect, "We speak to your Prophet jestingly and abuse him in ambiguous words; if he had been a true Prophet of God, he would have certainly come to know of this."

6:119.

Important Words:

جوارح (animals of prey) is the plural of جارحة which is derived from جرح. They say جرحه i.e. he wounded him; or he cut him; or he clove or rent his body. It also means, he gained, acquired or earned. جوارح means, beasts and birds of prey that catch game. The word also means, the limbs of a human being with which things are gained or earned (Lane).

مکلبین (training them for hunting) is the plural of مکلب which is the active participle from کلب Kallaba which is the transitive form of کلب (Kaliba) meaning, he thirsted; he ate voraciously; he was seized with the disease of dogs; he barked. کلب(Kallaba) means, he trained (a dog) to hunt; he trained any beast or bird of prey to take game. مکلب means, one who trains dogs to hunt; or one who trains any beast or bird of prey to take game. مکلب also means, one who possesses dogs trained to hunt and hunts with them. کلب means, a dog or any animal of prey (Lane).

Commentary:

The forbidden things having been described in the preceding verse, the rest are here declared lawful, provided they are طیبات i.e. good and pure, it being left to each individual to decide what is good for him and what is not, in view of his particular circumstances and the condition of his health. The Holy Prophet has definitely excluded beasts of prey and birds having claws from the category of lawful food. See also 2:174.

The training of animals or birds of prey for catching game has been made lawful. As for the eating of the flesh of the game so hunted, the injunction varies according to circumstances. The more accepted view is as follows: (1) If the hunter finds the game alive, the eating of its flesh is lawful in all circumstances, provided the hunter slaughters the game in the prescribed manner. (2) If the hunter finds the game dead, the eating of its flesh is lawful only in case (a) the animal of prey is trained, and (b) it does not itself eat of the game, and (c) the hunter sends the animal of prey after reciting thereon the name of Allah. (3) If the game dies of sheer fear, before the animal of prey has actually caught and wounded it, the eating of its flesh is unlawful.

Commentary:

The Arabic words ترد ایمان بعد ایمانھم rendered as "other oaths will be taken after their oaths" literally means: (1) "oaths will be repeated, i.e. taken again, after their oaths"; or (2) "their oaths will be rejected after their (other witnesses’) oaths", the significance in both cases being practically the same, i.e. the oaths of the first two witnesses will be rejected and two other witnesses called in to give true evidence on oath.

The purport of this and the preceding two verses is that when a person is about to make his will at the time of his death, he should have as witnesses to his statement two just men, who should testify to the validity of his will after his death. But if death comes upon a person suddenly when he is away from home and no Muslim witnesses are at hand, then two trustworthy non-Muslims may be asked to serve as witnesses. If, however, the veracity of the witnesses is called into question by the heirs of the deceased, the former should be asked to prove their truthfulness by a statement on oath made after the time of Prayer. But if the persons in whose favour the will was made have good reason to believe that the witnesses have been guilty of perjury, then they can state on oath that their statement is truer than that of the two witnesses, and in that case the qadi or judge, if satisfied, will give his decree in their favour.

An incident is reported to have occurred in the days of the Holy Prophet which throws some light on the verses under comment. A Muslim who died away from home entrusted his goods to two men before his death and asked them to deliver the same to his heirs at Medina. On receiving the goods, the heirs found that a silver bowl was missing. The two men were thereupon called upon to explain the loss of the bowl, but they denied all knowledge of it on oath. Later, the heirs of the deceased person happened to see the bowl with some persons at Mecca who told them that it had been sold to them by the two men to whom the deceased had entrusted his property. Thereupon the two men were again summoned, and in their presence the heirs of the deceased stated on oath that the bowl was theirs, whereupon it was handed over to them (Manthur).

The Prayer mentioned in 5:107 above may be any Prayer but preferably it should be the ‘Asr or late afternoon Prayer, because it was after this Prayer that the Holy Prophet summoned the two witnesses to whom reference has been made above and who were believed to have stolen the silver bowl. The time after Prayer has been chosen with a view to inspiring witnesses with ideas of piety and God-fearingness and inclining their minds to truthfulness. If the witnesses be non-Muslims, then they may be called upon to swear after the time of their own worship, so that the solemnity of the hour may incline them to make a true statement, because the worship of God is calculated to exercise a purifying influence on the human mind, and men fresh from Prayer are expected to fear God and make a true statement.

The word اَولیان (the two, who were in a better position) occurring in 5:108 above is the dual of اولی which means more competent or more worthy. It refers to the first two witnesses and signifies that these two were in a better position to give true evidence, being the persons who were with the deceased at the time of his death and in whose presence the will was made and to whom the property was entrusted to be handed over to the heirs of the deceased. The expression also serves as a sort of veiled reproach to them that, in spite of being in a better position and more competent to give true evidence, they stumbled and drifted away from truth.

The second two witnesses should be from among the deceased person’s heirs, whom the first two witnesses deprived of their right by bearing false witness regarding the will of the deceased.

Important Words:

حجر (forbidden). حجرہ (hajara-hu) means, he prevented or prohibited or forbade or interdicted him; or tie deprived him. حجر (hijr) means, forbidden or prohibited or unlawful; the faculty of reason or understanding because it prevents one from doing improper acts. The word also means custody or guardianship (Aqrab).

Commentary:

This verse gives another instance of the absurdity of man-made laws.

By "forbidden crops" are meant such cultivated fields as were dedicated to idols. These could be used only by the priests that attended upon the idols. The cattle might eat of all crops except those that were dedicated to idols.

The cattle whose backs were forbidden are those mentioned in 5:104. Nobody was allowed to ride them or use them as beasts of burden.

The cattle over which they pronounce not the name of Allah are the cattle which they dedicated to their associate-gods. There is no reference here to the mentioning of God’s name at the time of slaughtering.

2:199; 5:3.

2:204.

Commentary:

Apart from the spiritual good that the Pilgrimage does to a Muslim, it possesses great social and political significance. It has great potentialities for welding different Muslim countries into one strong international brotherhood of Islam. Muslims from all parts of the world, who meet at Mecca once a year can exchange views on all sorts of matters of international importance, renew old and establish new contacts. They have opportunities to acquaint themselves with the problems that confront their brethren in faith in other countries, to copy one another’s good points and profit by one another’s experience and also to cooperate with one another in many other ways. Mecca being God’s appointed centre of Islam, the Pilgrimage can serve as a sort of a United Nations Organization for the whole Muslim world. All other religions have failed to produce such a forum for the exchange of international ideas and programmes. But it is regretted that Muslims have not yet awakened to the realization of Mecca being an international capital for the whole Muslim world. These are some of the material benefits and advantages to which reference has been made in the words, "that they may witness its benefits;" and the words "and may mention the name of Allah," refer to the great spiritual benefits which Muslims can and should derive from the Pilgrimage to Mecca. See also 3:98.

5:5; 6:119.

5:74; 16:23; 37:5.

Important Words:

منسکا (rites of sacrifice) is derived from نسك . They say نسك الذبیحة i.e. he slaughtered and sacrificed the animal. نسك الرجلmeans, the man led a life devoted to God; he practised virtue and piety. نسك للّٰه means, he sacrificed seeking to win the pleasure of God; he did good deeds willingly and spontaneously in order to win nearness to God. نسك الثوب means, he washed the cloth. منسك means, rites of sacrifice; place where those rites are performed; one’s native place. مناسك الحج means, the religious rites and ceremonies of the Pilgrimage.

For مخبتین see 11:24.

Commentary:

With this verse begins the subject of sacrifice, one of the three main themes with which this Surah deals, the other two being Hajj and jihad.

The words "And to every people We appointed rites of Sacrifice," show that the commandment relating to Sacrifice is not confined to Islam. Sacrifice is common to all religions because they have proceeded from the same Divine source. It also appears from this verse that it was the sacrifice of animals that was originally enjoined on the followers of all religions and that the cruel practice of offering human beings as sacrifice was a later innovation.

In view of the different meanings of the root word true sacrifice possesses three essential characteristics:-

(a) It should be fully voluntary and spontaneous;

(b) It should be offered with the purest of motives, i.e. only to win the pleasure of God;

(c) It should not be offered from ulterior motives and material considerations.

Thus the first commandment relating to sacrifice though apparently very simple is of great inward significance. It is that sacrifice should be offered only for the sake of Allah and that Allah’s name should be invoked while the animal is being slaughtered for food. This not only sanctifies and blesses the food but is also calculated to turn attention to the sublime object underlying the act of slaughtering the animal—to win the pleasure of God and to be prepared to sacrifice the dearest thing in His way and for His sake.

The words, "So your God is one God, therefore, submit ye all to Him," have twofold significance: (1) The fact that the rite of sacrifice is common to all religions, although they are so widely separated from one another as regards the time and place of their origin, shows that originally they all emanated from the same Supreme Source and that the God of all nations is One God. (2) That the object underlying sacrifice is to realize and proclaim the Oneness of God by sacrificing our ambitions and aspirations, all our ideas and ideals and even life and honour for His sake, and by completely submitting ourselves to His commandments. The concept of sacrifice according to Islam does not consist in appeasing an offended deity or in atoning for one’s sins but in sacrificing one’s all for the sake of God and in the way of God. Those who have full realization of this concept of sacrifice are called (humble) in the language of the Quran.

Important Words:

البدن (sacrificial camels) is the plural of بدنة which means, a she-camel or a male camel; a cow and a bull (preferably the first and the second) that is slaughtered at Mecca or brought there for sacrifice, so called because of its fatness, بدن (badana) as a verb meaning, he was or became big, bulky, big-bodied or corpulent or fat (Lane & Aqrab).

صواف (stand tied up in rows) is the plural of صافة which is derived from صوف. They say صوف القوم i.e. the people stood in rows. صواف means, standing in rows (Lane).

وجبت (they fall down). They say وجب الحائط i.e. the wall fell down. وجب الرجل means, the man fell down and died. وجب الشمس means, the sun set. فاذا وجبت جنوبھا means, when their sides fall upon the ground; when they die and fall down (Lane).

قانع (contented) is active participle from قنع (qania‘) which means, he was contented with his lot; and also from قنع(qana‘a) which means, he asked, he begged. قنع الجبل means, he ascended the mountain. القانع means, one who is contented with his lot; one who asks or begs; one of a people (Aqrab).

المعتر (one who supplicates) is derived from عر (‘arra). They say عرہ i.e. he vexed him; he did evil to him; he addressed or applied himself to obtain favour without asking; he came to him and sought his bounty. المعتر means, one who applies oneself to obtain favour without asking; one who comes to another to ask for a favour; a poor man (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The verse signifies that the slaughtering of camels which are brought to Mecca for sacrifice is but a symbol of man’s readiness to lay down his life for the sake of his Creator and Master just as camels lay down their lives for their own masters. This is the supreme object and purpose of sacrifice, other objects mentioned in the verse being of secondary importance. The pilgrim is reminded of the significance of sacrifice when he slaughters an animal and thus the animal serves as a sign of God.

Commentary:

This verse shows that the Promised Messiah will found no new religion. He will only invite people to their Lord, i.e. to the religion of the people (Muslims) to whom he will primarily address his Message, i.e. he will invite people to Islam.