یَدۡعُوۡ

60:11.

Important Words:

تنکحوا––tankihu (marry) and تنکحوا––tunkihu (give in marriage) are both derived from نکح. They say نکح المطرالارض i.e. the rain fell on the earth and became mixed with the soil. نکح امرأة means, he married a woman. نکح زوجته means, he went in unto his wife. نکح المرأة امرء means, the woman married a man. انکح المرأة زیدا means, he gave the woman in marriage to Zaid. Thus نکاح means, both (1) marriage and (2) coition with one’s wife. The Quran itself uses the word in the latter sense in 2:231 (Aqrab & Mufradat).

مشرك (an idolater) is derived from شرك. They say شرکه فیه meaning, he shared the thing with him; he became his co-partner in it. اشرکه فی الامر means, he made him his co-partner in the affair. اشرك الیه means, he attributed to, or set up with, him a co-partner. شریك means, a sharer, or a co-partner, or an associate, or a colleague, Thus مشرك means, one who attributes to, or sets up with, God a co-partner or co-partners, allotting to the latter all or some of the attributes of the former. شرك means, attributing to, or setting up with, God co-partners idolatry (Lane). شرك is of two kinds: شرك عظیم (the greater idolatry) signifying belief in a person or thing as being co-partner with God, and شرك صغیر (the lesser idolatry), i.e. ascribing to some person or thing any of the attributes of God without looking upon him or it as His co-partner (Mufradat). Other relevant terms are شرك جلی i.e. manifest idolatry, and شرك خفی i.e. hidden idolatry; and شرك فی الذات i.e. believing one to be a co-partner with God in His person, and شرك فی الصفات i.e. ascribing any of the attributes of God to someone. The term مشرکین (idolaters) is generally confined to such peoples as set up co-partners with God and do not believe in any revealed Book.

Commentary:

The question of marriage with "idolatrous women" is intimately connected with the subject of war, for it is during war that Muslims, being away from their homes for a considerable time, are liable to be tempted to contract marriages with such women. This the Quran strictly disallows in the verse under comment, which also forbids the giving of believing women in marriage to idolatrous men. The prohibition is based on religions as well as on moral and social grounds. An idolatrous husband is bound to exercise an extremely baneful influence not only on his wife but on his children as well, whereas an idolatrous wife is sure to ruin the early training of the offspring. Moreover, when a believing man has an idolatrous wife or vice versa, their ideas, beliefs, culture and outlook on life being widely different, there cannot possibly be harmony or concord between the two and their life is sure to become miserable, if they possess any attachment whatever for their religion. Again Islam, (submission to One God) and shirk (setting up partners with God) being poles apart, there can be no real contact or permanent intermixing between the two. In this connection, it may be noted that Islam allows, though it certainly does not encourage, the marriage of a Muslim with a woman belonging to the People of the Book who are decidedly nearer to Islam (5:6). But of this we will speak when we come to the relevant verses.

The words, until they believe, appear to be redundant at first sight; for, if marriage with an idolatrous person is prohibited, it is evident that this prohibition will automatically cease to operate when an idolatrous person converted to Islam. On deeper thought, however, the words, until they believe, prove to be most rightly placed. They have indeed been used to remind Muslims of their duty pertaining to the conversion of idolatrous people to Islam. The words also contain a veiled prophecy that the time was fast coming when idolatry would become extinct in Arabia.

The expression باذنه (by His command) when used with regard to a certain action of God signifies, according to the Quranic idiom, that God has provided or intends to provide extraordinary means for the accomplishment of the thing aimed at. So is the case here, the clause signifying that Allah’s call to Heaven and to forgiveness is not an empty announcement but that He has made special arrangements to bring about the desired end. It is further interesting to note that the word جنة and مغفرة both convey the sense of covering up a thing, the idea being that God’s favours and His forgiveness will be so liberal and so generous as to cover or overwhelm believers.

57:24.

Important Words:

تصعدون (you were running away) is derived from اصعد which again is derived from صعد which primarily means, he ascended or climbed a height, etc. اصعد فی العرض means, he went from a low piece of land to one that is high, both physically and figuratively; or adversely, he descended or went down into the land. اصعد فی العدو means, he exerted himself in running. اصعد also means, he went forth or went away in any direction (Lane).

اثاب (gave in recompense) is from the same root as ثواب and مثوبة and مثابة and means, he gave in reward or recompense or return; or he gave as a substitute (Aqrab). See also 2:104 and 2:126.

Commentary:

The words, When you were running away and looked not back at anyone, refer to the incident which happened when in the Battle of Uhud the Muslims were attacked from both the rear and the front and their ranks were broken and many of them were fleeing in different directions. At first, when the Muslims heard that the enemy was coming from behind, they turned back to attack the enemy, but it so happened that a large body of Muslims was also coming from the rear at that time. In the confusion of the hour, these were mistaken for the enemy and attacked. Such was the confusion and the panic that even the voice of the Holy Prophet was not heeded.

The words, gave you a sorrow in recompense for a sorrow, refer to the report of the Holy Prophet’s death in the Battle of Uhud. Thus the first-mentioned "sorrow", which was later in occurring, refers to the false report of the Holy Prophet’s death and the second-mentioned "sorrow", which was first in occurring, refers to the sorrow that the Companions of the Holy Prophet—the archers stationed at the back—caused him by having failed faithfully to follow his order. One sorrow came in recompense of the other. The report of the Holy Prophet’s death referred to above spread when a Muslim, named Mus‘ab bin ‘Umair, the Companion who carried the flag, was killed, being mistaken for the Holy Prophet. The second-mentioned "sorrow" does not obviously refer to the wounds received by the Holy Prophet, for the wounds were received not before, but after the archers left their station and after the above-mentioned erroneous report about the death of the Holy Prophet.

The sorrow which certain Muslims caused the Holy Prophet by paying no heed to his voice when at the ensuing disorder he called out to them from the rear, was also recompensed. When the Muslims did not pay heed to the call of the Prophet, God caused them to think for a while that he was dead, which was to them a punishment similar to their offence. If they did not pay heed to the voice of the Divine Messenger, of what use to them was his existence in this world? Thus when they heard of the reported death of the Holy Prophet, their thoughts naturally and immediately turned to the great benefits which they had received and were receiving through him and they were at once made to realize not only the greatness of his rank but also the magnitude of their own mistake.

The Arabic words غما بغم rendered as a sorrow in recompense for a sorrow, may also be rendered as "a sorrow in addition to another sorrow", i.e. one sorrow coming after another. In that case, the words would mean that God so designed that the sorrow pertaining to the unfounded report of the Holy Prophet’s death should come immediately after the sorrow of a reverse so that the latter sorrow, which later proved to be unfounded, should obliterate the effect of the former sorrow, thus effacing the harmful effects of the defeat.

The clause, what escaped you, refers to the victory which the Muslims lost after they had almost gained it. So great was the joy of the Muslims at the safety of the Holy Prophet that they actually forgot their sorrow at the loss of victory. Similarly, the clause, what befell you, refers to the loss of their men in the battlefield. The Muslims lost 70, while the Meccans lost only about 20. The words may also refer to the wounds received by the Muslims on that occasion.

The words, that you might not grieve, may also signify that, having received some punishment then and there for the offence committed, the Muslims might feel secure from punishment in the Hereafter.

6:123; 9:37; 10:13; 27:5; 40:38; 49:8.

Commentary:

In the foregoing verses, the Quran has spoken rather contemptuously of the utter helplessness of the false deities whom people associate with God. This might lead some Muslims to revile the false deities of the polytheists. The present verse warns them against following such a course. God has denounced the idols in His capacity as a judge, and the denunciation of a judge is not considered as abuse, but as a necessary expression of opinion. This does not give others the right to abuse the persons condemned by the Heavenly Judge and thereby offend their feelings, or the feelings of those who love and respect them.

The verse provides yet another reason for this noble teaching. It purports to say, if you, O Muslims, revile disbelievers’ false gods whom they treat with love and reverence, the result will be that they will be excited by your abuse and will retaliate by reviling God in return. The verse thus not only inculcates respect for the feelings of others but also assures amity between nations and communities.

The expression زینا (We have caused to seem fair) signifies not that God has actually beautified evil actions but that He has so created the nature of man (and in this law of God lies the secret of man’s progress) that when he goes on doing a thing for some length of time, he acquires a liking for it, and his action begins to appear good in his sight. So, in accordance with this general law of God, idolaters have also come to like their worship of idols, which appears to them to be good and meritorious.

11:30.

18:29.

Important Words:

الغداوة (morning), which is often written as غداة the letter (و) being silent, is derived from غدا which means, he went forth or went away in the early part of the morning, i.e. between daybreak and sunrise. So, غداوة or غداة or غدوة or غدیة means, early part of the morning; the period between daybreak and sunrise; morning; first part of the day; forenoon (Lane).

العشی (evening) is derived from عشا means, he ate the evening meal; he repaired to (him, etc.) at night. عشی means, the late part of the evening; evening; afternoon; time between sunset and nightfall. It also means the time between the declining of the sun and sunset; also the time from the declining of the sun to morning; night (Lane).

وجھه (His countenance). The word وجه also means نفس الشیء i.e. the thing itself (see 2:113).

Commentary:

The wordsبالغداوة والعشی (morning and evening) taken in their wider significance cover, as shown under Important Words, practically all the 24 hours, excluding only the time in which the offering of Prayers is prohibited. Thus, in one sense the two words taken together comprise both day and night, and in another they indicate only morning and evening.

The words یریدون وجھه (seeking His countenance) may also mean, "seeking God Himself," for the expression وجه also means, "the thing itself." In that case, the clause would mean "they seek nothing but God, i.e. they seek God alone."

The words, thou shouldst be of the unjust, hint that there are some men who look upon themselves as being too great and disdain to join a movement set on foot by a Prophet, because its adherents are mostly poor and do not belong to what is called higher society. They would join it only if the poorer adherents were expelled. So, in order to demolish such hopes on their part, God bids the Holy Prophet to declare that he would not drive away his poor followers so that the so-called great might join his fold. The prohibition does not mean that the Holy Prophet actually used to drive away his poorer followers. It is only meant as a reply and a rebuff to the desires of the proud and the haughty. They are told that the humble followers of the Holy Prophet, who remember God morning and evening or day and night, cannot be turned out for their sake. The Quran has already made the Holy Prophet say, I follow only that which is revealed to me (6:51). So now when the prohibition, drive not away those who call upon their Lord morning and evening, has so forcibly been revealed, the so-called rich should despair of the humble being driven away. So these words were revealed not as a reflection on the Holy Prophet, whose kindness to the poor is so well-known, but in order to shatter the hopes of the proud.

The words, Thou art not at all accountable for them nor are they at all accountable for thee, are also meant to point to the same great truth. Though the Prophet could not turn the poor out on account of the humbleness of their position, yet it might be thought that he might turn them out on account of some weakness on their part in respect of actions, but, besides the fact that in this respect the poor and the rich stand on the same footing, the Law does not hold the Prophet responsible for their actions, hence he cannot turn them out on this score either, unless of course when some serious offence is committed by them.

6:128.

Important Words:

سلام (peace) is the noun-infinitive from سلم which means, he was or became safe or secure; he escaped; he was or became free. They say سلم من الافات او العیب i.e. he became safe, secure or free from evils of any kind or from fault, defect, imperfection, blemish or vice. سلام therefore means, safety, security, immunity or freedom from faults or from defects, imperfections, blemishes or vices; or simply safety, security, immunity or freedom; peace; obedience; Heaven. It is also one of the names of God (Lane & Aqrab). See also 2:209 & 3:20.

Commentary:

As shown under Important Words, the word سلام means, peace, obedience, Heaven and God. Therefore the words, Allah calls to the abode of peace, will mean also that (1) God lays down obedience as a characteristic of believers; and (2) God makes believers heirs to the blessings of Heaven; and (3) God places true believers in a position from where they see God face to face.

The words, and guides whom He pleases to the straight path, here mean that there is a special class of people whom God attracts to Himself by the shortest route because a "straight path" is necessarily the shortest. This class comprises the Prophets and other chosen ones of God.

10:56.

10:37.

Important Words:

یخرصون (they guess) is derived from خرص which means, (1) he guessed or he made a conjecture; (2) he lied or he forged a lie (Taj & Aqrab).

Commentary:

This verse embodies a twofold consolation for the Prophet. Firstly, he has been told that, apart from a natural concern for them on account of their wrong beliefs, he need not worry or grieve over what disbelievers do, because their case is in the hands of God the Almighty Who possesses the power to punish them or to lead them to the right path. Secondly, the verse hints that the idolatrous beliefs of disbelievers have no foundation in fact and are consequently doomed to perish sooner or later. The Holy Prophet should, therefore, feel no anxiety on their account.

The word ما (not) in the clause, "do not really follow" is used both as an interrogative pronoun meaning "what" and as a negative particle meaning "no or not." In the former case the sentence would mean, "what do those who call on 'partners' beside Allah follow?" Taken in the latter sense, it would mean, "those who call on others than Allah do not really follow these 'partners.'" Thus, according to the former interpretation, the so-called 'partners' whom people worship beside God are spoken of with the contempt they deserve; while, according to the latter interpretation, their very existence is denied, hinting that truly speaking there are no 'partners' and the idolaters follow nothing but mere conjecture.

3:118; 16:34.

Commentary:

The Quran repeatedly emphasizes the fact that God never punishes a people unjustly and that it is their own misdeeds that bring down punishment upon them. It denies the theory of predestination or of man’s being the victim of a blind fate. It also contradicts the view that God makes nations rise and fall arbitrarily, without just or real cause. This is why, wherever the Quran speaks of punishment, it does not fail to add that punishments or rewards are the results of men’s own doing. This is what is hinted at in the words, And We did not wrong them but they wronged themselves.

The verse also points out that of all things it is their idols that are of absolutely no use to idolaters. All other things in nature such as fire, snakes, poisons, etc. have their uses. The swords of disbelievers were also of some service to them, because with them they killed some Muslims, but what proved of entirely no use to the idolaters were their gods, upon whom they had staked their whole future.

The words, and they added to them naught but perdition, do not contradict the well-known Quranic dictum that idols can do disbelievers neither good nor evil, for where the Quran denies that idols can do harm, it is intentional harm that is meant; but where it says that idols do serious harm to their votaries, as in the present verse, it means involuntary or unintentional harm, for what greater sin there can be than committing shirk, (idol-worship) of which idols are the unconscious cause.

The words "but perdition" also point to the moral that shirk generally renders idolaters lax in their efforts to better their condition and thus is indirectly instrumental in bringing about their eventual destruction. When at the Fall of Mecca, some of the idolaters who, on account of their most atrocious crimes against Muslims were proscribed from the general amnesty, took shelter in the Ka‘bah, thinking that the idols therein would protect them, they were ordered by the Holy Prophet to be slain. Had they known that their idols could render them no help whatsoever, they would have sought safety in flight. Thus the words "but perdition" hint that شرك (idol-worship) renders its votaries lax and negligent.

Commentary:

It is extremely regrettable that although Potiphar’s wife, who wanted to entice Joseph into sin, herself openly confessed to his innocence and her women-guests also bore witness to Joseph’s piety, and though in the present verse Joseph himself says that through God’s special grace he was saved from inclining to the commission of the evil deed, yet some commentators, writing long centuries after the event, do not hesitate to accuse Joseph of feeling inclined towards that evilly-disposed woman.

35:14; 40:21.

40:51.

Commentary:

The Quranic expression له دعوة الحق rendered in the text as, Unto Him is the true prayer, may be translated in several ways (1) God alone is worthy of worship; (2) it is praying to God alone that can be useful or beneficial for man; (3) the voice of God alone rises in support of truth i.e. the teaching which is really true and useful for man and is free from defects and untruths can come from God alone; (4) the Voice of God alone must prevail i.e. no one can frustrate God’s purpose and stand in His way; for the word حق (true) also means, that which prevails and becomes established.

The words, except as he is answered who stretches forth his two hands toward water that it may reach his mouth, but it reaches it not, embody a great principle. Just as he who ascribes lower status to a higher thing remains deprived of its higher benefits, similarly, he who ascribes higher status to a lower thing deprives himself of its true benefits. The man who looks upon a spurious coin as a genuine one will practically suffer as much as he who unwittingly treats a genuine coin as a spurious one. Idolaters think that their gods will answer their prayers and come to their help, but they can never do so.

In like manner, those who ascribe divine powers to things created by God deprive themselves of even their limited uses. How can those who look upon fire and water as gods think of bringing them under their control? And how can those who look upon Prophets as gods derive from them the real good which they could derive from them by following them as heavenly Messengers?

The verse thus says that the right way to succeed in life is to put all things in their proper places, to give God the status which is His due and to stars, rivers and mountains the position which they rightly possess. Whereas we should worship God, pray to Him and seek His blessings, we should subject created things to our service and derive those benefits from them which the Wise God has placed in them. That alone is the way of success and true happiness.

The words, the prayer of the disbelievers is but a thing wasted, mean that all prayers of disbelievers addressed to false deities will prove fruitless.

6:15; 12:102; 35:2; 39:47.

11:28; 23:25.

Important Words:

فاطر (Maker) is the active participle from فطر. They say فطرہ i.e. he clove, split, rent or cracked it; He (God) created it, or produced it or brought it into existence, namely, for the first time, it not having existed before; originated it; commenced or began it. فاطرالسموات means, the Originator or Creator of the heavens. Ibn ‘Abbas says, "I did not know what was the meaning of فاطرالسموات until two Arabs of the desert came to me, disputing together respecting a well, and one of them said, انا افطرتھا i.e. 'It was I who originated or began it.' " فطرالعجین; means, he made the dough into bread, or baked it, without leavening it, he kneaded the dough and made it into bread or baked it immediately (Lane & Aqrab). From the Quran it appears that there are four stages of creation: (a) the stage when nothing existed and the process of creation began for thefirst time, nothing having existed before; (b) the stage when matter had come into existence but had not yet taken a definite material form; (c) the stage when, as the result of combination, matter began to acquire diverse properties, the consummation of this process being known by the name of the law of nature; and (d) the last stage when, in accordance with the law of nature, the process of procreation or repetition in creation began, viz. man was born out of man and grain out of grain, etc. The attribute of فاطر (Maker) points to the second stage.

Commentary:

The verse gives the creation of the heavens and the earth as an argument to prove the Divine origin of the teaching given to the Prophets. The Prophets are here represented as saying to their opponents: "It is by the command of Allah that we preach. We say nothing of our own accord. How can you entertain doubt about the fact that God can send down revealed guidance? He is the Creator of heaven and earth, and it is unreasonable to think that, after having created man, He should have left him without guidance. Equally, it is inconsistent with reason to think that, whereas God has made ample provision for the material welfare and advancement of man by creating heaven and earth, He should have neglected to provide for his spiritual welfare."

The words, He calls you that He may forgive you your sins, and grant you respite till an appointed term, refute an objection of disbelievers that God was too dignified and exalted to invite humble beings like themselves to Him. They are told that it is indeed inconsistent with the dignity of God to call humble beings to His aid, but it is not at all below His dignity to come to their help. Nay, such an act is quite in keeping with His supreme dignity. God had therefore sent His Messengers that, through them, He might satisfy the moral and spiritual needs of man and grant him a new and higher life.

The expression, you are but men like ourselves;…Bring us then some clear proof, contains another objection of disbelievers that, if God at all was to have raised Messengers, they should have been beings befitting His dignity and not weak and humble men like themselves. The answer is given in the succeeding verse.