Topic: Quranic

3271

Important Words:

و (by) means, also; then; while; during; at the same time, together; with; but; however. It is also synonymous with رب(rubba) i.e. frequently; sometimes, perhaps. It is also a particle of swearing meaning, 'by' or 'I swear' or 'I cite as witness.' (Aqrab & Lane).و has been used in the present and the next two verses in the sense of 'by' or 'I swear' or 'I cite as witness.'

The words الصافات صفا (who range themselves in close ranks) may signify: (1) Muslims standing in close rows behind their Imam in the five daily Prayers, or (2) Muslims who stand in battle array facing the enemy.

For a collective explanatory note on this and the next two verses see v. 4.

Commentary:

In this and the next two verses, God has sworn by certain beings or things or has cited them as witnesses. Ordinarily, when a person takes an oath, his object is to supply the deficiency of insufficient testimony or to add weight or conviction to his assertion. In fact, by so doing he calls God to witness that he speaks the truth, when there is no witness in the case. But such is not the case with the Quranic oaths. When the Quran adopts such a form, the truth of the statement it makes is not sought to be proved by a mere allegation but by a solid argument implied in the oath itself. Sometimes, these oaths refer to the obvious laws of nature and by implication draw attention to what may be inferred from what is obvious. Another object of a Quranic oath is to make a prophecy the fulfilment of which establishes its truth. For a collective note on this and the next verse see v. 4 below.

3930

Commentary:

The particle واو may mean: "I swear" "I cite as witness;" etc. For the philosophy, importance and significance of oaths see 37:2; 51:2 & 91:2.

الطور (the Mount) stands for Mount Sinai. For a collective note on vv. 2-7 see v. 7 below.

3931

Commentary:

The expression "a Book inscribed," may refer to both the Quran and the Book of Moses, preferably to the former.

3932

Important Words:

رق (parchment) is the substantive noun from (raqqa) which means, it was or became thin, delicate in texture. رق means, fine parchment; white or fine piece of paper or skin, used for the purpose of writing on it (Lane).

Commentary:

The words "parchment unfolded," qualify the expression, "the Book inscribed," which stands for the Quran or the Book of Moses.

3933

Important Words:

المعمور (Frequented) is derived from عمر. They say عمر بالمکان i.e. he stayed in the house or he occupied, tenanted or inhabited it. عمر البناء means, he kept the building in a good state. عمر المکان means, he visited the place. دار معمور means, an inhabited or a visited or frequented house. عمرربه (‘ammara) means, he worshipped his Creator (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The words "the Frequented House," may refer to the tabernacle that Moses had constructed in the wilderness where the Israelites worshipped, or to the Temple at Jerusalem, or to any sacred house of worship. But preferably it refers to the Ka‘bah which is described in the Quran also as "a Resort" (2:126); "the Sacred House" (5:3); "the Sacred Mosque" (17:2); "the Ancient House" (22:30); and "the Town of Security" (95:4); etc.

3934

Commentary:

'The Elevated Roof' may also refer to the tabernacle which Moses set up in the wilderness in the form of a canopy under which the Israelites worshipped. Or it may refer to the Ka‘bah or to the sky or heaven the last reference being more appropriate and relevant.

3935

Important Words:

المسجور (swollen) is derived from سجر. They say سجر الماء النھر i.e. the water filled the stream. سجر التنور (sajjara) means, he filled the oven with firewood and heated it. سجر الماء means, he made the water to flow forth whithersoever it would. مسجور means, filled; kindled; still or quiet, or still and full at the same time; empty (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

It is the characteristic of the Quran that when it has to make a firm declaration and impart emphasis and certainty to that declaration it swears by, or cites as witnesses, certain beings or objects or natural laws or phenomena. In the first few verses the Surah swears by certain things intimately connected with Moses—the counterpart of the Holy Prophet. It was on the Tur that the revelation was vouchsafed to Moses which embodied his Law and the prophecies which spoke about the appearance of a great Divine Prophet from among the brethren of the Israelites. That Prophet was to be the like of Moses and was to shine forth from mount Paran and to come with ten thousand saints, holding in his right hand a fiery law (Deut. 18:18 & 33: 2). Evidently, the Holy Prophet was the Divine Messenger spoken of in the prophecy. His advent is likened in the Quran to the advent of Moses (73:16). He shined forth from mount Paran, holding the Quran in his right hand and entered Mecca at the head of ten thousand saintly warriors. The Surah then cites, as evidence, the "Inscribed Book" which is the Bible or the Quran, preferably the latter, and which stands as a standing and incontrovertible testimony to the truth of the claims of the Holy Prophet. "The Frequented House"—the Ka‘bah,—more than anything else, shows that the religion of which it forms the citadel and the centre is God’s Final Dispensation. The site where the Ka‘bah stands was a dry barren waste where no sign of human or animal life was visible. Here, long centuries ago, a holy man of God—the Patriarch Abraham, aided and assisted by his son, Ishmael, while raising its foundations, had prayed that the place may become a haven of safety and security and may constitute the centre from where God’s Unity and Oneness may be proclaimed and preached. It was "this barren waste that didst not bear and didst not travail with child"which gave birth to the greatest son of man, as was spoken of old (Isa. 54:1). Here it was (as was foretold) that "the glory of God rose and shone; the multitudes of camels came, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah, all came from Sheba and brought gold and incense and shewed forth the praises of the Lord" (Isa. 60:1-6).

The reference in the words "the Elevated Roof," being to heaven, the verse (v.6) signifies that the disbelievers are so unwise as not to see this simple fact that whereas the Prophet continuously receives Divine help and his cause progresses and prospers, failure dogs their footsteps and all their designs and plans against the Prophet prove abortive. In the words"the Swollen Sea," the reference may be to the Mediterranean Sea where Pharaoh and his mighty hosts were drowned while pursuing the Israelites or they may refer to the battlefield of Badr where all the great leaders of the Quraish were killed, as it was known as البحر i.e. the sea (Nihayah). The words may also apply to the Quran which like a fathomless sea of spiritual knowledge continues to throw out treasures of divine knowledge. "Why do not the disbelievers," the verse purports to say, "take a lesson from these patent facts and realize that opposition to God’s Messengers does not pay and will end in their ruin?"

4737

Important Words:

واو is a particle of swearing, meaning 'by' or 'I swear' or 'I cite as witness or call to witness' (Lane & Aqrab). See also 37:2.

الشمس (the sun), is a substantive noun from شـمس (shamasa). They say شـمس الرجل i.e. the man abstained from and refused to obey because he considered himself too big to give allegiance to anyone. شـمس الفرس means, the horse refused to be ridden or became rebellious against its rider and ran away refusing to be ridden by reason of the vehemence of its force of resistance. شـمس لی فلان means, such a one showed enmity to me (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

God’s swearing by His creatures is a method adopted by the Quran. The Quranic oaths have deep meaning underlying them. In ordinary transactions when a person takes an oath, his object is to supply the deficiency of insufficient testimony. The object and meaning of God’s oaths must, however, be distinguished from those of the oaths of mortals. Divine laws reveal two aspects of the works of God, viz. the obvious and the inferential. The former are easily comprehensible; in the comprehension of the latter there is room for error. In the taking of oaths God has called attention to what may be inferred from what is obvious.

Taking the oaths mentioned in the following verses, we see that the sun and the moon, the day and the night, heavens and earth belong to the "obvious;" their properties as referred to in these verses are universally known and acknowledged. But the same properties found in man’s soul are not obvious. To lead to an inference of the existence of these properties in the soul of man God has called to witness His obvious works.

"The sun" in the verse may refer to the sun of the spiritual universe—the Holy Prophet—who is the source of all light and who will continue to enlighten the world till the end of time. For a detailed note on this and the following five verses see v. 7.

4738

Important Words:

القمر (the moon). They say قمر الشیء i.e. the brightness of the thing became intense. قمر means, the moon; a star which borrows its light from the sun and reflects it on to the earth and thus removes the darkness of the night. (Lane & Aqrab). See also 54:2.

تلاھا (follows him). تلوته means, I followed him or it immediately or without intervention. ھو یتلو فلاناً means, he imitates such a one and follows what he does (Lane & Aqrab). See also 2:103.

Commentary:

"The moon" may be taken as referring to the Holy Prophet, who like the moon, draws his light from God and transmits it to the spiritually dark world. Or it may refer to those religious divines and Reformers—particularly the Promised Messiah—who borrow the light of truth from the Holy Prophet and transmit it to the world to remove the darkness of moral and spiritual turpitude.

4739

Commentary:

"The day" may signify the time during which the Message of Islam and the truth of its Founder was further fortified and foundations were laid for the universal propagation of the vital doctrines of the new Faith. The reference in the verse may particularly be to the time of the Rightly Guided Caliphs—the first four Successors of the Holy Prophet. In their time the light of Islam revealed its glory and splendour to the world.

4740

Commentary:

"The night" may refer to the period of decline and decadence of Muslims when the light of Islam had become veiled from the eyes of the world. These four verses (2-5) refer to four periods in the eventful career of Islam, viz. (1) the time of the Holy Prophet himself when the spiritual sun (the Holy Prophet) was shining in full splendour in the spiritual heaven; (2) the time of the Promised Messiah when the light derived from the Holy Prophet was being reflected on to a dark world; (3) the time of the Holy Prophet’s immediate Successors when the light of Islam was still shining and, (4) the period when spiritual darkness had spread over the world after the first three centuries of Islam which was its most glorious period.

4741

Commentary:

The particle ما (ma) in this and the next two verses is either مصدریة (masdariyyah) as in the text, or it stands for منmeaning, 'He Who.' Thus in these verses attention has been focused on the great Designer and Architect of the universe, and on the perfection and complete freedom from flaw or defect in the design and creation of man and the universe.

4742

Commentary:

The verse means that all the properties and forces which the great heavenly bodies such as the sun and the moon, etc. devote to the service of God’s creatures and to which reference has been made in the following verses bear witness to man having been endowed with similar qualities in a high degree. In fact, man is a universe in miniature and in his soul is represented, on a small scale, all that exists in the external universe. Like the sun he sheds his lustre over the world and enlightens it with the light of wisdom and knowledge. Like the moon he transmits to those who are in the dark the light of vision, inspiration and revelation which he borrows from the Great Original Source. He is bright like the day, and shows the ways of truth and virtue. Like the night he draws the veil over the faults and misdeeds of others, lightens their burdens and gives rest to the tired and the weary. Like the heavens he takes every distressed soul under his shelter and revives the lifeless earth, with salubrious rain. Like the earth he submits in all humility and lowliness to be trampled under the feet by others as a trial for them, and from his purified soul various sorts of trees of knowledge and truth grow up in abundance, and with their shade, flowers and fruits, he spiritually regales the world. Such are the great divines and Heavenly Reformers, of whom the greatest and the most perfect was the Holy Prophet.