Topic: Poet
View Aspects
الٓمٓ
像 الٓـمٓ (Alif Lam Mim) 等缩写词称为 اَلْمُقَطَّعَات (Al-Muqatta‘at), 其所使用的字母要分开发音, 在不少于28章的开头都有这些词, 它们是由一个或几个、最多到五个阿拉伯字母表中的字母组成。组成这些缩写词的字母有14个: ا (Alif)、ل (Lam)、م (Mim)、ص (Sad)、ر (Ra)、ك (Kaf)、ح (Ha)、ی (Ya)、ع (‘Ain)、ط (Ta)、س (Sin)、ه (Ha)、ق (Qaf) 和 ن (Nun)。后两字母, 单见于 ق (Qaf) 与 قَلَمْ (Qalam) 两章开始出现, 其余的由两个或更多个字母组合出现在某些章开始。阿拉伯人使用 اَلْمُقَطَّعَات (Muqatta‘at) 是非常流行的, 在诗与会话中都用它们。有一个阿拉伯诗人说 قُلْنا: قِفِی لَنا، فَقَالَت: قَافْ (Qulna Qifi Lana, Faqalat Qaf) 也就是说:” 我们对她说, ‘为我们停一会儿’而她说, 她就要停下来了,”字母قَافْ (Qaf) 表示 وَقَفْتُ (Waqaftu--------我就要停下来了)。据古尔杜比 (قُرْطُبِی--------Qurtabi) 传说, 穆圣也有一句话, 其大意是: كَفَی بِالْسَّيْفِ شَا (Kafa Bis Saifi Sha) 即刀剑是足够的补救办法, 这里 شَا (Sha) 表示 شَافِياً (shafiyan)。现在的西方国家和东方国家普遍使用缩写词。每部字典都有一份缩写词的表。位于一章之前的 اَلْمُقَطَّعَات (缩写词) 是安拉的独特常德的缩写词也是那一章的题目的缩写词。一章的题目与位于一章前的安拉常德有密切的关系。它们不是任意地放在各章的开始部分, 它们的字母也不是任意组合的。在它们的不同组合之间有深刻与深远的连系, 而且组成这些缩写词的字母也有着明确的目的。每章之首的缩写词代表安拉的一些常德。这些常德与这章的主题是深切连在一起的。章的主题中如果没有缩写词的字母, 那就是从属于或按前面的具有这些缩写词的那些章的格式行事。对于 اَلْمُقَطَّعَات 的意义, 有两个看来更为可信: (a) 每个字母具有肯定的数值 (جَرِيْر--------Jarir)。字母 الٓمٓ 的数值是71 (ا 的数值是1, ل是30, م是40)。这样, 把الٓمٓ 放在此章的开端, 可能指示这一章的主题, 即早期伊斯兰教的整顿与巩固将会经过71年的时间才能完成。 (b) 如上所述, 它们是安拉特种常德的缩写而特种缩写被放置之章, 在主题方面, 与其所代表的常德是有关联的。这样, 写在这一章以及第3、29、30、31与32章开始的缩写词 الٓمٓ 的意义是: “我是全知的安拉” 这句话具有伊本•阿巴斯 (اِبْنِ عَبَّاس --------Ibn-e-‘Abbas) 与伊本•麦斯武德 (اِبْنِ مَسْعُوْد--------Ibn-e-Mas‘ud) 的权威, ا 代表 اَنا (Ana, 我), ل 代表 الله (Allah, 安拉) 而 م 代表 اَعْلَمُ (A‘lamu, 全知者); 或者按照有些人说, ا 代表 الله (Allah, 安拉), ل 代表 جِبْرِيْل (吉布里尔, Jibril) 而 م 代表 مُحَمَّدْ (穆罕默德, Muhammad), 指示这一章的中心论题是安拉通过吉布里尔授予穆罕默德自己的知识。这些缩写字母构成 «古兰经» 启示的主要部分 («布哈里»)。
الٓـــمّٓ اور اسی قسم کے اور حروف جو مختلف سورتوں کے شروع میں آئے ہیں مُقَطَّعَات کہلاتے ہیں۔ یہ حروف الگ الگ بولے جاتے ہیں۔ ان میں سے ہر حرف ایک لفظ کا قائم مقام ہوتا ہے مثلاً الٓـــمّٓ میں اللہ الف اَنَا کا قائم مقام ہے اور لام اللہ کا قائم مقام ہے اور میم اَعْلَمُ کا۔ گویا الٓـــمٓ کے تینوں حروف مل کر اَنَا اللّٰہُ اَعْلَمُ کے معنے دیتے ہیں۔ یعنی میں اللہ سب سے زیادہ جاننے والا ہوں۔ اِن حروف کے ذریعہ اللہ تعالیٰ کی ان صفات کی طرف اختصار اً اشارہ ہوتا ہے جو اس سورۃ میں بیان ہوتی ہیں جس کے ابتدا میں یہ حروف لائے جاتے ہیں۔ بعض او
Abbreviations, like Alif Lam Mim, are known as al-Muqatta‘at (letters used and pronounced separately), and occur in the beginning of not less than 28 Surahs, and are made up of one or more, to a maximum of five, letters of the Arabic alphabet. The letters out of which these abbreviations are constituted are fourteen in number: Alif, Lam, Mim, Sad, Ra, Kaf, Ha, Ya, ‘Ain, Ta, Sin, Ha, Qaf and Nun. Of these Qaf and Nun occur alone in the beginning of Surahs Qaf and Qalam, the rest occur in combinations of two or more in the beginning of certain Surahs. The use of Muqatta‘at was in vogue among the Arabs. They used them in their poems and conversation. An Arab poet says: Qulna Qifi Lana, Faqalat Qaf i.e. "We said to her, 'Stop for us for a while' and she said that she was stopping" the letter Qaf standing for Waqaftu (I am sto
3:2; 7:2; 13:2; 29:2; 30:2; 31:2; 32:2.
Commentary:
Abbreviations like الم (Alif Lam Mim) are known as المقطعات (Al-Muqatta‘at), i.e. letters used and pronounced separately. They occur in the beginning of not less than 28 Surahs, and are made up of one or more, to a maximum of five, letters of the Arabic alphabet. The letters out of which these abbreviations are constituted are thirteen in number: Alif, Lam, Mim, Sad, Ra, Kaf, Ha, Ya, ‘Ain, Ta, Sin, Ha, Nun and Qaf. Of these Sad, Qaf and Nun occur alone in the beginning of one Surah only; the rest occur in combinations of two or more in the beginning of certain Surahs.
Of the meanings ascribed to Muqatta‘at two seem to be more authentic:
1. that each letter has a definite numerical value. Thus ا has the value of 1, ب of 2, ج of 3, د of 4, ھ of 5, and so on (Aqrab). This system was known to the early Arabs and is mentioned in some well-known books of tradition (e.g. Jarir, 70 & 71). In numerical terms the letters الم (Alif Lam Mim) could signify the length of time which the full manifestation of the inner significance of the Surah was meant to take.
The letters الم have the numerical value of 71 (ا being 1, ل 30 and م 40). Thus the placing of Alif Lam Mim in the beginning of the Surah would mean that the subject matter of Al-Baqarah, i.e. the special consolidation of early Islam, would take 71 years to unfold itself completely. It is well known that this consolidation went on until the year 71 Nabawi (after claim of Prophethood), the year of the coming to power of Yazid, son of Mu‘awiyah, when the history of Islam took a different turn.
2. The second and much more important significance of the Muqatta‘at is that they are abbreviations for specific attributes of God and a Surah before which the Muqatta‘at are placed is, in its subject matter, connected with the divine attributes for which the Muqatta‘at stand. The Arabs used such abbreviations. Says an Arab poet:
بالخیر خیرات و ان شر فا
ولا ارید الشر الا ان تا
"I will certainly return good for good; but if you are bent on mischief, so will I. I do not contemplate mischief except that you yourself should desire it" (Jarir). Here فا and تا stand for فشر and تشاء respectively. Similarly, the letters الم stand for انا الله اعلم i.e. "I am Allah, the All-Knowing"—a meaning which has the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas, cousin of the Holy Prophet (Jarir). Thus Alif Lam Mim placed in the beginning of Al-Baqarah indicate that the central theme of this chapter is divineknowledge. God proclaims, as it were, that Muslims, weak in the beginning, will soon become strong and attain to knowledge, wisdom and power.
The system of using Muqatta‘at was in vogue among the Arabs, who used them in their poems and conversations. In the modern West also the use of abbreviations has become very widespread. Nearly every dictionary provides a list of them along with their meanings (For fuller discussion of the Muqatta‘at see Tafsir-e-Kabir by Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II, Qadian).
16
像 الٓـمٓ (Alif Lam Mim) 等缩写词称为 اَلْمُقَطَّعَات (Al-Muqatta‘at), 其所使用的字母要分开发音, 在不少于28章的开头都有这些词, 它们是由一个或几个、最多到五个阿拉伯字母表中的字母组成。组成这些缩写词的字母有14个: ا (Alif)、ل (Lam)、م (Mim)、ص (Sad)、ر (Ra)、ك (Kaf)、ح (Ha)、ی (Ya)、ع (‘Ain)、ط (Ta)、س (Sin)、ه (Ha)、ق (Qaf) 和 ن (Nun)。后两字母, 单见于 ق (Qaf) 与 قَلَمْ (Qalam) 两章开始出现, 其余的由两个或更多个字母组合出现在某些章开始。阿拉伯人使用 اَلْمُقَطَّعَات (Muqatta‘at) 是非常流行的, 在诗与会话中都用它们。有一个阿拉伯诗人说 قُلْنا: قِفِی لَنا، فَقَالَت: قَافْ (Qulna Qifi Lana, Faqalat Qaf) 也就是说:” 我们对她说, ‘为我们停一会儿’而她说, 她就要停下来了,”字母قَافْ (Qaf) 表示 وَقَفْتُ (Waqaftu--------我就要停下来了)。据古尔杜比 (قُرْطُبِی--------Qurtabi) 传说, 穆圣也有一句话, 其大意是: كَفَی بِالْسَّيْفِ شَا (Kafa Bis Saifi Sha) 即刀剑是足够的补救办法, 这里 شَا (Sha) 表示 شَافِياً (shafiyan)。现在的西方国家和东方国家普遍使用缩写词。每部字典都有一份缩写词的表。位于一章之前的 اَلْمُقَطَّعَات (缩写词) 是安拉的独特常德的缩写词也是那一章的题目的缩写词。一章的题目与位于一章前的安拉常德有密切的关系。它们不是任意地放在各章的开始部分, 它们的字母也不是任意组合的。在它们的不同组合之间有深刻与深远的连系, 而且组成这些缩写词的字母也有着明确的目的。每章之首的缩写词代表安拉的一些常德。这些常德与这章的主题是深切连在一起的。章的主题中如果没有缩写词的字母, 那就是从属于或按前面的具有这些缩写词的那些章的格式行事。对于 اَلْمُقَطَّعَات 的意义, 有两个看来更为可信: (a) 每个字母具有肯定的数值 (جَرِيْر--------Jarir)。字母 الٓمٓ 的数值是71 (ا 的数值是1, ل是30, م是40)。这样, 把الٓمٓ 放在此章的开端, 可能指示这一章的主题, 即早期伊斯兰教的整顿与巩固将会经过71年的时间才能完成。 (b) 如上所述, 它们是安拉特种常德的缩写而特种缩写被放置之章, 在主题方面, 与其所代表的常德是有关联的。这样, 写在这一章以及第3、29、30、31与32章开始的缩写词 الٓمٓ 的意义是: “我是全知的安拉” 这句话具有伊本•阿巴斯 (اِبْنِ عَبَّاس --------Ibn-e-‘Abbas) 与伊本•麦斯武德 (اِبْنِ مَسْعُوْد--------Ibn-e-Mas‘ud) 的权威, ا 代表 اَنا (Ana, 我), ل 代表 الله (Allah, 安拉) 而 م 代表 اَعْلَمُ (A‘lamu, 全知者); 或者按照有些人说, ا 代表 الله (Allah, 安拉), ل 代表 جِبْرِيْل (吉布里尔, Jibril) 而 م 代表 مُحَمَّدْ (穆罕默德, Muhammad), 指示这一章的中心论题是安拉通过吉布里尔授予穆罕默德自己的知识。这些缩写字母构成 «古兰经» 启示的主要部分 («布哈里»)。
1
الٓـــمّٓ اور اسی قسم کے اور حروف جو مختلف سورتوں کے شروع میں آئے ہیں مُقَطَّعَات کہلاتے ہیں۔ یہ حروف الگ الگ بولے جاتے ہیں۔ ان میں سے ہر حرف ایک لفظ کا قائم مقام ہوتا ہے مثلاً الٓـــمّٓ میں اللہ الف اَنَا کا قائم مقام ہے اور لام اللہ کا قائم مقام ہے اور میم اَعْلَمُ کا۔ گویا الٓـــمٓ کے تینوں حروف مل کر اَنَا اللّٰہُ اَعْلَمُ کے معنے دیتے ہیں۔ یعنی میں اللہ سب سے زیادہ جاننے والا ہوں۔ اِن حروف کے ذریعہ اللہ تعالیٰ کی ان صفات کی طرف اختصار اً اشارہ ہوتا ہے جو اس سورۃ میں بیان ہوتی ہیں جس کے ابتدا میں یہ حروف لائے جاتے ہیں۔ بعض او
b
3:2; 7:2; 13:2; 29:2; 30:2; 31:2; 32:2.
8A
Commentary:
Abbreviations like الم (Alif Lam Mim) are known as المقطعات (Al-Muqatta‘at), i.e. letters used and pronounced separately. They occur in the beginning of not less than 28 Surahs, and are made up of one or more, to a maximum of five, letters of the Arabic alphabet. The letters out of which these abbreviations are constituted are thirteen in number: Alif, Lam, Mim, Sad, Ra, Kaf, Ha, Ya, ‘Ain, Ta, Sin, Ha, Nun and Qaf. Of these Sad, Qaf and Nun occur alone in the beginning of one Surah only; the rest occur in combinations of two or more in the beginning of certain Surahs.
Of the meanings ascribed to Muqatta‘at two seem to be more authentic:
1. that each letter has a definite numerical value. Thus ا has the value of 1, ب of 2, ج of 3, د of 4, ھ of 5, and so on (Aqrab). This system was known to the early Arabs and is mentioned in some well-known books of tradition (e.g. Jarir, 70 & 71). In numerical terms the letters الم (Alif Lam Mim) could signify the length of time which the full manifestation of the inner significance of the Surah was meant to take.
The letters الم have the numerical value of 71 (ا being 1, ل 30 and م 40). Thus the placing of Alif Lam Mim in the beginning of the Surah would mean that the subject matter of Al-Baqarah, i.e. the special consolidation of early Islam, would take 71 years to unfold itself completely. It is well known that this consolidation went on until the year 71 Nabawi (after claim of Prophethood), the year of the coming to power of Yazid, son of Mu‘awiyah, when the history of Islam took a different turn.
2. The second and much more important significance of the Muqatta‘at is that they are abbreviations for specific attributes of God and a Surah before which the Muqatta‘at are placed is, in its subject matter, connected with the divine attributes for which the Muqatta‘at stand. The Arabs used such abbreviations. Says an Arab poet:
بالخیر خیرات و ان شر فا
ولا ارید الشر الا ان تا
"I will certainly return good for good; but if you are bent on mischief, so will I. I do not contemplate mischief except that you yourself should desire it" (Jarir). Here فا and تا stand for فشر and تشاء respectively. Similarly, the letters الم stand for انا الله اعلم i.e. "I am Allah, the All-Knowing"—a meaning which has the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas, cousin of the Holy Prophet (Jarir). Thus Alif Lam Mim placed in the beginning of Al-Baqarah indicate that the central theme of this chapter is divineknowledge. God proclaims, as it were, that Muslims, weak in the beginning, will soon become strong and attain to knowledge, wisdom and power.
The system of using Muqatta‘at was in vogue among the Arabs, who used them in their poems and conversations. In the modern West also the use of abbreviations has become very widespread. Nearly every dictionary provides a list of them along with their meanings (For fuller discussion of the Muqatta‘at see Tafsir-e-Kabir by Hazrat Khalifatul Masih II, Qadian).
16
Abbreviations, like Alif Lam Mim, are known as al-Muqatta‘at (letters used and pronounced separately), and occur in the beginning of not less than 28 Surahs, and are made up of one or more, to a maximum of five, letters of the Arabic alphabet. The letters out of which these abbreviations are constituted are fourteen in number: Alif, Lam, Mim, Sad, Ra, Kaf, Ha, Ya, ‘Ain, Ta, Sin, Ha, Qaf and Nun. Of these Qaf and Nun occur alone in the beginning of Surahs Qaf and Qalam, the rest occur in combinations of two or more in the beginning of certain Surahs. The use of Muqatta‘at was in vogue among the Arabs. They used them in their poems and conversation. An Arab poet says: Qulna Qifi Lana, Faqalat Qaf i.e. "We said to her, 'Stop for us for a while' and she said that she was stopping" the letter Qaf standing for Waqaftu (I am sto
ٱللَّهُ يَسْتَهْزِئُ بِهِمْ وَيَمُدُّهُمْ فِى طُغْيَٰنِهِمْ يَعْمَهُونَ
9:79; 11:9; 21:42.
6:111; 7:187; 10:12.
یَسْتَھْزِیُٔ بِھِمْ (Yastahzi’u bi-him) 意为: 他将惩罚他们。在阿拉伯语中, 作为对一件邪恶行为的惩罚, 有时候用于邪恶行为本身的字来表示。” 恶行应得同样的恶报” (42:41)。著名的阿拉伯诗人 عَمْرو بِنْ كُلْثُوْم (‘Amr bin Kulthum) 说: اَلَا لَا يَجْهَلَنْ اَحَدٌ عَلَيْنَا، فَنَجْهَلَ فَوْقَ جَهْلِ الْجَاهِلِيْنَا (’Ala la Yajhalan Ahadun ‘Alaina, Fanajhala Fauqa jahlil-Jahilina) 就是说, 当心!谁也不该胆敢于利用无知来反对我们, 否则, 我们会向他表示更大的无知, 即我们会报答他的无知 (مُعَلَّقَات--------Mu‘allaqat)。
这句话并不是说安拉给那些虚伪者有喘息的机会, 让他们增强他们的悖逆。这样的意思与35:38相抵触了。那一节经文说, 主给不信道的人以休息的机会让他们改过迁善。
عُمْىٌ (‘Umyun) 是 اَعْمٰى (A‘ma) 的复数, اَعْمٰى 源出 اَلْعَمٰى (al-‘Ama), 意思是: 既是精神上的又是肉体上的盲目。阿文还有与 اَلْعَمٰی (al-‘Ama) 相近的一字 اَلْعَمَه (Al-‘Amah) 但 اَلْعَمَه 的意思是: 只指精神上的盲目, 而无肉体盲目的意思。 (اَقْرَبْ--------Aqrab)。
اَللّٰہُ یَسْتَھْزِیُٔ بِھِمْ کا لفظی ترجمہ یہ ہے کہ ’’اللہ ان کے ساتھ ہنسی کرے گا‘‘ لیکن اس کی بجائے ہم نے یہ ترجمہ کیا ہے کہ ’’اللہ انہیں ہنسی کی سزا دے گا‘‘ اس کی وجہ یہ ہے کہ عربی زبان میں جزائے جرم کے لئے بھی جرم کے لفظ استعمال کر لئے جاتے ہیں۔ اسی لئے امام راغبؒ نے اپنی کتاب مفردات میں اس آیت کے یہ معنے کئے ہیں کہ یُجَازِیْھِمْ جَزَاءَ الْھُزُؤِ یعنی اللہ تعالیٰ منافقوں کو اُن کی ہنسی کی سزا دے گا۔
یَمُدُّ ھُمْ . مَدَّ سے ہے اور مَدَّ الْمَدْیُوْنَ کے معنے ہوتے ہیں۔ اَمْھَلَہٗ یعنی قرض دار کو مہلت دی اور اُس سے قرضے کا مطالبہ کچھ عرصہ کے لئے ترک کر دیا۔ اس لئے ہم نے اس آیت کا ترجمہ کیا ہے کہ اُن کو بہکتے ہوئے چھوڑ دے گا۔
6:111; 7:187; 10:12.
The words do not mean that God grants the hypocrites respite to let them increase in their transgression. Such a meaning is contradicted by (35:38), where it is stated that God grants disbelievers respite that they should reform themselves.
‘Umyun is the plural of A‘ma which is derived from al-‘Ama. Al-‘Amah means, mental blindness and al-‘Ama means, both mental and physical blindness (Aqrab).
9:79; 11:9; 21:42.
6:111; 7:187; 10:12.
Important Words:
یستهزئ (will punish mockery). See 2:15 and also commentary below.
یمدھم (He will let them continue) is derived from مد. They say مدہ meaning, he let him continue in a course, or he granted him a delay or respite. Literally مد means, he spread, or he stretched, or he made a thing extend (Aqrab).
طغیان (transgression) is derived from طغی which means, he exceeded the proper limits. طغی فلان means, he was excessive in sin and transgression. طغی الماء means, the water was in flood (Aqrab).
یعمھون (wandering blindly) is derived from عمه which means, he was or became confounded or perplexed and was unable to see his way, and went to and fro in confusion (Aqrab). عمه is like عمی; but whereas عمی is wider in its significance, being used for blindness both physical and mental, عمه is confined to mental blindness only (Kashshaf). عمه also means, it (the place) lost all marks or signs helpful for identification or for finding a way through it (Aqrab).
Commentary:
In this verse the word یستھزئ (lit. will mock) has been used for God, and this has occasioned the criticism that the God of the Quran is given to mocking. The criticism is due to the utter ignorance of Arabic idiom and usage. In Arabic, punishment for an evil is sometimes denoted by the term used for the evil itself. For instance, in 42:41 we read وجزاء سیئة سیئة مثلھا i.e. the penalty for an evil is an evil the like thereof, whereas the penalty of an evil is not an evil. Again in 2:195 the word اعتداء (transgression) is used for the punishment of transgression. Similarly, the well-known pre-Islamic Christian poet, ‘Amr bin Kulthum says:
الا لایجھلن احد علینا
فنجھل فوق جھل الجاھلینا
"Beware! Nobody should employ ignorance against us; or we will show greater ignorance in return;" i.e. we will severely avenge such ignorance (Mu‘allaqat).
Thus the expression الله یستھزئ بھم does not mean, Allah shall mock at them, but that Allah will punish them for their mocking. The former meaning, followed by some translators, is absolutely inconsistent with the spirit of the Quran which condemns jest and ridicule as marks of ignorance (2:68). How, then, can God attribute to Himself what He declares to be a practice of the ignorant?
The clause, Allah will let them continue in their transgression, should not be understood to mean that God grants the hypocrites respite to let them increase in transgression. Such a meaning is contradicted by verses 6:111 and 35:38, where it is clearly stated that God grants the disbelievers respite with the sole object of reforming them but they unfortunately only increase in transgression.
The word یعمھون (wandering blindly) is derived from the root عمه which, as explained above, signifies, besides other meanings, the absence of signs or marks; The meaning here would, therefore, be that the hypocrites persist in their wickedness without care or consideration, as if the way they are travelling has lost all signs, leaving the traveller without any sense of distance or direction.
a
9:79; 11:9; 21:42.
b
6:111; 7:187; 10:12.
29D
یَسْتَھْزِیُٔ بِھِمْ (Yastahzi’u bi-him) 意为: 他将惩罚他们。在阿拉伯语中, 作为对一件邪恶行为的惩罚, 有时候用于邪恶行为本身的字来表示。” 恶行应得同样的恶报” (42:41)。著名的阿拉伯诗人 عَمْرو بِنْ كُلْثُوْم (‘Amr bin Kulthum) 说: اَلَا لَا يَجْهَلَنْ اَحَدٌ عَلَيْنَا، فَنَجْهَلَ فَوْقَ جَهْلِ الْجَاهِلِيْنَا (’Ala la Yajhalan Ahadun ‘Alaina, Fanajhala Fauqa jahlil-Jahilina) 就是说, 当心!谁也不该胆敢于利用无知来反对我们, 否则, 我们会向他表示更大的无知, 即我们会报答他的无知 (مُعَلَّقَات--------Mu‘allaqat)。
29E
这句话并不是说安拉给那些虚伪者有喘息的机会, 让他们增强他们的悖逆。这样的意思与35:38相抵触了。那一节经文说, 主给不信道的人以休息的机会让他们改过迁善。
29F
عُمْىٌ (‘Umyun) 是 اَعْمٰى (A‘ma) 的复数, اَعْمٰى 源出 اَلْعَمٰى (al-‘Ama), 意思是: 既是精神上的又是肉体上的盲目。阿文还有与 اَلْعَمٰی (al-‘Ama) 相近的一字 اَلْعَمَه (Al-‘Amah) 但 اَلْعَمَه 的意思是: 只指精神上的盲目, 而无肉体盲目的意思。 (اَقْرَبْ--------Aqrab)。
4
اَللّٰہُ یَسْتَھْزِیُٔ بِھِمْ کا لفظی ترجمہ یہ ہے کہ ’’اللہ ان کے ساتھ ہنسی کرے گا‘‘ لیکن اس کی بجائے ہم نے یہ ترجمہ کیا ہے کہ ’’اللہ انہیں ہنسی کی سزا دے گا‘‘ اس کی وجہ یہ ہے کہ عربی زبان میں جزائے جرم کے لئے بھی جرم کے لفظ استعمال کر لئے جاتے ہیں۔ اسی لئے امام راغبؒ نے اپنی کتاب مفردات میں اس آیت کے یہ معنے کئے ہیں کہ یُجَازِیْھِمْ جَزَاءَ الْھُزُؤِ یعنی اللہ تعالیٰ منافقوں کو اُن کی ہنسی کی سزا دے گا۔
5
یَمُدُّ ھُمْ . مَدَّ سے ہے اور مَدَّ الْمَدْیُوْنَ کے معنے ہوتے ہیں۔ اَمْھَلَہٗ یعنی قرض دار کو مہلت دی اور اُس سے قرضے کا مطالبہ کچھ عرصہ کے لئے ترک کر دیا۔ اس لئے ہم نے اس آیت کا ترجمہ کیا ہے کہ اُن کو بہکتے ہوئے چھوڑ دے گا۔
a
9:79; 11:9; 21:42.
b
6:111; 7:187; 10:12.
22
Important Words:
یستهزئ (will punish mockery). See 2:15 and also commentary below.
یمدھم (He will let them continue) is derived from مد. They say مدہ meaning, he let him continue in a course, or he granted him a delay or respite. Literally مد means, he spread, or he stretched, or he made a thing extend (Aqrab).
طغیان (transgression) is derived from طغی which means, he exceeded the proper limits. طغی فلان means, he was excessive in sin and transgression. طغی الماء means, the water was in flood (Aqrab).
یعمھون (wandering blindly) is derived from عمه which means, he was or became confounded or perplexed and was unable to see his way, and went to and fro in confusion (Aqrab). عمه is like عمی; but whereas عمی is wider in its significance, being used for blindness both physical and mental, عمه is confined to mental blindness only (Kashshaf). عمه also means, it (the place) lost all marks or signs helpful for identification or for finding a way through it (Aqrab).
Commentary:
In this verse the word یستھزئ (lit. will mock) has been used for God, and this has occasioned the criticism that the God of the Quran is given to mocking. The criticism is due to the utter ignorance of Arabic idiom and usage. In Arabic, punishment for an evil is sometimes denoted by the term used for the evil itself. For instance, in 42:41 we read وجزاء سیئة سیئة مثلھا i.e. the penalty for an evil is an evil the like thereof, whereas the penalty of an evil is not an evil. Again in 2:195 the word اعتداء (transgression) is used for the punishment of transgression. Similarly, the well-known pre-Islamic Christian poet, ‘Amr bin Kulthum says:
الا لایجھلن احد علینا
فنجھل فوق جھل الجاھلینا
"Beware! Nobody should employ ignorance against us; or we will show greater ignorance in return;" i.e. we will severely avenge such ignorance (Mu‘allaqat).
Thus the expression الله یستھزئ بھم does not mean, Allah shall mock at them, but that Allah will punish them for their mocking. The former meaning, followed by some translators, is absolutely inconsistent with the spirit of the Quran which condemns jest and ridicule as marks of ignorance (2:68). How, then, can God attribute to Himself what He declares to be a practice of the ignorant?
The clause, Allah will let them continue in their transgression, should not be understood to mean that God grants the hypocrites respite to let them increase in transgression. Such a meaning is contradicted by verses 6:111 and 35:38, where it is clearly stated that God grants the disbelievers respite with the sole object of reforming them but they unfortunately only increase in transgression.
The word یعمھون (wandering blindly) is derived from the root عمه which, as explained above, signifies, besides other meanings, the absence of signs or marks; The meaning here would, therefore, be that the hypocrites persist in their wickedness without care or consideration, as if the way they are travelling has lost all signs, leaving the traveller without any sense of distance or direction.
c
9:79; 11:9; 21:42.d
6:111; 7:187; 10:12.
33
Yastahzi’u bi-him means, will punish them. In Arabic punishment for an evil deed is sometimes denoted by the word used for the evil itself. "The penalty for an evil deed is an evil the like thereof" (42:41). The famous Arab poet ‘Amr bin Kulthum says: Ala la Yajhalan Ahadun ‘Alaina, Fanajhal Fauqa Jahlal-Jahilina, i.e. Beware! none should dare employ ignorance against us, or we will show greater ignorance, i.e. we will avenge his ignorance (Mu‘allaqat).33A
The words do not mean that God grants the hypocrites respite to let them increase in their transgression. Such a meaning is contradicted by (35:38), where it is stated that God grants disbelievers respite that they should reform themselves.
34
‘Umyun is the plural of A‘ma which is derived from al-‘Ama. Al-‘Amah means, mental blindness and al-‘Ama means, both mental and physical blindness (Aqrab).
فَقُلْنَا ٱضْرِبُوهُ بِبَعْضِهَا ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يُحْىِ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰ وَيُرِيكُمْ ءَايَٰتِهِۦ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ
2:180.
ضَرْب (Darb) 的意思是指一件事物的同类 (Lane), 动词 ضَرَبَ (Daraba) 在13:18; 16:75 和43:58中用于不同时态而具有 “比较” 的含意。因此短语اِضْرِبُوْهُ بِبَعْضِهَا (Idribu-hu Bi-ba‘diha) 可以解释为 “把伊撒像几乎死去一样从十字架上取下的情况与一些被认为死去而实际上没有死而只是看上去像死去的人的情况相比较, 那么, 你将会发现关于伊撒被设想为死亡的真相”。
此句可表示为:这就是在伊撒几乎死去之后, 安拉是怎样给他重生的, مَوْتٰی (Mauta) 是 مَيْت (Mait) 的复数, 意为他像死一样或将要死的一个人 (Lane)。这里مَوْتٰی 这个词之所以取此意义, 是因为按照 «古兰经» 所说, 那些真正死了的人决不能复活 (21:96和23:101)
本节经文也可以表示为:于是我说, “因为他 (凶手) 的一部分犯法行为而惩罚他。这样, 安拉确是给死者以生命并向你显示他的迹象, 以便你们能以理解。” 按照这一意义, 本节和前一节经文是指一位穆斯林在麦地那被犹太人谋害。在到达麦地那时, 穆圣已与犹太人缔结一个和平与相互友好的条约。可是伊斯兰教的日益昌盛和胜利, 逐步引起他们的嫉妒, 而他们中的某些首领, 卡布•彬•阿希尔弗 (كَعْب بِنْ اَشْرَف, Ka‘b bin Ashraf) 是其中居首的一个, 开始秘密鼓动他们的族人反对穆斯林。白德尔之战后不久, 一位穆斯林妇女碰巧去一家犹太人商店买东西。店主对她做出极为侮辱性的动作。这个无助的妇女高呼救命。恰好附近有个穆斯林前去搭救。接着在扭打中店主被打死, 于是这些犹太人就向他进击并杀害了他。当开始调查此案件时, 参与这凶残行动的这些恶棍却没有一个承认这一罪恶, 而他们中的每一个人企图把犯罪责任推卸给别人。对一个穆斯林的凶杀事件就犹太人来说, 并非一件孤立的为害行动。他们的日常举止已发展为侮辱性的和挑衅性的, 并且他们总是在留心制造新的骚动 (هِشَام, Hisham), 还秘密策划暗杀穆圣本人 (اِصَابَة, Isabah)。卡布•彬•阿希尔弗是伊斯兰教的首敌也是所有这些骚动和阴谋的主要唆使者。他甚至去麦加并以他强有力的口才煽动在白德尔之战中屈辱的战败下深受刺痛的古来西人, 使他们手持天房的幕布庄严地宣誓, 他们将不休止, 直至毁灭伊斯兰教及其创始人为止。卡布还把涉及穆圣家中妇女们最庸俗下流的诗篇进行广泛传播。因为他此类反复的背叛与毒害行动和导致无罪的穆斯林致死的罪恶, 所以他被判死刑。判处死刑只是对犯法行为给以惩罚的一部分, 其余惩罚还有待后世。由于 قَتَلْتُمْ (Qataltum) 这词用了复数, «古兰经» 认为麦地那的整个犹太人集居区应对此谋杀负责。可是要将头目区别开, 加以死刑, 代词 (هُ, hu) 指的就是卡布。按照本节经文的这一含意, “安拉就是这样地赐给死者生命” 这句话意味着以牙还牙是死者以生命的有效方式, 因为这样才能防止想要暗杀的人再当凶手。以牙还牙是给死者以生命的很有效的手段, 这在2:180中间接提到。再者, “无知时代” 的阿拉伯人把尚未讨还血债的死者看作死人, 而把血债已完全还清的被杀害者看作活人。著名阿拉伯诗人哈里思•彬•希耳扎 (حَارِثْ بِنْ حِلْزَةْ, Harith bin Hilza) 说:
اِنْ نَبَشْتُمْ مَا بَيْنَ مَلْحَةَ وَالصَّاقِب، فِيْه الْاَمْوَاتُ وَالْاَحْيَاءُ (In Nabashtum ma Baina Malhata Wa’s Saqib, Fihal-Amwatu Wal Ahya’u) 就是说, 假如你在姆耳哈 (مَلْحَةَ, Malhata) 和萨吉布 (وَالصَّاقِبْ, wa’s Saqib) 之间挖掘坟墓, 你会在那里发现死人和活人, 即那些被报了杀害之仇的人。他们将受预定的惩罚。
یعنی ایسی تدبیریں بتاتا ہے جس سے وہ لوگ جو تمہارے خیال میں مُردہ تھے درحقیقت زندہ ثابت ہو جاتے ہیں۔
2:180.
Darb meaning the like of a thing (Lane), the verb Daraba is used in different tenses in 13:18; 16:75 & 43:58 as signifying "comparison." So the expression Idribu-hu Bi-ba‘diha may be interpreted as "compare the condition of Jesus in which he was taken down from the Cross as almost dead with the condition of persons who were considered dead while in reality they were not dead but only appeared as such; and you will discover the truth about the supposed death of Jesus."
The clause may signify: This is how God gave Jesus a new lease of life after he was almost dead, Mauta being the plural of Mait which means, one like dead or near death (Lane). Here the word Mauta would be taken in this sense because according to the Qur’an those actually dead never come back to life (21:96 & 23:101).
The verse may also be rendered as: Then We said, "Smite him (the murderer) for a part of his offence. Thus doth Allah give life to the dead and show you His Signs that you may understand." According to this meaning this and the preceding verse will refer to the murder of a Muslim by the Jews at Medina. On his arrival at Medina the Holy Prophet had entered into a treaty of peace and mutual good relations with the Jews. But the growing prosperity and success of Islam gradually roused their jealousy and some of their leaders, Ka‘b bin Ashraf being foremost among them, began secretly to excite their people against Muslims. A short time after the Battle of Badr a
2:180.
Important Words:
الموتی (the dead, i.e. dead persons) is the plural of میت (a dead person) which means: (1) one really dead; (2) one like dead (3) one dying or nearing death (Lane). See also under 2:20, 2:29 & 2:57.
Commentary:
In the preceding verses God related some of the misdeeds of the Israelites in order to bring home to them the fact that, in face of such conduct on their part, it was idle to expect that God would continue to bestow favours on them. In the verses under comment i.e. 2:73, 74, 75, God recounts one of their final misdeeds which filled the cup of their iniquity to overflowing and sealed their fate.
The Quran has not named the person slain, but when read with the context and the relevant facts of history, the verses appear to apply to the murder of a Companion of the Holy Prophet by the Jews at Medina. Following are some of the details of the incident which was the first public act of enmity perpetrated by the Medinite Jews against Muslims.
The Holy Prophet, on his arrival at Medina, entered into a treaty with the Jews. But the growing prosperity and success of Islam gradually roused the jealousy of the Jewish leaders and some of them began secretly to incite their people against the Muslims. The crisis came with the Battle of Badr when the jealousy of the Jews reached its highest pitch. The result was that the Jews were emboldened and assumed a highly insolent attitude towards Islam. A short time after the said battle, a Muslim lady happened to go to a Jew’s shop to make some purchases. The shopkeeper and the other Jews sitting at the shop behaved very insultingly toward her, and the shopkeeper mischievously fastened the lower part of her mantle to the upper part thereof with a thorn so that when, being unable to bear their insults, she unsuspectingly rose to depart, part of her body became naked, at which the shopkeeper and other Jews burst out laughing. This made the helpless lady cry for help. A Muslim happened to be near. Hearing her cry, he rushed to the place and in the fight that ensued the shopkeeper was killed, whereupon the Jews fell upon the Muslim and murdered him and the situation threatened to develop into a sort of a riot. This happened towards the close of the second year of the Hijrah. It is with reference to this murder that the preceding verse says, and remember the time when you slew a person and differed among yourselves about it. The Jews differed among themselves about the murder, for none of them admitted that he had committed it, though all adopted a highly insulting attitude towards the Holy Prophet when he exhorted the Jewish leaders to fear God and abstain from jeopardising the peace of the city. The result was ongoing enmity between the Jewish tribe of Banu Qainuqa‘ and the Muslims culminating in the banishment of the tribe from Medina (Hisham, Tabari & Zurqani).
But the real responsibility lay on the ringleader of the Medinite Jews—Ka‘b bin Ashraf—who had taken a leading part in inciting the Jewish tribes and kindling their hatred against the Muslims. The man was looked upon as their leader by the Jews of the whole of Arabia. He was a very rich man and a poet of eminence. Ka‘b was also a party to the treaty which was concluded between the Jews and the Holy Prophet on the arrival of the latter in Medina. Inwardly, however, he harboured deep hatred against Islam and its Holy Founder which grew in intensity as Islam made progress. When the Muslims won a decisive victory at Badr, Ka‘b, realizing that Islam was taking a deep root in the soil, thought it imperative to make strenuous efforts to extirpate the new faith. So he at once started for Mecca and there, with the aid of his powerful eloquence and stirring verses, set ablaze the fire of enmity and hatred that was already smouldering in the hearts of the Quraish, and with the skirts of the sacred curtain of the Ka‘bah in their hands, he made them take a solemn oath that they would know no rest until they had destroyed Islam and its Founder. Thereafter he toured among other tribes of Arabia and stirred them up against the Prophet and the small body of his followers. Having lighted up the fire of hatred and enmity throughout the land, he returned to Medina and began to create mischief by making scurrilous poems in which mention was made of Muslim women and the ladies nearly related to the Holy Prophet, in the most offensive language. These verses were widely published and were publicly recited by the enemies of Islam. The result of these tactics was that feelings of extreme hatred were excited in the minds of the Jews who assumed an openly hostile attitude to the Holy Prophet and his Companions, throwing to the winds their treaty obligations. It was this attitude of the Jews which emboldened them to commit such offences as the one referred to above, in open defiance of the terms of the treaty they had concluded with the Holy Prophet on his arrival at Medina (Hisham, Zurqani & Dawud).
Thus the real culprit responsible for the assassination of the Muslim referred to above was no other than Ka‘b bin Ashraf, the bold and wicked Jewish leader, who had instigated the Jews to rebellion and breach of contract. He even did not hesitate to plot against the life of the Holy Prophet (Zurqani). His guilt was an established fact. He was guilty of high treason against the State and was the arch-enemy of peace. So he was put to death by the Prophet’s command in the third year of Hijrah. It is to this sentence of death that the present verse refers when it says: then We said, "Smite him (the murderer, i.e. the real culprit) for a part of the offence against him (the murdered person)”, which meant that the sentence of death was only a partial punishment of the offence, the rest of the punishment being reserved for the Hereafter. In fact, there are certain sins which are atoned for by the punishment which is inflicted for them on the offender in this world. But the offence of wilfully killing an innocent man and particularly one who is a righteous servant of the Lord, is not adequately punished with the execution of the murderer, which is only a partial punishment. The real punishment of such an offence is Hell (4:94).
By using the word قتلتم (you slew) in the plural number, the Quran hints that the whole Jewish community of Medinawas responsible for it. For the sentence of death, however, the ringleader, who had brought about a tense atmosphere of hatred and enmity, was selected.
The clause, thus Allah gives life to the dead, signifies that retaliation is an effective form of giving life to the dead, for punishing the offender prevents the would-be assassins from committing further murders, and thus many who would otherwise have been victims of assassination are saved. That retaliation is a sure means of giving life is clearly alluded to in the Quran itself. We read in 2:180, and there is life for you in the law of retaliation, O men of understanding.
Finally, it may be noted that these verses have also been applied to the attempted murder of Jesus by the Jews (for which see Part I of the Quran published by Anjuman Taraqqi Islam, Qadian, in 1916), but recent research strongly supports the above explanation. It may also be noted that the interpretation put on this verse by some commentators that a physically dead person was restored to life is quite erroneous, being unsupported by the context of the verse as well as the authentic teaching of Islam. It is a mere legend which has no foundation in fact.
a
2:180.
64
ضَرْب (Darb) 的意思是指一件事物的同类 (Lane), 动词 ضَرَبَ (Daraba) 在13:18; 16:75 和43:58中用于不同时态而具有 “比较” 的含意。因此短语اِضْرِبُوْهُ بِبَعْضِهَا (Idribu-hu Bi-ba‘diha) 可以解释为 “把伊撒像几乎死去一样从十字架上取下的情况与一些被认为死去而实际上没有死而只是看上去像死去的人的情况相比较, 那么, 你将会发现关于伊撒被设想为死亡的真相”。
65
此句可表示为:这就是在伊撒几乎死去之后, 安拉是怎样给他重生的, مَوْتٰی (Mauta) 是 مَيْت (Mait) 的复数, 意为他像死一样或将要死的一个人 (Lane)。这里مَوْتٰی 这个词之所以取此意义, 是因为按照 «古兰经» 所说, 那些真正死了的人决不能复活 (21:96和23:101)
66
本节经文也可以表示为:于是我说, “因为他 (凶手) 的一部分犯法行为而惩罚他。这样, 安拉确是给死者以生命并向你显示他的迹象, 以便你们能以理解。” 按照这一意义, 本节和前一节经文是指一位穆斯林在麦地那被犹太人谋害。在到达麦地那时, 穆圣已与犹太人缔结一个和平与相互友好的条约。可是伊斯兰教的日益昌盛和胜利, 逐步引起他们的嫉妒, 而他们中的某些首领, 卡布•彬•阿希尔弗 (كَعْب بِنْ اَشْرَف, Ka‘b bin Ashraf) 是其中居首的一个, 开始秘密鼓动他们的族人反对穆斯林。白德尔之战后不久, 一位穆斯林妇女碰巧去一家犹太人商店买东西。店主对她做出极为侮辱性的动作。这个无助的妇女高呼救命。恰好附近有个穆斯林前去搭救。接着在扭打中店主被打死, 于是这些犹太人就向他进击并杀害了他。当开始调查此案件时, 参与这凶残行动的这些恶棍却没有一个承认这一罪恶, 而他们中的每一个人企图把犯罪责任推卸给别人。对一个穆斯林的凶杀事件就犹太人来说, 并非一件孤立的为害行动。他们的日常举止已发展为侮辱性的和挑衅性的, 并且他们总是在留心制造新的骚动 (هِشَام, Hisham), 还秘密策划暗杀穆圣本人 (اِصَابَة, Isabah)。卡布•彬•阿希尔弗是伊斯兰教的首敌也是所有这些骚动和阴谋的主要唆使者。他甚至去麦加并以他强有力的口才煽动在白德尔之战中屈辱的战败下深受刺痛的古来西人, 使他们手持天房的幕布庄严地宣誓, 他们将不休止, 直至毁灭伊斯兰教及其创始人为止。卡布还把涉及穆圣家中妇女们最庸俗下流的诗篇进行广泛传播。因为他此类反复的背叛与毒害行动和导致无罪的穆斯林致死的罪恶, 所以他被判死刑。判处死刑只是对犯法行为给以惩罚的一部分, 其余惩罚还有待后世。由于 قَتَلْتُمْ (Qataltum) 这词用了复数, «古兰经» 认为麦地那的整个犹太人集居区应对此谋杀负责。可是要将头目区别开, 加以死刑, 代词 (هُ, hu) 指的就是卡布。按照本节经文的这一含意, “安拉就是这样地赐给死者生命” 这句话意味着以牙还牙是死者以生命的有效方式, 因为这样才能防止想要暗杀的人再当凶手。以牙还牙是给死者以生命的很有效的手段, 这在2:180中间接提到。再者, “无知时代” 的阿拉伯人把尚未讨还血债的死者看作死人, 而把血债已完全还清的被杀害者看作活人。著名阿拉伯诗人哈里思•彬•希耳扎 (حَارِثْ بِنْ حِلْزَةْ, Harith bin Hilza) 说:
اِنْ نَبَشْتُمْ مَا بَيْنَ مَلْحَةَ وَالصَّاقِب، فِيْه الْاَمْوَاتُ وَالْاَحْيَاءُ (In Nabashtum ma Baina Malhata Wa’s Saqib, Fihal-Amwatu Wal Ahya’u) 就是说, 假如你在姆耳哈 (مَلْحَةَ, Malhata) 和萨吉布 (وَالصَّاقِبْ, wa’s Saqib) 之间挖掘坟墓, 你会在那里发现死人和活人, 即那些被报了杀害之仇的人。他们将受预定的惩罚。
1
یعنی ایسی تدبیریں بتاتا ہے جس سے وہ لوگ جو تمہارے خیال میں مُردہ تھے درحقیقت زندہ ثابت ہو جاتے ہیں۔
a
2:180.
80
Important Words:
الموتی (the dead, i.e. dead persons) is the plural of میت (a dead person) which means: (1) one really dead; (2) one like dead (3) one dying or nearing death (Lane). See also under 2:20, 2:29 & 2:57.
Commentary:
In the preceding verses God related some of the misdeeds of the Israelites in order to bring home to them the fact that, in face of such conduct on their part, it was idle to expect that God would continue to bestow favours on them. In the verses under comment i.e. 2:73, 74, 75, God recounts one of their final misdeeds which filled the cup of their iniquity to overflowing and sealed their fate.
The Quran has not named the person slain, but when read with the context and the relevant facts of history, the verses appear to apply to the murder of a Companion of the Holy Prophet by the Jews at Medina. Following are some of the details of the incident which was the first public act of enmity perpetrated by the Medinite Jews against Muslims.
The Holy Prophet, on his arrival at Medina, entered into a treaty with the Jews. But the growing prosperity and success of Islam gradually roused the jealousy of the Jewish leaders and some of them began secretly to incite their people against the Muslims. The crisis came with the Battle of Badr when the jealousy of the Jews reached its highest pitch. The result was that the Jews were emboldened and assumed a highly insolent attitude towards Islam. A short time after the said battle, a Muslim lady happened to go to a Jew’s shop to make some purchases. The shopkeeper and the other Jews sitting at the shop behaved very insultingly toward her, and the shopkeeper mischievously fastened the lower part of her mantle to the upper part thereof with a thorn so that when, being unable to bear their insults, she unsuspectingly rose to depart, part of her body became naked, at which the shopkeeper and other Jews burst out laughing. This made the helpless lady cry for help. A Muslim happened to be near. Hearing her cry, he rushed to the place and in the fight that ensued the shopkeeper was killed, whereupon the Jews fell upon the Muslim and murdered him and the situation threatened to develop into a sort of a riot. This happened towards the close of the second year of the Hijrah. It is with reference to this murder that the preceding verse says, and remember the time when you slew a person and differed among yourselves about it. The Jews differed among themselves about the murder, for none of them admitted that he had committed it, though all adopted a highly insulting attitude towards the Holy Prophet when he exhorted the Jewish leaders to fear God and abstain from jeopardising the peace of the city. The result was ongoing enmity between the Jewish tribe of Banu Qainuqa‘ and the Muslims culminating in the banishment of the tribe from Medina (Hisham, Tabari & Zurqani).
But the real responsibility lay on the ringleader of the Medinite Jews—Ka‘b bin Ashraf—who had taken a leading part in inciting the Jewish tribes and kindling their hatred against the Muslims. The man was looked upon as their leader by the Jews of the whole of Arabia. He was a very rich man and a poet of eminence. Ka‘b was also a party to the treaty which was concluded between the Jews and the Holy Prophet on the arrival of the latter in Medina. Inwardly, however, he harboured deep hatred against Islam and its Holy Founder which grew in intensity as Islam made progress. When the Muslims won a decisive victory at Badr, Ka‘b, realizing that Islam was taking a deep root in the soil, thought it imperative to make strenuous efforts to extirpate the new faith. So he at once started for Mecca and there, with the aid of his powerful eloquence and stirring verses, set ablaze the fire of enmity and hatred that was already smouldering in the hearts of the Quraish, and with the skirts of the sacred curtain of the Ka‘bah in their hands, he made them take a solemn oath that they would know no rest until they had destroyed Islam and its Founder. Thereafter he toured among other tribes of Arabia and stirred them up against the Prophet and the small body of his followers. Having lighted up the fire of hatred and enmity throughout the land, he returned to Medina and began to create mischief by making scurrilous poems in which mention was made of Muslim women and the ladies nearly related to the Holy Prophet, in the most offensive language. These verses were widely published and were publicly recited by the enemies of Islam. The result of these tactics was that feelings of extreme hatred were excited in the minds of the Jews who assumed an openly hostile attitude to the Holy Prophet and his Companions, throwing to the winds their treaty obligations. It was this attitude of the Jews which emboldened them to commit such offences as the one referred to above, in open defiance of the terms of the treaty they had concluded with the Holy Prophet on his arrival at Medina (Hisham, Zurqani & Dawud).
Thus the real culprit responsible for the assassination of the Muslim referred to above was no other than Ka‘b bin Ashraf, the bold and wicked Jewish leader, who had instigated the Jews to rebellion and breach of contract. He even did not hesitate to plot against the life of the Holy Prophet (Zurqani). His guilt was an established fact. He was guilty of high treason against the State and was the arch-enemy of peace. So he was put to death by the Prophet’s command in the third year of Hijrah. It is to this sentence of death that the present verse refers when it says: then We said, "Smite him (the murderer, i.e. the real culprit) for a part of the offence against him (the murdered person)”, which meant that the sentence of death was only a partial punishment of the offence, the rest of the punishment being reserved for the Hereafter. In fact, there are certain sins which are atoned for by the punishment which is inflicted for them on the offender in this world. But the offence of wilfully killing an innocent man and particularly one who is a righteous servant of the Lord, is not adequately punished with the execution of the murderer, which is only a partial punishment. The real punishment of such an offence is Hell (4:94).
By using the word قتلتم (you slew) in the plural number, the Quran hints that the whole Jewish community of Medinawas responsible for it. For the sentence of death, however, the ringleader, who had brought about a tense atmosphere of hatred and enmity, was selected.
The clause, thus Allah gives life to the dead, signifies that retaliation is an effective form of giving life to the dead, for punishing the offender prevents the would-be assassins from committing further murders, and thus many who would otherwise have been victims of assassination are saved. That retaliation is a sure means of giving life is clearly alluded to in the Quran itself. We read in 2:180, and there is life for you in the law of retaliation, O men of understanding.
Finally, it may be noted that these verses have also been applied to the attempted murder of Jesus by the Jews (for which see Part I of the Quran published by Anjuman Taraqqi Islam, Qadian, in 1916), but recent research strongly supports the above explanation. It may also be noted that the interpretation put on this verse by some commentators that a physically dead person was restored to life is quite erroneous, being unsupported by the context of the verse as well as the authentic teaching of Islam. It is a mere legend which has no foundation in fact.
a
2:180.
110
Darb meaning the like of a thing (Lane), the verb Daraba is used in different tenses in 13:18; 16:75 & 43:58 as signifying "comparison." So the expression Idribu-hu Bi-ba‘diha may be interpreted as "compare the condition of Jesus in which he was taken down from the Cross as almost dead with the condition of persons who were considered dead while in reality they were not dead but only appeared as such; and you will discover the truth about the supposed death of Jesus."
110A
The clause may signify: This is how God gave Jesus a new lease of life after he was almost dead, Mauta being the plural of Mait which means, one like dead or near death (Lane). Here the word Mauta would be taken in this sense because according to the Qur’an those actually dead never come back to life (21:96 & 23:101).
The verse may also be rendered as: Then We said, "Smite him (the murderer) for a part of his offence. Thus doth Allah give life to the dead and show you His Signs that you may understand." According to this meaning this and the preceding verse will refer to the murder of a Muslim by the Jews at Medina. On his arrival at Medina the Holy Prophet had entered into a treaty of peace and mutual good relations with the Jews. But the growing prosperity and success of Islam gradually roused their jealousy and some of their leaders, Ka‘b bin Ashraf being foremost among them, began secretly to excite their people against Muslims. A short time after the Battle of Badr a
۞ وَٱلْمُحْصَنَٰتُ مِنَ ٱلنِّسَآءِ إِلَّا مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَٰنُكُمْ ۖ كِتَٰبَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ ۚ وَأُحِلَّ لَكُم مَّا وَرَآءَ ذَٰلِكُمْ أَن تَبْتَغُوا۟ بِأَمْوَٰلِكُم مُّحْصِنِينَ غَيْرَ مُسَٰفِحِينَ ۚ فَمَا ٱسْتَمْتَعْتُم بِهِۦ مِنْهُنَّ فَـَٔاتُوهُنَّ أُجُورَهُنَّ فَرِيضَةً ۚ وَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِيمَا تَرَٰضَيْتُم بِهِۦ مِنۢ بَعْدِ ٱلْفَرِيضَةِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيمًا حَكِيمًا
4:26; 5:6.
4:5; 60:11.
تَمَتَّعَ بِالْمَرْأَةِ (Tamatta‘a bil Mar’ati) 意指他从妇女那里得到暂时的好处。اِسْتَمْتَعَ بِكَذَا (Istamta‘a bi Kadha) 意指他从中长期得益。阿拉伯习俗不允许把 اِسْتِمْتَاعْ (Istimt‘a)作 “暂时的关系” 这意思来用于妇女 (لِسَانْ, Lisan)。还可以注意到的是, 正如上面例句中那样, 每当名词 تَمَتُّعْ (Tamattu‘) 用来表明妇女的暂时性关系时, 后接置于代表妇女这词之前的介词 ب (ba’)。一位阿拉伯诗人说, تَمَتَّعْ بِهَا مَا سَاعَفَتْكَ وَ لَا تَكُنْ عَلَيْكَ شَجًا فِی الْحَلْقِ حِيْنَ تَبِيْنُ (Tamatt‘a biha ma Sa‘afatka wa la Takun ‘alaika Shajan fil Halqi hina Tabinu) (حَمَاسَة, Hamasah), 即只要她合你的意, 可从她得益, 但当她与你分离时, 不要让她像骨梗在喉般地成为你经久烦恼的祸根。可是在本节经文中, هُنَّ (Hunna) 这个指妇女们的代词之前置有介词 مِنْ (min)。对 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 的误解, 看来是对 تَمَتُّعْ(Tamattu‘) 与 اِسْتِمْتَاعْ (Istimta‘)两词之间的差别未能理解而引起。 (لِسَانْ, Lisan) 的作者引述 زَجَّاجْ (Zajjaj) 说: “由于他们对阿拉伯语的无知, 有些人根据这节经文推断出 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 的合法性, 而伊斯兰宗教学家之间意见一致, 声称不合法, فَمَا اسْتَمْتَعْتُمْ بِهِ مِنْهُنَّ (Fa-mastamta‘tum bihi Minhunna) 这个词语的简单的意思是依照上述条文所履行的婚姻。” 如果在这里早对 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 加以注意的话, 所用的介词应该是 ب (ba’), 而不是 مِنْ (min)。而且, 所用的词是 اِسْتَمْتَعَ (Istamta‘a), 而不是与此具有不同意义的 تَمَتَّعَ (Tamatta‘a)。也不能从 اُجُوْرَهُنَّ (Ujurahunna) 这词得出有利于 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 的推断; اُجُوْرَهُنَّ (Ujurahunna) 的意思是 “她们的嫁妆”, 这在 «古兰经» 33:51中也表示过。因此 «古兰经» 断然禁止 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 并把超出正式婚姻之外的两性关系看作通奸。
مراد یہ ہے کہ وہ عورتیں جن سے نکاح جائز ہے وہ تو نکاح کے بعد جائز ہوں گی اور پہلی لسٹ والی عورتیں نکاح کے ساتھ بھی جائز نہیں ہو سکتیں‘ ہاں جنگی قیدی عورتیں نکاح کے ساتھ جائز ہو سکتی ہیں۔ اور جب ان کو کوئی نہ چھڑوائے تو ان کی اجازت کی ضرورت نہیں۔ قومی اخلاق کو درست رکھنے کے لئے حکومت ان کا ولی مقرر کرکے ان کا نکاح کر سکتی ہے۔
یہ مطلب نہیں کہ مومن زنا کرے گا‘ بلکہ مطلب یہ ہے کہ ہم مومن سے یہی امید کرتے ہیں کہ وہ شادی کے وقت سب تقویٰ کی راہوں کو مدنظر رکھے گا۔ اور زنا کی صورت کے قریب نہ جائے گا۔
4:26; 5:6.
4:5; 60:11.
Muhsanat is the plural of Muhsanah which means, a married woman; a free woman; a chaste woman (Lane).
This means that whereas a woman who is already married to a man cannot be taken in marriage by another person, an exception is made here in case of women who are taken prisoner in a war waged by a non-Muslim State against an Islamic State. This is the significance of the words Ma Malakat Aimanukum. Such married women, if they become converted to Islam and therefore could not be sent back to their non-Muslim husbands, may be married to Muslim husbands. For a detailed note on "What your right hands possess" see {561}.
Tamatta‘a bil Mar’ati means, he benefited by the woman temporarily. Istamta‘a bi Kadha means, he benefited by it for a long time. The Arabic idiom does not countenance the use of Istimta‘ with regard to a woman in the sense of temporary connection (Lisan). It may also be noted that whenever the noun Tamattu‘ is used to denote temporary connection with a woman, it is followed by the preposition ba’ put before the word standing for the woman, as in the above example. An Arab poet says, Tamatta‘ biha ma Sa‘afatka wa la Takun ‘alaika Shajan fil Halqi hina Tabinu (Hamasah), i.e. be benefited by her as long as she is agreeable to you, but when she gets separated from you, do not let her be a source of constant trouble for you like a piece of bone which remains stuck in the throat. But in this verse the pronoun Hunna referring to women is preceded by the preposition min. Misunderstanding about Mut‘ah seems to have arisen from the f
4:26; 5:6.
4:5; 60:11.
Important Words:
المحصنات (married) is the plural of محصنة and is derived from حصن meaning, he or it was or became inaccessible, fortified or protected against attack. حصن المرأة means, the woman was chaste, i.e. protected against moral or sexual sinfulness. احصنت المرأة means, the woman got married. محصنة therefore, means a married woman; a chaste woman who abstains from what is unlawful; a free or noble woman as opposed to a bondwoman. Similarly محصن means, a married man; chaste man who abstains from what is unlawful: a free or noble man. حصن means, a fort or a fortress. The word محصنات would, therefore, mean, women who have protected themselves by entering, as it were, the fortress of marriage. The word has been used in the Quran in all the different senses, i.e. (1) married women, (2) chaste women and (3) free women; but in the present verse it has been used in the sense of married women (Lane & Aqrab).
مسافحین (committing fornication) is the active participle from سافح which is derived from سفح. They say سفح الدم i.e. he shed blood or made it flow. سفح الدمع means, tears began to flow. Thus the word is both transitive and intransitive. سافحة means, he vied with the other party in shedding blood; he committed fornication. مسافحة means, a fornicator and مسافحة means, a fornicatress (Lane & Aqrab).
اجور (dowries) is the plural of اجر which means, reward or wages. اجر المرأة means, dowry of a woman (Taj). Also, in 33:51 the word has been used in the sense of dowry.
استمتعتم (the benefit you receive) is formed from متع. They say متعھا بکذا i.e. he gave her (his wife) such a thing. تمتع بالمرأةmeans, he benefited by the woman temporarily. استمتع بکذا means, he benefited by it for a long time. The Arabic idiom does not countenance the use of استمتاع with regard to a woman in the sense of temporary connection (Lisan). It must also be noted that whenever the noun تمتع (tamattu‘) is used to denote temporary connection with a woman, it is followed by the preposition با (ba) put before the word standing for the woman, as in the above example. But in the expression فما استمتعم به منھن to pronoun ھن referring to women is preceded by the preposition من.
ماملکت ایمانکم (what your right hands possess). The Arabs say ھذا ملک یمینی i.e. he or it is in the possession of my right hand, meaning, he or it is in my possession and I can deal with him or it as I like (Lisan & Aqrab). The expression ما ملکت ایمانکمgenerally signifies, men or women taken prisoner in war and being in the custody and control of their Muslim captors. In this verse, the expression means women prisoners only. The term has been used by the Quran in preference to عباد or اماء (slaves and bondwomen) to point to just and rightful possession, the word ایمان (right hands) also pointing to the same fact.
Commentary:
The expression, such as your right hands possess, has been used in the Quran with regard to those men or women who took part in aggressive wars against Islam and fell prisoners into the hands of Muslims. The context, however, shows that the expression used in the present verse means female prisoners of war. Islam does not allow women taken prisoner in ordinary wars to be taken as wives. This exceptional injunction becomes operative only when a hostile nation wages a religious war against Islam with a view to extirpating it and compelling Muslims to abandon their religion at the point of the sword, and treats their prisoners as slaves, as was done in the days of the Holy Prophet when the enemy took away Muslim women as prisoners and treated them as slaves. The Islamic injunction was thus only a retaliatory measure and also served the additional purpose of protecting the morals of captive women who were generally in large numbers and whom war separated from their kith and kin. A people who seek to compel others to forsake their religion at the point of the sword and reduce them to slavery are mere brutes and not respectable human beings. They must be paid back in their own coin in order to bring them to their senses. For a fuller exposition of this subject see General Introduction.
It may be noted that it is not permitted to take into marriage such female relations of a bondwoman who is treated as wife, as correspond to the relations of a free woman within the prohibited degree. For instance, the mothers, sisters, daughters etc. of such bondwomen cannot be taken in marriage.
The advocates of mut‘a (temporary marriage) have endeavoured in vain to infer its legality from this verse. The Quran and the Arabic language both contradict this manifestly unfounded inference. The misunderstanding about mut‘aseems to have arisen from the failure to understand the difference between the meanings of تمتع and استمتاع given under Important Words. The author of Lisanul-‘Arab quotes Zajjaj as saying: "This is a verse in the interpretation of which some men have committed a great blunder, owing to their ignorance of the Arabic language. They have inferred from it the legality of mut‘a which, by the consensus of opinion among Muslim theologians, has been declared to be unlawful, whereas the words simply mean marriage performed in accordance with the conditions mentioned above."
According to Arabic usage, the legality of mut‘a, as asserted by some people, cannot, therefore, be inferred from this verse. If there had been any reference to mut‘a, the preposition used ought to have been با (ba) and not من (min). Moreover, the expression used here is not تمتع but استمتع which possesses a sense different from that of the former word.
Nor can any inference in favour of mut‘a be drawn from the expression اجورھن which, as explained under Important Words, means "their dowries", in which sense it has been used in the Quran elsewhere also (33:51).
On principle, the dowry must be paid immediately at marriage; but with the wife’s consent the payment can be suitably deferred. The husband can increase the amount of the dowry later, if he so desires; but he cannot decrease it except with the permission of the wife or the qadi.
a
4:26; 5:6.
b
4:5; 60:11.
323
تَمَتَّعَ بِالْمَرْأَةِ (Tamatta‘a bil Mar’ati) 意指他从妇女那里得到暂时的好处。اِسْتَمْتَعَ بِكَذَا (Istamta‘a bi Kadha) 意指他从中长期得益。阿拉伯习俗不允许把 اِسْتِمْتَاعْ (Istimt‘a)作 “暂时的关系” 这意思来用于妇女 (لِسَانْ, Lisan)。还可以注意到的是, 正如上面例句中那样, 每当名词 تَمَتُّعْ (Tamattu‘) 用来表明妇女的暂时性关系时, 后接置于代表妇女这词之前的介词 ب (ba’)。一位阿拉伯诗人说, تَمَتَّعْ بِهَا مَا سَاعَفَتْكَ وَ لَا تَكُنْ عَلَيْكَ شَجًا فِی الْحَلْقِ حِيْنَ تَبِيْنُ (Tamatt‘a biha ma Sa‘afatka wa la Takun ‘alaika Shajan fil Halqi hina Tabinu) (حَمَاسَة, Hamasah), 即只要她合你的意, 可从她得益, 但当她与你分离时, 不要让她像骨梗在喉般地成为你经久烦恼的祸根。可是在本节经文中, هُنَّ (Hunna) 这个指妇女们的代词之前置有介词 مِنْ (min)。对 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 的误解, 看来是对 تَمَتُّعْ(Tamattu‘) 与 اِسْتِمْتَاعْ (Istimta‘)两词之间的差别未能理解而引起。 (لِسَانْ, Lisan) 的作者引述 زَجَّاجْ (Zajjaj) 说: “由于他们对阿拉伯语的无知, 有些人根据这节经文推断出 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 的合法性, 而伊斯兰宗教学家之间意见一致, 声称不合法, فَمَا اسْتَمْتَعْتُمْ بِهِ مِنْهُنَّ (Fa-mastamta‘tum bihi Minhunna) 这个词语的简单的意思是依照上述条文所履行的婚姻。” 如果在这里早对 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 加以注意的话, 所用的介词应该是 ب (ba’), 而不是 مِنْ (min)。而且, 所用的词是 اِسْتَمْتَعَ (Istamta‘a), 而不是与此具有不同意义的 تَمَتَّعَ (Tamatta‘a)。也不能从 اُجُوْرَهُنَّ (Ujurahunna) 这词得出有利于 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 的推断; اُجُوْرَهُنَّ (Ujurahunna) 的意思是 “她们的嫁妆”, 这在 «古兰经» 33:51中也表示过。因此 «古兰经» 断然禁止 مُتْعَة (Mut‘ah) 并把超出正式婚姻之外的两性关系看作通奸。
1
مراد یہ ہے کہ وہ عورتیں جن سے نکاح جائز ہے وہ تو نکاح کے بعد جائز ہوں گی اور پہلی لسٹ والی عورتیں نکاح کے ساتھ بھی جائز نہیں ہو سکتیں‘ ہاں جنگی قیدی عورتیں نکاح کے ساتھ جائز ہو سکتی ہیں۔ اور جب ان کو کوئی نہ چھڑوائے تو ان کی اجازت کی ضرورت نہیں۔ قومی اخلاق کو درست رکھنے کے لئے حکومت ان کا ولی مقرر کرکے ان کا نکاح کر سکتی ہے۔
2
یہ مطلب نہیں کہ مومن زنا کرے گا‘ بلکہ مطلب یہ ہے کہ ہم مومن سے یہی امید کرتے ہیں کہ وہ شادی کے وقت سب تقویٰ کی راہوں کو مدنظر رکھے گا۔ اور زنا کی صورت کے قریب نہ جائے گا۔
a
4:26; 5:6.
b
4:5; 60:11.
504
Important Words:
المحصنات (married) is the plural of محصنة and is derived from حصن meaning, he or it was or became inaccessible, fortified or protected against attack. حصن المرأة means, the woman was chaste, i.e. protected against moral or sexual sinfulness. احصنت المرأة means, the woman got married. محصنة therefore, means a married woman; a chaste woman who abstains from what is unlawful; a free or noble woman as opposed to a bondwoman. Similarly محصن means, a married man; chaste man who abstains from what is unlawful: a free or noble man. حصن means, a fort or a fortress. The word محصنات would, therefore, mean, women who have protected themselves by entering, as it were, the fortress of marriage. The word has been used in the Quran in all the different senses, i.e. (1) married women, (2) chaste women and (3) free women; but in the present verse it has been used in the sense of married women (Lane & Aqrab).
مسافحین (committing fornication) is the active participle from سافح which is derived from سفح. They say سفح الدم i.e. he shed blood or made it flow. سفح الدمع means, tears began to flow. Thus the word is both transitive and intransitive. سافحة means, he vied with the other party in shedding blood; he committed fornication. مسافحة means, a fornicator and مسافحة means, a fornicatress (Lane & Aqrab).
اجور (dowries) is the plural of اجر which means, reward or wages. اجر المرأة means, dowry of a woman (Taj). Also, in 33:51 the word has been used in the sense of dowry.
استمتعتم (the benefit you receive) is formed from متع. They say متعھا بکذا i.e. he gave her (his wife) such a thing. تمتع بالمرأةmeans, he benefited by the woman temporarily. استمتع بکذا means, he benefited by it for a long time. The Arabic idiom does not countenance the use of استمتاع with regard to a woman in the sense of temporary connection (Lisan). It must also be noted that whenever the noun تمتع (tamattu‘) is used to denote temporary connection with a woman, it is followed by the preposition با (ba) put before the word standing for the woman, as in the above example. But in the expression فما استمتعم به منھن to pronoun ھن referring to women is preceded by the preposition من.
ماملکت ایمانکم (what your right hands possess). The Arabs say ھذا ملک یمینی i.e. he or it is in the possession of my right hand, meaning, he or it is in my possession and I can deal with him or it as I like (Lisan & Aqrab). The expression ما ملکت ایمانکمgenerally signifies, men or women taken prisoner in war and being in the custody and control of their Muslim captors. In this verse, the expression means women prisoners only. The term has been used by the Quran in preference to عباد or اماء (slaves and bondwomen) to point to just and rightful possession, the word ایمان (right hands) also pointing to the same fact.
Commentary:
The expression, such as your right hands possess, has been used in the Quran with regard to those men or women who took part in aggressive wars against Islam and fell prisoners into the hands of Muslims. The context, however, shows that the expression used in the present verse means female prisoners of war. Islam does not allow women taken prisoner in ordinary wars to be taken as wives. This exceptional injunction becomes operative only when a hostile nation wages a religious war against Islam with a view to extirpating it and compelling Muslims to abandon their religion at the point of the sword, and treats their prisoners as slaves, as was done in the days of the Holy Prophet when the enemy took away Muslim women as prisoners and treated them as slaves. The Islamic injunction was thus only a retaliatory measure and also served the additional purpose of protecting the morals of captive women who were generally in large numbers and whom war separated from their kith and kin. A people who seek to compel others to forsake their religion at the point of the sword and reduce them to slavery are mere brutes and not respectable human beings. They must be paid back in their own coin in order to bring them to their senses. For a fuller exposition of this subject see General Introduction.
It may be noted that it is not permitted to take into marriage such female relations of a bondwoman who is treated as wife, as correspond to the relations of a free woman within the prohibited degree. For instance, the mothers, sisters, daughters etc. of such bondwomen cannot be taken in marriage.
The advocates of mut‘a (temporary marriage) have endeavoured in vain to infer its legality from this verse. The Quran and the Arabic language both contradict this manifestly unfounded inference. The misunderstanding about mut‘aseems to have arisen from the failure to understand the difference between the meanings of تمتع and استمتاع given under Important Words. The author of Lisanul-‘Arab quotes Zajjaj as saying: "This is a verse in the interpretation of which some men have committed a great blunder, owing to their ignorance of the Arabic language. They have inferred from it the legality of mut‘a which, by the consensus of opinion among Muslim theologians, has been declared to be unlawful, whereas the words simply mean marriage performed in accordance with the conditions mentioned above."
According to Arabic usage, the legality of mut‘a, as asserted by some people, cannot, therefore, be inferred from this verse. If there had been any reference to mut‘a, the preposition used ought to have been با (ba) and not من (min). Moreover, the expression used here is not تمتع but استمتع which possesses a sense different from that of the former word.
Nor can any inference in favour of mut‘a be drawn from the expression اجورھن which, as explained under Important Words, means "their dowries", in which sense it has been used in the Quran elsewhere also (33:51).
On principle, the dowry must be paid immediately at marriage; but with the wife’s consent the payment can be suitably deferred. The husband can increase the amount of the dowry later, if he so desires; but he cannot decrease it except with the permission of the wife or the qadi.
a
4:26; 5:6.
b
4:5; 60:11.
588
Muhsanat is the plural of Muhsanah which means, a married woman; a free woman; a chaste woman (Lane).
589
This means that whereas a woman who is already married to a man cannot be taken in marriage by another person, an exception is made here in case of women who are taken prisoner in a war waged by a non-Muslim State against an Islamic State. This is the significance of the words Ma Malakat Aimanukum. Such married women, if they become converted to Islam and therefore could not be sent back to their non-Muslim husbands, may be married to Muslim husbands. For a detailed note on "What your right hands possess" see {561}.
590
Tamatta‘a bil Mar’ati means, he benefited by the woman temporarily. Istamta‘a bi Kadha means, he benefited by it for a long time. The Arabic idiom does not countenance the use of Istimta‘ with regard to a woman in the sense of temporary connection (Lisan). It may also be noted that whenever the noun Tamattu‘ is used to denote temporary connection with a woman, it is followed by the preposition ba’ put before the word standing for the woman, as in the above example. An Arab poet says, Tamatta‘ biha ma Sa‘afatka wa la Takun ‘alaika Shajan fil Halqi hina Tabinu (Hamasah), i.e. be benefited by her as long as she is agreeable to you, but when she gets separated from you, do not let her be a source of constant trouble for you like a piece of bone which remains stuck in the throat. But in this verse the pronoun Hunna referring to women is preceded by the preposition min. Misunderstanding about Mut‘ah seems to have arisen from the f
قَالَ يَٰنُوحُ إِنَّهُۥ لَيْسَ مِنْ أَهْلِكَ ۖ إِنَّهُۥ عَمَلٌ غَيْرُ صَٰلِحٍ ۖ فَلَا تَسْـَٔلْنِ مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِۦ عِلْمٌ ۖ إِنِّىٓ أَعِظُكَ أَن تَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلْجَٰهِلِينَ
According to this verse only those persons were considered members of Noah’s family who had established true relationship with God through him. The pronoun hu in inna-hu may also refer to Noah’s prayer for his unrighteous son which act of his was Ghairu Salih i.e. out of place.
‘Amalun (lit. a deed) here means Dhu ‘Amalin, i.e. the doer of a deed. The use of the infinitive as active participle when an intensified sense is intended is in harmony with Arabic idiom. See also 2:178, where Birr (lit. righteousness) means a righteous person. An Arab poet says of his she-camel: Innama hiya Iqbalun wa Idbaru, i.e. she is so restless that she has become the very act of moving forward and backward, meaning the embodiment thereof.
Important Words:
عمل (man of conduct) generally signifies work, deed or action; a motion of the whole or of a portion of the body or even of the mind; the utterance of a saying. The word عمل (lit. deed) may also mean ذوعمل i.e. the doer of a deed, which construction is permissible in the Arabic language when an intensified sense is intended (Lane & Muhit).
Commentary:
In a brief sentence, viz. he is surely not of thy family, God disclosed a great truth to Noah.
What He meant was that when He promised to save his family, He did not mean all members of the family, but only such of them as were righteous and believed in him, because, truly speaking, only those persons were members of his family who had established a true relationship with God through him.
The Quranic words انه عمل غیر صالح rendered here as, he is indeed a man of unrighteous conduct, are capable of two interpretations. First, they may refer to the prayer of Noah. In that case, the clause would mean that this act of his, i.e. his prayer for his son, was غیر صالح i.e. out of place, the word صالح meaning "suitable, meet or proper." By using these words with regard to Noah’s prayer, God meant to point out that as He had already pronounced His judgement and the hour of punishment had actually arrived, so the time for prayer had passed.
Secondly, the clause may refer to Noah’s son. In that case, the word عمل (lit. deed) would be taken as meaning ذوعمل(the doer of a deed). This usage of the word is quite in harmony with Arabic idiom, according to which the infinitive is sometimes used in place of the active participle to impart emphasis. An Arab poet describing the restlessness of a she-camel who had lost her young ones says:انما ھی اقبال و ادبار i.e. "She is so restless that she has become the very act of moving forward and backward," meaning the embodiment thereof. According to this meaning of the word عمل the clause would mean that the reason why his son was not considered as belonging to his family was that he was a man of unrighteous conduct.
The words, ask not of Me, may mean either asking for a favour in prayer or simply inquiring. Taking the words in the former sense, the verse would mean that one should not pray for a matter of whose benefit one is not certain, for in such a case a man cannot know whether what he is praying for will prove a blessing or a curse. In such cases one should pray to God only generally to grant what is good in His sight. There are, however, certain matters about the goodness of which there can be no doubt, e.g. the pleasure of God or the welfare of the life to come. For such matters one can pray without qualification. The prayer of Noah for his son belonged to the former category. He did not know how his son would behave if he were saved. It was possible, nay it was most probable, that if he had been saved, the cause of religion would have materially suffered through him.
If the word "ask" be taken in the sense of "inquire," the verse would mean that Noah was not to inquire about a matter which was beyond his power to comprehend or the disclosure of which was not considered proper. The words مالیس لك به علم do not, in this case, mean "that of which thou hast no knowledge," for man always inquires about matters which he does not know. The words would therefore mean "that which thou canst not know," either because they are beyond thy comprehension or because they cannot be disclosed to thee.
God’s reply to Noah given in the words, he is indeed a man of unrighteous conduct, shows that Noah was not aware of the misdeeds of his son, and the reason why Noah was advised to abstain from asking questions about his son was that such questions were calculated to expose the latter’s misdeeds, which was inconsistent with the God’s attribute of mercy as well as with His attribute of covering up or screening the faults of His creatures. Extraordinary are the ways of God! On the one hand He decreed that Noah’s son should be drowned, and on the other His mercy drew a veil over his misdeeds.
The clause, I advise thee lest thou become one of the ignorant, refers to Noah’s prayer to God to save his son, who was a member of his family and was apparently included among those whom God had promised to save, and means: "You, being the bearer of the Word of God, must in future ponder over every aspect of the Divine revelation received by you and should not act unknowingly." In other words, the seeming indefiniteness of the prophecy was cited to serve the purpose of a warning to Noah, who was asked to learn a lesson from it and to remember that prophecies bear more than one meaning and that their true significance becomes known only when they are actually fulfilled.
It may be asked why, whereas Noah refers to a "promise" of God (see the preceding verse), actually there is no mention of a Divine promise here. In this connection it may be noted that the words ارکبوھا بسم الله i.e. Embark therein in the name of Allah…(v. 42) did imply a Divine promise, because sometimes a commandment is tantamount to an undertaking. When God directed Noah to make his people enter the Ark, the direction implied a promise by God to save those who entered it. Similarly, the words, except those against whom the word has already gone forth (v. 41), also point to a promise having been made by God. If the above-quoted words contained only a command-ment and implied no promise, the names of excepted persons should have been revealed to Noah so that these could have been refused entrance. The fact that the names of the excepted persons were not disclosed shows that all those who went into the Ark were meant to be saved.
1427
Important Words:
عمل (man of conduct) generally signifies work, deed or action; a motion of the whole or of a portion of the body or even of the mind; the utterance of a saying. The word عمل (lit. deed) may also mean ذوعمل i.e. the doer of a deed, which construction is permissible in the Arabic language when an intensified sense is intended (Lane & Muhit).
Commentary:
In a brief sentence, viz. he is surely not of thy family, God disclosed a great truth to Noah.
What He meant was that when He promised to save his family, He did not mean all members of the family, but only such of them as were righteous and believed in him, because, truly speaking, only those persons were members of his family who had established a true relationship with God through him.
The Quranic words انه عمل غیر صالح rendered here as, he is indeed a man of unrighteous conduct, are capable of two interpretations. First, they may refer to the prayer of Noah. In that case, the clause would mean that this act of his, i.e. his prayer for his son, was غیر صالح i.e. out of place, the word صالح meaning "suitable, meet or proper." By using these words with regard to Noah’s prayer, God meant to point out that as He had already pronounced His judgement and the hour of punishment had actually arrived, so the time for prayer had passed.
Secondly, the clause may refer to Noah’s son. In that case, the word عمل (lit. deed) would be taken as meaning ذوعمل(the doer of a deed). This usage of the word is quite in harmony with Arabic idiom, according to which the infinitive is sometimes used in place of the active participle to impart emphasis. An Arab poet describing the restlessness of a she-camel who had lost her young ones says:انما ھی اقبال و ادبار i.e. "She is so restless that she has become the very act of moving forward and backward," meaning the embodiment thereof. According to this meaning of the word عمل the clause would mean that the reason why his son was not considered as belonging to his family was that he was a man of unrighteous conduct.
The words, ask not of Me, may mean either asking for a favour in prayer or simply inquiring. Taking the words in the former sense, the verse would mean that one should not pray for a matter of whose benefit one is not certain, for in such a case a man cannot know whether what he is praying for will prove a blessing or a curse. In such cases one should pray to God only generally to grant what is good in His sight. There are, however, certain matters about the goodness of which there can be no doubt, e.g. the pleasure of God or the welfare of the life to come. For such matters one can pray without qualification. The prayer of Noah for his son belonged to the former category. He did not know how his son would behave if he were saved. It was possible, nay it was most probable, that if he had been saved, the cause of religion would have materially suffered through him.
If the word "ask" be taken in the sense of "inquire," the verse would mean that Noah was not to inquire about a matter which was beyond his power to comprehend or the disclosure of which was not considered proper. The words مالیس لك به علم do not, in this case, mean "that of which thou hast no knowledge," for man always inquires about matters which he does not know. The words would therefore mean "that which thou canst not know," either because they are beyond thy comprehension or because they cannot be disclosed to thee.
God’s reply to Noah given in the words, he is indeed a man of unrighteous conduct, shows that Noah was not aware of the misdeeds of his son, and the reason why Noah was advised to abstain from asking questions about his son was that such questions were calculated to expose the latter’s misdeeds, which was inconsistent with the God’s attribute of mercy as well as with His attribute of covering up or screening the faults of His creatures. Extraordinary are the ways of God! On the one hand He decreed that Noah’s son should be drowned, and on the other His mercy drew a veil over his misdeeds.
The clause, I advise thee lest thou become one of the ignorant, refers to Noah’s prayer to God to save his son, who was a member of his family and was apparently included among those whom God had promised to save, and means: "You, being the bearer of the Word of God, must in future ponder over every aspect of the Divine revelation received by you and should not act unknowingly." In other words, the seeming indefiniteness of the prophecy was cited to serve the purpose of a warning to Noah, who was asked to learn a lesson from it and to remember that prophecies bear more than one meaning and that their true significance becomes known only when they are actually fulfilled.
It may be asked why, whereas Noah refers to a "promise" of God (see the preceding verse), actually there is no mention of a Divine promise here. In this connection it may be noted that the words ارکبوھا بسم الله i.e. Embark therein in the name of Allah…(v. 42) did imply a Divine promise, because sometimes a commandment is tantamount to an undertaking. When God directed Noah to make his people enter the Ark, the direction implied a promise by God to save those who entered it. Similarly, the words, except those against whom the word has already gone forth (v. 41), also point to a promise having been made by God. If the above-quoted words contained only a command-ment and implied no promise, the names of excepted persons should have been revealed to Noah so that these could have been refused entrance. The fact that the names of the excepted persons were not disclosed shows that all those who went into the Ark were meant to be saved.
1318
According to this verse only those persons were considered members of Noah’s family who had established true relationship with God through him. The pronoun hu in inna-hu may also refer to Noah’s prayer for his unrighteous son which act of his was Ghairu Salih i.e. out of place.
1319
‘Amalun (lit. a deed) here means Dhu ‘Amalin, i.e. the doer of a deed. The use of the infinitive as active participle when an intensified sense is intended is in harmony with Arabic idiom. See also 2:178, where Birr (lit. righteousness) means a righteous person. An Arab poet says of his she-camel: Innama hiya Iqbalun wa Idbaru, i.e. she is so restless that she has become the very act of moving forward and backward, meaning the embodiment thereof.
وَقُلْ جَآءَ ٱلْحَقُّ وَزَهَقَ ٱلْبَٰطِلُ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلْبَٰطِلَ كَانَ زَهُوقًا
21:19; 34:50.
这是 «古兰经» 措词方面的一种奇迹: 为了传达某一种意义, 它选择那一特殊的单词来指一长串连续发生的事情。在这一特殊的例子中, “虚假消灭” 的意义也可以用诸如 هَلَكَ (Halaka, 灭亡) 或 بَطَلَ (Batala, 成为无用) 等单词来表达。但以上两个单词都不能传达用 زَهَقَ (Zahaqa) 来表达的意义: 即逐渐衰弱而最终消失。这节经文包含这样一个暗示, 穆圣进入麦地那, 他的力量将继续生长, 而他的敌人的力量逐渐衰退直至最后崩溃。而且, «古兰经» 的文体也是一种奇迹, 它虽然不是一首长诗, 但它的经文却具有诗的韵律和节奏, 如果没有这些的话, 那就不可能充分表达极端欣喜的感情。现在注释的这节经文就是这样的一个例子。征服麦加之后, 当穆圣在清除天房中亵渎该寺的许多偶像时, 他一面打碎这些偶像, 一面不断诵读这节经文 (布哈理)。
21:19; 34:50.
It is among the marvels of Quranic diction that to convey a certain sense it selects that particular word which points to a long sequence of events. In this particular instance the sense of the vanishing of falsehood might as well have been expressed by some other word such as Halaka (perished) or Batala (became useless), but neither of these words would have conveyed the sense of gradual weakening and ultimate disappearance which is expressed by Zahaqa. The verse contains the hint that with the entry of the Holy Prophet into Medina, his power would continue to grow and that of his enemy decline till it would be finally broken. Again, it is a marvel of the style of the Qur’an that, without being poetry, its verses possess poetic rhythm and cadence without which it is not possible to give full expression to feelings of extreme delight. The verse under comment furnishes one such example. After the conquest of Mecca as the Holy Prophet was clearing the Ka‘bah of the idols which had de
21:19; 34:50.
Important Words:
زھق (has vanished away). They say زھق الباطل i.e. falsehood gradually weakened. زھق الشیء means, the thing perished, passed away or came to naught; became null, void or of no effect. زھقت نفسه means, his soul departed; he died (Lane & Aqrab).
Commentary:
This verse implies a beautiful hint that with the entry of the Holy Prophet into Medina his power would continue to grow and that of his enemy decline till it would be finally broken. So it came to pass when by the conquest of Mecca idolatry disappeared from Arabia forever.
The word زھق which has been translated as "has vanished away" actually conveys, as shown under Important Words, the sense of gradual weakening and ultimate disappearance. It is among the marvels of Quranic diction that to convey a certain sense it selects that particular word which points to a long sequence of events. In this particular instance the sense of the vanishing of falsehood might as well have been expressed by the word ھلك (perished) or بطل (became useless, vain or ineffective) but neither of these words would have conveyed the sense of gradual weakening and ultimate disappearance which is expressed by the word زھق. This word, in fact, implies a prophecy of the gradual weakening and ultimate disappearance of idolatry from Mecca, which was literally fulfilled as foretold.
It is another marvel of the style of the Quran that, without being poetry, its verses possess that poetic rhythm and cadence without which it is not possible to give full expression to feelings of extreme delight. The verse under comment furnishes one such example. After the conquest of Mecca when the Holy Prophet was busy clearing the Ka‘bah of the idols which had desecrated it, he repeated as he struck each of the idols the following verse of the Quran: وقل جاء الحق و زھق الباطل ان الباطل کان زھوقا i.e. And say, Truth has come and falsehood has vanished away. Falsehood does indeed vanish away fast. One can imagine the deep emotion the Prophet’s Companions must have felt when they watched him strike down the idols one after the other and repeat this Quranic verse in a measured tone. It is only natural that they spontaneously joined him in reciting this verse on that august occasion.
a
21:19; 34:50.
727
这是 «古兰经» 措词方面的一种奇迹: 为了传达某一种意义, 它选择那一特殊的单词来指一长串连续发生的事情。在这一特殊的例子中, “虚假消灭” 的意义也可以用诸如 هَلَكَ (Halaka, 灭亡) 或 بَطَلَ (Batala, 成为无用) 等单词来表达。但以上两个单词都不能传达用 زَهَقَ (Zahaqa) 来表达的意义: 即逐渐衰弱而最终消失。这节经文包含这样一个暗示, 穆圣进入麦地那, 他的力量将继续生长, 而他的敌人的力量逐渐衰退直至最后崩溃。而且, «古兰经» 的文体也是一种奇迹, 它虽然不是一首长诗, 但它的经文却具有诗的韵律和节奏, 如果没有这些的话, 那就不可能充分表达极端欣喜的感情。现在注释的这节经文就是这样的一个例子。征服麦加之后, 当穆圣在清除天房中亵渎该寺的许多偶像时, 他一面打碎这些偶像, 一面不断诵读这节经文 (布哈理)。
a
21:19; 34:50.
2011
Important Words:
زھق (has vanished away). They say زھق الباطل i.e. falsehood gradually weakened. زھق الشیء means, the thing perished, passed away or came to naught; became null, void or of no effect. زھقت نفسه means, his soul departed; he died (Lane & Aqrab).
Commentary:
This verse implies a beautiful hint that with the entry of the Holy Prophet into Medina his power would continue to grow and that of his enemy decline till it would be finally broken. So it came to pass when by the conquest of Mecca idolatry disappeared from Arabia forever.
The word زھق which has been translated as "has vanished away" actually conveys, as shown under Important Words, the sense of gradual weakening and ultimate disappearance. It is among the marvels of Quranic diction that to convey a certain sense it selects that particular word which points to a long sequence of events. In this particular instance the sense of the vanishing of falsehood might as well have been expressed by the word ھلك (perished) or بطل (became useless, vain or ineffective) but neither of these words would have conveyed the sense of gradual weakening and ultimate disappearance which is expressed by the word زھق. This word, in fact, implies a prophecy of the gradual weakening and ultimate disappearance of idolatry from Mecca, which was literally fulfilled as foretold.
It is another marvel of the style of the Quran that, without being poetry, its verses possess that poetic rhythm and cadence without which it is not possible to give full expression to feelings of extreme delight. The verse under comment furnishes one such example. After the conquest of Mecca when the Holy Prophet was busy clearing the Ka‘bah of the idols which had desecrated it, he repeated as he struck each of the idols the following verse of the Quran: وقل جاء الحق و زھق الباطل ان الباطل کان زھوقا i.e. And say, Truth has come and falsehood has vanished away. Falsehood does indeed vanish away fast. One can imagine the deep emotion the Prophet’s Companions must have felt when they watched him strike down the idols one after the other and repeat this Quranic verse in a measured tone. It is only natural that they spontaneously joined him in reciting this verse on that august occasion.
a
21:19; 34:50.
1645
It is among the marvels of Quranic diction that to convey a certain sense it selects that particular word which points to a long sequence of events. In this particular instance the sense of the vanishing of falsehood might as well have been expressed by some other word such as Halaka (perished) or Batala (became useless), but neither of these words would have conveyed the sense of gradual weakening and ultimate disappearance which is expressed by Zahaqa. The verse contains the hint that with the entry of the Holy Prophet into Medina, his power would continue to grow and that of his enemy decline till it would be finally broken. Again, it is a marvel of the style of the Qur’an that, without being poetry, its verses possess poetic rhythm and cadence without which it is not possible to give full expression to feelings of extreme delight. The verse under comment furnishes one such example. After the conquest of Mecca as the Holy Prophet was clearing the Ka‘bah of the idols which had de
بَلْ قَالُوٓا۟ أَضْغَٰثُ أَحْلَٰمٍۭ بَلِ ٱفْتَرَىٰهُ بَلْ هُوَ شَاعِرٌ فَلْيَأْتِنَا بِـَٔايَةٍ كَمَآ أُرْسِلَ ٱلْأَوَّلُونَ
52:31.
کفار ِمکہ رسولوں کی بعثت کے قائل ہی نہ تھے۔ یہ اعتراض ان کا طنز کے طور پر ہے‘ مراد یہ ہے کہ تُو خود کہتا ہے کہ پہلے رسول قسم قسم کے نشان لائے تھے‘ پھر تُو کیوں نشان نہیں لاتا۔
52:31.
In this verse three different objections of disbelievers with regard to the Qur’an have been mentioned. The first is that the Qur’an is a mixture of confused dreams. But realizing the untenability of their position, since there exists a beautiful arrangement and order in it and since it forms a connected whole and contains excellent teachings, the disbelievers shift their ground and say that the Holy Prophet has forged it himself. But again realizing that throughout his life he was, by common consent, known and looked upon as 'the Trusty' and 'the Truthful,' they give up this objection also and proceed to accuse him of being a poet and a sorcerer. These objections have been mentioned in an ascending order and the continuous shifting of the ground by disbelievers implies an admission on their part that the objections cannot stand examination or scrutiny and are foolish and self-contradictory. The Qur’an, therefore, has refused to entertain them here.
52:31.
Important Words:
آیة may here mean a Sign of punishment; or a Sign of the disbelievers’ own choice. See also 19:11.
اضغاث احلام (confused dreams). See 12:45.
Commentary:
In this verse three different objections of disbelievers with regard to the Quran have been mentioned. The first is that the Quran is a mixture of confused dreams. But realizing the untenability of their position, as there exists a beautiful arrangement and order in it and that it forms a connected whole and contains excellent teachings, the disbelievers shift their ground and say that the Holy Prophet has forged it himself. But again realizing that throughout his life the Prophet was by common consent known and looked upon as "the trusty" and "the truthful," they give up this objection also and proceed to accuse him of being a poet and a magician. These objections have been mentioned in an ascending order and the continuous shifting of the ground by disbelievers implies an admission on their part that their objections can stand no examination or scrutiny. The Quran has therefore refused to entertain them here because they carry their own refutation and are self-contradictory and foolish. Further on, however, it has answered these objections in another context.
The demand, let him then bring us a Sign just as the former Prophets were sent with Signs, is clearly foolish and insolent. There has never appeared a Prophet in the world who was not confronted with a similar demand. Jesus was so infuriated with the Scribes and the Pharisees when they said: "Master, we should see a sign from thee" (Matt. 12:38), that he exclaimed in extreme anger: "An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the Prophet Jonas" (Matt. 12:39). The refusal on the part of the Quran to entertain the disbelievers’ demand in the manner they expected it, does not imply that no sign had been or was to be shown to them. It only means to demonstrate that the demand is foolish and insolent and that heavenly Signs differ from age to age and therefore the signs that would be shown by the Holy Prophet would be different from those that were shown by Moses or Jesus and for that matter by any other Prophet.
The word شاعر (poet) while meaning one who composes verses also signifies a person who plays with the sentiments and susceptibilities of men. Here the word has been used preferably in the latter sense.
d
52:31.
1
کفار ِمکہ رسولوں کی بعثت کے قائل ہی نہ تھے۔ یہ اعتراض ان کا طنز کے طور پر ہے‘ مراد یہ ہے کہ تُو خود کہتا ہے کہ پہلے رسول قسم قسم کے نشان لائے تھے‘ پھر تُو کیوں نشان نہیں لاتا۔
a
52:31.
2347
Important Words:
آیة may here mean a Sign of punishment; or a Sign of the disbelievers’ own choice. See also 19:11.
اضغاث احلام (confused dreams). See 12:45.
Commentary:
In this verse three different objections of disbelievers with regard to the Quran have been mentioned. The first is that the Quran is a mixture of confused dreams. But realizing the untenability of their position, as there exists a beautiful arrangement and order in it and that it forms a connected whole and contains excellent teachings, the disbelievers shift their ground and say that the Holy Prophet has forged it himself. But again realizing that throughout his life the Prophet was by common consent known and looked upon as "the trusty" and "the truthful," they give up this objection also and proceed to accuse him of being a poet and a magician. These objections have been mentioned in an ascending order and the continuous shifting of the ground by disbelievers implies an admission on their part that their objections can stand no examination or scrutiny. The Quran has therefore refused to entertain them here because they carry their own refutation and are self-contradictory and foolish. Further on, however, it has answered these objections in another context.
The demand, let him then bring us a Sign just as the former Prophets were sent with Signs, is clearly foolish and insolent. There has never appeared a Prophet in the world who was not confronted with a similar demand. Jesus was so infuriated with the Scribes and the Pharisees when they said: "Master, we should see a sign from thee" (Matt. 12:38), that he exclaimed in extreme anger: "An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the Prophet Jonas" (Matt. 12:39). The refusal on the part of the Quran to entertain the disbelievers’ demand in the manner they expected it, does not imply that no sign had been or was to be shown to them. It only means to demonstrate that the demand is foolish and insolent and that heavenly Signs differ from age to age and therefore the signs that would be shown by the Holy Prophet would be different from those that were shown by Moses or Jesus and for that matter by any other Prophet.
The word شاعر (poet) while meaning one who composes verses also signifies a person who plays with the sentiments and susceptibilities of men. Here the word has been used preferably in the latter sense.
a
52:31.
1872
In this verse three different objections of disbelievers with regard to the Qur’an have been mentioned. The first is that the Qur’an is a mixture of confused dreams. But realizing the untenability of their position, since there exists a beautiful arrangement and order in it and since it forms a connected whole and contains excellent teachings, the disbelievers shift their ground and say that the Holy Prophet has forged it himself. But again realizing that throughout his life he was, by common consent, known and looked upon as 'the Trusty' and 'the Truthful,' they give up this objection also and proceed to accuse him of being a poet and a sorcerer. These objections have been mentioned in an ascending order and the continuous shifting of the ground by disbelievers implies an admission on their part that the objections cannot stand examination or scrutiny and are foolish and self-contradictory. The Qur’an, therefore, has refused to entertain them here.
لَقَدْ أَنزَلْنَآ إِلَيْكُمْ كِتَٰبًا فِيهِ ذِكْرُكُمْ ۖ أَفَلَا تَعْقِلُونَ
The verse means to say that not only will the deniers of the Qur’an come to grief and its followers achieve progress and prosperity and rise from the lowest rung of the ladder to the highest pinnacle of material and spiritual glory, but this fact will also constitute an infallible proof that the Qur’an is neither forgery, nor poetry, nor a collection of confused dreams but the true Word of the Almighty God, the Creator of heavens and earth.
Important Words:
ذکرکم (your eminence).ذکر means, remembrance, praise or eulogy; eminence or honour; renown, fame or reputation. See also 2:41; 6:69 & 15:7.
Commentary:
The argument begun in the previous verse is continued in the present one. The verse means to say that not only will the deniers of this message come to grief and its followers achieve progress and prosperity and will rise from the lowest rung of the ladder to the highest pinnacle of material and spiritual glory, but this fact will also constitute an infallible proof that the Quran is neither forgery nor poetry nor a collection of confused dreams but the true Word of God Almighty, the Creator of heavens and earth.
The verse incidentally implies the refutation of the Christian doctrine that the Law is a curse, by forcefully asserting that through the Quran which is the final Book of Divine Law, its followers will achieve honour, glory and power.
2352
Important Words:
ذکرکم (your eminence).ذکر means, remembrance, praise or eulogy; eminence or honour; renown, fame or reputation. See also 2:41; 6:69 & 15:7.
Commentary:
The argument begun in the previous verse is continued in the present one. The verse means to say that not only will the deniers of this message come to grief and its followers achieve progress and prosperity and will rise from the lowest rung of the ladder to the highest pinnacle of material and spiritual glory, but this fact will also constitute an infallible proof that the Quran is neither forgery nor poetry nor a collection of confused dreams but the true Word of God Almighty, the Creator of heavens and earth.
The verse incidentally implies the refutation of the Christian doctrine that the Law is a curse, by forcefully asserting that through the Quran which is the final Book of Divine Law, its followers will achieve honour, glory and power.
1874
The verse means to say that not only will the deniers of the Qur’an come to grief and its followers achieve progress and prosperity and rise from the lowest rung of the ladder to the highest pinnacle of material and spiritual glory, but this fact will also constitute an infallible proof that the Qur’an is neither forgery, nor poetry, nor a collection of confused dreams but the true Word of the Almighty God, the Creator of heavens and earth.
وَٱلشُّعَرَآءُ يَتَّبِعُهُمُ ٱلْغَاوُۥنَ
جبکہ اس نبی کے پیچھے چلنے والے نہایت نیک اور متقی ہیں۔ پس معلوم ہوا کہ یہ شاعر نہیں۔
Commentary:
In this verse the second imputation that the Holy Prophet is a poet (21:6) is rebutted. Four reasons which have been spread over the present and the next three verses constitute this rebuttal. They are: (1) Those who follow and associate with the poets are men of no high moral character. They are prone to err and stray away from the path of rectitude. But the Holy Prophet brought about a wonderful moral transformation among his followers who became possessed of very noble ideals and very high moral character. (2) The poets have no fixed ideal or programme in life. They, as it were, wander about distractedly in every valley. But the Holy Prophet had a great and sublime mission in life. It was the moral and spiritual regeneration of the depraved Arab society and through them the reformation and resuscitation of the whole degenerate and corrupt humanity. It was given to no woman-born to pursue and achieve a higher and nobler ideal. (3) The poets do not practise what they preach but the Holy Prophet was not only the noblest preceptor but the greatest man of action and a model exemplar also. (4) The poets praise and abuse other people as it suits them and sometimes even make bold to prophesy about the future but never know what their own end would be. But the Holy Prophet, deserted by his own kith and kin and amidst the severest persecution, when all was dark and dismal around him, emphatically declared that he would eventually succeed and he did succeed.
3
جبکہ اس نبی کے پیچھے چلنے والے نہایت نیک اور متقی ہیں۔ پس معلوم ہوا کہ یہ شاعر نہیں۔
2812
Commentary:
In this verse the second imputation that the Holy Prophet is a poet (21:6) is rebutted. Four reasons which have been spread over the present and the next three verses constitute this rebuttal. They are: (1) Those who follow and associate with the poets are men of no high moral character. They are prone to err and stray away from the path of rectitude. But the Holy Prophet brought about a wonderful moral transformation among his followers who became possessed of very noble ideals and very high moral character. (2) The poets have no fixed ideal or programme in life. They, as it were, wander about distractedly in every valley. But the Holy Prophet had a great and sublime mission in life. It was the moral and spiritual regeneration of the depraved Arab society and through them the reformation and resuscitation of the whole degenerate and corrupt humanity. It was given to no woman-born to pursue and achieve a higher and nobler ideal. (3) The poets do not practise what they preach but the Holy Prophet was not only the noblest preceptor but the greatest man of action and a model exemplar also. (4) The poets praise and abuse other people as it suits them and sometimes even make bold to prophesy about the future but never know what their own end would be. But the Holy Prophet, deserted by his own kith and kin and amidst the severest persecution, when all was dark and dismal around him, emphatically declared that he would eventually succeed and he did succeed.
أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّهُمْ فِى كُلِّ وَادٍ يَهِيمُونَ
یعنی شاعروں کے کلام کسی ایک مضمون کے متعلق نہیں ہوتے بلکہ جو جو مضمون ان کے ذہن میں آتا جاتا ہے اس کو اپنی نظم میں باندھتے جاتے ہیں۔ اصل مقصود ان کے مضمون کی ترتیب نہیں ہوتی بلکہ ایک قسم کے قافیوں اور ردیف کو اکٹھا کرنا ہوتا ہے۔ پس اشارتاً اس آیت میں یہ بھی پیشگوئی ہے کہ آئندہ شاعری کی رَو‘قافیہ اور ردیف کی طرف منتقل ہو جائے گی جو طریقہ کہ فارسی اور اردو شعرا نے اختیار کیا ہے۔ ورنہ جس وقت یہ آیت نازل ہوئی ہے عرب شعراء میں حقیقی معنوں میں ردیف کا استعمال شروع نہیں ہوا تھا۔
Important Words:
یھیمون (wander aimlessly) is derived from ھام which means, he was or became thirsty. They say ھام الرجل علی وجھه i.e. the man went at random, not knowing where he was going (Lane & Aqrab).
Commentary:
The poets pursue every colourful fancy. Their themes have little coherence and consistency, and they lack continuity. Their thought is fragmentary.
4
یعنی شاعروں کے کلام کسی ایک مضمون کے متعلق نہیں ہوتے بلکہ جو جو مضمون ان کے ذہن میں آتا جاتا ہے اس کو اپنی نظم میں باندھتے جاتے ہیں۔ اصل مقصود ان کے مضمون کی ترتیب نہیں ہوتی بلکہ ایک قسم کے قافیوں اور ردیف کو اکٹھا کرنا ہوتا ہے۔ پس اشارتاً اس آیت میں یہ بھی پیشگوئی ہے کہ آئندہ شاعری کی رَو‘قافیہ اور ردیف کی طرف منتقل ہو جائے گی جو طریقہ کہ فارسی اور اردو شعرا نے اختیار کیا ہے۔ ورنہ جس وقت یہ آیت نازل ہوئی ہے عرب شعراء میں حقیقی معنوں میں ردیف کا استعمال شروع نہیں ہوا تھا۔
2813
Important Words:
یھیمون (wander aimlessly) is derived from ھام which means, he was or became thirsty. They say ھام الرجل علی وجھه i.e. the man went at random, not knowing where he was going (Lane & Aqrab).
Commentary:
The poets pursue every colourful fancy. Their themes have little coherence and consistency, and they lack continuity. Their thought is fragmentary.
وَأَنَّهُمْ يَقُولُونَ مَا لَا يَفْعَلُونَ
In these verses the imputation that the Holy Prophet is a poet (21:6) is rebutted. Three reasons given for this rebuttal are: (1) Those who follow and associate with the poets are not men of high moral character, but the Holy Prophet’s followers were possessed of very noble ideals and of very high moral character. (2) The poets have no fixed ideal or programme in life. They, as it were, wander about aimlessly in every valley. But the Holy Prophet had a very great and sublime mission in life. (3) The poets do not practise what they preach, but the Holy Prophet was not only the noblest preceptor but the greatest man of action and a model exemplar.
2142
In these verses the imputation that the Holy Prophet is a poet (21:6) is rebutted. Three reasons given for this rebuttal are: (1) Those who follow and associate with the poets are not men of high moral character, but the Holy Prophet’s followers were possessed of very noble ideals and of very high moral character. (2) The poets have no fixed ideal or programme in life. They, as it were, wander about aimlessly in every valley. But the Holy Prophet had a very great and sublime mission in life. (3) The poets do not practise what they preach, but the Holy Prophet was not only the noblest preceptor but the greatest man of action and a model exemplar.
إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّٰلِحَٰتِ وَذَكَرُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ كَثِيرًا وَٱنتَصَرُوا۟ مِنۢ بَعْدِ مَا ظُلِمُوا۟ ۗ وَسَيَعْلَمُ ٱلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوٓا۟ أَىَّ مُنقَلَبٍ يَنقَلِبُونَ
Commentary:
In this verse an exception has been made in regard to a certain class of poets, viz. that not all poets belong to the category referred to above (vv. 225-227). There are poets who use their God-given poetic gifts to further the cause of truth and lead righteous lives. They are excepted from the poets referred to above.
2813A
Commentary:
In this verse an exception has been made in regard to a certain class of poets, viz. that not all poets belong to the category referred to above (vv. 225-227). There are poets who use their God-given poetic gifts to further the cause of truth and lead righteous lives. They are excepted from the poets referred to above.
وَمَا عَلَّمْنَٰهُ ٱلشِّعْرَ وَمَا يَنۢبَغِى لَهُۥٓ ۚ إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ وَقُرْءَانٌ مُّبِينٌ
15:10; 65:11.
15:10; 65:11.
It is inconsistent with the dignity of a Divine Prophet that he should be a poet, because poets are generally given to idle dreaming and making castles in the air. Prophets of God have before them very high and noble ideals and programmes. The verse, however, does not mean that all poetry is bad and that all poets are dreamers, but it does mean that a Divine Prophet is far too dignified and spiritually exalted to be a mere poet.
15:10; 65:11.
Commentary:
The verse purports to say that the fact that God has intended that a nation, the Arabs, who so far had been very low in the scale of humanity should now rise to the heights of power and glory is no idle dream, no poetry. A Prophet of God, a Divine Messenger, who shall lead them to spiritual and material grand-eur, has arisen among them. It is inconsistent with the dignity of this great Prophet to be a poet, because whereas poets are generally given to idle dreaming and making castles in the air, the Prophets of God have before them very high and noble ideals and programmes. The verse, however, does not mean that all poetry is bad and that all poets are dreamers but it does mean that a Divine Prophet is far too dignified and spiritually exalted to be a mere poet. The pronoun ہ in له can also apply to the Quran.
b
15:10; 65:11.
b
15:10; 65:11.
3259
Commentary:
The verse purports to say that the fact that God has intended that a nation, the Arabs, who so far had been very low in the scale of humanity should now rise to the heights of power and glory is no idle dream, no poetry. A Prophet of God, a Divine Messenger, who shall lead them to spiritual and material grand-eur, has arisen among them. It is inconsistent with the dignity of this great Prophet to be a poet, because whereas poets are generally given to idle dreaming and making castles in the air, the Prophets of God have before them very high and noble ideals and programmes. The verse, however, does not mean that all poetry is bad and that all poets are dreamers but it does mean that a Divine Prophet is far too dignified and spiritually exalted to be a mere poet. The pronoun ہ in له can also apply to the Quran.
b
15:10; 65:11.
2460
It is inconsistent with the dignity of a Divine Prophet that he should be a poet, because poets are generally given to idle dreaming and making castles in the air. Prophets of God have before them very high and noble ideals and programmes. The verse, however, does not mean that all poetry is bad and that all poets are dreamers, but it does mean that a Divine Prophet is far too dignified and spiritually exalted to be a mere poet.
وَيَقُولُونَ أَئِنَّا لَتَارِكُوٓا۟ ءَالِهَتِنَا لِشَاعِرٍ مَّجْنُونٍۭ
15:7; 44:15; 68:52.
15:7; 44:15; 68:52.
15:7; 44:15; 68:52.
d
15:7; 44:15; 68:52.
a
15:7; 44:15; 68:52.
a
15:7; 44:15; 68:52.
أَمْ يَقُولُونَ شَاعِرٌ نَّتَرَبَّصُ بِهِۦ رَيْبَ ٱلْمَنُونِ
21:6; 69:42.
21:6; 69:42.
Important Words:
ریب (calamity) is inf. noun from راب. They say رابنی i.e. it or he occasioned in me disquiet or agitation of mind; he made me to doubt; he did with me what I disliked or hated. ریب means, doubt; disquietude or uneasiness of mind; doubt combined with evil opinion; calamity; misery (Lane & Aqrab).
المنون (time) is derived from من (manna). They say من الرجل i.e. he weakened the man and took away his strength; من الحبلmeans, he cut off the rope. من الشیء means, the thing diminished. من الناقة means, he tired out or jaded the she-camel. منونmeans, death; time; destiny or fate. ریب المنون or ریب الزمان or ریب الدھر means, the calamities or vicissitudes of time (Lane).
نتربص (we are waiting for) is derived from ربص. They say ربص به i.e. he waited for good or evil, particularly the latter, to befall him. تربص به الامر means, he expected or waited for the event to befall him (Lane & Aqrab). An Arab poet says:
تربص بھا ریب المنون لعلھا
تطلق یوما او یموت حلیلھا
i.e. wait thou for the vicissitudes of time to befall her; perhaps she might be divorced some day or her husband might die (Lane).
Commentary:
The Holy Prophet’s enemies accused him of being a soothsayer, a poet and even a madman. The verse implies the refutation of all these foolish charges. The Prophet is not a poet (the verse purports to say) because poets have no fixed ideal or programme in life. They only indulge in daydreaming, and as it were, "wander about distractedly in every valley" (26:226), but the Holy Prophet has before him a great and noble aim—the regeneration of a corrupt and degenerate society. He is neither a soothsayer, because soothsayers dabble in occult sciences and make mere conjectures and guesses. They try to hoodwink simple-minded people by clever contrivances but the Holy Prophet is universally known to be an honest and sincere man. Nor is he a madman because madmen are not known to have brought about the great and wonderful revolution that he has, among his completely demoralized, degenerate and degraded people.
b
21:6; 69:42.
a
21:6; 69:42.
3949
Important Words:
ریب (calamity) is inf. noun from راب. They say رابنی i.e. it or he occasioned in me disquiet or agitation of mind; he made me to doubt; he did with me what I disliked or hated. ریب means, doubt; disquietude or uneasiness of mind; doubt combined with evil opinion; calamity; misery (Lane & Aqrab).
المنون (time) is derived from من (manna). They say من الرجل i.e. he weakened the man and took away his strength; من الحبلmeans, he cut off the rope. من الشیء means, the thing diminished. من الناقة means, he tired out or jaded the she-camel. منونmeans, death; time; destiny or fate. ریب المنون or ریب الزمان or ریب الدھر means, the calamities or vicissitudes of time (Lane).
نتربص (we are waiting for) is derived from ربص. They say ربص به i.e. he waited for good or evil, particularly the latter, to befall him. تربص به الامر means, he expected or waited for the event to befall him (Lane & Aqrab). An Arab poet says:
تربص بھا ریب المنون لعلھا
تطلق یوما او یموت حلیلھا
i.e. wait thou for the vicissitudes of time to befall her; perhaps she might be divorced some day or her husband might die (Lane).
Commentary:
The Holy Prophet’s enemies accused him of being a soothsayer, a poet and even a madman. The verse implies the refutation of all these foolish charges. The Prophet is not a poet (the verse purports to say) because poets have no fixed ideal or programme in life. They only indulge in daydreaming, and as it were, "wander about distractedly in every valley" (26:226), but the Holy Prophet has before him a great and noble aim—the regeneration of a corrupt and degenerate society. He is neither a soothsayer, because soothsayers dabble in occult sciences and make mere conjectures and guesses. They try to hoodwink simple-minded people by clever contrivances but the Holy Prophet is universally known to be an honest and sincere man. Nor is he a madman because madmen are not known to have brought about the great and wonderful revolution that he has, among his completely demoralized, degenerate and degraded people.
b
21:6; 69:42.
2857
Raib means, disquietude of mind; doubt combined with evil opinion; calamity (Lane); Manun means, death; destiny or fate; time (Aqrab).
قُلْ تَرَبَّصُوا۟ فَإِنِّى مَعَكُم مِّنَ ٱلْمُتَرَبِّصِينَ
9:52; 32:31.
9:52; 32:31.
The verse purports to say that the disbelievers call the Holy Prophet a poet, who indulges in building castles in the air about his great future, a soothsayer who plays upon the credulity of simple-minded folk, a raving maniac, and as such naturally they expect that sooner or later he will come to a sad end. But they will have to wait till doomsday for the realization of their futile expectations. Time alone will decide the issue between them and the Holy Prophet.
9:52; 32:31.
Commentary:
The verse purports to say that disbelievers call the Holy Prophet a poet, who indulges in building castles in the air about his great future, a soothsayer who plays upon the credulity of simple-minded folk, a raving maniac and, as such, naturally they expect that sooner or later he will come to a sad end. The Prophet is enjoined to tell them that they will have to wait till Doomsday for the realization of their futile expectations. Time alone will decide the issue between them.
c
9:52; 32:31.
b
9:52; 32:31.
3950
Commentary:
The verse purports to say that disbelievers call the Holy Prophet a poet, who indulges in building castles in the air about his great future, a soothsayer who plays upon the credulity of simple-minded folk, a raving maniac and, as such, naturally they expect that sooner or later he will come to a sad end. The Prophet is enjoined to tell them that they will have to wait till Doomsday for the realization of their futile expectations. Time alone will decide the issue between them.
c
9:52; 32:31.
2858
The verse purports to say that the disbelievers call the Holy Prophet a poet, who indulges in building castles in the air about his great future, a soothsayer who plays upon the credulity of simple-minded folk, a raving maniac, and as such naturally they expect that sooner or later he will come to a sad end. But they will have to wait till doomsday for the realization of their futile expectations. Time alone will decide the issue between them and the Holy Prophet.
وَمَا لَا تُبْصِرُونَ
我们在物质世界见到起作用的东西 (即看得见的人生事物) 和我们不能看到的东西 (即人的理智和良心), 在经文 (39-40) 中引用为证实 «古兰经» 的真主本源的迹象。这两节经文的意思也可以是, 这种伟大的安拉的迹象是穆圣时代的不信者亲自目睹的, 对于伊斯兰教的光明未来的预言有待实现, 这种预言构成了无可辩驳的论据, 即 «古兰经» 是安拉亲自向他那高尚的先知穆罕默德启示的真言。这儿涉及的是实实在在的人世事实, 并非诗人的美梦, 也不是占卜者的胡言乱语。
The things which we see working in the physical world, i.e. the visible facts of life and the things which are hidden from our view, i.e. human reason and conscience, have been cited in the verses (39, 40) as evidences to establish the Divine origin of the Qur’an. Or, the verses may mean that the great Signs which disbelievers in the Holy Prophet’s time witnessed with their own eyes, and the prophecies about the bright future of Islam which yet await fulfilment constitute an irrefutable argument that the Qur’an is God’s own Word which He has revealed to His noble Prophet Muhammad. It deals with the hard facts of life and is not a poet’s fond dream, nor the groping in the dark of a soothsayer.
1480
我们在物质世界见到起作用的东西 (即看得见的人生事物) 和我们不能看到的东西 (即人的理智和良心), 在经文 (39-40) 中引用为证实 «古兰经» 的真主本源的迹象。这两节经文的意思也可以是, 这种伟大的安拉的迹象是穆圣时代的不信者亲自目睹的, 对于伊斯兰教的光明未来的预言有待实现, 这种预言构成了无可辩驳的论据, 即 «古兰经» 是安拉亲自向他那高尚的先知穆罕默德启示的真言。这儿涉及的是实实在在的人世事实, 并非诗人的美梦, 也不是占卜者的胡言乱语。
3117
The things which we see working in the physical world, i.e. the visible facts of life and the things which are hidden from our view, i.e. human reason and conscience, have been cited in the verses (39, 40) as evidences to establish the Divine origin of the Qur’an. Or, the verses may mean that the great Signs which disbelievers in the Holy Prophet’s time witnessed with their own eyes, and the prophecies about the bright future of Islam which yet await fulfilment constitute an irrefutable argument that the Qur’an is God’s own Word which He has revealed to His noble Prophet Muhammad. It deals with the hard facts of life and is not a poet’s fond dream, nor the groping in the dark of a soothsayer.
إِنَّهُۥ لَقَوْلُ رَسُولٍ كَرِيمٍ