Topic: Of Supplicant

11:62; 34:51; 50:17.

27:63.

Important Words:

اجیب (I answer) and فلیستجیبوا (they should hearken) are both derived from the same root جاب meaning, he cut a cloth, etc. اجابه means, he answered him or answered his question. اجابت الارض means, the earth brought forth its vegetation, i.e. responded to sowing. استجابه means, he answered him or responded to him. استجاب له means, he obeyed him or complied with his wish and did what he was asked to do (Aqrab & Lane).

یرشدون (may follow the right way) is derived from رشد meaning, he was rightly guided and became steadfast in his guidance; he took or followed the right way. رشد (rushd) and رشد (rashad) and رشاد mean, true guidance; following the right way with firmness and steadfastness; rectitude; maturity of intellect. رشید and راشد mean, one who is rightly guided, one who takes or follows the right way. رشید is more intensive of the two and is also applied to God when it means, "Director to the right way; One Who follows a perfect course in His decrees" (Aqrab & Lane).

Commentary:

When the Faithful came to know of the blessings of the month of Ramadan and of fasting therein, they naturally became eager to derive as much benefit from it as possible and asked the Holy Prophet as to the particular attitude of God in this month, i.e. whether He came nearer to His servants in respect of grace and mercy, and whether He accepted more prayers in Ramadan and so on. The verse provides an answer to this question.

The words, My servants, do not obviously refer to all people but to only such men as believe in God and are willing to obey Him, particularly Muslims who follow His commandments regarding Prayers, Fasting, etc. In fact atheists or, for that matter, rebellious people are never spoken of as "My servants" in the Quran.

The clause, I am near, does not, and indeed cannot, refer to bodily nearness. The preceding verses told us that the command to fast was given with a view to purifying us, and that in giving it God desired our own welfare and meant no torture. The conception of such a loving God naturally creates the desire in the minds of all men to attain spiritual nearness to Him. Hence the present verse contains the glad tidings that access to God is not beyond human power nor is His nearness the monopoly of any particular people. The attainment of union with Him is within the reach of every man and woman, and the door of His mercy and grace is also open to all.

The words, I answer the prayers of the supplicant, point to the fact that it is not only the true believers and the righteous who have their prayers accepted by God but that God hears and accepts the prayers of all. As a matter of fact, the acceptance of prayer is an expression of God’s grace and mercy which encompass Muslims as well as non-Muslims. It would be unjust to think that God, Who is "the Lord of the worlds," accepts the prayers of Muslims alone. It is natural, however, that He should show greater favour to those who obey Him and hold fast to truth and act righteously. He therefore listens more to their prayers than to those of others, and He certainly rejects such prayers as are offered against His beloved ones. Nor does He accept such prayers as may lead to results that are detrimental to the cause of truth. But He is the Lord of all and listens to all.

The clause, so they should hearken to Me, means that they should believe in God (for without believing there can be no hearkening, and no response to His calls) and obey Him. God promises acceptance of prayers to "His servants" but He also expects that His creatures should believe in Him and obey His commandments. This will make their prayers all the more entitled to acceptance.

The words, and believe in Me, do not here refer to a belief in the existence of God; for this idea is included in the preceding clause, they should hearken to Me, it being impossible that one should hearken to God and obey His commandments without believing in His existence. The words, believe in Me, therefore refer here to belief in the power of God to accept prayers and belief in the fact that if appealed to, He will certainly come to our help.

The final clause, that they may follow the right way, means that if men would act upon the guidance contained in this commandment they would (1) attain God’s nearness, and (2) find God inclined to accept their prayers more and more.

But as with all other things, there are limitations and conditions attached to the acceptance of prayers also, to some of which the verse under comment refers. They may be briefly stated as follows:

(1) One should be a servant of God, accepting His dominion over him and worshipping Him, alone, as the words, My servants, indicate.

(2) One should call on God alone for help and turn to no other being or thing opposed to Him, as the words, when he prays to Me, show. There are indeed many who, while seemingly praying to God, put their real trust in other things or sometimes even turn to false deities for help. Such men cannot expect their prayers to be accepted.

(3) One should hearken to God’s call, i.e. not only believe in Him but also obey His commandments, accepting His Messengers and acting righteously in accordance with His Law, as the words, hearken to Me, point out.

(4) One should have firm belief in the fact that God not only has the power to accept one’s prayers but would actually accept them if one could only persist in asking, as the words, believe in Me, signify. There are indeed many who pray for a time and then get tired of it. These really do not believe; for if they had believed, they would willingly have waited. Says the Holy Prophet: "God would accept one’s prayer if only one did not show impatience, by saying, 'I have prayed and I have not been answered' " (Muslim).

(5) The prayers of those who are rebellious against God, rejecting His commandments and opposing His will, are not accepted, particularly such prayers in which something against His will or something likely to injure the cause of His beloved ones is solicited. Says God: "The prayer of the rebellious ones is nothing but wasted" (40:51).

A saying of the Holy Prophet very beautifully explains the philosophy of prayer. He is reported to have said: "Every Muslim who prays to God and whose prayer does not consist in anything which is a sin, i.e. anything against God’s will or against His commandments or against His way, or anything which involves an injustice or unkindness to a relative, will have his prayer accepted. But the acceptance of prayer may take three forms: (a) either God will grant to the supplicant his request in this very life; or (b) He will store the thing for him in the next; or (c) He will ward off a like evil from him" (Bukhari).

The Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement says: "God treats His servants like friends. A friend would sometimes accept the request of his friend and would sometimes expect him to accept his will. So does God. But even when God seemingly rejects the prayer of a believer, He is very often acting in his interests" (Haqiqat, p. 19).

42:21.

Commentary:

In this verse God mentions that class of men whose efforts and wishes are not confined to this world only. They (1) seek the good things of this world and (2) seek the good things of the next world, and (3) try to be saved from the Fire which not only signifies the fire of Hell but also everything that is painful and is a source of heart-burning. It may be noted that here, unlike the preceding verse, God uses the word حسنة (good) with the words فی الدنیا (in this world), meaning that even virtuous men may seek the things of this world but they should always be good and not bad.

The prayer mentioned in this verse is indeed very comprehensive and may be used by men of all grades in all their spiritual and temporal requirements, and the Holy Prophet is reported to have used this prayer very often (Muslim, ch. on Dhikr) with a view to teaching his Companions that if and when they choose to seek both the good things of this world and of the next, they should pray like this.

The prayer has another significance also. The good things of this world and the good things of the Hereafter spoken of in this verse may both stand for spiritual blessings, the good things of this world standing for such spiritual blessings as a righteous man gets in this world and the good things of the next world standing for those which he will get in the Hereafter. In fact, the very words used in the verse point to that signification, for the Quranic words فی الدنیاحسنة do not mean "good things of this world" but simply "good in this world". In this case النارor "the Fire" would stand not for Hell, protection against which is, in fact, included in the good things of the next world, but for such trials and hardships as one may come across in this world in the struggle for spiritual advancement or in the effort to benefit others. It was in this sense that the Holy Prophet used this prayer with regard to himself; for personally he never sought even the good things of this world, though he always sought "good in this world".

14:48; 40:52.

Important Words:

نسك (sacrifice) is derived from نسك. They say نسك الثوب i.e. he washed the cloth and rendered it clear and pure. نسك الذبیحةmeans, he slaughtered and sacrificed the animal. نسك البیت means, he repaired to the Ka‘bah for Pilgrimage. نسك الرجل means, the man worshipped God and devoted himself to His service. نسك لله means, he offered a sacrifice to win the pleasure of God and attain His nearness. Soنسك means, sacrifice; worship; a right due to God; blood of an animal shed by way of sacrifice or in fulfilment of a vow; animal of sacrifice (Aqrab).

Commentary:

This and the following verse beautifully describe the Holy Prophet’s religion, to which reference was made in the preceding verse. The two latter mentioned expressions, viz. "my life" and "my death" correspond respectively to the two former expressions viz. "my prayer" and "my sacrifice." As prayer imparts life to the worshipper, so it has been followed by the words, "my life." On the contrary, "sacrifice" kills the self of man, so it has been followed by the words, "my death." These four words, i.e. prayer, sacrifice, life and death, thus cover the entire field of man’s actions, and the Holy Prophet has been asked to declare that all phases of his life were devoted to God alone. All his prayers were offered to God; all his sacrifices were made to Him; all his life was devoted to His service; and if in the cause of religion he sought death, that was also to win His pleasure. He lived for God and would not die but in harness.

With regard to Prayer particularly, the Holy Prophet is reported to have said, جعلت قرة عینی فی الصلوة i.e. "the coolness or delight of my eyes lies in Prayer" (Nasa’i).

4:59; 16:91; 57:26.

Important Words:

مسجد (time and place of worship) is derived from سجد i.e. he prostrated himself; or he bent himself down towards the ground and put his forehead on it; he lowered his head and bent himself; he was lowly, humble or submissive. مسجد means, a place in which one performs the act of سجدة i.e. the act of prostrating before God; a place in which one performs acts of worship or devotion; a place in which a person says his Prayers; a house of Prayer; a mosque or a Muslim temple (Lane). Being اسم ظرف the word may also mean, time of worship.

Commentary:

We are told in this verse that when the time of Prayer approaches and we are about to go to a mosque, we should fix our attention aright, setting our face to God and taking our minds away from the cares and thoughts of the world. The ablution performed before every Prayer also serves the useful purpose of turning our thoughts towards God and putting us in the right state for Prayers.

The words, As He brought you into being, so shall you return, are important because they point to the great truth that just as our bodies gradually develop in the wombs of our mothers, so will our souls pass through a similar process of develop-ment after our death. We should, therefore, be very careful about our souls.

6:64; 7:206.

Commentary:

For an explanation of the words, in humility and in secret, see 6:64.

21:91; 32:17.

Commentary:

The expression, after it has been set in order, means that before the revelation of the Quran the disbelievers had some excuse for leading an unrighteous life; but now that a perfect guidance has come to them, they will not be allowed to go on making mischief and grovelling in sin and iniquity and leading unrighteous lives with impunity. The word اصلاح (order) refers to the good and ordered life that has come into being on account of the revelation of the Quran and the advent of the Holy Prophet.

The words, call upon Him in fear and hope, strike the golden mean. Some religions lay undue stress on fear, while others dangle before everlasting life through belief in a vicarious atonement. The Quran follows the middle course and teaches its followers to be both fearing and hopeful. A true Muslim is the most cautious and heedful of men. He walks in humility and constant fear of God, lest one false word, one irresponsible act should deprive him of God’s mercy. But at the same time he is full of hope. He has faith in the all-embracing mercy of God. Thus, it is a true Muslim alone who can keep the right balance between fear and hope, which are the two important component parts of perfect faith necessary for perfect actions.

The words, the mercy of Allah is nigh unto those who do good, point out the way which leads to the acceptance of prayers. It is through the mercy of God that prayers are accepted, and the mercy of God comes only to the محسنین (those who do good). A believer, therefore, should try to become a muhsin in the true sense of the word, so that his prayers may be accepted. But it should be remembered that a محسن is not an ordinary doer of good. The word signifies "one who strives to be perfect in his deeds". A saying of the Holy Prophet describes a محسن as one who does a good deed as if he were actually seeing God or that at least God was seeing him.

17:111.

Important Words:

الاسماء الحسنی (perfect attributes). The word اسماء is the plural of اسم (for which see 1:1 & 2:32), meaning, (1) name; and (2) attribute. الحسنی which is the feminine of الاحسن means, that which is better or that which is best; the final good state or condition. So الاسماء الحسنی means, best names, or best attributes, or perfect attributes. The term is specifically used to denote the attributes of God.

یلحدون (deviate from the right way) is derived from لحد which means, he or it declined or deviated from the right course, or he or it inclined. الحد also means the same. الحد فی الدین means, he deviated or swerved from the right way with respect to religion; he impugned religion. الحد also means, he disputed or wrangled. الحد به means, he brought a reproach upon him; or he held him in light estimation; or he despised him; or he said of him what was false (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The proper name of God is only Allah, all the rest being, strictly speaking, not His names but attributes. The verse tells us the secret as to how our prayers can be readily accepted. While praying, we should invoke such attributes of God as are directly related to the object of our prayer. This will make our prayer more susceptible of acceptance, because, by so doing, we would excite the jealousy of God with regard to the relevant attribute of His, with the result that the prayer, if otherwise acceptable, will not be suffered to go in vain. The Quran specifically mentions as many as 69 Divine attributes, but there are others which may be inferred and yet others which are found mentioned in the Hadith.

The verse next proceeds to enjoin the believers to have nothing to do with those who devise for God attributes which are not attributable to Him. Says the verse: Leave alone those who deviate from the right way with respect to His attributes. When God possesses all the best attributes mentioned in the Quran or the Hadith, what need is there to devise other attributes for Him? Such attributes cannot be free from error. An instance of such an ill-devised attribute is عادل (Just) which Christians attribute to God. The Quran says that God certainly is not unjust but at the same time it scrupulously avoids the ascription of the attribute of عادل (Just) to Him, for the ascription of this attribute to God would imply that His justice should demand that He must always punish sinners. But He is not bound to do so, because He is Forgiving and Merciful and He can pardon any sinner. In fact, God is not like a judge bound by the Law to deal with men according to their deeds. But He is مالك or Master of His creatures and Master of His law as well. He can forgive the sins of His servants as and when He pleases. By calling God "just", the Christian Church had to enlist the aid of a so-called redeemer who, by his supposed death on the cross, should atone for the sins of men to satisfy God’s attribute of justice.

Commentary:

The persons referred to in the preceding verse brought a part of their property and begged the Holy Prophet to take the same as alms, but he told them that he had no instructions to accept anything from them, whereupon this verse was revealed, allowing him to accept their alms and to pray for them.

Important Words:

اسماعیل (Ishmael), literally meaning "God heard the Prayer," was the eldest son of Abraham by his Egyptian wife, Hagar. He was born as a result of a prayer of Abraham when the latter was eighty-six years of age. In fulfilment of his dream in which he saw himself offering Ishmael as a sacrifice in the way of God, Abraham, being apprised by God, realized it was when he took the infant Ishmael and his mother Hagar to the wilderness of Arabia with a view to settling them in the barren and uncultivable valley of Mecca near the Sacred House of God. Twelve sons were born to Ishmael, the best known of whom is Kedar, the great ancestor of the Arab nation (Enc. Bib. & Jew. Enc.). See also 2:128-130.

اسحاق (Isaac) was the second son of Abraham by his wife, Sarah. He was the father of Jacob alias Israel, the great progenitor of the Israelites. He is known as "the Second Patriarch." He is considered by Jews and Christians to be that son of Abraham whom he offered to sacrifice in fulfilment of his dream. But the testimony of history and the Bible contradicts this assumption.

The expression of gratefulness to God on the part of Abraham for having been granted Ishmael and Isaac at a time when he was actually building the Ka‘bah seems to be rather misplaced. But the fact is that Abraham, in this verse, does not praise God for merely granting him two sons. The real reason why he praised God for giving him Ishmael and Isaac was that he was able in his old age to build the Ka‘bah with the help of one of them, and that he was leaving behind him two sons who would glorify God and establish His worship on the earth. He was glad that through his offspring he was enabled to make arrangements for the continuance of Divine worship in the world. This was the supreme object of his life and this was what he had been praying for. The verse also hints that, like Ishmael, Isaac was dedicated to the service of God.

Incidentally, the verse also throws interesting light on the sublimity of Abraham’s character and the purity of his great soul. He had left his firstborn in the wilderness of the barren and bleak valley of Mecca, apparently to die of starvation, yet he was expressing his gratefulness to God for granting him Ishmael and Isaac, as if, by his settling the former near the Sacred House of God, the very object of the child’s birth had been fulfilled.

7:181; 20:9; 59:25.

7:56,206.

Commentary:

In the previous verse reference was made to prostrations and prayers. In the present verse a Muslim is taught how to pray while prostrating for the fulfilment of God’s promises and the betterment of his own self.

The expression, His are the most beautiful names, signifies that God has many names which express His various attributes and a Muslim should invoke in his prayer that particular attribute of God which has a special bearing on the matter for which he wants to pray. If, for instance, the object of prayer falls under the category of God’s attribute of رحمانیتthe supplicant should invoke His attribute of الرحمان (the Gracious). Similarly, if the object for which he prays has particular reference to the attribute of الرحیم (the Merciful), or الرزاق (the Great Sustainer), or الوھاب (the Bestower), these attributes should be invoked and so on, i.e. prayer should be offered to God by invoking the relevant Divine attributes.

The word صلواة applies to both the five daily Prayers, and prayer in general. The context, however, shows that it is prayer in general that is meant here.

The expression, but seek a way between, implies an injunction that we should pray to God neither too-loudly, for He is not deaf, nor in too low a voice as that would interfere with our concentration of mind in prayer.

29:27.

Commentary:

In this verse Abraham seems to be referring to his migration to Canaan. It is on record that Abraham went from Iraq to Canaan and from there to Egypt. He left his father and people behind him in Iraq.

27:10; 28:31.

Commentary:

The verse contains the first commandment that was given to Moses. It appears that the observance of Prayer is the most important commandment in religion.

The words for My remembrance may mean:

(a) for My remembering you i.e. as I have remembered you, therefore, you should also remember Me by way of thanks-giving;

(b) your Prayer should be for the sake of remembering Me;

(c) you should set up the institution of Prayer so that My remembrance may become established in the world.

Important Words:

غراما (most vehement torment) is derived from غرم which means, he paid or discharged a thing after it had become obligatory upon him. غرم الدین means, he discharged the debt. غرام means, a thing from which one is unable to free himself; a thing such as cleaves fast; lasting evil; perdition, persistent and such as cleaves fast; most vehement punishment or torment; hardship or difficulty and an affliction or a calamity or misfortune that befalls a man; eager desire (Lane, Aqrab & Mufradat).

Important Words:

تتجافی (keep away) is derived from جفا which means, it did not cleave to its place. They say جفا الرجل i.e. he turned away, shunned or avoided or he withdrew to a distance, from the man. جفت المرأة ولدھا means, the woman neglected her child. جفا جنبه عن الفرش او تجافی عنه means, his side was restless on the bed; his side did not cleave to its place on the bed; his side became removed or withdrawn from it (Lane & Aqrab).

29:66; 31:33; 98:6.

2:187; 6:42; 25:78; 27:63.

Important Words:

داخرین (despised) is the plural of داخر which is derived from دخر which means, he was or became abject, mean, contemptible or despicable. داخر therefore means, abject, mean, despicable, etc. (Lane).

39:12; 98:6.