جَنَّٰتٍ

3:16, 134, 196, 199; 4:14, 58, 123; 5:13, 86; 7:44; 9:72, 89, 100; 10:10; 13:36; 22:15, 24; 25:11; 32:20; 47:16; 58:23; 61:13; 64:10.

3:16; 4:58.

Important Words:

بشر (give glad tidings) is derived from بشر (bashshara), i.e. he gave glad tidings, which again is derived from بشر(bashara). They say بشر i.e. he laid bare its skin. Thus البشرة means, the outer and visible part of the skin. So بشر(bashshara) means, he gave or imparted news which changed the colour of the listener. The word has generally come to be used in connection with good or happy news. But it is also sometimes used in connection with bad news (e.g. 3:22). بشیر means, one who announces good news to a people or a person. All Prophets are spoken of as بشیر and نذیر i.e. givers of good news to those who believe in them and givers of bad news to those who reject them (Aqrab & Mufradat).

الصالحات (good works) is the plural of الصالحة which is derived from the verb صلح (the opposite of فسد) meaning, he or it became good or suitable and proper. ھذا الشیء یصلح لك means, this thing is suitable to you or is fit or meet for you (Aqrab). So الصالحات would be used about all those deeds and actions which are not only good intrinsically but are also meet and suitable. See also under 2:12.

جنات (gardens) which is the plural of جنة (a garden) is derived from جن meaning, it veiled, concealed, or covered a thing. So جنة means, any garden having trees by which the ground is covered or concealed; an orchard or garden having luxuriousness and denseness of verdure (Aqrab & Lane). Heaven has been called جنة or garden, because: (1) the mercy of God will 'cover' its dwellers just as trees in an orchard cover the ground thereof; or (2) because the blessings of Heaven are 'hidden' from the eyes of man"; or again (3) because Heaven is like a garden in which the trees represent good faith and the streams good actions.

الانھار (streams) is the plural of نھر (nahr) or نھر (nahar). They say نھرالماء i.e. the water flowed on the earth and cut out a channel for itself. Thus نھر (nahr) or نھر (nahar) means, a channel through which a stream or a river flows; a stream or river itself. نھر (nahar) also means, abundance (Aqrab).

ازواج (mates) is the plural of زوج which signifies, anything that is one of a pair or couple; it does not mean a pair but only one of a pair, whether male or female (Aqrab). The word زوج also means, a comrade (Lane).

خالدون (shall abide) is derived fromخلد which means, he remained and lived on. خلدبمکان means, he stayed or abided in a place. خلود means, staying on, or living without change or deterioration for a long time but not necessarily forever (Aqrab & Mufradat).

Commentary:

This verse gives a brief description of the rewards which the believers will have in the next world.

Critics of Islam have raised all sorts of objections to this description. They say that: (1) The promise of such rewards is only an appeal to greed and a faith based upon greed is not worth the name. (2) The Quran promises material rewards to the believers and this is objectionable. (3) If the rewards of the next world are going to be material, then it must be supposed that the same body which one has in this life will be resurrected after death and this is against all reason, because this body perishes and the particles of one body are used in the making of several other bodies. To whom and to how many will then the same body be given in the next world? (4) Believers are promised wives in Heaven which shows that sex relations will continue in the next world. An appeal to sex is very objectionable for spiritual ends. Sex relations are necessary only for the continuation of the race in this world. Why should there be such a thing in the next? (5) The Quranic Paradise appears to be a place of luxury and sensual pleasures. There is thus nothing spiritual about the Islamic conception of the next life.

This criticism is based on a failure to understand the real Islamic teaching. The Quran has made it clear that in this life it is not possible for man to comprehend the nature of the rewards of the next. It says: No soul knows what joy of the eyes is kept hidden for them, as a reward for their actions (32:18). That is to say, whatever the Quran says about Heaven and Hell is only metaphorical. The descriptions are not to be taken in the sense in which they are ordinarily taken in this world. The Holy Prophet says of the blessings of the next world: "No eye has seen them, nor has any ear heard of them; nor can the mind of man form any conception of them" (Bukhari). If the blessings of the next life are to be like the joys of this life, we should be able to form some idea of them, no matter how remote they may be. The blessings of the next life, therefore, must be quite different from the blessings of this life.

At another place in the Quran we read: The similitude of the Heaven promised to the God-fearing is that through it flow streams; its fruit is everlasting, and so is its shade. That is the reward of those who are righteous, and the reward of the disbelievers is Fire (13:36). Now the fruit of this world is not everlasting, so in order to be everlasting the fruit of the next world as well as its streams will have to be taken as something other than material. Again we read: A similitude of the Paradise promised to the righteous: Therein are rivers of water which corrupts not; and rivers of milk of which the taste changes not; and rivers of wine, a delight to those who drink; and rivers of clarified honey (47:16). There is nothing material in this. About the wine of Heaven we read: Wherein there will be no intoxication, nor will they be exhausted thereby (37:48). Again, And their Lord will give them to drink a beverage that is pure (76:22). Thus, wine in Heaven will not only be pure itself but will purify the drinkers as well. Elsewhere the Quran says that the pure wine of Paradise will be tempered with Tasnim (83:28), which means 'abundance' and 'height '. In the cup of wine that will pass from hand to hand in Heaven God says there will be neither vanity nor sin (52:24). As against this, the wine of this world is described in the Quran as: Wine and the game of hazard and idols and divining arrows are only an abomination of Satan’s handiwork. So shun each one of them that you may prosper. Satan desires only to create enmity and hatred among you by means of wine and the game of hazard and to keep you back from the remembrance of Allah and from Prayer (5:91, 92). This proves that the wine of the next world is quite different; it is pure and purifying and nothing material.

The blessings of Heaven have indeed nothing in common with their counterparts of this world except the name. Ibn ‘Abbas, the Prophet’s cousin, also says the same thing (Jarir).

Now the question arises: Why have the blessings of Heaven been given the names used of material things in this world? This is so because Islam is meant for all kinds of people. It does not address only the intellectually advanced but also all others. Therefore it uses simple words which can be understood by all. The disbelievers used to say that the Prophet disallowed the good things of the world, and his followers were thus deprived of all blessings. Therefore, while describing the blessings in store for the Muslims, God used the names of things generally looked upon as good in this world and told the believers that they would get all these things in a better form. The water of this world spoils, but believers would have water in the next which will not spoil. Gardens are blessings but they decay; so believers will have gardens which will last forever. The unbelievers drank intoxicating wine which made them drunk and which dulled their senses; but the wine which the believers will get in Heaven will be pure and purifying. It is to bring out this important contrast that familiar words are used; otherwise there is nothing common between the delights of this world and the blessings of the next.

It may be added here that, according to Islam, the next life is not spiritual in the sense that it will just consist of a mental state and nothing else. Even in the next life the human soul will have a kind of body; only, it will not be material. One can glean some idea of this from the phenomenon of dreams. The Quran says: Allah takes the souls of human beings at the time of their death; and (He also takes the souls of), those that have not died, during their sleep. Then He retains those against which He has decreed death, and sends (back) the others till an appointed term. In that surely are signs for a people who reflect (39:43). Death and sleep resemble each other, the difference being that whereas in death the human soul is completely and permanently severed from the body, in sleep the severance is only temporary and partial. Now the scenes which a man witnesses in a dream cannot be called purely mental or spiritual, because he has a body also in his dreams and finds himself sometimes in gardens and streams, and eats fruits and drinks milk. It is hard to say that the contents of dreams are only mental states. The milk enjoyed in a dream is no doubt a real experience, but no one can say that it is the material milk found in this world. Dreams have a meaning of their own. For instance, eating mangoes in a dream symbolizes a righteous child or a righteous heart; eating grapes signifies love and fear of God; and eating bananas, a good and lawful subsistence which is also easy of attainment. In short, the spiritual blessings of the next life will not be a mere subjective realization of the gifts of God with which we become familiar in this world. As a matter of fact, what we enjoy here is just a representation of the real and true gifts of God which man will find in the next world.

Again, gardens represent faith; and streams, good actions. Gardens cannot prosper without streams, nor faith without good actions. Therefore faith and actions are inseparable for the attainment of salvation. In the next world, gardens will remind the believers of their faith in this life and streams will remind them of their good works. They will know, then, that their faith and good works have not gone in vain.

The flowing of streams or rivers beneath the gardens also implies that every person in Heaven will have a free and unrestricted enjoyment of his portion. In this world, a single stream often serves several gardens and there is the possibility of a quarrel over it; but in Heaven each garden will have its own stream exclusively meant for itself. See also 10:10.

It is wrong to conclude from the words, This is what was given us before, that in Heaven the believers will be given such fruit as they will have enjoyed in this world, because, as already explained, the two are not the same. The fruit of the next world will, in fact, be the image of the quality of their own faith. When they will eat it, they will at once recognize and remember that it is the fruit of the faith they had in this world; and it will be out of gratitude for this that they will say: This is what was given us before.

The expression rendered as, was given us, may also mean, 'was promised us'; and in this sense it would mean, this is what was promised to us in the world.

The word متشابھا (mutually resembling) refers to the resemblance between the acts of worship performed by believers in this world and the fruits thereof in Heaven. The acts of worship performed in this life will appear to believers as fruit in the next. The more sincere and the more appropriate a man’s worship, the more will he enjoy his portion of the fruit in Paradise and the better in quality will it be. It, therefore, lies in one’s own power to improve the quality of one’s fruit as one likes.

The expression, mutually resembling, also implies that in Paradise one spiritual food will completely harmonize with the other, so that the possibility of spiritual disease will be eliminated altogether. It also means that the food in Heaven will be suited to each and every individual and to his stage of progress and degree of development.

The words, they will abide, signify that the believers will go on abiding in Heaven and will not be subject to any change or decay. Man dies only when he cannot assimilate food or when someone kills him. But since the food of Paradise will be perfectly suited to every individual and since man will have pure and peaceful companions, death and decay will automatically disappear.

The Faithful will also have pure mates in Heaven. A good wife is a joy and a comfort. The Faithful try to have good wives in this world, and they will have good and virtuous company in the next. Yet these joys of Heaven are not physical.

A typical Christian comment on this subject is made by Sir William Muir: "It is very remarkable that the notices in the Coran of this voluptuous paradise are almost entirely confined to a time when, whatever the tendency of his desires, Mohammad was living chaste and temperate with a single wife of three score years of age. It is noteworthy that in the Medina Surahs, that is, in all the voluminous revelations of the ten years following the Hegira women are only twice referred to as constituting one of the delights of paradise and on both occasions in these simple words: 'And to them (believers) there shall be therein pure wives'. Was it that the soul of Mohammad had at that period no longings after what he had then to satiety the enjoyment of? Or that a closer contact with Jewish principles and morality repressed the budding pruriency of the revelation, and covered with merited confusion the picture of his sensual paradise which had been drawn at Mecca?" (Muir, page 76).

It is amazing how these Christian critics with pretensions to culture and learning will draw on sheer speculation to attack the honour of a Teacher who is held in the deepest reverence and devotion by many millions of men and women all over the world. They seem emboldened to do so, because Christians today hold political sway over the Muslims. A few centuries of power have made them forget that Muslims ruled over Christendom for a full 1,000 years, and during this time they never said anything unbecoming about Jesus. They respected Christian susceptibilities when Christians were quite unprotected and were much weaker than Muslims are today. Would to God Christians did not feel so elated!

Sir William conveniently ignores the fact that there are other things besides women which are mentioned in the Meccan chapters and to which there is no reference in the Medinite chapters. We read in the Meccan chapters that there will be wine, honey and rivers of milk in Paradise. Was the Holy Prophet deprived even of these things at Mecca that he should have compensated himself by imagining them in Paradise? Nothing could be more absurd than this. Personally the Holy Prophet was much better off at Mecca than he was at Medina. His rich wife Khadijah was then alive and she had placed all her wealth at his disposal. By the time he reached Medina, most of this wealth had been spent in good works and the Holy Prophet was left a poor man with little to live on. If the picture of Paradise was an imaged compensation for his wants, it should have emerged at Medina instead of at Mecca.

Supposing Sir William is right, cannot critics of Christianity say justifiably that Jesus imagined himself the king of the Jews because he was persecuted everywhere? Could they not also say that as Jesus saw nothing of sex life in this world, he remained obsessed with the idea of a second advent and imagined himself a bridegroom taking no less than five virgins for wives? In the words of the New Testament, he is reported to have said: "Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For the foolish, when they took their lamps, took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps…And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are going out. But the wise answered, saying, Peradventure there will not be enough for us and you: go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went away to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut" (Matt. 25:1-10). A bridegroom surrounded by a bevy of virgins—is not this the Heaven of Jesus’ imagination?

But to revert to the subject; the disbelievers at Mecca used to taunt the Muslims about their poverty, saying they had nothing of the good things which they had, so God took over their own phrases and said that the rewards which believers would have in Paradise would be even better. When Islam was established at Medina, the disbelievers gave up their taunts. So God also dropped the earlier descriptions of Paradise. The descriptions in their deep significance, however, hold for all time.

At Mecca, moreover, it was necessary to explain and emphasize the basic belief of Islam. Therefore, greater detail of doctrine is found in the Meccan chapters, and as Paradise, the abode of believers in the afterlife, is an important item of belief, it is dealt with in detail in them. At Medina, on the contrary, practical matters like personal ethics and social legislation became more important. Therefore, greater attention was given to them in the Medinite chapters. The Meccan Surahs also abound in descriptions of Hell. What are they a compensation for?

Sir William Muir also suggests that the Holy Prophet changed his views about Paradise under the influence of the Jews and the Christians of Medina. But he forgets that the stock criticism made by Christian writers is that some Christian slaves had taught the Holy Prophet the Christian scriptures, the substance of which was incorporated in the Quran. Sir William himself alleges that the Holy Prophetlearnt Christianity from Suhaib, a Roman slave at Mecca (The Life of Mahomet, p.67). If the Holy Prophet at Mecca already knew the Christian teachings, he need not have waited for their influence until his arrival at Medina. In point of fact, in the Jewish and the Christian scriptures, there are no descriptions of Paradise. The Jews and the Christians have remained so engrossed in the affairs of this life that their Books do not say much about the life to come. The promises made by their Prophets about the next life have always been taken by them to pertain only to this life. It cannot be imagined that anybody could be influenced by such a teaching.

4:125; 16:98; 20:113; 16:42.

22:59, 60.

See 2:26.

Commentary:

As this Surah mainly deals with Christian doctrines and ideals and their way of life, and as Christianity, in spite of its claims to the contrary, gives woman a status definitely inferior to that of man, the insistence on the equality of the status of woman with man in the spiritual sphere forms a fitting sequel to it. At several places in the Quran, believing men and believing women are addressed in the same language and are made equally subject to the same commandments and entitled to the same rights and privileges. Briefly, Islam recognizes the equality of the social and religious rights of man and woman. The words, you are from one another, are intended to emphasize the equality of status mentioned in the preceding part of the verse.

The verse also constitutes an effective refutation of the charges of the Shias against the Holy Prophet’s Companions whose failings and shortcomings, if any, were all forgiven by God in view of the good works they performed.

3:133; 8:21; 33:72.

See 2:26.

4:123; 16:30; 14:24; 22:24; See lso 2:26.

13:36; 56:31.

Commentary:

The word مطھرة (pure) does not literally mean "pure" but "made pure," signifying that the spouses whom pious believers will have in Heaven will be made as highly pure as the environment of Heaven demands.

The expression, pleasant and plenteous shade, signifies an atmosphere of peace and calm, free from all pain-giving element. Elsewhere the Quran says: They will know there (in Heaven) neither extreme heat nor extreme cold (76:14).

See 2:26.

2:41, 84.

2:61; 7:161.

See 2:26.

2:109.

Important Words:

نقیبا (leaders) is the verbal adjective from نقب. They say نقبه i.e. he perforated or made a hole through it. نقب فی الارض means, he went through the land. نقب عن الاخبار means, he scrutinized or examined the news. نقب علی قومه means, he acted as نقیب (leader or supervisor) over his people. نقیب means, a thing perforated or pierced through; a musical reed or pipe; the head or chief of people who investigates and superintends their affairs, takes notice of their actions and is responsible for them (Lane).

عزرتموھم (you support them) is derived from عزر. عزرہ means, he censured him; he helped him. They say عزره عن کذا i.e. he prevented or hindered him or turned him away from such a thing. عزره (‘azzarahu) means: (1) he chastised or punished or censured or corrected him, in order to turn him away from evil; (2) he aided and assisted him; he strengthened him; he aided him against his enemy by repelling the latter; (3) he treated him with reverence, respect or honour (Lane).

Commentary:

The verse contains a veiled warning to Muslims that they can expect the help of God only so long as they adhere to their covenant with Him and obey His behests.

By the words "twelve leaders" are meant the twelve Prophets of Israel who came after Moses. According to some authorities, these were the twelve "Princes" said to have been appointed by Moses (Num. 1:4-16).

The words قرضاحسنا (goodly loan) may either mean good deeds for which a reward is expected from God, or voluntary contributions to help the cause of religion. The verse is addressed to the Israelites.

See 2:26.

6:100; 13:5; 16:12; 35:28; 36:35-36.

Important Words:

معروشات (trellised) is the plural of معروشة and is derived from عرش which means, he built or constructed a frame work or a trellis for supporting grapevines; or he built a shed or an enclosure, etc. So معروشة means, furnished with or trained on trellises. They say کروم معروشات i.e. grapevines furnished with or trained on trellises which are a framework for supporting the vines. عریش means, structure or trellis made for supporting grapevines; an enclosure made for beasts to protect them from cold. عرش means, a shed or booth, etc. constructed for shade; a hut; a house or a dwelling; the roof of a house; a throne (Lane).

حصاد (harvest) is derived from حصد i.e. he reaped or cut a seed-produce or herbage, etc. حصید means, reaped produce; حصادmeans time or season of reaping; also fruit or produce (Lane).

Commentary:

In the foregoing verses the Quran referred to some of the laws which pagan Arabs, unaided by Divine revelation, haddevised for themselves. Now, the Quran proceeds to give some of its own laws, so that the reader may contrast them with the man-made laws alluded to above. One of the man-made laws pertained to the fruits of the earth (6:141 above). Therefore, the Quran gives here its laws about these. It declares them to be lawful and pure, subject only to the condition that in eating them we should "not exceed the bounds", i.e. we should only eat as much of them as is not injurious to our health and morals.

The pronoun in the words حقه (His due) may either refer to God, or to ثـمر (fruit). In the former case, the sentence would mean that on the day of reaping we should give what is due to God as alms. In the latter case, it would mean that on the day of reaping we should give as charity a portion of the fruit which is in the nature of something due against it in order to make it pure.

It may be noted here that there are two kinds of charity in Islam–– obligatory and optional. But as, according to the practice and sayings of the Holy Prophet, زکاة i.e. obligatory charity or legal alms, is not due from all the fruits named in the verse but only from the fruit of the palm tree, so if it is the obligatory charity that is meant here, then the commandment to "pay His due" will apply only to the fruit of palm trees. It is, however, better to take the verse as referring to optional charity which may be given from all kinds of fruits. The use of the imperative mood in the words "pay His due" does not necessarily make it an obligatory command, for this form of the verb is also freely used in the Quran for the purpose of exhortation. This interpretation is in keeping with the practice of the Holy Prophet’s Companions who were in the habit of setting apart a portion of their produce for the poor, and such is also the practice of pious Muslims today.

2:26.

3:16; 5:3; 9:22; 57:21.

Important Words:

جنات عدن (Gardens of eternity). عدن is derived from عدن. They say عدن بالارض i.e. he remained, stayed, dwelt or abode in the land. عدنت البلد means, I took for myself the town or country as a home or a settled place of abode. An Arab would say عدنت الابل بمکان کذا i.e. the camels kept to such a place, not quitting it. جنات عدن would, therefore, mean Gardens of perpetual abode (Lane). See also 5:66.

Commentary:

The word طیبة translated as "delightful" in the text also means good, agreeable and clean. The use of this word thus hints that our houses and dwelling-places on this earth should also be clean and agreeable to live in. See also note on 9:68 above.

The expression, Gardens of eternity, hints that the permanent home of man is the Hereafter, the life of this world being only transient. Incidentally, it also implies that the blessings of Heaven are everlasting. See also 5:66.

See 2:26.

58:23; 98:9.

Important Words:

السابقون (foremost) is the plural of السابق being derived from سبق. They say سبقه i.e. he got or went or came before him or ahead of him; he outstripped him in a race, etc. So سابق is one who outstrips others in faith and actions (Lane).

الاولون (the first) is the plural of الاول which is derived from وأل being the opposite of الآخر i.e. the last. اول means, the first; one preceding all others (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The verse mentions two distinctive qualifications of prominent believers: (1) السابقون i.e. those who are foremost in spiritual rank, outstripping others in faith and actions; and (2) الاولون i.e. those who are the first to believe, others only following them.

The Companions of the Holy Prophet are thus held up here as models for others, being both foremost in rank and the first to believe. Nay, even those, who sincerely followed in their footsteps, became the favoured ones of God. Incidentally, the verse also constitutes a forcible refutation of the Shia accusations against the first three Successors of the Holy Prophet and his prominent Companions.

15:43; 16:100; 17:66.

10:11; 15:47; 36:59; 50:35.

Important Words:

اذن (command) means, permission; knowledge; will; command, etc. (Aqrab & Taj). See also 2:280.

تحیة (greeting) means, prayer for peace and for long or everlasting life; greeting with such prayer; peace and good and long life; security from all evils. When used about God the word التحیةsignifies الاکرام والاحسانi.e. bestowal of honour and favours by God (Aqrab & Lane). See also 4:87.

Commentary:

Deriving their authority from the words, by the command of their Lord, commentators have generally held the view that man’s going to Heaven depends not on his own good actions but upon the grace of God. This is not a wrong inference, for even the Holy Prophet is reported to have once expressed the same view. To an enquiry of ‘A’ishah whether even in his case good actions would not establish the right of salvation, the Holy Prophet is reported to have replied that even his salvation depended on the grace of God (Bukhari, Kitabut-Tafsir). In fact, the reason why people will go to Heaven, not by dint of their good works, but through the grace of God, is that all the faculties and powers by means of which they are able to perform good works are the free gift of God; hence it is from the grace of God that men’s good works proceed, and therefore whatever they get as a reward of their good works they receive as a favour from God and not as something earned or acquired.

The verse, however, possesses another meaning also. A true believer really needs and seeks after no Paradise; the only desire of his heart is to win God’s pleasure and His nearness. So if he is placed in Paradise, that will be only in obedience to God’s command and His wish. This interpretation is supported by a saying of the Holy Prophet. He is reported to have said that the doers of good works are divided into three classes. Some of them do good works with a desire to enter Heaven, while others do so in order to escape the punishment of Hell. But there is yet another class of people whose good works proceed wholly and solely from a desire to win the pleasure of God, their Lord and Master (Kathir, v. 5, p. 122). For these fortunate lovers of their Creator, Paradise will be but an additional thing and not the object and goal of their life.

The words, Their greeting therein will be "peace," may mean: (a) that they will greet each other with the salutation of "Peace be on you"; or (b) that they will have their perfect peace and be safe from all harm and injury against one another; and (c) that their best gift in Heaven will be "Peace" i.e. they will receive the special favours of God and the angels will stimulate into action all their inherent and latent powers for good.

51:16; 52:18; 68:35; 77:42; 78:32.

Commentary:

The verse means to say that whereas, as stated in the preceding verses, the followers of Satan on account of their rejection of the DivineMessage will be cast into Hell, which means that in the next life a feeling of intense frustration and grief over lost opportunities will eat into their hearts and they will be given the punishment of burning fire, the believers will bask in the sunshine of God’s favour and will be under the shadow of divine gardens, and fountains of divine knowledge will flow from their breasts.

2:278; 4:176; 10:10; 13:30; 14:24.

Commentary:

Whereas the preceding two verses purport to say that idol worshippers get no gain from their evil practices or if at all they happen to derive any benefit from them it is quite insubstantial and transitory, the present verse says that the advantages of true faith and good works are manifold and enduring.

18:32; 35:34; 76:22.

76:13.

Commentary:

This verse refers to the believers, the second of the two classes of men referred to in v. 20 above. The first class of men—the disbelievers, have been referred to in vv. 20-23 above.

The verse embodies a prophecy which met with remarkable fulfilment. It was made at a time when the very fate of Islam hung in the balance and there was no safety or security for Muslims anywhere. But afterwards in fulfilment of this prophecy they were given most fertile and beautiful countries to rule. They had the choicest of fruits to eat and they lived in gardens beneath which streams flowed. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said, "The Nile and the Euphrates are two of the streams of Paradise" (Muslim, ch. Al-Jannah). So it is clear that the Holy Prophet and his Companions knew that they were promised 'gardens' not only in the next life but in this world also and that they also knew that by 'gardens' in this life were meant rich and fertile lands once ruled by the Kings of Persia and the Emperors of the eastern Roman Empire. During the Caliphate of ‘Umar, Muslim armies fought on two fronts, in Mesopotamia and Syria, and when Arab chiefs with their respective claims presented themselves before him and offered their services, he asked them to which of "the two promised lands," Mesopotamia or Syria, they would like to go. This shows that the Companions of the Holy Prophet knew and understood that the 'gardens' promised them in the Quran were the rich provinces of the Persian Empire and of Syria and Egypt. The prophecy was literally fulfilled. When Persia was conquered, bracelets of gold and pearl and silken garments formed part of the booty. These things were distributed among the Muslims and Suraqah, a companion of the Holy Prophet, was made by ‘Umar to wear the bracelets of gold which the kings of Persia used to wear on special State occasions. Thus was fulfilled another prophecy of the Holy Prophet according to which he is reported to have once said to Suraqah, "How would you feel when you will be made to wear the golden bracelets of Chosroes (Al-Khasa’isul-Kubra, vol. II, p. 113).

16:12, 68; 36:35.

Commentary:

In this verse God gives another illustration of the various boons and favours which He has bestowed on man. It also contains a subtle illusion to the fact that the garden of Islam will, forever, remain full of fruit-bearing trees of various kinds which will yield fresh fruits in plenty in every season.

17:92.

Commentary:

The verse continues the theme of its predecessor. The words "exalted is He" signify that the disbelievers’ idea of what a Divine Prophet should be like, is far removed from reality and betrays their ignorance of the very object and purpose for which Prophets are raised. The Prophets are raised to lead men out of the darkness of doubt and disbelief into the light of certainty and spiritual bliss. The disbelievers want to see the Holy Prophet rolling and revelling in wealth. But such an idea is inconsistent with, and casts a reflection on, the Holiness of God.

The verse further signifies that although the self-devised criterion of disbelievers, namely, that to prove the truth of his mission the Holy Prophet must possess wealth, rank, gardens and palaces, has no weight or substance, yet in order to bring home to them the falsity of their position God will give the Holy Prophet and his followers more wealth and bigger and better gardens and palaces than those of the disbelievers’ demand. And was not this demand fully and completely fulfilled? Did not the camel-drivers of Arabia become the owners of the palaces and treasures of the Caesars and the Chosroes and of the fertile plains and gardens of Syria and Iraq? The verse possesses a spiritual significance also. It means to say that worldly gardens wither and dry up for want of water and proper care, and treasures of wealth are used up and come to end, but the treasures of spiritual wealth which will be bestowed upon the Holy Prophet and his followers and the gardens of eternal bliss which will be given into their possession will be everlasting. The Garden of Islam itself will ever remain green. Heavenly Reformers will continue to arise from among Muslims who will make them understand and realise the great object for which man has been created. See next verse.

44:26-28.

13:5; 16:68; 23:20.

Commentary:

The metaphor used in the preceding verse is continued here. The verse means to say that from the dry land of Arabia will gush forth springs and fountains of spiritual knowledge, and trees laden with different kinds of spiritual fruit will grow up all over the land.

7:44; 15:46; 19:64; 43:73-74; 44:56; 77:42-43; 78:32-33.

Commentary:

The present and the following verses recount some of the Divine favours and blessings that are bestowed on the righteous. These may also be taken as embodying a prophecy which was literally fulfilled when the dwellers of the barren and sandy deserts of Arabia conquered the great Iranian and Byzantine Empires.

68:35; 78:33.

14:24; 22:24; 29:10.

14:31; 15:4; 77:47.

Commentary:

The believers make use of the things of the world and eat and drink as do the disbelievers, but whereas the former eat to live in order to serve God and man, the latter live to eat, drink, and be merry, and have no nobler objects to pursue. They do not rise above the level of animals as their whole concept of life is materialistic.

8:30; 64:10; 66:9.

9:91.

4:14; 24:53; 33:72.

Commentary:

The disbelievers have repeatedly been threatened with "a grievous and burning punishment" in the Surah. This is to warn them that the terms of the Treaty of Hudaibiyyah over which they and their fellows had gloated, would prove for them an abiding source of ignominious heart-burning.

24:44; 25:49.

15:46; 52:18; 68:35; 77:42; 78:32.

Commentary:

As against those who flounder in the welter of wrong beliefs and evil deeds and deny the possibility of the Day of Judgement, the righteous and the God-fearing will reside in heavenly gardens, full of springs and streams—the spiritual embodiments of the good deeds they had done in this life.

Important Words:

نھر besides the meaning given in the text, also means, amplitude; light (Aqrab).

Commentary:

After dealing with the punishment that overtakes disbelievers on account of their rejection of the Divine Message and their evil deeds, the verse refers to the Divine favours and blessings that are bestowed upon the righteous, in this and the next world.

3:29; 4:145; 9:23.

5:120; 9:100; 98:9.

Commentary:

Obviously, there could be no true or sincere friendship or relationship of love between the Faithful and the disbelievers. The ideals, principles, and religious beliefs of the two being poles apart and the community of interest which is the sine qua non of intimate relationship being non-existent, the verse requires believers not to have intimate, loving and affectionate friendship with disbelievers. The bond of belief transcends all other bonds even the close ties of blood. The verse seems to have a general application. But it applies specially to disbelievers who are at war with Muslims. See also 60:10. The word, "Allah is well-pleased with them" constitute a Divine certificate of honour that is bestowed upon the Faithful who prefer God and His Messengers to all worldly connections, even very near blood relationships.

9:72; 19:62; 20:77.

Commentary:

The verse purports to say that Muslims, by preaching Islamic ideals and principles to the world, will prosper and Islam will advance and make progress.

8:30; 48:6; 66:9.

Important Words:

التغابن (mutual gain and loss) is derived from غبن. They say غبنه i.e. he deprived, cheated or made him suffer loss in selling or overcame him in buying and selling. غبن رأیه (ghabina) means, he was or became deficient in his opinion or judgement. غبن الشیء means, he was unmindful or neglectful of the thing. In view of the root meaning of the word, the expression یوم التغابنhas been variously interpreted as: (1) The Day of mutual gain and loss i.e. when believers will know what they had gained and disbelievers what they had lost. (2) The Day of the Manifestation of Loss i.e. people will realize how far they had been deficient in the discharge of their duties to God and man and thus their loss will become manifest. (3) The Day when the inmates of Paradise will over-reach the inmates of Hell by the state of enjoyment in which the former will be and the punishment which the latter will experience. (4) The Day when believers will attribute defect or deficiency to the lack of wisdom of disbelievers in that they had preferred disbelief to belief (Lane, Mufradat & Aqrab).