An-Nisaa

Name, Topics and Their Background

Name
Although many social reforms relating to women have been promulgated in
this soorah, An-Nisaa (The Women) is not its topic, rather it is just a name
given to identify the chapter. The word An-Nisaa appears in its first verse, last
verse and more frequently throughout it than any other soorah.

Topics and Their Background

Keep in mind that:
• The mission of the Prophet ŝall-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was to
establish the ideal peaceful and just Islamic society – a society that was
characterized by kindness, generosity, compassion, caring, sharing,
complete fairness and dignity for all human beings and that was led and
constituted by the people who were the best in their attitudes, morals,
dealings, conduct and behaviour.
• The purpose of the Qur-aan was to provide the help and guidance to the
Prophet in achieving that mission, and to pronounce the directions,
rules and regulations that must be followed by all believers to create
that type of society.

To move forward in the direction of that ideal society from the existing
customs and traditions of the society, the first set of reforms and regulations
were introduced in the early period of Muslim life in Madeenah through the
revelation of Soorah Al-Baqarah. Soorah An-Nisaa contains the second wave
of moral, cultural, social, economic and political reforms towards the
establishment of the Islamic society.

As and when changes to existing practices were ordained, sincere Muslims

would readily adopt the commands received from Allaah Subhaanahu Wa
Ta'aala for the reformation of the society toward Islamic standard of
excellence. Their willing adherence and obedience to those commands was
exemplary. However, there was a very strong, aggressive and violent resistance
to these reforms from the pagans, the hypocrites and the Jews. Although there
were not very many Christians in Madeenah, some of those in the surrounding
areas were also siding with the opponents of these reforms. Hence, some
discourses in this soorah deal with that opposition by responding to their
attacks. It also directs the believers towards the ways of dealing with their
menace and of defending the Islamic movement against their onslaught. While
introducing reforms and dealing with opposition to the reforms, the expansion
of the mission had to continue hand in hand by winning more hearts and minds
to Islam. Hence, the soorah contains some discourses to attain that objective as
well. Particularly, at the end of the soorah, hypocrites, Jews and Christians
have one by one been invited to reform themselves, accept Prophet
Muhammad as the Messenger of Allaah, the Qur-aan as the final Book of
guidance from Allaah and Islam as their way of life completely and
wholeheartedly to attain the success and closeness to Allaah.

The Teachings and the Running Commentary

The first verse of this soorah sets the stage for the reformation of the society by declaring the
fundamental principles that become foundations for building a healthy society:

The first and foremost principle in this respect is that of human equality. It was laid
down by declaring that both genders emanate from the same source and that all
human beings come from the same ancestry, hence, no race or gender is superior or
inferior to another.

It also indicates that the legitimacy of fundamental human rights emanates from
Allaah SWT Himself and that a healthy society is built on the preservation,
strengthening and respect of the extended family relationships.

People were also reminded that they are being watched for any transgressions against these
principles and that they will be held accountable.

In the name of Allaah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.

1
O people! Be careful of your duty to your Lord, Who created you from a
single being and created its mate of the same and spread from these two, many
men and women; and be careful of your duty towards Allaah, by Whom you
demand of one another your rights, and towards the relationships established
through the wombs; surely Allaah is ever a Watcher over you.
The pagans of Makkah, who were determined to stop the Islamic mission of societal
reformation by exterminating Islam and Muslims, attacked Madeenah with a 3,000 strong
fully-equipped army in Shawwal (10th month) of the third year after Hijrah. About 700 ill-
equipped Muslims faced the invading army at Uĥad. The battle ended indecisively in the sense
that the Makkans had to retreat without fulfilling their objective of exterminating the Muslims,
but the Muslims did suffer heavy losses. Seventy (70) Muslims were martyred, which was a
huge loss for the tiny Muslim society of Madeenah. This situation required guidance about
how to deal Islamically with the orphans and widows. This also provided a catalyst for
introducing the second wave of overall social reforms. The verses that follow were revealed in
that context.

The reforms start with protecting the rights of orphans; however, the definition of an orphan is
different from that generally understood in English. The Arabic word translated as “orphans” is
Yataamaa, which is plural of Yateem. Yateem referred to a minor child whose father had died,
regardless of whether the mother was still alive or not. Death of the father was considered to be
a major loss because it left the children without a provider to take care of their needs and a
protector from abuse and exploitation. Many of the orphans’ guardians who were supposed to
look after their interests used to take over the custody of their inherited assets under the pretext
of managing them on their behalf; however, it ended up slowly becoming the guardians’
property, while the orphans were neglected and their needs were not appropriately met. Islam
commanded extreme scruple in this respect and put a high value on being kind, generous, and
charitable in looking after the needs of orphans. It transformed those people from being
usurpers into being the protectors of orphans so much so that they would go out of their way to
preserve the assets belonging to orphans and to be extra kind, gentle and caring for their needs,
even if it meant giving from their own pockets.
2
And give to the orphans their assets, and do not substitute worthless things for
their good ones, and do not consume their assets by adding to your own assets;
that would surely be a great crime. 3And if you fear that you on your own shall
not be able to deal equitably with orphans1, then marry such of their mothers2

1
Some people assume that orphans in this verse refer to orphan girls only; but that is an invalid
assumption. The points about injustice that started with the preceding verse pertain to all orphans in
general and not any particular section of them. The subject of remediation of those issues continues in
this verse without any explicit or implicit indication that the emphasis has shifted from orphans in general
to a specific group of orphans. Thus, there is no indication in the text about the shift from all orphans to
orphan girls only. In addition, neither Allaah nor His Messenger has ever indicated the change in the
definition of the term from one verse to the next. Hence, the idea of limiting the general word “orphans”
in this verse to girls only is baseless and invalid.
2
Although the word used here is “women” in general, the context requires that the women mentioned
here must be those whose marriage can help alleviate injustice to orphans. ‘Women” here cannot be any
women because of the following: Firstly, there was no reason to prescribe more than one wife in general
because that was already a prevalent practice. The established rule was that existing practices were
allowed unless and until explicitly disallowed by the Qur-aan or the Prophet. Secondly, the verse clearly
mentions the purpose of proposing extra marriages in this context to be the fair treatment of the orphans.
Marrying women in general does not help with that objective at all, rather it may hinder it as will become
clear in the discussion that follows. Lastly and most significantly, there was no context here to bring up
the issue of polygamy in general while addressing the issues related to orphans. It has been brought up
only as a viable alternative to help the guardians appropriately fulfil the guardianship responsibility
towards the orphans. Thus, the context requires that the women being referred to in this verse have to be
those who have some specific relationship with orphans – the mothers of the orphans, marrying whom
will help in the better treatment of their orphan children. The suggestion is that to minimize any chances
of compromise in looking after the well-being of the orphans under your guardianship, you can use the
existing practise of polygamy to marry their mothers and jointly look after the orphans’ affairs more
as are happy to do so, are legally allowed to you and you like them3, two or
three or four; but if you fear that you will not be able to treat all wives equally,
then marry only one or what your right hands possess; this way it is more
likely that you will not deviate from justice. 4And give women their Mahr4 in
good spirit, but if they, of their own good pleasure, give up to you a portion of
it, then enjoy it freely.

Considering the exploitative practices of unscrupulous people in dealing with the inheritance
and assets of the orphans, Muslims were warned of the heinous nature of this crime and were
told that the guardians of the orphans must ensure that:

Any assets belonging to the orphans are duly assigned to their name, spent only for
their care and given to them when they grow up;

They are not substituted in any way, shape or form resulting in the reduction of their
value; and,

They are not mixed up with the assets of their trustee or guardian such that they could
not be accounted for fully and accurately.

Being kind to people, when Allaah SWT gives commands, He also ensures that measures are
taken that will make it easy for people to fulfill the objectives of the commands. Therefore, this
command was accompanied by a multipurpose, effective and tactful use of an existing
institution of the society. Polygamy was a well-established and accepted practice all around the
world including Arabia. Many people had multiple wives. In fact, there was no limit to the
number of wives a person could have. Some people had a dozen or more wives, just like most
of the Biblical personalities had many wives. It was suggested to men that to take care of the
orphans, you should use this existing, established practice and marry the mothers of the
orphans -- if they would like to do so, if you like them and if it would not result in an un-
Islamic relationship.

This opinion is based on the view that the word “orphans” is referring to all orphans in general,
while the word “women” refers to specific women to whom the orphans belong. Other people
assume that “women” refer to “women other than orphans”, while “orphans” are specifically
referring only to the “orphan girls”. Invalidity of limiting “orphans” to “girls” only has already
been clearly shown in the first footnote. But a little further review of this notion is needed.
Those who take this view justify it by assuming that people used to marry young orphan girls
and then usurp their assets. Hence, they are being told that instead of marrying orphan girls and
usurping their assets, marry other women. The truth is that the option of marrying other women
already existed for which no encouragement was needed. Besides, the verse is not saying, “To

appropriately and effectively. In his Tafseer Tadabburul-Qur’aan, Amin Ahsan Islahi has strongly
presented this view. Maudoodi has also expressed this as one of the valid opinions.
3
Mufassireen (exegetes) have indicated that the phrase used in the verse can have any or all of the three
meanings. Hence, I have included all three meanings because they altogether represent the message of the
verse fully.
4
Islam requires that a man must give to the woman he is marrying, as consideration for the marriage
contract, a wedding gift consisting of cash, assets or any thing(s) that she may value, like and cherish.
This gift is called mahr and without it, a marriage contract (nikaah) is not valid. The value of mahr should
be such that a husband can easily pay, but must be high enough that the wife is happy about it.
avoid injustice to orphan girls, marry women other than orphans”. Rather, it establishes a cause
and effect relationship between justice to orphans and marrying women; and it is saying “if
you think that you will not be able to be fair to the needs of orphans, marry those women who
will help you in doing so.” The fact is that marrying any women in general does not have a
clear cause and effect relationship with eradicating the abuse of orphan girls. Rather, according
to another opinion, marrying more women was a cause of the orphan abuse.

That other opinion suggests that people misappropriated orphan’s assets because they would
marry many wives, which created financial hardship, which led to misappropriation. Hence,
the mention of polygamy was brought up to limit the number of wives to avoid the financial
hardship that forced people to misappropriate other’s assets. Although it is true that the limit on
the number of wives has been placed by this verse, it is not the only reason for which the issue
was brought up. We cannot assume that to be the sole reason, because the verse does not say,
“To avoid getting into financial hardship that could cause you to be unjust to orphans, do not
marry more than four wives”. The style of the verse is that marrying a second, third or fourth
woman has been presented as a solution to unfair disposition of guardianship responsibility.

Still another opinion is that injustice to orphans was already viewed badly in the society, but
unjust treatment of wives was not. Hence, while talking about injustice to orphans, people have
been commanded to be fair to their own wives as well. Again, the verse does emphasize justice
to wives very strongly, but that is not the sole message of the verse. It does not say, “Just as
you dislike doing injustice to orphans, you must also dislike being unjust to your wives. If you
think that you will not be able to maintain justice, then marry only one.” Another point is that
if dislike of injustice to orphans was already ingrained in the society, why would Allaah
command it so strongly in the preceding verse? The fact is that there was abuse of orphans in
the society and Allaah wanted people to mend their behaviour.

In short, the meaning that fits properly in this verse and shows the proper cause and effect
relationship is that the women being mentioned here are mothers of orphan boys and girls. The
suggestion was that instead of putting orphans in orphanages5, or leaving them under a loose
relationship with a guardian for whom it may not always be possible to be fully attentive to the
needs of the orphans under his care (even if the guardian had the best intention to do so),
provide those children with a stable, inclusive, integrated home and family environment by
marrying their mothers. This way, the widowed women will also be cared for. In addition,
under this relationship, where the mother of the orphans is also the spouse and participant in
the family affairs, the interests of her orphan children will be better served and any chances or
opportunity for abuse or neglect would be avoided.

One may wonder about the wisdom of using “women” if the intent was “mothers”. The whole
verse is about women: first part about a particular group of women and remaining two
conditions to be applicable to all women. For this multi purpose statement, the use of “Nisaa”
(women) in the text of the Qur-aan has a great advantage of playing both roles distinctively:
Both the context and the construction of the first part of the sentence easily specify them to be

5
Although the orphanage system has been helpful to orphans, there also have been many horror stories
that have emanated from the orphanage system and numerous lives destroyed by it. The Islamic
alternative mitigates the risk of abuse considerably.
mothers of orphans when they are to be married for the benefit of orphans; while at the same
time, they remain general for the purposes of the limitation to four, and for the condition of
justice among wives. This is an example of the brevity aspect of the supreme eloquence and
miraculous literary style of the Qur-aan. It so beautifully packs so many points in so few
words, the intellectual beauty of which can be fully appreciated by those who have developed a
refined taste of the Arabic literary style of the era of Qur-aanic revelation

Thus, the proper and complete message of the verse includes three aspects:

To alleviate worries about properly fulfilling their guardianship responsibilities,
people should use the existing practice of having multiple wives and should team up
for that purpose with the orphans’ mothers by marrying them -- if they are legally
eligible to marry each other and they mutually like the idea -- so that both can help
each other in providing the children the most appropriate level of care.

As the topic of multiple marriages came up, its practice was also reformed by limiting
the number of wives to four. Thus, for the first time in the history of mankind and in
the history of religious texts, a limit was put on the number of wives. It was indicated
that no Muslim could have more than four wives at a time. Those who had more than
four at that time were required to divorce the extras to reduce their number to four.

Another reform was also simultaneously introduced by making justice among all
wives a condition for eligibility to have more than one wife. If a person feels that he
may not be able to treat his wives equally in terms of standard of living, finances and
conjugal matters, he must not marry more than one wife. This matter of justice among
wives was given such significance that it could not be exempted even for a good
cause like taking care of orphans, thus giving a clear message that an injustice cannot
be condoned for any expediency, even if the intent is noble.

It should be noted that the verse neither disallows the practice of polygamy, nor makes it
conditional to the welfare of the orphans. It just presents it as a good way of providing a stable
family to orphans. Men could always have multiple wives; Islam did not disallow it to them.
They can continue to do so, if they choose, without any conditions other than the two imposed
by this verse: they cannot exceed four and justice must be maintained among them.

While talking about marriage, another related issue -- the importance of giving mahr -- was re-
emphasized and underscored so that Muslims understand that regardless of the reason for a
marriage or the status of the woman being married, a reasonable amount of mahr must be paid
in good spirit. It should not be just an empty promise, but it should be actually paid, unless a
woman of her own free will and without any prompting or suggestion from her husband gives
it back to him or spends it on household expenses.

In addition to the wives, the verse also mentions “What your right hands possess” which
alludes to the slaves a person may have in his possession. When the Qur-aan was being
revealed, slavery was deeply entrenched in the social and economic systems of the
contemporary society all over the world. One of the fundamental objectives of Islam was to
bestow equal status, respect, freedom and dignity to all human beings. As will be evident to
anyone studying Islam and the Qur-aan, Islam achieved its goals through a systematic process
of changing peoples’ attitudes and paradigms along with changing their behaviour through
incrementally progressive evolutionary commands that were willingly obeyed as received. This
process ensured peaceful and sustainable results that profoundly revolutionized the society.
Islam instilled in its followers that the only legitimate slavery is that of all human beings to
their Creator. Any slavery of a human being to another human being, in any aspect, way, shape
or form is illegitimate. In keeping with that notion, the Qur-aan refers to them as “what your
right hands possess”, instead of “your slaves”. Terms such as “your slaves” or “my slaves”
were used only for indicating the relationship between people and Allaah – the real Master and
Owner of us all. Islam inspired its followers to become the liberators of people from human
slavery to the slavery of Allaah. It infused in them the concepts of human equality so that the
only differentiator among people becomes a person’s performance in terms of faith and one’s
slavery (absolute obedience) to Allaah.

In addition to shifting their paradigm completely to Islamic ideals, Islam closed many avenues
of enslaving people, took many steps to improve the treatment of existing slaves and
implemented different ways that resulted in their liberation. For example, the Prophet SAAW
warned, “I will personally be a prosecutor on the Day of Judgment against anyone who abducts
a free person to sell him as a slave.” (Bukhaari -Book of Trades). This, of course, is in addition
to the worldly punishment the person may get for his crime of abduction etc. In that regard,
just the thought of the Prophet SAAW being a prosecutor and Allaah SWT being the Judge is a
significant deterrent for any believer. Another example that is pertinent to this verse is that
once a person had a child from his slave woman (keep in mind that contraceptive techniques of
this age were not available in those days), she could not be sold or given to anyone any more
and would be automatically free at that person’s death. Obviously, the children from this
relationship are no doubt free children like any other children of their father from his wife.

Islam also encouraged Muslims to free slaves as an act of virtue for the pleasure of Allaah so
that many Muslims would buy slaves and set them free to please Allaah. It resulted in the
peaceful elimination of slavery from the areas under Islamic jurisdiction, without any civil war,
but with proper assimilation and integration into the society, free of any prejudices or barriers.
In fact, many freed slaves became the leaders and rulers of Muslim communities. Anyone who
knows what happened in other parts of the world and what still happens can appreciate the
beauty and profundity of what Islam accomplished.

Until the ultimate Islamic goal was achieved, exceptions were made to accommodate the needs
of the society. This verse is the first such place.

The various provisional steps that were taken to ensure their well-being and the progressive
steps that were taken to eliminate slavery will be highlighted when commenting on the
pertinent text at different places in the Qur-aan. The interesting point to note is that the Qur-
aan and Ĥadeeth are the only religious texts that have taken steps to redeem slaves and to
eliminate slavery.

After taking care of providing a stable family environment for orphans, a principle was laid
down applicable generally to all situations, but specifically to the matters dealing with the
affairs of orphans. The command to pay orphans their assets could have been misconstrued to
mean that the payment should be made even if the payee is not capable of handling it. The next
verse clarifies this aspect, but as a general rule that is applicable to all assets belonging to
Muslims. The style of the verse conveys the message that the protection of a Muslim’s
resources is a shared responsibility of all Muslims. So, people were told:
5
And do not give to the weak of understanding the charge of your assets which
Allaah has made for you a means of support, but feed and clothe them
therewith, and speak to them words of kindness and honest advice.

Hence, whether the assets and resources belong to a person or a community, Muslims have the
responsibility to ensure that they are given in control of only those who can ensure their
proper, efficient and responsible usage. After this general direction that applies to orphans as
much as it applies to the custody of assets in general, the next verse lays down the guidelines
for: Assessing if the orphans are ready to take over the charge of their assets; responsible and
reasonable level of spending on their needs from their assets; and, remuneration for the
guardian for the services rendered:

6
And test the orphans until they attain puberty; then if you find in them
maturity of intellect, hand over their property to them, and do not consume it
extravagantly and hastily, in anticipation of their growing up; and whoever is
rich, let him abstain altogether, and whoever is poor, let him take a reasonable
remuneration; then when you hand over to them their assets, do it in front of
witnesses; and Allaah is enough as a Reckoner.

The intent is that the orphans should be given the charge of their assets or properties as soon as
they are ready to handle them properly. For that purpose, when they approach puberty, the
guardian should start giving them some small responsibilities to test if they can handle them
well. They should be trained by increasing the level of their responsibilities as they mature,
giving them full charge when they are ready. Until they are given the charge, their assets must
be conserved and preserved prudently.
The next section deals with matters relating to inheritance. It starts with taking a revolutionary
step by granting women a legitimate share in inheritance, unheard of in any religious literature
and 1,400 hundred years ahead of any secular law. It obligates that regardless of how little the
quantity or value of the assets left by the deceased is, it must be distributed among all male and
female heirs according to the prescribed portions. However, heirs should be kind and charitable
to the poor, orphans and relatives who may be present at the time of distribution, but are not
eligible for inheritance. Then, after making emotional appeals and giving serious warnings to
executors to be extremely careful in protecting the interests of the orphans, the detailed rules
for the distribution of inheritance have been given.
7
Men shall have a portion of what the parents and the near relatives leave, and
women shall have a portion of what the parents and the near relatives leave,
whether it is from little or much - a prescribed portion. 8And if at the time of
division, other relatives or orphans or poor are present, give them something
out of it and speak to them politely. 9And let the executors have the same fear
in their minds as they would have for their own children if they had left a
helpless family behind; so they should be careful of their duty to Allaah and
speak right words. 10As for those who swallow the property of the orphans
unjustly, surely they only swallow fire into their bellies and they shall enter
Blazing Fire.
While reading the succeeding verses about inheritance, some facts about the Islamic social and
family set-up must be kept in mind. In the Islamic system, the man has been charged with the
full responsibility for fulfilling the financial needs of the family and maintenance of the
children. Even if a wife is wealthy and has a regular income, the husband remains obligated to
provide for her and their children’s basic needs. She is not required to contribute even a penny,
unless she spends it on her own good pleasure. Similarly, looking after the parents’ needs or
the needs of unmarried (single, widowed or divorced) sisters or daughters is the responsibility
of a man. This burden of responsibility has been kept in mind while prescribing portions of
inheritance.
11
Allaah directs you concerning your children: To a son the equal of the
portion of two daughters; then if there are only two or more daughters, they
shall have two-thirds of what the deceased has left, and if there is one, she shall
have the half. As for his parents, each of them shall have the sixth of what he
has left if he has a child, but if he has no child and only his two parents inherit
him, then his mother shall have the third; but if he has siblings, then his mother
shall have the sixth. The distribution in all aforementioned cases to be after the
payment of any bequest he may have made or a debt. You do not know who of
your parents and your children is the nearer to you in usefulness; these are
prescribed portions ordained by Allaah, Surely Allaah is Knowing, Wise.
12
And to you belongs half of what your wives leave if they have no child, but if
they have a child, then your share shall be a fourth of what they leave after
payment of any bequest they may have made or a debt; and they shall have the
fourth of what you leave if you have no child, but if you have a child, then they
shall get the eighth of what you leave after payment of any bequest you may
have made or a debt. And if a man or a woman leaves property to be inherited
but has neither ascendants nor descendants, but has a half brother6 or a half
sister, then each of the two gets the sixth, but if they are more than two, they
shall be sharers in the third after payment of any bequest that may have been
made or a debt – without jeopardizing anyone’s interest. This is a
commandment from Allaah, and Allaah is Knowing, Forbearing. 13 These are
limits set by Allaah, and whoever obeys Allaah and His Messenger, He will
admit him to gardens beneath which rivers flow, to abide in them forever; and
this is the great success. 14And whoever disobeys Allaah and His Messenger
and transgresses His limits, He will throw him into Fire to dwell in it forever,
and he shall have a humiliating punishment.
This concludes the reforms concerning the division of inheritance, except for one provision
that is given at the end of this soorah.

6
A subsequent revelation of the last verse of this soorah has made this rule applicable to the brother or
sister that has only a mother in common with the deceased.
As is clear from the wording, these are not mere suggestions, but very specific commands to be
followed without any exceptions. No believer has any right to change the portions for anyone
mentioned in these verses. These are based on the ultimate knowledge and wisdom of Allaah.
Any variation to these portions or any bequest to give more or less to anyone named in these
verses is tantamount to improving upon Allaah’s decision. In an Islamic society, such a legacy
would be invalid and considered a serious disobedience of Allaah’s commands that would
invoke a severe humiliating punishment from Allaah forever in the Hereafter.

Giving undue importance to one’s desires leads people to undertake inappropriate practices in
all matters such as those discussed above relative to orphans and inheritance. The same attitude
also leads to irresponsible sexual behaviour. The next section introduces preliminary reforms
regarding sexual and marital affairs.

Arabian society was not accustomed to any organized government or law and order
enforcement authority. Keeping in line with the Islamic approach of bringing desired changes
in an evolutionary process, verses 15 and 16 give a provisional penalty against promiscuous
people. This is followed by a description of the proper way of repenting from the sinful
behaviour.

15
If any of your women are guilty of illegitimate sexual conduct (with non-
Muslims), seek the evidence of four witnesses from among you7 against them;
and if they testify, confine them to houses until death takes them away or
Allaah opens some way for them. 16 And if two from among you are guilty of
illegitimate sexual conduct, give them both a punishment; then if they repent
and reform, leave them alone; surely Allaah is ever Accepting of repentance,
the Merciful8. 17 Acceptance of repentance is incumbent on Allaah only for
those who do wrong in ignorance or lapse in judgment, then repent as soon as
they realize their mistake; so it is they from whom Allaah accepts the
repentance, and Allaah is ever Knowing, Wise. 18 But repentance is not for
those who continue doing ill-deeds until when death comes to one of them, he
says, "Now I repent indeed;” nor for those who die while they are unbelievers.
These are they for whom We have prepared a painful punishment.

In the non-Islamic world, women were treated as inheritable property. After the death of a
man, his heirs controlled the lives of his wives. The most heinous of these was a practice of
some people, where the eldest son could select any of his deceased father’s wives to be his
wives. Islam restored their freedom and gave them the right to leave the family of the deceased

7
Members of your community, i.e., Muslims.
8
The difference in the two situations mentioned in these two verses is that the first one talks about
women who are under Islamic jurisdiction while their partners in crime, being non-Muslim, are not. The
second verse describes the situation where both parties to the crime belong to the Muslim community
and, thus, are under Islamic jurisdiction.
after the period of ‘Iddah9, to live wherever they wanted and to marry whomever they wanted.
It also forbade marrying one’s stepmothers. The next verse puts an end to these practices and
then it continues along with the subsequent two verses to educate and command people to
handle marital and separation issues pragmatically and graciously.

19
O believers! It is illegal for you to inherit women forcibly; and do not abuse
them emotionally in order that you may get away with a part of what you have
given them, unless they are guilty of flagrant lewdness, and live with them
nicely; even if you dislike them, it may be that you dislike a thing while Allaah
has placed abundant good in it. 20 However, if you intend to replace one wife
with another and you have given one of them a whole treasure for mahr, then
do not take back anything from it. Would you take it by slandering her and
through blatant injustice? 21 And how can you take it when you have been
exposed to each other and they had taken from you a firm covenant10? 22And do
not marry women whom your fathers married, except what has already passed;
this surely is lewd and odious, and it is an evil way.

The reader should note that Islam places a very high value on and gives utmost sanctity to the
covenant of marriage. To underscore its significance and sanctity, it requires that a husband
must pay some consideration for the contract of marriage to his wife. This consideration should
be according to his standard of living and financial means but valuable enough to be acceptable
to the wife. It is in exchange of this covenant and valuable consideration for the covenant that
she dedicates herself to her husband.

Islam also recognizes that sometimes a marriage may not work. In that case, it allows divorce;
but it requires that if the husband initiates the separation, he has no right to take back any
portion of the mahr given in consideration for a lifelong relationship, regardless of how much it
was. It must, however, be remembered that the permission to divorce and replace a wife should
not be misused to feed the lust for newness. The Messenger of Allaah said, “Of all the allowed
acts, divorce is the most disliked by Allaah.” He also said, “Marry, but do not divorce! Indeed
Allaah hates those males and females who keep changing their partners.”

The verses that follow give a detailed list of women that a man cannot marry. Marrying any of
those women will be considered incest and, as such, a serious crime.
23
Forbidden to you are:

your mothers11,

your daughters12,
9
A compulsory waiting period of four months and ten days before a woman can remarry after the death
of her husband.
10
The contract of marriage for a lifelong relationship further reinforced by the payment of mahr.
11
All biological mothers and grand mothers.
12
All biological daughters and grand daughters.
 your sisters13,




your paternal aunts,
your maternal aunts14,




brothers' daughters,


sisters' daughters,
your foster-mothers that have suckled you15,


your foster-sisters16,




mothers of your wives,
your step-daughters under your guardianship17 from your wives


unto whom you have gone in -- but if you divorce them without
going into them, marrying their daughters will not be a sin,

the wives of your sons who are from your own loins18,

being married to two sisters at the same time;
except what has already passed; surely Allaah is Forgiving, Merciful.
24
Also forbidden are all married women except those you own from un-
exchanged prisoners of war. The prohibition of all the aforementioned women
is Allaah’s decree upon you. All women beyond them are lawful for you,
provided that you seek them with your assets (mahr) fortified through
marriage19, not promiscuously20. So for your enjoyment from them, give them
their recompense (mahr) as an obligation; and there is no harm in giving what
you mutually agree beyond the obligation; surely Allaah is Knowing, Wise.

Some points about the mention of un-exchanged prisoners of war in this verse should be
clarified. The literal translation of the words used here is “what your right hands own”, which
in Arabic idiom simply means “the slaves you own”. Since all other forms of bringing people

13
Including half sisters.
14
Including stepsiblings of your parents.
15
A foster relationship, in Islamic sense, is established only if a child is breast fed by a woman. Once that
bond is created, the woman and her husband are treated like biological parents. Hence the sisters of foster
parents also become forbidden.
16
Biological daughters of foster parents.
17
This does not have to be formal or actual guardianship. It only refers to the fiduciary relationship
established through consummating a conjugal relationship with a girl’s mother.
18
Excludes adopted sons, but includes grandsons.
19
Fortification refers to the nature of the marital relationship that it must be a stable, lifelong
commitment of both spouses where the woman is then exclusively reserved for the husband and is
protected from being touched by any other man.
20
The Arabic word used here comes from “safaha” which literally means letting some fluid discharge or
flow. It has been used to indicate a relationship where the intent is not a stable, lifelong relationship, but a
casual one for a temporary gratification of sexual desires.
under the yoke of slavery were banned in Islam, the only married women that could become
slaves were the un-exchanged prisoners of war. That is why the full explanatory phrase “you
own from un-exchanged prisoners of war” has been used in conveying the proper meaning
instead of “the slaves you own.”

When enemy combatants are taken as prisoners, their marriages to the spouses left in the
enemy territory are considered null and void, hence the exception to prohibition mentioned
about married women. The following paragraphs provide the perspective for this exception.

In all non-Islamic societies until recently, prisoners of war used to be enslaved. In fact, for the
greed of having more slaves, the armies used to capture as many enemy soldiers and even
civilians, as possible. It is only for the past two hundred years that the rules of exchange of
prisoners have been put in place. Even now, despite recent international agreements and
conventions, prisoners of war are kept in concentration camps and special jails where they are
often brutally tortured, humiliated and even sexually abused. Even those who claim to be
civilized prove to be worse than barbarians in their savage treatment of the prisoners of war.
The savagery and cruelty inflicted on prisoners is widespread whether they are American and
British (Protestant, Anglican and Catholic) Christians handling prisoners in Guantanamo Bay,
in Afghanistan and in Iraq; Israeli Jews in Palestine, Indian Hindus in Kashmir; Serb and
Russian Orthodox Christians in Bosnia, Kosovo and Chechnya; or Nazis of Germany; or their
puppets in Muslim world.

In the whole human history, the Islamic state of Madeenah is the only shining example where
the prisoners were accorded respect, dignity and compassionate treatment. The Qur-aan
commanded that the prisoner be treated in the best manner, freed in exchange of Muslim
prisoners or money, and when advisable, be freed as a gesture of goodwill and favour. In
addition, unlike non-Muslims’ effort to capture as many people as possible to enslave them,
Muslims were taught to be extremely careful to capture only those males and females who
were part of the army or involved in hostile action. As a result of these teachings, Muslims’
dealings with prisoners were phenomenal. For example, when Makkans attacked the Islamic
state of Madeenah with the intention of exterminating Muslims in the battle of Badr, seventy of
the invaders were captured as prisoners. Many of them were released in exchange for some
money, many were released in exchange for teaching illiterate of the Muslims to read and
write, while some of them were freed as a favour. Before their freedom, each prisoner was
assigned to a family in Madeenah to take care of him. Muslims were told by the Prophet to be
nice to their prisoners. Obeying the Prophet, Muslims treated them so well that when they did
not have enough food, they fed their prisoners and remained hungry themselves; or when they
had only a little food, they gave the prisoner the better food and ate the inferior food
themselves. When the prisoners were initially brought from the battlefield in the evening of the
day of the battle, the Prophet could not sleep when he realized that some of the prisoners were
tied too tight. He came out, ordered that their ties be loosened, and went back to sleep only
when he was satisfied that the prisoners were comfortable enough to sleep.

Despite the reforms that Islam introduced for the welfare of prisoners of war, some things
could not be implemented without the cooperation of the enemies of Islam. For example, the
Prophet favoured prisoners on multiple occasions by freeing them as an act of kindness,
especially when there were no Muslim prisoners to be exchanged and when he felt that his
kindness was to be appreciated by the freed prisoner or his family and it would keep them from
waging unjustified attacks on Muslims in future. But this was not the right thing to do if the
enemies took Muslim prisoners, enslaved them and were not willing to exchange them. In that
case, Muslims had no choice but to retain the enemy prisoners, until either the combating
parties agreed for an exchange or all the enemies were conquered and no opposition was left
against Islam. In such instances, the prisoners of war were distributed among the members of
the Muslim army as their slaves as per the existing practice of the society. Even in this
situation, these prisoners were a lot better off than being put in concentrations camps, not
having any chance either to go back to their homes or to become part of the society where they
were retained. Distribution as slaves gave their owners the right to benefit from their physical
labour. The owners of female slaves also had the right to conjugal relations. These two rights
put many obligations on the Muslims they owed to their captives. They were to be treated in
the best and kindest manner as dictated by the teachings of the Qur-aan and Sunnah, and being
fed and clothed as the members of the family were fed and clothed. They were also eligible for
all concessions granted by Islam to slaves to secure their freedom in due process.
Unfortunately, Muslim captives did not enjoy the same kind of rights from their non-Muslims
captors.

This living with Muslims as part of their families gave the prisoners a chance to observe and
learn the Islamic behaviour and the Islamic cultural practices of the society, thus slowly
becoming part of the society. It provided them a chance for healing that took away their
hostilities for which they had decided to fight against Muslims. Whether they chose to accept
Islam or not, was completely up to them, but the assimilation and reconciliation into the
society happened as a natural process instead of them being ghettoized or isolated in prisoner
of war/concentration camps.

The permissibility of women other than those specifically prohibited has been subjected to two
provisos: Firstly, the relationship must be intended to be stable, characterized by lifelong
commitment and protecting the woman from the touch of any man than other her husband.
Secondly, seriousness of the commitment must be demonstrated on the man’s part by the
payment of mahr, which must be paid as an inviolable obligation. However, young men may
not have adequate resources to pay the level of mahr that will be fitting for marrying the girls
accustomed to a higher standard of living. This situation has been used to introduce another
profound reform in the society. During those days, no free man could ever fathom the idea of
marrying a slave girl. Although slave girls were sexually exploited and used for entertainment
and prostitution, yet marrying them was unthinkable. The Qur-aan initiated a change in their
outlook by pointing out that all human beings are from one another, hence equal. There is
nothing wrong with them as human beings; especially the believers among them are, because
of their faith, superior to any non-Muslim free women. So, the young men should marry them
with the permission of their guardians; however, the marriage to them should have the same
level of commitment and sanctity as a marriage to a free woman. Thus, all Islamic injunctions
about marital relationship such as paying mahr or making a lifelong commitment must be fully
observed. This suggestion had far-reaching implications:

The purity of society was ensured because the young men had a way to marry early
instead of waiting to be well established financially;

Beyond the advice and education, status of slaves was practically elevated through
making them an equal partner in marriage and establishing family relationships
through marriage. The entrenched idea of their inferiority was broken;

The children from such marriage were automatically considered free people, thus
breaking the cycle of slaves producing slaves;

Slave girls were given a chance to raise their self-esteem, self-respect and status so
that they can start taking charge and responsibility of their behaviour.

However, until their full development in taking responsibility of their behaviour, they were
treated leniently in case of promiscuous sexual behaviour, thus giving due consideration to the
existing behaviour to which slave girls were conditioned. Despite the good objective, there was
also a chance of conflict arising between the owner and the husband in some matters; hence
people were cautioned about these dangers as well.

25
And whoever among you cannot afford to marry free believing women, then
he may marry any of your believing girls from among those whom your right
hands possess; and Allaah knows your faith best; you are from one another; so
marry them with the permission of their guardians, and give them their mahr
according to what is considered reasonable, so that they come into a
matrimonial fortification, not promiscuous, nor involved in secret affairs; when
they have come into the matrimonial fortification, then if they are guilty of
lewdness, they shall suffer half the punishment prescribed for free women.
This permission to marry is for him among you who fears falling into evil; and
it is better for you that you abstain, and Allaah is Forgiving, Merciful.

The next three verses concisely comment on the intent of these reforms, on the intense
propaganda from various non-Muslim groups against these reforms and on the fact that
Allaah’s commands give due consideration to human weaknesses.

26
Allaah intends to clearly relate to you and to guide you to the ways of
Muslims before you, and to turn to you in mercy; and Allaah is Knowing,
Wise. 27 And Allaah does wish to turn to you in mercy, and those who follow
their lusts want you to go tremendously astray. 28 Allaah desires to lighten your
burdens, considering that man was created weak.

On the one hand, Islamic reforms were under attack from those whose lusts and carnal desires
were being restricted by these reforms. Muslims are being reminded that these restrictions and
limits are not meant to curtail your pleasures in this life; rather they are a great mercy from
Allaah because they lead to a balanced, equitable and fair society where the whole society
would enjoy its benefits. On the other hand, there were those extremist Jews who had imposed
many self-inflicted restrictions on themselves that were not from the teachings of the prophets
and messengers. They were upset that many of those artificial burdens that they considered
their legacies and traditions were being removed by Islam. They are being told that Allaah does
not want to load people with unnecessary burdens; rather He knows their weaknesses and puts
only the burden they can carry. Between the extremes, the commands of Allaah help people
attain the right balance that will make them succeed in establishing the society of peace and
justice for all. These moderate and balanced teachings are not new; rather they are the same
Islamic teachings that were taught to earlier Muslims and they are the true legacies and
traditions of the previous prophets and messengers.

After this brief comment, the reformation of the society continues in the succeeding verses.
The next verse promulgates the sanctity and protection of the assets and life of the members of
the community. There is a close relationship between the two. Usually people’s greed to
acquire other’s assets unjustly leads to bloodshed as well.

29
O believers! Do not acquire one another’s assets wrongly; the right way of
acquisition is through a business transaction transacted by your mutual
consent; and do not kill one another; verily Allaah is ever Merciful to you. 30
Whoever does that in violation of others’ rights and unjustly, We will throw
him into the Fire; and that is ever easy for Allaah. 31 If you avoid major things
from which you are forbidden, We will ignore your small mistakes and admit
you to the place of honour.

Mutual consent is a critical factor in determining the legitimacy of the acquisition of someone
else’s assets or property. It is a consent that is given happily, freely and under full disclosure,
being free from coercion, pressure, undue influence, deceit, false pretence or trickery of any
kind. It is indeed the mercy of Allaah SWT that He guides people to avoid such behaviour that
is destructive to the individuals’ and society’s peace. It is also due to His absolute mercy
towards the general public and the victims of crimes that He has taken it upon Himself to do
ultimate justice to everyone here and in the hereafter. On the other hand, He mercifully warns
the perpetrators repeatedly of severe punishment so that they can save themselves from it by
avoiding criminal behaviour. Another aspect of His mercy is that He recognizes human
weakness and ignores small mistakes that people make if they do their best to avoid major
transgressions such as those mentioned in this verse.

In the next verse, the attention turns towards guiding people about where they should compete
with others and where they should accept the realities of life as given. Not keeping this
difference in mind makes many people frustrated, unhappy, jealous, whiney, feeling sorry for
themselves and feeling helpless; while understanding this difference helps people realize their
full potential. The negative feelings and emotions created by this faulty understanding may
sometimes lead people into crimes against other’s wealth and life. For a healthy society, it is
essential that people understand their opportunities and limitations so as to channel their
energies where they themselves, and their societies in turn, will benefit the most.

32
And do not long for that which Allaah has bestowed some of you more than
others; men shall have the credit for what they earn and women shall have the
credit for what they earn; and ask Allaah of His favour; certainly, Allaah
knows all things.
There are many, many things in life that are beyond a person’s control. That includes the
physical attributes with which we are born, the kind of family or society in which we are born,
the opportunities that may or may not be available to us, and the circumstance in which we find
ourselves at various junctures in life. For example, a person may be good-looking or average,
strong or weak, able-bodied or handicapped, born in a rich family or a slum, etc. These are
things beyond our control. No one should be judged on the basis of these things; nor should a
person feel hampered or held back because of these matters. Despite these differences, we
human beings are all equal in our rights and obligations. Although these are given realities of
our life about which we cannot do anything, we do have full control over the way we respond
or react to those matters, circumstances and limitations. Whatever the circumstances or
limitations that nature has put us in, we have personal authority over the attitudes we adopt,
choices we make and the actions we take. The test for which we have been put in this world is
how well we perform in our reactions, responses, attitudes, choices and actions – all those
things that are in our control. These attitudes and behaviours must be the only things on the
basis of which people are ranked or judged; and they are the only criteria by which Allaah
SWT will judge everyone. Thus, for the purpose of our ultimate success or failure, the things
that are beyond our control are totally irrelevant. These are temporary test situations of this
world. If we react and behave in the best Islamic manner regardless of the kind of
circumstances in which we find ourselves, we will have the best and the most perfect life in the
Hereafter – free of weaknesses or limitations -- forever. On the other hand, if our actions,
attitudes or responses are not right, regardless of how good everything that we have in this
world is, we will utterly fail in the life hereafter. Hence, prudence requires that all our efforts,
attention and energies should be focused on the best performance in whatever given
circumstance in which we find ourselves, not wasting even a breath to complain about the
circumstances themselves or what we do not have or being envious of what others have. Those
who do not understand this concept properly usually waste much of their time and energy
worrying about things out of their control, rather than focusing on their performance in the
matters under their control.

One area where making this distinction can help a lot is relating to gender issues. The given
reality is that both genders have been naturally equipped with different biological and
psychological attributes. These different attributes give each gender different sets of strengths
and opportunities as well as impose different sets of limitations, making them best suited for
totally different roles in life. Difference of roles does not make them unequal. They remain
equal while playing their different roles and having different physical attributes. Neither of the
roles is better or worse. What really matters is not their natural differences but their
performance in their best suited roles and their use of their given natural differences in the best
possible manner. However, some people confuse equality with sameness, and then try to make
both genders the same in their activities and roles to create this confused concept of equality.
This verse advises people to ignore the difference in the attributes and matters that are out of
one’s control, and rather focus on performing to the best standards in any given circumstances
and situations in which a person may find himself or herself. Their personal performance is the
only thing that determines their portion that they have earned for themselves. Thus, that is the
area where every male and female should focus their energies and time to excel in and that is
for what they should ask Allaah’s help and favours.
The next verse reinforces the inviolability of divinely specified shares of inheritance for both
male and female heirs of the deceased, and also encourages people to honour their obligations
to those who are not heirs. There may be people or organizations that a person may want to
support from his or her assets. The law of inheritance does not stop anyone from fulfilling their
social responsibilities and honouring their commitments. People can fulfill these obligations by
giving out during their life or they can do so through bequeathing up to 1/3 of their assets in
favour of anyone who is not included in the law of inheritance, ensuring that at least 2/3 is left
to be distributed according to the law of inheritance given earlier in this soorah. The emphasis
on proper distribution of inheritance and also encouraging people to give to and bequeath for
their social obligations to others in the society is another way to stop the concentration of
wealth that creates a dialectic conflict between the haves and have-nots.
33
From what parents and near relatives leave, We have specified heirs for
everyone; however, you should give those their due portion to whom you have
made firm pledges; surely Allaah is a witness over all things.
After re-emphasizing the distribution of inheritance and the fulfilling of obligations to avoid
concentration of wealth in fewer hands, the attention resumes towards one of the most
important areas where naturally occurring differences are not properly considered -- gender
relations and marital roles.

For any organizational unit, there must be a leader who leads the units to fulfill its objectives.
Regardless of the process used in arriving at decisions in the unit or the management style used
by the leader, there is no question that a single leader must head the unit if it is to function
properly, effectively and efficiently. It is true whether it is a matter of running a ship, flying a
plane, managing an organization or running a democratic community.

Islam requires that believers must be an organized community that is headed by a leader
(ameer) and wherein decisions are made by a consultative and participative process called
shoora. Islam considers the family the smallest unit of the Muslim community which must also
be duly led by the family leader who conducts the affairs of the family by means of a shoora
process, using all the best management practices such as empowerment, positive
reinforcements, respect and appreciation of differing views, etc. The question is who should be
the family leader: wife or husband? It cannot be both, because dual leadership does not work in
any organizational unit. That is why we never have two presidents, two prime-ministers, two
captains, etc. Islam decrees that the family leadership belongs to the husband/father for two
reasons: he is better suited for that role and he earns it by paying mahr and by taking full
responsibility of fulfilling the financial needs of the family.

A leader cannot be effective in his role unless he has some kind of power or authority to take
disciplinary action if faced with rebellion, insubordination, defiance or intransigence. Having
power does not mean that the power is to be exercised for the sake of exercising it. It is there
so that if a corrective action is ever needed or warranted, the authority to use it is available.
Obviously, difference of opinion, human errors, or random occurrence of improper behaviour
cannot and do not warrant any disciplinary action. The disciplinary action is warranted only
when there is a pattern of insubordination or defiance in some serious matters and when lack of
correction is going to result in major problems. It must also be understood that corrective
action starts with a frank discussion of the problem and then escalates only in situations where
an earlier step did not result in problem resolution. These matters are the focus of the ensuing
verses.
34
Men are in charge, protectors and maintainers of women: because Allaah has
made each gender more suited for different roles than the other; and because
men spend out of their assets; the good women are therefore obedient,
guarding in their husband’s absence as Allaah has guarded. As for those from
whom you fear defiance, advise and admonish them; if it does not work in due
time, then isolate them in beds; if that fails over a reasonable time, then spank
them (as a last resort). When, at any point, they return to obedience, do not
seek a way against them; Allaah is indeed the Most High, the Most Great. 35
And if you fear discord between the two, then appoint an arbiter from his
family and an arbiter from her family; if they both desire agreement, Allaah
will facilitate harmony between them, surely Allaah is All-Knowing, Well-
Aware.
Keep in mind that the verdicts of the Qur-aan are designed to provide balanced, pragmatic and
practical solutions for the entire globe and for all societies of all times, not for some ideologues
of a particular time or phase of human history who are preoccupied with extreme tendencies on
one aspect of a single issue. According to Allaah’s ultimate knowledge of human nature, the
interest of human society in general and the health and betterment of a family in particular are
best served over the long run if men assume the leadership role in the family. Allaah SWT has
given two reasons for men to lead their family: firstly, although both genders have different
strengths for different roles, men are more suited for the demands of this role and they are
better equipped by their physical and psychological nature; secondly, they have earned this
right by taking over the total responsibility for the family finances and by paying mahr to the
wife for it.

The obedience of women to the leadership of men is subject to the obedience to Allaah SWT,
which takes precedence without exception. She cannot and must not obey any instruction from
him that violates Islamic teachings. Wives are also expected to guard the secrets of their
marital life, protect their chastity and conserve the assets and property of their husbands,
especially when her husband is not at home or even if he will not find out21. This is what
Allaah wants women to protect under His watch and protection.

To those who have witnessed or heard about spousal abuse in non-Muslim families and non-
practising Muslim families, it may seem odd that spanking or corporal punishment is even
mentioned as a last resort; but that kind of surprise occurs for the lack of proper perspective.
This deliberate and calm spanking to correct a severe case of immoral or rebellious behaviour
must not be confused with abuse that takes place when the abuser cannot control his hands

21
This message has also been conveyed in a hadeeth. The Prophet said, “The best wife is she who pleases
you when you see her, obeys you when you instruct her and protects your assets and herself when you are
not at home.”
because of the lack of skills in anger management, alcohol consumption or drug abuse. The
punishment mentioned here is a correctional practice to be used in very exceptional cases when
everything else has failed, before the family unit is broken by divorce. When used, it must be
so light that it does not show any effect on the skin, it must not inflict any injury whatsoever, it
must not be on the face, etc. In that way, it is more of a gesture for conveying the gravity of the
issue rather than an exercise to inflict pain.

Stability of marriage and smooth running of a family is such an important matter for the sake
of children and overall health of the society, that it warrants this exceptional measure before
the family breaks up. If the behaviour of the woman is causing the rift and the divorce is
allowed without exhausting all means and without correcting her attitude, she will tend to
repeat same scenario will be repeated in the next marriage. If it is used inappropriately,
excessively or harshly, then the husband is reminded of the justice and punishment of the
Greatest of the great and Highest of the high. This reminder about Allaah’s greatness is enough
to send chills through a believer’s spine before he lifts a finger unduly on a woman. In
addition, believers are properly educated by the advice and reminders from the Prophet, such
as: “The best of you are those who are the best to your families, and I am the best to my
family.” That is why, unlike the non-Muslim environment around Muslims, the Muslim
households were free from wife abuse. And until this day, those Muslims who understand
Islam properly and practice it, their families have a peaceful environment at home and their
household are free from spousal abuse. Abuse cases usually happen in non-Muslim households
and among those Muslims who do not care about Islamic practices or misuse the religion.

If one use of this last step does not produce any change in attitude, the matter calls for outside
help. In that case, arbiters should be appointed to resolve the dispute or conflict, which should
work if both spouses and both arbiters are really sincere in making the marriage work. If the
situation does not improve after such a measure, divorce is the only recourse left.

A pertinent question that has not been answered is: What happens if the husband is the problem
and needs the correctional measure, not the wife. This has been dealt with later on in this
soorah, and will be discussed at that time.

It was mentioned earlier that the objective of Islamic teachings is to help people attain
excellence in the individual and community life. The next section of verses constitutes the
concluding part for the reformation measures taken thus far and focuses on that very objective
of bringing excellence in the life and behaviour of believers. When the objective is clear,
people can easily check their own attitude and behaviour from time to time to ensure that they
are on track to attain the desired excellence. Such reminders help them to make the right
decisions – beyond any legal pronouncements made by the Qur-aan – and to do the right things
to create the ideal society that ensures peace, fairness, security and dignity for every human
being.

36
Obey Allaah completely like slaves; do not practice Shirk22 by including
anyone or anything else than Him in your obedience to Him; and excel in your

22
Shirk is giving any person, thing, desire or motive an importance, reverence, dedication or priority the
same as, or more than, that given to Allaah and His pleasure.
dealings with parents, the near relatives, the orphans, the needy, the neighbour
who is related, the neighbour who is stranger, the companion23 or person next
to you24, a traveller, and those whom your right hands possess; certainly Allaah
does not like those who are proud, boastful: –
37
Those who are miserly, advise people to be miser and hide what
Allaah has given them out of His grace; and We have prepared for such
unbelievers a disgraceful punishment; and,
38
Those who spend their money in charity for showing off to people
and do not believe in Allaah nor in the last day; the fact is that he for
whom Shayŧaan is the companion has a dreadful companion!
39
What problem was it for them if they had believed in Allaah and the last day
and given charity from what Allaah had bestowed upon them? And Allaah ever
knows them well. 40Indeed Allaah does not do injustice at all, even a tiny bit
like an atom’s weight; on the other hand, if it is a sincere good deed, He
multiplies it and gives from Himself a great reward.

Being kind or good and excelling in dealings has two aspects, both of which are intended here:
Kindness and excellence in social interaction as well as in caring for financial or physical
needs, as the case may be. All dealings should be with humility, not arrogance and with
generosity, not stinginess or selfishness. Many who are selfish and niggardly themselves try to
advise others, “in their best interest”, to be the same way. Often the motivation is so that they
do not look bad in front of others or feel guilty in their own self. They also try to hide their
wealth and pretend that they are under financial pressure or difficulty themselves, as if they
want to help out but cannot.

Then, there are those who spend but as a public relations exercise for their own glory and
fame, not for the pleasure of Allaah. There are two problems with this attitude of showing off.
Firstly when the motive for giving becomes personal glory, a person gives only when he sees
that he will be able to get personal mileage out of it, not because of the genuineness, legitimacy
and intensity of the need. Thus, some genuine cases may be ignored because of the lack of
opportunity for publicity, while unnecessary cases may be financed because of the personal
benefit that could be derived. Secondly and most importantly, Allaah SWT likes that people
should do good deeds only for His pleasure, not for any other ulterior motive. This motive for
spending for personal fame and glory is from Shayŧaan25. Often, when Shayŧaan realizes that a
person is going to share his wealth with others, he tries to spoil it by inciting the person to
include his personal interest as well, instead of doing it purely for the pleasure of Allaah. Even
if the pleasure of Allaah is one of the motives, any other motive mixed with it makes it Shirk or
equating others with Allaah. All such spending is useless from the hereafter perspective
because there is no reward for it. Its reward is the fame the giver got for giving it. He got what

23
Friend
24
Any person who happens to be next to you on the bus, train, shopping centre, station, etc.
25
Satan
he intended, leaving nothing for the hereafter. However, if giving is done purely for Allaah’s
sake, it is rewarded exceedingly and in many multiples according to the sincerity of the giver.

The reforms promulgated in this soorah are not something that people can take lightly. Those
who do not act upon these reforms fully, willingly and wholeheartedly, or those who listen and
ignore them or those who oppose them are going to be in deep trouble on the Day of Judgment.
On that day, the Prophets will give witness that they not only delivered the message but also
demonstrated it through their actions and showed the blessings of these teachings through the
community they established based on those principles. The opponents of this mission or those
who ignore these revelations are only harming themselves.

41
How will it be, then (on the Day of Judgment), when We bring from every
ummah26 a witness and bring you (O Muhammad) as a witness against these? 42
On that day, those who disbelieve and disobey the Messenger will wish that the
earth were levelled with them in it; and they shall not be able to hide any
matter from Allaah.

27 28
The previous verses indicated that the Shirk and Riyaa invalidate any act of obedience to and worship
of Allaah as well as any act of kindness or charity. One of the major acts of obedience to Allaah is
29
establishing Ŝalaah . There are some additional things that may affect the validity of Ŝalaah. The next
verse clarifies those matters.

43
O believers! Do not approach Ŝalaah and place of Ŝalaah when you are
intoxicated until you know what you utter, nor when you are in a state of
Janaabah30 -- except when you are just passing through -- until you have
washed your whole body. However, if you are sick or on a journey, or one of
you has answered the call of nature or you have had sexual contact with
women and you do not find any water, then perform Tayammum31 by seeking
good, clean earth and wiping therewith over your faces and your hands. Surely
Allaah is ever Pardoning, Forgiving.

26
A community or society of people to which a prophet or messenger is sent.
27
Equating others with Allaah or including others in matters of obedience to Allaah
28
Showing off to people
29
Ŝalaah is one of the most important acts of worship. It is performed five times a day. It consists of
glorification of Allaah, recitation of the Qur-aan, physical movements and supplications. There being no
English equivalent, many people translate it as “prayer”, which is misleading. We prefer to keep it as
Ŝalaah.
30
Ceremonial impurity caused by a sexual discharge, intercourse, menstruation, etc.
31
Ceremonial cleaning or ablution is performed with water. Tayammum is an alternate way of
ceremonial cleaning in situations mentioned in the verse.
In Arabic, sometimes a word is used to describe both an action and its place of occurrence.
Such dual use is indicated by context. Here Ŝalaah has been used for both purposes32.

An intoxicated person may not realize what he or she is uttering. People were thus prohibited
from performing Ŝalaah or going to the place of Ŝalaah (such as masjid) until they are sober
enough to be conscious of the words they utter. This was the second evolutionary command in
this regard. Later on, use of any intoxicating substance was completely banned.

This verse allows Tayammum as an alternative to both Wudhoo33 and Ghusl34. Tayammum is
done by striking one’s hands on some clean earthly element such as soil, sand, talc, etc. and
then wiping over one’s face and then over hands and forearms. For those who are sick or
travelling, if Wudhoo or Ghusl causes unusual hardship, difficulty or problem, they can use
Tayammum even when water is available. When water is not available, everyone who needs to
perform Wudhoo or Ghusl can resort to Tayammum. This is a concession from the mercy of
Allaah SWT. It is a symbolic ritual of purity and cleanliness that cleanses people
psychologically and keeps their sensitivity to uncleanliness alive and reinforced in their minds,
when physically it is problematic to attain it by proper washing. Then, when the problematic
situation is passed and normalcy is resumed, Ghusl or Wudhoo, as the case may be, becomes
mandatory.

The granting of this concession attracted strong criticism from the Jews who had very strict
and burdensome laws in respect of washing requirements in case of ritual uncleanliness.

32
See Taddabbural-Qur-aan by Amin Ahsan Islahi, volume II, page 302, for details in favour of this
opinion.
33
Ceremonial washing or ablution of face, hands and feet and wiping of head.
34
Ceremonial washing of the whole body required in case of sexual penetration, ejaculation,
menstruation or postpartum discharge.
The next section deals with the non-Muslim opposition to the reforms that Islam was
introducing. The strongest opposition came from the Jews of Madeenah. This section mentions
and responds to some of their attitudes, actions and claims.

While reading these verses and the behaviours upon which they comment, one must remember
the objective of including them in the text of the Qur-aan as a book of guidance for all people
of all times. The purpose was not merely to deal with the problems at the time of their
revelations or only to guide the Muslims at that time. It was also to educate the future
generations about the perilous behaviour that people must avoid if they want to earn Allaah’s
favours instead of His curse. This point is extremely important to understand because the
wicked behaviour mentioned in these verses was not a monopoly of the Jews of the time of the
Prophet. When followers of any prophet degenerate, ignore their Book, prefer the expediencies
of the world over the joys of the Aakhirah or abandon the mission of the prophets, they react
and behave exactly as the Jews did at the time of the Prophet. Even in this day and age, there
are plenty of people with Muslim as well as non-Muslim names, playing the same dirty games
against the sincere Muslims who want to revive Islam for the benefit of mankind as the Jews of
that time played against the Prophet.

When the Qur-aan was being revealed, most of the Jews had already lost their way away from
the teachings of the Torah revealed to Prophet Moosa35. When they saw Muslims being
instructed to change their ways from the ways of the society, they intensified their efforts to
cause the reformations to fail. Using their old friendship and relationships with the Muslims of
Madeenah, they started employing different pressure tactics to dissuade their Muslim friends
from accepting the reforms that were being implemented.
44
Did you not see those to whom a portion of the Book has been given, how
they adopt misguidance and seek that you also lose the path? 45 But Allaah
knows your enemies best; and Allaah suffices as a Protector, and Allaah
suffices as a Helper.
The Book here refers to the complete book of guidance that Allaah had preserved to be
revealed to mankind as and when needed. They had only a portion of the Book because of
three factors: Firstly, only the Qur-aan constitutes the Book, out of which whatever was needed
to guide earlier prophets and messengers was revealed to them. So they had only a portion of
The Book until the revelation of the Qur-aan was completed. Secondly, significant parts of
what was revealed from Allaah to the previous prophets and messengers were lost; only a
portion of the original survived in the Old Testament. Thirdly, whatever remained of the
original in the Old Testament was further lost through misinterpretations and ignorance.

Ideally, the Jews, being the people of the Book, should have rejoiced that Allaah had begun
revealing the original and pure revelation that would be completed soon and preserved to guide
them forever. Instead, they became its fierce enemies. They even abandoned civility in their
opposition to the Prophet and the Qur-aan. Following are some of the examples of their crass,
ignorant behaviour:

35
Moses
46
Some of those who have become Jews take words out of their context. In
addition, twisting their tongues and taunting the deen36, they say: “We have
heard and we disobey”, “hear, the unheard” and “Raa’inaa”. It would have
been better for them and more appropriate, had they said: We have heard and
we obey; do hear; and pardon us. But Allaah has cursed them for their
disbelief, so they do not believe but a few.
The true followers of Moosa were Muslims37. Then they deviated from the Islamic path and
created Judaism through their self-devised innovations, heresies and customs. For that reason,
the Qur-aan calls them “those who became Jews” instead of calling them Jews. The verse gives
a glimpse of the behaviour they adopted against the Prophet who was inviting them back to
their original religion – Islam.

First of all, in order to cause misgivings about Islamic teachings and to turn people away from
them, they would play games with the words of the Qur-aan and the Prophet, manipulating the
meaning by taking words out of context, and using the twisted meanings to attack the Prophet
and the Qur-aan.

Then, they used to go to the sittings of the Prophet not to listen, understand, engage in an
honest dialogue or discuss matters sincerely, but to amuse themselves by taunting and saying
words of disrespect. Instead of being civil, polite or genuine, they would twist their tongues
while pronouncing the words of honour and respect in such a way that the meaning would
become derogatory and derisive. Arabs used to show their devotion and respect while listening
to an honourable person by saying, “We listen and we obey”, the Jews would respond to the
Prophet by pronouncing it to sound, “We listen and we disobey”. When Arabs were really
impressed by what they heard, they used to draw everyone’s attention by saying, “Hear what is
seldom heard” or express the speaker’s authoritative, powerful status by saying, “Hear him
who cannot be made to hear”. The Jews would make it taunting to mean, “Hear, O the deaf” or
“Hear the unheard, silly talk.” Similarly, the word Raa’inaa was used to respectfully beg
someone’s pardon if the first utterance was not properly understood. The Jews would say it in a
twisted manner to mean “O our shepherd” or “O arrogant fool”. They found such taunts
amusing, but Allaah told them that, in reality, they were inviting Allaah’s curse on them
because of their disbelief in the Prophet and the Qur-aan.

The next verse warns them to listen and believe in the Qur-aan before it is too late, lest they be
punished severely by Allaah the same way as the violators of Sabbath were punished in the
past.
47
O you who were given the Book! Believe in what We have revealed now,
confirming what you already have, before We efface faces then turn them

36
Deen is a set of paradigms that determines one’s complete lifestyle in all aspects of life. The deen
stands for the complete and holistic Islamic lifestyle
37
Anyone who believes in Allaah and submits to Him in obedience is a Muslim. Hence, from Adam
onwards, all true followers of the prophets and messengers of Allaah were Muslims
backward, or curse them as We cursed the violators of the Sabbath, and the
decision of Allaah is always implemented/acted upon.
The Qur-aan confirms the Old Testament in two ways: Firstly, the Old Testament had foretold
about the advent of the Prophet Muhammad SA‘WS and the revelation of the Qur-aan. The
revelation of the Qur-aan to the Prophet made those predictions come true. Secondly, whatever
little true guidance was left in the Old Testament, the Qur-aan confirmed its authenticity by
presenting the same points in its own words. All corruptions and adulterations to the Bible
remained unconfirmed.

According to the Arabic idiom, when a common noun is used where a proper noun should have
been used, it indicates the intensity of the speaker’s feelings about the object represented by
that noun. Thus, using the word “faces” without qualifying it by “your” indicates extreme
annoyance and dislike for the faces that do not use their God-given faculties to promote the
truth, to accept the revelations of which they were foretold and to support the work that
fulfilled exactly the objectives entrusted to them in the past.

The deen of Allaah centres upon and revolves around Towĥeed38. Shirk is a violation of
Towĥeed and, hence, the gravest crime a human being can commit. Allaah SWT absolutely
does not tolerate any compromise in this respect. This has been the case since Adam was put
on earth. This point was highly emphasized in the Old Testament and unequivocally re-
emphasized in the Qur-aan; however, when believers become weak in their commitment to
faith or lose the proper understanding of the deen, Shayŧaan succeeds in making them
compromise in this aspect and engage in Shirk. Many indulge in Shirk without realizing it.
They mistakenly think that as long as they are not worshipping idols, they are not committing
Shirk. That was the case with the Jews and that is precisely the case with the majority of
Muslims nowadays. Hence they were reminded:
48
Verily, Allaah does not forgive being partnered with others, while He
forgives whom He pleases for anything else; and whoever partners anything
with Allaah, he surely fabricates a grave sin.

The forgiveness of other sins is not a given, but conditional upon “whom he pleases”. His
pleasure is not based on favouritism or emotions like human beings, but on consistent
principles based on wisdom: sincerity in seeking forgiveness, remorse for the sins committed,
desire to do better, were the sins committed because of slippage at a moment of weakness or
were they committed daringly and rebelliously, etc. Although He is merciful and wants to
forgive those who deserve, he does not want people to sin intentionally and deliberately,
hoping that they will be forgiven.

38
Towĥeed is believing in Allaah as one, unique and the only God Who is absolute and eternal in all His
attributes; accepting Him as the only Master to Whom we must fully submit and obey as slaves and
Whose pleasure we must seek; giving Him the most importance in our life so that our life is Allaah-
centred; making every other being, person, thing, goal, aspiration, desire or priority in our life subservient
and secondary to Allaah and His pleasure; and having full trust in and reliance on Him.
As for Shirk, the Jews were suffering from the following kinds of Shirk, like many of today’s
Muslims:

49
Did you look at those who claim sanctity for themselves? The fact is that
Allaah sanctifies whom He pleases; and they shall not be wronged even a bit.
50
See how they forge a lie against Allaah, and that by itself is a flagrant sin. 51
Just look at them who were given a portion of the Book: they believe in
superstitious things (Jibt) and in the entity that establishes a non-Islamic world
order (Taaghoot); and they say of the pagans, “these are better guided in their
ways than Muslims.” 52 They are those whom Allaah has cursed, and
whomever Allaah curses, you shall not find any helper for him.

Allaah loves those people who dedicate themselves for the two pronged Islamic mission of
Towĥeed: Individually, a lifelong pursuit of Allaah’s pleasure and of personal excellence in all
of one’s affairs and dealings for the sake of Allaah; and, collectively striving for creating and
maintaining the ideal Islamic society of excellence, peace and justice in the world, establishing
the Islamic world order and inviting people to submit themselves in obedience to Allaah. That
has been the mission of all the prophets and messengers of Allaah and their true followers, but
was a hallmark of Prophet Ibraheem39 in particular. Those who work for this mission
wholeheartedly and to the best of their abilities are rewarded by Allaah to be the leaders of
mankind. For being loved by Allaah and being rewarded by the leadership of mankind, they
are regarded as the chosen people of Allaah. This is purely a performance-based designation
that has nothing to do with genealogy, race or group affiliations. Thus, the true followers of
Allaah’s messengers who perform well in carrying out the Islamic mission are Allaah’s
favourites, beloved and chosen people. However, over time, when they abandon the Islamic
mission and neglect the performance of their duties, they continue to assume that they are the
chosen people of Allaah and superior to other people because of their race, religion or
association with a certain group of people. That was, and continues to be, exactly the Jewish
outlook.

In these verses, Allaah SWT is drawing attention to their claim of being Allaah’s favourites or
chosen people on the one hand and their lack of faith in Allaah, their un-Islamic paradigms of
life and their derelict performance towards the Islamic goals of excellence on the other. He
reminds everyone that He is never unjust to anyone. People reap what they sow. If they do not
strive to achieve the individual and collective Islamic goals of excellence for the pleasure of
Allaah, they are not loved but rather are cursed by Allaah. It is Shirk for people to think that
just because they attribute themselves to certain noble personalities, Allaah will favour them
despite their dereliction of Islamic goals and delinquent performance. Anyone who makes such
a claim fabricates a lie against Allaah SWT.

The believers in Towĥeed have full faith and trust in Allaah. They depend on Allaah for
everything. They keep their expectations and hopes only from Allaah. If they need something
they call only upon Allaah for help. After making du‘aa to Allaah, they leave the results to

39
Abraham
Him and accept gladly what comes their way. On the other hand, those of weak faith and
greater love for the carnal desires, instead of depending on Allaah, resort to Jibt (superstitious
things) --- any type of amulets, incantations, omens, horoscope, astrology, numerology,
divination, fortune telling, talisman, charm or conjuration. Any practices of Jibt is a practice of
Shirk because it indicates that people have faith and trust in superstitious things, not solely in
Allaah -- even if it uses sacred texts such as Torah and Qur-aan for its purposes and whether it
is practised by Jews, Muslims or anyone else. The practice of Jibt40 was very prevalent among
the Jews and continues till today. Unfortunately, many Muslims are doing the same.

The third practice of Shirk mentioned in these verses is “believing in taaghoot”. Taaghoot is
any leader, king, ruler, party, parliament, government or institution that establishes, mandates,
promulgates, dictates, rules by, or imposes a law, rule, regulation, system, custom or
convention that is at odds with Allaah’s commands, Islamic system or any of its teachings.
Believers in Allaah are required to establish the law, commands and teachings of Allaah on His
land and deny, reject and resist anything that is contrary to Islamic teachings and provisions. A
person is considered to believe in Ŧaaghoot if he accepts, supports or justifies the rule of
Taaghoot or lives under it without resisting it. Such behaviour is blatant Shirk. The Jews were
committing this Shirk by supporting the status quo and opposing the Islamic movement of the
Prophet to establish Allaah’s system, thus, behaving contrarily to the teachings of Moosa and
the prophets. Now that the Islamic system does not exist anywhere in the world, there are some
legitimate Islamic movements working to re-establish Islamic systems in their lands. Any
Muslims opposing those movements or not supporting them are guilty of the same Shirk for
which Jews are being condemned in these verses.

In addition to practising the three kinds of Shirk mentioned above, the Jews sympathized with
and supported the pagans and idolaters instead of supporting the Muslims – their co-partners in
the Ibraheemic mission. In fact, they would even propagate that pagans and idolaters are better
than Muslims. Unfortunately, many people with Muslim names do the same thing when they
criticize genuine Islamic movements, while praising non-Muslims who work against Islam and
Muslims.

These four Shirk-related practices were so hated by Allaah SWT that He cursed the Jews and
deprived them of His help. Many Muslims today wonder why Allaah does not help them. The
answer is that they will continue to be cursed, rather than being helped, unless they abandon
Jewish behaviour, fully embrace the Islamic mission as was done by the Prophet and dedicate
themselves for attaining both the personal and collective goals of the Islamic mission.

Why would the Jews turn against the mission that was in fact their own mission? The
following are the key reasons and the consequence of their attitude:
53
Or do they have a share in the kingdom of Allaah? If that would be the case,
they would refuse Muslims even a speck of anything. 54 Or are they jealous of
Muslims for what Allaah has given them of His grace? But indeed We have
given to Ibraheem's people the Book and the Wisdom, and We have given
them a grand dominion. 55 Some of them believed in them (the Book and the
40
Cabbala is an example of Jibt.
Wisdom), and some of them turned away from them -- for whom hell is
sufficient to burn. 56 As for those who disbelieve in Our revelations, We shall
soon cast them into fire. As often as their skins are fully roasted, We shall
replace them with fresh skins so that they may taste the torment; surely Allaah
is Mighty, Wise. 57 And those who believe and do good deeds, We shall soon
admit them into Gardens beneath which rivers flow, to abide in them forever.
Therein they shall have purified spouses, and We shall make them enter the
dense shade (of Paradise).
These verses address the key issue that was causing the Jews to oppose Islam, its reforms and
its mission, which in fact was the same mission previously entrusted to them.

The dedication to the Islamic mission was the hallmark of Ibraheem and his two sons. After
their deaths, the responsibility was given to the descendents of Isĥaaq41, who became the Jews.
Because of their continued dismal record of performance and because of their persistent
dereliction of this responsibility, Allaah SWT was extremely angry with them, but He wanted
to give them a last chance of correcting themselves. For that purpose, He sent prophet ‘Eesa42
with extraordinary signs so that the Jews could rally around him and get back on track to fulfill
their mission. By rejecting ‘Eesa and persecuting him, they demonstrated that they were
beyond the point of return. Consequently, the responsibility and the accompanying position of
leadership (being favourite or chosen) was given to the descendents of Ismaa‘eel43 by sending
Prophet Muhammad from the Ishmaelites. At this, the Jews became extremely jealous and
vowed to defeat the mission of Islam instead of joining it and mending their malfunction.

Allaah SWT has responded to them by telling them that the grace of Allaah is bestowed as a
package of three things: the Book, the Wisdom and the leadership of the dominion of the earth.
The leadership or chosen people status is given only to those who excel in performance
according to the Book and the Wisdom working for the Islamic mission to which Ibraheem and
his sons had dedicated their lives. This package of grace has been offered to the progeny of
Ibraheem. It is up to his descendents to join the mission or to oppose it. Their choice will
determine whether they enjoy leadership in this world and the success in the Gardens in the
hereafter or whether they suffer the painful torment in the fire. Neither jealousy nor
complaining will do any good, only excellence in performance will.

For those who want to follow the Book and wisdom since the advent of the Prophet
Muhammad ŝall-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam they must follow the Qur-aan and the Sunnah. The
Book of Allaah is the Qur-aan, which constitutes the Book in totality. The Wisdom is the skill
and finesse taught by Allaah to the Prophet of practising the Book properly in any given
circumstance, situation and stage of the Islamic mission so that Islamic goals are achieved
most effectively and efficiently. The Prophet demonstrated it to Muslims through living by the
Book and through taking the mission practically from start to end until a fully functioning

41
Isaac
42
Jesus
43
Ishmael
Islamic society of peace and justice was established. Using Allaah-given Wisdom, he guided
and led the Muslims in attaining all Islamic goals. His practices and use of Wisdom in
achieving the Islamic objectives is called Sunnah,44 which is, thus, the second source of
guidance for Muslims. The subsequent generations of Muslims learn this wisdom by reflecting
on the Sunnah and Seerah45 of the Prophet as to how he practised the teachings of the Book in
different circumstances, situations and stages of the Islamic movement. Thus, the Book is the
Qur-aan and the Wisdom is the Sunnah, where the Qur-aan is the ultimate authority while
Sunnah, by its nature, is always subservient to and within the limits of the provisions of the
Qur-aan.

The lesson for the Muslims is that they will get their rightful status in this world only if they
dedicate themselves to the Islamic goals and mission according to the Book (the Qur-aan) and
the Wisdom (learnt from Sunnah and Seerah). If they do not perform at the desired level of
dedication to the mission, they will be punished in the same manner. The only way for anyone
to succeed is to make the mission of attaining personal excellence and the establishment of the
ideal Islamic society of peace and justice his or her topmost priority in life.

After responding to the Jews, the Qur-aan turns its attention to the education and training of the
Muslims in the areas where they needed to improve in order to become a well-organized,
cohesive political entity. As they have chosen to be the recipients of Allaah’s grace -- the
Book, the Wisdom and the leadership – they are being taught how to consolidate their
community, manage their affairs and establish justice in the society to fulfill their role as the
leaders of the people. In other words, the fundamental principles of Islamic politics, justice,
decision-making and legislation are being taught to the believers.
58
Verily, Allaah commands you to entrust trusts to the most deserving and that
when you judge between people you judge with justice. Excellent indeed is
what Allaah instructs you. Surely, Allaah is Seeing, Hearing.

Trusts include all obligations people owe to others – whether to Allaah or to people, whether to
family or to strangers, and whether collective obligations or individual. All of these trusts must
be duly afforded to whom they are due, to whom they belong or who deserve them most, as the
case may be. That is the foremost requirement for the establishment of the just society that
Islam purports to establish. However, the most important trust in this context is the one related
to the leadership of the community.

The leadership of the community must be bestowed upon only those who are best suited to
play this role. It includes both religious and political leaderships because such bifurcation does
not exist in Islam. The same leadership must serve both politically and religiously so that the
Imam and the president is one and the same person. The leadership must be elected on the

44
By Sunnah we mean the wisdom, dynamism, style and the methodology that the Prophet ŝall-Allaahu
‘alayhi wa sallam used in establishing Islamic systems to attain justice and peace on earth and in
achieving Islamic goals of individual and collective excellence. It should not be confused with
contemporary misuse of the word, applying it only to some superficial matters of appearance and dress.
45
Life history of the Prophet
basis of profound knowledge of the Book and Wisdom, right paradigms of faith and practice,
correct vision of Islamic goals, capability to strategize the attainment of Islamic goals,
expertise in up-to-date management practices and current sciences and technologies, and
dynamism to adapt to the needs of the time and current situations. Leadership must not be
elected on the basis of relationships, group affiliations, parochial approaches or ethnicity. Care
also must be taken in determining a candidate’s knowledge or Islamic practice. Knowledge
does not mean a degree or certificate from a religious institution and practice doss not mean a
certain kind of appearance. The Jews took this approach to knowledge and practice;
consequently, their narrow-minded leadership caused their failure in performance as a
community and brought Allaah’s curse upon them. The Muslims must learn from the Jews’
mistakes; because if they repeat the same mistakes, they will suffer the same results. They
must entrust leadership to the right kind of people if they want to fare better, attain the Islamic
objectives and accomplish the Islamic mission.

The second important principle is that the Muslims and their leadership, individually and
collectively, must all be dedicated to establishing justice. In some subsequent verses of this
soorah, this aspect has been further elaborated and duly emphasized because establishing peace
and justice on earth is one of the fundamental goals of Islam. The neglect of this duty by the
Jews was one of the reasons for Allaah’s anger upon them. One example of their injustice was
treating the pagans as better than Muslims. Muslims must never be blinded by any prejudices
to treat any group of people unjustly.

The next verse describes the hierarchy of command and the process of decision-making when a
consensus is not immediate.
59
O believers! Obey Allaah and obey the Messenger and those in authority
from among you; then if you differ in anything, refer it to Allaah and the
Messenger, if you believe in Allaah and the last day. That is better and very
good in the end.
An organized people must have leadership that is obeyed. Muslims must obey Allaah SWT
because He is the Creator and Master, and obedience to Him is what makes us Muslims.
Obedience to Allaah means following the teachings of the Book – the Qur-aan, which contains
Allaah’s plan for us, His commands and the objectives that Allaah wants us to achieve.

Allaah also sent a Messenger with the Qur-aan. Muslims must also obey the Messenger of
Allaah because Allaah the Master has commanded us to obey him. The Messenger SA‘WS was
sent to be obeyed as an authority appointed by Allaah. He was taught the Wisdom to execute
Allaah’s plan, to practice what the Qur-aan taught and to achieve the objectives that Allaah
wanted Muslims to achieve and pass that Wisdom on to the Muslims.

Both obedience to Allaah and His Messenger are permanent requirements of the faith for all
Muslims of all times, as commanded in this verse and in many others. This fact has been
expressly indicated by repeating the command “obey” for both Allaah and His Messenger.
During his life, the Messenger ŝall-Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was personally leading the
Muslims to do the right things according to the Book and the Wisdom. After his departure, the
Wisdom is gained through reflections on his Sunnah46 passed to us by the continuous chain of
people exactly copying his practices (transmittal by continuous chain of performance) and by
the authentic reports of his life and his practices (Ĥadeeth47 and Seerah48). Once the guidance
provided by the Messenger of Allaah is known to us through reliable sources, it is incumbent
upon us to obey him. This obedience to Allaah and His Messenger must be willing,
enthusiastic, unconditional and without any reservations.

The third entity to be obeyed is the leadership of the Muslim community. The phrase used here
is plural, “those in authority from among you”, indicating a variety of Muslims in positions of
authority both in different areas of specialty and at different levels of organizational hierarchy.
Although people must obey the Muslims in positions of authority, this obedience is
conditional. People are obeyed only if they do not expressly violate the teachings of the Qur-
aan and Sunnah, continue to work for Islamic objectives and continue to maintain Islamic
political and economic systems on the basis of Ŝalaah and zakaah. If there is a difference of
opinion or dispute, the matter must be referred to the teachings of the Qur-aan and the Sunnah,
which are the final authority. Each proponent must bring the evidence from the Qur-aan and
the Sunnah in support of his opinion. The decision should be based on whatever is more clearly
and more strongly supported by the Qur-aan and the Sunnah. The fact that obedience to
leadership is conditional upon and subservient to the leadership’s obedience to the Qur-aan and
the Sunnah has been indicated by not repeating the command “obey” when it came to the
leadership. Allaah SWT has further clarified it by commanding everyone to refer to Allaah and
His Messenger in case of disputes.

The verse concludes by indicating that adherence to the abovementioned principles is the
proper way of managing community affairs and the attainment of the Islamic objectives.
Indirectly, Muslims are being told that the Jews failed in their mission because they did not
stick with these principles. To ensure attainment of the desired results effectively and
efficiently, Muslims must practice the following:
• uncompromising devotion to the Book and the Wisdom;
• obeying only those who support their verdicts and instructions with the evidence from
the Qur-aan and Sunnah;
• holding leadership accountable to the standards of the Qur-aan and Sunnah; and
• rejecting and non-cooperating with any leadership that does not follow the Qur-aan
and Sunnah.

The next two verses indicate that violating the above-mentioned principles is hypocritical
behaviour, unbecoming of Muslims, but which was being practised by some people who
claimed to be Muslims. In Madeenah, while the Islamic system was being implemented and
established, some people who claimed to be Muslims would use the existing un-Islamic
(usually Jewish) institutions to conduct their affairs instead of referring them to Allaah and His
Messenger, especially when they were expecting an unfavourable decision from the Messenger
of Allaah. Those claimants are being reminded that any legal, social or economic system that is

46
The dynamic style and methodology used by the Prophet in establishing Islamic systems of life and
attaining Islamic objectives
47
The report of the Prophet’s words and actions.
48
The life history of the Prophet.
not based on the teaching of the Qur-aan and Sunnah is an institution of taaghoot. If anyone
seeks to conduct his affairs by using any taaghoot system, he believes in taaghoot and that
cannot coexist with the faith in Allaah. If someone refers to a non-Islamic system while
claiming to be Muslim, he is a hypocrite misled by Shayŧaan, not a real Muslim. Closing this
back door being used by those who did not subscribe to Islamic reforms that had been
introduced so far was extremely important if the reforms were to be properly implemented for
the benefits of the whole society.

Before going further, a clarification is extremely important here. These commands and verses
were given in Madeenah and pertain to a stage in the Islamic movement where Muslims have
base, power and authority to implement the commands of Allaah related to the collective life of
the community. The Muslims living as minorities should not feel awkward about it, though
they must always keep these goals in mind so that once they have the support of the majority of
the society they will be ready to implement these reforms in their country. However, Muslims
living in Muslim-majority countries must seriously note the message of these verses. Given
that their social, political and legal system is based on un-Islamic policies and conventions or
on ignorant customs and traditions of society, if they are not working hard to replace them with
Islamic systems or they are not helping those who are doing so, how would they face Allaah
with all this hypocrisy?
60
Have you not seen those who claim that they believe in what has been
revealed to you and what was revealed before you? They like to go to taaghoot
for judgment of their cases, though they were commanded to reject it. But
Shayŧaan desires to mislead them far astray. 61 And when they are told: Come
to what Allaah has revealed and to the Messenger, you see the hypocrites
avoiding you with aversion.
After clarifying the standards of behaviour expected of the Muslims, the hypocrites have been
warned of the worldly consequence of their behaviour they are going to face, while the
Muslims have been advised on how to handle such people:
62
How it will be then, when they will face difficulties because of their double-
dealing activities that they have been doing? Then, they will come to you
swearing by Allaah: "We meant no more than goodwill and harmony." 63 They
are those of whom Allaah knows what is in their hearts; therefore ignore their
faults, admonish them, and speak to them about their own interest in a way that
reaches their hearts.

Even today, those Muslims who dedicate their energies for Islamic work come across many
duplicitous people with Muslim names who try to play the same game between Islamic
workers and their opponents.
The next two verses clarify the role of the Rasool49, the gravity of the sin of going to taaghoot
for judgment instead of the Messenger of Allaah, importance of obeying him and the kind of
obedience expected of the believers.

Verse 64 warns that the role of a rasool should not be taken lightly, because Allaah Himself
has mandated obedience to the rasool. A person who claims to be a believer but disobeys the
Messenger Sall-Allaahu 'Alayhi Wa Sallam or avoids seeking his verdict is in fact doing wrong
to himself. The only way to have this sin forgiven is coming to the Messenger, accepting his
authority and seeking Allaah’s forgiveness directly as well as through the Messenger SA‘WS.
Even after his death, anyone who rejects or ignores the authentic verdicts of the Prophet
(Sunnah50) in the important matters of deen will fall in this category.

Verse 65 goes even further. With the greatest emphasis, it declares that a person cannot be a
Muslim unless and until he happily and willingly accepts the verdict of the Messenger SA‘WS
without any reservations in any disputed matter. Once again, the scope of this statement was
not in any way limited to the life of the Prophet, but it remains applicable until the Day of
Judgment. For example, if Muslims disagree about the meaning of any words or verses of the
Qur-aan, the pertinent words and actions of the Prophet will be the sole determinant of the real
meaning.
64
The fact is that We did not send any messenger except to be obeyed by
Allaah's permission. And had they, when they had wronged themselves, come
to you and asked forgiveness of Allaah and the Messenger had also asked
forgiveness for them, they would have found Allaah Accepting of repentance,
Merciful. 65 Absolutely not, by your Lord (O Muhammad), they have no faith
until they make you a judge in all disputes among them, and then do not find
any dislike in their hearts as to what you have decided and submit with full
submission.

When a person really and truly accepts Islam, understanding its paradigms correctly, he becomes Allaah-
centred, hereafter-focused and ready to sacrifice everything – wealth, life, relationships, pleasures,
aspirations – in obedience to Him and His Messenger, for His pleasure and success in the hereafter. When
Islam is treated just as utterance of a few words without the accompanying paradigm shift, it results in
hypocritical behaviour. The next set of verses identifies this core weakness in their faith. It points out that
these people cannot even attend to the small demands of faith such as accepting the Islamic reforms,
avoiding un-Islamic institutions and accepting the verdict of the Prophet without any reservations. Just
imagine if they would have been asked for major sacrifices of life, property and relationships! The fact is
that any price paid for attending to the demands of faith is a good deal because it brings solidity and
firmness in faith, helps people stay on the straight path, and earn the ultimate rewards from Allaah.

66
If We had ordered them to sacrifice their lives or to leave their homes, very
few of them would have done it. And if they had done what they were

49
Messenger
50
Please refer to the definition given earlier.
admonished, it would have certainly been better for them and best in
strengthening their faith; 67 and then We would certainly have given them from
Ourselves a great reward; 68 and We would certainly have guided them to the
Straight Path.

Allaah SWT rewards four categories of people with the best of His bounties, favours and
grace: Nabiyyeen (the prophets), Siddeeqeen (the steadfast and foremost affirmers of truth),
Shuhadaa (the martyrs) and Saliheen (the pious). The prophets include all prophets and
messengers of Allaah. They naturally will enjoy the highest ranks. The next in rank are
Siddeeqeen -- those who are extremely sincere and truthful, always stand for and fight for the
truth regardless of circumstances and consequences, the first to testify in favour of the
prophets, persevere like rocks in their support from beginning of the mission to the end, help
them with 100% of their abilities and resources, and make the most sacrifices for the deen.
Shuhadaa are those who witness the truth of deen with their lifestyle as well as by sacrificing
their lives for the deen. The last in the ranks of the specially rewarded people are Saliheen.
They are those whose attitudes are perfectly based on the right paradigms of deen and who
consistently, steadfastly and sincerely perform well according to the demands of the faith and
requirements of the deen -- without making any compromises and keeping their intentions
purely for the pleasure of Allaah. The next verse informs believers that those who obey Allaah
and His Messenger will enjoy the auspicious company of these best-rewarded groups of people
in the hereafter.
69
The good news is that those who obey Allaah and the Messenger, they will
be with those upon whom Allaah has bestowed favours from among the
prophets, the steadfast and foremost affirmers of truth, the martyrs and the
pious; and how excellent companions they will be! 70 This is grace from
Allaah, and sufficient is Allaah as the Knower.
While the reforms mentioned earlier in this soorah were being introduced and severe
opposition from the Jews and the hypocrites was being faced, the fledgling Islamic state of
Madeenah was also being militarily attacked. The pagan tribes around Madeenah had taken the
Muslim defeat in the battle of Uhad as a sign that the Muslims were weak and vulnerable. They
had increased their insurgency, and started taking military actions against the Muslims, even in
violation of their treaties with the Madinite Islamic state. They would use deceit and treachery
to kill Muslims. They would invite Muslims to come to their territory to teach Islam, but when
the innocent missionaries would reach there, they would ambush them and murder them. In
addition, many Muslims were being forcibly confined to stop them from joining their fellow
Muslims in Madeenah and were being tortured to force them to renounce their faith. The next
section gives direction to Muslims about dealing with this terrorism and exposes hypocrites
who were working as fifth columnists inside Madeenah.

71
O believers! Keep yourselves battle-ready, then as warranted, proceed in
detachments or all together. 72 There are certainly among you those who shirk
participation; then, if you suffer harm, they go around saying, “Allaah favoured
me that I was not present with them”. 73 On the other hand, if you receive grace
from Allaah, then reacting as if there had never been any attachment between
you and them, they jealously say, “I wish I had been with them and would have
attained a great success51.” 74 Let it be understood that fighting in the way of
Allaah is the job of those who barter their world for the hereafter; so whoever
fights in the way of Allaah seeking the hereafter, then whether he is killed or
gets victory, We shall soon grant him a grand reward. 75 And why would you
not fight for the cause of Allaah and of those men, women and children who
are being oppressed, and who are praying, “Our Lord! Rescue us from this
town whose people are oppressors, and raise for us from Yourself a protector
and raise for us from Yourself a helper.” 76 The fact is that the true believers
fight in the way of Allaah, while disbelievers fight for the sake of taaghoot; so
fight the supporters of Shayŧaan; Shayŧaan’s tactics are indeed feeble.

Considering the dangers surrounding the tiny community of Madeenah, these verses urge
Muslims to keep themselves ready for deployment as needed; whether they are deployed in
small groups sent for different expeditions or the whole community has to face a major attack.
This willingness and readiness to fight was extremely important for two objectives:

To defend the Islamic state and its efforts of establishing Islamic systems from the
attacks of taaghoot who wanted to preserve, promote and maintain man-made
exploitive systems;

To liberate and rescue the believers who were being persecuted in various societies
because of their faith in Allaah and their desire to be a part of the Islamic movement
for justice and peace.

51
In terms of spoils of war.
These verses are as applicable to the circumstances today as they were at the time of their
revelation. Muslims remain obligated to undertake all necessary actions, including military
action, until Allaah’s deen prevails in the world and until the safety, security and freedom of
oppressed Muslims anywhere in the world is restored and guaranteed.

These verses also present two kinds of people found in Muslim societies during the struggle
between the forces of taaghoot and the Muslims who work for the establishment of the deen:

On the one hand are the hypocrites whose sole preoccupation is preservation of their
personal interests in the life of this world. They avoid making any efforts for the deen,
if it appears to threaten their worldly interests. Then, when Muslims encounter
difficulties, they boast of how shirking Islamic obligations has helped them avoid
harm and risk, and thus discourage other Muslims from making any sacrifices or
bearing any hardships for the sake of Islamic mission. However, if the true believers
meet success in any of their expeditions that brings them some worldly benefits by the
grace of Allaah, instead of becoming happy that their own Muslim brothers have
succeeded, they become jealous and upset.

For the sincere Muslims, on the other hand, the foremost priority in their life is the
success in the hereafter for which they are ever ready and willing to sacrifice their
worldly interests. Consequently, they fight just for the sake of Allaah and His
pleasure, without caring for the consequences in this world. To these true Muslims,
Allaah promises ultimate success whether they win or lose the battle.

At the end, the sincere Muslims have been encouraged to stand up bravely against the
supporters of Shayŧaan who want to keep the systems of taaghoot in place. They have been told
that they should not be concerned about the apparent power, technology, equipment and
strategy of the supporters of Shayŧaan because in reality they are weak from the inside and
their strategy is built upon precarious foundations.

Since the beginning of the Islamic mission, when the Makkans became violent in their
opposition to the Islamic mission, the Prophet and the believers were not allowed to respond to
the Makkans violence, persecution and torture at all. They were required to forbear all the
abuse and persecution pacifically, patiently and steadfastly. This policy continued even in the
early period of life in Madeenah. When pagans’ gangs started attacking Muslims and
conducting robbing raids, Muslims were instructed to hold back and use restraint by not
launching any retaliatory attacks. The same policy of patience and restraint was being
exercised in the matter of those Muslims who were being forcibly confined and persecuted by
the pagans, though their pain was being felt deeply. The Prophet wanted to avert war as much
as possible so that all the attention and the meagre resources could be put into the settlement of
refugees, building strong foundations for a healthy society and the reform program to achieve
the Islamic goals of excellence. He preferred using diplomatic means by establishing treaties
and pacts of peaceful cooperation and negotiations to ensure security and to effect a peaceful
co-existence.

During that period of restraint, Muslims were encouraged to put their full focus on establishing
the system of Ŝalaah and zakaah for their personal purification, training in organizational
behaviour and establishing and strengthening the Islamic political and economic system on the
foundation of Ŝalaah and zakaah. Thus, the true Muslims who obeyed the Prophet sincerely
and devotedly were patient in bearing the attacks and persecution. They faithfully restrained
themselves without a word of complaint or without challenging him on the rationale for the
restraint. They had full faith in the wisdom of Allaah and His Messenger. However, some
Muslims of weak faith (and hypocrites) would complain noisily that they should be allowed to
launch retaliatory strikes, that they were being restrained unnecessarily, that they were not
being given the opportunity to teach the pagans a lesson, etc.

Now that the pagans had imposed war on Muslims, defending and protecting the small Islamic
state from their attacks had become critical; hence fighting in the way of Allaah was obligated
for all Muslims. Now, the true Muslims were ready to die for the truth of Islam, while those
who were always complaining about not being allowed to fight were scared to death and were
trying to avoid participation in the fight. To justify their cowardice, they began to complain
against the command to fight and argue about why they should not participate.

There were also some people of weak faith who went along with the Islamic movement as long
as it only dealt with matters like Ŝalaah and zakaah that did not put their worldly interest at
much risk. When sacrifices were needed for the mission beyond just praying or giving some
charity, they were not willing to risk their worldly interests for establishing and protecting the
deen and its systems to which they claimed to subscribe.

Both of these characters were found at the time of the Prophet as they are found in the
contemporary environment of the Islamic work. Many who have weak commitment to Islamic
work and are very much in love with their worldly possessions, interests and relationships will
be found complaining regardless of what decision is taken or action plan is followed by the
leadership of the Islamic movements.

The next two verses expose these people and encourage them to aim for the goodness of the
eternal life in the hereafter as opposed to this temporary phase of worldly life that is going to
end anyway, sooner or later.

77
Have you not seen those who were told: Restrain your hands, establish
Ŝalaah and pay zakaah? Now when the order for fighting has been given to
them, a group of them fears people as much as, or even more than, they should
fear Allaah. And they say: Our Lord! Why have You ordained fighting for us?
Why have You not granted us a little more respite? Remind them: Short is the
enjoyment of this world, and the hereafter is better for him who maintains
Taqwa; and you shall not be dealt with unjustly even a bit. 78Wherever you are,
death will reach you, even if you are in strong and lofty forts. If something
good happens to them, they say: This is from Allaah; but if something bad
happens to them, they blame you for it. Say: All is from Allaah. But what is
wrong with these people that they hardly understand any matter?

The latter part of the second verse points out another aspect of hypocritical behaviour. First of
all, due to their indulgence in the matters of self-interest, hypocrites do not contribute anything
to the Islamic mission other than some empty words that they utter to fool common Muslims
and to pretend that they are the “concerned” members of the Ummah. Then, because of their
love for this world, they complain about any action that may be extremely important for the
survival or growth of the Islamic mission but poses a risk to their interests. Even when the
difficulties are encountered as a natural corollary of Islamic work, they start playing the blame
game. Instead of understanding the nature of the things or analyzing the causes of the problems
-- for which they have neither any time nor any desire -- they put blame for all hardships on the
leadership. The hypocrites of the Prophet’s time used to take out their frustration on the
Prophet and used to blame him for the hardships that were being suffered. By the same token,
those who are not fully dedicated to contemporary Islamic movements and do not want to see
any disturbance in their enjoyment of this world blame Islamic workers and leadership of the
Islamic movements for the suffering of the Muslims today.

The fact of the matter is that Allaah SWT has promulgated the laws of nature such that any
constructive work is slow and difficult. It takes a lot of time, patience and effort. Those who
want to bring positive change must work hard, make sacrifices, face resistance and endure
attacks from opponents. If the participant in any movement or mission encounters such
difficulties, it does not mean that there is something wrong with the mission or the leader. That
is the natural course of bringing about change in the society as that is the way Allaah SWT has
set the system of this life. This law of nature applies to any constructive work including
Islamic work. People cannot expect that the laws of nature should become inapplicable because
the work is being done for Allaah’s deen. However, working for Allaah has its own rewards.
For example, those who steadfastly work hard and persevere despite difficulties and pray to
Allaah for help, Allaah does help them and they do succeed in their Islamic goals eventually.
The victory achieved in the battle of Badr was an example of such help from Allaah. In
addition, Allaah will tremendously reward them in the hereafter for their steadfastness and hard
work. No sincere effort goes un-rewarded and full justice is done.

Another one of Allaah’s natural laws is that people cannot escape the results of their actions
and decisions. Whether the decisions or actions are taken for a good cause or bad motive, the
natural consequences of those actions are unavoidable. When it comes to the natural
consequences of actions, no one suffers any injustice at all. According to this law, if people
make a mistake or take a wrong step, cannot avoid the consequence because they are doing
Allaah’s work or because their intentions are good. That is why Muslims suffered when they
made the tactical mistake in disobedience to the Prophet.

Because Allaah SWT has promulgated both of these laws of nature, He can claim all those
consequences are from Him. This is what is meant by “all is from Allaah.” Unfortunately,
those who do not take time to reflect and understand these natural processes start blaming the
leadership for the hardships suffered during the Islamic work.

That was one way of looking at how the natural process operates under Allaah’s command.
Another way of looking at these matters is that normally good efforts succeed in producing
good results because Allaah favours people by accepting their du‘aas and ensures that
circumstances are right to produce the right results for their efforts. Hence, those good results
are achieved merely because of the mercy of Allaah. Again the prime example of this was the
Muslim victory in the battle of Badr against all odds. On the other hand, bad consequences are
always caused by human mistakes and improper behaviour, not by Allaah. Allaah does not do
injustice to any one ever. Consequently, the blame for those bad consequences should always
be assigned to those who commit the error, not to Allaah. Defeat in Uhad, for example, was
because of the wrong actions taken by Muslims themselves. This aspect is stated in the next
verse:

79
O man! Whatever good happens to you, it is from Allaah; and whatever bad
happens to you, it is from yourself. And We have sent you, O Muhammad, as a
messenger to mankind; and Allaah is sufficient as a witness. 80 Whoever obeys
the Messenger, he indeed obeys Allaah; and if someone turns away, We have
not sent you as a keeper over them.

The major reason that the hypocrites used to blame the Prophet for everything was that they
were really not convinced in their hearts that he was the true Messenger of Allaah who did
everything under directions from and protection of Allaah SWT. Thus they were not even
trying to understand the reality of the situation or real factors and reasons behind what was
happening at the time. Hence, Allaah SWT presents his own witness on the truth of the
Messenger and clarifies that the only way these people can obey Allaah is by accepting and
obeying the Messenger wholeheartedly. If they do not, it is not the Prophet’s responsibility to
convince them, they will be held responsible for their attitude and behaviour.

Similarly, despite their pretence to be Muslims, they do not believe that the Qur-aan is Allaah’s
revelation. That is the real reason for their following behaviour:
81
When you teach them the Qur-aanic injunctions, they have “Obedience” on
their lips; but when they leave you, a group of them spends the night opposing
what you say. Allaah records what they do by night, therefore disregard them
and trust in Allaah; and Allaah is sufficient as a trustworthy protector.

The first point to note is the duplicitous behaviour. To respond to a person positively and
agreeably to his face and then criticize and oppose him behind his back is hypocrisy.
Unfortunately, this is practised very widely as tact and diplomacy. It is in fact cheating,
dishonesty and a dirty game. Contemporarily, this has become a very dangerous game that
hurts Islamic movements and creates many difficulties for those who are working to establish
the Islamic system in a society. This behind-the-back propaganda creates many
misunderstandings in the minds of those who are not directly in contact with the Islamic
workers. They believe in the malicious comments of the hypocrites and stay away from the
Islamic movement.

Secondly, anyone who pretends to be a Muslim but opposes, criticizes, disagrees with the Qur-
aanic teachings or contends that they are impractical is a pure hypocrite. Those who adopt this
kind of behaviour obviously do not believe that the Qur-aan is the Word of Allaah; otherwise it
is impossible for a person to believe in the Word of the Creator and still talk negatively about
it. To help such hypocrites develop a legitimate faith, they are being encouraged to reflect on
the contents of the Qur-aan itself as evidence that it is from Allaah. Had they just reflected on
the quality of the Qur-aanic message and the internal consistency of its teachings and
objectives, their hearts would have witnessed that it cannot be but from Allaah:
82
Do they not then reflect on the Qur-aan? Had it been from anyone other than
Allaah, they would have found in it many a discrepancy.

The unparalleled consistency of the text of the Qur-aan in itself is a compelling proof of it
being Divine revelation, not a human product. It is humanly impossible to maintain any
semblance of consistency in any of the following aspects that Qur-aan maintains so perfectly:

It was revealed over a period of 23 years in bits and pieces but put together as one book, it
flowed so beautifully from beginning to end perfectly consistent in its literary style, its
standard of eloquence, its themes and its philosophy as if it was written within one sitting
under a well thought-out vision, plan and goal. This happened without ever needing any
revision whatsoever of any word or phrase throughout the book of more than 6,000 verses.

During the time of its revelation, the life of the Prophet went through so many drastic changes,
so many different phases, so many different circumstances and so many different mental
frames and emotional states, but none of that is reflected at all in any part of the Qur-aan. The
text of the Qur-aan remains so steady and consistent in its approach to life situations and
outlook reflecting the fact that there was never a shift in the mental state or thoughts of the
author – Allaah SWT.

The belief system it teaches, the system of life it ordains, the commands it gives, the actions it
encourages, the behaviours it decrees, the ethics it promotes, the morals it dictates, the
examples it cites, the history it quotes, the punishments it mentions and the rewards it
promises, everything is so consistently interdependent, so smoothly integrated and so
harmoniously tuned that any slight variation in any of those things disturbs the delicate balance
and equilibrium it established as a whole. Every part of the total Islamic system and its sub-
systems fits perfectly well with each other as well as with human nature, its surroundings and
the environment. The coherent system of life that results from its teachings is equally
beneficial for individuals and societies, for life of this world and the hereafter, for mundane
aspects of life and spiritual, for short term and long term, and for the primitive societies and the
most advanced.

Another of their fifth columnist behaviour was rumour-mongering. Considering that Madeenah
was surrounded by dangers at that time, it presented an ideal environment for rumourmongers.
There were many valid and invalid, good and bad rumours spreading frequently about
insurgencies, attacks, dangers and threats as well as possibilities of peace, treaties and
successes. Hypocrites were using rumours and propaganda to discourage or frighten Muslims
with bad news. However, when there was a real danger of attack, they would spread positive
rumours to make Muslims complacent with a false sense of peace and security. The next verse
addresses this problem:

83
When some matter about peace or fear reaches them, they spread it around.
If they had only referred it to the Messenger and to the Islamic leadership
among them, it would have reached those among them who had capability to
assess it properly. Were it not for the Grace and Mercy of Allaah unto you, all
but a few of you would have followed the Shayŧaan.

This verse teaches an important lesson for all Muslims to follow forever. Any matters
pertaining to the collective risk or wellbeing of the Muslim community must not be tossed
around and spread in the community. Rather, whomsoever it reaches must refer it to the
Islamic leadership who can get to the bottom of the matter and prescribe an appropriate course
of action to the community. It also indicates that the leadership of the community must be
given to those who have the strategic vision, wisdom, knowledge and capability to assess the
impact of matters on the wellbeing of the community and to lead the community according to
the Islamic teachings in all kinds of circumstances in a contemporary society.

The discussion about hypocritical behaviour started with the mention that they shirked fighting
for Islamic objectives and discouraged others from doing so. The next two verses give the
concluding remarks:

84
Fight then in Allaah's way; you are not held responsible except for yourself,
but urge the believers to join. It may be that Allaah will restrain the force of the
unbelievers’ aggression; and Allaah is strongest in force and severest in
inflicting punishment. 85Whoever advocates a good cause shall have a share of
it, and whoever advocates an evil cause shall have his share in its burden, and
Allaah has an eye and power over all things.

The next section guides Muslims on how to deal with different kinds of hypocrites found
inside and outside of Madeenah. The first verse briefly instructs them to remain nice in their
dealings with the hypocrites within Madeenah.

There were already tensions in the society due to the pagans’ terrorist and military attacks and
continued threats of more attacks. The exposé of the fifth columnist role of hypocrites and the
advice given to Muslims to ignore them might trigger an emotional response from some
zealous Muslims. They may cut off their relations with people with hypocritical behaviour or
become impolite by ignoring their courtesies or salutations. Such behaviour would be
counterproductive. Allaah wants people to give up hypocrisy and become sincere. Alienating
them would not help in their reformation. Although He does not want Muslims to be fooled or
be stung by hypocrites’ machinations, He very much wants Muslims to develop a pleasant and
peaceful environment while staying alert to protect the interests of the Islamic mission. For that
purpose, the next verse commands Muslims to respond nicely to friendly greetings, regardless
of who the greeting person is:

86
When you are greeted courteously, respond with a more courteous greeting
than it or at least with equal courtesy; surely Allaah takes account of all things.
87
Allaah, there is no God but He. He will most certainly gather you together
on the resurrection day, there is no doubt in it; and who is truer in word than
Allaah?
As long as the Muslims keep on their guard, there is no reason for them to be discourteous to
people. As for Allaah, the actions of pagans and hypocrites do not affect in any way the
godhood, divinity or the plans of Allaah SWT. They are merely hurting themselves by their
behaviour for which they will be held accountable on the Day of Judgment.

In the next few verses, the attention is directed towards Muslim dealings with the hypocrites
living outside of the Islamic territory. The situation was that all Muslims had been asked to
migrate to Madeenah, unless they were forcibly held back such that they could not get away
despite trying. Some people claimed to be Muslims but did not want to leave their houses,
relatives, kinship and friends for the sake of Islam. This refusal to sacrifice and emigrate was
enough for them to be considered hypocrites – insincere in their claim to be Muslims. In
addition, to remain part of their families and clans, they had to take part in all the anti-Islam
activities their clan undertook. To them, their worldly expediencies had more importance than
Islam. And for those expediencies, they would work against Islamic interests despite claiming
to be Muslims. This was a de facto repudiation of faith; regardless of how many other “Islamic
activities” they performed.

Before moving forward, a note of caution is warranted. People should be careful in ascribing
this concept of hypocrisy to any Muslims living in non-Muslim societies. Obviously, if there is
no Islamic state to migrate to or the Islamic state is not in a position to accept Muslim migrants
from other areas, the Muslims living in non-Muslim societies cannot be classified under this
category. It will apply only to those situations where an Islamic state has directed Muslims to
migrate and is accepting them as their citizens. However, it must also be noted that to remain
in the category of the sincere Muslims, a believer must be ever willing to make any sacrifice
the deen requires and that is needed to establish Islam as a complete system of life in an
Islamic state. In addition, he should not in any way participate in any activity that goes against
the interests of Islam and Muslims. Anyone shirking this responsibility or holding back from
making sacrifices or involving themselves in anti-Islam activities for the sake of worldly
expediencies will be a hypocrite in the sight of Allaah SWT.

In the matter of hypocrites, many sincere Muslims, not realizing the gravity of hypocrites’
behaviour, try to defend them. Considering that hypocrites say Kalimah52, recite the Qur-aan,
pray and fast, some Muslims have difficulty comprehending the danger they pose. They
usually suggest that we should be kind to them and develop relations with them so that they are
gradually encouraged to become better Muslims. As compared to the extreme where
overcautious Muslims can avoid even returning courtesies, this is the other extreme where
people go dangerously beyond the pleasantries and courtesies. This leads to the tolerance and
acceptance of hypocritical behaviour, which is extremely dangerous to the Islamic mission. For
such advocates of hypocrites, Allaah SWT says:

88
What is the matter with you, then, that you have become two parties about
the hypocrites, when Allaah has turned them back to unbelief as a result of

52
Islamic creed
how they have behaved? Do you wish to guide them whom Allaah has sent
astray? And whomsoever Allaah sends astray, you cannot find a way for him.

As explained earlier, the natural consequences that human beings face as a result of their
actions have been promulgated by Allaah; hence, He attributes those consequences to Himself.
In this case, the natural consequence of hypocritical behaviour -- sacrificing Islam over worldly
expediencies -- is that it creates an insurmountable barrier that does not let the hypocrites grasp
the value for the guidance of Islam or need to make sacrifices for it. Because of their deeply
rooted selfish outlook, any effort to explain to them the importance of total sincerity to Islamic
goals and practices falls on deaf ears. Instead, they think that the sincere Muslims are “fools”
who are unnecessarily sacrificing their interest for the sake of their faith. Although Muslims
may hope to reform them, the hypocrites actively and aggressively push the Muslims who
befriend them to look after their own interest instead of foolishly sacrificing their time,
resources, energies and life for the establishment of Islam. They pose as friends and well-
wishers and quote “strong” arguments and give many “examples” to do their convincing, just
like the Shayŧaan did to Adam and Hawwaa53. Because of this risk, Muslims should not even
befriend them, until they pass the test of sincerity to Islam, which at that time was their
migration to Madeenah. Also, because of their sympathy for these hypocrites, Muslims may
treat them favourably during a battle, thus giving them a chance to become dangerous to the
Islamic army. These are the kinds of dangers that the Muslims are being warned about in the
next verse.

89
They desire that you should disbelieve as they have disbelieved, so that you
all become alike; therefore, do not befriend any of them until they migrate in
Allaah's way. But if they turn away from migrating to join you (continuing to
stay in enemy ranks), then seize them and kill them when you encounter them;
and do not take any of them as a friend or a helper.
Again, to ensure that Muslims do not do anything improper, they were cautioned:

90
They should not be captured or killed if they belong to a tribe with whom
you have treaty or if they encounter you such that they are reluctant to fight
whether against you or their own people. Had Allaah wanted He could have
given them power over you so that they would have certainly fought against
you; therefore, if they withdraw and refrain from fighting and offer you peace,
Allaah has not given you any excuse to fight them.

Care must also be taken that the Muslims are not deceived by the pretext of “neutrality” of the
hypocrites. The Muslims must watch carefully so that the overall behaviour of those who claim
neutrality supports their claim. If they engage in hostile action, they should be treated like
enemies.

53
Eve
91
You will find others who desire that they remain secure from you as well as
from their own people; however, as often as they are tempted towards hostility,
they succumb to it. Therefore, if they do not withdraw from you, offer you
peace and restrain their hands, then seize them and kill them wherever you
encounter them; and against these We have given you a clear authority.
While it was extremely important that Muslims were educated about aggressively protecting
themselves from malicious hostility and animosity of hypocrites without being deceived by
their claims of “neutrality’ or by their pretence to have “good” Islamic intentions, it was also
similarly important that they develop a strong sensitivity for the sanctity, inviolability and
preciousness of a true Muslim’s life. In addition to the importance of highlighting this sanctity
as a general rule, it was also a need of the time. There were many sincere Muslims who were
forced to live with their families and tribes without having freedom or opportunity to migrate
to Madeenah. Many of them were not even known to Muslims. In case of a war with their
tribe, there was a risk of those Muslims being killed unknowingly. The next two verses
emphasize the sanctity of a Muslim’s life and provide means of expiation if a Muslim is killed
by mistake.

92
It is unthinkable for a believer to kill a believer except by mistake. And
whoever kills a believer by mistake, he should free a believing slave. In
addition, he should pay compensation to the deceased's family unless they
forgive it charitably. However, if the deceased is from a tribe hostile to you and
he is a believer, then freeing of a believing slave suffices; and if he is from a
tribe between whom and you there is a treaty, then the compensation should be
paid to his family along with the freeing of a believing slave. Anyone who is
unable to free a slave, he must fast consecutively for two months without any
break. This is the way of penitence to Allaah, and Allaah is Knowing, Wise.

It must be noted that these commandments are not to be fulfilled as if paying a penalty or
undergoing a punishment, but as a penitence from the sin of inadvertent killing of a Muslim. It
is a way of expressing remorse and seeking forgiveness from Allaah. The freeing of a slave
achieves two important Islamic goals: it contributes to the goal of eliminating slavery and it
reinforces the sanctity of the life of a Muslim in the heart of the believers in multiple ways. It
conveys the message that because the deceased cannot be brought back to life, the lost life can
be compensated for only by giving a new life of freedom to a slave. Then, freeing a slave
causes financial sacrifice, and if that is not possible, fasting for 60 consecutive days causes
quite a physical hardship. Either way, seeking Allaah’s forgiveness for this mistake requires
significant sacrifice, which teaches a profound lesson about the value of life. Also the remorse
felt in this process reforms the person from deep inside.

This was for the killing of a Muslim by mistake. If someone does it knowingly or intentionally,
it is inexcusable and unforgivable:
93
Whoever kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is hell wherein he
shall abide forever, and Allaah will lay His wrath on him and curse him and
prepare for him a dreadful punishment.

This is the toughest warning of a severe punishment that Allaah has also used for the worst
kind of disbelievers. Here the warning is being given, not to a disbeliever, but to a Muslim who
deliberately kills another Muslim. It is enough to make a believer’s bones tremble with dread.
Unfortunately, the so-called “Muslims” are violating Allaah’s command everywhere and
killing Muslims without caring to know or think about what they will be facing in the
hereafter.

This warning was given in the context of war with an enemy tribe wherein their fighting men
may include someone who has accepted Islam without being known to the Muslim army but
coerced to participate in the battle. Right during the battle if someone from the enemy corps
indicated that he was a Muslim when overpowered to be killed, the member of the Muslim
army was told to withdraw his hand right away. As one can see, it is extremely difficult to stop
at such an occasion because it is natural to think that the person is faking it just to save his life.
Also when a soldier is so close to succeed in his mission of killing a fighting enemy and he can
have his booty of war in a moment, it becomes even harder to stop. That is human nature. But
Islam expects Muslims to be exceptional in their discipline and in control of their thoughts and
emotions so that they can let reason and the goal of peace and justice prevail even in the most
difficult of circumstances. It wants to remove all other motives from their minds except the
motives of pleasing Allaah and seeking success in the hereafter. That purity of motives and that
remembrance of Allaah create extraordinary human beings who are so disciplined that every
step they take is measured, vigilant and goal-oriented. Islamic history contains ample examples
of this kind of discipline where Muslims withdrew their weapons from overpowered enemies.

No other army in the world has been able to demonstrate any example of such level of
discipline and merciful behaviour. Rather, other armies take pride in how much blood they
shed and how successfully they are able to obliterate huge populations of innocent residents.
This difference is natural because the Muslims were trained psychologically by Allaah and His
Messenger for the objective of establishing peace, justice, compassion and magnanimity in this
world. Their fight was only to remove hindrances in the way of peace and justice and to
provide freedom to the people to accept Islam and join the Muslim community, as and when
they wanted. On the other hand, non-Muslim armies are purposefully trained to be efficient
killing machines for the purposes of worldly benefits such as economic dominance and
political hegemony of a nation over others. Their interests are best served by maximizing the
killing and destruction of armies and population of the invaded country. That is why they
psychologically train their forces to become ruthless, manic killing-monsters. Their soldiers
become so trigger happy that on a slight doubt of resistance, they even fire on their own people
and allies and term it as “killed by friendly fire” or bomb innocent civilians celebrating a
wedding.

The next verse teaches the discipline and care that we have just talked about.
94
O believers, when you go to war in Allaah's way, gather intelligence to
clearly identify friend and foe and do not say to any one who salutes you with
salaam, “you are not a believer”. If you seek worldly things, know that Allaah
has abundant spoils. You too were such before, then Allaah conferred a favour
on you; therefore investigate carefully; certainly Allaah is aware of what you
do.

In those days, there was no way to differentiate Muslims from non-Muslims by their dress or
appearance. The way Muslims identified themselves was by recitation of Kalimah54. In
addition, the Prophet taught people to use Salaam, the Islamic greeting of peace “Assalaamu
Alaykum” (peace be upon you), whenever they saw each other, in keeping with the Islamic
objective of establishing and promoting peace in the community. This became a symbol of
Muslims. So, whenever someone wanted to identify himself as a Muslim, he would either
recite Kalimah or say Salaam to Muslims. Even during a battle, someone under the sword
would suddenly recite Kalimah or say Salaam to indicate that he is Muslim. Although sparing
lives of fighting enemies if they utter these Islamic symbols could be dangerous for Muslims in
a battle, the Muslims were taught to take that risk in order to avoid the killing of a person who
might be a real Muslim and hence deserving freedom rather than death. That is why it was
essential to stop and confirm the claim rather than continue under doubt.

The whole discussion about fighting started with verse 71 wherein Muslims were commanded
to remain prepared for battle and deployment at all times, either in small groups or altogether
as one army, as the need arose. This fighting was absolutely necessary for defending the
Islamic mission against the attacks and the persistent threats from the pagans, for removing the
hostile resistance from the way of establishing the Islamic system of peace and justice and for
liberating the oppressed and detained Muslims. Those who claim to be Muslims but shirk this
responsibility despite being commanded by the Prophet to participate or those who discourage
others from participating were declared to be hypocrites. The next set of verses describes the
rewards for those who undertake such actions as necessary for the achievements of Islamic
goals.

To understand their context properly, it is beneficial to review goals of Islamic teachings and
their achievement. Islam wants Muslims to achieve two goals: personal excellence in thoughts,
attitudes, morals and dealings; and the establishment of Islamic systems of peace and justice in
Allaah’s land. This second goal is such an important responsibility that Allaah has mandated
two things for its fulfillment that carry the greatest rewards from Allaah among all the acts of
obedience to Allaah SWT. Conversely, shirking any of those two things puts a believer in the
category of hypocrites: Firstly, the Muslims must dedicate all their resources, energies and
their lives in the continuous and untiring struggle for the successful establishment of the
Islamic systems of life over Allaah’s land -- this is called Jihaad in the way of Allaah; and
secondly, if it is not possible to set up and live completely by Islamic systems of life wherever
they are, they should leave their homes, businesses and kith and kin, migrating to gather in a
location where they are able to establish the Islamic system fully and live by them – this is
called Hijrah in the way of Allaah.

54
Islamic creed: Laa ilaaha illallaah, Muhammadur-rasoolullaah.
One aspect of the struggle (Jihaad) is actual fighting in the way of Allaah, as and when the
circumstances of the Islamic state require it. Sometimes only a team of volunteers is enough to
meet the fighting needs of the time, at other occasions, all of the able-bodied Muslims in the
community might be needed to stand up and fight. The next two verses deal with the situation
where volunteers are needed, but not the whole community:

95
Those of the believers who sit still, without being handicapped in any way
(while they have no physical disability), are not equal to those who strive hard
in Allaah's way with their resources and their persons. Allaah has conferred on
those who strive hard with their resources and their persons a rank above the
sedentary. To each, Allaah has promised good; but He has bestowed on those
who strive hard a great reward above the sedentary: 96 High ranks from Him
and forgiveness and mercy; and Allaah is Forgiving, Merciful.

This is only about fighting in the way of Allaah as the part of a multi-faceted Jihaad indicating
the greatness of the rewards promised to those who volunteer to fight in Allaah’s way when it
is optional to participate or not to participate. Earlier, it has been clearly stated that those who
do not participate when they are required to participate are regarded as hypocrites by Allaah
SWT, as are those who neglect other aspects of Jihaad for the establishment, maintenance and
practice of Islamic systems of life or who do not migrate for the establishment of the deen:

97
Verily, at the time of death, when the angels extract the souls of those who
have been unjust to themselves by not practising Islam as a complete way of
life, they shall ask, “In what situation were you?” They shall say, “We were
overpowered in the earth.” The angels shall question, “Was not Allaah's earth
spacious so that you could have migrated therein?” So they are those whose
abode will be hell, and it is an evil resort. 98 Except those overpowered men,
women and the children who are unable to devise a plan or find a way. 99 So
they are those whom Allaah may pardon, and Allaah is Pardoning, Forgiving.
100
And whoever migrates in Allaah's way, he will find in the earth many a
place of refuge and abundant resources, and whoever leaves his house
migrating for the sake of Allaah and His Messenger, and then death overtakes
him, his reward is indeed incumbent on Allaah and Allaah is Forgiving,
Merciful.
These verses give a very clear message to the Muslims about the importance of putting the
complete Islamic System in practice. If Muslims are falling short in any respect in their
practice of Islam such that the complete Islamic system of life is not fully established in all
aspects of their individual and community life, then merely being weak, helpless or
overpowered will not be accepted as an excuse. In those circumstances, a Muslim has only the
following options:

If an Islamic state exists where Islam is implemented or being implemented as a
complete system of life, he must migrate to that state to live Islam fully and to
participate in its establishment or maintenance of the complete Islamic systems;

If an Islamic state does not exist or if it is not possible to migrate to that state: Those
living in a Muslim majority country must dedicate their resources, energies, time and
life for the establishment of Islamic systems with the objective of making Islam
dominate every aspect of life, giving this goal the top priority in the affairs of their
lives. Those living in non-Muslims countries as minorities must give propagation of
Islam the top priority in the affairs of their life dedicating their substantial resources,
time and energies towards this goal until Muslims are in majority. Once this goal is
achieved, the establishment of Islam as a complete system of life will become the
priority like those living in Muslim majority countries until the deen of Allaah
becomes supreme as a complete system of life.

Any lifestyle other than these options will be considered hypocritical for which the abode will
be hell. Considering that currently there is no Islamic state in the world, Muslims must adopt
the methodologies and missionary spirit of the messengers, join a legitimate Islamic movement
or group and dedicate their energy, resources and abilities for the Islamic goals, as described
above, giving this mission the top priority in their life. Without giving top priority to this
effort, any excuse of being helpless, weak, powerless or overpowered will be invalid and
rejected outright.

The next section deals with rules of praying Ŝalaah when Muslims venture out fighting in the
way of Allaah. It should be remembered that when the Qur-aan talks about Ŝalaah, it is implied
that it is the obligatory Salaatul-Jamaa’ah (congregational prayer).

The first verse gives permission to shorten Ŝalaah while travelling. According to this
permission, as determined by the Sunnah of the Prophet, the obligatory raka‘aat for Zuhr, ‘Asr
and ‘Ishaa are reduced to two, without reducing the obligatory raka‘aat for Maghrib and Fajr.

101 And when you travel, it is not sin for you to shorten the Ŝalaah if you fear
that the disbelievers will cause you distress; surely the disbelievers are your
open enemy.
Although the context was travelling for fighting in Allaah’s way, Allaah SWT used the
occasion to grant this permission for all kinds of travelling. That is indicated by the wording
“when you travel” instead of “when you travel in the way of Allaah” as used in the verse 94.
The Prophet himself shortened the Ŝalaah in non-military travels. Also, though the
consideration mentioned for granting the permission is the danger from disbelievers, the
permission remains applicable to other inconveniences or logistical issues encountered in
travelling55.

55
Ibn ‘Abbaas reported that the Prophet left Madeenah for Makkah and while he had no fear except that
of Allaah SWT, he prayed only two raka‘aat.
The wording of the verse clearly indicates that it is a concession granted in consideration of
insecurities and inconveniences of a journey. When justified, this concession should be utilized
without any reservations. When circumstances require, it is not in keeping with the Islamic
spirit to forego a concession granted by Allaah SWT as a token of His mercy and kindness to
people56. On the other hand, it also must not be treated as an obligation, because it is not.
Many people treat it as an obligation and insist, promote and demand shortening of Ŝalaah
even when the situation or circumstances do not warrant it. This is an extremism that is not
supported by this verse at all.

Neither the Qur-aan nor the Prophet defined what “travel” is. Many people use a certain
number of kilometres or miles to define “travel”. These distances have been calculated on the
basis of some journeys of the Prophet where he shortened the Ŝalaah, without taking into
consideration multiple other factors that would have affected the decisions of the Prophet, such
as the duration of the journey, the hardships, the logistical issues, the weather conditions, the
security concerns, the general situation of the law and order, etc. Many people are misguided
by this rigid, calculated definition of travel arrived at by such a one-sided and extremely
narrow perspective. Consequently, they shorten the Ŝalaah while commuting within distances
that they travel back and forth multiple times a day, which cannot be contemporarily regarded
as travel by any stretch of the word and where shortening is not justifiable from any reasonable
consideration.

Allaah and His Messenger leave this kind of things to be determined by “Ma’roof” or “as
recognized in the society”. Thus, no explicit definition from Allaah or His Messenger implies
that the believers should determine if they are in travelling mode or not, according to the
generally accepted concepts of the contemporary society, modes of transportation and
circumstances and conditions of the traveller. Of course, they will do so under the guidance of
Sunnah considering all the factors, conditions and circumstances that surrounded the travels of
the Prophet. From this perspective, travel for a person who has only a donkey to ride on, will
be totally different from the person who can hop on a helicopter or personal jet to go from
place to place.

People can easily make their own judgments. For example, if a person can pray a Ŝalaah in his
hometown on a timely basis and pray the next Ŝalaah on a timely basis after arriving at his
destination, he has no need to shorten the Ŝalaah. But if he has to stop on the side of a road,
rest area, transit lounge, in a train, in the air, etc. to offer the next Ŝalaah before time runs out,
that is clearly a case for shortening the Ŝalaah. Similarly, if a person is a stranger at the place
of his destination, he will be considered a traveller. But if he arrives at a friendly, familiar,
Islamic environment in the company of the people who are offering all Ŝalaah with him on a
timely basis, why would that person behave differently than his friends and hosts; unless by
praying with them, he will miss his flight or train, etc. The imam and the community of one’s
destination should be respected and people should pray behind the imam and with the host
community normally without creating disturbance of arranging separate jamaa’ah for
“travellers” as we frequently see people doing in Muslim gatherings.

56
When ‘Umar raised this matter with the Prophet, he said, “This is a charity that Allaah SWT has
bestowed upon you, so accept His charity.”
Thus the important points to remember are that permission to shorten is only a concession from
Allaah, not an obligation; it is good to avail the concession when warranted; it should not be
considered a must when circumstances do not warrant it; and whether a person is in travelling
mode or not is determined by many factors, conditions and circumstances of the traveller.

The next verse gives rules of praying a shortened Ŝalaah in the battlefield when armies are not
actively engaged:
102
And when you are among them and have stood up to lead them in Ŝalaah,
let one party of them stand up for Ŝalaah with you, while holding on to their
arms. Once they have performed prostration, let them go to your rear, and let
the other party who have not prayed come up to pray with you while taking
their precautions and holding on to their arms. Those who disbelieve desire
you to be careless of your arms and your belongings so that they may assault
you all at once with a sudden attack. However, if you are troubled by rain or if
you are sick, there is no blame on you for putting away your arms, but continue
to remain on your guard; surely Allaah has prepared a disgraceful punishment
for the disbelievers. 103 Once you have finished Ŝalaah, remember Allaah
standing, sitting and lying on your sides. Then, when you are secure from
danger, establish Ŝalaah completely; surely Ŝalaah is a timed obligation for the
believers.

Verse 103 reminds the believers of two important facts: Firstly, that the essence of Ŝalaah is
the remembrance of Allaah SWT and that remembrance must continue fervently and
continuously at all times after the Ŝalaah has been completed. Secondly, although the situation
in the battlefield may warrant exceptions, in the regular daily life the Ŝalaah must be offered at
its prescribed times.

In relation to the prescribed times of the Ŝalaah, this verse makes another important point: The
matters obligated by the Prophet are indeed the obligations from Allaah. The Prophet had
taught Muslims to offer prayers at prescribed times while those times were not explicitly
commanded in the Qur-aan. They are alluded to at various places in the Qur-aan, but the
Muslims learnt them from the practical examples and teachings of the Prophet. This verse
acknowledges that those matters taught by the Prophet were in fact obligations from Allaah.

The next verse is the concluding remark on the topic of fighting to protect the Islamic mission,
Islamic reforms and Islamic systems from the attacks of its enemies.
104
And do not relent in pursuit of the enemy. If you are suffering hardships,
they too are suffering similar hardships as you are suffering; but you hope from
Allaah what they do not hope; and Allaah is Knowing, Wise.

These are very encouraging remarks for the believers. While the sufferings caused by the war
imposed by the disbelievers are common to both sides, Muslims have a tremendous benefit in
the sense that they are earning the pleasure and rewards from Allaah SWT, which are not
available to the enemies. Hence, the Muslim should not relent or show any weakness. Rather
they should stand up for the truth more bravely and more enthusiastically because no matter
what happens to them in this life, they are victorious.
The next section deals with an improper reaction by some Muslims to another type of
hypocritical behaviour. The occasion for these instructions was created by an incident where a
so-called Muslim (whose behaviour was that of a hypocrite) stole another Muslim’s shield and
pawned it with a Jew. When the owner complained to the Prophet, and the thief was
confronted, he blamed the Jew for the theft. The Jew denied the allegation. The thief’s clique
and clan spoke very strongly and vocally in his favour and against the Jew and tried their best
to pressure the Prophet to believe the thief’s plea and reject the Jew’s. When, under the
guidance from Allaah, the Prophet decided against the real culprit and honourably discharged
the Jew, the “Muslim” hypocrite ran away and openly joined the enemies of Islam against the
Islamic mission.

This incident is one example of the many hypocritical games that were played. The hypocrites
used to indulge in many subversive activities secretly, but they used to pose in public as
champions of good causes. When they were caught, many Muslims fooled by their propaganda
would speak vocally in their favour. That continues to happen even in contemporary society. In
fact, every society has people who on the surface are religious, law-abiding men of good words
and worthy claims of noble works; but behind the scene, they commit crimes and practice
vices. They usually are cliquish and maintain a group of strong supporters recruited under
various pretexts who sympathize with them vocally. They plan their subversive and evil
activities within their inner circle where they also develop public relation programs to promote
their goodness in public view, to defend their activities, to fool authorities, and to avoid legal
consequences. If or when they are caught, they append the blame to some innocent person
who, for some reason, may not be well-liked in the society. Their clique and their fooled
supporters stand up in their defence, campaign for their “innocence” and pressure authorities to
honourably discharge them while demanding punishment and strong action against the person
who was wrongly blamed. This obviously is very much against the Islamic concept of justice
for the establishment of which the Qur-aan has been revealed. Often, it may be politically
correct, and usually politicians fall for it, to let the real culprit go and punish the wrongly
accused to make an example of him. But Islam is for doing the right things, not the politically
correct things. Hence, Muslims have been warned against defending anyone’s criminal activity
of which they are personally aware.
105
Indeed We have revealed the Book to you with the truth so that you may
judge among people according to what Allaah has taught you; and do not be a
defender for those who betray their trust. 106 And seek forgiveness from
Allaah; surely Allaah is Forgiving, Merciful. 107 And do not plead for those
who betray themselves; surely Allaah does not like anyone who has been
habitually treacherous, sinful. 108 They hide their crimes from people but they
can never hide from Allaah. In fact, He is with them when they secretly talk
about things that He does not approve of; and Allaah surrounds whatever they
do. 109 Look! Here you are those who plead for them in the life of the world,
but who will plead for them with Allaah on the Day of Judgment, or who shall
be their advocate? 110 And whoever does evil or acts unjustly to himself, then
seeks forgiveness of Allaah, he shall find Allaah Forgiving, Merciful. 111 And
whoever commits a vice, he only commits it against himself; and Allaah is
Knowing, Wise. 112 And whoever commits a blunder or a vice, then casts its
blame on an innocent person, he indeed burdens himself with slander and
flagrant vice.

Naturally, when the Prophet disregarded the pleadings and the vocal support from the
Muslims, and took action against the hypocrites, many of those novice Muslims would feel
ignored. To address that sentiment, the Qur-aan eloquently addresses the Prophet first,
indirectly telling those Muslims that the Prophet is not free to listen to them. He has a job to do
from Allaah. He has been given the Book to establish justice on the earth, not to favour
criminals or to listen to those who stand up for those criminals. It also exposes the behind-the
scene subversive activities of those hypocrites so that the Muslims understand they should not
insist on their opinions without having all the facts or deliberately disregarding those facts.
Then in verse 109 the message has been given to them point blank.

It should also be noted, as these verses remind, that those who cheat are actually cheating
themselves and those who practice vices or crimes are in fact doing wrong to themselves.
Although the society suffers from their actions, they are the first victims of their own evils
because of the bad effects of their crime on their own psyche and personality and because of
the severe punishment that will be waiting for them in the hereafter. It should also be noted that
Allaah SWT never gives up on people. While the Qur-aan condemns the vices and crimes of
people, it always does it in such a way that anyone who has any good left in him will learn
from it, seek Allaah’s forgiveness and reform his behaviour.

The discussion continues in the next few verses indicating that while on the one side, the
hypocrites and their supporters are bent upon pressuring the Prophet into doing improper or
unjust things, he is fully supported by the splendid grace and guidance of Allaah SWT, which
should be cherished and valued by the true believers.
113
And were it not for Allaah's grace and His mercy upon you, a group of them
had certainly resolved to mislead you, but they mislead only themselves, and
they do not harm you in any way. And Allaah has revealed to you the Book
and the wisdom, and He has taught you what you did not know, and Allaah's
grace on you has been very great. 114There is no good in most of people’s
private whispering unless it is done to enjoin charity or decency or
reconciliation between people; and whoever does this seeking Allaah's
pleasure, We will give him a grand reward. 115 And whoever becomes an
opposition party against the Messenger once guidance has become clear to
him, and follows other than the way of the believers, We will turn him to that
to which he has himself turned and take him to hell -- and it is an evil resort.

Almost all evils and problems in the society emanate from whispers, secret deliberations,
pocket meetings, private talks and closed-door sessions. However, private communications are
a tool that can be used both for good and evil purposes. Allaah SWT wants us to use this tool
only for good purposes, namely: encouraging people to give charity, promoting goodness and
decency, and reconciling between people. Whoever works for these goals to please Allaah is
promised splendid rewards. On the other hand, whosoever uses private communications to
cause trouble, to conspire against the Islamic mission or to make deals with anti-Islam forces
practically turns away from guidance after discovering it and adopts the path of hell.

Those who turn away from the guidance of Allaah, mostly end up falling into some kind of
Shirk; hence, people are reminded again about the graveness of Shirk:
116
Verily, Allaah does not forgive being partnered with others, while He
forgives whom He pleases for anything else; and whoever partners anything
with Allaah, he surely strays far astray.
As mentioned earlier in reference to verse 48, the forgiveness of other sins is not a given, but
conditional upon Allaah’s pleasure. However, His pleasure is not based on favouritism or
emotions like human beings, but on consistent principles based on wisdom. It is based on
factors such as: how genuine the sinner is in seeking forgiveness, how remorseful he is for the
sins committed, how sincere he is in his efforts to do better, whether the sins were committed
because of slippage at a moment of weakness, or were they committed daringly and
rebelliously, etc. Although He is merciful and wants to forgive those who deserve it, he does
not want to give any excuse to people to sin intentionally and deliberately.

As far as Shirk is concerned, people often do not understand its reality. Many people think that
Shirk applies only to the practice of performing formal worshipping rituals in front of an idol
or a person. The fact is that the definition of Shirk implies much more than that.

Allaah SWT as our Creator has certain rights over us. If we accept those rights fully and
devotedly and fulfill our obligations to Him exclusively for Him, we are practising Towĥeed. If
we ascribe any of those rights along with Allaah to any other entity even slightly, whether
theoretically or practically, we are practising Shirk. That entity can be our own self, the
Shayŧaan, a living person, a dead saint, a political leader, a system, a theory, a custom, a
tradition, etc. For example, a person commits Shirk, if he believes in Allaah, but also:

Gives preference to his own opinion or liking over Allaah’s command;

Obeys a person in disobedience to Allaah;

Follows a system of life other than Islam;

Prays to or calls for help from anyone who is dead;

Practises a custom or tradition despite knowing that Allaah dislikes it;

Performs an Islamic act to show off to people, instead of doing it purely and
exclusively for Allaah’s pleasure;

Joins or supports a party other than Allaah’s party (a genuine Islamic movement).

It is to warn about all this subtle or hidden kind of Shirk that Allaah SWT has declared twice in
this soorah that Shirk is an unforgivable sin. At first it was mentioned in the context of the
Jewish behaviour to highlight the aspects of their beliefs and practices that were Shirk in
nature. Now, it has been mentioned in the context of the hypocritical behaviour to emphasize
that turning away from the Islamic lifestyle in favour of some other lifestyle is Shirk and to
indicate that those who oppose the mission of the Prophet, in fact support the mission of those
who practice Shirk, which is such a horrible crime.
The next few verses give examples of Shirk found among pagans to give an idea of what sort
of things get the support of a person who turns away from the Islamic mission.
117
They invoke in His stead only goddesses; and they pray to none else than
Shayŧaan, the rebel. 118 Allaah cursed him; and he said, “Most certainly I will:

take a definite portion of your slaves;

119 lead them astray;

excite in them vain desires,

order them so that they shall slit the ears of the cattle;

order them so that they shall alter Allaah's creation;
and whoever takes Shayŧaan for a patron instead of Allaah, he indeed shall
suffer an evident loss.” 120 Shayŧaan makes them promises, and creates in them
vain desires; but Shayŧaan's promises are nothing but deception. 121 Those who
are duped by Shayŧaan will have hell as their dwelling and will not find any
escape from it. 122 As for those who believe and do good, We shall soon admit
them into gardens beneath which rivers flow, to abide therein forever; it is a
true promise of Allaah, and who is truer of word than Allaah?

The first part of the verse alludes to the role of goddesses in Shirk. Like Greeks, Romans and
other idolater societies, Arabs used to invoke different goddesses for different needs. However,
the most pervasive and the mother source of all Shirk has always been the obedience and
servitude to Shayŧaan. Although hardly anyone ever kneels to worship Shayŧaan, Allaah has
described those who follow his ways as his worshippers. Shayŧaan himself describes it as
stealing away a certain portion of Allaah’s slaves to be his slaves.

One of the ways Shayŧaan makes people follow him is by raising vain desires and false hopes
in them. Depending upon what motivates them, he uses different images of “rose gardens” for
different people. To start with, he makes the worldly pleasures so attractive and so significant
that people develop a perception and attitude as if the bounties of this world are going to last
forever and as if that is all there is to strive for to achieve a real success. Then, in the matters of
this world, he engages them in superstitions and makes them believe in the effectiveness of
sorcery, amulets, talismans, incantations, etc. Those who want to do something good for the
hereafter, he convinces them to keep delaying or procrastinating after this or after that until
they die. He makes them think, “I will be able to do it better or more effectively after I have
attained such and such, or done such and such.” Their attention is diverted from the right things
through more false ideas such as: “We will be successful if we dedicate to the national glory”;
“if we follow this or that philosophy, it will make the earth a better place for us”; “we on our
own can come up with the best way of life”; “the world will be at peace if we accept everyone
the way he or she is”; “we can attain guidance direct from Allaah, no book or messenger is
needed to tell us what is good”; so on and so forth. Those who believe in the hereafter are kept
away from doing their duties and good works by excuses like: “The entities other than Allaah
that we call upon or pray to are our intercessors that help us gain bounties in this world and
they will also help get the best facilities in the hereafter”; “We are Allaah’s chosen people
because we are progeny of so and so, thus we will enter Jannah for sure”; “The fire of hell will
not touch us, if it does, it will be just a matter of days before we will admitted to Jannah”;
“Jesus died for our sins; by accepting him, we are saved.” etc. All of the above are examples of
false promises and vain desires that Shayŧaan implants in people’s minds.

Slitting the ears of cattle was an indication that the animal was consecrated for gods or
goddesses. This is an example of Shayŧaan getting people indulged in nonsensical things like
superstitions and consecrating things, animals or people for idols, gods and goddesses instead
of serving Allaah in obedience.

Altering Allaah’s creation means using Allaah’s creation for purposes other than their natural
role for which Allaah had created them or trying to defeat the purpose for which they were
created. For example, Allaah has created people to live in complete slave-like obedience to
Him; when people refuse to submit to Allaah or submit to others than Allaah or are enslaved
by people, or are subjugated in disobedience to Allaah, these are all forms of changing
Allaah’s creation. Similarly, Allaah has created people so that they can get married, enjoy sex
and have children. If people avoid getting married, castrate themselves, remove the capability
of having children, engage in a sexual activity other than between human males and females,
practice celibacy, adopt homosexuality, etc., they are changing Allaah’s creation. Allaah has
equipped males and females for different roles -- giving them roles or adopting roles other than
what they have naturally been equipped for will also be in the same category. Feeding meat by-
products to cattle or implanting animal genes into plants are other examples of changing
Allaah’s creation.

Shayŧaan implants the above kinds of ideas in human beings, to move them away from the
Islamic lifestyle and Islamic systems. People start practicing those misguidances from
Shayŧaan and start promoting and imposing them on human societies. In that sense, Shayŧaan
orders them and they obey him which is also tantamount to worshipping him besides Allaah. It
also indicates that instead of relying on the guidance of Allaah, they have started relying on the
misguidance of Shayŧaan, which is tantamount to taking him as their guide and patron instead
of Allaah.

The next three verses are concluding remarks stressing the fact that Allaah SWT deals with
people strictly on the basis of their practical performance, not on the basis of their lineage, their
families, the titles they may have assigned to themselves or the notions, hopes and myths they
may have invented on the incitement of Shayŧaan. In the matter of right paradigm and good
performance, Ibraheem has been cited as a role model to follow from the people of the past.

123
The end result in the hereafter shall not be determined by your vain desires
nor by the vain desires of the People of the Book but by actual performance:
whoever does evil, he shall be recompensed accordingly, and besides Allaah,
he will find for himself neither a guardian nor a helper. 124 And whoever does
good deeds -- whether male or female -- and has faith, they shall enter the
garden, and they shall not be wronged even a bit. 125 Who can be better in
religion than one who submits himself entirely to Allaah, excels in
performance and earnestly follows the paradigm of Ibraheem, the upright? And
Allaah took Ibraheem as a friend. 126 And whatever is in the heavens and
whatever is in the earth is Allaah's; and Allaah surrounds all things.
The next section provides answers to questions that had arisen out of the commands and social
reforms relating to multiple wives, using polygamy to take care of orphans, significance of
paying Mahr and maintaining justice between wives. Most of the questions were emanating
from the strict instructions to pay a reasonable mahr and to maintain justice between wives.
Some people were wondering about the necessity of paying mahr especially when marrying a
widow mainly for the welfare of her orphans. They were also seeking clarifications about
having to treat them equally as their previous wives. Apart from the questions about the
mothers of orphans, similar questions were being raised in general because the command to
treat all wives equally was a new restriction. People had been used to treating their wives as
they preferred without any worry about maintaining equality among them. Now, in compliance
with the new requirement, they could easily accord equal economic and social treatment; but
assuming that the commanded equality meant perfect equality in every aspect, they found it
impossible to treat them equally in terms of emotional attachment or sexual relations because
of the natural differences among wives in terms of their attractiveness, their personalities and
their health situation, etc. In some situations where equality was impossible because of a wife
being infertile or unfit to have sexual relations for medical or physical reasons, people
wondered if she was to be divorced or can there be some other way of dealing with such
situations.

In keeping with the style of the Qur-aan, these questions have not been quoted. They just have
been alluded to succinctly with one word “women”. It was enough to indicate the nature of
questions because the believers in that society knew all the discussions that were taking place
and the questions that the Prophet was being asked. Besides, the nature of the questions was
going to be clear from the answers provided.
127
They seek your ruling on matters concerning women; say that Allaah gives
you verdict regarding them, regarding what is being taught to you in the Book
in the matter of the orphans of the women whom you want to marry without
giving them what is obligated on you for them, and regarding the helpless
children: 57Fulfil your obligations to them and handle orphans’ affairs justly;
and whatever good you do, Allaah has full knowledge of it. 128 And if a wife
fears contempt or avoidance from her husband, it is not bad if they effect a
settlement between them. In fact, settlement is better, though people are prone
to selfishness. And if you adopt the best behaviour and practise self-restraint,
then surely Allaah is ever aware of what you do. 129 And you are not capable of
maintaining perfect equality between wives, even though you may wish it; but
do not be inclined completely towards one, so that you leave another hanging.
And if you continue to do better and practise self-restraint, then surely Allaah

57
There have been many opinions about the grammatical composition and meaning of this verse. Having
found Tadabburul-Qur-aan’s author, mufassir and scholar, Amin Ahsan Islahi’s analysis and arguments
most convincing, I have adopted his interpretation in presenting the teachings of this verse.
is Forgiving, Merciful. 130 But if they separate, Allaah will render them both
free from want out of His abundance, and Allaah is ever Ample-giving, Wise.

The first verse answers categorically that payment of reasonable mahr and maintenance of
justice is a must even when marrying a widow for the sake of the orphans. It also uses this
opportunity to re-emphasize the need for being fair and just to the orphans. As for the good
intentions for which you marry and for the extra goodness you extend to those women or to the
orphans, they are all in the knowledge of Allaah who will reward you for them in the best
manner. The second verse allows that if circumstances require, a compromising deal on
matters of mahr and equality could be made between a husband and a wife to avoid a
separation or divorce. While allowing such a settlement, it still appeals to both that they adopt
the best behaviour and magnanimity instead of being selfish. The third verse explains the
essence of equality among wives. It explains that the intent is not to divide your love exactly
equally among all wives because such emotional equality is impossible even if a person makes
his best efforts for it. What is desired by the command is that while maintaining equality in the
material things and treatment, do not be emotionally inclined to one so much that the other is
totally neglected and is left hanging. If someone is earnest in treating all wives equitably, any
inadvertent mistakes or any things beyond their power or control will be forgiven. The fourth
verse indicates that if a reasonable arrangement or settlement cannot be reached and one party
finds that the other party is trying to take advantage of the situation instead of agreeing to some
decently reasonable terms, then they should feel free to separate instead of living under
unacceptable conditions. Although compromise to save a marriage is very desirable and
appreciated by Allaah, it must be within only reasonable limits. This is mentioned especially to
provide support to women if they need to take a stand for a reasonable settlement without
giving up too much to reach a settlement that may haunt them for the rest of their life. As a
result, if they have to separate, Allaah SWT will take care of their needs, if they have been
reasonable without being selfish or greedy.

After being given all those directions and instructions about the reformation of the society from
the beginning of the soorah until now, in the next few verses, the believers are being reminded,
in conclusion, of some basic realities that they must always remember to keep their paradigm
and attitude properly tuned to their goals in life.

131
And whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth is Allaah's. And
certainly We enjoined those who were given the Book before you as well as
you that maintain taqwa of Allaah; but if you disbelieve by not maintaining
taqwa, then Allaah still owns whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the
earth; and Allaah is free of all needs, Praise-worthy. 132 And whatever is in the
heavens and whatever is in the earth is Allaah's, and Allaah is sufficient as a
Trustee. 133 If He wishes, He can do away with you, O people, and bring
others; and Allaah is ever Capable of that. 134 Whoever desires the reward of
this world, then with Allaah is the reward of this world and the hereafter.
Allaah is ever Hearing, Seeing.

The reminder is:


Allaah owns everything in the universe including you, hence it only behoves you to
live in His world according to His instructions;

Whatever you possess belongs to Allaah. It has been given to you only temporarily to
be used according to His instructions. Hence, it is only reasonable that you willingly
and happily use those resources being just and equitable to others around you, as you
are being directed in these reforms;

The Owner of the universe has commanded you, as He had commanded people before
you, to maintain taqwa towards Him – maintaining an attitude of diligently fulfilling
your duties to Him and of carefully and cautiously avoiding behaviours that may
displease Him. If you fail to do so, you just hurt yourself. It does not impact Him or
His ownership of the universe and His authority over it. He can in fact destroy you
and replace you, if He wants, with others who will perform well in His obedience.

You have the choice to work for gains in the world or for eternal rewards in the
hereafter. Those who aim for the gains of this world, Allaah will let them have what
they strive for, but they will be losers in the hereafter. Those who choose to work for
the hereafter, Allaah will reward them abundantly in the hereafter; while they get the
gains and benefits in this world as well. The choice in what you aim for is yours. He
knows your thoughts, intentions and your attitude and is watching your performance
closely.

For those who choose to obey their Master Who owns them and everything else in the
universe, the next verse reminds them of the most important Islamic objective – establishment
of impartial, blind and full justice in the society. Although Allaah SWT has all the power and
authority to do whatever He wants, He deals with His creations with perfect justice. He has
created the universe and maintains it on the principle of justice, balance and equilibrium. He
wants to see the same balance, equity, moderation and justice in individual human behaviour
and in their collective affairs as a society. The deen He has prescribed for them – Islam — is a
perfectly balanced, moderate and just system of life based on His absolute knowledge and
wisdom. It is designed to establish justice and peace in the society and that is Islam’s main
goal. Hence the believers are commanded:
135
O believers, be determined practitioners of justice as witnesses for Allaah's
sake, even though it be against yourselves, or your parents, or near relatives;
whether it concerns rich or poor, Allaah is more considerate of both of them.
Therefore do not follow a passion or desire lest you lose the balance. And if
you distort it or disregard it, then surely Allaah is well-aware of what you do.

Thus, the believers must practise blind justice in their personal dealings and also be the
determined activists to establish the system of justice -- Islam – in their societies. Even if the
demands of justice or provisions of Islamic teachings go against one’s own personal interests
or those of their closest relatives, justice must be served and Islamic teachings must be fully
practised and implemented in the society regardless of whose interests suffer as a result. It
must be remembered that Allaah SWT is more considerate than any human being of the
interests and well-being of all segments of society. His commands are in the best human
interest. The blind practice of justice regardless of who is involved, rich or poor, will be in the
interest of everyone in the long run. Similarly, complete implementation of Islamic teachings
will also create a balanced and just society where rights of haves and have-nots are optimally
cared for. True believers should never let their feelings, biases and desires of favouring certain
people or their passion for certain groups or causes ever come into their way of practising
justice. Similarly, one’s own ideas, plans, theories and preferences should never come in the
way of fully implementing or practising Islam, otherwise the Islamic balance, moderations and
justice built into the Islamic teachings will be lost. Finally, people have been warned that
Allaah is watching them, is fully aware of all their intents and actions and will hold them
accountable if they:

try to twist the facts to come up with their favourite decisions;

ignore the principle of justice in their dealings with people;

distort Islamic teachings to suit their purposes, current trends of the society or the
pressures of their non-Muslims friends; or

ignore Islamic teaching while running their affairs and making their decisions.

Those who claim to be believers but do not practice justice in their dealings or do not dedicate
their time, energies and resources to practise and implement the Islamic system of justice as a
complete way of life are being invited to become true believers in the next verse:

136
O believers, believe in Allaah and His Messenger and the Book which He
has gradually revealed to His Messenger and the Book which He revealed
before; and whoever disbelieves in Allaah and His angels and His messengers
and the last day, he indeed has strayed off far astray.

Accordingly, even if a person claims to believe in all articles of faith, but his practice or
lifestyle is not according to the Islamic teachings and is not geared to Islamic objectives, he
will be considered a rejecter or denier of faith and extremely misguided.

As for those people who practice Islam only partially, they are considered hypocrites in the
following verses, just as they have been identified in that manner previously. They are those
who follow Islamic teachings when they conform to their opinions but ignore or reject them
when they do not. When something of Islam appeals to them, they suddenly become active and
practising; but when some setback is faced, they abandon all practice. When they see benefit,
they are seen among Muslims and in the masjid; when it is not beneficial, they disappear. This
kind of attitude over time takes them farther and farther away from the true faith and hardens
them in their un-Islamic behaviour. They even try to promote such attitudes of “looking after
your interest” to others and create barriers in the way of the Islamic mission. Such hypocrites
think they have a very effective and successful strategy, but in reality they are destroying their
future in the hereafter; hence, they are sarcastically being given “good news” of painful
punishment.

137
Verily, those who believe, then reject faith, then believe, then reject faith,
and keep on increasing in disbelief, Allaah will not forgive them nor guide
them to the right way. 138 Give “good news” to the hypocrites that they shall
have a painful punishment – 139 Those who befriend the disbelievers rather
than the believers. Do they seek honour from them? Then surely honour rests
entirely with Allaah. 140 They continue to befriend them even when He has
already revealed to you in the Book that when you hear Allaah's revelations
rejected and derided, do not sit with them until they engage in some other
conversation; otherwise you would surely be like them. Allaah will gather
hypocrites and disbelievers, all together, into hell indeed. 141 They are those
who wait and watch about you: If you have a victory from Allaah they say,
“Were we not with you?" But if it becomes disbelievers’ share, they say, “Did
we not cover you up and protect you from the believers?” So Allaah shall
judge between you on the Day of Judgment, and Allaah will by no means give
the disbelievers a way against the believers.

These hypocrites are usually worshipers of their worldly interests and for those expediencies
they tend to worship the “rising sun”. When they see that the anti-Islamic forces are more
powerful and established, they think that their worldly interests are best served by keeping a
“good relationship” with them. On the other hand, they are considered a part of the Muslim
community, which either they cannot get rid of, or they do not want to abandon because it is in
their interest to keep that identity. Mostly it is because of their so-called “Muslim” identity that
anti-Islam forces use them for subversive and fifth-columnist activities. Their hypocrisy is
shown by four aspects of their behaviour:

They befriend anti-Islam forces at the expense of Muslims; both of the parties
supporting, promoting and advocating for each other. They become a mouthpiece for
the anti-Islam forces defending their vicious behaviour and making excuses for their
subversive activities. In turn, if any Muslim exposes their hypocrisy, all the anti-Islam
propaganda machinery starts a campaign in their defence.

They think that the honour, prestige, glory, power and influence come from loyalty to
and serving the interests of the anti-Islam forces. Thus, they become slaves of
taaghoot (anti-Islam forces or party of Shayŧaan) instead of trusting Allaah who really
owns all the power, glory, honour and prestige.

When anti-Islam forces reject and criticize Islamic teachings or deride, ridicule or
poke fun at them, they tolerate such activities and continue keeping company with
them. Those who mock Islamic teachings, make cartoons, write books or make
movies criticizing or rejecting the teachings of the Qur-aan and Sunnah, they are
without doubt open enemies of Islam. But even tolerating such an activity or
remaining at a location where such an activity is taking place indicates that the person
is a hypocrite. Defending such a perpetrator, justifying his or her actions, showing
respect for such an entity and continuing affiliation with such a group is considered
being part of that group by Allaah SWT.

The fourth indication of their hypocrisy is that when something good happens to
Muslims, they celebrate with them and want to claim a big share of the success; but
when the enemies of Islam have the upper hand, they go out of their way trying to
 show them how their subversive, fifth-columnist activities helped anti-Islam forces
achieve their objective.

Their hypocritical condition has been further exposed in the following verses:

142
Verily, the hypocrites think they are deceiving Allaah, but it is He Who is
deceiving them: When they stand up for Ŝalaah, they stand up lazily only to be
seen by people, hardly remembering Allaah; 143 wavering between this and
that; neither for these nor for those. And whomsoever Allaah lets astray, you
shall not find a way for him. 144 O believers, do not befriend the disbelievers in
place of believers. Do you wish to give Allaah a clear evidence against you? 145
Certainly the hypocrites will be in the lowest depths of the Fire, and you shall
not find a helper for them. 146 Except for those who repent and amend and hold
fast to Allaah and dedicate their deen solely for Allaah. Those, therefore, are
with the believers, and soon Allaah will grant the believers an immense
reward. 147 What would Allaah gain by punishing you, if you are grateful and
believe? In fact, Allaah is ever Appreciative, Knowing.

Despite their so-called belief in Islam, they would be given the severest and the most painful
punishment in hell because of their duplicitous and injurious behaviour.

The last two verses encourage them to repent, reform their behaviour and follow Islamic
teachings wholly, solely, entirely and purely. If they do so, then Allaah SWT will accept them
back in the fold of Muslims. He will also accept their repentance and their actions that show
clear gratitude towards Allaah for His gift of Islam. The essence of faith is being grateful to
Allaah for His guidance and His bounties. This gratitude is a condition of heart that actually
leads a person to faith in Islam and then shows itself in words of praise and thanks for Allaah
and in actions of the person in obedience to Allaah. In turn, Allaah accepts the person back as
His obedient slave -- that is Allaah’s appreciation for human gratitude.

Whenever Allaah SWT talks about anti-Islam activities of enemies of Islam and hypocrites, He
immediately teaches Muslims the excellence of behaviour expected of them even in dealing
with the worst kind of enemies and hypocrites. The purpose of pointing out their subversive
activities is to warn Muslims so that they do not become victims of such activities and to help
the enemies see the error in their behaviour and invite them to the proper behaviour. The
purpose is always to encourage anyone who has an iota of goodness in his heart towards
reformation and correction of his behaviour as well as to have Muslims adopt caution and not
be fooled by these people. However, if Muslims react angrily, imprudently, aggressively or ill-
manneredly, the opportunity of the reformation of a person may be lost or an innocent person
may be considered an enemy or hypocrite. It will also negate the excellence which Allaah
wants Muslims to adopt in all their affairs and dealings. Hence, the Muslims have been told:

148
Allaah does not like that evil should be noised in public except by one who
has been wronged; Allaah is ever Hearing, Knowing. 149 If you disclose
goodness or conceal it or pardon an evil, then surely Allaah is Pardoning,
Powerful.

The expectations from the Muslims are:

If it is a personal matter where a person has been wronged, then he can complain or
seek redress for the wrong committed against him by publicly naming the party who
has committed the crime. Otherwise, people should not be labelled. Bad actions and
hypocritical behaviour must be criticized in general and people should be warned
against it but without naming names.

On the other hand, people should react kindly and graciously to all people, displaying
their good manners and their best behaviour, and in their hearts they should nurture
good feelings and good attitudes. When they are personally wronged and they have
power to take revenge or to inflict punishment, they should adopt the attitude of
forgiving the wrong-doers. This is the kind of personality Allaah wants Muslims to
develop because He Himself is forgiving despite having all the power to punish
people any way He wants.
The next section deals with the crimes of the Jews, hints at the consequences of those crimes,
identifies true believers from among them and mentions the immense reward they will get. It
starts with a statement of principle: Faith in Allaah and all of His messengers comes as one
package, which you cannot separate and from which you cannot pick and choose. A disbelief
about any of them is a disbelief altogether. That should remove any misunderstanding someone
may have about those who believe in Allaah and some messengers, but not all of them. Even
disbelief in one messenger is enough to make the person an outright disbeliever (a Kaafir58).
150
Verily those who disbelieve in Allaah and His messengers, those who want
to distinguish between Allaah and His messengers, those who say: we believe
in some and disbelieve in others, and those who seek to choose a way in
between; 151 all of them are truly and equally disbelievers, and We have
prepared for the disbelievers a humiliating punishment. 152 While to those who
believe in Allaah and His messengers and do not make a distinction between
any of them, He will soon grant them their rewards; and Allaah is ever
Forgiving, Merciful.
153
The people of the Book ask you to bring down to them a book from heaven.
It is not surprising because they asked Moosa59 something even more ignorant
and offensive than that, they asked him: Show us Allaah manifestly. So the
thunderbolt struck them for their wickedness. Then they chose the calf for
worship after clear signs had come to them; even so We pardoned this and We
gave to Moosa clear authority. 154 And We lifted the Mount Toor over them to
take their covenant, and We told them: Enter the door bowing humbly; and We
told them: Do not violate Sabbath; and we took from them a solemn covenant.
155
But they became exceedingly obdurate as shown by:
• Their breaking their covenant and their disbelief in the revelations of
Allaah and their killing the prophets wrongfully and their saying: Our
hearts are covered; -- rather Allaah has sealed them owing to their
disbelief, so they shall not believe except a few.
• 156 Their disbelief and their speaking against Maryam60 a grave slander;
• 157 Their saying: Surely we have killed the Messiah, ‘Eesa61 son of
Maryam, the messenger of Allaah – but they did not kill him nor did
they crucify him, but it so appeared to them; and those who differ
therein are indeed only in a doubt about it; they have no knowledge
respecting it, but just a conjecture they are following; and they certainly

58
Disbeliever or unbeliever
59
Moses
60
Mary
61
Jesus
 killed him not, 158 but Allaah raised him up unto Himself; and Allaah is
ever Mighty, Wise.

People who become slaves to their customs, traditions and so called heritage of their
forefathers usually close their minds from anything that presents a sensible alternative to their
ignorant traditions and heritage. That has been the greatest hindrance in the way of people
responding positively to the call of the messengers of Allaah and accepting their message. It
has never been for the lack of evidence or shortage of miracles from a messenger that people
do not accept the message, but it has mostly been because of their prejudices and biases in
favour of their heritage, their bigotry and their close-mindedness against the very original and
refreshing teachings of the messengers. Instead of feeling ashamed of this perverseness, the
rejecters of the message usually feel very proud of their close-mindedness and immunity to
“out of the box”, sensible views. In the same way, when Jews demanded from the Messenger
of Allaah to bring a book from heaven, it was just their way of finding an excuse to reject his
call to Islam. In reality, they did not want to accept the message because of their obduracy,
bigotry, bias against and resistance to the truth. They had shut their minds and used to boast
that their hearts were protected from infiltration. Allaah SWT is telling them that this is not an
achievement of which they should be proud of, but they have, in fact, lost capability to reason
and to understand. It is Allaah’s predetermined law that whoever closes his mind in resistance
to the truth, he loses the capability to even understand it. Thus they have become victims of
their own bad attitude and perverseness. This loss of capability to understand is called “sealing
of the hearts”. Since this condition is a natural consequence according to Allaah’s laws of
nature, Allaah SWT attributes it to Himself saying that He sealed their hearts. Unfortunately,
many Muslims nowadays also behave in this manner when they are given the true message of
Islam that is at variance with their cultural and traditional practices.

Jews have been habitual in displaying this obdurate behaviour towards many prophets and
messengers in the past. Rather, their reaction has been extremely aggressive and violent. They
killed many prophets as they killed Yahyaa. They treated Maryam the same way and slandered
her of being unchaste. To prove her innocence, Allaah SWT caused newborn ‘Eesa to speak in
defence of his mother, but when ‘Eesa started his Islamic mission and rebuked them for their
wanton behaviour, they used the slander to discredit him and his mother both.

They rejected ‘Eesa himself in their same obdurate and violent way, despite witnessing the
amazing miracles that Allaah showed through him. While knowing him to be a messenger of
Allaah, they not only tried to kill him but also boasted about killing him. This showed the
severest state of their hardened hearts and obduracy. What can one expect from them except
rejection and opposition to the Islamic mission?

At the mention of ‘Eesa and the Jewish claim of killing him, Allaah SWT has taken the
opportunity to strongly refute their claim that they were successful in having him killed.
Although they thought that he was killed, in reality he was not. People were just confused and
mixed up on this matter. Although the Christians also believe that he was killed on the cross
and was then resurrected and taken to heaven, even they have no knowledge of the facts about
Jesus. Their whole story about his passion and his crucifixion is based on hearsay and
conjecture, not on facts or knowledge. If we look at Christian sources, we find that there are so
many versions, narrations and contradictory reports that it is impossible to say exactly what
transpired. No eyewitness accounts are available. Some people believe that the four Gospels
are eyewitness accounts, but nothing can be farther from truth. None of the four Gospel writers
was a disciple of Jesus and none of the disciples personally witnessed the crucifixion in any
way because, fearful of Roman authorities, they had escaped and gone into hiding. As all four
of the accounts are based on hearsay, they are very inconsistent and self-contradictory. That is
why the Qur-aan says that they have no knowledge but are following only conjecture.

The question is if people at that time were confused and mixed up and the subsequent
generations of Christians are just following some wishful thoughts, not reality, then what really
did happen? The Qur-aan categorically says that he was neither killed nor crucified but Allaah
raised him or lifted him up towards Himself. So what does “Allaah raised him or lifted him up
towards Himself” mean? Obviously, it cannot mean ascension after resurrection because
Allaah SWT is categorically denying his death before being raised.

A simple, straightforward and apparent meaning is that physically he was lifted up and taken to
heaven. However, some people who cannot fathom a live person being raised to heaven
interpret it to mean that Jesus was raised (elevated) in status. This act of ‘raising’ cannot mean
raising of a status because neither is it expressly stated nor does the context allow that
meaning. While declaring that the adversaries did not succeed in crucifying or killing Jesus,
“but” cannot be followed by a mention of Jesus being raised in status. It can only relate to his
physical existence.

Some people may assume that it just means natural death. Being lifted up or raised has never
been used in the Qur-aan to imply death. This meaning is usually assumed by non-Arab
Muslims because of the contemporary usage of the word “raised” to mean death. Because of
the Muslims’ understanding that the soul of the dying person is raised to heaven, in some
languages people have started figuratively using ‘raised’ to mean ‘died’. Based on that usage,
which was developed long after the revelation of the Qur-aan, only in oriental Muslim
languages, some people think perhaps the Noble Qur-aan has also used ‘raised’ for his being
dead. This is far from the truth. It cannot mean ‘raised to heaven in spirit’ as is used in our
society for every dying person, regardless of how he died. This meaning, too, does not fit the
context and rather makes it absurd because a statement to the effect, “they did not kill him, but
his soul was taken up” does not make much sense. Also, there is no example of such use of the
word ‘raised’ either in any other place in the Noble Qur-aan or in the Arabic usage of the
Prophet’s time.

In addition, none of these meanings (raising of his status or his natural death) can be justified
in the context of the verse because immediately after saying “but Allaah lifted him up or raised
him”, the Qur-aan refers to Allaah’s omnipotence and His wisdom indicating that it was an
extraordinary incident involving Allaah’s power and authority, not an ordinary human death or
raising of someone in status. Thus, ‘raised’ in this verse means raised physically.

Lifting up of, or raising of Jesus has been mentioned only at one other place in the Noble Qur-
aan – that is in Soorah Aali-‘Imraan where the Noble Qur-aan says:

“They (Jesus’ enemies) plotted and Allaah also planned, and Allaah is
the best of the Planners. At that occasion, Allaah assured, ‘O Jesus! I
 will you take you back wholly, raise you unto Myself, purify you from
those who have rejected you, and make your followers dominate those
who reject you…”.62

This indicates that Jesus knew before the Roman legion attacked that he will not fall into the
hands of the enemy, but will be raised unto Allaah. Although the message here seems to be
clear, some people are confused by the use of the word “Mutawaffeeka” – “take you back
wholly and completely”. This word means to take something completely. When a person dies,
angels take his soul completely. For that reason, a derivative from the same root word is used
metaphorically for death of a person. Because of this use of the word, people think that here
also it is used for the death of Jesus. But again, this metaphoric meaning does not fit the
context properly while the real meaning of the word does. Hence, the real meaning of the word
should be used instead of the metaphoric. The Qur-aan needed to use this word in its real
meaning to refute the Christian concept of being raised. Because Christians believe his being
raised after resurrection can only be in spirit, the Qur-aan, by using the words ‘take you back
wholly’, indicates that he was raised physically both in body and spirit as a living human
being.

Some people think that Jesus was hanged but was taken down before his death. Some others go
further and claim that, afterwards, he lived a normal life, got married and had children. About
his subsequent life, some people theorize that he left for India to chase some lost sheep of
Israel. There he died in Kashmir and is buried in Sarinagar. Some Japanese think that he
migrated to Japan and lived and died there.

The Noble Qur-aan does not support these theories. Had Jesus been on the cross, survived
crucifixion and died a natural death, the Noble Qur-aan would have mentioned it as such. The
most important point about the discussions on topics such as these is to remember that the Qur-
aan always states a point clearly instead of using a confusing style. If Jesus had died naturally
subsequent to being saved from death on the cross, the Qur-aan would tell it clearly without
mincing words. It would not use the words that give more indication of being raised alive than
of dying, especially when there were already a big population of Christians believing in Jesus
being raised after resurrection. If the purpose was to contradict the notion of Jesus being raised
in any unusual form, it was much easier for the Qur-aan to say: Jesus did not die on the cross
but died of natural causes in such and such circumstances, at so and so place. Instead of a
report of that kind, Allaah has very clearly said that Jesus was not even crucified and has used
such language that indicates some special, unusual incident of being raised to heaven without
being put on the cross.

How did he evade arrest and how was he lifted up? How did all that happen? That is where the
vagueness comes from. It is beyond our knowledge, experience or imagination. Thus being
beyond our understanding, it is a matter of Mutashaabihaat. Allaah SWT does not provide any
details about Mutashaabihaat for many reasons.

62
3:55
First of all, Allaah being the Master rightfully expects of His servants to have full trust in Him
and accept the facts as they are revealed by Him. As a matter of principle, He never explains
how He does things. He just tells us that He commands the things to happen and they do
happen. Secondly, even if Allaah had chosen to explain His actions for our understanding,
people would have been unable to understand most of the things most of the time because His
ways and means are infinite, always beyond human imagination and mostly beyond our finite
understanding. Finally, even if Allaah would have given the details of what actually transpired,
it would not have any value whatsoever because people would have no way of verifying the
truth of the statements. The confusions and doubts would remain as they are. Any further
information would have been useless in clarifying the issue and, hence, unproductive. So the
statement that the Jews were not able to crucify Jesus and that Allaah raised him is sufficient
and enough for the believers to know for all intents and purposes. For reasons such as these,
Allaah has not described the way He caused the confusion and saved His messenger to raise
him to the heavens.

As far as non-Muslims are concerned, their need from the Qur-aan is the information that will
open their eyes to the truth that the Qur-aan is the Word of Allaah and the ultimate guidance
for mankind. The details of Jesus’ last days on the earth would not have provided any value
from that point of view for the same reasons as mentioned before: firstly, Allaah’s ways are
often beyond human understanding; and secondly, people would have no means of establishing
their accuracy. For the purposes of providing signs of its truth, the Qur-aan is a living miracle
that keeps revealing its miraculous nature as our scientific knowledge and understanding
progresses.

However, for the non-Muslim’s curiosity, the following information from Biblical sources
presents one plausible scenario:
• Jesus had appeared on the public scene for a very short period of time. Although he
had confrontations with Jewish leadership and Rabbis and his name and claims
became quickly famous, the general public did not have much chance to see him and
recognize him physically. Even Romans did not know what he looked like.
• None of the disciples were around Jesus when the supposed event of crucifixion
happened. When Romans attacked, they all fled: “They all forsook him, and fled.”63
• The crucifixion was not a public event. Although it is reported to be held on a
barren, skull-shaped hill called Golgotha, the other Gospel accounts contradict
this information and indicate that crucifixion took place in a garden right next to
which was a spacious sepulchre hewn in rocks owned by Joseph of Arimathea.
The facts indicate that it was the Garden of Gethsemane64.
• In other words, it took place on a private property, not at a public place. It
occurred in late afternoon on Friday and there were only some women who
watched from far off.65

63
Mark 14:50
64
John 19:41, Matthew 27:60, The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail pages 374-377
65
Matthew 27:55 Luke 23:49 Mark 15:40
 • The person on the cross cried, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”66
Such a complaint and cry has to be from someone else not Jesus, a messenger of
Allaah, especially if he was previously told that he will eventually be saved or
resurrected.
• The spectators looking from a distance saw or perhaps were told of a body
pierced in the side with a spear causing water and blood to gush forth.67 So the
belly and guts of the hanged person were slit.
• From a distance, people really could not see what was going on except that they
saw three people crucified and, a few hours later in the dark68, they saw a body
being handed over to Joseph of Arimathea, who himself was waiting for the
Kingdom of God, (i.e. a secret disciple and helper of Jesus for establishment of
the Islamic state).69
• The body was stored in the vast room carved in the rocks70 from where it
disappeared sometime on Saturday.71
• After the entire episode, people found the dead body of Judas, the traitor, lying in
his field with signs of being hanged72 and with his guts open.73
• The disciples neither had any knowledge of, nor were they expecting any
possibility of Jesus being raised from the dead.74
• After this incident, Jesus was seen alive and well. Believing that he had been
crucified, his disciples were flabbergasted to see him. He was physically present
and had no wound in his belly. He showed them his flesh and bones and asked
them to touch and feel so that they did not think that he was a spirit and that they
were convinced that he was present in person. To show them that he was not
‘raised’ and to satisfy his hunger, he ate fish and honeycomb with them just as
any normal living human being does.

“He said to them, ‘why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look
at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost (spirit) does not
have flesh and bones, as you see I have. When he had said this, he showed them his

66
Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34
67
John 19:34
68
Matthew 27:45 “Darkness came over the whole land.” Luke 23:44 Mark 15:33
69
Mark 15:43-46
70
The dimensions of the sepulchre were: 5’ W x 15’ deep x 7’ high as given by Jim Bishop in his book
“The Day Christ Died”.
71
“Early Sunday morning when it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the
stone has been taken away from the entrance… ‘ They have taken the lord from the tomb’…” John 20:1-2
72
Matt 27:5 “Then …went and hanged himself.”
73
“and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.” Acts 1:18
74
“They still did not understand the scripture which said that he must rise from death.” John 20:10
“They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost.” Luke 24:37
 hands and feet. And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement,
he asked them, ‘Do you have anything here to eat?’ They gave him a piece of broiled
fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence.”75.

As one can see, Jesus and his disciples had escaped the arrest. From the above listed
information, we can surmise that in confusion and darkness of night and Roman soldiers not
being familiar with Jesus, Judas the traitor was arrested. It was he who was crucified and it is
he whose belly was pierced with the spear, not Jesus. Joseph of Arimathea, who had taken the
body of Judas, quietly threw it out in Judas’ field without divulging the fact that Jesus had
escaped. That is why Mary Magdalene and other women, without knowing the reality, went
looking for Jesus’ body early Sunday morning, after Sabbath was over, but found the burial
chamber empty76. And that is why when Judas’ body was found in the field, its guts were open.
Had it been true that his guts were open because he fell headlong, it would open his head not
his guts77. Also, that is why, despite the rumours, Jesus was seen alive in his own physical
body, he was hungry and ate food as normal human beings do. He was not resurrected
otherwise he would not have a physical body nor would he need food. And as the Qur-aan
mentioned, he was subsequently raised to heaven.

Again, it should be emphasized that this is just a logical inference from the reports contained in
the Gospels. The only fact we know from the Qur-aan is that Jesus was neither crucified nor
killed, but lifted up.

What about the sign of Jonah? It is claimed that Jesus had predicted and informed people
around him that he would die, live in the belly of earth for three days and three nights and then
be raised again like Jonah stayed in and came out of belly of the fish:

"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: for as Jonas was three days and three
nights in the whale's belly; so shall the son of man be three days and three nights in
the heart of the earth." 78

This claim is strongly contradicted by other accounts in the gospels:

1. None of the disciples of Jesus were expecting his resurrection after three days. That is
why they would not believe79 when told about his being seen and that is why they
were scared when they saw him, thinking he must be a ghost. Had this prediction been
known to them, they would believe the news immediately and welcome him on seeing
him.

75
Luke 24:38-43, some versions mentions honeycomb as well.
76
Matthew 28:1, Mark 16:1-2, Luke 24:1, John 20:1
77
“and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.” Acts 1:18
78
Matthew 12:38-40
79
Mark 16:11-13, Luke 24:11
 2. If Jesus was the person who was crucified and he knew that he was destined to die
and be resurrected after three days, why did he cry and shout on the cross, "My God,
my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" From the comments like this, it appears he did
not have any idea of a resurrection in his mind. He felt alone and abandoned.

3. For a sign to apply, there should be strong and glaring similarities between the sign
and the incident to which it is applied. It does not appear to be the case here. For
example:

a. Jonah was alive when he was thrown in the water; he remained alive in the
belly of the fish80; and, he was alive when he was vomited on the shore. On
the other hand, Jesus is believed to have died; he was laid to rest as a dead
person; and, then he is believed to have been resurrected. Jesus did not
remain alive like Jonah. Or, Jonah did not die or get resurrected like Jesus.
b. Jonah stayed full three days and three nights in the belly of the fish81. Jesus
was taken into the tomb on Friday night and on Sunday morning82 his body
was nowhere to be found. Count as you may, if we assume that it was he
who was crucified, his stay in the belly of earth was only two nights and one
day – a far cry from three days and three nights.
c. Jonah went back to his people who accepted him and believed in him; not
Jesus.
d. An example of a minor nature is that to be similar the 'heart of the earth'
should be a grave or a small cave as constraining as the stomach of a whale.
While in the case of Jesus it was a spacious chamber measuring 5' x 15' with
7' height according to Jim Bishop in The Day Christ Died.

However, this sign of Jonah becomes quite relevant if looked at from another perspective. The
Qur-aan mentions that one of the functions of prophet ‘Eesa was to give people good news of
the coming of the Prophet Muhammad Sall-Allaahu 'Alayhi Wa Sallam. If we see the sign of
Jonah from that perspective, it makes much sense.

Here at the start of the discussion, the Qur-aan had mentioned that the Jews were asking the
Prophet to show strange kind of miracles such as bringing directly to them a book from
heaven. This sign of Jonah was also mentioned by Jesus in response to the Jewish demand for a
sign. Hence, prophet ‘Eesa had said, “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: for as Jonas was three
days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the son of man be three days and three
nights in the heart of the earth.” That sign was given to them when Prophet Muhammad
migrated from Makkah to Madeenah. When Makkans figured that Muhammad (Sall-Allaahu
'Alayhi Wa Sallam) would migrate to Madeenah to continue his mission, they decided to kill
him. His house was surrounded for that purpose. But he succeeded to get out miraculously just
as Jonah was able to survive in the storm miraculously. He hid in a small cave for three day
and three nights before resuming his journey towards Madeenah. Despite frantic search by

80
Jonah 2:110
81
Jonah 1:15, 17
82
Matthew 28:1, Mark 16:1-2, Luke 24:1, John 20:1
Makkans on the same mount where he was hiding, he escaped detection as a miracle just as
Jonah escaped death in the belly of the fish. After those long three days and nights in the belly
of the earth, he was able to travel to people of Madeenah who believed in him and was
subsequently able to conquer Makkans who also believed in him, just as people of Nineveh
believed in Jonah after the fish episode.

Coming back to the matter of Jesus being raised alive, a reader may wonder, if Jesus did not
die like a normal human being, is he an exception to the rule that every human being must die?
Not at all! He will come back to this world and live his remaining life and die as all human
beings do.

So why will Jesus come back? What will be his role? What is Allaah’s objective of bringing
him back such an extraordinary way?

To find the answer to these questions, we need to look at the condition of Muslims in the light
of the condition of Jews for which Jesus came for the first time.

Muslim masses nowadays are exactly the same in their behaviour as were Jews at the time
when Jesus was sent to them: Muslims have failed to maintain the ideal Islamic society that
was very successfully and completely established by the Prophet Muhammad and his
companions. Instead of expanding it all over the world and establishing the Islamic World
Order, we have even lost what we used to have. We have, in fact lost the dream and vision of
that society altogether. This responsibility is so completely abandoned and forgotten that it is
not even mentioned in our discussions or Khutbahs. For most of the Muslims, Islam is not even
a high priority or an important thing in life. The overwhelming majority think of it as a set of
rituals which one mechanically performs when one has time or when one is in need from
Allaah or is in trouble. Some go to other extreme and disregard all acts of worship thinking
being ‘nice’ is enough to be a Muslim. We take from Islam only what suits our worldly needs,
not the complete package. The few noble souls who try to remind us of this responsibility and
start an Islamic movement are abused, accused and name-called by the masses; persecuted,
imprisoned and killed by the governments; and, hated and ridiculed by the Non-Muslims. The
pleasures of this life are our sole priority. We have become so fragmented and divided that
every attempt to unite us creates even more groups and divisions. If we forget about the
masses, even the people who feel the need to change and establish Islam as a way of life are
bitterly divided and at each other’s throat. In the absence of any prophet, we do not want to
listen to another person like us. We have too many scholars with too many opinions where
none of them wants to back down or listen to another. We overlook our own shortcomings but
expect perfection from whoever stands up for the establishment of Deen. We are so cruel to
him that even small human errors on his part are blown out of proportion and the poor soul is
verbally abused and slandered viciously.

Those who have tried even to create a semblance of unity have failed miserably. Many people,
myself included, have made a number of attempts but found huge, fortified walls of egos,
sects, races and nationalities, blocking the way completely.

In short, the condition of Muslims is such that there is no Muslim, even the most pious and the
greatest scholar on the earth, who can have the universal influence to correct all Muslims’
religious approach, gain universal acceptance to be able to lead them as one Ummah, and be
able to unite them for establishing one global Islamic state. This is an Ummah that cannot even
agree on celebrating Eed on one day, what else can be expected from them.

In these circumstances, how can one ever expect Muslims to return to the revolutionary Islam
of the Prophet, becoming united and establishing the ideal Islamic state? That is where Jesus’
role comes in. His arrival will be so clear, like his birth that every believing Muslim will have
no doubt in recognizing him. No one will have any more excuse not to accept his leadership.
Everyone will rally around him and suddenly all of the more than a billion Muslims will be
united. Although Muslims are following the footsteps of Jews in everything else, this is one
matter they will prove to be better than Jews. Christians will recognize their folly, break the
cross, kill the swine they are breeding for food now and join the Muslims in faith.

Like the first part of his life, he will not bring any new law or book. He will come as the
follower of the Prophet Muhammad establishing Qur-aan and Islam completely in this world.
The final guidance brought by Muhammad will remain the final guidance to be fully re-
implemented. The majority of the global population becoming Muslim after his arrival, Islam
will become the world order. Sensible, good-hearted Jews will also see the truth and become
Muslims. There will be peace and tranquility of Islam everywhere.

To some, it may sound like wishful thinking, but those who analyze the events of the world
carefully can see that events leading to such a society are unfolding at a faster pace. The
picture is rapidly becoming clearer. Fifty years ago, it seemed far-fetched. Now, it seems very
likely. Every Muslim country has an Islamic movement working hard despite the highly
unfavourable circumstances, towards the establishment of an Islamic state. These movements
are preparing the workers who will be the lead followers working with Jesus to establish the
Islamic State. One of these places, Inshaa Allaah, is going to succeed to bring the first change
and establish it. That will become the springboard for accelerating the Islamic work. The leader
of that area will be the one who could be called ‘Mahdi’ for being rightly guided to establish
Islam in its true form. It is with this Mahdi that Jesus will work. That is on the Muslims side.
Every expansion by Israel and every cruelty and persecution by its forces is setting the stage
from the other side.

So while waiting for Jesus to appear, we must become part of an Islamic movement working
towards establishment of the Islamic state. If one dies before Jesus arrives, you have secured
your salvation by performing the most important duty a Muslim needs to perform, by doing the
work of the prophets and by working for the very purpose for which Islam and prophets were
sent. If you are still alive when he comes, you will have the honour of being among his first
helpers.

Where is the evidence of Jesus’ return? The evidence of this is in Ahaadeeth. Although many
Ahaadeeth have been reported regarding this topic, Syed Maudoodi has referred to the most
authentic 21 Ahaadeeth that have been reported by 14 well recognized companions of the
Prophet83. In other words, they are from different companions through different chains of
narrators, without inconsistency of the theme. This multiplicity of the sources and unity of the
message indicates that the Prophet most definitely mentioned it to people.

83
Tafheemul Qur-aan volume IV, appendix to the tafseer of Soorah Al-Aĥzaab.
Why has it not been mentioned in the Qur-aan? The Qur-aan is a book of guidance about the
universal matters of faith and book of instruction about the behaviour people should adopt. The
return of Jesus to live his remaining life and help Muslims in establishing Islam is neither a
matter of faith nor a matter of behaviour. That is why it has been left out of the Qur-aan. Had it
been mentioned in the Qur-aan, it would have become a matter of faith whose denial will cause
apostasy. It is a matter that pertains only to the generation who will witness his return. For their
guidance, mention by the Prophet is enough.

Some people ask that if Jesus has been raised to Heaven and will come down again, does that
make Jesus higher in status than Muhammad Sall-Allaahu 'Alayhi Wa Sallam? Not at all!
Prophet Muhammad was also taken alive to the world beyond our imagination to be shown
some extraordinary phenomena and was then brought back84. In addition, Jesus acknowledged
the greatness of Muhammad and foretold about his coming. On his coming back to live his
remaining life, he will be the follower of Muhammad. Does this negate the finality of
prophethood of Muhammad? It does not. Jesus is not a new messenger, nor is he coming back
as a new one, he is coming back as a follower of the last Messenger of Allaah.

The discussion about prophet ‘Eesa started because of the defiant claims of the Jews about his
killing. This claim was mentioned as one of the examples of obduracy of the Jews that
prevented them from believing in Prophet Muhammad. The examples were being quoted to
indicate the real reason of their disbelief which they were masking by making nonsensical
demands of miracles such as wanting to see a book descend from heaven to them. The next
verse makes one more comment on the topic of their faith before resuming with more
examples of their obduracy in the subsequent verses:
159
And there is none of the People of the Book but must believe in him before
his death; and on the Day of Judgment he will be a witness against them.

There is a variety of opinions about the meaning of this verse. All differences of opinion stem
from the efforts to determine whom the pronouns, “him or it”, “his” and “he” refer to.
According to different opinions “believe in” may refer to the Qur-aan, Jesus or Muhammad;
“before his death” may refer to Jesus, Muhammad or each person from the people of the Book;
“he will be witness” may refer to Muhammad or Jesus. Two of the most plausible opinions are
the following:

1. Some scholars think that all of the pronouns refer to Jesus and the verse is about the
second coming of Jesus. It means that before Jesus dies his natural death, all people of
the book living at that time will become Muslims and believe in him as Muslims
believe in him. In that case, people of the Book are the future people and thus the
translation of the verse will be: There will be none of the people of the Book …
2. Others think that ‘his death’ refers to “each person from the people of the Book”,
other two pronouns refer to Jesus. According to this opinion, the truth about Jesus
becomes evident to every person of the people of the Book at the time of his death
and they believe in that truth but it is too late to believe at that time anyway.

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 3. The third opinion is that “believe in” refers to the Qur-aan and the other two refer to
Prophet Muhammad. The fourth opinion is that all pronouns refer to Prophet
Muhammad. The implications of both of the third and fourth opinions are the same:
the meaning is that although the people of the Book are disbelieving in him and the
Qur-aan and are asking for a book to descend directly to them, before the Prophet
dies, the truth of his prophethood will become evident to every person from them
living in that area at that time. The witness refers to the same that was mentioned in
verse 41 of this soorah according to which he will witness in the court of Allaah SWT
that he delivered the message of Islam to them.

All we can say is that only Allaah knows the real meaning.

The next two verses give more examples of the obduracy of the Jews that prevents them from
believing in Islam and doing the right things:

160
Then because of the iniquity of the Jews, We did disallow to them the good
things which had been made lawful for them and for their hindering many
people from Allaah's way. 161 And for their charging interest though they were
forbidden from it and their devouring the property of people wrongfully; and
We have prepared for the disbelievers from among them a painful punishment.

Unfortunately, many Muslims individually and their societies collectively are committing these
crimes as well. They persecute, imprison or kill those Muslims who dedicate their energies and
resources for the establishment of Islam and undertake Islamic mission like Jews did to the
prophets and messengers. They hinder and discourage other people from practising Islam fully
or from joining the Islamic mission. They indulge in interest-based transactions, support
interest-based system and justify such system as the need of the time. They acquire other
people’s properties and wealth through illegal, immoral and dishonest means. Despite their
claims to Islam, they will not be able to avoid the painful punishment mentioned here. Allaah
SWT does not play favourites when it comes to applications of His laws.

Whenever the Qur-aan identifies the problematic behaviour of a group of people, it always
acknowledges the good people from them who adopt the right attitude and behaviour. This not
only encourages those who have goodness in their heart to adopt goodness completely, but also
it keeps the focus on the behaviour rather than stereotyping everyone of those people just
because of who they are. There are good and bad people in every human community. Thus we
must recognize the good, taking issue only with the bad behaviour.
162
But those among them who are well-grounded in knowledge and the true
believers, believe in what has been revealed to you and what was revealed
before you, establish Ŝalaah in particular, pay zakaah, and truly believe in
Allaah and the last day; these it is to whom We will soon give an immense
reward.
This verse highlights the establishment of Ŝalaah as the single most important matter after a
true faith. Establishment of Ŝalaah is in fact establishing the Islamic socio-political system as a
united ummah. Islamic objectives are not achieved and true belief is not evidenced unless
Muslims organize themselves as a community on the basis of the system of Ŝalaah and their
financial system on the principle of zakaah.

To encourage good people to embrace Islam and its mission, the next section reminds the
people of the Book the fact that Prophet Muhammad is the final member of the brotherhood of
the prophets and messengers who all came with the same guidance from Allaah and were
entrusted the same mission of establishing the law of Allaah on Allaah’s land. Then, Allaah
SWT gives His own witness for the truth of the Prophet’s mission and teachings and directly
invites them to accept and believe in Muhammad, the Messenger of Allaah.

163
Surely We have sent revelations to you as We sent revelations to Nooh
(Noah) and the prophets after him, and We sent revelations to Ibraheem
(Abraham) and Ismaa‘eel (Ishmael) and Isĥaaq (Isaac) and Ya‘qoob (Jacob)
and the patriarchs from Ya‘qoob’s descendents, and ‘Eesa (Jesus) and Ayyoob
(Job) and Yoonus (Jonah) and Haaroon (Aaron) and Sulaymaan (Solomon) and
We gave Zaboor (Psalms) to Dawood (David); 164 thus We sent revelations to
messengers We have mentioned to you before and to messengers we have not
mentioned to you; and Allaah spoke directly to Moosa (Moses). 165 All those
messengers were sent as the givers of good news and as warners, so that people
would have no argument against Allaah after the messengers had delivered the
message; and Allaah is Mighty, Wise. 166 Therefore, Allaah Himself testifies
that what He has revealed to you, He has revealed it with His knowledge, and
the angels also testify; and Allaah is sufficient as a witness. 167 Verily, those
who disbelieve and hinder others from Allaah's way, they indeed have strayed
off far astray. 168 Thus those who disbelieve and act unjustly, Allaah will not
forgive them nor guide them to a path, 169 except the path of hell, to remain
there forever, and that is ever easy for Allaah. 170 O people! The Messenger has
come to you with the truth from your Lord, therefore believe in him, it shall be
good for you; and if you disbelieve, then surely whatever is in the heavens and
the earth is Allaah's; and Allaah is ever Knowing, Wise.

Three points should be noted in this discourse: Firstly, they were all given the revelations in
the same manner. None of them, including those who enjoyed special communications like
Moses and David, brought a book directly to people; secondly, those who reject Prophet
Muhammad and the Qur-aan and stop others from doing so by their influence or propaganda
will not be forgiven at all even if they believed in Allaah and presumably followed previous
prophets; and thirdly, their disbelief does not hurt Allaah SWT who owns everything in the
universe, but they are hurting only themselves.

Although the invitation is addressed to all people, it especially addresses the Jews. It is the
style of the Qur-aan that such a message of invitation is given in a universal way so that
everyone can benefit from the invitation, though the context indicates for whom it is specially
intended.

The section before the previous one addressed the people of hypocritical behaviour and invited
them to accept Islam fully and wholeheartedly. The previous section identified the problem
with the Jews and invited them to accept Prophet Muhammad as Messenger of Allaah and
adopt the moderate and balanced lifestyle of Islam. The next section deals with the Christian
misguidance and invites them to accept and adopt the same.

171
O People of the Book! Do not exaggerate in your religious matters; nor say
anything about Allaah except the truth. The Messiah, ‘Eesa son of Maryam,
was only a messenger of Allaah and His command that He directed to Maryam,
and a spirit from Him. So believe in Allaah and His messengers, and do not
say, Three. Desist, it is better for you. Allaah is the only one God; far is it from
His transcendent glory that He should have a son. His is all that is in the
heavens and all that is in the earth; and Allaah is sufficient as a Care Taker. 172
The Messiah would never disdain to be a slave of Allaah, nor would the angels
who are near to Allaah; and whoever disdains being slave to Him and is
arrogant, He will gather them all together to Himself. 173 Then as for those who
believe and do good deeds, He will pay them fully their rewards and give them
more out of His grace; and as for those who are disdainful and arrogant, He
will punish them with a painful punishment. And they shall not find for
themselves besides Allaah a guardian or a helper. 174 O people! There has come
to you a convincing proof from your Lord and We have sent to you a clear
light; 175 so, those who believe in Allaah and hold fast unto Him, soon will He
admit them to mercy and grace from Himself, and show them a straight path to
Himself.

The greatest source of all deviations in the religious beliefs and views is exaggerated,
excessive and extremely inflated beliefs and views about religious personalities. People go to
extremes in exaggerating and inflating the status, respect, virtues, role, power, authority or
closeness to Allaah of some religious personalities. Their excessive views always end up
encroaching upon Allaah’s territory and thus become shirk. The exaggeration about Allaah’s
creations goes hand in hand with attributing untrue and improper things to Allaah SWT. If
people were careful in their beliefs in, views about and attitudes towards Allaah SWT, they
would never fall into the trap of exaggerating about His creations. That is why it is critically
important that we say about Allaah only what He Himself has told us and we use only those
examples for Allaah that He Himself has used. Saying anything about Allaah from our own
thoughts and devising any examples for Him according to our own ideas will be untrue and
inappropriate because He, being infinite, is beyond our finite understanding. What He tells us
about Himself is true because it is based on His ultimate knowledge. What we say about Him is
totally conjecture and speculation on a subject about which we have no knowledge or
expertise. This is a fact regardless of how we feel inside and what kind of positive emotions
our ideas about Him create. Nothing justifies for human beings that we devise our own ideas
about Allaah regardless of how enlightened that person feels about himself. No human ideas,
thoughts, imaginations, awareness, enlightenment can make a true statement about Allaah
SWT unless it is exactly in words and spirit as Allaah has Himself mentioned in the Qur-aan -
the only preserved revelation of Allaah SWT.

Christians have been at the forefront of this extremism and exaggeration. Their whole religion
is based on undue and excessive exaggerations concocted about Jesus, his mother and the holy
spirit – the archangel Gabriel. Allaah SWT created Jesus miraculously and gave him
astounding miracles so that the Jews could be overwhelmed with the evidence of the miracles
and become motivated to come out of their miserable state of affairs back to true Islam under
the leadership of Jesus and establish the “Kingdom of God” – an ideal Islamic society or state
according to the deen of Islam. Despite all those extraordinary things, the Jews refused to
accept him. But the Christians exaggerated so much that they made him God. “Son of God”
used to be an expression to figuratively indicate a person close to God. It was used for Jesus in
the same way. Through their exaggeration, they transformed it into a real thing, taking the
words literally despite the fact that taking them literally did not make any sense. Allaah SWT
created Jesus by His command, saying “be” to make Him conceived in the womb of Maryam,
just like He created Adam by that command and just like He created the whole universe with
that command. Again, they transformed the concept of “command” or “word” or “Kalimah”
(in Arabic) through their exaggeration into “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
85
was with God, and the Word was God.” Similarly, Allaah SWT appointed angel Jibreel
(Gabriel), the trusted spirit or holy spirit to help Jesus in his mission and his miracles, just as
he was appointed for all other messengers. In their exaggerations, they converted him into God
as well. Thus they promoted Jesus and the holy spirit to be partners of Allaah, and revered
Maryam as mother of the God. Afterwards, the popes and saints of their religion were treated
with the same kind of exaggeration and were considered an integral link between a person and
God, instead of people establishing a direct relationship with Allaah SWT. Even in religious
practices, their exaggeration knew no bounds. To cure the Jewish pre-occupation with rules
and with splitting hairs about rules, Jesus de-emphasized the rules and brought the spirit of
actions and the Islamic objectives to be achieved from the actions into the focus and emphasis.
They exaggerated this de-emphasis to such a level that all religious laws were disregarded
despite Jesus’ declaration that every letter of the law must be fulfilled. Similarly, Jesus
diagnosed that the Jews focussed too much on their worldly needs, desires and interests. To
bring a balance, he taught his disciples to focus on the hereafter while living their worldly
lives, yet the Christians exaggerated that de-emphasis on the worldly matters by transforming it
into practice of monkery, monasticism and celibacy.

These verses are inviting them to abandon their self-invented exaggeration, to return to the
Islamic balance and moderation, to say only the true things about Allaah SWT and to desist
from Trinity. Unfortunately, this exaggeration has also spread among Muslims like a
pandemic. Many Muslims treat Prophet Muhammad, religious leaders (Imams) and pious
Muslims of the past like Christians treat Jesus, popes and saints. They need to heed to this
invitation as much as Christians.

All people including the highest of messengers and angels are slaves of Allaah. We, the
common people, usually feel bad about admitting ourselves to be the slaves of Allaah SWT.

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John 1:1
That is why we tend to elevate those we respect in their ranks to demonstrate how great and
important they are; then we end up exaggerating in doing so. The fact is that all the messengers
of Allaah including the highest ranking of them like prophet ‘Eesa and Prophet Muhammad as
well as the highest ranking angels including Jibreel (Gabriel) feel proud to be Allaah’s slaves.
In fact, Prophet Muhammad emphatically taught Muslims to call him the slave of Allaah and
His Messenger.

The soorah is ending with a general invitation to all people, especially Christians, who want to
deserve the mercy and grace of Allaah SWT and want to find a way to be close to Him. They
are being invited to accept the guidance offered by the Qur-aan which has been called a
“convincing proof” and a “clear light”. It provides people rational arguments and convincing
and conclusive answers to the questions that arise in people’s mind about living the Islamic
faith and lifestyle that will make them succeed in this world and hereafter. It is a clear light
because it guides a believer through all the thick and thin of life and shows him the way to stay
on the path towards success, salvation and closeness to Allaah SWT.

Verse 175 represented the end of the soorah. Verse 176 is an addendum to the soorah that
Allaah SWT revealed long after the rest of the soorah to answer a question about inheritance.
Such explanatory revelations usually include some express statements to the effect of “Allaah
explains to you” to indicate their nature. Verse 12 of this soorah had given rules of distributing
inheritance of a person who neither has ascendants nor descendants. This verse makes those
rules applicable to siblings only from a common mother and explains how to distribute
inheritance among full brothers and sisters and siblings from the same father.

176
They ask you for a verdict, say: Allaah gives you a verdict concerning the
person who has neither descendants nor ascendants; if a man dies childless but
he has a sister, she shall have half of what he leaves, and he shall be her heir if
she is childless; but if there be two or more sisters, they shall have two-thirds
of what he leaves; and if there are siblings, men and women, then the male
shall have twice the share of the female; Allaah explains to you, lest you err;
and Allaah has knowledge of all things.

This concludes the teachings of Soorah An-Nisaa.