Author Archives: Ilm Seeker

Tafseer Surah Naba’, Part 1

February 3, 2010 – 3:16 pm

This is post #39 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

The tafseer of Surah Naba’ really speaks for itself; it talks about the Day of Judgment, Paradise, and Hellfire–three strong, recurring themes in the last juz. And this is, of course, the first surah in Juz ‘Amma.

Therefore, we’re going to focus mostly on the linguistic meaning of the words in the verses, and some gleams of tafseer you might not extract from just reading the verses in Arabic.

Allah (‘azza wa jal) says:

عَمَّ يَتَسَاءَلُونَ

Translation: About what are they asking one another? [Surah An-Naba', verse 1]

The first word, ‘amma, is actually a compound of two words; ‘an (عن), which is an interrogative particle (indicates a question) and roughly means “about,” and maa (ما), which means, “what.” They are combined into ‘amma–about what? This is what gives the juz it’s name.

Yatasaa’aloon comes from sa’ala/yas’alu, which means to ask. There’s an additional fourth letter here, the ta (ت), which changes the meaning from the expected “what are they asking” (‘amma yasaluwna) to “what are they asking each other.”

Verse two continues:

عَنِ النَّبَإِ الْعَظِيمِ

Translation: About the great news – [Surah Naba, verse 2]

An-Naba (النَّبَإِ) means news; this is the word that gave the surah it’s name. Atheem means great, just like the name of Allah, Al-Atheem; here, it’s an adjective to naba’.

Allah (‘azza wa jal) continues:

الَّذِي هُمْ فِيهِ مُخْتَلِفُونَ

Translation: That over which they are in disagreement. [Verse 3]

This verse hints at a reality–that people disagree about the Day of Judgment. Muslims believe in it, but non-Muslims don’t; and we argue over it. Then Allah says:

كَلَّا سَيَعْلَمُونَ
ثُمَّ كَلَّا سَيَعْلَمُونَ

Translation: No! They are going to know.Then, no! They are going to know. [Verses 4-5]

Kalla is an emphatic, strong no; in the Qur’an, it negates something before it (which may be deleted); in this case, it’s negating their denial of the Day of Judgment; it WILL come to pass.

This looks similar to Surah At-Takaathur, where we saw two “sa-ya’lamuwn” (or in that case, sawfa ta’lamoon); the first indicated the realization when the person dies, and the second, when they are resurrected.

The difference between ya’lawmuwn and ta’lamuwn is that the former is third-person (they), while the latter is second-person (you). And as for the addition of sa (س) or sawfa (سوف), it makes it certainly future-tense (the mudaari’ verb indicates present or future tense).

Then Allah (subhannahu wa ta’ala) continues:

أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ الْأَرْضَ مِهَادًا

Translation: Have We not made the earth a resting place? [Verse 6]

The first part of this verse is interesting; it has an alif, which is an interrogative particle (i.e. a question-mark), followed by a negation (lam). It’s almost calling the person to contemplate and say, yes, you did.

Then Allah says:

وَالْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًا
وَخَلَقْنَاكُمْ أَزْوَاجًا
وَجَعَلْنَا نَوْمَكُمْ سُبَاتًا
وَجَعَلْنَا اللَّيْلَ لِبَاسًا
وَجَعَلْنَا النَّهَارَ مَعَاشًا
وَبَنَيْنَا فَوْقَكُمْ سَبْعًا شِدَادًا

Translation: And the mountains as stakes? And We created you in pairs. And made your sleep [a means for] rest. And made the night as clothing. And made the day for livelihood. And constructed above you seven strong [heavens] [verses 7-12]

Here, we see an enumeration of the many blessings of Allah upon us. Among them are:

  • Mountains that keep the earth pegged in place (tectonic plates), so that continents don’t slide around too much
  • Sleep refreshes and rejuvenates you; get rest out of it.
  • Night time. Can you imagine sleeping in daylight all the time?

A couple of Arabic words to bring to your attention–jibaal is the plural of jabal (جبل), which means mountain. And ma’aash (معاش) means something that everybody has to go out and do; earn a livelihood. Work for a living.

Also, the seven heavens which are implicitly mentioned — all of the scholars are in consensus that the first heaven includes everything in the known universe. What’s beyond it, we don’t know; but we know there are seven samawaat.

Then, Allah (‘azza wa jal) says:

وَجَعَلْنَا سِرَاجًا وَهَّاجًا

Translation: And made [therein] a burning lamp. [Verse 13]

This is where the famous da’ee, Siraaj Wahhaj, picked his name out of. This “burning lamp” refers to none other than the sun; how do we know? Because siraaj means “has light,” and wahhaaj means “gives light.” The moon gives light, but it doesn’t have light–it’s just reflected light from the sun.

Then, Allah says:

وَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ الْمُعْصِرَاتِ مَاءً ثَجَّاجًا
لِّنُخْرِجَ بِهِ حَبًّا وَنَبَاتًا
وَجَنَّاتٍ أَلْفَافًا

Translation: And sent down, from the rain clouds, pouring water, That We may bring forth thereby grain and vegetation. And gardens of entwined growth. [Verses 14-16]

In verse 14, anzalnaa (أَنزَلْنَا) is the “we form of anzala (أَنزَلَ), which is originally from nazala (نزل). Nazala means to descend; anzala means to cause something to descend. And anzalnaa? “We caused to descend.”

And a point of advanced grammar: in verse 15, Allah says, “li-nukhrija,” (لِّنُخْرِجَ) and not li-nukhriju. Why is nukhriju mansoob, showing fatha instead of damma? The answer is, because it’s lam-ut-ta’leel, the lam of explaining, which turns a mudaari verb into the mansoob case.

And finally–what’s the point of all these verses? Why send down verse after verse after verse, explaining and pointing out the different blessings of Allah?

So that we can think, and contemplate, and understand. These are verses that really illustrate a fragment of Allah’s power. That’s Allah–the one who created the mountains. And the clouds. And rain. And green growth. For us.

Think about it.

Wallahu a’lam.

References:

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Tafseer Surah Ghashiyah: Heaven and Hell

January 27, 2010 – 12:32 pm

This is post #38 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

Allah (‘azza wa jal) says in Surah Al-Ghaashiyah:

هَلْ أَتَاكَ حَدِيثُ الْغَاشِيَةِ

Translation: Has there reached you the report of the Overwhelming [event]? [Surah Ghashiya, verse 1]

The surah starts with a question, to make you think. The companions would say: Allahu wa rasuluhu a’lam (know better), out of humbleness, even know they had an answer in mind. So humble yourself and listen.

Al-Ghashiyah is, of course, “The Overwhelming” — one of the names of the Day of Judgment. Have you heard of it? Sure. But listen:

وُجُوهٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ خَاشِعَةٌ

Translation: [Some] faces, that Day, will be humbled. [Surah Ghashiyah, verse 2]

Khaashiyah is from the same root as khushoo–humility.All these people who never humbled themselves to Allah with khushoo’, on that day, will be humbled with khushoo’.

And the indefinitivity of “wujoohun,” some faces, gives us hope–it won’t be everybody.

But it’s too late for them.

عَامِلَةٌ نَّاصِبَةٌ

Translation: Working [hard] and exhausted. [Surah Ghaashiyah, verse 3]

This verse is hard to translate; it means you will see, on their faces, tiredness. Have you ever seen someone who didn’t sleep for two days? Or someone working at McDonalds/Popeyes/etc, standing all day?

Or try going to Walmart at 11pm. You see the tiredness in the faces of people. On the Day of Judgment, there will be no respite from tiredness, no “here’s a lunch break, come back for more punishment in 15 minutes.”

Then Allah says:

تَصْلَىٰ نَارًا حَامِيَةً
تُسْقَىٰ مِنْ عَيْنٍ آنِيَةٍ
لَّيْسَ لَهُمْ طَعَامٌ إِلَّا مِن ضَرِيعٍ
لَّا يُسْمِنُ وَلَا يُغْنِي مِن جُوعٍ

Translation: They will [enter to] burn in an intensely hot Fire. They will be given drink from a boiling spring. For them there will be no food except from a poisonous, thorny plant (dariy’), which neither nourishes nor avails against hunger. [Surah Ghashiyah, verses 5-8]

“Aynun aaniyah,” a spring of boiling hot water, so hot, that it would kill a person. Nobody would ever think about drinking such a thing normally–but they will be so intensely thirsty, that they will drink anything that they see. Even this.

But they won’t die.

And for food? Dariy’, which was known to the Arabs of that time, is a thorny plant. When it’s soft, camels eat it; but when it ripens, big, long, HUGE thorns erupt out of it–thorns which can choke you. And on top of that, it’s poisonous and can kill. Nobody would ever think about eating such a thing normally–but they will be so intensely hungry, that they will eat anything they see. Even this.

But they won’t die.

And all that eating and drinking, you’d think they’d slack their thirst or hunger; but Allah says, no, it won’t help you anything.

Then Allah says:

وُجُوهٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ نَّاعِمَةٌ
لِّسَعْيِهَا رَاضِيَةٌ

Translation: [Other] faces, that Day, will show pleasure. With their effort [they are] satisfied. [Surah Ghaashiyah, verses 9-10]

When you really understand and recite these verses, it’s almost like a breath of fresh air after all the verses of Hellfire. Others on that day, will have brightness, softness–naa’imah. And they will be pleased with the reward that Allah dispenses them.

So what do they get? What is this exclusive reward, for those who avoid Hellfire? Let’s take a quick peek at some of the things waiting for them and us, insha’Allah:

فِي جَنَّةٍ عَالِيَةٍ
لَّا تَسْمَعُ فِيهَا لَاغِيَةً
فِيهَا عَيْنٌ جَارِيَةٌ
فِيهَا سُرُرٌ مَّرْفُوعَةٌ
وَأَكْوَابٌ مَّوْضُوعَةٌ
وَنَمَارِقُ مَصْفُوفَةٌ
وَزَرَابِيُّ مَبْثُوثَةٌ

Translation: In an elevated garden, wherein they will hear no unsuitable speech. Within it is a flowing spring. Within it are couches raised high. And cups put in place. And cushions lined up. And carpets spread around. [Surah Ghashiyah, verses 10-16]

When you read these verses, verse after verse, you get a sense of preparation. An elevated, penthouse suite with a spring in it. High, elevated couches. Cups all set out for drinking, and cushions sitting in a row, and the carpet rolled out.

Because when it comes down to it, it’s either this, or hameem and dariy’. The choice is yours. Choose wisely … because Hellfire is not really a choice at all.

References:

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Beacons of Light

January 17, 2010 – 11:31 am

The following is a guest post from I Got it Covered, a blog about hijab, Islam, and life. You can find the original article here.

In the time of ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab, radiAllahu anhu, the second Khalifah, it was mandatory upon all the young girls to learn Surat an-Noor.

From the beauty of this Surah is that it begins with, “[This is] a surah which We have sent down and made [that within it] obligatory and revealed therein verses of clear evidence that you might remember” [Surat an-Noor: 1]. Although the whole Qur’an is obligatory upon us, this Surah begins with that commandment, as a special reminder. And then, later on in the Surah, comes the commandment of hijab [see Surat an-Noor: 31].

The commandment of hijab is in a Surah that begins by reminding the reader that its contents are obligatory! And yet we find some people today trying to deny the command of hijab.

It should be noted that it was not mandatory for young girls at the time of Umar to wear hijab. Rather, it was mandatory upon them to learn this Surah, specifically at that age. Once these girls were immersed in the Qur’an, learning the beauty of its words, understanding its true meaning, hearing the tafseer – that is when understanding and conviction entered their hearts. They understood and become people who said “Sami’na wa ata’ana” – “We hear and we Obey.” [Surah Noor: 51]

Every day, it seems, we come across Muslims calling for certain commandments in Islam to be ignored, or others to be added. These people claim they’ve “experienced” the command or “read” the Qur’an. With this knowledge bulging like a pea in their back pocket, they are now free to hand over fatwas to the Mass Media. Whereas anyone with just a little bit of actual Islamic knowledge would know these claims were wrong.

It reminds me of how scholars of the likes of Imam Maalik, rahimahuAllah, would say “La ‘adree” or “I don’t know” when asked a question. They were not ashamed to admit when they didn’t know something, and were much more fearful of saying anything incorrect, of lying against Allah with incorrect knowledge. These scholars were the ones who had spent years learning under thousands of other scholars, and still felt uncomfortable giving fatwas out like there’s no tomorrow.

It seems that nowadays, thanks to having “Shaykh” Google in our cellphones and lattes in our hands, we can answer any question on Islam without any prior knowledge. We can condemn things and make other things permissible, because who are we going to answer to? I mean, all the knowledge you need is with “Shaykh” Google and that latte – it just proves how far we have come over the years. You need energy whilst giving fatwas, right?

SubhanAllah. Have we forgotten? “Shaykh” Google isn’t going to have our backs on the Day when there will be no shade except Allah’s. Only Allah will. He gave us the Qur’an, a guidance to mankind, out of His mercy; and yet some of us deny it, saying our intellect gives us better solutions to life’s dilemmas.

If we took out 1 hour each week, just 1 hour, studying the Arabic of the Qur’an – the meaning, the depth, the beauty, the hikmah (wisdom) – behind the commands, we would not be condemning our own religion. An ignorant, precursory glance over a (usually) mistaken translation often leads people to saying the incorrect things they do. But the understanding gained from regular study would allow us, when we hear this phrase (often repeated in the Qur’an) “Afala ta’qiloon“ – “Do they not then use their intellect?” [2:44, 2:76, 11:51 and others], to properly utilize our minds – a blessing given to us by Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala Himself.

Of course there are others, who, may Allah protect us, have had their hearts hardened and sealed, and so they speak out of ignorance and arrogance, not caring or admitting that they might be wrong; but mostly, I believe, these mistakes come from ignorance.

Even those who lived in “jahiliyyah,” or “ignorance” at the time of the Prophet, salla Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, did not deny the beauty or truth of the Qur’an. Recitations of the Qur’an (because they also understood it) hit them like a brick wall – they stopped, frozen in their places, thinking of the words of Allah, even though they denied the message.

It seems 1400 years and countless scientific discoveries and advancements haven’t softened our hearts or opened our understanding. We’ve become a mass of people with tunnel vision.

With that being said, we need to make it a priority for ourselves to constantly be increasing in our ‘ilm, our knowledge. With the amount of ignorance of our deen among Muslims and non-Muslims, we need to become beacons of light, beautifully showing the Commandments of Allah in action. We cannot afford to speak out of ignorance, for the harm it brings to us, to others, and to Islam. Hikmah (wisdom) and ‘Ilm (knowledge) with proper implementation will allow us to become those beacons of light in this darkness of ignorance, insha’Allah.

The Arabian peninsula… and later the surrounding Arabian countries… then the Orient… and parts of Europe… they did not just come under Muslim rule because of a war. They came under Muslim rule because of the people – the beacons of light they saw coming to their cities – the well-mannered, merciful, polite ambassadors of Islam, who implemented what was commanded of them from their Lord. It is now our turn to follow their footsteps and to shine that light on our world.

If you want to understand Allah’s commandment for hijab – if you want to internalize it and have it enter your heart – go to the Qur’an. Go to Surat an-Noor, especially, with a clean heart and pure intentions, and read it. Open up Allah’s Book, open up the tafseer and the books of hadith, and insha’Allah, Allah will open up your heart and intellect to the truth.

For more posts like this, visit I Got it Covered at igotitcovered.org.

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Tafseer Surah Tariq: You Will Be Recreated

January 14, 2010 – 11:21 am

This is post #37 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

Allah says, in Surah Tariq:

وَالسَّمَاءِ وَالطَّارِقِ
وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا الطَّارِقُ
النَّجْمُ الثَّاقِبُ

Translation: By the sky and the night comer (At-Tariq), And what can make you know what is the night comer? It is the piercing star. [Surah At-Taariq, verses 1-3]

As we mentioned before, one of the characteristics of early and Mecci surahs, like this one, is that they begin with a qasam — an oath, a testification. And this shows the greatness of that thing, that Allah (‘azza wa jal) is testifying by it.

As we mentioned before, we should always ask yourself — why is Allah testifying? Of all books, this book is the Qur’an, the most important book; and of all speakers, the speaker is Allah, the Rabb of creation. AND on top, Allah is testifying.

Why?

Allah continues (skipping a verse):

فَلْيَنظُرِ الْإِنسَانُ مِمَّ خُلِقَ
خُلِقَ مِن مَّاءٍ دَافِقٍ
يَخْرُجُ مِن بَيْنِ الصُّلْبِ وَالتَّرَائِبِ
إِنَّهُ عَلَىٰ رَجْعِهِ لَقَادِرٌ

Translation: So let man observe from what he was created. He was created from a fluid, ejected, Emerging from between the backbone and the ribs. Indeed, Allah , to return him [to life], is Able. [Surah Tariq, verses 5-8]

Allah then talks about the creation of man, and how man was created from virtually nothing; from this, a full, functional human being emerges. And then Allah (‘azza wa jal) mentions–as was mentioned in many other verses–that He is able to bring them back to life.

This is an aspect that the mushrik Arabs had a very hard time grasping; they would be resurrected, after becoming bones and then dust? And not only that, Allah mentions elsewhere, that He will recreate us down to our fingertips–every detail, perfectly recreated, as it was originally created.

And we intuitively understand this. If you think about manufacturing, what’s the hardest part? Coming up with a product or idea the first time! Once it’s been done, it’s usually much less effort to recreate and redo it over and over–and in bulk!

And then, Allah says:

يَوْمَ تُبْلَى السَّرَائِرُ
فَمَا لَهُ مِن قُوَّةٍ وَلَا نَاصِرٍ

Translation: The Day when secrets will be put on trial, Then man will have no power or any helper. [Verses 9-10]

That’s where we are going — resurrection on a day when all the secrets will be exposed publicly, on a day when we will have no strength, no power, and nobody to help us.

Everyone stands alone on that day.

We discussed prior verses about the day when graves will be dumped open, and that hearts will be peeled; here, we see another aspect — secrets will be exposed publicly.

Ibn Katheer mentions in his tafseer a hadith from Bukhari and Muslim regarding this verse:

Narrated Ibn ‘Umar: The Prophet said, “For every betrayer (perfidious person), a flag will be raised on the Day of Resurrection, and it will be announced (publicly) ‘This is the betrayal (perfidy) of so-and-so, the son of so-and-so.’” [Recorded in Bukhari here, here, here, and here with slight variations.]

Imagine that! That person who you betrayed secretly, whom nobody saw you plan against … that day, not only will it be publicly announced in front of the entire human race that you did so, but to make sure that people know who’s being mentioned, you’ll have a big flag pointing you out.

That’s Allah–the one who sees everything, hears everything, and knows everything, down to the most minute, unimaginably small level. And that is the day that we should prepare for, a day that has no doubt in it.

Thus, tafseer of Surah Tariq.

References:

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Tafseer Surah Humazah: The Crusher

November 21, 2009 – 12:40 pm

This is post #36 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

In Surah Humazah, Allah (‘azza wa jal) says:

وَيْلٌ لِّكُلِّ هُمَزَةٍ لُّمَزَةٍ

Translation: Woe to every scorner (humazah) and mocker (lumazah). [Surah Al-Humaza, verse 1].

As we mentioned many, many times before in this series, wayl is a curse. And when Allah says wayl about someone, it’s not a curse, but a statement of reality–because He, ‘azza wa jal, is not in need of cursing anyone. Ibn Abbaas (radiallahu ‘anhu) says, wayl is a valley in Hellfire; in this sense, it’s almost as if the person is saying, for what I did, this is what I deserve–come to me, o wayl.

Humazah and lumazah are translated in very similar ways, so we’re going to dive deep into some of the meanings and benefits we can learn from these two words.

Humazah and lumazah are both on the pattern of fu’alah (فُعَلَة); this pattern means that a person does something so excessively that it becomes a characteristic of that person. Someone who does it over and over and over again.

Generally, people mock others for one of three reasons:

  1. Fear: People mock out of fear of being mocked. Muhammad Alshareef mentioned a story of a guy who had some disability, Allahu a’lam what it was, maybe he was missing an arm or something. And you would expect that he’s the kindest person, because so many people make fun of him that he would never do that to another person knowing how it feels–but in fact, he was one of the biggest mockers of others, so that they wouldn’t mock him.
  2. Fame: People mock famous people in order to get some fame; because when you make fun of someone famous, it becomes a tabloid issue and everyone pays more attention to you.
  3. Lack of Understanding: You see often in children, if they don’t understand something, they mock it; they might be sitting in a math class, not understanding second derivatives, and instead, they make fun of the teacher, the class, the topic, everything, as a reaction.

As for the difference between humazah and lumazah, humazah is verbal actions–to backbite, or to cut into someone’s honour or verbally make fun of them. Lumazah, on the other hand, is to use gestures and signs to make fun of the person.

For example, if there’s someone with really big ears, someone who’s humuzah might say “hahahaha look at Mr. Elephant-Ears!” and someone who’s lumazah might put their hands together and make wing-flapping motions.

Then Allah (subhannahu wa ta’ala) mentions two more qualities of the humazah and lumazah individual:

الَّذِي جَمَعَ مَالًا وَعَدَّدَهُ
يَحْسَبُ أَنَّ مَالَهُ أَخْلَدَهُ

Translation: (The one) Who collects wealth and [continuously] counts it. He thinks that his wealth will make him immortal. [Suratal-Humazah, verses 2-3]

We see again and again in Juz ‘Amma, the theme of wealth, and the idea of human beings that wealth will somehow make them live forever.

Yahsabu anna maalahu akhladahu.

alladhiy jama’a maalan, wa ‘addadahu.

Allah says, about this mentality–the people who are humazah, and lumazah, and spend all their time collecting and counting their money, who think that they will live forever:

كَلَّا ۖ لَيُنبَذَنَّ فِي الْحُطَمَةِ

Translation: Kalla (no)! He will surely be thrown into the Crusher. [Verse 4]

Kalla is an emphatic (strong) negation; it negates a mentality or thought or mindset mentioned before it, or after it, or implicit; in this case, the mentality of people mentioned in the past two verses.

Allah says, this person will be thrown into … The Crusher. And not just thrown; but flung into The Crusher. It shows the humiliation and degradation of this person.

Which begs the question: what is The Crusher?

وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا الْحُطَمَةُ
نَارُ اللَّهِ الْمُوقَدَةُ

Translation: And what can make you know what is the Crusher? It is the fire of Allah , [eternally] fueled. [verses 5-6]

Here, we see–it is naarullah, Allah’s fire. As we mentioned previously, Allah associating anything to himself, shows the great nobility and status and grandeur and majesticness of that thing. It’s not just any fire; it’s the fire of Allah!

One of the ‘ulama, rahimahullah, mentioned that, in modern days, what do you do with a car that doesn’t work, that has no use anymore? You can’t sell it, you can’t fix it. What do you do with it?

Throw it into a car-crusher.

And it’s almost like, this human being spent their entire life, and at the end, they’re useless and worthless. So they, too, are thrown into The Crusher.

Then Allah (‘azza wa jal) mentions something terrifying about The Crusher. Something that should cause you wonder and sleepless lights of worry. Allah says:

الَّتِي تَطَّلِعُ عَلَى الْأَفْئِدَةِ

Translation: Which mounts directed at the hearts. [verse 7]

This is not just passive fire. If you read up about Hellfire, it’s almost like a beast; it roars. It speaks. It ambushes. And here, we see that it attacks–it leaps upon the hearts. It attacks. What’s more:

إِنَّهَا عَلَيْهِم مُّؤْصَدَةٌ
فِي عَمَدٍ مُّمَدَّدَةٍ

Translation: Indeed, it (Hellfire) will be closed down upon them, In extended columns. [verses 8-9]

Hellfire is not a wide, open field as many of us imagine; rather, it is closed down. You can imagine being in a car in a car-crusher, looking to the left and right and top and bottom, and seeing the walls move closer and closer, closing down on you.

As Muhammad Alshareef says … if we really understand Hellfire, we know that there is no choice. Hellfire is death upon death, from the food to the air to the water, everything about it; but people never die after the death of dunya.

May Allah, Ar-Rahman, give us all the tawfeeq to avoid The Crusher, out of His infinite mercy–ameen ya rabbil-alameen!

References:

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Arabic Analysis of Surah Balad

November 3, 2009 – 10:35 pm

This is post #35 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

Arabic Calligraphy/Art

In this post, we will insha’Allah do a word-for-word breakdown of each surah, as space permits.

In the first ayah, Allah (subhannahu wa ta’ala) says:

لَا أُقْسِمُ بِهَٰذَا الْبَلَدِ

The first two words, laa uqsimu (لَا أُقْسِمُ) literally means “I do not swear.” Uqsimu is mudaari’ mutakallim waahid, i.e. the single, gender-non-specific first person “I.” It appears to be on Baab I, but there’s a hint that it’s not–the dumma on the first letter. Check the comments insha’Allah for more clarification; the mudaari’ is yuqsimu; it’s a four-letter root (aqsama اقسم) in maadi’ (past-tense).

And–as we mentioned in the tafseer–knowing the tafseer, we know this is not literal; it’s best translated as an oath (which it is).

The latter part of the ayah, bi haadhal-balad (بِهَٰذَا الْبَلَدِ) has a badal in it–the clue is that you see that al-balad is majroor (with kasra) without any apparent reason for it; then you notice haadhaa (ismul-ishaara bil qareeb), and the alif-lam before balad, which is the recipe for badal: one part common noun preceeded by alif-lam, and one part ismu-ishaarah (demonstrative pronoun) preceeding it.

And as you probably remember, badal means that the haadha passes on the kasra from the bi (which is a harf–jarr or preposition) onto the balad.

Precisely the same badal occurs in ayah #2–”anta hillun bi haadhal-balad.”

In ayah four, Allah says:

لَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا الْإِنسَانَ فِي كَبَدٍ

I harped on this ayah quite a bit in the tafseer. Notice the linguistic emphasis–the use of lam (one emphasis), plus qad (another emphasis). This, from the words of Allah themselves (something we should pay attention to), makes us realize just how important it is to understand this ayah.

In ayah five, Allah says:

أَيَحْسَبُ أَن لَّن يَقْدِرَ عَلَيْهِ أَحَدٌ

A bit of more advanced grammar here — Allah says “lan yaqdira (لَّن يَقْدِرَ).” It’s not “lan yaqdiru” because lan modifies a mudaari’ (present-tense) verb to become mansoob (with fatha) instead of it’s usual marfoo’ (with damma). If you know this rule, it’s easier to remember the last vowel!

Then, in verses eight to ten, Allah (‘azza wa jal) says:

أَلَمْ نَجْعَل لَّهُ عَيْنَيْنِ
وَلِسَانًا وَشَفَتَيْنِ
وَهَدَيْنَاهُ النَّجْدَيْنِ

If you notice, all the final words of all these verses end with -ayn, the majroor/mansoob form of the dual (eg. kitabaani–two books–becomes kitabayni). Regardless of why, listen to these three ayaat–they actually rhyme. Aside from the miracle of how Allah (‘azza wa jal) made it rhyme and made the meaning impressively impressive, shaykh Nouman Khan mentioned that this is how you can identify one discourse (discussion on one topic) from another in the Qur’an–by the use of rhyme schemes. Subhanallah, this is just one part of the Qur’an that you cannot ever grasp purely through translation.

Skipping forward, in verse 14, Allah says:

أَوْ إِطْعَامٌ فِي يَوْمٍ ذِي مَسْغَبَةٍ

The word dhiy (ذِي) is actually the majroor form of dhuw (ذو). Dhuw is one of those “five” weird words that change their form to show the case–dhuw (owner of), fuw (mouth), akhun (brother), abu (father), and one more, if I recall. The marfoo’ form is dhuw, the majroor is dhiy, and the mansoob is dhaa (ذا).

Here, it’s dhiy because it’s an adjective (na’at) of yawm, which is majroor.

And with that, insha’Allah we will close on the Arabic analysis. If you have any questions or comments–on this in particular, or on any part of the surah in terms of meaning and grammar–insha’Allah post it in the comments or on twitter, and we’ll try to respond with the right answer, bi idhnillah.

References:

  • Touched by an Angel: Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma. By Muhammad Alshareef. 2009.
  • Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma. By Nouman Ali Khan – Bayyinah. 2009.
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Tafseer Surah Balad, Part 2: Iqtahamaa

October 22, 2009 – 2:57 pm

This is post #34 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

Picture of the top of the CN tower, as seen from below.

The CN Tower, 150 stories high. Fa laa iqtahamaa al-aqabah.

Continuing our discussion of Surah Balad, Allah (‘azza wa jal) says:

أَلَمْ نَجْعَل لَّهُ عَيْنَيْنِ
وَلِسَانًا وَشَفَتَيْنِ
وَهَدَيْنَاهُ النَّجْدَيْنِ

Translation: Have We not made for him two eyes? And a tongue and two lips? And have shown him the two ways?[Surah Al-Balad, verses 8-10]

The word used for ways or paths is “najd.” Najd means a clear path, one where you can see where it’s going. Upward.

Then Allah says:

فَلَا اقْتَحَمَ الْعَقَبَةَ
وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا الْعَقَبَةُ

Translation: But he has not broken through the difficult pass. And what can make you know what is [breaking through] the difficult pass? [verses 10-11]

When you read verse 10, the natural question that pops into your mind is “what is this ‘aqabah, this difficult mountain pass? And verse 11 says, as we discussed very similar verses before, Allah is saying that you will never understand what al-’Aqabah is.

And Iqtahamaa means … if you’ve ever seen Sumo wrestling, the real part is when the two wrestlers (big muscular guys) slam into each other with full power, at full force.

So Allah is giving us a clue. There’s Al-’Aqabah, the mountain pass; and you have to iqtahamaa, climb it at full-force with no holding back. If you’ve ever had to climb tons and tons of stairs–like the CN tower (pictured above, literally thousands of stairs)–you know that to make it to the top, you need to gather your strength and rush, all at once. You don’t climb stairs one by one and stop every few steps.

That’s iqtahamaa.

So we need to do iqtahamaa of Al-’Aqabah. And we’ll never understand Al-’Aqabah.

But here’s a glimpse:

فَكُّ رَقَبَةٍ
أَوْ إِطْعَامٌ فِي يَوْمٍ ذِي مَسْغَبَةٍ
يَتِيمًا ذَا مَقْرَبَةٍ

Translation: It is the freeing of a slave. Or feeding on a day of severe hunger, An orphan of near relationship. [verse 13-15]

Freeing a slave is something that’s not possible anymore; verse 14 says, feeding a poor person on a day of severe hunger. To feed someone poor when you yourself are hungry, that’s the best sadaqah you can do!

And an orphan of near kin (aka a relative of yours) is someone who has the rights of an orphan, AND the rights of near relatives; so that’s twice the rights of a regular orphan (or a regular relative).

Allah (‘azza wa jal) continues:

أَوْ مِسْكِينًا ذَا مَتْرَبَةٍ

Translation: Or a needy person in misery. [verse 16]

In the phrase “dhaa matraba,” we see in the latter word, turaab (dirt), from taraba (the verb). This eloquently describes a person out in the elements–out with the wind and the rain, with no shelter; someone homeless, clinging to the dirt out of misery.

And the final remark on Al-’Aqabah? The last thing mentioned to do?

ثُمَّ كَانَ مِنَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْمَرْحَمَةِ
أُولَئِكَ أَصْحَابُ الْمَيْمَنَةِ

Translation: And then being among those who believed and advised one another to patience and advised one another to compassion. Those are the companions of the right. [verses 17-18]

Nothing surprising here–a verse very similar to what we find in Surah Al-’Asr: believe, and call to patience, and call to rahmah (mercy, compassion). These are the winners, the ones who have conquered Al-’Aqabah, the people of the right.

Sounds difficult, right? Well, what’s the alternative?

وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِآيَاتِنَا هُمْ أَصْحَابُ الْمَشْأَمَةِ
عَلَيْهِمْ نَارٌ مُّؤْصَدَةٌ

Translation: But they who disbelieved in Our signs – those are the companions of the left. Over them will be fire closed in. [verses 19-20]

As shaykh Muhammad Alshareef says, if a person really, truly understands Hellfire, there is no choice. Allah (‘azza wa jal) describes His fire as “mu’sadah.” Mu’sadah means that the fire will close down on you.

People often think Hellfire is like a big plain, and there will be people running around. It’s not. It’s described as dark, with chained people, and with fire that is mu’sadah–closes down on you.

May Allah (‘azza wa jal) protect us from it and help us to understand and implement this great surah.

Really, the lesson here is that social services are from the core values of Islam. Praying and fasting and paying zakah and going for Hajj are what Muslims generally think about when you talk about Islam. But it’s more than just that; it’s social services, too.

Wallahu ta’ala a’lam.

References:

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Tafseer Surah Balad, Part 1: Life is Toil

October 14, 2009 – 1:58 pm

This is post #33 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series). This is the first of two posts on the tafseer of Surah Balad.

Allah says:

لَا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ

Translation: I swear by this city (Makkah) … [Surah Balad, verse 1]

“Laa uqsim” literally means, “I will not swear by.” in Arabic language, it means “this thing is so truthful, I almost don’t even have to swear by it.” It’s translated as “I swear by.”

Then Allah says:

وَأَنتَ حِلٌّ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ

Translation: And you, [O Muhammad], are free of restriction in this city … [verse 2]

“Anta hillu” means “you are free.” It’s a slight at the mushrikeen, that this place (Makkah) is honourable and noble because the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) is here, and they should listen to him and accept him instead of trying to kick him out and kill him.

It also indicates a time where the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) was allowed, for about an hour, to fight in Mecca–something even the mushrikeen considered haraam.

Then Allah says:

وَوَالِدٍ وَمَا وَلَدَ

Translation: And [by] the father and that which was born [of him] … [verse 3]

There are two opinions about what this verse means; one is that it means Adam (alayhi salaam) and his children; the other is that it means any parent and child. Allahu a’lam, the second opinion is stronger–that the relationship between the parent and child is mu’adhham sharan, of noble and lofty status in the Shari’ah.

Then Allah says:

لَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا الْإِنسَانَ فِي كَبَدٍ

Translation: We have certainly created man into hardship (kabad). [verse 4]

Indeed, We created humans into Toil

Indeed, we have certainly created mankind into hardship/toil.

If you check Tafseer ibn Katheer, you’ll find a lengthy explanation of the encompassing meanings of this ayah; among other things, it means hardship in being born, and hardship in enduring life, and hardship in working to earn a living, and hardship in the hereafter (on the Day of Judgment).

This is really, for me, one of the cruxes of this surah. There’s even double emphasis on this ayah to draw attention to it–in addition to all the aqsaam (oaths) above!

Every single human being, young or old, man or woman, of any culture you can name, goes through hardship in their lives.

In Mecca, the companions were tortured and killed. They went through that kabad for the sake of Allah; but other people just go through it.

Think and reflect on this. Why are you going through the kabad in your life? If you try and have a good, sincere intention for everything you do, then insha’Allah you will earn a reward for all of it.

If not … well, as they say, “life just happens.”

Then in verse five, Allah continues:

أَيَحْسَبُ أَن لَّن يَقْدِرَ عَلَيْهِ أَحَدٌ

Translation: Does he think that never will anyone overcome him? [Surah Al-Balad, verse 5]

This is something you see very strongly in youth and kids–they think they’re invincible. They do crazy, daring things. “But you could get hurt,” you protest. “Me? I won’t get hurt,” they reply.

Qatadah, one tabi’ee, commented on this verse and mentions that it applies to wealth–that humans think nobody is able to take away his wealth; and that he denies that he will be asked by Allah how he earned it and how he spent it.” [Tafseer ibn Katheer]

Allah (‘azza wa jal) continues:

يَقُولُ أَهْلَكْتُ مَالًا لُّبَدًا

Translation: He says, “I have spent (wasted) wealth in abundance.” [verse 6]

This is something we see very clearly in Israel–they have a budget of billions of dollars to kill the Muslims. Even in the seerah, we know that by the middle of the Medinan period (around 6AH), the mushrikeen were exhausted financially–all that wealth they spent, thousands of dinars in Badr, Uhud, Khandaq, and other battles–all wasted wealth that brought them no benefit.

Then Allah says:

أَيَحْسَبُ أَن لَّمْ يَرَهُ أَحَدٌ

Translation: Does he think that no one has seen him? [verse 7]

This verse is a motto you should take for your life. Whenever you want to sin, reflect on this verse:

Does he think nobody sees him?

Because Allah sees everything; you can’t hide from Him (subhannahu wa ta’ala). Try and keep this in mind as you go through your life from day-to-day. It will increase you in taqwaa, insha’Allah.

Wallahu ta’ala a’lam.

References:

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Tafseer Surah Quraysh

September 29, 2009 – 10:43 am

The Ka'bah: The House of Allah

Fal-ya’buduw rabba haadha al-bayt.

This is post #32 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

This post is chronologically out of order, since Surah Quraish was revealed before surah Qaari’ah; but insha’Allah khayr. Allah says:

لِإِيلَافِ قُرَيْشٍ
إِيلَافِهِمْ رِحْلَةَ الشِّتَاءِ وَالصَّيْفِ
فَلْيَعْبُدُوا رَبَّ هَذَا الْبَيْتِ
الَّذِي أَطْعَمَهُم مِّن جُوعٍ وَآمَنَهُم مِّنْ خَوْفٍ

Translation: For the accustomed security of the Quraysh – Their accustomed security [in] the caravan of winter and summer – Let them worship the Lord of this House, Who has fed them, [saving them] from hunger and made them safe, [saving them] from fear. [Surah Quraysh, verses 1-4]

The word “rihlah” means journey. Mecca is a very empty area–there’s really no area that you can do agriculture. Therefore, the thing that kept Mecca alive financially, especially in times of jahiliyyah, is business. Although the primary business of the Meccans was idol-trading–they had 360 idols in the ka’bah when it was opened in 8AH (After Hijrah)–the Meccans also used to travel around in caravans to do business.

And this is what kept them alive. This is what Allah mentions in verse two: “Rihlata ash-shitaai was-sayfi,” the journey of winter and summer. They would travel to Ash-Sham (the Roman area) in Summer, and Yemen in winter, to do business.

These are blessings of Allah on the Quraysh. Allah reminds them of these blessings. Then what does He say? What do you do once you have these blessings?

Verse two: “fal ya’budu rabba haadhal-bayt.” So worship the Lord of this house (Masijd Al-Harram). And this is a command in the Arabic language–it’s a laam (lam-ul-amr) with a mudaari’ (present-tense verb), a pattern you see pretty often in the Qur’an.

Then again, in the last verse, Allah describes more blessings: He fed them when they were hungry, and gave them security. Because the best house in the world, if it’s in a bad neighbourhood, you’re always worried and in fear about your house.

Also, if you recall the tafseer of Surah Fil, Allah saved the Ka’bah; and the Quraysh were the custodians of the Ka’bah. This raised their status in the eyes of the people–that Allah sided with them! So much so, that the books of tafseer mention, Quraysh could travel free in the land at any time, without worrying about highway robbery.

Wallahu ta’ala ‘alam.

Action Items:

  • Reflect on the Blessings: Think about all the things Allah gave you–eyes to see; a mind to think; Islam; health; wealth; an internet and a computer. Are you really worshiping Allah as He deserves? Are you being thankful for these blessings?

References:

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Ramadan Retrospective

September 19, 2009 – 10:27 pm

Eid Mubarak! As the sahaba would tell each other: May Allah accept our good deeds and your good deeds (from Ramadan). Ameen!

Ramadan is still fresh in your mind; the long days of fasting, the pain in your legs and back from taraweeh, and most of all, that biting regret that you didn’t do enough.

Would you like to make the next Ramadan even better? With only five minutes worth of effort?! Try this out: create a new document (by hand or computer, whatever you like) called “Ramadan Retrospective.” List out the following:

  • What you did well. Maybe you read more Qur’an than ever before! Or you prayed taraweeh every day. Whatever it is.
  • What you didn’t do well enough. Maybe you neglected your sunnah prayers because you were tired, or slept after Fajr. Write all that down.
  • What to do better next time. List the missed opportunities. Maybe you didn’t have a concrete plan for the last ten nights. Or you never bothered planning for ‘ittakaaf, and so, missed it.

The key step is to keep this in a safe place and look at it next Ramadan. This will insha’Allah give you a strong starting-point to move forward from. The key is to spend some time really thinking about it. If you don’t, it’ll just be superficial.

May Allah accept our good deeds and keep us doing them even after Ramadan has ended–ameen. And that, scholars say, is one of the best signs that your deeds were accepted.

Wallahu a’lam.

One final point–please list in the comments any lessons you learned (or heard about but maybe already knew) from Ramadan. Let’s see how much benefit we can come up with, insha’Allah. Here are a few to get you started from what I learned:

  • Eat little in Iftar, because bloat makes you sleepy in taraweeh.
  • Learn Arabic, because then taraweeh will be enjoyable, not endless.
  • Make a du’a list and use it every night in the last ten nights.
  • Pray two rakaahs before Fajr. It counts as Tahajjud!
  • Make du’a when you break your fast — that’s one of the best times.
  • Eat healthy.
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