We’re going to digress a bit and jump back to Surah Takweer. This post is based on Shaykh Nouman Khan’s tafseer, which heavily emphasizes the Arabic language. I hope you will find, as I found it, as a glimpse of a previously-unseen world, a depth of knowledge that just drips from the Arabic language.

Allah says, in surah Takweer:

إِذَا الشَّمْسُ كُوِّرَتْ

Translation: When the sun is kuwwirat … [verse 1]

There are a lot of gems that we learn even from this first ayah:

• Idhaa + Past-Tense: Idhaa is an indicator of future-tense “when (something will happen).” Yet, kuwwirat is past-tense; why? This combination means something is so certain, it’s like past-tense. So Allah is saying “when this happens,” yet it’s certain that it WILL happen; as certain as the past is past.
• Nominal Sentence: The default in Arabic is to put the verb first–”kuwwirat ash-shamsu.” To reverse this into “ash-shamsu kuwwirat,” shows emphasis, and makes it a tougher, stronger sentence. This hints at the audience–Mushrikeen in Mecca, the worst and most obstinate of them, who are listening to this revelation.
• Passive Voice: Allah could have said, “When I wrap up the sun,” but He didn’t. Why? If you’re biased against someone (say a political party), no matter what they say, even before they open their mouth, you say, “psshh.” But here, passive-voice highlights the maf’ool, the recipient of the action–the sun, the stars–instead of the doer.

As for the meaning of kuwwirat, kawwara means to wrap something around something; it’s used in the context of a turban, something long, that’s wrapped around your head.

Allah is applying the same meaning here–that the light of the sun, something that’s long, will be kuwwirat, wrapped up. Wrapped up meaning, something will cover it, and it will no longer be visible; and it will be wrapped slowly, part by part disappearing–the same way that Allah described the day as wrapping around the night and the night wrapping around the day.

This is something scary–that you see the sun wrapped up, and losing its light. But there’s more …

وَإِذَا النُّجُومُ انكَدَرَتْ

Translation: And when the stars are inkadarat … [verse 2]

Inkadarat is an interesting (past-tense) verb; the masculine singular is inkadara (in case you’re wondering). Inkadara has two shades of meanings–one is to lose colour. So the way that you see the stars, they will lose their colour and fade out; and the second meaning is to fall–fall, like shooting stars. So the stars will fade away, and they will fall …

And between these two–the sun, the most prominent feature of the day, and the stars, the most prominent feature of the night–when they fade away and are blacked-out, that’s something very serious and very frightening.

But there’s more …

وَإِذَا الْجِبَالُ سُيِّرَتْ
وَإِذَا الْعِشَارُ عُطِّلَتْ

Translation: And when the mountains are removed (meaning, when they move, like water moves), And when full-term she-camels are neglected, … [verse 3-4]

Mountains are like pegs. They never move. Ever. Not in a million years … but one day, they will move.

And the she-camel? This is the pregnant she-camel at ten months–right before it gives birth (’ishaarah, from ‘ashara, ten); this is the point where it gives birth, and WHAM, that’s like $3000 right there, when your investment bears fruit.

And when the pregnant she-camels, that symbol of money, are neglected and useless. Like someone leaving their jewelry store unlocked and running away.

What would make a person do that?

وَإِذَا الْوُحُوشُ حُشِرَتْ

Translation: And when the wild beasts are gathered … [verse 5]

Hushirat means gathered; just like jam’aa; but here, hushirat means herded together, gathered by force. If you’ve ever seen like a huge flood, you might see two animals who are at each other’s necks normally, scrambling together on this little piece of land. They don’t even look at each other! What would make wild animals do that?

وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ سُجِّرَتْ
وَإِذَا النُّفُوسُ زُوِّجَتْ
وَإِذَا الْمَوْءُودَةُ سُئِلَتْ
بِأَيِّ ذَنبٍ قُتِلَتْ

Translation: And when the seas are filled with flame, and when the souls are paired (good with good people and bad with bad people), and when the girl [who was] buried alive is asked, for what sin she was killed? … [verses 6-9]

Arabs at the time of the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) used to bury their daughters alive, because she would bring shame to her family. They would either do one of two things: the woman would go out, in labour, to a pre-dug grave; and if it’s a girl, throw her in right away and bury her. Or they might wait a few years, take her out to the middle of the desert, and get her to help dig the grave, then throw her in it and throw dirt on her.

And nobody would stand up for this little girl; yet Allah is asking her, speaking on her behalf, defending her. Think about this:

• She commited no sin. Yet she will be asked. So what of the one who killed her?
• Allah is not even SPEAKING to the murderer. They are not even worth talking to. Instead, He asks the victim.
• This little girl, who had nobody to defend her, has Qur’an revealed in her favour. Until the end of time.

This same jahil culture exists today (to a lesser extent, from what I know) in many, many cultures–they celebrate the boy’s birth, but are disgraced, disappointed, you name it, if it’s a girl.

And this act is put on the same scale as the destruction of the Earth at the end of time. That’s how serious it is.

وَإِذَا الصُّحُفُ نُشِرَتْ
وَإِذَا السَّمَاءُ كُشِطَتْ
وَإِذَا الْجَحِيمُ سُعِّرَتْ
وَإِذَا الْجَنَّةُ أُزْلِفَتْ
عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَّا أَحْضَرَتْ

Translation: And when the pages are made public, and when the sky is stripped away, and when Hellfire is set ablaze, and when Paradise is brought near, every soul will [then] know what it has brought [with it]. [verses 10-14]

Verse 14 is the answer to the idhaa. Every soul will know what it ahdarat.

Ahdarat is an interesting word; it has connotations of:

1. Remember everything. The person will remember, in vivid, vivid detail, everything that they did. Everything. Big or small.
2. Uncomfortable? It will be a remembering by force; like a person giving a presentation in front of other students in class, or in front of managers–not the most comfortable situation, and to some degree, forced.

What they sent and what they left behind. In the next surah, Surah Intifaar, Allah does tafseer of this ayah and mentions what souls sent forth, and what they left behind; sent forth, the way you send an email–it’s sent, and it’s done; and left behind?

There are two cases of leaving-behind: either it was something good–there was a fundraiser at a masjid, you had cash in your pocket or bank account, and you didn’t donate–that’s a deed you could’ve done, but left behind.

Or, your friends called you to go to the bar with them. Or you wanted to eat that delicious, roasted pork; but you didn’t. That’s a deed you could’ve done, but left behind. And you’ll be happy you did.

This is just a glimpse of the power of the Arabic language of the Qur’an, a mere drop in the proverbial ocean of knowledge. If you want more of this, check out Bayyinah’s live tafseer of Juz ‘Amma lectures , live every Wednesday at 8pm EST; or, you can listen to the recordings, available for free.

May Allah (subhannahu wa ta’ala) give us the tawfeeq to understand this great, great message that we’re getting–ameen ya rabbal alameen.

One other note–you’ll notice that all these verses rhyme; this is a consistent theme in the Qur’an, one technique that indicates that all these verses are related–one discourse. This is something you’ll never, ever get from any translation.

Wallahu ta’ala ‘alam.

References:

• Tafseer of Surah At-Takwir. By Nouman Ali Khan – Bayyinah Institute
• Touched by an Angel: Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma. By Muhammad Alshareef. 2009.

Most of us know Surah Lahab. It’s one of the first one Muslim children learn these days. We’re going to breeze through the tafseer, then dive into one of the miracles, and finish up with some Arabic analysis.

Allah says:

تَبَّتْ يَدَا أَبِي لَهَبٍ وَتَبَّ
مَا أَغْنَى عَنْهُ مَالُهُ وَمَا كَسَبَ
سَيَصْلَى نَاراً ذَاتَ لَهَبٍ
وَامْرَأَتُهُ حَمَّالَةَ الْحَطَبِ
فِي جِيدِهَا حَبْلٌ مِّن مَّسَدٍ

Translation:
May the hands of Abu Lahab be ruined, and ruined is he.
His wealth will not avail him or that which he gained.
He will [enter to] burn in a Fire of [blazing] flame
And his wife [as well] – the carrier of firewood.
Around her neck is a rope of [twisted] fiber. [Surah Lahab, verses 1-5]

Reason of Revelation

This verse was one of the first revealed in Mecca. You can find the full details in Tafsir ibn Kathir. The Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) was told to proclaim the message; so he went up on a mountain.

In those days, when the Arabs attacked, they attacked right at Fajr time, when the most people were sleeping. If anyone saw this, they would get up on a mountain and say “waaaaaaaaaaaah subaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaaaah,” like “woe to you from an evil that’s coming in the morning.”

So the Prophet got up on the mountain, and he called each of the tribes, one by one, by name. And when they had all gathered–check this out–he said “If I told you all that the enemy was going to attack you in the morning, or in the evening, would you all believe me?” and they said “we’ve never experienced a lie from you.”

So he (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “Verily, I am a warner (sent) to you all before the coming of a severe torment.”

And this was it! The chance for everyone to become Muslim, Mecca becomes conquered, Islam gets an established base and spreads out of Arabia …

… and Abu Lahab, the uncle of the Prophet, said: “Have you gathered us for this? Tabba lak (may you perish).”

And Allah revealed Surah Lahab.

Points to Consider

• Syed. Abu Lahab was “syed,” that is, from the family of the Prophet. And he is doomed to Hellfire! So what does that mean for all the syeds out there? Are you still so sure you’ll be saved just for being a relative of the Messenger of Allah? Wake up! You need to pray and fast and pay zakah and make Hajj, just like anyone else.
• Tabbat is a curse. It appears twice in the first ayah–at the beginning, as if it’s a curse, and at the end, as if it’s a statement of reality–that he is cursed.
• Carrier of Firewood. There are two opinions on what this means: One is that the wife of Abu Lahab used to enflame people. “Oh did you hear what so-and-so said about you?” “Oh do you know what that other person did?” To make them hate each other; like she carries the wood to fan the fire. The other opinion is that she used to carry thorns and put them in what pathways the Messenger of Allah used to walk, so he’d be harmed.
• A Necklace of Fire. Hellfire is enough of a punishment–but on top, she’ll be given a necklace of fire. Why? Because she had a beautiful necklace, and she pawned it at a fundraiser so she could use the wealth to harm the Messenger of Allah. So glad tidings O you people who donated for the sake of Allah! Insha’Allah for sure you will get something good, if Allah rewarded giving something bad with something in Hellfire.

The Miracle in Surah Lahab

If you notice, Allah dooms Abu Lahab to Hellfire in this surah. Now, the mufassireen point out an interesting point–at any time, Abu Lahab could have accepted Islam–even as a fake-out. And he could have said “Hey guys, I’m Muslim now, how come the Qur’an is claiming I’m in Hellfire?” And that would’ve caused great fitnah.

But he never did.

And Allah knew that he wouldn’t.

And so, we see even in this small, oft-repeated surah, one of the miracles of the Qur’an.

Some Arabic Analysis

• Tabba/Tabbat (تَبَّتْ) is a curse. It means “may you lose everything and perish.”
• Abi Lahab? Just like we discussed in the second post about rabbuka and rabbika, whether you say “Abu Lahab” or “Abi Lahab” or “Aba Lahab,” it’s the same name. Just different grammatical tense.
• Triple Possessive Case: Yahd is mudaaf; abi is mudaf ilayh (hence it’s majroor), and also mudaaf to lahab (which is mudaf ilayh and majroor). If you didn’t understand that, don’t worry.
• Kasaba (كَسَبَ) means “what he accumulated.” Ibn Abbas (radiallahu ‘anhu) says that he accumulated is wealth, and children, and honour, and status; but none of those will help him in the Hereafter.
• Sayaslaa (سَيَصْلَى) is future-tense; it means he (Abu Lahab) will be thrown into.
• Naaran thaata lahab: This construct is difficult to explain, so forgive me if it’s not the easiest thing to understand. If I said “I saw a man dhuw lihyatin,” it means I saw a man who has a beard; or literally, “the owner of a beard.” If I said “I saw a man dhaa lihyatin,” i.e. an adjective construct, it means “I saw a bearded man.” Here, Allah says: naaran thaala lahab, meaning “the fire possessing flame,” or “the flaming fire.” It’s a description of the qualities of that fire. Tafseer ibn Katheer mentions a fire of blazing flames, painful and severe.

Wallahu ta’ala ‘alam, that’s Surah Lahab in a nutshell. If there are any questions, comments, or corrections, please post them in the comments.

Also, I cannot think of any action items related to this surah; so it’s up to you! Whatever you think of, post it in the comments! Insha’Allah you will get a copy of the ajar of anyone else who performs that action.

Action Items Contributed

Try and do at least one of the following:

• Donate something small for the sake of Allah. Buying gifts for family members is sadaqah too; so why not buy something nice–a watch, a necklace, etc. for your family member. Insha’Allah you’ll get one, too, in Jannah! (Even more motivation to buy what you’d love for yourself!)

References:

• Touched by an Angel: Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma. By Muhammad Alshareef. 2009.

The first five ayaat of Surah Iqraa are:

اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ
خَلَقَ الْإِنسَانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ
اقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ الْأَكْرَمُ
الَّذِي عَلَّمَ بِالْقَلَمِ
عَلَّمَ الْإِنسَانَ مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمْ

Word-for-word translations are pretty common these days (like this one, which has Surah Iqraa), so I’m going to touch lightly on that, and do a bit more grammar. Ready? Here goes!

• Iqraa (اقْرَأْ): Arabic has three types of verbs: past tense (he recited), present tense (he recites), and commands (recite!) Iqraa is a command to recite. (For all you nerds, it’s in baab one.) So Allah is COMMANDING us to read and recite.
• Rabbuka or rabbika? In verse 1, Allah says “rabbika”; and in verse 3, Allah says “rabbuka.” What’s the difference between these two, in meaning? Nothing! Rabbuka, rabbika, and rabbaka all mean the exact same thing. (They’re just different cases of grammar.)
• Rabbika (رَبِّكَ): Rabb in Arabic means the one who created you, who sustains you, who provides for you; the definition of this word takes pages! The “ka” hear means you (single person, male); so rabbuka means “your Rabb,” kitaabuka means “your book,” masjiduka means “your masjid,” etc.
• Khalaqa (خَلَقَ): Khalaqa means “he created;” In fact, khalaqa means created from nothing. Only Allah can create out of nothing–humans just take existing “stuff” and recompose it. That’s not khalaqa; only ALLAH can create from nothing.
• Wa (وَ): Wa means and. Occasionally, you may see am (أم), which is the same as wa, except am is used in questions.
• ‘Allama (عَلَّمَ): ‘Allama means “he taught.” It appears in quite a few places in the Qur’an, so it’s a good word to know. The words ‘ilm (knowledge), mu’allim (teacher), ‘aalim (scholar), ‘ulamaa (scholars) all come from the same root–the letters ‘ayn, laam, and meem.

That should shed some light, insha’Allah, on the meaning of this verse.

Action Steps:

• Memorize these five ayaat! With this word-for-word translation, and some of the material above, you have no excuse left! Just memorize by meaning.
• Comment when you’ve memorized these five. When you’ve completed memorizing the ayaat, walhamdulillah, post a comment and share it with the community! Together, insha’Allah, we’ll build up our knowledge + understanding + action + memorization of these surahs.

As Muslims, the phrase “alhamdulillah” الحمد لله (all praise and thanks is for Allah) is an integral part of our deen; we are taught to say it from both the Qur’an and Sunnah. Linguistically, Hamd is from ha-meem-daal ( حمد or ح م د) and it is to mention the good attribute of a person, such an attribute that is the at the level of perfection. Hamd is based on mahabbah (love) and ta’dheem (greatness). Hamd is not a fake praise, meaning it is not done to please the person or with no significance, Hamd is always true. Hamd implies admiration, love and magnifying the praise of mahmood (one who is praised). Hamd is a sincere and true praise, that the mahmood (one who is praised) deserves. The one doing hamd is doing submission to the one being praise–out of humility. Hamd also includes sincere gratitude and mentioning the kamaal (best) traits of someone.When we say alhamdulillah, it implies exclusivity and entirety, meaning that praise is entirely and only for Allah. The ‘al’ (ال) before ‘hamd’ is called “istighraaq” in Arabic, and when “al” comes before this phrase its means that entire praise, all kinds of praise and all the time, hamd is due to Allah. The “li” (in lillah, meaning for Allah) implies limitation which is known as “ikhtisaas” in Arabic and it means that Allah is the only One who deserves the hamd.

Now with this concrete definition in mind, what exactly does ‘Alhamdulillah’ mean? It means: The perfect, most Beautiful praise is only for Allah.

Alhamdulillah appears 38 times in the Qur’an, five of them at the beginning of surahs. (Look up which surahs start with hamd if you are not aware of them)

When a surah begins with hamd, it implies three interpretations:

• Firstly, to tell and to make it known that: alhamdulillah, all praise and thanks is for Allah. As if to announce it.
• Secondly, when we open something we begin with hamd. (like a khutbah)
• Thirdly, it teaches us how we should praise Allah, by saying: alhamdulillah and we also learn that we must praise Him.

A Name of Allah that coincides with Hamd is, Al-Hameed, Allah ta’ala is Al-Hameed, The Praiseworthy. How is this different from mahmood (one who is praised)? Mahmood is one who is praised only when they are praised by someone. Hameed is One who is ALWAYS deserving of praise, NO MATTER if He is praised or not. So Allah ta’ala is The Most Praiseworthy, if we do hamd of Him or not.

Alhamdulillah. Such a short phrase with a heavy meaning. Let us remember this meaning the next time we say Alhamdulillah.

wa lillahil hamd!

Al-Huda Institute Canada: Ta’leem Al Qur’an English course for women.

Learning Arabic as a second language may be difficult for many, so I decided to share some tips that assist with learning the meanings of words and their structures.

Words that begin with ف usually will always mean something that breaks open, separates, or breaks apart. Check out these examples:

الفجر (Al-Fajr) from ف ج ر means the dawn, but it literally means when the daylight breaks/crack through the darkness. If you’ve ever seen the sky at Fajr time, you can see a thread of light near the horizon, while the rest of the sky is dark with the night. Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tells us in Surah Baqarah to stop eating suhoor when the “white thread” is distinguishable from the “black thread.”

Another word from this root is fajjara, with a shadda on the jeem, which means to break open and gush forth. Another word from this root is الفاجر (Al-Faajir), the fujjar (plural of faajir) cross the limits and breaks the rules.

الفرقان (Al-Furqaan) derives from ف ر ق, which means to break through, to distinguish. Al-Furqan, which is another name of the Qur’an, means the Criterion that distinguishes truth from falsehood.

الفريق (Al-Fareeq) also from ف ر ق means a party or a group. A group is one that breaks off from the majority.

الفاسقون (Al-Faasiqoon) from ف س ق and fisq, literally means when a flower breaks through the bud to bloom. The Fasiqoon are those who transgress the bounds of Allah, and go beyond them.

الفضة (Al-Fiddah) from ف ض ض, which means silver, but literally means to scatter. When you scatter something, the first thing you do is break it apart then you throw it all over the place. What does this have to do with silver? Silver is ’scattered’ when zakah is paid on it and when someone spends it. And after someone dies, their silver is ’scattered’ to the heirs.

InshaAllah try and look through the Qur’an for words beginning with ف that follow this pattern and post them in the comments! (You may need a dictionary, such as this one.)

Wa lillahil hamd.

The rules are quite simple–just like English, it’s “O so-and-so”. So for example, you could say “ya ummiy” (o my mother) or “ya taajiru” (o merchant). And, in fact, if you read the Qur’an at all, you’ll find these everywhere. The most common are:

• Ya ayyuhalldhiyna amanuw, which addresses the believers (Muslims).
• Ya ayyuhan-naas, which addresses humankind.
• Ya bani israeel, which addresses Bani Isareel (the Jews).

Grammatically, what does the calling ya do? The callee (the one who immediately succeeds the ya) takes either a single dumma (if it’s a proper noun) or a single fatha (if it’s the posesser in a possessive-case). (Definite nouns are names.)

So if you wanted to say “Oh Allah”, it would be “ya Allahu” (because it’s a proper noun), not “ya Allahun.” Or, if your friend is Yasin, you would say “ya Yasinu” instead of “ya Yasinun“.

But, what if you wanted to say “O mother of Adam”? It would be “ya umma Adam” (because it’s possessive case). Similarly, if you wanted to say “O Messenger of Allah” (as we see in many ahadith), it’s “ya rasulallah”.

Interested in some applications of the calling ya? Check out the related entries inshallah.

Related Posts: Amplify your Du’a with Tawassul

Note: You can put your mouse over any underlined text to see the Arabic.

Allahu: God (singular, exclusive; THE God)
amanuw: believed (male, plural)
an-naas: humankind
banu: tribe
taajirun: merchant
ummun: mother
ummiy: my mother

Wa indicates grouping, but doesn’t specify order or timing. For example: Ahmed and Ghufran and Yusuf travelled to the masjid. It doesn’t indicate what order they arrived in, or anything about how long the people who came first waited for the people who came after then. It just groups them together.

Thumma indicates order, but doesn’t specify the timing. For example: Ahmed, then Ghufran, then Yusuf travelled to the masjid. While this tells you the order–Ahmed was first, then Ghufran was second, then Yusuf was third–it doesn’t tell you anything about the time between them.

Fa indicates the order (like thumma), but also shows that the second event happened immediately after the first. For example: Ahmed and then immediately Yusuf and then immediately Yusuf travelled to the masjid. shows that Ahmed came first, then Ghufran came next (on the heels of Ahmed), then Yusuf came right behind Ghufran.

And that’s it! InshaAllah if you have any questions/comments/etc. or if you find uses of these in the Qur’an, post them inshaAllah too.

So what does it mean when Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) uses kaana to describe Himself? For example, in surah Nisaa, He says:

Translation: And seek the Forgiveness of Allah; surely, Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful [Surah Nisaa, 4:106]

In the Qur’an, when Allah uses kaana, it doesn’t mean He was, and no longer is–rather, it’s used as a form of emphasis. The same way that you are certain about past events (like 9/11–it happened), you are certain when you use kaana. That is why translations carry such words as “verily”, “indeed”, “surely”, and so on.

Wallahu ‘alim.

• Ahmad is rich
• The masjid is big
• I am a Muslim

It has two parts–the mubtada (the subject — eg. Ahmad), and the khabr (the predicate–information about the mubtada — eg. rich, big, a Muslim).

What are the rules of grammar as they apply to the mubtada and the khabr? There are three:

1. Match: The khabr must match the mubtada in number (eg. singular, plural) and in gender.
2. Definite: The mubtada cannot be indefinite–it must be definite.
3. Dumma: The mubtada must take dumma (single dumma, too, because it’s definite) — and, when dissecting complex sentences of any type, this is how you locate the mubtada!

For example:

1. the duck is not big (al-battatu laysat kabiyratan)
2. the cat is not lazy (al-qittu laysa bi kaslaana)

Whenever you use laysa, the mubtada and khabr change: the mubtada becomes ismu laysa, and the khabr becomes khabru laysa.

Finally, laysa causes ismu laysa (not the mubtada–it’s now ismu laysa) to be marfoo’ (takes dumma/tanween-dumma), and khabru laysa becomes mansoob (takes fatha/tanween-fatha — see example one). Except if you prefix the khabr with bi (the preposition). In that case, it takes kasra, just as any word with a preposition. (Like example two.)

And of course, you can use laysa at the beginning of a sentence, just like any verb–eg. I am not sick (lastu bi mariydin).

The sarf for laysa is listed below–laysa is essentially a past-tense verb. (Read the sarf from top to bottom and right to left.)

Wallahu ‘alim. As usual, post a comment inshallah if you need any clarifications or have any questions.