KHUTAB III - 4. COMMENTARY OF THE QUR’ĀN (2)

4. COMMENTARY OF THE QUR’ĀN (2)

 Sūrat al-Ikhlās. (Chapter 112)

سُوْرَةُ اْلإخْلاص

Introduction

 Sūrat al-Ikhlās. was a Makkan according to Ibn Mas‘ūd, al-H.asan, ‘At.ā’, ‘Ikrimah and Jābir; Medinian according to one of the statements of Ibn ‘Abbās, Qatādah and al-Suddī. (al-Shawkānī, Fath. al-Qadīr; Ibn al-Jawzī, Zād al-Masīr). There are many reports about the occasion that led to the revelation of this verse, as follows:

a.     It is narrated by al-D.ah.h.āk that the Makkan idolaters sent ‘Āmir ibn T.ufayl on their behalf to tell the Prophet the following: “You have made dissension among us, you have abused our gods, and you have defied the religion of your ancestors. If you feel you are poor and need of wealth we shall make you rich; if you are insane we shall cure you, and if you need a woman we shall marry you.”  The Prophet replied: “I am not poor, I am not mad, and I am not in need of a woman. I am a Messenger of Allah, and I am calling you to abandon worshiping idols and to worship Allah” Then they sent ‘Amir again to the Prophet to ask him about the idol he was worshiping, whether it was made of gold or silver.  Then Allah revealed sūrat al-Ikhlās. to answer their question. (Tafsīr al-Marāghī). Similar report was also related by Ibn ‘Abbās.

b.    It is narrated by Ubayy ibn Ka‘b that the the idolaters came to the Prophet, saying, “Tell us about your Lord!” So, Allah revealed this sūrah. (Reported by al-Tirmidhī, al-H.ākim, Ah.mad, and al-Bayhaqī). (Al-Nīsābūrī, Asbāb al-Nuzūl; al-Shawkānī, Fath.  al-Qadīr; Ibn al-Jawzī, Zād al-Masīr).

c.     It is narrated by Jābir that a Bedouin said to the Prophet: “Tell us about your Lord.” So, Allah revealed: “Say, Allah is One” till the end of the sūrah (Reported by al-Tabrānī and al-Bayhaqī). (Al-Nīsābūrī, Asbāb al-Nuzūl; al-Shawkānī, Fath.  al-Qadīr).

d.    It is narrated by al-D.ah.h.āk, Muqātil and Qatādah that a group of Jews came to the Prophet and said: “Tell us about your Lord, for Allah has explained about Himself in the Torah. So, tell us what is He, whether He is made of gold, silver or brass, whether He eats or drinks, and from whom He inherits the world, and to whom He will inherit it. So, Allah revealed this sūrah. (Al-Nīsābūrī, Asbāb al-Nuzūl; Ibn al-Jawzī, Zād al-Masīr).

e.     Ibn ‘Abbās said that a group of Jews, among them Ka‘b ibn al-Ashraf and  H.uyay ibn Akht.ab came to the Prophet and said: “ O Muhammad, tell us about your Lord Who has sent you”. Then Allah revealed, “Say, Allah is One,” till the end of the sūrah. (Reported by al-Bayhaqī, Ibn Abū H.ātim  and Ibn ‘Adī. (al-Shawkānī, Fath. al-Qadīr).

f.      ‘Ikrimah said that when the Jews said that they worshiped ‘Uzayr (Ezra) son of God, the Christians said that they worshiped Jesus son of God, the Magians said that they worshiped the sun and the moon, and the pagan idolaters said that they worshiped idols, Allah revealed to His Messenger, “Say, Allah is One” (Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr)

The Text and Commentary

 بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحمْنِ الرَّحِيْم

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

 قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ

Asad: “Say: He is the One God:”

Pickthall: “Say: He is Allah the One!”

A.Y. Ali: “Say: He is Allah the One and Only”

This verse teaches us the pure tawh.īd, the Oneness of God, Allah.

اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ

Asad: “God the Eternal, the Uncaused Cause of All Being”

Pickthall: “Allah, the eternally Besought of all!”

A.Y. Ali: “Allah the Eternal Absolute;”

There are many interpretations of the meaning of the term al-S.amad, among which are as follows:

a.     It means “someone whom people rely on and to whom they ask  for help in difficulty and distress.”, as in the following poem of Sabrah ibn ‘Amr al-Asadī (سَبْرَة بْنُ عَمْرٍو اْلأَسَدِي)

ألاَ بَكَرَ الناعي بخَيْرِ بَني أسَدْ ... بِعَمْرو بْنِ مسعودٍ بالسَّيِّد الصَّمَد

The distressed person came early to the best person among

 the Banī Asad tribe, namely, ‘Amr ibn Mas‘ūd, the leader whom

 people used to come to ask for help.

The Arabs called their nobles al-S.amad. The verse means that as Allah is the only true helper the Muslims should ask Allah’s help directly without any intermediary. (Tafsīr al-Marāghī; Ibn al-Jawzī, Zād al-Masīr). Ibn al-Anbārī says that there is not disagreement among the linguists that the term al-S.amad means the master who has no one above him whom people return to ask help. (Ibn al-Jawzī, Zād al-Masīr).

b.    It means “the Lord with full authority, the Noble with full nobility, Knowing with full knowledge, and the Wise with full wisdom.” This is the interpretation of Ibn ‘Abbās, apart from giving the same meaning of al-S.amad above. (Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr; al-Shawkānī, Fath. al-Qadīr).

c.     It means “the Everlasting after the extinction of His creation”. According to al- H.asan and Qatādah. (Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr; Ibn al-Jawzī, Zād al-Masīr).

d.    It means “the one who is neither beget nor begotten”, so that the succeeding verse is the explanation of it. This is the view of al-Rabī’ ibn Anas. (Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr).

e.     It means “the one who has no jawf (opening, cavity, heart, abdomen), which is the interpretation of many s.ah.ābah and Qur’an commentators, such as Ibn Mas‘ūd, Ibn ‘Abbās (in one of his commentaries), Sa‘īd ibn al-Musayyib, Mujāhid, Sa‘īd ibn Jubayr, al-H.asan, ‘Ikrimah, ‘At.ā’ ibn Rabāh., al-D.ah.h.āk and al-Suddī. (Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr; al-Shawkānī, Fath.  al-Qadīr; Ibn al-Jawzī, Zād al-Masīr).

f.      It means “the one who does neither eat nor drink”, which is the view of al-Sha‘bī. This interpretation is apparently the explanation of the previous one as (e). above.[1] (Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr).

g.     The meaning of the term includes all the above interpretation.  This is the

view of Abū al-Qāsim al-T.abrānī in his book Kitāb al-Sunnah. (Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr)

لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ

Asad: “He begets not, and neither is He begotten”

Pickthall: “He begetteth not nor was begotten”

A.Y. Ali: “He begetteth not nor is He begotten”

This verse  لَمْ يَلِدْ “He begets not” means that unlike the belief of the pagan Arabs that the angels are Allah’s daughters, the Christian’s belief that ‘Īsá (Jesus) a.s. is the son of Allah, and the Jew’s belief that ‘Uzayr (Ezra) is Allah’s son..  Allah says in the Qur’ān:  فَاسْتَفْتِهِمْ أَلِرَبِّكَ الْبَنَاتُ وَلَهُمُ الْبَنُونَ الصافات: ٤٩)   “Now ask them (O Muhammad): Hath thy Lord daughters  whereas they have sons?” (Q. 37:149).

The verse وَلَمْ يُولَدْ and He begetteth not” means that He is unlike all creatures. In a hadīth qudsī narrated by Abū Hurayrah that the Prophet said:

Allah said: “The son of Adam belies Me while it is not so,  and abuses  Me while

it is not so. He belies Me and says ‘Allah will never revive me as He created

 me’ whereas creating is not easier (less important) for Me than reviving , and abuses Me when he says that I have a son, whereas I am the One, the eternally

Besought of all, I was neither beget not nor was begotten, and there is none comparable to Me.”  (Reported by Bukhari). (Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr)

 وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌ

Asad: “And there is nothing that could be compared with Him.”

Pickthall: “And there is none comparable to Him.”

A.Y. Ali: “And there is none like unto Him.”   

This verse means that Allah has no associate, as the pagan Arabs believed that the angels were Allah’s associates.

          A.Y. Ali’s commentary on this sūrah is as follows:

1.    Allah is sublime and far beyond human conception.

2.    Allah is One and the only One to Whom worship is due.

3.    He is eternal without beginning or end, Absolute, not limited by time    or place or circumstance.

4.    We must not think of Him as having a son or a father, for that would be to import animal qualities into our conception of Him.

5.    He is not like any other person or thing that we know or can imagine.  His qualities and nature are unique.

Conclusion:

This sūrah teaches us that Allah is One, not as the Makkan idolaters’ belief; Allah is in no need of His creatures; instead, it is His creatures that are in need of Him; Allah has neither beginning nor end and has nothing comparable to Him. This verse, as the Prophet said, is one-third of the Qur’an, as one-third of the Qur’ān contains tawh.īd, the Oneness of Allah.

Bibliography :

Ali, Abdullah Yusuf. The Holy Qur’ān

Asad, Muhammad. The Message of the Qur’ān

Pickthall, Muhammad Marmaduke.  The Glorious Koran

المراجع:

ابن الجوزي،  إبو الفرج جمال الدين (ت ٥٩٧ هـ). زاد المسير في علم التفسير. بيروت: دار الكتب العلمية ، د.ت. ج ٨

ابن القيم (٦٩١- ٧٥١). التفسير القيّم. جمعه محمد إدريس الندوي ، حققه محمد حامد الفقى. د.م.: دار الفكر ، [١٣٦٧|١٩٤٨]

ابن كثير، :أبوا الفداء (ت.٧٧٤ هـ). تفسير القرآن العظيم. قدم له الدكتور يوسف عبد الرحمن المرعشلي. بيروت: دار المعرفة، د.ت. ج٤

حوى، سعيد. الأساس في التفسير. د.م.: دار السلام, د.ت.

الشوكاني، محمد بن علي (١١٧٣-١٢٥٠ هـ). فتح القدير. دمشق: دار ابن كثير،د.ت. ج٥

 الواحدي ،  ابو الحسن علي (ت. ٦٧٨ هـ). أسباب النزول. د.م.:دار الفكر، د.ت.

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1. This interpretation reminds us of Ahmad Deedat’s booklet entitled Atnatu. He said that it is an Australian aborigine word meaning “the one who has no opening”, referring to God Who neither eats, drinks, nor relieves Himsellf. We do not know which  of about 250 aboriginal languages as Mr.Deedat did not specify.