KHUTAB XI: 18. THE MEANINGS OF LAHW (لَهْو) IN THE QUR’ĀN

18. THE MEANINGS OF LAHW (لَهْو) IN THE QUR’ĀN

 The term lahw has many meanings, such as: amusement, entertainment, diversion, distraction, pastime, pleasure, sport, fun, and play. Ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597/1201) mentions six meanings of this term in the Qur’ān in his Nuzhatu ’l-A‘yun, as well as al-Dāmaghānī (d. 478/1085-6) in his Qāmūs al-Qur’ān, as follows:

1.     الإسْتِهْزَاء (mockery, ridicule, derision, scorn), such as:

وَذَرِالَّذِينَ اتَّخَذُوا دِينَهُمْ لَعِبًا وَلَهْوًا وَغَرَّتْهُمُ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا (الأنعام:70(

And leave alone those who take their religion as play

 and amusement [namely, as mockery], and whom the

 life of this world has deceived (Q. 6:70).

The term “their religion” here means “Islam.” According to al-Qurṭubī, the expression “take their religion as play and amusement” means, “They mocked those who follow Islam, mocked its followers, and went into it as a play and mockering the truth.

Muhammad Asad translates the above verse as follows:

And leave to themselves all those who, beguiled

by the life of this world, have made play and

passing delights their religion (Q. 6:670)

Then he says that it could be understood in two ways: (1) they have made their religion [an object of] play and fun, or (2) they have made play and fun [or “passing delights”] their religion, namely, the main goal of their lives. He prefers the latter, and says, “many of those who are ‘beguiled by the life of the world’ devote themselves to the pursuit of what the Qur’ān describes as ‘passing delights’—including the pleasures which money and power can provide—with something akin the religious fervour: an attitude of mind which causes them to lose sight of all spiritual and moral values.”

2. الْوَلَد (son), as in the following verse:

لَوْ أَرَدْنَا أَنْ نَتَّخِذَ لَهْوًا لَاتَّخَذْنَاهُ مِنْ لَدُنَّا إِنْ كُنَّا فَاعِلِينَ (الأنبياء:17)

Had We intended to take a pastime (i.e. a son),

 We would surely have taken in from Us, if We

were going to do (that) (Q. 21:17).

This is the interpretation of ‘Ikrimah and al-Suddī, that the term lahw the above verse means walad (son). According to al-Ḥasan and Qatādah, the term lahw here means, “a wife.” According to Qatādah, al-Suddī, Ibrāhīm al-Nakhā‘ī, and al-Mughīrah ibn Miqsam the verse إِنْ كُنَّا فَاعِلِينَ means, “We will not do that,” instead of “if We were going to do that,” as Mujāhid says that every إِنْ (“if”) used in the Qur’ān is negation.

3. الشُغْل (occupancy, prevention, distraction), such as:

             ذَرْهُمْ يَأْكُلُوا وَيَتَمَتَّعُوا وَيُلْهِهِمُ الْأَمَلُ فَسَوْفَ يَعْلَمُونَ (الحجر:3(               

Leave them to eat and enjoy, and let them be

 preoccupied [namely, distracted] with (false) hope.

 They will come to know [the truth]. (Q. 15:3)

This is a definite threat for disbelievers.

أَلْهَاكُمُ التَّكَاثُرُ (التكاثر:1)

The mutual rivalry (for piling up worldly

 things) diverts you (Q. 102:1)

You are obsessed by greed for more

 and more … (Asad’s translation)

There are various interpretations of this verse: According to Ibn ‘Abbās and al-Ḥasan: mutual rivalry (greed for more) in wealth and children; according to Qatādah: mutual rivalry (greed for more) in boasting of tribes and clans; according to al-Ḍaḥḥāk: distraction with livelihood and merchandise.

There are many ḥadīths dealing with man’s covetousness of worldly things, such as:

عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ - صلى الله عليه وسلم - أَنَّهُ قَالَ:

 لَوْ كَانَ لاِبْنِ آدَمَ وَادٍ مِنْ ذَهَبٍ أَحَبَّ أَنَّ لَهُ وَادِيًا آخَر... (رواه مسلم)

Anas ibn Mālik narrated that the Messenger of Allah

said: “If the Son of Adam had a valley of gold, he

would desire another ...” (Reported by Muslim)

عَنْ أَبِى هُرَيْرَةَ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ -صلى الله عليه وسلم-

قَالَ : يَقُولُ الْعَبْدُ مَالِى مَالِى إِنَّمَا لَهُ مِنْ مَالِهِ ثَلاَثٌ مَا

أَكَلَ فَأَفْنَى أَوْ لَبِسَ فَأَبْلَى أَوْ أَعْطَى فَاقْتَنَى وَمَا سِوَى ذَلِكَ

فَهُوَ ذَاهِبٌ وَتَارِكُهُ لِلنَّاسِ. (رواه مسلم)

Abū Hurayrah narrated that the Messenger of

Allah said: “The servant says ‘My wealth, my wealth.

’Yet he only gets three (benefits) from his wealth:

that which he eats and finishes, that which he wears

until it is worn out, or that which he gives in charity

and it is spent. Everything else other than that will

go away and leave him for the people

(Reported by Muslim)

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تُلْهِكُمْ أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَلَا أَوْلَادُكُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ

اللَّهِ وَمَنْ يَفْعَلْ ذَلِكَ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ (المنافقون:9)

O you who believe! Let not your properties or your

children divert [namely, distract]you from the

remembrance of Allah. And whoever does that,

then they are the losers. (Q. 63:9)

There are various interpretations of the term اللَّهِ ذِكْرِ (“the remembrance of Allah”) in the above verse: ḥajj (pilgrimage) and zakāt; reading the Qur’ān; continuation of remembering Allah; five-daily payers (according to al-Ḍaḥḥāk); all religious obligation (according to al-Ḥasan); and that it is directed to the hypocrites who believed with their tongues, and now they were asked to believe with their hearts.

 4. الْغِنَاء (singing, song), such as:

وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَنْ يَشْتَرِي لَهْوَ الْحَدِيثِ لِيُضِلَّ عَنْ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ بِغَيْرِ

عِلْمٍ وَيَتَّخِذَهَا هُزُوًا أُولَئِكَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ مُهِينٌ (لقمان:6)

And of mankind is he who purchases idle talks

[namely, singing] to mislead (men) from the path

of Allah without knowledge, and takes it (the path

of Allah, or the Verses of the Qur’ān) by way of

mockery. For such there will be a humiliating

torment (in the Hell-fire) (Q. 31:6)

     This is the interpretation of the term لَهْوَ الْحَدِيثِ (idle talk) according to Ibn ‘Abbās, Ibn Mas‘ūd, Ibn ‘Umar ‘Ikrimah, Maymūn ibn Mihrān, Mujāhid, and Makḥūl, namely, الْغِنَاء (singing, song). According to Qatādah, “purchases idle talks” is “buying singing servant girls.” In a ḥadīth narrated by Abū Umāmah, the Prophet (ﷺ) said:

لا يَحِلُّ بَيْعُ الْمُغَنِّيَاتِ وَلا شِرَاؤُهُنَّ، وَلا تِجَارَةٌ فِيهِنَّ،

 وَأَكْلُ أَثْمَانِهِنَّ حَرَامٌ (رواه الطبراني)

It is not permitted to sell singing servant girls,

neither buying them, nor doing business in

them, and taking their prices is prohibited

(Reported by al-Ṭabrānī)

Ibn Jarīr al-Ṭabarī gives general interpretation of the idle talks and says, “it means all speech that hinders people from seeing the signs of Allah and following His path.” The definition of لَهْوَ الْحَدِيثِ (idle talk) is as follows:

كُلُّ كَلأمٍ يٌلْهِى الْقَلْبَ وَ يَأكُلُ الْوَقْتَ وَ لاَ يُثْمِرُ خيْرٍاً

It is every statement which amuses the heart,

consumes time, and does not give benefit.

 Muhammad Asad said that the above verse “describes a type of mentality and has, therefore, a general import.” (M. Asad, The Message of the Qur’ān, p. 627, n. 4).

 5. ضَرْبُ الطَّبْل (beating of drum); Ibn al-Jawzī added withوَ الْمَلاهِيْ (and entertainment), such as:

وَإِذَا رَأَوْا تِجَارَةً أَوْ لَهْوًا انْفَضُّوا إِلَيْهَا وَتَرَكُوكَ قَائِمًا قُلْ مَا عِنْدَ اللَّهِ

خَيْرٌ مِنَ اللَّهْوِ وَمِنَ التِّجَارَةِ وَاللَّهُ خَيْرُ الرَّازِقِينَ (الجمعة:11)

And when they see some merchandise or some

amusement [namely, beating of drum] they disperse headlong to it, and leave you (Muhammad) standing

[while delivering Jumu‘ah religious talk (Khuṭbah).

Say: “That which Allah has is better than any

amusement or merchandise! And Allah is

the Best of providers.” (Q. 62:11)

What really happened was that, like ‘Īd prayers where the khuṭbah/sermon was delivered after performing the prayer, Jumu‘ah prayer was performed before the khuṭbah. While the Prophet (ﷺ) was delivering his Friday sermon, the long expected trade caravan carrying food and others belonging to Dīḥyah ibn Khalīfah before he became a Muslim, had arrived from Syria where he was welcomed with drums and tambourines. A man came forward to tell the congregation of his arrival. It was the time where food was scarce. Thinking that it was alright to leave the khuṭbah many people among the congregation rushed out of the mosque, leaving the Prophet (ﷺ) standing on the pulpit. Only about twelve or fourteen of them stayed. They were: Abū Bakr, ‘Umar, ‘Uthmān, ‘Ali, Ṭalḥah, al-Zubayr, Sa‘d ibn Abī Waqqāṣ, ‘Abd al-Raḥmān ibn ‘Awf, Abū ‘Ubaydah ibn al-Jarrāḥ, Sa‘īd ibn Zayd, Bilāl, ‘Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd, ‘Ammār ibn Yāsir, and Jābir ibn ‘Abd Allāh.

Then the above verse was revealed, and the Prophet (ﷺ) delivered the khuṭbah first then followed by the prayer like what we are doing now. Since then, nobody was allowed to leave the congregation unless he was permitted by the Prophet (ﷺ). When he was about to leave the hypocrite who could not stay long for the khuṭbah and the prayer stood up beside him hiding himself then they came out. Then Allah revealed:

 ...قَدْ يَعْلَمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ يَتَسَلَّلُونَ مِنْكُمْ لِوَاذً ... (النور:(63  

Allah knows those who slip away under shelter

(of some excuse without taking the permission to

leave, from the Messenger)…(Q. 24:63)

    Based on this episode it is incorrect to assume that the majority of the ṣaḥābah had turned into apostasy or had been lacking in faith.

6. الْبَاطِل (futile, false, baseless, void, deception) according to al-Ḍāmaghānī, and according to Ibn al-Jawzī it is الْسُرُورُ الْفَانِي (perishable joy). The example given by al-Ḍāmaghānī is as follows:

إِنَّمَا الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا لَعِبٌ وَلَهْوٌ وَإِنْ تُؤْمِنُوا وَتَتَّقُوا يُؤْتِكُمْ

أُجُورَكُمْ وَلَا يَسْأَلْكُمْ أَمْوَالَكُمْ (محمد:36(

The life of this world is but play and pastime [namely, deception]; but if you believe (in Oneness of Allah—

Islamic Monotheism), and fear Allah, and avoid evil,

He will grant you your wages, and will not ask

you your wealth (Q. 47:36)

 The example given by Ibn al-Jawzī is as follows:

اعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا لَعِبٌ وَلَهْوٌ وَزِينَةٌ وَتَفَاخُرٌ

بَيْنَكُمْ وَتَكَاثُرٌ فِي الْأَمْوَالِ وَالْأَوْلَادِ... (الحديد:20)

Know that the life of this world is only play and

 amusement [namely, perishable joy], pomp and

mutual boasting among you, and rivalry in

respect of wealth and children… (Q. 57:20)

 There are various interpretations on the term لَعِبٌ وَلَهْوٌ (play and amusement (in the above verse, among which are: eating and drinking (Qatādah’s view); what we desire for in this world, and what distracts us from the Hereafter; and acquisition and women.

These two verses above tell us how insignificant and transient and temporary life in this world is, that it is only play and amusement, and that the Hereafter is the real and eternal life.

(CIVIC, 13 January, 2017)

 المراجع:

 تفسير الطبري (ت. 310 هـ)

تفسير القرطبى(ت. 671 هـ)

 تفسير ابن كثير(ت. 774 هـ)

 محمد الدامغاني (ت. 478 هـ). قاموس القرآن أو إصلاح الوجوه والنظائر

عبد الرحمن ابن الجوزي (ت. 597 هـ). نزهة الأعين النواظر

Muhammad Asad. The Message of the Qur’ān http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfro        m=101&idto=