CORRECTED
Tafsirul Quran: A Major Tafsir in Bangla Language
By Shah Abdul Hannan*
Moulana Muhammad Akram Khan was among the four or five
topmost scholars of former Bengal in the last few hundred years.
He was the president of Bengal Muslim league, a remarkable
Islamic scholar, and an eminent journalist. Above all, he was a
writer and researcher of the biography of the prophet (peace be
upon him), the Quran, and Muslim history and literature.
His Mustafa Charit, a biography of the prophet Muhammad (pbuh),
clearly demonstrates the profundity of his ability as a researcher.
He analyzed the life of the prophet in the light of authentic
historical materials and accepted only those facts that have been
verified. He excluded those materials which appeared contrary to
reason. Western scholarly critiques of the Prophet's life and
practices have been firmly rebutted. In this context, he considered
some traditions attributed to the prophet and examined the texts of
those traditions. In this context, he considered some traditions relevant to
the life of the prophet and examined the text of those traditions. Based on
the principles of examining texts of Hadith (Matn), laid down by the
jurisprudents (Usuliun), he concluded some of them as unacceptable. Everyone
may not
agree with him. But his work is good to think with and significantly
furthers our ability to analyze.
His book The Social history of Muslim Bengal is an unparalleled
contribution.
Another extraordinary work of Akram Khan is his translation and
interpretation of the Holy Quran, The Tafsirul Quran. Although he
used the older style of Bengali language used generally by all past
major writers (but obsolete at present), the translation is lucid and
a sheer pleasure to read. I find the language of his translation of
the Quran to be the best among all Bengali translations of our
divine scripture. He adopts a very cautious approach and shows
his great acumen in choosing his words very carefully and
astutely. Some examples are as follows:
(1) He has translated the word 'taqwa' in several ways, one of
them is restraint (Shangzom in Bangla), for instance in Sura Al-
Bakara, Ayat - 21.
(2) He has translated the word 'fasiq' as evil doers( Duskarmaparayan in
Bangla). I find it to be a very suitable translation of the word (Ref:
translation of Sura
Bakara, V:22; Tafsirul Quran, Zhinuk Publication, Dhaka, Bangladesh,volume
1, page 38)
(3) He has translated the word 'Asma'a' as knowledge of essence of al
things or matter (Bostutottoguli in Bangla), which is very exceptional.
In his insightful treatment of issues related to women, he does not
hesitate to clearly indicate where God privileges women. For
example he translates the 36th verse of Sura Al Imran "Laisal
zakaru kal unsa" as "whereas men are not equal (shamotulla in
Bangla) to women" (Ref: ibid, page 395). I would suggest that
those who enthusiastically and constantly refer to the 34th ayat of
Sura Nisa, should also take this verse into account.
In his tafsir, he offers very logical explanations for various events.
He had faith in the miraculous abilities of prophets but he did not
accept fabricated and irrational stories. The account of the prophet
Musa fleeing from Egypt with Bani Israel was proffered a very
logical explanation. His main argument is that Musa along with his
followers crossed the Nile rather than the Red Sea. Earlier Tafsirs
were mainly based on Exodus of the Bible and other legends. His
arguments about this issue are as follows:
"In the first part of the verse under discussion (Sura Bakara, Ayat
50), the word 'Al Bahr' has been used. .In the dictionary, the
word Bahr has been defined as:
(1) Large quantity of water, usually saline water (Kamus).
(2) All streams are Bahr (Zawhari).
(3) Word opposite to land -- saline water, a big stream, any wide
substance.(Mawared).
It is therefore clearly established that the Israelites lived
somewhere on the bank of the Nile, not far away from the royal
palace. From that place they were moving to their ancestors'
land...Their destination was Palestine and Jerusalem. After
crossing the Egyptian border, they reached the Sinai Peninsula
and Tih area. There are many proofs in the Quran in support of this
fact."
Then Akram Khan argued that it was rather illogical to reach
Arabia by crossing 500 miles of sea route and travel from there to
Palestine. The irrationality lies in the fact that they were many in
number and did not have any means of transportation. So it was
very difficult for them to cover such large distances on foot. Instead
the easier way for them to reach Sinai was to cross a lake or
coastland from Egypt. He further argued that to describe the place
where Pharaoh died, the words Bahr and Yam were used. Both of
these words can be interpreted as a stream or any form of water
body. It's merely a description narrated in Exodus of Old
Testament that Pharaoh died drowning in the Red Sea. But there
is no evidence for this in the Quran or authentic Hadith.
Akram Khan stated in the conclusion:
"The area stretching from the Mediterranean Sea to the Suez city
was filled with many lakes and various types of marshes before the
Suez Canal was dug. The water of this area naturally decreased
during low tide. Then the relatively higher lands would rise above
the water level and nearby shallow lands became drier. During
high tide the water entered and submerged those places.
According to Allah's command Prophet Musa began on the
journey from Egypt at an appropriate time. He was also directed to
the right path by Allah. That is why the Bani Israelites were saved
but the pharoah died drowning in the sea. In my opinion this is the
most important miracle in the life of the prophet Musa" (Ref:
Tafsirul Quran, Zhinuk publication, volume 1, page 79 - 87).
In his exegetical work, he supported the view that there is no
abrogated (Mansukh) verse in the Quran. In the commentary of
Sura Bakara, verses 184 and 185, he wrote about this issue:
"The word 'yutikunahu' is used in this verse. I interpreted it as
those who can fast with great difficulty. I think it is the proper
interpretation. Imam Razi supported this view and Imam Rageb
also defined it in the same way in his dictionary. It is a matter of
regret that most of the narrators of Tafsir interpreted it as 'those
who don't fast in spite of being capable of fasting'-------. Because of
this inappropriate translation, a group of present-day modernist
scholars are saying that one may break one's fast by paying fidya
(feeding the indigent) even if there is no difficulty. On the other
hand, a group of narrators and muffassirin are suggesting that ayat
185 was revealed just after revelation of ayat 184 abrogating the
provision(of ayat 184). But we must remember that this is the
speech(Qalam) of Allah. He cannot be so capricious that He would
reveal an ayah and abrogate it immediately thereafter. In fact there
is no Mansukh (abrogated) ayat in the Quran" (Tafsirul Quran,
commentary under Sura Bakara, Ayat 184,185, page 224,225).
He offers a very rational interpretation of verse 228 of Sura Al-
Bakara. He writes, "It has been further said that the husband has
the same right over his wife as the wife has over her husband. If
both fulfill their duties, family life will be full of happiness. Man has
a degree over woman means that a man's responsibilities are a
degree greater. In Sura Nisa, ayat 34, man has been said to be a
kawwam or maintainer" (Tafsirul Quran, note no. 181, Sura
Bakara).
He expresses the view that it was not lawful to have sexual
relations with female slaves except through marriage. He writes, "A
section of Ulama think that in this ayat no instruction has been
given to marry female slaves. They think that female slaves can be
used in any manner on the basis of ownership, no marriage is
necessary for this. I declare emphatically that this opinion is
against the general principles of Islam and the principles laid
down in the Quran. This is nothing but an extremely bad opinion."
(Ref: Tafsirul Quran, Sura Nisa, note no.7, page - 580).
Then Moulana Akram Khan elaborated his opinion in the next two pages where
he also gives a long quotation of Imam Razi(Ahkamul Quran,vol-2,page-56).
.
This tafsir authored by Maulana Muhammad Akram Khan is an
excellent Tafsir in every respect. It bears similarities with the tafsir
titled The Message of the Qura'n by Muhammad Asad. Maulana
Akram Khan can be said to be the Asad of South Asia in the field of
tafsir though they probably did not meet each other. Some might not approve
of his rationalist style of exegesis.
However, the reader of his commentary is compelled to
acknowledge that every opinion in his tafsir is buttressed by
superb reasoning. This tafsir should be reprinted, translated into
other languages especially those prevalent in the subcontinent
such as Urdu and Hindi, and circulated widely for the benefit of
researchers and lay educated people alike.
*Former secretary, government of Bangladesh and Chairman of
Bangladesh Institute of Islamic Thought)
Acknowledgments: This article has been translated from Bangla
into English by my students Shakil, Salehin, and Mosiuzzaman.
***************************************************************************
{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom
(i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue
with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone
astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.}
(Holy Quran-16:125)
{And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in
His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites
(men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I
am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33)
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if
Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of
camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim]
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever
calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who
follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all."
[Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah]
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