B i s m i l l a a h i r R a h m a a n i r R a h e e m
Teachings of the Qur'aan
Al-Qalam
Soorah 68:8-16
Teachings and Commentary
Ayub A. Hamid
Teachings and Commentary
In the hope that the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam
would yield under pressure or at least compromise his strict stand against
their evils and their idolatry, the Makkan chiefs were putting extreme pressure
on him. The Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam had so far resisted every
kind of pressure without any emotional reaction and without any slow down in
his work or compromise in his stance. However, the Makkans continued to hope
that if they increased the intensity of their opposition, at some point he
would break down. The next two verses dashed their hopes. They commanded the
Prophet not to yield to them in any instance, thus letting the Makkan chiefs
know that none of their pressure was going to work because the Prophet was not
allowed to yield. It was on similar occasions that the Prophet told the Makkans
that he could not stop working for his mission or soften his stance just as the
sun could not stop shining or make its shine any cooler.
8 So do not yield to the rejecters. 9 They would have had you
soften, so that they may soften.
Verse 9 exposes their true motives. Their opposition to the
mission of the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam was not based on any
principles. All their opposition and pressure tactics were intended just to
make him soften his efforts and compromise his strict stand against their evil
behaviour and their idolatry. It was to compel him to bargain and arrive at
some compromising position through give and take. They knew that he was not a
mad man. Had he been a mad man promoting crazy ideas, there was no sense in
arriving at a give and take proposition. In reality they knew that there was
nothing wrong with him or his message. They just wanted him to become soft and
compromising in his message of reformation, so that they could save face,
maintain their egos and continue doing the evils they were doing.
There is an important lesson to be learned here. There must
never be any give or take on the matters of principles or beliefs of Deen[1].
It is hypocritical on the part of both parties: those who expect a compromise
and those who make a compromise. This lesson especially needs to be noted by
the Muslim masses who see themselves between two groups of people: One group
standing up for the pure Islamic principles and the other group opposing them.
In such situations, the masses usually put pressure on the Muslims who want to
live by pure Islamic principles and expect them to soften up, become
accommodating and not to be a hardliner, etc. On the other hand, Muslims must
also be vigilant about those people who confuse the principle of Deen with the
provision and rules of Sharee'ah and want everyone to follow their version of
the Sharee'ah as the only truth. No softening up or compromise or accommodation
is allowed on the principles of Deen, while there can be quite a bit of
flexibility, accommodation and adaptation on the rules of Sharee'ah.
The next few verses portray the character sketch of those who
were calling him a mad man and pressuring him to compromise. This was described
so that Makkans could recognize evil traits in the people who were opposing the
Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam and mentally contrast them against the
superb character of the Prophet mentioned earlier.
Some people think that it is the description of a certain
chief who could be recognized by these features without having to mention his
name. Their opinion is based on the use of singular words, mention of being
base-born and use of single pronoun while mentioning branding in verse 16.
Others think that it was a typical description of the collective character of
the chiefs of the Quraish who had banded together to oppose him. They give
three reasons for their opinion: firstly, this description starts with "and" as
a continuation of the point made in verse 8 where "rejecters" was plural;
secondly, this verse uses the word "every" which is not fitting if this was the
description of one particular person; and thirdly, the example given (verses
17-32) immediately after this description also uses the plural pronoun at the
very start of verse 17. They think the use of singular words and pronouns has
been made because the description is of a typical collective personality, not
persons individually.
In any case, this character sketch further exposed the real
reason for the chiefs' opposition to the Prophet and some of the dirty tactics
stemming from such evil characteristics that were used against the Prophet sall
Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. It was now up to the Makkans to choose whom they
preferred to listen to.
10 And, heed not every worthless habitual swearer, 11 a
mocker by gestures, going about with malicious gossip, 12 hindering charity,
transgressing beyond limits, shirking obligations, 13 cruel, and besides all
that, a base-born. 14 Just because he has wealth and sons. 15 When Our
revelations are recited to him, he says, "Mere fables of the earlier people."
The personality sketch mentions the following traits:
§ Low esteem and credibility, hence, frequent
resorting to oaths to convince people to believe him - the Makkan chiefs would
swear profusely to convince people that the Prophet was mad or possessed.
§ Excessive use of mocking gestures, verbal put downs
and derogatory remarks to dishonour a person - the Makkan leaders would use
this tactic when the Prophet presented his message in public.
§ Spreading malicious gossip - for character
assassination of another person or making people fight. This technique was used
to spread misgivings about the Prophet and to cause rifts and misunderstandings
among Muslims.
§ Hindering charity - being miserly and uncharitable
as well as discouraging others from giving charity and doing selfless goodness.
"Khair" means good as well as wealth. According to some commentators, here it
particularly refers to wealth which they withhold from spending on the poor and
needy, and discourage others from dong so.
§ Transgressing beyond limits - Abusing others'
rights, being excessive and exceeding all limits.
§ Shirking obligations - "Atheem" is the one who
continually shirks one's obligations to God, society, relatives or family.
§ Cruel - "'Utull" means one who is quarrelsome,
aggressive, stone-hearted, violent and cruel.
§ Base-born - "Zaneem" is someone who is from a lower
class family but pretends or falsely presents himself to be from a higher
class. Such people socialize and associate themselves with whoever they
consider to be more influential or higher class, indulge in flattery of that
elite class while vocally opposing and belittling those who differ in principle
with such elite - all this in their efforts to be included in that class and to
prove that they are the most loyal champions for the cause of that powerful and
influential class[2].
Verse 14 "Just because he has wealth and sons" is making
three points:
1. People should not yield to or be influenced by such
evil personalities just because they are powerful and wealthy. Having many sons
who could fight alongside the father carried huge weight in Arabian society. In
those days, many people were influenced by the rich and powerful just as
today's people follow rich and famous celebrities. Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala
wants people to make a decision about who to follow or listen to on the basis
of their character, not on the basis of their wealth and power.
2. They have adopted such a vicious personality because
of their wealth and resources. They use corrupt and cruel practices in amassing
wealth, in protecting it and increasing it; and those dirty traits become a
part of their personality. Also, based on their wealth and resources, they
think they are important and deserve to be recognized and followed as leaders.
To this end, they adopt evil tactics listed above. If they perceive someone to
be a threat to their aspirations, they become vicious and use any and all
immoral techniques and tactics to discredit him.
3. Because of their wealth and resources, they become
arrogant, summarily discounting even serious matters brought up by others
without due diligence on their merit. Their rejection of the message of the
Qur-aan was not because they had given it its due consideration and reflected
upon it rationally, it was because of this arrogance. When the Qur-aan warned
them about the consequences of their behaviour using example of the previous
nations, the said Makkan chiefs snubbed the Qur-aanic anecdotes as "fables of
the earlier people", instead of thinking and reflecting on the gravity of the
matter.
The next verse concludes the mention of such people who were
opposing the message of the Qur-aan because of their pride, arrogance and
egoism, with a reminder of the consequence of such behaviour. They are being
warned that they would soon be humiliated both in this world and particularly
in the Hereafter.
16 Soon We will brand him on the snout!
Just as "having one's nose in the air" in English is an
expression to indicate display of one's arrogance, "having a big nose" in
Arabic indicates inflated pride and ego. As the core motive behind their
opposition to the Prophetic message was their pride and egos which were
excessively strong, their noses have been called snouts or "Khurtoom" (elephant
trunk). Their humiliation is termed "branding on their snouts".
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[1] Principles or beliefs of Deen must not be confused with
the rules and regulation of Sharee'ah or Fiqh, wherein there can be much
flexibility under the right conditions.
[2] Islam does not recognize or endorse division of human
beings into classes. This mention is only to portray the mentality of those who
were opposing the Prophet.
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Copyright © 2008 Ayub A. Hamid
All rights reserved
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other rights, which are reserved.
Note: This series is providing the teachings of the Qur'aan,
not a literal translation. Instead of literal translation, it gives
interpretive meanings of the verses, along with their contextual details.
Please remember that any translation of the Holy Qur'aan is in fact only an
expression of the translator's understanding of the Word of Allaah Subhaanahu
wa Ta'aala, and hence cannot be equated with the Qur'aan itself. Only the
original Arabic text can be called the Holy Qur'aan.
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Ustaadz Ayub A. Hamid is a visionary and strategic Islamic
thinker residing in Canada for the last 33 years. His recently published books
are:
1. Islam - Does It Make Sense?
2. Unveiling the Commands-The Truth about Hijaab, Khimaar
and Jilbaab.
3. Finding A Soulmate - A Guide for Parents and Youth.
4. A Book Unlike Any Other.
5. Islam - Adopting Its Paradigms.
6. Exploring the Islamic Beliefs.
http://soundvisioncanada.com/shop/pbrowse.asp?Pg=3&Cat=10004
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The following soowar 'Teachings of the Qur'aan' series by
Ustaadz Ayub A. Hamid, are available on request:-
Al Faatihah
Al Baqarah
Aali 'Imraan
A Nisaa'
Al Maaidah
Al An'aam
Al A'raaf
Al Anfaal
At Teen
Al`Alaq
Al Qadr
Al Bayyinah
Al Zilzaal
Al Aadiyatt
Al Qaari`ah
At Takaathur
Al`Asr
Al Humazah
Al Feel
Al Quraish
Al Maa`oon
Al-Kowthar
Al Kaafiroon
Al Nasr
Al Lahab
Al Ikhlaas
Al Falaq
An Naas
Al Mulk - Aayaat 1-4/5-15/16-30
Al Qalam - Aayaat 1-7
K a r i m a
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